Word of Life Church Podcast

Render unto Caesar his silver coin when he wants it back in the form of taxes. But never render your sacred soul unto Caesar. Your soul is reserved for bearing the divine image of Christ, not the beastly image of Caesar. Jesus Christ is the icon of God, and we are called to become icons of Christ.

When the multitude wanted to make him king
Put a crown upon his head
Why did he slip away to a quiet place instead?
–Bob Dylan, “In the Garden”

Paul's great yearning is to know Christ. Of course, Paul knows Christ. He met him on the Damascus Road. He preached him for thirty years. But the holy yearning remains. To know Christ is to know the infinite God, and so the yearning is infinite.

What does the story of Absalom have to do with Jesus and the cross? In this sermon we explore the striking parallels between two sons of David who reveal two radically different ways of becoming king. Discover how humility, self-giving love, and obedience bring a kingdom unlike any kingdom of this world.

What happens when we receive God’s mercy but struggle to extend that same mercy to others? The story of Jonah shows how easily disappointment and bitterness can keep us stuck in our own perspective. But the mercy of God meets us in the belly of the whale and invites us to lay down our bitterness and become the embodiment of the mercy of God to others.