Small Town Liturgy

What is Biblical Counseling? It is more than using a few verses or praying at the end of a session. It is trusting in the sufficient, authoritative word of God for anything that a person will encounter in life: the highs and the lows. Listen as Jon and Matt interview Dr. Ernie Baker, who has been involved with Biblical Counseling for nearly 50 years.

Paul says some pretty harsh things about "the law" in his letters. And many Christians are quick to gravitate to those verses when the thou shalts and thou shalt nots are discussed. But perhaps Paul is a little more nuanced. And maybe the rest of the New Testament and the Old should be consulted. This big topic gets a quick overview in today's episode.

A well-loved movie from the 1980s introduced us to the phrase, "You keep saying that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." That sentiment can easily be applied to how our culture (and many Christians) perceive the scripture's treatment of the church and the state. Using the 1689 as a roadmap, Jon and Matt introduce the Bible's teaching on this important topic.

Once again, Jon and Matt are surprising each other with questions. Each of the four topics are relevant to the Christian. More importantly, each can and should be answered from a Biblical worldview. Have a question yourself? Reach out through the link below.

Although this episode is particularly pertinent at the time of recording and release (the beginning of the summer season), the conversation is applicable at all times. Especially in our contemporary western culture, the concepts of vacation and leisure time carry a lot of weight. If Christ is King, how should the Christian think about his "time away"?

Unless you speak an ancient language (and even if you speak one today), you're reading a Bible that has had a lot of work go into it. It is still the word of God. It is still authoritative and sufficient. But it is, at a bare minimum, a translation. Today we discuss what translators work with, and how you can start thinking about the version you read and study.

In this episode Jon and Matt walk through the 46th Psalm. Hopefully this conversation is encouraging. But hopefully it also gives you some insight on how to work through a passage, seeking out the rich bounty of truth in the word of God.

Christ Covenant Church started meeting in 2021. But God's providential hand was working for years and decades prior to the first gathering of "New England Bible Church Chester." Jon and Matt share some autobiographical information, but then talk about some of the ways they've seen the Lord guide our church in its first years.

Continuing the discussion from last week (and you really must listen to part 1 for context), Jon and Matt look at the New Testament expectations for roles within the church. God created us male and female. Before and after the fall, He had intention and purpose for that glorious design.

The last few generations have seen a diverse range of discussions and debates on what it means to be male or female. Many of these conversations and concepts would have been unimaginable only a century ago. As people in the church are not impervious to culture, Christians have had to confront these issues both without and within. In this episode, Jon and Matt begin a to talk about gender roles fro...

Why is the sermon the central feature of the worship service? Questions like this are good to pose. And it is important to know that the answer is not just preference or tradition: it is Biblical. Today Jon and Matt first talk about why gathering is essential. Then, they discuss how sermons come together and how they should be received.

Why read the Bible every day? It is something the Lord commands us to do. And it is the way we hear directly from God and gather the wisdom for a flourishing life. Those reasons alone ought to be good enough. Jon and Matt talk about the discipline of daily time in the word and discuss some strategies for making it happen and making it happen well.

With more options to fix our eyes upon than any other culture in history, how should a Christian choose what he or she reads and watches? Whether it be labeled as "Christian media" or not, a God-honoring life requires a Biblical, deliberate approach.

10 episodes in, Jon & Matt switch the format up a bit. Today, each host surprises the other with two topics. A brief conversation (with minimal banter) ensues. *Also, drop-outs in the audio have been noted.*

The apostle Paul uses some strong but simple language to explain what following Christ looks like. In Colossians 3, we read about what we're supposed to "put off" and what we are supposed to "put on." The change is nothing less than a new identity defined by our Savior.

How do you remember the Sabbath? More importantly, why are we supposed to? The Bible has a lot to say about the Sabbath. And what is clear is that Christians today - all of us - ought to seek to be shaped by scripture, not the world or our convenience.

In our final episode of this "Who We Are" mini-series, Jon and Matt discuss a few Baptist distinctives. One just so happens to be that many American Christians are baptistic in their theology even if they don't say that they are!

While all Protestants must point to the age of reformation as an important aspect of their own church heritage, it does not mean that all Protestants or Evangelicals hold to the major tenets of Reformed Theology. The term "Reformed" gets thrown around a lot today. In this episode we talk about what it means. Furthermore, we share how is it not only thoroughly Biblical but also supremely devotional...

Part two of our "Who We Are" series involves a look at what it means to be Evangelical. This is a term that has largely been hijacked and coopted for political purposes. But the history of what Evangelicals believe and what they have done is essential for Bible-believing Christians to understand.

This week we kick off a four part series where we seek to answer the question "What kind of church are you?" In contemporary Christianity, labels are seen as constricting. But the reality is that we all believe something. So let's talk about those somethings. Today: Why are we Protestants... and what does that mean?

In this episode we talk about the well known parable found in Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8. These words of Jesus are not only incredibly informative about spiritual truths, but they are so very practical for ministry.

Whether Christians acknowledge it or not, confessions and creeds have shaped the way they think about their faith. These documents are, of course, not authoritative in the same way scripture is. But they distill the truths of the Bible into short, digestible chunks that help us articulate and learn it's truth.

What is a liturgy, anyway? And why do we do what we do at Christ Covenant? In this episode, Jon and Matt discuss our convictions on corporate worship and how we put our services together.