Park Hill Church Podcast

From our series "Acts." In chapter 20, Paul says goodbye to the church that he built for 3 years. Missy Bell shares insights from this passage on how we can learn what it means to be a disciple maker, one who counts the cost to live in the Way of Jesus.

From our series “Acts.” In chapter 19, the kingdom of God comes in direct conflict with the kingdom of darkness. This is a power encounter we should pay attention to. As we watch this story unfold, we see how God is the Master of repurposing evil for good. He then graciously invites his children to repent of our sin and renounce our agreements with darkness. As we do so, we get to walk in the powe...

From our series “Acts.” At the beginning of chapter 19, Luke (the author of Acts) wants us to remember the identity of the main character of the story. It’s not Paul or Peter or any of the other Apostles. The main character is the Person of the Holy Spirit. And that same Person is with us today, ready to fill us with the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and animated the first Christians...

From our series “Acts.” As followers of Jesus, we believe God is a speaking God. In Acts 18, we see God speaking powerfully to the Apostle Paul in his time of trouble. But does God still speak to us today in that same way? Why can it be so difficult to hear God speak? When we think we’re hearing God speak, what if we’re wrong? What about seasons of dry spirituality, when we’re longing to hear God’...

From our series “Acts.” In chapter 18, we discover a beautiful picture of married couples and singles partnering together for the kingdom in the most beautiful ways. Married couple Priscilla and Aquila not only work alongside the unmarried Paul and Apollos, but they welcome them into their home and become a base of support for their powerful ministries. In our current epidemic of loneliness and is...

Author and broadcaster Justin Brierley visits Park Hill for the last stop of his ‘Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God’ West Coast tour. Justin has hosted interviews and dialogues with many of the world’s leading intellectuals, both skeptical and believing alike. In this talk, Justin outlines how the conversations around skepticism, belief, and faith have developed over the past two decades. After...

From our series “Acts.” Justin Brierley visits Park Hill Church with a timely message. He believes we could be on the cusp of another Jesus Revolution in our time. How should we prepare? According to Justin, we would be wise to follow the example of Paul in Acts 17. By the way we live and in the words we say, we should make the watching world wish that Christianity were true.

Pastor and professor Guy Gray visits Park Hill with a timely message about the intersection of doubt, faith, and evidence in our relationship with God.

As we take a break from our series in Acts, Missy Bell looks back to Acts 5:12-16. In addition to being a Park Hill member, Missy is the Programs Director of Olive Crest, an organization that believes in transforming the lives of at-risk youth through the healing power of God, family, and community. As Missy walks us through the passage, she reminds us that serving vulnerable people was meant to b...

As we take a break from our series in Acts, David Wade, lead pastor of All Saints Church, walks us through 1 John 4:13-18. How we relate to God so often depends on what we believe he is really like, or how we think he really feels about us. Are we expectant of love? Or anticipating punishment? Thankfully, in the midst of our fear, uncertainty, and even our failures, we meet a Savior who gets low,...

As we take a break from our series in Acts, Luis Mellado shares insights from James 5:17-18. In addition to being an elder at Park Hill Church, Luis is the Regional Director of the Global Leadership Summit for all Spanish-speaking countries, where he oversees hundreds of pastor and leader conferences across Latin America. As Luis walks us through the passage, he discusses how we are all capable of...

From our series "Acts." Paul finds himself in Athens, surrounded by idols. The idols make him angry—but not for reasons we might think. Paul knows that idol worship leads to the dehumanization of the idol worshiper. And he's deeply grieved at how much this dehumanization is happening in this city. But instead of condemnation, Paul gets curious. Instead of irrational anger, Paul engages people with...

From our series "Acts."  What are we praying for when we ask God to "open doors" for us? Do we really know? What does an open door from God look like? And should we walk through every open door, even if it really is opened by God? Not according to Paul in Acts 16. This fascinating story lights the way. Apparently, it's about something far better than any open door we could ever ask for—and it's av...

From our series "Acts." Who belongs in God's family? This is the question that prompted the very first church conference which we read about in Acts 15. Certain Jewish Christians were telling Gentile Christians they had to essentially become Jewish to be saved and belong at the table of Jesus. But Paul, Barnabas, Peter and James disagree. This family is for everyone, regardless of background, who...

From our series "Acts." Matthieu Rouffet unpacks the turbulent story of Acts 14. Paul and Barnabas experience both extreme highs and extreme lows on their journey. But somehow, they manage to remain in a state of joy. How is this possible? Could the same Holy Spirit that empowered their joy be available to us?

From our series "Acts." Aleah Pursley walks us through Acts 13 and the Apostle Paul's first recorded sermon, which is a stunning vision of the Risen Jesus.

From our series "Acts." As the first half of Acts comes to an end, Luke (author of Acts) highlights the dramatic conflict between the kingdoms of the earth and the kingdom of God. While human governments and politicians vie for temporary power, the true King of kings and President of presidents is and will always be a slain Lamb on a throne at the center of the universe who reigns over every human...

From our series "Acts." Cataclysmic newsflash: The Gentiles are in! In Acts 10–11, for the first time ever, Gentiles are coming to faith God through Jesus, repenting of sin, and receiving the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. But the Jewish Christians have a concern: how could Peter the Jew be eating with uncircumcised Gentiles?! This was a problem. Thankfully, Gentile inclusion was alwa...

From our series "Acts." In chapter 9, we come to one of the most famous stories in the Bible. It's the story of Paul's encounter with the risen Jesus which changed him forever. This wasn't just the turning point in Paul's own life, but one of the main turning points of human history. By reflecting on Paul's story of encountering Jesus, we can learn a ton about how to tell our own Jesus stories. It...

From our series "Acts." Josh White, founding pastor of Door of Hope Church in Portland, OR, visits Park Hill Church to preach a message on Acts 8v26–40. In this text, a Jewish Jesus follower named Philip follows the leading of the Holy Spirit to share the gospel with an influential Ethiopian eunuch. Josh White interweaves his own story with the story of Philip, and the result is a powerful call to...

As we walk through the book of Acts this year, we are also looking at eight practices from Jesus and the early Christians that shaped the life of the Church through time. In this teaching, Evan Wickham walks us through our fourth practice: Sabbath. It's also Pentecost Sunday—the day the Western church celebrates the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus' first disciples in Acts 2. What does Pen...

From our series "Acts." Christianity goes international. As it does, the Holy Spirit proves himself to be the Great Unifier of God's family in Jesus. As mortal enemies turn to Jesus together, they become family around the same table. This is the shocking stuff of the kingdom that turns the world upside down. Isn't this the reconciled, forgiven family we all long to become? Come and see.

From our series "Acts." The church goes international in Acts 8. But not the way anyone expected or wanted. Severe, painful persecution comes upon the first church in Jerusalem, causing everyone but the Apostles to escape into Judea and Samaria. From the human perspective, this is terrible and real suffering. From the divine perspective, God is repurposing terrible evil for near-unimaginable good....

As part of our year in Acts, we are looking at eight different practices from Jesus that shaped the life of the early church. In this teaching, Dan Braga walks us through the third practice: silence and solitude. Jesus was shaped by his rhythmic practice of being still and embracing isolation in order to commune with the Father through the Spirit. So as Jesus followers, we are invited to do the sa...

Rachel Hughes visits Park Hill Church with a timely message for many. Rachel and her husband Tim are pastors of Gas Street Church in Birmingham, UK. Today, Rachel unpacks the story of Hannah in 1 Samuel 1 and 2. The story of Hannah is a beautiful example of what we as God's children are invited to do with our unfulfilled longings. Rather than engaging in spiritual bypassing or caving in to discour...