Word Processing

Fallenness, fear, and a fixing faith? Sounds like fun! In the midst of a world that has so much wrong with it, it is comforting to look to our Lord and understand that he is the solution. Join with Josiah and Andrew as they look at the second trio of miracles in Matthew 8 and 9, noticing Jesus' authority on display and applying what that authority means for all of us who ever face fear. So if you'...

As a local church grows in size (or is forced apart because of a virus!) it can become increasingly difficult to actually know everyone in the community and, thus, to be blessed by everyone in the community. This is unfortunate because there are no unnecessary members (1 Corinthians 12:7), none who are ungifted (Romans 12:6), and not one who isn't called to the "work of service, to the building up...

While music in corporate worship should be something that brings joy and comfort to God's people, facilitates biblical worship of a holy God, and celebrates unity in the body of Christ, it is often notorious for just the opposite. Too often church music can spark conflict, distract from biblical worship, encouraging self-centredness and the idolization of personal preference, and threatening churc...

We use many different terms when talking about Scripture: inspiration , inerrancy , and infallibility to name a few. But one that we don't always talk about as much is sufficiency . That is to say, is the Bible sufficient to accomplish the task for which it was written? Well to answer that, we need to understand what that purpose is, and just as importantly, what that purpose isn't. This week on t...

Have you ever been reading the Bible when, all of a sudden, WHAM! , you run into a verse, paragraph, or section that straight-up baffles and/or offends? (If you haven't experienced this, then you're either a biblical savant or you aren't reading the Bible much!) When that happens, we only have a certain number of responses available to us: 1) Pretend we totally understand and move on, 2) Admit we...

Faith is a word that's gets mentioned in all aspects of Christian life: We're saved by faith (Ephesians 2:8–9), invited to walk by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7), appreciate the gift of faith (1 Corinthians 12:9), and commanded to contend for the faith. But often, while we rightly use the word "faith" with great regularity, we don't talk much about what it really is or what it really means.  Join...

Each and every Christian is called, invited, and empowered to help others find ("evangelism") and follow ("discipleship") Jesus Christ. While these relationships can be found in any number of places (for example, where we worship, work, study, or play), more often than not we need not look further than our own families to find opportunities to help people grow in Christ.  Today on the podcast...

As we conclude our time in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:13–27, we turn our focus to an unshakable foundation. Join with Josiah and Andrew as they chat about the inevitable storms of life and how to prepare by choosing the right paths, listening to the right voices, and trusting the right measurements; and what can happen when we do the opposite. The storms are coming. Are you ready?

It's all about relationships today! Join Andrew and Josiah as they talk about Matthew 7:1–12, the pursuit of true righteousness, and how that changes the way we interact with God's people, God's opponents, and God himself. On this episode the duo discuss some of the most misquoted and misunderstood verses in the New Testament today with the goal of coming to a practical understanding of how to pur...

As perennial as weeds in a garden, issues of wealth and worry crop up in every Christian's life at one time or another. Join Andrew and Josiah as they discuss what Jesus had to say about these topics in Matthew 6:19–34 and how we can fight against the draw towards idolatrous living (as well as a little sidebar about the authority of all Scripture and not just the red letters!).

Much of what we do as Christians, by its very nature, is visible to those around us. Yet how do we reconcile that with the warning in Matthew 6 to avoid practicing righteousness in front of other people? How do we check our motivation and live like One (that is, the One) is watching? What does this all have to do with eternal rewards, unity within the body of Christ, and even our evangelistic effo...

As Oakridge prepares to move back into our Sunday study of Matthew's gospel , Josiah recruits some outside help to re-set the stage.  John Oglesby is a student and faculty member at Calvary University and executive vice president of Vyrsity under Agathon Educational Group . He also serves as a guest lecturer at the Word of Life Bible Institute where he teaches a variety of biblical books, inc...

Anyone out there feeling a little worn down, frustrated, or just plain weary? If so, you've got company.  The last number of months have taken many of us to the brink of our emotional, physical, and spiritual bandwidth, demonstrated for us afresh that we're creatures with limits, and highlighted yet again that we need a God who is without . What can we do when we're weary? Where can we turn f...

This week on the podcast, Andrew and Josiah flesh-out some of the potential implications from Sunday's message on Romans 12–15, a text that seems particularly timely.  While there are many potential reasons for division, frustration, and isolation today—e.g., Do masks actually work? When must the church disobey the government? Should Christians risk their physical health to nourish their spir...

Aaaaaand we're back! After a few weeks off to celebrate "Christmas in lockdown" and recharge our batteries, Word Processing returns to begin its second season.  In this second first episode, Andrew tries to get Josiah in trouble with tough questions about "online church." Did he succeed? Probably. But the two also discuss some of the implications of Sunday's sermon , wonder together how God m...

As the year comes to a close, so does the inaugural season of Word Processing. Join Andrew as he bids adieu to 2020 with this mini-sode, gives an update on the future of the podcast, shares some thoughts on both the year behind and the year ahead, and concludes our time with prayer. See y'all next year!

With all that’s been going on in 2020, many believers have asked questions like: Is this the end? Are the last days upon us? What does the Bible say about what comes next on God’s mysterious calendar and how are we to live now in light of it? These are questions that, among other things, have to do with biblical prophecy.  If there’s one topic that can attract debate, disagreement, and (at ti...

It's been suggested that the three rules of real estate are location , location , and location . In a similar way, it could be said that the three rules of Bible study are context , context , and context . Today Josiah gets taken to school as Dr. Charlie Bing—founder and director of Grace Life Ministries and author of " Grace, Salvation, and Discipleship "—shares how paying attention to the detail...

The Lord Jesus, during his earthly ministry, invited people to "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17). When it came time for him to ascend back to the Father, he left those who had followed him with these instructions: "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations" (Matthew 28:19). This same two-pronged invitation is put to each person today—follow Jesus and make...

As the human body is a single organism made up of many individual parts, so too is Christ's body, the church (1 Corinthians 12:12–31). Also like the human body which will fail to function properly if a single part goes missing, likewise the church is less than it should be if even one member fails to provide their unique and divinely-endowed contribution.  Today on the podcast, Dr. Abraham Ku...

On this episode of the podcast, Josiah sits down with David Rennalls, pastor of discipleship at the MET Bible Church in Ottawa, Ontario. Together they discuss a couple of heavy and connected issues in the atonement of Christ and shame. Now, that may sound too abstract and high-minded to be of any practical use for you (not to mention uninteresting!), but Dave makes a strong case for why all Christ...

It’s been said that “to err is human; to forgive is divine.” While there’s no doubt the Bible presents God as the gold-standard of what it means to forgive, it likewise calls human beings, in all their error, to pursue and extend the same. Today on the podcast, Josiah discusses the always-important, often-difficult, and peace-promising topic of forgiveness with Dr. Jim. Together they chat about th...

This is the second in a series of conversations on the über-important topic of the church (If it's important to Jesus [ Ephesians 5:25 ] it should probably be important to us too, right?!) and, in it, Josiah again chats with his prairie-friend and homiletical-ninja, Pastor Jay Hinds . This time their focus is less what the church is and more what the church is to do .

We made it: The grand finale, the last hurrah, the fishy endgame. Finally we come to the conclusion of our study in the Old Testament prophetic book of Jonah and, to celebrate, Andrew and Josiah engage in a semi-serious discussion about what it means to submit to God, God's word, and God's will above all else—including ourselves—no matter the cost. It's a topic that is as solemn as it is important...

The Jonah-talk continues this week as Andrew and Josiah flesh out last Sunday’s look at chapter 3. The conversation includes musings on the prophet's lacklustre sermon, the repentance of Nineveh, and how we, as God's people today, can strive to react to "outsiders" in our lives with hearts more like God's than like Jonah's. If you missed it, the sermon in question can be found right here .