Park Hill Church Podcast

From our series "Acts." Acts 6-7 are two chapters almost entirely focused on the life of one person: Stephen. He's not a full time pastor. He's not one of the Apostles. He's not one of the professional church people. He's a normal church member who becomes one of the most extraordinary lives in the history of the Church. He's also the first Christian martyr. What is the secret of Stephen's power a...

From our series "Acts." As the church continues to grow, problems start to arise. In Acts 6, the Greek-speaking Jewish Christian widows are getting overlooked by what is likely the majority culture (Aramaic-speaking Jewish Christians) within the church. But the Holy Spirit begins moving in this new church, and the result is beautiful. Because the whole church has the power of the Spirit, they are...

It's Easter 2024. We are continuing in our series "Acts." Here in Acts 5, the connection to the Easter story is too good to miss. The apostles are in prison for preaching the resurrection. They've been publicly shamed by Jewish leaders. These apostles have every reason to be crippled by fear of the unknown. But they aren't afraid. It's as if they're expecting a heavenly being to pass through their...

Matt Pursley gives a teaching at our special Palm Sunday gathering for all ages.

From our series "Acts." For many Bible readers, Acts chapter 5 is famously considered one of the most troubling texts in all of scripture. In this narrative, a couple named Ananias and Sapphira die... seemingly, for lying. But things are more than they seem. And the result of this tragic moment in church history is that the "fear of God" grips the hearts of the whole church, which in turn leads to...

From our series "Acts." In the unfolding events of Acts 3–4, we witness the first significant conflict between the kingdom of God and the kingdoms of this world. Peter and John are interrogated by the authorities for preaching the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. How they respond to their earthly authorities (and how their Church community responds to their response) reveals much about how follo...

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, Evan Wickham walks us through our second practice: fasting. The spiritual practice of fasting from food played a crucial role in the launching of Jesus' ministry as well as the most important moments of key decision-making in the early church. So, this rai...

From our series "Acts." As the disciples proclaim Jesus’ name with power and authority, the religious leaders recognize that although the disciples were uneducated, ordinary men, they had obviously been with Jesus. They were beginning to talk like him, act like him, and do the miraculous things he did. As Jesus' disciples today, we are called to impact our world the same was his first disciples di...

From our series "Acts." Here in chapter 3, we read the account of the first miraculous healing in the early church. Peter and John see a man unable to walk from birth, and they proceed to heal the man by God's power in Jesus' name. This story raises so many questions for us—namely, does God still heal like this today? Did Jesus really command his followers to continue doing all his healing work th...

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, David Wade walks us through the first practice: reading scripture. The Bible tells the story of God’s acts through history to save and rescue a people for himself. Not only is the Bible this kind of story, but it's also a living word, alive and powerful, t...

This is a live recording of our final House of Learning event from 2023 (Nov 26). When Park Hill leadership asked our people what areas of the Christian faith they would most like to learn about, several responded: “Church history.” So, this final House of Learning is entitled "Christian History Before Power.” The goal of the night was to share a meal and humbly learn from the first 300 years of c...

From our series "Acts." Acts chapter 2 shows us what happened the day the Church was born, and the apostle Peter gives the first sermon in Church history. His message: The long-awaiting Day of the Lord has come! Now the power of heaven is unleashed on earth, creating new ways of being human, leading to the complete restructuring of human society around King Jesus. So rethink everything! This is wh...

From our series "Acts." Acts chapter two is one of the most well known parts of the Bible, and for good reason. It's the moment the entire Old Testament was longing for: When God's personal presence comes to rest within the hearts of everyone, from every nation and culture, who pledges allegiance to Jesus as king. But when the Holy Spirit comes, what's the first thing he compels the first Christia...

Introducing our series "Acts." Park Hill Church will be in the book of Acts for most of 2024. The core concept of the book: The people of God—the Church—are people empowered by God’s Spirit on God’s mission to expand God’s kingdom in the world now. The Holy Spirit gives God’s people the ability to accomplish God’s mission. Join us as we watch (and follow) the first church following Jesus into the...

In this teaching, we wrap up Justice Week at Park Hill Church. It’s also the eve of MLK Day, a day our culture has set aside to commemorate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., a Baptist minister and prominent leader who helped bring hope and healing to America in the name of Jesus. In that spirit of biblical justice in the way of Jesus, we are honored to have David M. Bailey preaching t...

As we take in the grand story of scripture, two things become clear: (1) Jesus is the Voice of God that pierces the darkness of our sin and offers the forgiveness, belonging and healing that every human heart longs for. And all who rejoice in Jesus' authority and goodness get to be part of the New Creation that he is bringing forever. And (2) the flipside is just as clear: All who resist the autho...

From our series "Advent 2023." This is the third Sunday of Advent, traditionally calld "Rejoice Sunday!" But if we're honest, we have mixed feelings about joy at Christmastime. During the holidays, our culture is shouting at us to be happy and feel the Christmas spirit, which only highlights the very real grief and difficulties that we all experience. This is why the topic of joy can be tough, esp...

From our series "Advent 2023." AJ Swoboda visits Park Hill Church for the second Sunday of Advent. In this teaching, AJ leads us in reflecting on the life of Joseph the husband of Mary, mother of Christ. Joseph is a fascinating and often ignored figure in both our nativity scenes as well as our study of scirpture. But today, Joseph takes center stage, and as he does, he actually leads all of us to...

“Are You Anxious? Come to Me.” – Jesus What is anxiety? Why do I feel anxious? How do I deal with it? This is a live recording of our House of Learning from Sunday night, October 29th, all about 'Mental Health and Faith', led by Pastor and Marriage and Family Therapist Greg Piken. In this episode, you will get a basic understanding of why you feel anxious and learn a variety of practices that will...

From our series "Advent 2023." Terry Fouche visits Park Hill Church. He imparts a vision for listening to a God who is good and desires to speak to his children. Advent is a time for waiting. It's difficult to wait, especially when we experience pain and suffering. But God is good and desires to speak to his family, always.

This is the final episode of our 7-part “Godbreathed” interview series. Author and pastor John Mark Comer visits the Park Hill podcast to discuss his journey with Jesus, his relationship with God and scripture, and what it means to be spiritually formed in the way of Jesus. Evan Wickham interviews John Mark on how to engage with our polarized culture without losing our souls, how to faithfully rea...

Erika Mellado, on of the elders of Park Hill Church, preaches on Christ the King Sunday. When Jesus calls his disciples and begins to teach them, he teaches them all about what it means to live under his kingdom. This is where many of us start to struggle today. Many of us are OK with the idea of Jesus being the Creator and our teacher, but we're less comfortable with him being our King and author...

This is Part 6 of our "Godbreathed" Interview series, with Dr. Lynn Cohick. Does the Bible teach that women and men are to lead God's church as co-equal image bearers of Christ and spiritual fathers and mothers within Christ's Body? Dr. Lynn Cohick answers with a huge yes. Dr. Cohick is part of the NLT Bible Translation Committee, with special focus on the Gospel and Acts. She has written The Lett...

How we tell time determines who we are. This is why Christians, those who know they are the loved daughters and sons of the living God, have been telling time by way of the Christian calendar for centuries. Calendar creates culture. Humbly living in and out of the Christian calendar is a powerful way to “number our days” as a Spirit-led community in San Diego—and remind ourselves who we are. We be...

Dr. Sandy Richter (PhD Harvard) is the real life Indiana Jones. She's an Ancient Near Eastern linguist and archaeologist. She can read original Old Testament Hebrew better than most of us read English, which is probably why she’s one of the few women on the NIV Bible Translation Committee. In Part 5 of our Godbreathed interview series, Evan Wickham asks Dr. Richter how she stumbled from lost to be...