For the Love of the Church

In this special musical presentation from For the Love of the Church, Caleb and Dave tell a very serious, very ridiculous, and strangely convicting story about podcasting, recognition, jealousy, pride, and one unforgettable monkey named Brother Uncle Deacon. What begins as a celebration of the church and the growth of the podcast slowly turns into a cautionary tale about comparison, selfish ambiti...

In the final episode of season six, Caleb and Dave conclude their discussion of Christlikeness by walking expositionally through Galatians 5:13–26. The ideal Christian does not use freedom in Christ as an excuse for the flesh. Instead, through love, he serves others. Paul shows that the Christian life is not lived by self-effort, legalism, or fleshly desire, but by walking in the Spirit. This epis...

In this episode of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by talking about prayer. Prayer can feel mysterious, difficult, and even confusing at times. If God is sovereign and already knows everything, why do we pray? Yet Scripture repeatedly calls believers to pray, bringing our requests, thanksgiving, praises, needs, burdens, and concerns before the Lord. Looking a...

In episode six of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by talking about the believer's time in the Word. The Bible is not merely something Christians read to check a box. It is God's sufficient, inspired, and life-shaping Word. It teaches us who God is, who we are, how to view the world, how to fight sin, and how to grow toward maturity in Christ. Looking at passa...

In episode five of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by talking about what it means to be proactively present in the lives of others. A Christlike believer does not simply wait for problems to explode and then react. Instead, he shows up, builds trust, encourages, prays, helps, confronts when necessary, and walks with others before the crisis comes. Looking at...

In episode four of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by talking about why Christians need one another. God did not design believers to live as spiritual mavericks. We need other Christians to encourage us, strengthen us, correct us, carry burdens with us, and walk beside us as we follow Christ. Looking at passages like Ecclesiastes 4, Philippians 1, Amos 3, and...

In episode three of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by talking about active listening. Listening is more than waiting for your turn to talk. It is an act of love, humility, and care. A Christlike believer listens to understand, listens before answering, and listens with a heart willing to be corrected by God's Word. Looking at passages like James 1, Proverbs...

In episode two of season six, Caleb and Dave continue their discussion of Christlikeness by looking at humility. What is humility? It is not pretending to be worthless, and it is not quietly fishing for compliments. Biblical humility begins with a right view of God, a right view of ourselves, and a right view of others. Looking at passages like Philippians 2, James 4, and 1 Peter 5, this episode e...

Season 6 of For the Love of the Church begins with a simple but searching question: What does Christlikeness actually look like? In this episode, Caleb and Dave introduce the theme of the season and begin with the first mark of the ideal Christian: love. Looking at passages like Romans 13:14, 1 Corinthians 13, James 1:26–27, John 13, and Ephesians 4:15, they discuss biblical love, servant-hearted...

Let's talk attention spans—big and small. How do we teach kids to sit through sermons with grace and curiosity? And how do we disciple adults to not roll their eyes at annual church meetings? You might be surprised what Scripture says about enduring… and engaging.

Spreadsheets and stewardship—this episode looks at the vital (and often awkward) ministry of managing church money. How can we glorify God with wise budgeting, transparent processes, and faith-filled giving?

You know what doesn't get a lot of love? The saint who unclogs toilets, prints 80 bulletins, or repaints the youth room. But these hidden ministries reveal a servant's heart. We'll highlight the beauty in being "the hands and feet" in very literal ways.

Is your men's ministry just a BBQ with a side of Bible? This episode asks how we can disciple men into spiritual leadership—not just event attendance—and raise up men who serve with depth and direction.

It's not just about potlucks and Pinterest boards. How can we develop women's ministries that are biblically rich, theologically sound, and practically supportive? Let's reimagine what it means for women to disciple one another and serve the church.

Behind every good worship service is a team juggling chords, cables, and tech gremlins. From worship leaders to soundboard warriors, we talk about serving the body through music and tech with excellence, humility, and a whole lot of troubleshooting.

Teenagers are adults in beta mode, and college students are figuring out if church really matters post-high school. This episode tackles how to connect, disciple, and keep this group engaged when they're asking big questions and exploring big freedoms.

What do you get when you mix goldfish crackers, awkward tween energy, glue sticks, and grace? The most foundational ministry of the church. But too often, kids and middle school ministry is treated like glorified babysitting. We'll explore how to cultivate gospel-centered, age-appropriate discipleship and find joy in the long haul—even with boogers and bad attitudes.

An overview of a biblical guide to choosing God's shepherds.

So what happens if your church has a group of elders and one or more are paid by the church and one or more are not? What happens if some of the men think their only job is to show up and make decisions and the actual role of pastoring should be done by other people, namely the paid guys? Is this a problem? Is this healthy? Is this what the Bible teaches?

Should a group of qualified guys run the church? In other words should they have all the power without accountability by the congregation? If so, what does that look like? How do we ensure that these men do not abuse their authority? What does the Bible say about this?

Should your church be led by a group of qualified men? How should they engage with the congregation and the deacons when it comes to decision-making? Should they lead or should the congregation or deacons lead the church? What does this model look like?

Two important words that need to be considered in the discussion of polity are the words, plurality and parity. Plurality means more than one and parity means equality. How do these two words play out in a healthy church model?

Pastors come and go and congregants can't be trusted to make good decisions, so the deacons should be in charge of the church and be able to make all decisions. This is the philosophy of some people in churches, but is it the right philosophy? What responsibility should the deacons have in the church? Do they tell the pastor to preach and they will run everything else?

Should we hand over the entire authority of the church to one man? Should the Head Pastor be able to make unilateral decisions? If so, which ones? Should there be any checks and balances for the Head Pastor? If so, what would those be?

Is the congregation solely responsible for the running of the church? What does it look like to have a congregation be completely in charge? Is this what the Bible teaches?