Barefoot Christian Church

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  • 8.22.2010 – The Prophecy in Daniel: Who is the Ultimate King? (Daniel) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 8.15.2010 -The Story in Daniel: What to do in total uncertainty? (Daniel) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 8.8.2010 – The Prophet Series: Ezekiel – Hope during Exile (Ezekiel) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 7.25.2010 – The Prophet Series: Strong Coffee from the Prophets (Isaiah 1:11-17) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 7.18.2010 – The Prophet Series: Hosea – The Rescuing Love of God (Hosea 1-3) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 7.11.2010 – The Prophet Series: What is The Law, Who are the Prophets and What is a Covenant? (1 Kings 16:30-19:18) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 7.4.2010 – What Role Does Jesus Play in Your Life? (Acts 19:13-41) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 6.27.2010 – What Are You Doing With Jesus? (Acts 17:16-34) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 6.20.2010 – Lesson on Leadership (Acts 4:36, 9:26-28, 11:22-26, 13-15 Galatians 2:13) Jeff Cobb download now
  • 6.13.2010 – God is Greater Than Your “Herod” (Acts 12:1-17) Noah Filipiak  download now
  • 5.30.2010 – Unlikely Apostles (Acts 8 & 9) Noah Filipiak download now
  • 4.25.2010 – Acts Series: Ananias and Sapphira Drop Dead (Acts 5:1-16) Noah Filipiak download now
  • Week 176 – Upsidedown Kingdom: Treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-24) Noah Filipiak 2.20.10 download now
  • Week 175 - Upsidedown Kingdom series: The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6) Noah Filipiak 2.14.10   download now
  • Week 174 - Upsidedown Kingdom: Loving Our Enemies (Matthew 5:38-48) Noah Filipiak 2.7.10 download now
  • Week 173 - Upsidedown Kingdom: Chasing the Unicorn (lust & divorce) (Matthew 5:27-32) Noah Filipiak 1.31.10 download now
  • Week 172 – Upsidedown Kingdom: Anger (Matthew 5:21-26) Noah Filipiak 1.24.10 download now
  • Week 170 - Upsidedown Kingdom: Blessed Are the Stepped On (Matthew 4:18-5:12) Noah Filipiak 1.10.10 download now
  • Week 169 - Upsidedown Kingdom: The Prove-It Treadmill (Matthew 3:17-4:1-11; Romans 8:15-17) Noah Filipiak 1.3.10 download now
  • Week 168 - Having the Same Attitude as Christ Jesus (Phillipians 2:1-13) Jeff Cobb 12.27.09  download now
  • Week 166 - Awaiting the Messiah: Old and New Covenants (Deuteronomy 4:5-8; Hebrews 8:6-13) Noah Filipiak 12.13.09 download now
  • Week 165 - Awaiting the Messiah: Those Verses Don’t Count (Leviticus 11:10-11; 19:19, 27-28; Romans 13:8-10) Noah Filipiak 12.6.09 download now
  • Week 164 - Awaiting the Messiah: Camping with God (Exodus 25:1-31:18; 35:1-40:38; Hebrews 9) Noah Filipiak 11.29.09 download now
  • Week 162 - Awaiting the Messiah: Jesus as Abraham’s Seed (Genesis 15:5-6; Galatians 3) Noah Filipiak 11.15.09 download now
  • Week 161  -The Idol of Spirituality (Ecclesiastes 5:1-7) John Lemke 11.8.09 download now
  • Week 160 – Shackles: Prayer (Luke 11:1-13; 2 Chronicles 14-16; Mark 10:13-15) Noah Filipiak 11.1.09 download now
  • Week 159 – Shackles: Depression (Psalm 22, Psalm 88) Steve Halsell 10.25.09 download now
  • Week 158 - Shackles: Why Do Bad Things Happen? (Lamentations 3:1-26) Noah Filipiak 10.18.09 download now
  • Week 157 – Shackles & Community (Romans 8:5-13; Romans 14; Proverbs 27:17) Noah Filipiak 10.11.09 download now
  • Week 156 - Shackles: Homosexuality (Romans 1; Lev. 20; 1 Cor. 6) Noah Filipiak 10.4.09 download now
  • Week 155 – Shackles: Fantasy vs. Reality, Sexual Purity (1 Corinthians 6:13-20; Genesis 1-2; Proverbs 5) Noah Filipiak 9.27.09 download now
  • Week 154 – Shackles: Tithing (Malachi 3:7-12) Tom Lindsey and Noah Filipiak 9.20.09  download now
  • Week 153 – Shackles: Money (Luke 12) - Noah Filipiak – 9.13.09  download now
  • A word from our sponsor 9.13.09 (*download intro video to play before sermon*)
  • Week 151 - Playing God (Galatians 5:16-25) Noah Filipiak – 8.30.09 download now
  • Week 148 - Little Things Are Not Always Insignificant (Song of Solomon 2:15) Sam Belanger 8.9.09 download now
  • Week 147 – Why We Don’t Pray (Matthew 6:9-13) Jeff Cobb – 8.2.09 download now
  • Week 146 – Salvation Monologue (Romans 5:1-2) Noah Filipiak – 7.26.09 download now
  • Week 145 – Ashamed of Christ (Romans 1:16; Mark 8:38) Noah Filipiak – 7.19.09 download now *Please note – the last 15 minutes of this sermon did not record.*
  • Week 144 – God’s Calling (Jonah) Jeff Cobb – 7.12.09 download now
  • Week 143 - If We Are to Love, What is Love? (1 Corinthians 13) Noah Filipiak – 7.5.09 download now
  • Week 141 – Investments ( 1 Samuel 7:3-13) Noah Filipiak – 6.21.09 download now
  • Week 140 – Facing Trials (James 1:2-4) Jeff Cobb – 6.14.09 download now
  • Week 139 – Storms of Life (Matthew 7:24-27) Shane Cox – 6.7.09 download now
  • Week 138 – Baptism (Colossians 2:11-13) Noah Filipiak – 5.31.09 download now
  • Week 137 – Believing but not Believing (1 John 5) Noah Filipiak – 5.24.09 download now
  • Week 136 - Don’t Add or Subtract from Jesus (1 John 4) Noah Filipiak – 5.17.09  download now
  • Week 135 – Born to Live (1 John 3) Noah Filipiak – 5.10.09  download now
  • Week 134 – Walking in the Light (1 John 1) Noah Filipiak – 5.3.09 download now
  • Week 133 – The Struggle of Faith: The Golden Calf (Exodus 32) Noah Filipiak – 4.26.09 download now
  • Week 132 – The Struggle of Faith: Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11; 30:12-17) Noah Filipiak 4.19.09 download now
  • Week 130 - The Struggle of Faith: Manna and Quail (Exodus 16) Noah Filipiak – 4.5.09 download now
  • Week 129 – The Struggle of Faith: Passover (Exodus 12-14) Noah Filipiak – 3.29.09 download now
  • Week 130 - The Struggle of Faith: Maureen (Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 10:13) Maureen Ozar – 3.22.09  download now
  • Week 129 – The Struggle of Faith: The Plagues (Exodus 4-12) Noah Filipiak – 3.15.09 download now
  • Week 126 - The Struggle of Faith: Jacob (Genesis 25-49) Noah Filipiak – 2.22.09  download now
  • Week 125 – The Problem of Rightousness (Luke 18:9-14) Jeff Cobb – 2.15.09  download now
  • Week 124 – The Struggle of Faith: Abraham (Genesis 12-22) Noah Filipiak – 2.8.09 download now
  • Week 123 – The Struggle of Faith: Noah (Genesis 6-9) Noah Filipiak – 2.1.09 download now
  • Week 122 – The Struggle of Faith: Creation (Genesis 2:15-3:13) Noah Filipiak – 1.25.09 download now
  • Week 120 – Isolation & Community (John 13:34-35, Acts 2:42-47) Noah Filipiak – 1.11.09 download now
  • Week 118 – How Time Flies (James 4:13-14; 1 Samuel 7) Noah Filipiak – 12.28.08 download now
  • Week 117 - God of the Oppressed  Week 4 (Philippians 2:5-11; Matthew 5:38-44) Noah Filipiak – 12.21.08 download now
  • Week 116 – God of the Oppressed  Week 3 (Matthew 6:19-21; 22:17-22) Noah Filipiak – 12.14.08  download now
  • Week 115 – God of the Oppressed  Week 2  (Isaiah 1:11-17) Noah Filipiak – 12.07.08  download now * Watch this video after listening to the sermon: http://community.wr.org/Page.aspx?pid=1200 *
  • Week 114 – God of the Oppressed  Week 1  (1 Cor 12:14-25) Noah Filipiak – 11.30.08 download now *Watch this video after listening to the sermon:  http://community.wr.org/Page.aspx?pid=1223 *
  • Week 113 – Who is Your King? (John 19:1-16) Noah Filipiak – 11.23.08 download now
  • Week 112 – Two “Easy” Steps to Knowing God’s Will (Romans 12:1-2) Jeff Cobb – 11.16.08 download now
  • Week 111 – Marriage (1 Corinthians 13:4-8) Steve Halsell – 11.09.08 download now
  • Week 110 – Popping Our Prayer Bubble (John 16) Noah Filipiak – 11.02.08  download now
  • Week 109 – Relational Love  (John 15:1-17) Russ Kinyon – 10.26.08  download now
  • Week 108 - McCain, Obama, & Jesus: Politics & The Church (Romans 14) Noah Filipak 10.19.08  download now
  • Week 105 – Undeserved Love (John 13:1-17, 33-35) Noah Filipiak – 9.28.08 download now
  • Week 104 - Protecting at all Costs (John 11:38-57) Noah Filipiak – 9.21.08 download now
  • Week 103 – Save the Day? (John 11:1-37)  Noah Filipiak – 9.14.08 download now
  • Week 102 – The Good Shepherd (John 10:1-12) Noah Filipiak – 9.7.08  download now
  • Week 99 – Worship (Psalm 96) Noah Filipiak – 8.17.08 download now
  • Week 98 – Are You Thirsty? (John 4) Noah Filipiak – 8.10.08 download now
  • Week 97 – Believe or Trust? (John 3:1-18, 36) Noah Filipiak – 8.3.08 download now
  • Week 96 – Taste the Good Wine (John 2:1-11) Jeff Cobb – 7.27.08 download now
  • Week 95 – The God Who Created And Came (John 1:1-18) Noah Filipiak – 7.20.08 download now
  • Week 94 – Relearning Sex (1 Corinthians 6:12-7:5) – Noah Filipiak – 7.13.08 download now
  • Week 91 – Community or Church? (Acts 2:42-47, Matthew 18:15-17, 21-35) – Noah Filipiak – 6.22.08 download now
  • Week 90 – Self-Worth (Romans 8:1-4, 12-17) – Noah Filipiak – 6.15.08 download now
  • (*download intro video to play before sermon*)
  • Week 89 – Foundations (Matthew 7:24-27) – Noah Filipiak – 6.8.08 download now
  • Week 79 – After Easter Doubts (Matthew 28:16-17, Luke 24: 13-32, John 20: 19-28, John 21: 1-19) – Jeff Cobb – 3.29.08 download now
  • Week 78 – The Resurrection (Luke 24:1-11, John 20:19-31) – Noah Filipiak – 3.22.08 download now
  • Week 77 – Whiting Out the Bible: Women in Ministry (1 Cor 11:2-16, 14:33-37, & 1 Tim 2:8-15) – Noah Filipiak – 3.15.08 download now
  • Week 76 – Struggles (Deuteronomy 8 ) – Noah Filipiak – 3.8.08 download now
  • Week 75 – In-house Visioncast of Barefoot’s Future (Matthew 28:19-20) – Noah Filipiak – 3.1.08 download now
  • Week 74 – Whiting Out The Bible: Wrestling with God 2 (Psalm 9) – John Bell – 2.23.08 download now
  • Week 73 – Whiting Out The Bible: Homosexuality (Romans 1:24-32, Leviticus 20:6-21, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11) – Noah Filipiak and Jim Decke – 2.16.08download now
  • Week 72 – Whiting Out The Bible: Sex (1 Corinthians 6:12-7:5) – Noah Filipiak – 2.9.08 download now
  • Week 71 – The Light and Everything Else (Colossians 1:9-20) – Jeremy Dowsett and Noah Filipiak – 2.2.08 download now
  • Week 70 - Whiting Out the Bible: Sabbath Rest (Luke 6:1-11) – Noah Filipiak – 1.26.08 download now
  • Week 68 – Whiting Out the Bible: Wrestling with God (Genesis 32:22-32, Pslam 74) – John Bell – 1.12.08 download now
  • Week 67 – Whiting Out the Bible: Tithing (Malachi 3:6-10, 2 Corinthians 9:6-11) – Noah Filipiak- 1.5.08 download now
  • Week 66 – Advent: Christ (Philippians 2:5-11) – Noah Filipiak- 12.29.07download now
  • Week 65 – Advent: Joy (Romans 5:1-11) – Noah Filipiak- 12.22.07 download now
  • Week 64 – Advent: Love (Matthew 25:34-40) – Noah Filipiak- 12.15.07download now
  • Week 63 – Advent: Peace (Philippians 4:4-7) – Noah Filipiak- 12.08.07download now
  • Week 61 – Our Daily Bread (Numbers 11, Psalm 78) – Jeff Cobb – 11.24.07download now
  • Week 60 - When We Are Weak, Then We Are Strong (2 Cor. 1:8-11, Eph. 1:17-23, 2 Cor. 12:7-10) – Noah Filipiak – 11.17.07 download now
  • Week 59 – He Could Have Zapped Them All (Luke 22:63-64; 23:13-25, 35-38; Isaiah 53:2-7) – Noah Filipiak – 11.10.07 download now
  • Week 58 – Denying, Giving Up On, and Loving Jesus (John 13:31-38; Luke 22:31-38, 54-62; and John 21:15-19) – Noah Filipiak – 11.3.07 download now
  • Week 57 – Oh the Bumbling Disciples (Luke 22 and John 13) – Noah Filipiak – 10.27.07 download now
  • Week 56 – Being In Love (Luke 19:1-10) – Noah Filipiak – 10.20.07 download now
  • Week 55 – Who Then Can Be Saved? (Luke 18:18-27) – Noah Filipiak – 10.13.07 download now
  • Week 54 – Because We Give Up (Luke 18:1-8) – Noah Filipiak – 10.6.07download now
  • Week 53 – Lost and Found (Luke 15) – David Wrigglesworth – 9.29.07download now
  • Week 52 – Taking the Lower Seat (Luke 14:7-11) – Noah Filipiak – 9.22.07download now
  • Week 51 – Justification (Romans 4 and 5) – Noah Filipiak – 9.15.07 download now
  • Week 50 - Is Everyone Going to Hell? (Luke 12:35-48) – Noah Filipiak – 9.8.07download now
  • Week 49 – Greed, Exess, and Giving (Luke 12:13-34) – Noah Filipiak – 9.1.07download now
  • Week 48 - Tough Questions About Prayer (Luke 11:5-13) – Noah Filipiak – 8.25.07 download now
  • Week 47 – The Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:2-4) – Noah Filipiak – 8.18.07 download now
  • Week 46 – Religion or Discipleship? (Luke 10:25-42) – Noah Filipiak – 8.11.07download now
  • Week 45 – The God of Liberation: Setting Captives Free (Jeremiah 34:8-20) – Jeremy Dowsett – 8.04.07 download now
  • Week 44 – Fix to Fix to Fix to Fix (Luke 9:18-25) – Noah Filipiak – 7.28.07download now
  • Week 42 – The Power of God’s Word and Our Response to it (Luke 8:15) – David Wigglesworth – 7.14.07 download now
  • Week 40 - Fighting Injustice with Injustice (Luke 6:27-42) – Noah Filipiak- 6.30.07 download now
  • Week 39 – Righteous Anger (Luke 6:1-11) – Noah Filipiak- 6.23.07 download now
  • Week 38 – Humbled (Luke 5:27-32) – David Wrigglesworth – 6.16.07 download now
  • Week 37 – The Brokenhearted (Luke 5:17-26) – Noah Filipiak – 6.09.07download now
  • Week 36 – It is So Good that You Exist (Luke 4:1-13) – Noah Filipiak – 6.02.07download now
  • Week 35 – Perhaps God Will Act On Our Behalf – Noah Filipiak – 5.26.07download now
  • Week 33 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — Isaiah (Darfur) – Noah Filipiak – 5.12.07 download now
  • Week 32 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — Hosea – Noah Filipiak – 5.5.07 download now
  • Week 31 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — David – Noah Filipiak – 4.28.07 (download sermon)
  • (*download intro video to play before sermon*)
  • Week 30 - Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — Dependence on God – Noah Filipiak & Jeff Cobb – 4.21.07 download now
  • Week 29 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — Abraham – David Wrigglesworth – 4.14.07 download now
  • Week 27 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — The Fall – Noah Filipiak- 3.31.07 download now
  • Week 26 – Finding Our Story: The Old Testament — Creation – Noah Filipiak- 3.24.07 download now
  • Week 25 – The Bible: Why are These Books In and Others Are Out? – Don Perini – 3.17.07 download now
  • Week 24 - The Bible: The Whole Story – Noah Filipiak – 3.10.07 download now
  • Week 23 – Missional: In But Not of The World (or, Why the Church Should Go to Bars) – Noah Filipiak – 3.3.07 download now
  • Week 22 – Missional: Salt & Light – Noah Filipiak – 2.24.07 download now
  • Week 21 - Missional: A Message of Life – Dave Wrigglesworth- 2.17.07download now
  • Week 19 – Community: Why Community? – Noah Filipiak – 2.3.07 download now
  • Week 18 – Community: How Community Grows – Noah Filipiak – 1.27.07download now
  • Week 17 – Community: Loving Like Jesus – Noah Filipiak – 1.20.07 download now
  • Week 16 – Who is Jesus? Our Response – David Wrigglesworth, Noah Filipiak, & Gina Horn – 1.13.07 download now
  • Week 15 – Who is Jesus? His Resurrection – Noah Filipiak- 1.6.07 download now
  • Week 14 – Who is Jesus? His Miracles – Noah Filipiak- 12.30.06 download now
  • Week 13 – Who is Jesus? His Birth – Noah Filipiak- 12.23.06 download now
  • Week 12 – It Was Not A Silent Night- Noah Filipiak- 12.16.06 download now
  • Week 11 – Do You Get the Picture? – David Wrigglesworth- 12.9.06 download now
  • Week 10 - The Whole Gospel: Why Should I Care About Social Justice? (& Project Shalom introduction) – Noah Filipiak & Paul Mack – 12.2.06
  • (download sermon)
  • (download 2 minute intro video *play before sermon*)
  • Week 9 - The Whole Gospel: God’s Design for Sexual Intimacy – Noah Filipiak – 11.25.06 download now
  • Week 8 – The Whole Gospel: PORNOGRAPHY – Noah Filipiak – 11.18.06download now
  • Week 7 – The Whole Gospel: Money and Materialism – Noah Filipiak – 11.11.06download now
  • Week 6 – The Whole Gospel: What Does it Look Like to Follow Jesus? – Noah Filipiak – 11.4.06 download now
  • Week 4 – Life With a Relational God: To Fall in Love with Jesus – Noah Filipiak – 10.21.06 download now

News/Blog

  • Food Drop 2010

    We joined in with 45 churches and 14 community agencies in the Lansing Area to raise $110,859.96 and distribute around 3000 boxes of food to those in need in the Lansing Area, feeding over 10,000 people with the help of 1,229 volunteers.  Read the Lansing State Journal’s story.  Click here to watch video and read stories about the Food Drop.

  • Barefoot Photos

  • Capital Gains Magazine Article on Barefoot

    Capital Gains Magazine wrote a great article on Barefoot.  Read it here.

  • Isaiah 1:11-17 Paraphrase

    In a sermon series we did called “God of the Oppressed”, we discussed Isaiah 1:11-17 and how easy it is for us to gloss over this Old Testament passage that deals with sacrifices of fattened animals, burnt offerings, and the blood of bulls and goats.  We assume these odd mental images have no relation to the Church today, so we quickly move on, missing one of the most powerful passages of Scripture revealing what God is truly passionate about.  How would you describe the average American Christian’s “church activities”?  If we applied this passage with contemporary language, I think our “church activities” would be very different than how we typically live them out week to week.

    Below is my paraphrase of this text (which is a combination of the NIV, The Message, and my words) in an effort to show how this text powerfully applies to the Church today in real time.  You can listen to the full sermon surrounding this text here.

    Isaiah1:11 “The multitude of your Barefoot church meetings—
    what are they to me?” says the LORD.
    “I have heard more than enough of Here I Am To Worship,
    Amazing Grace and Blessed Be Your Name;
    I have no pleasure
    in you lifting your hands and closing your eyes in worship, in your piano, drums, or guitar.
    I have not pleasure in the money that you give, or in the bread and wine you
    receive during communion.

    12 When you come to appear before me,
    who has asked this of you,
    Running here and there, doing this and that—
    all this sheer commotion?

    13 “Quit your worship charades.
    I can’t stand your trivial religious games: it’s all so fake.
    Community group Bible studies, Sunday morning preaching, special meetings—
    meetings, meetings, meetings—I can’t stand one more!

    Community Groups, Sunday morning singing and preaching, worship song words on a screen —
    I cannot bear your evil assemblies.

    14 Your Christmas, Lent, & Easter celebrations and your appointed feasts
    my soul hates.
    They have become a burden to me;
    I am weary of bearing them.

    15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
    I will hide my eyes from you;
    even if you offer many prayers, & you pray & you pray & you pray
    I will not listen.
    And do you know why? Because the blood of those you
    have neglected is on your hands.

    16 wash and make yourselves clean.
    Take your evil deeds
    out of my sight!
    Stop doing wrong,

    17 learn to do right!
    Seek justice,
    encourage the oppressed.
    Defend the cause of the orphan,
    plead the case of the defenseless.

  • The Elusiveness of Social Justice

    10.2.08

    I often feel like ‘social justice’ is a topic that certain Christians love to talk about, but it seems like we don’t often put our money where our mouth is.  It can be a topic that we will talk about at coffee shops, join Facebook groups for, and maybe even watch a documentary on.  While I think awareness is better than nothing at all, I think the Body of Christ is called to action.  Which is where the problem arises.  Besides writing an occasional check to a nonprofit, what are ways that we can really be involved in social justice as Christians living in Lansing, MI?  I think a major way is to be perceptive to the brokenness on our block.  To see the widows and orphans that surround us and to actively love them with the love of Christ, which I hope is something that characterizes Barefoot.  This still leaves a great global need.  There is a conference I’ll be going to at the end of October, which I’m very excited about: www.worldrelief.org/umoja . One of the topics being discussed at the conference is microfinance.  I’ve been really challenged recently in some reading I’m doing about sweatshops and about the oppression of global workers, whose work supplies many of the low cost and/or high fashion products that we purchase in America.  At this point, I’m not ready to get on a soapbox and tell everyone what stores they should boycott or support, as I have such limited information.  But I know that I want to be a part of the solution rather than a contributor to the problem.  I’m excited to learn more about microfinance and hope to come back with some tools that we as a church can begin to apply, promote, and support to bring more of God’s light to dark places.

  • Prayer: Assumed or Essential?

    8.21.08

    God has recently challenged me to pray. There is a small group of us that meet at 8am on Sundays to pray for our ministry. During this time, I felt God’s conviction that I was once again trying to make things work on my own, rather than going to him in prayer. In this Sunday morning time, I began praying for individuals to come into a relationship with Jesus, then realized my methods for trying to make this happen: sermons, community groups, kids’ ministries, etc., yet I was hardly praying. And realizing (once again) that it is not sermons, programs, or even conversations that soften people’s heart to Jesus, but is through the Holy Spirit, through prayer. My prayer life had dwindled to a few minutes of prayer at night that I fell asleep to. I realized I set time aside to work out, to study, and even to watch television, yet not to pray. I’ve now committed to a daily prayer time in the mornings that has thus far been a rich blessing to me. I believe Luke 11:5-13; that prayer really does change things. God is not a genie in the sky or a Santa Clause to grant all of our specific wishes, but he wants us to seek him and ask him to bring his Kingdom into this world. I’ve been greatly encouraged this week as I’ve seen the effects of prayer playing out before me in my life and in my heart. I hope that you pray with me for his Kingdom to come and his will to be done, here in Lansing, as it is in heaven.

  • Thirst Deception

    8.13.08

    Last week, I spoke on Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4). My emphasis was on thirst – how the woman was thirsty for intimacy and deep satisfaction and was looking for it through her multiple relationships with men. As I reflect on this passage this week, and struggle in my own sin, I think about how deceptive Satan is in his temptations. It is easy to portray the Samaritan woman like she is stupid in how she keeps going back to her sixth “husband” as if he is going to satisfy her, when Jesus is right there offering her living water… The one thing that will truly quench her thirst for intimacy: God himself. I don’t think the Samaritan woman is stupid, just deceived. I myself am deceived to think that Satan would ever tell the truth. When he tempts me to be selfish. If it were a matter of stupidity, as soon as I learned of the truth, I would never be tempted again. This is not the case. This week God is showing me the only way to truly combat thirst temptations is to willingly submit to him. The woman at the well had a transformational experience with Jesus, but if she was truly going to live this new life in him, it would take active submission. She’d have to trust that Jesus’ ways were better than her ways. She’d have to give up her sexually immoral lifestyle for a lifestyle of love and obedience to God, which I’m sure didn’t always come easy or naturally to her. Submission grinds against the way I am made. I want to do it my way. I want to do it the easy way. I want the quick pleasures. God is waiting for me, with his arms open, “Noah, when will you learn and finally start doing it my way? When will you stop drinking the saltwater?” I’m continuing to learn that submission is an active choice I make every day to God. To call out the lies that Satan sends me. To say ‘no’ to myself and ‘yes’ to God and his Word. So I ask you to pray for me as I continue to learn to submit. And I pray that the Holy Spirit will lead you down the same path of life, the path of submission to him, to drink the water where you’ll never thirst again.

  • Relearning Sex

    7.21.08

    I spoke on “Relearning Sex” on July 13th. Sex is a topic that churches have treated as taboo for far too long, yet it’s something that we all deal with. Culture is constantly bombarding us with lies about sex. These lies have contorted God’s original design for sex. The fact is God is the creator of sex and is very pro-sex. It’s time that the Church reclaim (and relearn) what is God’s. I am encouraged with the resources that have been put out in the past few years that have opened the door on this hidden struggle that so many deal with. I want Barefoot to be a real place where people can find help with real issues. We tend to go one of two ways with sins of sexual immorality: we classify these sins into their own category of shamefulness, so that people are never willing to open up and seek accountability; or we become apathetic, living as Bible-believing Christians who conveniently rationalize what the Bible says about God’s design for sex. I hope that this sermon encourages you that there is hope in Christ and within his Church for any issue of sexuality that you might be struggling with.

    -Noah

    Previous Sermons of Mine: Pornography (Nov. 18, 2006), Whiting Out The Bible: Sex (Feb. 9, 2008)

    www.x3watch.com

    www.xxxchurch.com

    Helpful Books: Every Man’s Battle, His Needs Her Needs, Sheet Music, Real Sex, Inside of Me, Sex God, Dirty Little Secret

  • What should the Church be doing?

    7.2.08

    Two weeks ago, we talked about community and the Church, and it has left me feeling a little unsettled. (download June 22, 2008 sermon) We began the morning by asking the question, “What should the Church be doing?”

    I wonder if we think of church as a place to go, or as something we are. Is Church merely a place to go once a week, to worship God…or is worship something we never stop doing? That when you walk out the front doors of the church building, you haven’t left church because we are the Church. If you ask a child (or an adult for that matter) to draw you a picture of a church, they undoubtedly will draw a building with a steeple on it. If this is our definition of Church, it may be time to throw the word out completely, and use words that better exemplify what Jesus had in mind for us.

    Paul says in 1 Cor 12:27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. It astonishes me that the Church is called the Body of Christ. What types of things do we see Christ doing in his life? Healing, loving unconditionally, befriending sinners, serving, praying, etc. And we, the Church, are to be his body?! We are to be his hands and feet, those who are continuing his work and mission? When Jesus ascended into heaven, his work did not end. In fact it had just begun. He left us with the Holy Spirit and sent us out as “little-Christs (where the word Christian is derived)” to continue his ongoing mission. To love the unloved, to heal the broken, to paint the unpainted, to care for the poor, to bring God’s shalom to our lost and dying world.

    I don’t want us to sell ourselves short. I think many of us have become disillusioned with “playing church” and going through the various motions of a church routine. I think that the attractional model of church is a broken machine. By attractional, I am referring to a Sunday morning gathering that we try to make as polished and as entertaining as possible, so that when people step in the doors, they want to come back to the doors the next week. Where the Christians’ job is to try to find ways to get people into those doors. Once they get in the doors, we let the pastors and worship band work their magic, hoping people will like the show enough to come back. The problem with this approach is that it leaves out key elements of Church: relationship building, accountability, social justice and service projects, caring for needs, to name a few. And what about all of the people who will step into the doors of a church building no matter how many mailers they receive or billboards they read? Did Jesus want us to bring people to church, or to bring Church to people? I don’t want to simply put a prettier dress on the machine, which is easy to do. We try to be hip, trendy, and contemporary, still hoping people like us enough to come back. It’s not that this approach to Church has been a failure, because God certainly has and is still using it. It’s important that we notice how our postmodern culture is changing though, and how this approach does not embody the “sending” mission that Jesus gave us. Instead of taking the church routine that’s been handed down to us and rubber stamping it for today’s culture, we need to carefully take apart the machine, keep the parts that are good, throw out the parts that aren’t, and attempt to rebuild it together to embody Jesus’ mission. I don’t mean to say that we’ll ever get it perfect, but hopefully we’ll always be humble enough and willing enough to be a part of this process.

    If we are all pastors, as Scripture tells us in 1 Peter 2:5, 9, what does it look like to live on mission with Jesus? Has the current model of Church allowed us to become passive spectators rather than active participants in Jesus’ mission?

    I certainly don’t have all the answers, but I appreciate being part of a community where I can ask these honest questions. I am also grateful for my Sunday morning worship experience, but I pray that it is only a part of who a church is, and not the definition.

    Further questions to consider…
    -In what ways can we bring Church to people rather than people to church?
    -How does being a Christian affect the way we build relationships in our everyday lives?
    -I am called by Jesus to love my neighbor…what does this look like? Is this active or passive

    On the journey…
    -Noah

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