Woodland Hills Church Sermons Audio Podcast

There is a consistent and persistent message God has been sending through both the Old and New Testaments: Love your neighbor as yourself. And everyone is your neighbor! What was recorded as law in Lev. 19 was echoed by the prophets and reiterated by Jesus in the gospels.

This is the fifth message in the Animate series which focuses on making ourselves free and available to commune with God. Transformation comes from spending time in the presence and glory of God.

This is the fourth message in the Animate series which focuses on making ourselves free and available to commune with God. Transformation comes from spending time in the presence and glory of God.

This is the third message in the Animate series focuses on making ourselves free and available to commune with God. Transformation comes from spending time in the presence and glory of God.

This is the second message in the Animate series which focuses on making ourselves free and available to commune with God. Transformation comes from spending time in the presence and glory of God.

This is the first message in the Animate series which focuses on making ourselves free and available to commune with God. Transformation comes from spending time in the presence and glory of God.

Easter is about Jesus’ resurrection and the faith of the church in that resurrection. Jesus’ claims to be God were unambiguous but didn’t always receive the same response.

Greg leads us in reflecting and then responding to what he calls “the central event that defines all history": the cross. You are invited to join the congregation in a responsive confession (download presentation file to read along)

Jesus used the law to show us that we can’t get to heaven on the basis of our own good deeds. Once we accept this, we can enjoy the freedom to live radically and generously in the community that is the family of God.

Jesus' encounter with the rich young man raises the question of what a person must do to get into heaven. Is it good deeds? Is selling our possessions and giving to the poor enough? No, it is embracing the love relationship with God that is extended to us through Christ.

Spiritually speaking, the attitude we have when we work to advance God's Kingdom is far more important than the work we actually do. If we do the “right things” but don't don’t imitate Jesus in our attitude we don't reflect the Kingdom of God the way we could. Humility, gentleness and bearing each others' burdens are basic to serving one another in Christ-like love.

Jesus uses little children as examples of the attitude we are to take. The innocence of children give us a good model for trusting God, getting our identity from him and avoiding the evaluation and judgment game.

When we hear sermons, often we apply them to someone else. It is always easier to see and try to fix other people’s faults than it is our own. It is common to do this when we read Bible stories. One of the functions of Jesus’ parables is to free us from this self-serving favoritism and force us to look in the mirror.

When we pray, we’re using our say-so to partner with God to bring about his will on earth as it is in heaven. But it is not magic. Prayer is a labor of love. We are pushing for God’s will to be accomplished, against all that resists his will being accomplished.

The parable of the persistent widow and the unjust judge is deeply rooted in the larger story of God’s faithfulness to Israel, Jesus’ re-enactment of that story, and the question of whether Jesus will find faith on earth when he returns.