Service - Participating in God's Work on Earth

We can't just all sit around. That's not what we were created for. Here Bill talks about breaking down three walls that have been allowed to be built in the church that keep us from participating with God in His work on Earth.

(with help from Brandenburg, Chandler, Piper, Pearcy, and of course MINDY!!)

Service - Participating in God's Work on Earth (mp3)

Discipleship - Mastering the Master's Life

We were created to become like Christ. That process, of being transformed into the image of Christ, is called discipleship, and it is one of the most misunderstood concepts in the church today. Howard Hendricks had a great series he did called "The Dynamics of Discipleship" which can be found online, and I borrow many of his ideas here because I think he nails it on the head. Discipleship is the Christian life, the Christian life is the life of Christ, so we need to master the Master's life.

Discipleship - Mastering the Master's Life (mp3)

Worship - The Fight For Joy - John 4

Here is week two of a series we're calling "Welcome to the Planet" where we're answering the simple quesiton everyone has: "Why on earth am I here?"

This week we talk about Worship and I talk about "The fight for joy" and John 4 where Jesus says that true worshipers will worship the Father in "spirit and truth." Basically, this is a paraphrase of John Piper's chapter on worship in Desiring God which is one of the best chapters on worship I've ever read. I also use another Chandler illustration, because let's be honest, no one talks about worship better than Piper and Chandler!

Worship - The Fight For Joy - John 4 (mp3)

Exchanging Pursuits - James 4

Here's the first sermon I did at Del Rey Hills in January. I talk about our first pursuits and the need to not compartmentalize God. You'll here some Matt Chandler rhetoric in this one because he says so eloquently what I feel like is one of the biggest issues the church is facing today: the compartmentalization of God into certain areas of lives rather than allowing Him to saturate every area of our lives.

Exchanging Pursuits - James 4 (mp3)

Making Disciples - Luke 5

This is a sermon I did at Del Rey Hills Church in February 2006. I deal with what is the most foundational principle we need to all understand about the concept of making disciples.

Those of you who like Gary Brandenburg in Dallas (www.fellowshipdallas.org) will notice that my opening illustration is one of his. Gary has had a huge impact on my communication style and is hands down the best illustrator I've ever heard. My other major stylistic influences, just FYI, are Matt Chandler (www.thevillagechurch.net) and Gregg Matte (www.houstonsfirst.com).

Here's the sermon, or you can subscribe to the podcast:

Making Disciples - Luke 5 (mp3)

Welcome to the unofficial Paradox Community Church Podcast

This is just a temporary blog we will be using for the podcast. Our official church website supports podcasting, so in the next few weeks, we will be doing most of our podcasting there. Just follow the instructions above to set up the podcast on ITunes.