The Central Peninsula Church Podcast

Episode 27: Counter Cultural

Jesus’ presence on Earth impacted the trajectory of life as we know it by virtue of how countercultural he was. Join Kevin and Brandon as they talk through the various ways that Christ's kingdom countered the ways of the world.

Highlights

Defining the Kingdom of God - 10:00

• Start with what the kingdom of God is not.
• God as the ultimate reconciler.
• The Kingdom of God versus the Kingdom of Me

The Counter-Culture of Christ - 20:00

• The difference between Jesus’ way and our way.
• The transformative power of Christ in our lives.
• What is “The Good Life?”

 

Quotables

• “ if you're just feeling like Jesus just always agrees with you  I'm like your will like, oh yeah, my will is always just kind of Jesus' will it's always out. There's a chance that you're getting it wrong.”
• “...We can't employ means that are counter to the kingdom of God to then live into its reality.”

 

Resources & References 

• Psalm 23

Episode 26: Summer XP

Kevin and Brandon sit down with Daniel Grunewald and Glendy Martin from the CPCKids Team.

Episode 25: Hear

What do alien sounds and hearing the Gospel have in common? Join Kevin and Brandon for this episode of the CPC Real Life Together Podcast to find out as they talk through last week’s sermon and the weight of what it is to truly hear the Gospel.

 

Highlights

 

The Good News - 10:58

• Brandon and Kevin process the idea that the Gospel is not good news for everybody.
• From building our lives around broken systems to reorienting our lives around Christ.

 

Wrestling with the Old Creation Dynamic - 16:53

• Peter’s struggle with the Gospel.
• The alternative logic of Kingdom dynamics.
• Becoming a student of the Kingdom.

 

How Do We Unlearn? - 23:20

• The importance of changing our habits.
• Becoming the kind of person who loves their enemies.
• Jesus puts the ball in our court to change.
• Unlearning the worries of this life.

Resources & References

• Endel - Soundscape App
• Build My Life - Housefires (ft. Pat Barrett)
• Mark 4 through Mark 8 - Scripture referenced in this episode
• The Divine Conspiracy - a book by Dallas Willard
• The Power of Habit - a book by Charles Duhigg 
• Matthew 5:38-42
• Luke 18:18-26 - The parable of the Rich Young Ruler

Quotables

• “...If you build your life around a system that is broken. Yeah. Um, it's gonna be painful to try to rip that system down.” - Brandon
• “I think that's the difference between... um, those who say they wanna follow Jesus and those who, who resist is the follower of Jesus, whether or not they figure it out and get there it's their deepest desire at their core saying, no, I want to follow this. Jesus. Wow. And then it's how do we get these strong desires in alignment with your deep desire?” - Kevin

To get in touch with us, you can email us at communications@cpc.org, leave a comment on our PodBean website, or leave a review on Apple Podcasts (or anywhere else you listen to podcasts)

Episode 24: Fan

Dan is back on the podcast this week as Brandon and Kevin talk with him about what it means to be a fan or follower of Jesus. Join us as we learn more about how Dan came to faith and the difference between being a fan of Jesus and a follower of Jesus.

 

Highlights

 

Icebreaker - 0:46

• What is a sword drill?
• Dan shares a bit about his faith journey.

 

Fans vs Followers - 10:20

• What do a fan and a follower look like in our world and our faith?
• Jesus’ invitation to discipleship.
• What does it mean to be an apprentice?

 

Being With Jesus -  27:26

• Figuring out the balance between doing and simply being with Jesus.
• How Jesus modeled being in the presence of the Lord for us.
• The kind of people Jesus kept community with. 

Quotables

• (13:27) “A fan doesn't have skin in the game. There isn't a real impact on whether or not they continue being a quote fan of Jesus versus… you know, followers. They've got skin in the game… you know, you look at the disciples. They dropped their nets. They left everything. They left their old way of living to enter into a new one. And that radically changes their perspective on what it means to follow Jesus.”

 

• (28:32) “It begins with this relationship with him. And what emanates out of that relationship is the service that we do, you know, loving God and loving others, you know, and how that manifests itself using our gifts.”

 

Resources & References 

• Dan’s Wallet Pen
• CPC Hot Ones
• Not a Fan - Book by Kyle Idleman
• John 10:10
• To get in touch with us, you can email us at communications@cpc.org, leave a comment on our PodBean website, or leave a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever else you listen to podcasts.

Episode 23: Sabbath

On today’s episode of the CPC Podcast, Kevin and Brandon explore the role of Sabbath in the Christian life. They reflect on this past week’s sermon and discuss how we can find healthier rhythms of rest and work in our own lives.

 

Highlights

 

The god of efficiency - 9:12

• How over-prioritizing efficiency can be harmful in the long run
• Living in a state of soul fatigue

Sabbath in real-life - 22:23

• The origins of Sabbath in scripture
• Brandon reflects on his experience finding a rhythm of rest.
• What Sabbath is and is not.
• The gift that God gives us through sabbath 

 

Resources & References

• Genesis 2
• Kitchen Table Talks - Brandon Pasion
• Shout out to Travis at the San Mateo Zoo

 

Quotes

• “Sabbath is about reconstituting yourself. It's about bringing yourself the ways you've been frayed by your busy week saying, ‘Okay. Who, who am I again? Who am I in connection with God and who does God say I am?’”.

Episode 22: Expose

This week, Brandon sits down with Dan Reid as they reflect on last week’s sermon. They discuss Jesus’ approach to engaging with people who were on the outside edges of society and how that can influence the way we engage with people today.

 

Highlights

 

How Jesus Exposed Religion - 5:20

• What the gospel says about how to find freedom.
• How Jesus relates to those on the outskirts of society.
• From “Are you good enough?” to “Are you bad enough?”

 

How We Can Live Out Christ’s Example - 20:01

• How can we be like the Pharisees in our thinking?
• Who can we invite into our lives that we may not have ordinarily walked alongside?
• How does Jesus view the world and do we view it the same way?

 

Quotables

• “Don’t let your tool become a rule.”
• “How much of your story is time spent with sinners?”
• “When it comes to relationships [disgust] was not something on Jesus’ radar… Jesus didn’t apply that to people. Jesus was there in the dirt, in the lowest of lows with the people society would say ‘I’m disgusted by you.’”
• There’s a big difference between being offended by behaviors and being disgusted by people.

 

Resources & References

• Arby’s
• Arbeit macht frei (German) - Work sets you free - found at the entrance of various concentration camps during the Holocaust.

Episode 21: Forgiveness

Forgiveness is a central part of the Christian life. Both as the gift we receive from Christ and as the gift we can extend to others. Join Kevin and Brandon as they unpack last week’s sermon and the way that forgiveness heals.

 

Highlights

Jesus and the Paralyzed Man - 5:55

• Which people do we identify with in this story: the crowds or the scribes?

 

Accountability: What it Looks Like for Us - 19:23

• The Scribes: How they demonstrate the importance of accountability for individuals and institutions.

 

Resources & References 

• What is hacky-sack?
• Scripture references: Mark 2:1-12

Episode 20: Restore

Sam Abel, CPC's Middle School Ministry Director, joins Kevin and Brandon for this week's episode. Listen as they talk through Sam's sermon last Sunday and the impact of Jesus' ability to bring restoration in scripture and our lives. 

 

Highlights

 

Introduction - 0:17

• A little about Sam Abel, Middle School Ministry Director.

Jesus’ Restoration in Scripture - 12:25

• Jesus takes personal responsibility for the lepers’ restoration.
• Mark demonstrates the kingdom of God through Christ’s restoration.
• The physical and spiritual need for restoration

Jesus’ Restoration in Our Lives - 22:03

• Who have we banished?
• How can we move toward people the way Jesus did?
• What areas do we avoid in our lives and how do we learn to face it head-on?

Resources & References

• He Is Able - The Maranantha! Singers
• God of this City - Chris Tomlin
• Rivulose - marked with irregular, narrow, sinuous, or crooked lines
• GoFundMe for Sam’s Dish Gloves
• Sozo (greek) - to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction.
• “People are hard to hate up close. Move in.” from Braving the Wilderness by Brené Brown (researcher, speaker, & author)
• John 5 - The man healed at the Pool of Bethesda

Episode 19: Practice

CPC’s Vision Director Rachel Almeida joins Kevin and Brandon to talk through this past Sunday’s sermon. They explore what it looks like to practice the kingdom and find connection with God in a world constantly competing for our attention.

 

Highlights 

Silence, Solitude, and Hurry-Sickness - 5:40

• The importance of silence and solitude in modern life.
• How can we move out of hurrying and into the presence of God?

Disconnect to Connect with God - 18:10

• Eremos: How Jesus practiced the Kingdom.
• The role of prayer in connecting us to God.

What does this look like in real life? - 26:50

• The practice of prayer and teaching our brains to tune in.
• Engaging with Jesus versus performing for Jesus.

 

Quotables

• “Can you ever really imagine Jesus busy? When you think about the life of Jesus, you can’t ever really imagine him rushing around.”
• “Solitude affords us that opportunity to unplug to both assess our life as well as become comfortable with inefficiency.”
• “If we want the life of Jesus, we have to take on the lifestyle of Jesus” - Dallas Willard
• “The more I’m connected with God, the more I have his perspective and his priorities… from that flows everything else.”

 

Resources & References

• The Difference between Busy and Hurry (article)
• Eremos meaning
• Dallas Willard - theologian and philosopher

 

Episode 18: Hope

Brandon and Kevin sit down with Stephen Petiti after last weekend’s sermon. They talk through the importance of Jesus’ role as the messiah and how his life was the fulfillment of the old testament.

 

Highlights

Jesus: The Messiah - 7:09

• Jesus wasn’t the only one who claimed to be messiah.
• How the book of Isaiah revealed Christ and his holiness.
• Holiness in a secular age.

Where does Jesus reside for us? - 18:20

• What will we let master us?
• What does surrendering to Jesus look like in this day and age?

Quotables

• “When things get really hard, that’s where His Lordship is revealed.”

 

Resources & References

• American Gladiators
• Thrice - American band formed in Irvine, California.
• A Secular Age - book by Charles Taylor
• James 2:19 (NIV) - “You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.”
• 1 Corinthians 6:12 (NASB) - “All things are permitted for me, but not all things are of benefit. All things are permitted for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”