Redemption HOU podcast

# Genesis 1# Big Ideas- We’re in Genesis 1 because this is where everyone talks about gender- Adam = Human, it refers to both male and female- Helper is used most often to refer to God, it isn’t a term of lowering or denigration- There is no one named Eve until after the fall- They are referred to as ish and isha, names that intentionally show the sameness of male and female - Adam names her as he...

# Genesis 2:4b-9, 15-18# Big Ideas- God made us to rule along with him- Helper = partner, co-creator - Can’t mean “lesser” or “subservient” because it’s most often used to describe God- Before loneliness is felt or articulated, God sees the solitude of man. Something is wrong. So he fixes it.- Many of us have been told that religion is a private thing, that the most important thing for us is just...

# Genesis 1:1-2:3# Big Ideas- Context changes how we understand things- We don’t think science and scripture are in conflict# Reading Genesis- The biggest thing to understand when approaching Genesis is that it is responding to the other belief systems around it. - In order to get what the writers of Genesis are trying to tell their audience, we need to see where they agree, and where they disagre...

Genesis 1Big Ideas- This is Hebrew poetry- Modern christianity doesn’t know what to do with the resurrection- When we divorce physical and spiritual life, we don’t have any use for resurrection- We call death “life”, pretend it’s not a bad thing- Contemporary Christian Music is sunshine and rainbows, the only theme is victory - Secularism is YOLO, there is no spiritual life, so nothing matters- Re...

Mark 16:1-8Questions - What does the resurrection of Jesus mean for you?- What does it change for you if humble love really does win?- Does this news that humble love conquers death cause trembling and ecstasy for you?- If not, why do you think that is? Questions - Recast in your own mind, Worship the god who was made one with you, one spirit with you, converging permanently with you - How have yo...

Big Ideas - We tend to hear that God is love, but also that the cross is where his judgement boiled over and he had to punish someone. - We want to hold up the cross as central to our understanding of God’s love. - The Father ABSOLUTELY DID NOT turn his face away from Jesus on the cross - God is, first and foremost, a relationship. It’s the first thing the early church stated when describing God....

Big Ideas - Mark 15:16-32 - The story of Good Friday is split up into 3 sections, each with its own focus or lens - This lens is humiliation. Mark is focusing on the mockery that Jesus suffered. - The physical pain of the crucifixion is only given one sentence in Mark’s account - If Physical suffering was the point of Jesus’ crucifixion, it would have gotten more explanation in the story - Crucifi...

# Big Ideas- Grace is free, and entirely from God’s initiative- Jesus is bold in front of his accusers. He is forcing their hand. - Jesus is giving himself up- This phrase in Greek is “paradidomi”- This word occurs 7 times in Chapter 14, translated there as “betrayed”- Same word for what the priests and Pilate do. Handed over. - In Mark, Jesus was “handed over”- God hands Jesus over- Jesus hands h...

# Big Ideas- Grace is completely free- Grace has nothing to do with your intentions, attitude, faithfulness. It only has to do with the initiative of God- God’s action, and absolutely free- Mark 14:66-72- Peter is at risk just being in the courtyard - The girl is as marginalized as possible, completely powerless - Jesus is in front of the most powerful - Peter is drifting away from Jesus (moving t...

# Big Ideas- Mark 14:53-65- The authorities decided they need to remove the threat of Jesus, they are rushing to make a reason and finish eliminating him before the festival starts. - Why? Because Jesus is threatening their entire system.- I am. I am the one who rules over you. - You can trust Jesus. He has the power to take care of all you needs. # Questions- Am I willing to give up any of my pow...

# Big Ideas- Mark 14:43-52- Can we trust Jesus?- There are going to be times when it feels like the darkness has won- In those moments, it feels like God isn't with us- Even in the darkness, hold on to Jesus. Hes is with us in it.- Violence does not overcome violence. It perpetuates it. - In darkness, Jesus shows relentless obedience to the Father, obedience to love no matter what.- We stay in the...

Big Ideas - Many of us believe that we are saved by having right theology - We want to have the attitude that, “Things are hard and dark, but they’re being made right.” - We’re just like Peter. - Peter repeatedly denies Jesus. - Jesus’ response is to ask Peter to come pray with him, to give him company in his time of need. - Jesus asks the Father for something he knows he won’t get. - For all our...

Big Ideas - Mark 14:26, Psalm 113-118 - We see little snippets of God’s character in Jesus’ life - Jesus sings - This is how Jesus chooses to spend his last night, singing hymns with his friends - Redemption started as a place that was safe for cynics and doubters (it still is). For a lot of us, it’s scarier to sing, to pray, to be vulnerable in our joy - Traditionally, Jews sang Psalm 113-118. Th...

Big Ideas - Mark 14:12-25 - Jesus is sharing the Passover meal with the Disciples - Passover is the promise of deliverance to an oppressed people - There is no lamb, because Jesus is the lamb - There are no bitter herbs, because Jesus is liberating us from our oppression - “This is my body” means “This is all of me, body, mind, and soul, and it’s for you.” - Jesus’ liberation is NEVER only spiritu...

Big Ideas - Mark 4:1-11 - Real worship - I’m demonstrating that Jesus is worth everything to me, he means so much to me - Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were real people that Jesus really loved - Jesus raised her brother from the dead - Of Mary, “What she had, she did.”Questions - Have you ever felt shamed for “worshipping wrong”? - Have you ever judged someone else for doing it? - What has been your m...

Big Ideas - Colossians 2:6-20 - The religious stuff is dumb. - What you need is direct connection to God - You need liberation from the powers around you pushing you to harm shalom - This comes through union with Jesus. Through being made one with him, living in him as he lives in you - The goal of the Christian life, full maturity, is dependence - This is counter to what we tend to see as maturit...

Big Ideas - Colossians 3:4-11 - These lists are examples of ways we destroy shalom - Paul says “put to death” the old practices - Sin isn’t just what we do, it’s part of who we are - God’s wrath “is coming” against sin. It is already being experienced, not merely a future promise. Already, not in full yet. - God’s wrath comes against the destruction of shalom. - Shalom means wholeness, everything...

Psalm 63Big Ideas - You have a soul - There is great depth in every human - If we have that depth, we can connect with the Divine - Seeing God changes us - OUR SOULS CAN FEAST IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD - Find rest for your soul in deep relationshipsQuestions - Do you have a soul? - If true, what does that change? - How much of your struggle and havoc in life is a result of soul neglect? - If your cir...

Big Ideas - Every person is God’s child - You are always in him - Your life is for himQuestions - How do these ideas sit with you? - Do you believe that everyone is a child of God? - Do you feel like you move, breathe, do everything, always, constantly in God’s presence? - What would be different for you if it were true?

Paul seems to think that we can. This important message sheds light on a mistranslation that might be making it difficult to understand how we can be sinners and saved at the same time.

Big Ideas - The Magnificat is a message that is ONLY for the hopeless - Our paradigm is stuck on karma, which is the reverse of grace - God is not coming to flex and switch who is on the naughty list. He is fixing everything with love, there is no naughty list. - The cross perfectly expressed the Magnificat’s message. The richest and most powerful person was emptied and cast down. - God is humble....

Big Ideas - The gospel is toppling the kingdom, good news to the poor, down with the rich - The gospel has everything to do with material reality - Most of us have given up on the hope of Mary and Jesus - Hope isn’t optimism, it’s confident expectation that God is up to something Good - Mary’s confidence came from experiencing that God noticed her - Let’s reject our cynicism, and start moving towa...

Notes - Luke 1:46-55 - First Sunday of Advent - God is up to something. God is active. God is real. Praise God. - Mary is a major character in the NT. - What we believe about how Jesus will return reveals a lot about what we think of the character of God. Questions - Mary is a major character - what is she like? - What do you think it’s going to be like when Jesus comes back? - How do you feel lik...

Notes- Mark 12:41-44- If Jesus is giving more than a participation award for the widow, we need to look more closely at this story.- Why was she celebrated by Jesus? Because she's an embodiment of the kingdom lessons Jesus has been sharing the past few chapters in Mark (contra the scribes from last week).- This widow gave enough, despite what anyone else might have thought--Jesus sees things diffe...

Big Ideas - Mark 12:35-37 - God isn’t afraid of questions. Neither are we. - Jesus is saying “look out for the religious experts” - Jesus is the clearest picture of God - God is humble. He emptied himself to serve. - Religious leaders who aren’t humble don’t understand him. Questions - Who are some religious authorities or voices that you have relied on or listened to for learning more about what...