Westview Church Podcast

Anger is the emotion of moral judgment. We get angry when something matters, and we assess that something is wrong. It can be easy to self-justify our anger or dismiss it as just getting "a little hot under the collar" or "frustrated." Listen to Pastor Zach's exhortation to consider how you may actually give yourself to sinful anger.

There is an understandable desire among those pursuing godliness to set up boundaries to guard against breaking the Lord's instruction. However, a very real danger arises when we begin to give those boundaries the same level of authority as God's Word. We must hear Jesus' teaching in Mark 7:1-23 and keep focused on the reality that what defiles us comes from within. Listen to Pastor Haakon's sermo...

Perhaps the best example of an unhelpful application of Scripture is to say to your friend gripped by anxiety, “Well, Philippians 4:6, ‘Don’t be anxious about anything.’” It certainly is true, yet not the most winsome or illuminating of exhortations; “just stop it.” However, we are in no short supply of things to be anxious about. Listen to Pastor Brett's exhortation to be prompted towards repenta...

As we begin to see the holidays on the horizon, it's good to recall how quickly they move on and how readily we forget so many good things. Such forgetfulness is all to easy spiritually as well. We may know who Jesus is, yet we fail to live accordingly. So beholding Jesus for who he is and endeavoring to walk by faith is an ongoing experience. Listen to Pastor Brett's sermon on Mark 6:30-56 to beh...

Perhaps this year more than any other in recent memory, we are eager for the distraction of the coming holidays. However, we must guard against distractions that would lead us off the mission. Listen to Pastor Dan's exhortation and give thought, and repentance where needed, of how distractions keep you from following Christ in all of life.

The cost of discipleship is one we are exhorted to take into account when considering following Christ in all of life. Yet as we devote ourselves to learn to obey all that Jesus has commanded, the cost of rejection and even death may seem to great to bear. In this sermon from Pastor Dan on Mark 6:14-29, we consider the example of John the Baptist who lost his head in faithfulness to God's Word and...

In the onslaught of political campaigning over the last year or so, we can be tempted to vote Tuesday and retreat from the public square of political engagement. However, Pastor Haakon exhorts us to see government as something instituted by God and to press into politics while steering clear of Politics.

Rejection stings. We've internalized the mantra, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me," but we know it isn't true. In the kingdom of God, rejection is part of the plan. Listen to Pastor Brett's sermon, "Rejected for the Kingdom," on Mark 6:1-13 to hear more of how rejection serves God's purposes.

As Protestants the world over mark this week the beginning of the Reformation, it is fitting for us to reflect on the heart beat of the five driving focuses of that recapturing of the gospel: we are saved (1) by Christ alone (2) through faith alone (3) by grace alone (4) under the authority of Scripture alone (5) all for the glory of God alone. That heart beat is that God looms large in our view a...

The authority and lordship of Jesus is plain. He commands a storm to be still. He commands demons away. He commands disease to be gone. He commands death to release its hold. Listen to Westview member Joshua Whetstine's sermon on Mark 4:35-5:43.

So much biblical anticipation builds the expectation of a spectacular kingdom to come with a remarkable king. And yet as Jesus teaches and demonstrates he is the fulfillment of that anticipation, his kingdom doesn't match the expectation. In Mark 4:21-34, four parables are recorded to help us better understand the kingdom of God. Listen now to Pastor Brett's sermon "The Coming Kingdom."

"You hurt my feelings." "Do what feels right." "Follow your heart." The very air we breathe in our society exalts our feelings and emotions as the supreme arbiter of truth for the individual. Christians must be perpetually guided by what is true, by God's Word. Listen to Pastor Zach Krych's exhortation to consider this more.

It is said that Jesus spoke more about Hell than anyone else recorded in the Bible, yet it is a subject we do not give much attention to. That is understandable—the doctrine of Hell is unsettling and unnerving. It truly is the hardest of teachings found in Scripture. But we fail to understand sin if we don't consider the eternal result of giving ourselves to it. "Sin: Its Effect" is the final serm...

Consider how many people there are in these Twin Cities. Each has a story; each has a past. And each of us have influences that give rise to sin. Yet will we view sin merely as externals or will we grapple with it at the core? Listen to this exhortation from Joshua Jacobs, pointing us to faith and repentance.

It actually is possible to have civil, meaningful conversations about politics and social issues despite what is displayed online or in the media. And it is something Christians ought to give ourselves to as the issues are truly about a clash of worldviews. In this roundtable, Pastor Zach and his wife Sara share about one such conversation and things we can glean from it as we seek to engage our n...

Sin isn't merely sinful because a rule says it's bad. Sin is sinful because God is holy, because God is wonderfully unique and values himself above all else. Our sin is sinful because it is an affront to God's holiness. Listen to Pastor Brett's sermon, "Sin: Its Sinfulness," on Isaiah 6:1-7 as we continue our series on sin.

We can quickly focus on the "going" part of the Great Commission, but we breeze by the very thing that undergirds our mission: the preeminent authority of Jesus over Heaven and Earth. Listen to this exhortation from Pastor Dan as we repent of our cowardice and gain confidence in Christ's authority.

Our sinfulness is not just a theological category. Rather, like the Christmas carol, we find our sin as "far as the curse is found." In this sermon, "Sin: Its Pervasiveness," from Pastor Haakon on Romans 1:18-32, we see how sin has brought about the darkening of our heart, the dishonoring of the body, and the debasing of the mind.

Our service for public worship is intentionally organized such that we pause to consider our sink, revel in God's grace, devote ourselves to his Word, and then come to his table. We land there as a weekly reminder that Jesus has done all that we need. We come to the table in faith-filled humility. Listen to this week's exhortation from Pastor Brett for more.

Seeing his city ravaged by disease and set ablaze, one pastor was moved to write the book The Plague of Plagues, giving attention to the far worse pandemic of sin that plagues our world. As we face a similar situation, will we give thought to what truly is the greatest threat to our souls? Listen to this first sermon, "Sin: Its Origin," from Pastor Brett in a series on the doctrine of sin.

Hand in hand with singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs is letting the Word of Christ dwell richly in you. Will we consecrate ourselves to God's Word? Listen to this week's exhortation from Pastor Dan.

Why in the world would someone join a new church? In this round table, Pastors Brett & Zach sit down with Joshua Whetstine, Field Director for Church Planting with the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention, to pick his brain on the benefits and difficulties of being a part of a new church.

Jesus tells us that he taught in parables to have the same effect on his hearers as Isaiah's prophetic ministry: confirming the hard-heartedness of idolaters. He relayed this in the context of the familiar "parable of the sower." Listen to this sermon on Mark 4:1-20, "Soils & Sovereignty" from Pastor Brett to hear more.

We sing because we're commanded to. We sing to sink the truths in our head down into our hearts. We sing to serve the faith of our brothers and sisters with us. When we don't sing like this, we need to turn in repentance. Listen for more on this theme in Pastor Zach's exhortation.

We all get a kick out of watching someone else be made a fool of—such voyeurism serves to conceal or overlook our own failings. As we read of the failings of the scribes and Jesus' family, will overlook our own shortcomings in rightly following Jesus? Listen to this sermon by Pastor Brett on Mark 3:20-35.