The Pious Podcast

Bartimaeus couldn't see, but he could shout! He would not let the crowd keep him from getting the attention of the one who could deliver him. He is an example to us of the necessity of chutzpah and positive stubborn determination to receive from the Lord. Join us as pastor Meshach introduces to us a man formerly known as Blind Bartimaeus. Preached: July 9, 2023 Scripture: Mark 10:46-52

Naaman is a man who is the envy of all others. He has rank, status, wealth, and connections, but after all that is said about him, there is one thing that stands above them... he has leprosy. In this story, his deliverance comes by surprising means... humility. Join Pastor Meshach as he introduces us to Naaman. Preached: July 2, 2023 Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-19

Transformation was never meant to stay private. In this final session we ask what it looks like when formation actually works — in your home, your workplace, your neighborhood. We look at the local church as a Trinitarian community, not a service provider, and close with a reframe that might change how you think about your ordinary week. We often talk about taking Jesus with us places. What if we...

Nobody performs their way to mastery — they train their way there. In this session we explore Willard's VIM framework: the Vision that captures the heart, the Intention that turns admiration into decision, and the Means — the spiritual disciplines that arrange your life so God can do what only he can do. The goal isn't trying harder. It's training differently. Formation Lab is a four-w...

To truly care for something, you have to understand it. In this episode of Formation Lab, Meshach walks through Dallas Willard's model of the human person — spirit, mind, body, social dimension, and soul — and explores why sin is harder to shake than we think. The problem isn't effort. It's that we've been working with an incomplete picture of what a human being actually is. If you've ever wondere...

Most of us grew up with a gospel built around one question:  If you die tonight, where will you spend eternity?  It's not a bad question. But the better question is, what if you wake up tomorrow morning? What does your gospel say then? In this session, we explore the gospel Jesus actually preached — the Kingdom of God. What it is, what it's like, and what it means that it's available now. Formatio...

Revelation closes with a tale of two cities. Babylon — the city of human achievement — lies in a pile of dust and ashes. The New Jerusalem — the city of God — descends as a gift from God. The enduring vision of both calls all of God's people to arrange their lives in light of the end of both cities. Resist Babylon, embrace the New Jerusalem. Revelation 21-22

Judgement is often mistaken for something horrible, punitive. But seen through the eyes of Jesus, it takes on a completely different picture. Revelation 15-18

In the Two Witnesses, we see a picture of how God’s people are meant to function in an ungodly world. Revelation 10 - 11

Worship has always been something that happens in the throne room of God, that we participate in here on Earth. In Revelation, we see a clear picture of how what happens in heaven impacts Earth. Revelation 4&5

While the letters were for specific churches, the warnings and exhortations are important for churches of every age.

The vision of Jesus Christ in Revelation is different than that we have in the gospels. Both are true; one leads to the other. This teaches us something about the way of God and the kind of life we’re being ushered into. A life in which Christ is always with us. Revelation 1:9-20

Only a moron would hear Jesus's words and not do it. The wise thing to do is hear and do, lean on him with all your being. The End. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion for the final sermon in the Glorious Life Series. Preached on May 28th, 2023 Scripture: Matthew 7:24-29 NRSV

The way Jesus presents is narrow, but it leads to abundance. How can this be? It's actually true of many good things in life. The Olympic athlete chooses a narrow way of life, but this narrow way results in a kind of freedom very few experience. So it is when we follow Jesus. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers another wonderful message about how to hone in on a life with Christ. Preach...

Asking is the most powerful force in the universe because it connects us to the most powerful force. Join Pastor Meshach as he teaches on the simple method that is essential to helping people and receiving help. Preached on May 14th, 2023 Scripture: Matthew 7:7-12

In the last chapter of The Sermon, Jesus brings the message home by focusing on how we can help one another. Many have learned to sprinkle judgement into their efforts, but Jesus recommends a better way. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he talks about giving non-judgemental help. Preached on May 7th, 2023 Scripture: Matthew 7:1-6

Life in the Kingdom enables one to think differently about security and treasure. Indeed, you’ll see everything clearly because you’ll be looking through a kingdom lens. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a powerful message about gaining Freedom From the Trappings of Wealth. Preached on February 2nd, 2023 Scripture: Matthew 6:19-24

The old external righteousness created people who would use words (oaths) to get their way. Jesus suggests that this is of the evil one. Why? Because of how it causes us to think about our sisters and brothers; not as people who should make the right decision with the appropriate information, but those we should manipulate to get our way. Rather, we should let our yes be yes, and our no be no. Thi...

Anger naturally leads to dehumanizing lust; just consider the cause of most divorces… Those are two of the great scourges of humankind. Jesus presents a kind of righteousness that doesn’t merely avoid the cultivation of lust through action, but looks to honor the other person, not as an object, but as a beloved child of God. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a powerful message about freei...

We discovered who is well off, or who has the good life, in Jesus’s teaching on the beatitudes. The next question is, how do we become good? Not, how do we do good deeds — this is the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, but how do we become the kinds of people through which good deeds naturally flow? This is going beyond the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Join Pastor Meshach K...

Those who place themselves within the Kingdom of God will immediately have a different kind of life; a life that makes a different impression in the world. Kingdom people are not meant to fit in; we were made to bring light to darkness, flavor to blandness, all to the glory of God. Join Pastor Meshach as he delivers a message about bringing light to the darkness. Preached on November 13th, 2022 Sc...

Everyone wants the good life, and depending on what one holds as ultimate, the perspective of the good life will change. Jesus offers a vision of the good life that is available to anyone who would enter the Kingdom of God by trusting in him. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about what the good life in Christ looks like. Preached on October 30th, 2022 Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Jesus’s life was so powerful that even demonic entities were powerless, even fearful, when he was near. One of the most famous of these stories is when Jesus cast a legion of demons out of a man, and the community was so shaken by it that they asked Jesus to leave their region. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about casting the darkness out of your heart and bringing in the lig...

In our world, contagious things are often negative: viruses, diseases, and bad habits. However, when Jesus arrived, he introduced a new kind of contagion. Through his holiness of life, he could touch or speak a word, and those who were sick would be healed. This kind of epidemic caused widespread hysteria wherever Jesus went. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about the Purifying...

When students disciples themselves to a rabbi, they did so with the hope of one day becoming like him. The request to be a disciple was akin to asking, “Do you believe I could emulate you?” If the rabbi responded affirmatively, the student could follow. Conversely, if he declined, the student would be assigned menial tasks such as fishing, masonry, or collecting taxes. Jesus’s encounter with these...