Sunday Morning Podcast | The Moody Church

“Everyone thinks forgiveness is a lovely idea until he has something to forgive.”  – C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity   It’s not hard to see that our world needs to be a more forgiving place. Our families need to be more forgiving places. Our churches need to be more forgiving places. And, of course, it’s easy to spot unforgiveness in others. It’s much harder when it’s our turn to forgive.   The reality is that we need to be more forgiving people. We have too much anger in our hearts. We have too many wounds we’re nursing. We have too many grudges we’re holding inside.   Unforgiveness always rises from a place of hurt. Because hurt people hurt people. And those hurt people then hurt more people, who in turn hurt still more people. On and on it goes until the world looks like our front-page news.   But what if forgiveness can turn the world upside-down? What if forgiveness is at the very heart of the life of the Kingdom of Heaven? What if forgiveness is a defining mark of those who follow the Way of Jesu

Far too often we treat prayer like a cosmic 911 service. Some emergency happens, and suddenly, we become praying people.   On a daily basis, we try not to bother God with the little stuff, thinking that we can handle most circumstances on our own. Most of the time, life feels manageable. We rationalize that we are smart, industrious, hard-working; and with time and money, we can make most of our problems go away. We feel self-reliant, independent, and free.   That sounds a lot like America – “Freedom is independence!” But it doesn’t sound much like Jesus.   In this passage, Jesus is going to open our eyes to what real freedom looks like. And he’s going to do it with a simple prayer: “Give us this day our daily bread.”   There are five characteristics of this prayer that recalibrates our soul orientation to God:   Surrendered Prayer: Everything up unto the midpoint of this prayer has been God entranced, and it is only after these Godward prayers have been offered that Jesus then adds a prayer for d

Jesus knows what it’s like to live within this broken world, and He knows how to pray His way through it.   In this passage from the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus is going to teach us how to pray our way through the brokenness of this life.   This sermon focuses on Matthew 6:10: “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We explore four key questions:   What is the Kingdom? The Kingdom of God is the “reign of God.” Wherever God reigns as King, there His Kingdom is. Or another way to think about it: God’s Kingdom is the realm over which He has say, and the sphere in which His will is carried out. Wherever the will of God is done, there his Kingdom is. So, when we pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” we’re asking that the reign of God would be established right here and right now, that the range of His effective will would extend and envelope this world, and that God would bring the rule of Heaven to earth and make everything right again. So, if we a

For many of us, prayer raises more questions than answers. Does it even work? Am I doing it right? Am I using the right words? How can I know God is even listening?   Jesus’ early followers had similar questions about prayer, but they saw something different in Jesus. Jesus prayed with a confidence, closeness, and comfort that His disciples found mesmerizing. So, they asked Jesus to teach them to pray like He prayed. They wanted to know what He knew.   And so in Luke 11 and here in Matthew 6, Jesus gave his disciples what we now call The Lord’s Prayer. It is a prayer that turns the world upside down, and it might turn our lives upside down too…if only we will let it.   In this sermon, we’re focusing on the first sentence which contains three key phrases: Our Father… in heaven… hallowed be your name.   Our Father: In this phrase, Jesus is saying that you can come to God in the same way that He does, as a beloved son or daughter. You can come to God like a little child, running into her daddy’s arm. B

He is Risen! He is Risen! He is Risen! Easter Sunday marks the turning of the tide. The power of sin is shattered; the chains of Satan are broken; the dominion of death is conquered, for the Son of God has risen with power and is alive forevermore!   In this sermon, we go back to that very resurrection morning and discover how Jesus’ resurrection changes everything.   A Historical Seismic Shift: All the gospel accounts portray Jesus’ disciples on resurrection morning as being in utter shock. They were NOT expecting this. And it utterly changed the course of their lives and the course of human history. The resurrection of Jesus sent a seismic shock wave across human history, shifting the world. A Philosophical Seismic Shift: The resurrection of Jesus broke the philosophical mold of both Greco-Roman and Jewish thought. But today, we don’t live in Greco-Roman or Jewish philosophical categories; we live in a secular philosophical framework. The secular philosophical story goes something like this: We exis

Each of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – allocate approximately 1/3rd of their biographies to the final week of Jesus’ life. It’s as if everything shifts into slow motion, every definitive moment captured, each dialogue carefully conveyed, every detail meticulously preserved.   Because this is the week that changed all of history! The gospel writers want us to see it, feel it, experience it, and attend to it. So, in this sermon we’re going to walk with Jesus through this final week that changed history.   The author of this passage wants us to be struck by how it sets up and previews what is about to unfold in this final week of Jesus’ life. There are little hints of what is to come, thematic seeds planted here that will grow to fruition as the week develops, a revelation of who this Jesus truly is, and the storm he will face that is brewing on the horizon.   In the Triumphal Entry, Jesus is revealed to be three things that foreshadow what is to come throug

No one wants to be on the wrong side of history.  As it was in the days of Jesus, so it is today.   Our passage for this sermon takes place at a time when it seemed to some that the right side of history was about to be revealed. The people of Jesus’ day believed that Jesus was about to ride into Jerusalem on a white horse and overturn the existing ruling order; they didn’t understand Jesus and His mission.   But then Jesus tells a parable about a king, his servants, and investments of minas with a message that surprised the audience: there is no such thing as safety and neutrality when it comes to the Kingdom of Heaven.   Takeaways: The King is coming back, and so... Our greatest need is not fruitfulness, it is faithfulness. Our greatest call is not awareness, it is readiness. Our greatest problem is not sin, it is God.   In the end, history will be divided into two sides. Which side will you be on?   Luke 19:11–27

It is common to feel frustrated about prayer that doesn’t seem to work as we intended. We can feel like God isn’t answering in the way we want, or we don’t feel heard, so we just gave up. But what if you’re using prayer the wrong way?   In this sermon we learn about how to pray God’s way, the way that it’s designed to work. We explore two ways of praying that never work, and one way that always will.   Looking to Others: Prayer that uses God to look good will never work. We can do this by using prayer to gain status in the social order, to find our place in the world, or to look good in the eyes of others. Imagine how God feels by prayers like this. He doesn’t want to be used so that we can look good; He wants us to authentically desire His presence. Looking to Ourselves: Prayer that uses God to get His stuff will never work. We can repetitiously plead with God hoping that He will give us what we want; we can use all the flattery and well-oiled phrases, but in the end we’re just bargaining to get our

There’s probably nothing sicker than religious hypocrisy--people who claim to be tight with God, but then turn out to be total fakes. We hear it all the time: “the church is full of hypocrites.” If religious hypocrisy makes you mad, you’re in good company, because Jesus couldn’t stand it either. In fact, a lot of people don’t realize that Jesus was very first person in recorded history to call out religious people as hypocrites. In the passage for this sermon, Jesus is going to show us three things about hypocrisy:   The Profile of Hypocrisy: Hypocrisy is when goodness becomes virtue signaling. In this definition, hypocrites are not being good for God’s sake or even goodness’ sake, but they are being good for their own sake. For them, it’s about image and brand management, playing to the audience. This is the kind of righteousness that parades itself in order to be seen by others. The Tyranny of Applause: Jesus says that those who live for the applause of others have received their reward. He’s saying

In this sermon with goest speaker Dr. James Hamilton, we explore the connection between the Old Testament foundation for baptism in Exodus 15 and the New Testament foundation for Peter saying that the flood corresponds to baptism.   The chiastic structure of the song in Exodus informs us about Moses' intent for the Israelites thousands of years ago and help us relate this passage to our faith today.   15:1–2 I will sing to Yahweh 15:3–4 Yahweh Conqueror . . . Pharaoh . . . into the sea 15:5–10 The Deep/Floods Covered Egypt 15:11–12 Who Is Like You? 15:13–17 New Exodus Conquest of a New Eden 15:18–19 Yahweh King . . . Pharaoh . . . into the sea 15:20–21 Sing to Yahweh   Takeaway: worship looks back to look forward.   Exodus 15:1-21

If you were a 1st century Jew living in Capernaum, life under Roman military occupation was difficult. Talk of revolt and uprising were everywhere. Some had even claimed to be the chosen one to lead Israel to freedom from Roman rule, until they and their followers were crucified. Emotions were running high, like a tinder box waiting to ignite.   Then rumors of a rabbi from Nazareth speaking with authority and healing the sick presented a counter-narrative to the sentiments among the people. His ideas were so counter-culture that everyone had to pause and take note.   In this passage, we come to one of Jesus’ most radical teachings about loving our enemies. Two thousand years ago it would’ve sounded like heresy to a Jew. But Jesus wants to turn our world upside-down if we would let Him with open hands.   The sermon outline explores three main ideas:   The Power of Non-Retaliation: The Old Testament taught that if someone harms you, it is only fair and just that they suffer the same in turn. The objec

It’s one thing to understand the symptoms; it’s another to get the diagnosis right. Effectiveness of the prescription depends on the accuracy of the diagnosis. So, when it comes to the brokenness of humanity, the symptoms are easily identified, but it’s the diagnosis that’s difficult.   The religious leaders of Jesus’ day (Scribes and Pharisees) diagnosed our problem as largely behavioral (we all have bad, sinful habits). According to them, the key is to break those habits and learn to do good instead. So, the religious leaders prescribed long lists of do’s and don’ts, all in service of reforming behavior. What most religion teaches is to work hard at being good by keeping the rules.   But Jesus has a different diagnosis: the problem isn’t just in our behavior, it’s in our hearts. And we can modify our behavior all we want, but unless our hearts are transformed on the inside, we’re never going to be truly right. Jesus’ prescription is for new heart: He says to “repent, follow me, I will give you a new hea

Throughout this series, we’ve been working our way through Jesus’ illustrations of what that kind of perfect righteousness flowing from the goodness of a heart like God’s looks like. The kind of heart only Jesus can give us.   In this sermon, we come to the 3rd illustration of a heart made right in the Kingdom of Heaven, and again Jesus isn’t pulling any punches. The example of divorce demonstrates an underlying hardness of our hearts.   In a world full of miserable marriages, brutal betrayals, devastating divorces, and alarming abandonments, Jesus has a better Way. And it all starts with a new heart.   Three key points in our outline:   The Details of the Divorces Debate: The Old Testament grounds for divorce were adultery (Deuteronomy 24) and abusive abandonment (Exodus 21). Both of these texts form the backdrop of the New Testament’s teaching about divorce. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus interacts exclusively with Deuteronomy 24, which offers only one ground for divorce based on sexual immoral

Our culture can’t make up its mind about sex. We either strip it down until it has no significance, or we load it up with the weight of the sky. It’s nothing or everything, the culture can’t decide. The problem is the following. The more we try to pretend sex is nothing, the more damaged we become; the more we try to make sex out to be everything, the more disillusioned we become. In our cultural moment, sex has become a runaway train of over-amped desires careening off the rails. This is the way of the Kingdom of the Earth.   But what if there was a better way? What if our disordered hearts could be set right? What if sex could be beautiful again? What if hearts dominated by lust could become hearts dominated by love?   In this sermon from Matthew 5:21-27, we’ll explore three points:   The Monstrosity of Lust: The 7th commandment forbids adultery. But when Jesus references this commandment in the Sermon on the Mount, He pits himself not against the Old Testament law but against the Pharisees’ teachin

The world is full of anger. Sometimes our anger gets big and explosive, and everyone pays when it detonates. Other times our anger gets small, simmering and smoldering. Low-grade anger carried around in our bodies spills out like acid on those around us. And it’s so easy to be angry these days with pandemic restrictions, political hot-button issues, geopolitical tensions, and tragic injustice. No wonder so many people are so very angry over so many issues so much of the time.   But what if there was another way? What if the anger that dominates us could be arrested? What if anger could be diffused in our hearts before it ever gathers strength? What if Jesus can set us free from the bondage of a heart enslaved by anger? What if in the Kingdom of Heaven our angry hearts could truly become hearts of peace?   In this sermon, we look at three themes about anger from Matthew 5:20-26:   The Heart of Righteousness: Jesus teaches that righteousness is about more than just what we do on the outside, it’s about

Every speech has a central thesis, a big idea around which everything else is organized. In this passage, we come to the central thesis of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. This is the blazing center, the beating heart of the upside-down Way of Jesus. In these 111 words (in Greek) we find the big idea that turned the world on its head.   This sermon address three organizing questions:   Why is Jesus explaining Himself? Jesus came not to “abolish” or “relax” the righteous requirements of God, but that they might be “fulfilled” and “accomplished.” And to drive His point home, Jesus affirms the enduring importance of the Law of God with two definitive statements: the Word of God stands forever and all of it will be accomplished; and, because the Kingdom of Heaven is “at hand” in Jesus’ coming, the righteous requirements of the Law and Prophets are upheld. So what must we do to become righteous? What is the righteousness God requires? If our righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees to enter t

“If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.” Some of you will recognize that line from the 2014 commencement address Admiral William McRaven gave at the University of Texas which went viral a few years back and was later made into a book. Admiral McRaven was reminding those graduates of the power of the little things: our choices, our habits, our influence.   Every one of us is entrusted with a sphere of influence. And the choices we make, the habits we form, and the influence we wield help shape and mold our little corner of the world for better or worse. It’s the little things that end up changing our world.   Jesus makes much the same point in his Sermon on the Mount: “If you want to change the world, start off by being Salt and Light.”   In this sermon from Matthew 5:13-16, Jesus is teaching us how to change our world. To do that, we need to understand three things:   The Overlap of the Kingdoms: Every moment of every day is an opportunity to be with Jesus and live in the rea

Words shape the course of history. Two thousand years ago a young Jewish carpenter-turned-Rabbi turned the world upside down with His Sermon on the Mount and He began in the most unexpected way. He announced the blessings of the Kingdom of Heaven we’re coming upon the least, the last, and the left behind.   As we consider these “blessed”, these “beatitudes” of Jesus from Matthew 5:3-12, we’ll focus our attention on three themes:   The Upside-Down Kingdom: The Kingdom of Heaven is turning the world on its head. In Jesus’ Kingdom, many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. And so, the Kingdom is “at hand” in Jesus for the least, the last, and the left behind. Anyone desperate enough to cast all their hopes on Jesus are welcome in the Kingdom of Heaven. The Paradox of Blessedness: Blessedness is getting more of God in life’s valleys. What if blessedness in the Kingdom of God is most readily found not when we are feeling strong, but when we know we are weak? The Inverted Way o

The Sermon on the Mount is the central, essential message of Jesus. It contains His most brilliant, incisive, and challenging teachings. If you want to know what Jesus is all about, look no further than the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount is, at its core, about a Kingdom. A Kingdom that turns the world, and our lives, upside-down.   But let me warn you: to follow the upside-down Way of Jesus means going against the flow. It’s an inverted way to live. It’s cross-grain to almost everything else. Because this broken-down world is like a turtle flipped on its back that can’t tell which end is up; and Jesus is in the business of setting it right-side-up. To live in the upside-down Kingdom of Heaven is actually to discover the right-side up Way of life!   The Sermon on the Mount begins in Matthew 5:3-12. In this passage, we’ll see three things: Unexpected Kingdom: The Kingdom of Heaven is “at hand” in Jesus. Unusual Blessing: The favor of God is bestowed upon the least likely. Unparalleled O

As we enter the new year, what’s the most important thing we can fix our attention on? The highest priority of God’s people for 2022 is to passionately pursue the presence of God in our lives.   In this sermon, special guest Stephen Farish focuses our attention on the beauty of God in this passage from Psalm 27. Three questions about the beauty of the Lord from verse 4: What is the beauty of the Lord, and what does it look like? Where do we see the beauty of the Lord most clearly revealed? What is the right response by human beings to the Lord’s revelation of His “beauty” in Jesus Christ?   Psalm 27:1-6