Second Thoughts with Austin Gentry

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Matthew 22, the political and religious groups of the day band together to question Jesus of the very thing many political and religious groups question Christians of today: defining the right relationship of "church and state," if any. Oftentimes, the question is not sincere, but manipulative - intended to trap the individual instead of to clarif...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Dual citizenship can oftentimes feel like 'dueling' citizenships - because there will come a point when the authorities and expectations of one kingdom will conflict with another. In Jeremiah 29, the people of God find themselves in a new land, under a new king, for a limited time. How will they live in it? And as believers today, how will we live in...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Joshua opens as the people of God reach a definitive end of one era and a very beginning of another. How will they move forward? God speaks to them, 8 words of encouragement for them to take their next step.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Matthew's gospel puts forth two main themes: prophetic fulfillment and God's kingdom. Over the first 26 chapters, those themes unfold like parallel tracks — mirroring one another, carrying the freight of the plot line, and carrying the readers on a journey towards a clear destination.  But by chapter 27, those tracks powerfully converge, where the pr...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | For the people of Israel, everything has come to a head - and they now find themselves at a life-defining point. For 54 chapters, they have tried and trusted everything except God. Now at chapter 55, God meets them in their exhaustion with invitation - where only life can be found.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Matthew 24, Jesus provides His disciples with the main signs of the end times. What are they? And how are we to live in light of it? 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Isaiah 30, God speaks to His people about a coming crisis and their godless response. Just like His people back then, crisis often reveals who we are, where we run to, and what we cling to. Will we spin more webs of our own making, or will we abide in the Rock of Ages?

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus encounters a man who has it all - yet still feels like he is missing something. But he's lacking not a material or social or relational piece to his life - he lacks spiritual assurance; peace; true security. As Jesus uncovers, the man's assumptions are flawed, his heart ruled, and his righteousness insufficient. This man is a story of all of us...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The cross was not just a moment in time, but the fulfillment of all of time. Though many prophesies were fulfilled throughout Jesus' life, many more were fulfilled at the hour of His death. On the cross, all that the Old Testament prepared for... finally came to pass.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | John 4 provides a masterclass of how to effectively evangelize, and it's modeled from the greatest Evangelist Himself. By tracing the nuances, tactics, and trajectory of Jesus' interaction with the woman at the well, we too can find a template for our own evangelism efforts ourselves.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In Matthew 16, Jesus brings the disciples to Caesarea Philippi for one of the most powerful object lessons about who He is and what He has come to do. Jesus' position is clear: we can hope He follows us, or we can hope in and follow Him.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | God's call to give is more than just a 'transaction' - it is a foundation for the Christian life. In giving, we demonstrate a posture of heart to God that is essential for relating rightly with Him: right response, true trust, real devotion, and genuine lordship. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Matthew 11 records three different doubts to Jesus' works and words: i.e., doubts that come from emotion, disposition, and volition. These same doubts persist even to today, carrying the same reasons and responses that people struggle in matters of life and faith. To some, Jesus comforts. To some, Jesus confronts. To others, Jesus condemns.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Prayer is one of the most important spiritual disciplines, but oftentimes, our experience of it can be marked by disillusionment, distraction, and even detachment. Jesus, however, teaches His disciples how to pray, because it's not intuitive for us. His instruction to them back then is the same as it is for us today: not technique mastery, not spiritual m...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Many Christians begin the new year knowing that they should read the Bible, and that it's an important spiritual discipline. But... why? The following audio explores 5 main reasons for why Christians ought to steep themselves in the Word of God regularly. It's more than a just a discipline; it's meant to be our desire and a delight. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Jesus calls His followers "salt" and "light" -- two analogies that were layered with nuance in Israel back then -- framing what it means to be His follower today. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Simeon's song expresses the deep reality and emotional experience of Christmas: the divine tension of glory and suffering, peace and pain, light and conviction, salvation and rejection. Even as a baby, Jesus' presentation at the Temple points to His suffering and glory at the cross as our final Redeemer.

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | From start to finish, the gospel of Matthew broadcasts one message loud and clear: Jesus came to fulfill Israel's covenants and story. In chapters 3-4, Jesus fulfills Israel's covenantal path and wilderness experience. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | As the Israelites are on the cusp of the wilderness and are about to cross into the Promised Land, their leader Moses is on the cusp of life and is about to cross into eternity. And after years of shepherding, he leaves them with famous 'last words' so that they can step confidently into the future God has for them. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Unlike other holidays in our culture or in the church, Christmas is a uniquely musical time of year - and there is a grand reason for why. This is because the original Christmas story in Luke 1-2 resounds with song. Mary, the mother of Jesus, sings a new song - and her reason for singing ought to compel our own. 

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | At the end of 1 Samuel 15, the prophet Samuel is depressed, disappointed, and distressed. Decades of his life, work, and ministry had been geared towards building the kingdom culture of Israel - and in no time at all, Saul's reign had ruined so much hard work. Without a plan forward, Samuel mopes. With too stringent a perspective, Samuel wrestles. But God...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | Deuteronomy is Moses' last words to the people before they take their last step out of the wilderness and their first step into the Promised Land. In Moses' opening address, he repeatedly emphasizes several principles to help move forward in faith: 1) Trust God to move on and move forward; 2) Trust God to fight your battles; 3) Trust God's Words...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The book of Deuteronomy opens as the people of God arrive at the end of their 40-year-long journey in the wilderness, and now reside along the border of Moab and the edge of the Jordan River: right on the cusp of stepping into the Promised Land. As they are right on the cusp of something new, Moses stands before them and speaks - a word of encouragement and ho...

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | The wilderness is not just a place of common complaint and occasional crossroad, but also a place of subtle comprise. In chapter 22, the narrative pans away from the Israelites in the wilderness to an interaction on a hillside directly above them. A place where a prophet compromises, God shows grace, and Israel waits unaware.  

Second Baptist Church - Houston, TX | In 1 Samuel 11, Saul's insecurities seep out once more under pressure, but the Spirit rushes upon him and gives him a newfound preparation, power, and perspective - even forgiveness - to be the king that Israel needs. In this chapter, we're able to see defining characteristics of Spirit-led leadership versus a leadership of the natural man - and how...