This episode of Faith All Over the Place was a momentous one. First of all, it's our 25th episode — I don't know why we put such an emphasis on the number 25 in our culture, but there you have it. Second, we had on our first repeat guest, and he's someone particularly important to me: my friend and pastor, Kurt Petersheim.
My friend, colleague, and partner in podcasting excellence, Stephen Kruiser, and I kicked things off with Kurt by mentioning how excited all three of us are that baseball season is just around the corner. Y'all, college baseball season starts on Friday!
The main topic of this episode was like drinking from a fire hose, and I'm going to try not to give too much away. The "hook" for this discussion was our Vision Sunday service on February 1 at Eastridge Community Church. Kurt shared a little behind-the-scenes glimpse at how the pastors and staff are having conversations and praying about who God wants us to be as a congregation. Our new identity statement as a church is: disciples of Jesus living on mission for the glory of God.
We talked about the importance of being disciples and making disciples, along with admitting how easy it is to tiptoe off the narrow path and take our eyes off the prize. We discussed how the modern megachurch culture and its "seeker sensitivity" have taken some of the elegant simplicity out of preaching the gospel.
Then we ventured into a discussion of how young people are turning back to faith. It's not just for the liturgy, as some suggest; it's about finding truth and what Kurt called the "redemptive quality of true faith." We spent some time talking about wanting to be a big tent that reaches everybody without selling out the truth of God's Word. It's about refusing to waver from the gospel and making the high truths of the Word practical, just as Jesus and the apostles intended.
Kurt read 2 Corinthians 4:2, which reads, "Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God."
The simplicity of the gospel is this, and it's how we should approach being and making disciples:
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40, NIV)
I'm not exaggerating when I say that this was my favorite episode we've done so far. We're talking about having Kurt on more often as a semi-regular guest, and I hope we can make it happen. (I'm trying to get Kruiser to fly to Georgia so that we can do an episode with Kurt in person!)
Previously on Faith All Over the Place, Episode 24: Praying Our Way Through the Political Madhouse
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