The Northwood Podcast

This Sunday we’ll be considering a passage about a shepherd and their sheep found in John 10:1-10. This shepherd can call the sheep to what they need to live well because they know his voice. Similarly, Christians are challenged in every age to tune out the competing voices to find the One voice that matters most. Jesus’ call into our lives, and his voice that beckons, are the most important lure...

In Luke 24 Jesus appears to his disciples in a series of encounters, each revealing something profound about the risen Christ. Today we consider a story in which Jesus requests food and eats some broiled fish. Within this seemingly innocuous detail is contained a powerful theological claim about life in the church post-Easter. Today, we’ll consider this claim and its implications for the Church in...

The after Easter slump is upon us. While it is customary for us to turn to the Doubting Thomas story on the week after Easter (John 20:19-31), this year we’ll consider a story found in Acts 4:32-37. There, we’ll read of a community that acted out of faith and belief in Jesus, radically changing the community around them. This message reflects on these themes. In the meantime, if you’d like to lear...

Two events have dominated our horizon of late: Easter and the pending solar eclipse. There was a time when eclipses were little understood and seemed as unpredictable and miraculous as nefarious magic. However, over time patterns in the sky were noted, and events like eclipses became predictable. How if the life that Easter holds were as rhythmic as eclipses, if only we could hold in our minds the...

Today, we’ll consider a story that tells of Jesus’ “triumphal” entry into Jerusalem on the week of his death. His parade stood as a stark contrast to the other parades made in honor of Roman Emperors and other important personages. What might his entry teach us today about power, how we wield it, and how Jesus would have us understand the better ways of God? More on this in this episode! In the me...

In today’s passage from the Bible, we encounter a short metaphor/parable meant to help us think through what we must let go of in life so that new life may bloom. But in letting go, there is a kind of dying. When a seed falls to the ground, it loses itself before it bursts forth to life. What does this lesson from nature have to teach us about possibilities in our world? This message seeks to addr...

John 3:16 may well be the most popular, oft-quoted verses in the Bible. These words are loved for their wide, expansive, and loving scope. However, these words are bracketed by other verses that have been weaponized and used to increase sectarianism and religious tribalism. This message strives to get at the heart of these verses to help us see that the love of God will win out in the end. In the...

New temples (holy spaces) arise wherever the church gathers in the name of love for God and one another. As old temples fall, what new temples will spring up by the restorative power of God? This message considers this question.  This message seeks to address these questions. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about Northwood Christian Church, please visit our website at www.indyncc...

Today, we’ll consider a story that should be familiar by now. It’s found in the 1st chapter of the Gospel of Mark and tells of Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness. What does this signify? Why did the same Spirit that lit upon Jesus at his baptism lead him out into the wilderness to be sorely tempted? This message attempts to answer these questions. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more abo...

Today, we are considering a story from the Bible about an event Christians call ‘The Transfiguration.’ We’ll be considering the version found in Mark 9. There it is recorded that Jesus lit up bright and white on top of a mountain. This was accompanied by two visitors from the dead, loud thundering, and a voice from heaven. What to make of all of this?  In the meantime, if you’d like to learn...

What does it mean to be “saved”? What does it mean for Jesus to save someone? Many today believe that to be saved means to have their soul saved for heaven. Jesus, however, meant far more than this. This message explores these themes by way of a story found in the Gospel of Luke. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about Northwood Christian Church, please visit our website at www.indyncc....

Stories about evil spirits strain our credulity or give many of us the creeps. It is hard for modern readers to tap into the wisdom of bible passages that talk about such things. This message is meant to help modern readers of this story to sort through a story about a spirit possession to determine what it might mean for the church to name and cast out demons in the 21st century. In the meantime,...

In this episode we consider a passage from Mark 1:14-20 where Jesus calls us to leave what is familiar, and sometimes comfortable, for a future that is unknown. Although the future to which Jesus calls us is uncertain, we have his assurance that he is leading us to a better life. Have we the faith to trust in his wisdom? This episode reflects on these things. In the meantime, if you’d like to lear...

In this episode, we’ll be considering a story from the Gospel of John where we read of the first disciples inviting one another to “come and see” who they had found in Jesus. This game of telephone resulted in the formation of Jesus’ earliest disciples. When one called another to “come and see” who they had found in Jesus, they seldom left disappointed. What was it about Jesus’ ministry that satis...

This week, we’ll be going over a passage from the Bible that contains the stories of two pregnant women. Each of these women come from different life circumstances, so the news of their pregnancies called them toward different challenges and responses. Their responses to unexpected news can teach us how respond to our own life’s circumstances. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about Nor...

In the last episode we read about John the Baptist and how he loudly proclaimed, to anyone who would listen, that their help was on the way. This week we’ll discuss the various ways Christmas represents that help. We’ll get there by considering a passage from Isaiah 61:1-4. In this passage, the writer paints a picture for a future that is full of life and hope. We’ll consider what his words have t...

This week we’ll consider a section from the very first chapter of Mark’s gospel. I’m referring here to the part where John the Baptist is introduced as the harbinger of things to come. More specifically, his role was to ready his community for the help Jesus would bring. What help is there for us, today? In what ways does John’s unconventional appearance serve as an obstacle to his message? In thi...

This week we’ll consider a section of one of Jesus’ sermons that is apocalyptic in nature. That is, by his words he wants to reveal something true about God’s desires, the world, and our place in it. The passage we’re going over today paints a dire picture for the near future. But Jesus does not want this dire outlook to cause us to lose hope. Instead, Jesus wants to leave his disciples with a hop...

This week we’ve a fairly well-known bible passage. It’s the one where Jesus is being bombarded by mothers bringing their infant children to him, probably to receive a blessing. (Luke 18:15-17) His disciples, apparently wanting to maintain a sense of decorum, try to bar the way and keep the children away from Jesus. But, in a line now famous, Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do...

Today, we’re going to be going over another one of Jesus’ parables found in Matthew 25:14-30. It’s the one from which we get the word ‘talent.’ As in, you are a talented individual; you know… skills, abilities, and the like. But the application of this story is far broader than that. We’ll get to it in a moment. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about Northwood Christian Church, please...

Today we’ll consider a parable Jesus told as recorded in the 25th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew. In verses 1-13 is told a story of 10 bridesmaids who were waiting for the groom to arrive. Half of them were prepared, while the other half were caught unawares. This episode reflects on what meaning this parable may hold for us. In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about Northwood Christian...

Today’s message marks the 4th in a series in which Northwood will consider some of Jesus’ teachings about money and possessions. Today, we’ll be learning from some of the teachings of Jesus found in Matthew 6:25-34 in which Jesus tells us ‘Not to worry.’ Upon first blush, it would seem as though today’s text has little to do with what precedes it, but without considering what comes before we may w...

Today’s episode marks the 3rd in a series in which Northwood will consider some of Jesus’  teachings about money and possessions. Today, we’ll be learning from some of the  teachings of Jesus found in Matthew 6:22-24. In these verses Jesus speaks of what our eyes  and gaze may reveal of our desires and pursuits. He then warns us of the dangers of  choosing the pursuit of materi...

Today’s episode marks the 2nd in a series in which Northwood will consider some of Jesus’ teachings about money and possessions. Today, we’ll be learning from some of the teachings of Jesus found in Matthew 6:19-21. These verses contain the rather famous line, “ Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21) What did Jesus mean when he spoke of ‘treasure’? What, exactly, di...

Today’s episode marks the beginning of Northwood’s Stewardship Season, a time when we discuss money, our possessions, and what to do with them. Today’s episode sets the stage for this discussion, as well as explores a passage in Matthew 6:1-4 where Jesus taught us to give generously to others but in secret. He said that then we will receive our ‘reward.’ What is this reward, and how will it benefi...