I have talked about my love for Mars Hill Church/Seattle and their teaching pastor, Mark Driscoll, on the blog before. Recently, I have been listening to a sermon series he did earlier this year entitled Religion Saves and 9 Other Misconceptions.
Late last year, MHBC decided to ask the congregation what subjects/questions they would like their pastor to address from the pulpit. Then the THOUSANDS of responses were narrowed down to a certain number and the people voted for the top nine questions. Mark then preached on the top nine vote-getters (going from lowest to highest) in a nine-week sermon series.
I have been listening to them on my long drives. FAB. U. LOUS. I cannot say enough. All of his sermons are worth listening to, but these are particularly good. Whether you have been a christian for 35 years or you are a new believer, these are worth your time. There's a good chance that everything you "thought" you believed will be challenged from scripture, and you will come away with new insight and just maybe, a change of heart.
Now run, don't walk, over to iTunes and download them now. They are available on audio and video. If you have the video capability, he is great to watch! The series topics are as follows:
Religion Saves and 9 Other Misconceptions
Week 1 Is it biblical for christians to use birth control?
Week 2 Does God have a sense of humor?
Week 3 Please explain predestination.
Week 4 What is the hardest part of the Bible for you, personally, to accept? (his answer: grace)
Week 5 How do you break free from the bondage of sexual sin?
Week 6 What saves us--faith or works?
Week 7 What's biblical--dating, courting, or "dourting"?
Week 8 What can "traditional" churches learn from the emergent church movement?
Week 9 Does scripture regulate our theology AND our methodology (the regulative principle). He particularly addresses the subject of worship in this sermon.
A few disclaimers:
If you like to listen to sermons that make you feel all warm and fuzzy and shrug off the sin in your lives, skip this. I promise you WILL be convicted.
Give yourself plenty of time. Most of the messages are at least an hour and fifteen minutes long.
Some of these topics are more "adult" in nature. And Mark Driscoll does not mince words--even from the pulpit. I know I have some teenage readers. Please check with your parents before you listen.
Finally, if you do listen, I would LOVE to know what you think. Did you agree or disagree? Why or why not?
4 comments:
I love the Trinity Baptist Church's podcasts. I have listened to 5 1/2 of the series of "Dating and Courtship." For some reason, part 1 is not on iTunes, but I was still able to enjoy the rest of them! Haven't had the time to finish listening to part 6 yet...
I downloaded the sermons. I'll talk to Mom about them. Thanks for posting!
Rachel
I am terrible about listening to podcasts, but I am trying to do better. I actually listened to one of Driscoll's sermons last week about church planting. These topics sound fantastic and I have every good intention (wink) to listen to at least some of them ;)
He had such a reputation a while back for vulgarity that I was turned off without even giving him a chance. He has since softened a bit and been mentored by some older and wiser counsel in this area.
I subscribe completely to the biblical doctrine of God's complete sovereignty (election) which would tie into week 4. Embracing this truth was one of the greatest leaps in my christian faith. A completely unveiling. It is SOOOOOO difficult to let go of all that you have been taught your entire christian life, even if what you have been taught is absent of certain pivotal truths from His word.
...So I am sure I agree with him on that one, since he is a reformed pastor.
I'll have to listen to some of the others and get back with you. I would love to see what more of your readers think. Years ago when we were members of a baptist church I would have turned up my nose and scoffed at some of these topics but when God's word (which is what changes us) is the foundation for such truths it is very hard to ignore.
Great post :)
i am definitely hooked on podcasts. i listen to one everyday i work out. most of the girlsat my al-g laugh whenever i start with, "so i listened to this podcast today.." because i talk about them so much.
ironic enough, i listened to the dating/courting (wk 7) one when we were doing our Pure Sex unit in uprising/alg. i learned wuite a bit about why some adults chose those options for their kids. however, it didn't help me out much. i do agree with the amount of convicting things put forward. in the same regard, week 5 was rather interesting and insightful.
the sense of humor one made me laugh out loud a few times.. and it really uplifted me for the day.
i will have to get around to the rest of them :) but i still favor Erwin McManus' and Rob Bell's.
Thanks for gently nudging passive readers like me to come out of the woodwork. Would you believe this is only the second time I've EVER left a comment on any blog EVER? Consider yourself a true friend and gifted writer to get me to post a comment.
I enjoyed this post as I am a huge fan (is it ok to say that about a pastor?) of Mark Driscoll and the Acts 29 church-planting network. I am inadvertently watching these podcasts backwards, starting with the last one first and so on. Curious what your thoughts are after you listen to the one on the emerging church. Although he tries to avoid labels, he uses them here to clear up misconceptions people have about his doctrine. He divies up the emerging movement into 4 camps (emerging evangelical, house church movement, emerging reformers, and emerging liberal) and isn't shy about associating particular men with each one. Again, I'd love to hear your reaction to this. I agree with Mark's assessment that the emerging liberal camp is headed in a dangerous/unbiblical direction for their incessant questioning of essential/core truths about Jesus and the Bible. If any of your readers are curious about Mark Driscoll and what he believes, this particular message would be well worth your time. I found it to be clear, biblical, and passionate.
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