Sunwest Fc's Weekly Sermon Podcast

Have you ever made a wish? Did it come true, and was it everything you hoped it would be? A celebrity once said, "God punishes us by giving us everything we want." The children of Israel experienced this as they asked God for a king. God gave them their wish, but it didn't quite turn out the way they were thinking. Why was that? Are we any different, as we list off all the things that we think might make our lives better? Do we treat God as the real king of our hearts, or do we treat him as if he were a magical genie, granting our wishes? As we enter Holy Week, starting with Palm Sunday, let's be careful of what we wish for.

Where was God on Good Friday? Was he standing at a distance punishing Jesus? Was he turning his back on Jesus at his weakest moment? When Jesus spoke his last words, "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?", what was happening? Perhaps the key to understanding this world-altering mystery is found 1000 years before Jesus spoke those last words.

The word gospel means good news. The good news that the Bible talks about was revealed through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But Jesus revealed something profound after his resurrection…this good news was being revealed, foreshadowed, and talked about since the beginning of time. People just couldn’t see it until after the resurrection. This week we look at the concept of “glory” and God’s "presence”. God always desired to be fully present with his people, but his presence put them in danger. The cross became the resolution to this divide. It is the beautiful collision of heaven and earth, of human and divine.

The word gospel means good news. The good news that the Bible talks about was revealed through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But Jesus revealed something profound after his resurrection…this good news was being revealed, foreshadowed, and talked about since the beginning of time. People just couldn’t see it until after the resurrection. This week we look at the “deal” that God cut a few millennia ago with Abraham. We will understand more deeply how the Cross became the profound fulfilment of God’s love and justice.

The word gospel means good news. This good news was revealed through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. But Jesus revealed something profound after his resurrection…this good news was being revealed, foreshadowed, and talked about since the beginning of time. People just couldn’t see it until after the resurrection. As we head towards Easter, join us as we take the road back through the early scriptures to see The Gospel BC.

Look at any movie, book, or painting and you are bound to encounter the human need for connection with other human beings. We are wired for relationships (friendships, romantic relationships, family relationships). This can lead to the assumption that our deepest longings are realized only when we complete the puzzle by finding that missing piece. But is that person, really the missing piece? Join us this week as we talk about parenting: how our relationships with our children can't complete us, and the damage it does when we assume they will.

Everyone has an invisible 'friendship code' that shapes, hurts, or helps our friendships. God wants to fix our friendship code and fasten it to Jesus...but how?

Look at any movie, book, or painting and you are bound to encounter the human need for connection with other human beings. We are wired for relationships (friendships, romantic relationships, family relationships). This can lead to the assumption that our deepest longings are realized only when we complete the puzzle by finding that missing piece. But is that person, really the missing piece? Join us for this series as we explore how our relationships can't complete us, and the damage that does when we assume they will.

In our world today we can have same-day delivery, fast food, instant entertainment, instant communication with whomever we want, and a search engine or chat GPT to give us answers to any of our questions. We have all been shaped by this culture of speed, and because we want it, we assume it's good. But how has this shaped our faith? How has this shaped our ability to process things in a healthy way? In a world that tells you that your opinions, preferences, and comfort are the most important thing, we have added an expectation of immediacy. This combo can provide the knockout punch to our spiritual formation...unless we learn to slow down and tend our heart.

Over the last couple of weeks, we have talked about Deconstruction, what it is, and why we get there. When Deconstruction is done well with the right motive it can be a source of tremendous growth in our lives. But how do we go about that “reconstruction” process? Join us this week and next as we look at how to reconstruct our faith well.

Over the last decade the word Deconstruction has been used, claimed, and tossed around quite a bit. It is a word that is intended to describe someone's journey away from faith. But did you know that questions and doubts are a part of faith not an enemy of faith? Perhaps it’s our understanding of faith that needs to be deconstructed. Deconstruction is a normative and healthy part of the faith journey. What if deconstruction wasn’t the destination but one stop on the journey of reconstruction and growth? Join us as we explore what it means to question your faith without losing it.

Over the last decade the word Deconstruction has been used, claimed, and tossed around quite a bit. It is a word that is intended to describe someone's journey away from faith. But did you know that questions and doubts are a part of faith not an enemy of faith? Perhaps it’s our understanding of faith that needs to be deconstructed. Deconstruction is a normative and healthy part of the faith journey. What if deconstruction wasn’t the destination but one stop on the journey of reconstruction and growth? Join us as we explore what it means to question your faith without losing it.

It’s the time of year we’ve all been waiting for. In fact, the word Advent means waiting. Beyond the cultural parts of this season that we all wait for, there is a universal longing in every human heart that awaits the presence of God, purpose, eternity, rescue, and deliverance. Christmas is the story of God’s response to every longing heart. Come celebrate with us.

A wishlist at Christmas can tell you a lot about the person who wrote it. It can tell you about their dreams, goals and aspirations. It can also tell a lot about someone when they don’t get what’s on their list. But maybe when we don’t get what we want we’ll be more open to considering what’s on God’s Wishlist.

2023-12-03 Wishlist - Part 1: Undeck The Halls, Pastor Dan Bergen by

Jonah is a story that has captured the imagination of children and adults alike throughout history. It’s the story of someone who ran from the call of God. It’s the story of a God who cared too much about a city to let that person run away from their call. The fact that Jonah wasn’t perfect didn’t stop God from using Jonah. We are Jonah.

Jonah is a story that has captured the imagination of children and adults alike throughout history. It’s the story of someone who ran from the call of God. It’s the story of a God who cared too much about a city to let that person run away from their call. The fact that Jonah wasn’t perfect didn’t stop God from using Jonah. We are Jonah.

Jonah is a story that has captured the imagination of children and adults alike throughout history. It’s the story of someone who ran from the call of God. It’s the story of a God who cared too much about a city to let that person run away from their call. The fact that Jonah wasn’t perfect didn’t stop God from using Jonah. We are Jonah.

Many of us use prayer as a last resort when life goes sideways or things don’t go according to plan. But Jesus taught a different posture. He taught that prayer is the first option. In fact, Jesus taught that we (that includes you!) could personally hear God’s voice and that this personal connection would be the source of living life in all its fullness. Join us this week as we conclude our Words To Live By series by ironically ending with the thing we should always do first.

When the first followers of Jesus chose to follow him they knew intuitively they were embracing a life of risk. When hardship and challenges came their way they weren't seen to back down, they chose to buckle down. They chose courage over comfort. Many today see Jesus as the key to a comfortable life. Let’s not confuse the peace that Jesus brings with worldly comfort. May we rediscover the call to risk.