Anyone who has been a Christian for any length of time has been exposed to mean Christians, that it to say, mean-spirited people masking as Christians. In this episode, you will discover the need to discern and set boundaries with toxic people in the Christian community. You are not under obligation to fellowship with mean Christians, in the home, or in the church.

Encounter Recovery Ministries

UC Mean Christians

The cure for spiritual depression is hearing the voice of your Shepherd, Jesus Christ, by the Spirit, and through the text. In an ideal world this would be happening within our churches, but tragically, it is not. We are hearing silliness, comedy, entertainment, and-or dry, lifeless sermonizing. It is indeed tragic that in order to recapture the voice of your Shepherd, you must in fact be prepared to leave a local church in order to do so.

To Whom are You Listening?

In order to be spiritually healthy, we must learn to honor the integrity of the biblical text. We do this by allowing Scripture to be what it says it is, and say what it says, apart from the traditions of men.

Christ not Law

While it is important to exercise longsuffering for those seeking deliverance and change, to put up with unmitigated evil is another thing altogether. As Western culture declines, churches that identify with that culture will be more and more tolerant of evil, even to the point of calling evil good and good evil. It is critical for your spiritual health that you discern, confront, expose, and-or leave such churches. In short, stop putting up with evil within the church.

Stop Putting Up With Evil

We presently live in a world in which happiness is tied to wealth, health, fame, and security. And yet, for Christians to seeek their happiness in these things only produces great unhappiness. For the true happiness we seek is found only in growing conformity to Christ in thought, word, and in deed.

True Happiness

It is entirely possible to know joy even in the midst of life's challenges. To live in this joy requires one be aware of the transendent narrative in Christ to which one belongs. In this Podcast, we present the grand narrative of God's eternal purpose for humanity, a purpose which was fully realized in the humanity of Christ, and which is now being worked out within those in Christ, by the Spirit.

Rejoicing in Hope

American retail religion actively markets the wide gate and the broad way that leads to destruction, and many follow that path. You must be willing to be named among the few to find the path that leads to life, and that path leads you outisde the camp, outside the modern religious structure in order to stand with Jesus. So, are along the many these days, or among the few- If you feel isolated, or discouraged by what passes as Christianity in America, you have cause to rejoice- It is a blessing to be among the few that find life.

UC Go out to Him

As the phrase infers, spiritual depression is tied to one's spiritual condition. And a compromised spiritual condition is tied directly to the compromised teaching and patterns of spiritual abuse all too common in today's churches. In this episode, we discuss two patterns of abuse common to all counterfeit Christianity- Financial exploitation, and mental-physical abuse. It is imperative that we discern this pattern and come out from among them.

UC Patterns of Abuse

Much unhappiness is tied to worldly religion and its demand that you become something presently are not in order to find and-or maintain acceptance with God. Whereas the gospel of Christ tells us that God has already accomplished that reconciliation for us in the finished work of his Son on our behalf. The Christian life therefore is about working out that which God has already accompished for you in Christ- the Christian life is about becoming who you already are- It is in the gospel that we find true identity, purpose, and hope.

UC Identity, Purpose, and Hope

The path toward joyful spirituality begins by admittting that your present situation is lifeless and dead, even depressing. It takes a lot of courage to follow Jesus outside the camp of institutionalized religion, but it is in our idenificatiton with him, at any cost, that we find true life and joyful living,

UC You MUST come out from them

At some point, Western evangelical leaders decided they could better serve Christ by no longer preaching his gospel. In its place, they developed inspirational messages, entertaining talks, pop-music, all enveloped by a general sense of -hip, slick, and cool.- The result is a lifeless religiosity that does not teach the true believer how to live like Christ lived. In this episode, we examine the idanger inherent in these shallows, and begin to prescribe solutions for moving out of this place of chronic immaturity, and into the deeper faith that brings true life and peace.

UC Danger in the Shallows

What you think about God has a direct effect upon your quality of life. This is why truth is so essential to healthy living. In a time within which we are surounded by lies, violence, and toxic religion, it is critical that we connect the dots between what we are being taught and its effect upon our life. The truth of the Christian life is that God has called each believer to live like Jesus lived, by the power of the Spirit.

UC Connecting the Dots

If you are in Christ, you are far more than just -a sinner saved by grace.- You are a child of God, born of the Spirit, a partaker in the divine nature -II Peter 1-4-. And the essence of your joy is discovered in becoming like Jesus. Indeed, that is what your life is all about- Becoming like Jesus. And to the degree that you are distracted from this primary purpose, you will be unhappy.

UC Recovering Joy

There is great comfort and joy in recognizing God has included you in his eternal purpose for humanity. For the eternal purpose of God is to create a people who are worthy of his presence. This purpose was fully revealed, fulfilled, and demonstrated in the life and work of Jesus, and realized in his new covenant people by the Spirit. It is possessing God's own Presence that is the great privilege of the child of God, in Christ.

UC People of the Presence

The glorious news of the gospel is that God's eternal purpose for humanity has been revealed and demonstrated in Jesus Christ- and is realized by the work of the Spirit in those who belong to him. This wonderous truth means we must be prepared to walk away from anything that calls itself Christianity but preaches -a different Jesus, a different spirit, and a different gospel- than that of the New Testament. Tragically, this translates into the sad fact that we must be prepared to walk away from 90- of American evangelicalism.

UC God's New Humanity

The newest sermons from Encounter Recovery Ministries on SermonAudio.

hubhopper

Encounter Recovery Ministries

hubhopper