SunWest Church Weekly Sermon Podcast

There is a board game called Othello, and it’s tagline is “A minute to learn, a lifetime to master.” We could apply this phrase to the Good News of Jesus. It is simple enough for children to understand, yet complex enough to ponder for your entire life. As we look at fully understanding the good news of Jesus for seekers, saints, and sinners we will begin with the good news in its most simplest fo...

This week we begin a brand new series called (re)union. We will be doing a deep dive into what is often referred to as the gospel. Gospel means “good news”. Often this good news has been oversimplified and sanitized. In these increasingly volatile times it is so important that we understand what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Join us as we rediscover the good news of Jesus for seekers, saints...

In this series we’ve been looking at distorted views of God that many of us end up believing. Science and faith have often been positioned as enemies. This is a new concept that is a distortion of what faith in God is all about. Historically, faith and science have been friends. If God is real and true, the pursuit of science can and should lead us to greater awe and worship. Join us this week as...

If God is real, good, and all powerful why does suffering and evil exist? This question has historically been the biggest barrier to faith for many. When bad things happen how do you make sense of it? Where is God when tragedy strikes personally or to those around us? Does God even care? He seems to be heartless. Join us this week as we dive into this mystery and see God’s response to the problem...

Where is God? I can't sense God. I can't hear God. I can't feel God. Have you ever said or thought any of those things? Maybe they've been a hurdle to you believing in God. Join us this week as we dissect more false assumptions that many of us believe that ironically cause us to struggle with our belief in God.

There are many reasons why people choose not to believe in God. It’s possible, that many of those people may not really be rejecting the true God but rather a distorted view of God. In this series we look at these assumed views and offer an alternative one. This week we will focus on the “Killjoy” God that is out to overwhelm us with a million rules and suck the joy out of life.

It can be difficult to believe in a God we cannot see. We wonder why God didn’t answer our prayers, why God allows suffering, or why we can’t feel His presence. God may not meet all your expectations—but that’s good news! Find out why in a new series: "I Want to Believe, But..."

We may not be able to control what going on in the world around us, but we can control what is going on inside of us. The Bible teaches us that thankfulness is a choice. And this choice has the potential to change what we see and how we experience what is happening in the world around us.

Wouldn’t things be easier if everyone just had the same perspective and opinions as you? No disagreements or misunderstandings? We often put a lot of energy into convincing people to think like us or pushing back against others who don’t. In our particular culture, it seems the gap between different perspectives is getting larger and the the actions and reactions are getting more extreme. Two thou...

We all see the world through a set of eyes. What we choose to see impacts the lives that we end up living. Faith and fear are words that describe our perspective and our behaviour. Are you living your best life? Maybe it's time to Reset and choose to live a life driven by faith instead of fear.

Pessimism. Negativity. It’s understandable. It seems like 2020 can’t end soon enough. Wouldn’t you like to hit a Reset button? We may not be able to control what happens outside of us but we can choose what happens inside of us. How do you choose your normal in a time of abnormal? This week we will learn to focus on the Good News in a world of Bad News.

In a time of polarization and strong opinions, how does the church move forward in unity and mission together? Tune in this week as Pastor Matt is going to talk about Penguins and Crabs and what we can learn from them to keep the main thing the main thing in a world that is prone to division.

Belonging. It matters! There’s a good reason why the Bible calls the followers of Jesus to connect with one another and to do something about it. Find out what God’s purpose is for your church or small group. This week, Paul Loewen, our Alberta MB Conference Director, will share on a topic that he is passionate about. If you want to know why church matters, don’t miss this Sunday!

26 weeks! That's how long we've been studying the book of Mark. That's exactly half a year. Our world feels very different now than what it did when we began. But Mark wrote this book for a church that needed to be reminded of the source of its hope. Tune in for our last week in Mark and be encouraged that no matter who you are, where you've been, or what you've done, Jesus invites you into a new...

One of the most dramatic and mysterious statements in the Bible is right before Jesus breathes his last breath and says, “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” Isn’t Jesus God? What does this mean? What is going on? Join us this week as we explore the mystery of what is happening and what that means for you!

We have been following Jesus’ journey to the cross. As we enter the climactic point in Mark’s Gospel, we have the story interrupted by a second Jesus. Not Jesus the Messiah, but Jesus Barabbas. In this interruption we see that Barabbas is also a story about us. A story about a costly exchange. A story about the release of of a guilty captive with a broken identity. The injustice endured by Jesus g...

When life doesn’t go the way you’ve planned, how do you respond? Do you feel the urge to fight, or to flee? To deny the truth and choose comfort over walking the difficult path? This week we will be looking at the disciples response to Jesus’ arrest in Mark 14:43-72 and how the response to flee gives us the invitation to return.

This Sunday we will focus on Jesus in Gethsemane. We will be looking at Mark 14: 32-42 where Jesus is praying in the garden and honestly processing with his friends and with God the Father about going to the cross and dying for us. We will see how Jesus invited his close friends to walk with him, to support him and we will see Christ’s concern for them and his exhortation to ‘keep watch’ for him b...

As Jesus followers we often think about what is right. We often think about what is good. But how often do we think about what is beautiful? In Mark 14 we see beauty is an essential part of being a disciple of Jesus. We find a woman who does not fit the box of religious niceties but blesses Jesus with a wasteful act of beauty.

Does it ever feel like this is the end of the world as we know it? Have you ever heard well-meaning Christians talk about the current “signs”, the return of Jesus, and the impending doom of the world? This week we’re going to look at Mark 13 and why COVID and the many other struggles in our world are not signs of Jesus’ return.

It's been said that nothing in this world is certain except death and taxes. Even Jesus couldn't avoid a confrontation with these realities. In Mark 12, Jesus continues on the journey towards his crucifixion and has to respond to a question about taxes. We will explore this Sunday how he turns this into an opportunity to talk about our identity as humans and our mission.

Jesus comes into Jerusalem on a donkey and then goes and disrupts the entire religious system. He calls out the religious leaders and tells them that the system has become a den of robbers instead of a house of prayer. That’s enough to get him killed! What does he mean by that and how does it relate to us 2000 years later? Tune in this Sunday to find out.

We live in a world that loves success, status, and honour. But sometimes as we pursue these things we are moving away from what is honoured in the Kingdom of God. This Sunday a blind guy named Bartimaeus will teach us what success really looks like.

Jesus has a certain affinity for kids. And it’s not just because they’re cute. It’s because they are most ready to receive the gifts that God wants to give them. Why is that? Join us this Sunday to find out what children have to teach us about entering the Kingdom of God and what a rich guy has to teach us about missing out on the Kingdom.

This week Pastor Matt takes a one-week break from our Mark series to speak specifically about vision. Since Alberta opened Phase 2, there are many questions about what this could mean for SunWest. Join in this Sunday to hear why Kodak and Instagram have something to teach us, and why trying to go back to the way things were may forfeit the very opportunity we have before us.