Rise Community Podcast

Rise Community Church

The latest teaching and news from Rise Community Church.

  1. 6d ago

    [Wk4] The Battle for Your Identity - 1 John 2:12-17

    John reminds us of a powerful truth: our identity is not found in the world but in Christ. We are forgiven, loved by the Father, and strengthened by God's Word. Yet every day we face competing influences that seek to pull our hearts away from Him. In this message from 1 John 2:12–17, we explore the three great temptations John identifies—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—and learn how to resist a world that is passing away while anchoring our lives in the love of God. This teaching is a call to examine our hearts, renew our devotion to Christ, and live for what will last forever.

    1h 4m

  2. May 24

    [Wk3] The Visible Gospel - 1 John 2:3-11

    This week's message takes us deep into 1 John 2:3-11, confronting us with an uncomfortable but essential truth: knowing God isn't just about intellectual belief or past spiritual experiences—it shows up in our daily obedience. The challenge here isn't perfection, but direction. Are we actively keeping God's commands, or have we settled into a comfortable Christianity that exists only in memory? The message emphasizes that obedience isn't a legalistic checklist to earn God's love, but rather evidence that His love has truly taken root in our hearts. We're reminded that Jesus gave us both an old and new command—to love one another as He loved us. This isn't generic love for humanity in the abstract, but specific, tangible love for the people right in front of us: our brothers and sisters in Christ, the difficult family member, the person who hurt us years ago. The most striking insight is that love and light always travel together. If we claim to walk in God's light but harbor hatred, bitterness, or unforgiveness toward anyone, we're actually stumbling in darkness. This isn't just theological theory—it's a mirror we must hold up to our own hearts, asking honestly: who have I failed to love? Who do I need to forgive? The call is clear: our faith must move from words to action, from prayer alone to tangible help, from Sunday profession to Monday demonstration.

    41 min

  3. May 17

    [Wk2] Counterfeit Christianity - 1 John 1:4-2:2

    This week's challenges us to reconsider what it truly means to walk in the light. The early church faced a crisis when false teachers claimed they were without sin, creating confusion and robbing believers of their joy. We discover that joy isn't the same as happiness—happiness depends on circumstances, but joy is rooted in something deeper and more stable: God himself. The sermon confronts a uncomfortable truth: we can claim to be Christians while still walking in darkness, living a counterfeit faith that looks good on the surface but lacks authentic surrender to Christ. Like a blind person who doesn't realize light still exists around them, we can gradually become desensitized to our own sin through small compromises and justifications. The enemy doesn't create anything new; he simply twists what God intended for good into counterfeits—success without integrity, intimacy without covenant, spirituality without surrender. But here's the beautiful truth: God doesn't flip on the lights and run away in disgust. He meets us in our darkest places, unafraid of our mess, ready to pull us out. Living in the light isn't about achieving perfection; it's about accepting the truth that we're not perfect and allowing God's light to expose what needs healing. When we follow Jesus, we have an advocate who speaks to the Father on our behalf, and in our weakness, we discover true strength.

    32 min

  4. May 10

    [Wk1] Knowing the Eternal God - 1 John 1:1-4

    Our study of 1 John begins with a stunning reality: the eternal God who existed before time itself chose to make Himself tangible and accessible through Jesus Christ. We're challenged to move beyond viewing Christianity as mere intellectual knowledge or religious rules, and instead embrace it as an intimate, transformative relationship with the living God. The message cuts through the false teaching of Docetism that denied Jesus's physical reality, reminding us that the apostles didn't follow a phantom or philosophy—they heard, saw, studied, and touched the Word of Life. This historical, flesh-and-blood Jesus bridges the seemingly impossible gap between our brokenness and God's holiness. The concept of fellowship, or koinonia, isn't just casual acquaintance but deep communion with the Father and the Son. We're invited to examine what gaps exist in our own lives—shame, control, past wounds, or misunderstandings of who God truly is—and to recognize that Jesus laid the cross across every canyon that separates us from divine relationship. The promise is profound: when we truly know God through this personal encounter with Christ, we experience not fleeting happiness based on circumstances, but abiding joy rooted in His unchanging presence. This calls us to honest self-examination and vulnerable community with fellow believers who walk this transformative journey alongside us.

    1h 6m

  5. May 3

    [1 John Intro] Authentic Faith in an Artificial World

    We're embarking on a journey through 1 John that challenges us to move beyond surface-level faith into authentic spiritual living. This powerful sermon isn't just another letter—it's a poetic, emotional call to cut through the fakeness that permeates our world and even our churches. The core message confronts a crisis that's as relevant today as it was in 90 AD: false teachers were fracturing the early church, claiming moral superiority while living hypocritically, and denying the physical reality of Jesus Christ. John's response is unshakable—he appeals to evidence, to what was seen, heard, and touched. This isn't blind faith; it's faith rooted in historical reality. We're given three powerful tests to examine our spiritual lives: the test of truth (do we believe Jesus came in the flesh?), the test of obedience (are we striving to walk in light and confess our sin?), and the test of love (do we actively love our church family?). These aren't tests to make us anxious, but to give us assurance. Walking in light doesn't mean perfection—it means allowing God's truth to reveal our brokenness so we can experience genuine fellowship and transformation. The challenge before us is clear: will we settle for plastic Christianity, or will we pursue the real, messy, beautiful community God intends for us?

    1h 2m

  6. Apr 26

    Rediscovering Church: From Institution to Living Body

    This week Brenden challenges us to rediscover what church truly means in our modern world. Drawing from Acts 2:42, we're reminded that the early believers devoted themselves to teaching, fellowship, sharing meals, and prayer - not as a checklist, but as a way of being present and belonging to one another. The word 'devoted' here actually means 'to be present, to belong,' which shifts our understanding from mere commitment to authentic connection. We're invited to examine whether we've found our identity in the institution of church or in Jesus himself. The message traces a beautiful thread of temple theology from Genesis to Revelation, showing how God's dwelling place moved from Eden to the tabernacle, to the temple in Jerusalem, to Jesus himself, and finally to us - the church as living temples filled with the Holy Spirit. This isn't just historical information; it's a revolutionary truth that changes everything about how we understand our purpose. We are called to give the world a preview of God's kingdom right now, demonstrating unity that transcends our divisions of race, class, politics, and background. The table becomes a powerful symbol of this unity, where everyone receives the same bread and cup, the same grace and forgiveness. If we've been hurt by church, dissatisfied with religion, or wondering if we still need community, this message offers hope that our dissatisfaction might be exactly what God is using to call us back to authentic, life-giving relationships centered on Jesus.

    57 min
  7. Living Hope Through the Resurrection

    Apr 19

    Living Hope Through the Resurrection

    This week's message takes us deep into 1 Peter, where we discover what it means to live as exiles and sojourners in a world that is not our final home. Peter writes to believers scattered throughout ancient Turkey, addressing them as God's chosen people who are temporarily residing in a foreign land. The central revelation here is stunning: our identity as followers of Christ is fundamentally shaped by living hope, a hope that comes directly from the resurrection of Jesus. This is not passive wishful thinking, but an active, transforming power that reshapes us from the inside out. Peter understood that when people are suffering, when everything important has been stripped away, the first place their hearts need to turn is to the empty tomb and the risen Christ. The resurrection was not just a curious historical event, it was a world-shattering moment that redefined everything about life, death, and human destiny. When we truly encounter the reality of resurrection, we experience what Peter calls being born again, becoming a fundamentally different kind of human being. This living hope gives us an inheritance that cannot perish, spoil, or fade, kept secure in heaven for us. The beautiful paradox Peter presents is this: we can hold profound joy and devastating grief at the same time. We are not called to deny our suffering or paste on fake smiles, but rather to choose hope in the midst of real pain, trusting that tragedy does not have the final word over our lives.

    1h 1m

  8. Apr 12

    Building on the Rock: The Choice Between Life and Death

    In our conclusion to the Sermon on the Mount we are presented with the most fundamental choice of our spiritual lives: will we build our house on rock or sand? The message cuts through our comfortable Christianity to reveal a challenging truth - it's not enough to simply hear Jesus' words, we must actively live them out. Jesus uses three vivid images to illustrate this choice: two gates leading to different destinations, two trees producing different fruit, and two houses built on different foundations. What makes this teaching so confronting is that both houses look similar from the outside, both may even appear successful for a time, but only one withstands the inevitable storms of life. We're reminded that the path to true life is narrow and difficult, requiring daily decisions to trust God rather than our own wisdom. The sermon challenges us to examine whether we're building performative faith - looking good on the outside while lacking the deep foundation of genuine transformation. Most importantly, we're invited to understand that this isn't about achieving perfection, but about perseverance and allowing God to partner with us in building something that lasts for eternity.

    1h 5m
See All (433)

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

The latest teaching and news from Rise Community Church.

Information

  • Creator
    Rise Community Church
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    433
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Rise Community Church