Rise City Church Podcast

Many people think Christianity is a religion about good people chasing God‘s morality in order to get to heaven. But in reality that is exactly backward. Christianity is the story of how broken people have been running from God and how he has been chasing us down with the promise of his love. This week we explored a lesser-known dimension of the Christmas story Matthew 2 and see how God fulfills his promise by weaving the events of history with the prophecies of scripture. Listen in as explore these beautiful realities and the truth of what Christmas is all about!

Friction, Disagreement, Conflict. How do you wade through the unfamiliar waters we are currently living in? When emotions are heightened and you feel disconnected how do you retain friendships and work through hard moments? What if you disagree on major issues and current events? The answer isn't lost. The Apostle Paul addressed conflict head-on with the Romans, and the principles he gave still apply today. Open Romans 14 and listen in as Pastor Jason talks us through In This Season: Conflict.

When was your darkest day? In seasons of sorrow, God can feel absent. Like we are alone in a cold and dark universe. What do we do with our grief? Do we put on a fake religious smile? Do we allow ourselves to wither into despair? Here’s what’s beautiful: Jesus steps into our sorrow, and is the God of comfort. That’s because Jesus is not just a future hope of healing but a present and powerful friend in the midst of your pain. Tune in and see how you can find healing in your sorrow.

Unforgiveness is a toxic infection of the heart, but often we don't know how to forgive and what to do with the pain we've experienced. How do you forgive someone when you haven't had healing and reconciliation? Is forgiveness something that's two-sided or do you have to forgive even though you haven't gotten an apology? This week, Pastor Jason takes us through a passage in Matthew to show us how to forgive ourselves and others. Listen in to learn how to stop the infectious spread of unforgiveness and to understand the way of Jesus — the way of Forgiveness.

When have you been deeply disappointed? Is it your job, a breakup, your marriage, a missed opportunity, a struggle with kids? Why would God allow this season of disappointment? This is a pain point in our lives that only the Gospel can heal. This week, we find that healing in Psalm 73. Pastor Nolan walks through this text to show how the Gospel brings healing in our seasons of disappointment and reshapes our understanding of why God allows these things to happen.

Why does it feel like joy is so hard to hold onto? Do circumstances, comparison, anxiety, and negativity seem to ruthlessly steal your moments of joy? Is it possible to experience God's goodness in the midst of difficult circumstances? This week, Pastor Jason walks us through Philippians 4 where Paul outlines how to experience joy in every season of life. Join us, as we seek together how to be joy-filled people.

Millions of people wrestle with anxiety every day. The sources of anxiety are endless and the effects can be debilitating. Does the Bible have answers for these pressures? Yes. This week, we explore an often overlooked text that has powerful healing to offer. Listen to this message by Pastor Nolan on how the Gospel brings healing to our anxiety.

Why do we find ourselves struggling alone? We have the desire for connection, but there's something that holds us back from pursuing people. Isolation is the pit that keeps us from working through life's harshness and having healthy relationships. Loneliness, Seclusion, Isolation — Jesus felt it too. How do we draw near to the One who has been in our shoes before? This week we are launching a new series looking at different seasons we find ourselves in. Join us as we ask hard questions and pursue answers together in In This Season.

You’re a leader. Yes, you. Maybe you don’t think so? But if leadership is influence, you have influence with someone. And leadership is HARD. How do we lead in a way that is effective and biblical? 1 Peter closes with a powerful charge to leaders in the church that will shape and transform you. Listen in as Pastor Nolan teaches the last week in the series, Hope Lies Ahead, to learn more.

The end times are clearly here, right? Wars, famine, natural disasters - all are signs that the end is coming, but do we really know when? More importantly, do we know how to respond? If you’re a Christian what are you called to do? This week, Pastor Jason leads us through 1 Peter 4 where Peter talks through the end being near and how we should live in light of this truth. Join us as we discover how God has wired us for this moment in time and how to live out the calling on our lives.

Doesn't it seem like everyone is on edge right now? We have to be reminded to be kind and gentle even in the grocery store lines. The truth is we are surrounded by a suffering world. People are hurting. We ourselves may be experiencing pain, but this week we are reminded how to be a blessing even to someone walking through massive trials. Pastor Jason teaches us through 1 Peter 3 that we can take a posture of a blessing, because ultimately Jesus established His victory through His suffering.

Do you like being told what to do? Even the question is hilarious! Of course not! Who likes to be bossed around or unfairly ruled over? So, what do you do when it’s happening? Jesus can fill your soul with the kind of hope that makes you humble in hard circumstances. This passage casts a vision for having humility under hard leaders to follow in government, the workplace, and in the home. Listen in to see how!

Most of us want to feel accepted and welcomed. But in this week’s passage, Peter literally tells us that following Jesus will make us “strangers and aliens in this world.” Christians are indeed going to look so different from the world, that at times, they will even be rejected. What does that mean? And can that possibly be a good thing? This week, Pastor Nolan looks at the idea that Christians are a contrast community in three ways. Listen in to learn more.

If you have found yourself desperate for answers and direction in this season then listen in and be encouraged. Join us for this one-night event as Pastor Jason leads us through Moving Forward in Chaos. 

The heaviness of this world leaves many of us feeling angry, frustrated, and tired. We're hurting, struggling to connect, and afraid. But what if you knew this was temporary? What if you knew that a great hope, the greatest hope ever, was ahead of you? Would you think differently? Would you live differently? 1 Peter calls us to think, live, and ultimately love differently, because of the incredible hope of the Gospel set before us. Join us as Pastor Jason unpacks this second week of Hope Lies Ahead.

No one understands what I'm going through. I'm so confused. I'm in so much pain. I'm alone. Two thousand years ago Peter wrote a letter to a culture wrestling with these thoughts. This couldn't be more relevant for us today as we struggle through the chaos in our current world. Do you want power for today's trials? Do you want to find out the purpose in your suffering? Listen in as we start a new series through 1 Peter and find that our Hope Lies Ahead.

If God is so loving, why was the brutality of the cross necessary? Couldn’t God just forgive sin? Are we really supposed to believe in the old religious notion that God is an angry and vengeful judge? Does God actually feel and act upon wrath? This week we explore this concept in depth from Scripture. We’ll dig into the doctrine of Propitiation as Scott Bean teaches through Romans. Our hearts are changed when we truly understand this horrifying and beautiful doctrine. Join us in the final week of “What’s the Point of the Cross?”

Are you constantly fighting sin? Do you find yourself relapsing and living your old life? Are you seeking perfection, but find that you are failing? The truth is you're going to sin. You will fail over and over again. But God is not shocked by your failure. Only God is perfectly holy. But by the cross, and in His goodness, we get to partner with him in a process called Sanctification. This week, Pastor Jason opens up Philippians 3 to reveal that God is not done with us yet. His love for us is so great that He allows us to walk with Him and become more like him through regular repentance and seeking Him. Join us as we learn to be transformed in this week's sermon, Sanctification.

You know that moment when you want to hide? The feeling of being exposed - almost naked - because of your own sin or something done to you? That's shame. There's no other feeling like it in this world. Do you live with that as your reality? Do you constantly feel the need to cover up and live in a disguise, so that you don't have to face the truth? This week, Pastor Nolan teaches us the theology of Expiation. We learn that Jesus came to blot out, bury, banish, bleach, and finally, to bear our shame by dying on the cross. Why? Because he wants us to live the life he originally intended before sin entered this world — a life of freedom from shame. Join us for Week 03 of What is the Point of the Cross?

Justice — it's a word we use constantly. We want to see people brought to justice. We want justice for the evil of this world, but we want mercy for ourselves. But the truth is all of us, every single one will stand before Christ in judgment. But why? Aren't you good enough? Not really that bad? Or not the one to blame? God in his holiness, righteousness, and justice will not allow us to go without judgment. It is in His love that He requires a price to be paid for the sins in this world. But how does he do it? Only by Jesus' finished work on the cross. The only way the broken things can be made right is by His grace, through faith in Him alone. Do you understand Justification? Join us for week 02 in What's the Point of the Cross?