We’re back for our first recording session of 2021. As we start the new year the Beyond Sunday team is thinking about the realities of Church in the world after COVID-19. We aren’t done with the virus yet but we still wanting to be learning from this experience and planning for the future. What will Church look like? How will our faith be different? What sort of banana bread will rise out of these island fires? All this and more on this week’s episode of Beyond Sunday.

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New month. New Books of the Bible! This month we’re doubling up with Ruth and Esther together. Two great stories in one almost as great podcast. Think of it as Beyond Sunday’s early Christmas gift to your podcast feed.

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2020 is coming to a close. Let’s all take a break, look at this picture of kittens, and remember some stories that just make us feel good. Happy New Year from Beyond Sunday!

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Quick, close your eyes and picture and angel! What did you see? Wings? Halo? White robe? Did they look like a human? Something else?

Odds are that whatever you pictured it had more to do with art than with the biblical stories of angels. In these last days before Christmas, when we hear the story of an angel appearing to Mary, the Beyond Sunday Team is tackling the question “What are angels really like?” We’re guessing that they have a lot more eyes than you would have expected.

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Is your church suffering from the “hot pastor problem”? In the wake of another leader in a major church leader resigning due to indiscretions that are, at least in part, connected to the pastors sense of, and perhaps desire for, celebrity the Beyond Sunday team wants to examine what we look for in our congregational leaders and how physical attractiveness plays into our perception of someone’s leadership. Do we unfairly associate physical appearance (or maybe charisma) with an ability to lead? Do we downplay leadership qualities that are actually highlighted in scripture? All of this and more on this week’s episode of Beyond Sunday.

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New month. New Books of the Bible! This month we’re doubling up with Ruth and Esther together. Two great stories in one almost as great podcast. Think of it as Beyond Sunday’s early Christmas gift to your podcast feed.

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast and to share it with your friends, families, neighbors, and strangers!

The prophets are some of the most interesting and powerful books of the Bible. But how does prophecy still exist in our world today? How should we respond when prophecies don’t come true? And how do we faithfully encounter those who claim to be a prophet now?

Patrick and Pastor David take on all these questions and more as we reflect on some modern prophets who said that God told them President Trump would be re-elected. What do we do with this now? And how does this impact the culture’s view of Christians?

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast and to share it with your friends, families, neighbors, and strangers!

The prophets are some of the most interesting and powerful books of the Bible. But how does prophecy still exist in our world today? How should we respond when prophecies don’t come true? And how do we faithfully encounter those who claim to be a prophet now?

Patrick and Pastor David take on all these questions and more as we reflect on some modern prophets who said that God told them President Trump would be re-elected. What do we do with this now? And how does this impact the culture’s view of Christians?

Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast and to share it with your friends, families, neighbors, and strangers!

“Wow, you are a really great follower!” Doesn’t exactly sound like a compliment, does it? This week the Beyond Sunday team is exploring the art of following and why the best leaders are also great followers.

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The election is over, but, at time of recording, we don’t yet know who won. That’s ok though, because the Beyond Sunday team wants to encourage Christians to become peacemakers no matter who is in office. The world around us can call for division but we serve the one who said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” What does that mean to our faith now? And where can we go from here?

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We know that there is an election happening, but it’s also a new month which means a new entry in Beyond Sunday’s the Books of the Bible series: Job. We’re jumping out of order to cover one of the most fascinating biblical stories around suffering, justice, and God’s role in our life.

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We’re a week away from election day in the United States. As usual, things have been a little contentious between the different parties throughout this season. But why is it that Christians are so widely divided in election issues as well? Why doesn’t our identity in Christ offer us a stronger unity than our political affiliations? The Beyond Sunday Team is looking at a recent study that identified the top issues of concern for voters based on their religious affiliation and their racial background. We don’t have all the answers, but hopefully we’ll be able to think through a reasonable path to bring your faith to the polling place with you this year.

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You know that feeling when you pick up a book and look around a few hours later without even realizing how much time had passed? The story is so engaging, the characters so impactful, the writing so meaningful that you find yourself lost in a whole other world. What would it look like if we looked at the Bible (or even our own lives) in the same way?

The truth is we’re all living a story that is part of a larger story. This week the Beyond Sunday team is picking the brain of our resident writer/author, Elise McCarter, as we think about faith and the Bible in the context of a grand narrative in which we get to have a starring role.

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If you’ve been alive in the last few months you have probably heard a wide range of groups calling for “justice.” But what do we mean when we say that word? And what does the Bible mean when it talks about “justice”? This week, with some guidance from Tim Keller (pastor at Redeemer Church in NYC), the Beyond Sunday team is breaking down a biblical understanding of justice. In this second piece (You’ll want to listen to Part 1 first) the Team looks at how our modern understandings of justice all seem to fall short of the biblical ideal..

You can find the full article that we use for our discussion here.

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October brings with it the next instalment in the Books of the Bible series: Deuteronomy. As we wrap up the Torah we’re also pausing the narrative for Moses, who has been the central character since the book of Exodus, to give a speech to the nation of Israel. They are about to enter the promised land and Moses has some warnings, some encouragement, and some pretty blunt rhetoric.

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In recent years there has been a rise in what has been termed “Christian Nationalism.” On the surface, this is portrayed as patriotism and even faithfulness to God. But if you scratch the surface even slightly there appears to be a lot about this stance that is averse to the teachings of Jesus. The Beyond Sunday Team is looking to cut through the rhetoric and get to the heart of the issue: Do you have a be a good American to be a good Christian? Do we have to agree with our earthly government to be faithful to Jesus?

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Every week there's a new story about how Christians are facing a war from the culture that surrounds us. This week we ask the critical question: Is this a war we should be fighting?

This week on the podcast the Beyond Sunday Team is tackling this question. It turns out, we might not want to be fighting this war the way we have been.

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If you’ve been alive in the last few months you have probably heard a wide range of groups calling for “justice.” But what do we mean when we say that word? And what does the Bible mean when it talks about “justice”? This week, with some guidance from Tim Keller (pastor at Redeemer Church in NYC), the Beyond Sunday team is breaking down a biblical understanding of justice. In this first of 2 parts (part 2 to be released at a later date) the team lays a foundation for how we might use the bible to implement justice in our lives now.

You can find the full article that we use for our discussion at https://quarterly.gospelinlife.com/a-biblical-critique-of-secular-justice-and-critical-theory/.

A new month and a new installment in Beyond Sunday’s ongoing Books of the Bible Series. The Israelites are leaving Mt. Sinai and starting their road trip to the promised land. Like any good road trip everyone has a roll they are supposed to play and nothing goes according to plan. So grab your favorite snacks, a little caffeine, and buckle up for this 40 year adventure through the wilderness!

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This week the Beyond Sunday Team is wading into the waters of Qanon — a new anonymous informant that has been pushing out conspiracy theories and has gained such a following that many are calling it a “new religion.” Things got a little crazy behind the scenes and Patrick, Elise, and Pastor David are pretty sure its because Qanon was messing with their equipment.

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