The Kingdom Perspective

Christ Redeemer Church
  • 4.8 (19)
  • CHRISTIANITY

The Kingdom Perspective is the official podcast of Christ Redeemer Church of Hanover, NH. The podcast exists to disseminate the thought-provoking teaching of CRC to the wider public. If you like what you hear, please pass these on to your friends. Find out more about our church at our website: christredeemerchurch.org.

  1. 13H AGO

    Making Your Way in the World Today…Without God

    Transcript:   Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.   According to the Bible, ultimate reality is love. The source of all that exists is the eternal love relationship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The God we learn from Jesus is a God who from all eternity is Triune—Father, Son and Holy Spirit living in eternal self-giving love without any hint of self-centeredness. There is no envy or insecurity on the part of any member of the Trinity, but all exist in a deep sense of personhood without being threatened by the personhood of the other. In the being of God, we have clear boundaries of personhood but no walls. Each person losing themselves into the life of the other without ever losing their individual sense of personhood. Now, such a vision is mind-boggling to us because it is so foreign to our sense of self and our experience of relationship. But why?   Why do we so struggle with such a deep sense of personal insecurity and relational dysfunction? Here's the reason why: the Bible calls it “sin.” My friends, sin is not just the little, bad things we do. But it's this: it's trying to find life in ourselves, apart from the love of God—apart from the Trinity. We are seeking to make a life for ourselves apart from our Creator. Therefore, we are driven to prove and defend ourselves instead of trusting in God. We are driven to make an air brushed image of ourselves and then construct walls to defend and protect that image. And these things keep us from true love connection with God and one another.   And that’s something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.   “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” ~ 1 John 4:7-12 (ESV)

    2 min

  2. 5D AGO

    Jesus’s Radical Love

    Transcript:Hello, this is Pastor Don Willeman of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.The gospel is good news for sinners. This is both its attraction and its irritation. If I think of myself as a pretty good guy who only needs a little self-improvement here or there, then I am going to be offended at the notion that the Son of God had to die on a bloody cross to take away my sin. I can accept the notion of Jesus as my self-help guru. However, I cannot stomach the notion that my sin is so bad it caused the suffering and death of God Himself. I am going to chafe at the idea that, as Jesus put it, I “must be born again” and I must “deny [my] self and take up the cross daily”. Why does a person who is basically good need to take such drastic measures?However, if, on the other hand, Jesus is the savior of the helpless sinners (Romans 5:6)—if sin is so pervasive and overpowering that “without Him [I] can do nothing” (John 15)—then the suffering and death of the Son of God on the cross for me is going to be the best and sweetest news I’ve ever heard.Listen to the beautiful words of author, poet and hip-hop artist Jackie Hill Perry:“Jesus had the guilty in mind when He hung high and stretched out wide.... He, bare-bodied and face set on joy, became as a slaughtered lamb underneath the wrath of God... Didn't He know that wrath was mine? It even had my name on it. But He knew... Without asking my permission, a good God had come to my rescue.” Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”~ Romans 5:6-11 (NASB)References: Gay Girl, Good God: The Story of Who I Was and Who God Has Always Been by Jackie Hill Perry (B&H Books: 2018).Thank you for listening to and supporting The Kingdom Perspective! The Kingdom Perspective is a ministry of Christ Redeemer Church of Hanover, NH. To hear more episodes you can subscribe on Apple Podcasts. To donate or to find out more about the ministry and resources offered by Christ Redeemer Church visit www.christredeemerchurch.org.

    2 min

  3. FEB 17

    When in Rome…Do as the Christians Do

    Transcript: Hello! This is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective!   There is no question that we live in a time of tremendous change in society’s views on sex, gender, and marriage. For many, this is heralded as progress. For others it is troubling and confusing. Either way, we often forget that there is nothing new under the sun. Many of the changes we see all about us are really not so “new”, but something quite old. Much of the contemporary sexual ethic is simply a return to pagan Rome. Christianity was born during the Roman Empire, and early Christians had to navigate all the varied sexual and gender expressions of it.   In this context, the early Christians distinguished themselves on a few key fronts:   First, their tender care of women and children. In Rome, women and children were generally not protected but seen as products to be used and abused for sexual pleasure. This was especially true of the slave class, which comprised nearly 20% of the inhabitants.   Second, Christians were distinguished by – what their pagan neighbors saw as – their strict sexual ethic. Christians were maligned as prudes in a society obsessed with using and abusing others. Christians followed the teaching of Holy Scripture and reserved sex for a loving marital relationship between a husband and wife.   Third, and perhaps most importantly, they were distinguished by the grace they extended to those exploited by Rome’s sexual confusion and callousness. The church was a place of refuge and restoration, not a place of shame and ostracization.   Now, in that ancient context, the church was disparaged and persecuted for these values. But the community they created caused it to thrive. Today’s church would be wise to aspire to that same example.   Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.   “Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.” ~1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 (ESV)   Some sources to consider: The Rise of Christianity: A Sociologist Reconsiders History by Rodney Stark (Princeton University Press 2020).   The Patient Ferment of the Early Church: The Improbably Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire by Alan Kreider (Baker Academic 2016).   Why You Think the Way You Do: The Story of Western Worldviews from Rome to Home by Glenn S. Sunshine (Zondervan 2009).

    2 min

  4. 12/31/2025

    Graduating from the Gospel?

    Transcript:Hello, this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.Over the past hundred years or so, Christians in the West have tended to view the Christian life as steps in a process. Like a manufacturing process, Christians are “developed” step-by-step.Now, there are some aspects of this paradigm that can be helpful, as it recognizes the fact that living the Christian life is indeed a process. It is a “walk” that involves living our lives day-by-day before the face of God. However, it fails in at least one critical point. It usually places believing the gospel as merely the first step in that process. So, for example, it goes something like this… The first step is to believe the gospel.The second step is to understand the basics of the Christian life.The third step is to follow Jesus as a disciple.The fourth step is to… etc., etc.Now, here’s the problem. This way of thinking puts believing Jesus as merely the first step. However, that’s not how the Bible speaks of it. Believing the gospel is an ongoing aspect of living the Christian life. Believing in Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection informs and transforms every moment of my life. The gospel is not just the first step, but the interpretive grid and power for every step.As Zambian pastor Conrad Mbewe puts it: “Christians never graduate from the gospel.” ~Conrad Mbewe, pastor in Lusaka, ZambiaThe moment we get beyond the gospel is the moment we get beyond Jesus. And a Christianity without Christ’s saving and sanctifying work is no Christianity at all.Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.“And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”~ 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 (ESV)

    2 min

  5. 12/24/2025

    All the Riches of His Love

    Transcript:Hello, this is Pastor Don Willeman of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.The problem with the gospel of Jesus Christ is that it brings us both the worst news we could ever receive and the best. First the bad news. The apostle Paul sums it up this way: We are dead in our sin (Ephesians 2:1). By “dead” he does not mean that we are inactive. No. Rather, in the context he means that we are born into a human race that is cut off from the life of God. Therefore, our manner of life is an offense to God. We follow the path of the devil, pleasing ourselves and not God (Ephesians 2:2-3). We are “by nature deserving of [God’s] wrath” (Ephesians 2:3). Now, what could possibly be worse than to be told you are on the wrong side of ultimate and eternal justice? This is the unbelievably bad news. But, the gospel doesn’t stop there.Secondly, the gospel then tells us unbelievably good news. Allow me to quote from Ephesians 2. No one has ever said it better:But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved (Ephesians 2:4-5 NIV)This is an amazing truth! But the gospel doesn’t stop there. It is not enough for God to spare us from eternal judgment. He then pours out upon us His own eternal riches. Listen: And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, [Why? In order to remind us forever of our failure? No!] in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.My friend, the problem with the gospel of Jesus is not that it is too negative. The problem is that it is too good to be true. But it is true!Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.“And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the boundless riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” ~ Ephesians 2:1-9 (NASB)

    2 min

  6. 12/17/2025

    The Athanasian Creed

    Transcript: Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.   One of my favorite ancient creeds, the Athanasian Creed (c. 6th century), though not written by its namesake is nonetheless appropriately attributed to him. Athanasius (A.D. c. 296-373) was the great 4th century church leader who defended the Trinity against false views of God. These false views followed a general pattern of denying or twisting one biblical truth to make it more “rationally compatible” with another. So, for example, if the Bible says there is only one true God, then there cannot likewise be three divine persons. How is it “rational” for God to be both one and three at the same time? The problem of course is that this is precisely what the Bible does claim.    And so, with precision and eloquence the Athanasian Creed* summarizes the divine mystery of the Triune God:   … we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; Neither confounding the persons nor dividing the divine essence. For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit.  But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal….   The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated.  The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.  The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal.    And yet they are not three eternal beings but one eternal being As also there are not three uncreated beings nor three incomprehensible beings, but one uncreated and one incomprehensible being.   Well put! Beautiful and true!   Something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.   “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’” ~ Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)   *Athanasian Creed 1. Whosoever will be saved, before all things it is necessary that he hold the catholic faith;  2. Which faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled, without doubt he shall perish everlastingly.  3. And the catholic faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity; 4. Neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance. 5. For there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit.  6. But the Godhead of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is all one, the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.  7. Such as the Father is, such is the Son, and such is the Holy Spirit.  8. The Father uncreated, the Son uncreated, and the Holy Spirit uncreated.  9. The Father incomprehensible, the Son incomprehensible, and the Holy Spirit incomprehensible.  10. The Father eternal, the Son eternal, and the Holy Spirit eternal.  11. And yet they are not three eternals but one eternal.  12. As also there are not three uncreated nor three incomprehensible, but one uncreated and one incomprehensible.  13. So likewise the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Spirit almighty.  14. And yet they are not three almighties, but one almighty.  15. So the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God;  16. And yet they are not three Gods, but one God.  17. So likewise the Father is Lord, the Son Lord, and the Holy Spirit Lord;  18. And yet they are not three Lords but one Lord.  19. For like as we are compelled by the Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by himself to be God and Lord;  20. So are we forbidden by the catholic religion to say; There are three Gods or three Lords.  21. The Father is made of none, neither created nor begotten.  22. The Son is of the Father alone; not made nor created, but begotten.  23. The Holy Spirit is of the Father and of the Son; neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but proceeding.  24. So there is one Father, not three Fathers; one Son, not three Sons; one Holy Spirit, not three Holy Spirits.  25. And in this Trinity none is afore or after another; none is greater or less than another.  26. But the whole three persons are coeternal, and coequal.  27. So that in all things, as aforesaid, the Unity in Trinity and the Trinity in Unity is to be worshipped.  28. He therefore that will be saved must thus think of the Trinity.  29. Furthermore it is necessary to everlasting salvation that he also believe rightly the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.  30. For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man.  31. God of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and man of substance of His mother, born in the world.  32. Perfect God and perfect man, of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsisting.  33. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead, and inferior to the Father as touching His manhood.  34. Who, although He is God and man, yet He is not two, but one Christ.  35. One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but by taking of that manhood into God.  36. One altogether, not by confusion of substance, but by unity of person.  37. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and man is one Christ; 38. Who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead;  39. He ascended into heaven, He sits on the right hand of the Father, God, Almighty;  40. From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.  41. At whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies;  42. and shall give account of their own works.  43. And they that have done good shall go into life everlasting and they that have done evil into everlasting fire. 44. This is the catholic faith, which except a man believe faithfully he cannot be saved.

    2 min

  7. 12/10/2025

    The Trinity

    Transcript: Hello this is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective.   The Bible tells us two truths that may seem contradictory: 1) there is only one God, and 2) this God exists eternally in a relationship of three persons.   Our Jewish friends, rightly emphasize the “Shema” of Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (“Shema” is the Hebrew word for “Hear” or “Listen”). The God of the Bible was unique among the ancient deities, precisely because He claimed to be the only true God, and therefore demanded sole allegiance. Thus, the Shema continues: “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” There is only one God, He rightful deserves our all!   Yet, the Bible clearly teaches there are three persons who lay claim to this deity. Jesus does: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30; see also, John 1:1-3). The Holy Spirit does: “Now the Lord is the Spirit…” (2 Corinthians 3:17; see also, Acts 5:3-4). And, of course, the Father does.   But how are we to understand this seeming contradiction? Well, as the church pondered the biblical data, it refused to truncate or twist either truth; both must be taken at full value. There is only one God (one divine essence or being), but that God exists as three persons. So, the Church held firmly to the existence of only one divine essence or being, while likewise holding that this one divine essence is shared equally and fully by three distinct persons. One God in three persons, and three Persons in one God. In other words, as Christians we take God’s self-revelation, at face value, by faith; the true Church believes God’s Word.   And that’s something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.   “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” ~ Deuteronomy 6:4-9 (ESV)

    2 min

  8. 12/03/2025

    Humility and Truth

    Transcript: Hello! This is Pastor Don of Christ Redeemer Church. Welcome to The Kingdom Perspective!   What is humility? Increasingly in our historical moment, we confuse humility with a relativistic view of truth. We falsely think anyone who believes that there is objective truth or is too confident in what they believe about the truth, by definition, cannot be humble. We assume that the truly humble person would speak like this: “For me, 2 x 2 = 4. But that’s just my personal truth. Far be from me, to impose my viewpoint on others. I’m a humble person.” My friends, this is not humility; it’s the essence of irrationality.   Humility is not taking truth less seriously, but taking ourselves less seriously. Humility is not relativizing the truth. No, humility is recognizing and submitting to it.   Listen to the witty G.K. Chesterton: “What we suffer from today is humility in the wrong place. Modesty has moved from…ambition [and] settled upon…conviction; where it was never meant to be. A man was meant to be doubtful about himself, but undoubting about the truth; this has been exactly reversed….   “We are on the road to producing…[people] too mentally modest to believe in the multiplication table.” ~G.K. Chesterton in the third chapter of Orthodoxy (1908)   Well put!   This false humility is increasingly everywhere. If we are not aware how this enemy has invaded the spirit of our cultural moment, we will unwittingly be sucked in by it.   And that’s something to think about from The Kingdom Perspective.   “But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” ~ Mathew 23:8-12 (ESV)   “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” ~ Micah 6:8 (ESV)

    2 min
See All (380)

Ratings & Reviews

4.8
out of 5
19 Ratings

About

The Kingdom Perspective is the official podcast of Christ Redeemer Church of Hanover, NH. The podcast exists to disseminate the thought-provoking teaching of CRC to the wider public. If you like what you hear, please pass these on to your friends. Find out more about our church at our website: christredeemerchurch.org.

Information

  • Creator
    Christ Redeemer Church
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    380
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Christ Redeemer Church