Dive In With Matt & Joe

God’s Good Gifts God has given incredible gifts to his Church. Jesus is victorious and rules over all the universe! What does he do to celebrate his victory? He pours out incredible good gifts to those he has rescued. What are those incredible gifts? Dive in and find out! #Ephesians, #Ephesians4, #SpiritualGifts

A New Temple Imagine being in God’s very presence. It’s hard to wrap our minds around. But there were little hot spots of his presence throughout the Bible. They went by different names like Eden, tabernacle/tent of meeting, temple, New Jerusalem, and Church. Each of these is showing us that God, the Creator, intends to settle into his creation and be with us! In today’s episode, Joe mentioned a brief video by Bible Project, linked below. He also mentioned a book, “The Lost World of Genesis One” by John H. Walton. These are some solid resources to keep on the learning journey. https://bibleproject.com/videos/temple/

A New People Joe and Matt dive into Acts 2, which has deep roots in the story of God in the Old Testament. We will explore the cosmic  power of God’s salvation along with the personal invitation to trust Him.

New Exodus Diving deeper into Colossians 1:13-23, we see God’s incredible mercy and grace as he rescues us and leads us into his promised new life. The rescue of Israel recounted in Exodus, gives us a key framework for understanding the person and work of Jesus. It is powerful, beautiful, and overwhelming to catch even a glimpse of Christ. We are invited, daily, to follow Jesus together- and it all hinges on Jesus! Join us!

Shepherded to Shepherding Throughout Psalm 23 we have been receiving the good news of Yahweh as our shepherd - in him we have enough! Throughout the narrative of scripture we also see that those are shepherdED are also those who are called to join Yahweh in shepherdING. That’s YOU! Let’s dive in and see how God empowers us as faithful under-shepherds in the places we live, work, and play!

Wicked Tov Dave, who wrote Psalm 23, knew what it was like to be chased down. Twice in his life, someone who was close to him pursued him into the wilderness to kill him! And even so, he proclaimed that his Shepherd, Yahweh, pursued him with goodness (tov) and loyal love (hesed). Every day we are chased down by forces which conspire to steal our lives…and yet God pursues us relentlessly with his goodness and love. Join us today as we dive in to explore God’s goodness and love, receiving both as good news that fills us with life.

Talk With A Shepherd A couple of shepherds and an incredible veterinarian sit down together to talk about shepherding. Get a view behind the scenes of lambing season and what makes a good shepherd. What a great conversation that helps us dive deeper into the word picture of Psalm 23. Yahweh is an incredible shepherd…Listen as Andy talks about his life as a shepherd and see if you hear God in there.

Welcome To The Table Psalm 23 proclaims that the Lord sets a table before us in the presence of our enemies. How is a feast possibly God’s answer for enemies?!?! Yet…from beginning to end, the Bible reveals the goodness, bounty, and power of the Lord’s table. Dive in with Matt and Joe as we explore the biblical theme of the table feast. And as you do, know that you are welcome to the table!

You Comfort Me Life is a journey filled with peaks and valleys. Psalm 23 reminds us that we don’t need to fear evil because God, our Shepherd, is with us. Not only is He with us…but he wields the tools of a shepherd in such a way that we are comforted. The rod and staff in the hands of The Good Shepherd are comfort, no matter the terrain of our journey. Join us today as we dive into a powerful story of God’s comfort as Dave shares from his own journey through the valley of deep darkness.

Peace In The Valley Throughout the Bible, there are descriptions of valleys and the work that God does in them. In this episode, Matt and Joe will explore the biblical theme of valleys. We all walk through them. And God meets us there and walks with us…because he is the one who knows the way through the valley. Join us as we dive in together!

Right Paths When life seems out of control, we can ask ourselves, “Who’s driving this thing?!?” But Psalm 23 assures us that when God rescues us, he also leads us. And when he leads us, he leads us in ways that are good for us and that reveal his glory to the world! Let’s dive in together and explore how this Good Shepherd leads us in the right paths for his name’s sake.

He Restores My Life What does it means for God to turn my life around? Does my life really need to be turned around? In God’s goodness, love, and power, he searches for lost sheep and restores life…that’s what a good shepherd does! Let’s dive into Psalm 23 and receive this flourishing, beautiful, and good life that he promises and provides.

Trust Quiet Waters There is good news for anyone who feels like the world is spinning out of control…God is our peace. And in Him is “shalom” - beauty, flourishing, life. Let’s dive in together as we explore the contrast between churning chaos waters and the quiet waters of the Good Shepherd.

Green Pastures God has strong things to say to the shepherds of his people. As we pay attention to what he says in Ezekiel, we learn more about the heart of Yahweh, the Good Shepherd, who seeks and finds his lost sheep. #Ezekiel, #Psalm 23, #leadership

I Lack Nothing David Gibson writes “Psalm 23 is an oasis in a materialist wasteland.” We live in a world that conditions us in lack, scarcity, and striving. Yet…the good shepherd provides goodness and flourishing for his sheep. With God as our shepherd, what does it look like to trust the bedrock truth that “I lack nothing”…? Let’s dive in together and explore!

The LORD Is My Shepherd Who is this Shepherd? What is the significance of him being MY shepherd? Join Matt and Joe as we dive into the opening phrase of Psalm 23, exploring this incredible God who is near to us.

Jason & Courtney’s Wilderness Story The path in the wilderness can feel so circular and confusing. And right there in the middle of it, God’s Spirit makes the path straight. Where does the path lead? To Him! He is the goal of the wilderness journey. Dive in today as Jason and Courtney share their story of the wilderness journey which led them from bondage in religion to freedom in relationship with Jesus.

Frank & Audrey’s Wilderness Story In this episode, we continue to process God’s Wilderness Gifts as we hear these wilderness stories. From rolling down sand dunes to the wilderness of not knowing where they will live the next month - this is the story that Frank and Audrey share today. It’s a fantastic story of God’s provision in the wilderness!

Matt’s Wilderness Story In a world that values efficiency and gettin’ it done, the wilderness can feel like wasted time! But God gives the good gift of preparation in the wilderness. What is He preparing us for? Learning to walk with Him! And when we walk with Him…wow!! Join us as we listen to Matt’s wilderness story.

Sarah’s Wilderness Story Sarah shares a powerful story of experiencing God’s mercy in the wilderness. Her eyes were opened about 10 years ago to the probability that there is a God. But how could he be known? Her hunger lead her in many directions. But it was the call of Jesus that stopped her in her tracks and changed her life. God can be known. He has a name. His name is Jesus.

Q\&R for the Gospel of Mark In this episode, we respond to a bunch of great questions we received on the Gospel of Mark. Some of the questions were more general in nature - we will find another podcast to dive into those. This has been a fantastic journey together and we welcome you to join us as the journey continues.

Confronting The Powers The garden. The kiss. The swords. The court. Rome. And Jesus stands firm as he confronts the powers by standing firm in love. This is how the Kingdom of God crashes into the world. This is how the King rescues people and draws all nations to himself. He stands in the space that no one else can. And hell is furious!

God-Sightings with Lynn Clay God-sightings are moments when we see the Kingdom of God breaking into our world. They happen all throughout our days. Today, we are joined by Lynn Clay who is a dear friend from Illinois. From her time as a professional athlete to serving in a local jail, she shares some powerful Kingdom moments. By sharing our God-sightings together, we are reminded of who God is and his work in us and through us every day.

Jesus’s Garden Prayer Matt and Joe are joined by special guest Andy Needham as they discuss Jesus’s prayer in the garden of Gethsemane from Mark 14. Come and join us as we explore connections back to the garden of Eden as well as the walking through trials with trusted companions.

Horizons Episode Description: We are continuing to explore Jesus’ teaching in Mark 13. What is the “day of the Lord” and what should we be looking for? And when the day comes, how do we respond? Biblical prophecy is like looking at the mountains on the horizon…we see things up and close and far away, making it hard to distinguish between them. The Bible Project has a great video on The Day of the Lord - you can find it here: https://bibleproject.com/videos/day-of-the-lord/  Let’s dive in and explore horizons together!

Signs Of The End Will we know when it’s happening? What will it be like? Well…Jesus talks about "the end"…but it’s different than we often imagine. Let’s see what God will do as we dive in to Jesus’ teaching in Mark 13 together. Also, note that this episode will be a little longer than normal.

Deb’s Story The Kingdom of God is governed by the law of love - Love the Lord your God will all your life and love your neighbor as yourself. What does love look like when it moves into the neighborhood? We’ll catch a glimpse of that as Deb shares some stories about how the Kingdom of God breaks in as she and her husband, Mike, love God and love their neighbors.

Cursing The Fig Tree Join us as we did into Mark 11. Here we find Jesus hungry and looking for some good fruit to eat. Instead, he doesn’t find what he’s looking for and curses the tree. What is the world is going on here? As we dive in together, we are seeing that Jesus isn’t merely hangry, he is prophetically pointing to the passing away of the “old order” as he is ushering in the “new order” — the Kingdom of God, which breaks into the world through the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

The Way What’s the different between a world-class athlete and a weekend warrior? The way they choose to live their lives (and some natural athletic gifting, of course). The athlete aligns his or her life around their objective as an athlete. The weekend warrior…well, he just goes for it when it’s convenient. What does this have to do with following Jesus? Let’s dive in together and see!

Life Like Little Children Last week we dove into the teaching of Jesus where he says that only those who come like little children will experience the Kingdom of God. This week, we talk with Tammy who is a long-time member of CenterPoint Church who exemplifies this invitation of Jesus to trust him, engaging with joy and wonder.

Like Little Children Go carts, ponds, and oil changes are all spaces that teach us about the Kingdom of God. In Mark 10:13-16, Jesus draws our attention to little kids and says that to enter the Kingdom, we must become like one of them. What does it look like to engage the Kingdom with curiosity, wonder, awe, and giddy joy? Let’s dive in and find out!

Millstones, Worms, and Fire With strong words and shocking imagery, Jesus confronts his disciples (then and now) regarding sin. He shows that unchecked sin does harm to those being trained up in the ways of Jesus and the Kingdom of God; and it does harm to oneself. Implications abound as we dive into Jesus’ teaching on millstones, worms, and fire.

Jesus’ Transfiguration Three of the disciples saw what must have blown their mind. All of Jesus’ talk about his own death and that whoever follows him must let go of their life…then this! What was happening up on that mountain? It’s a visual summary of all of the Bible, centered on Jesus, who was, is, and forever will be!

Jesus Is The Christ In the shadow of a spiritually significant mountain, Jesus leads his disciples with the most important question any of us will answer. It’s a question that centers the entire story…not just Mark’s Gospel, but the entire story of the Bible and of human history. Yes…it’s that big! And the implications for us, today, are profound. Join us as we dive into Mark 8 together.

Blind Eyes Open What do Old Testament prophets, bread, yeast, and spit have to do with each other? Jesus continually invites us to trust him and join him in his kingdom. But we have competing values and priorities that make seeing him a challenge. With ears to hear and eyes to see, the Kingdom of God is in our midst, freeing us from the bondage of fear, pride, and coercion and inviting us into freedom, love, and grace.

From The Heart What do table scraps for the dogs have to do with the incredible grace of God? In order to make life work, there are various levers that we pull. But Jesus exposes the weakness of our levers! He doesn’t do this in order to be mean, but as an invitation to trust him…for he, alone, can bring about new life! Join us as Matt and Jess dive into Mark chapter seven!

Life Over Death Jesus rules over death and fills us with his life! Explore the power of Jesus over death in the story of a 12 year old girl who experienced resurrection. Special guest, Heidi Furr, shares some stories of her experience as an ICU and Oncology nurse that ignites our imagination for how Jesus continues to rule over death today.

Freedom From Demons This week, Matt and Joe dive into Mark 5 and the story of Jesus and the demon-possessed man. What does it mean when the demon calls him “Son of the Most High God”? Russ also joins the conversation to share how Jesus set him free—proof that spiritual freedom is still real and available today. Explore more: Wellsprings of Freedom – a ministry dedicated to helping people walk in spiritual freedom. Learn from the late Dr. Michael Heiser, whose work on the unseen realm has shaped much of today’s biblical understanding of spiritual beings and authority. A great place to start: The Naked Bible Podcast or his book The Unseen Realm.

Chaos Waters In this episode, Joe and Matt dive more deeply into the chaos waters from Genesis to Revelation. As Jesus calms the storm in Mark 4, there is a rich story being played out where Jesus reveals who he is, his power, and his victory over the chaos waters…while he, himself, is the living water.

The Mustard Seed This week, Matt and Joe dive into Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed in Mark 4:30-32. It’s such an encouraging parable by Jesus that reminds us of the nature of the Kingdom of God as it crashes into our world. Matt and Joe are also joined by Ben, who will share a story about how he has experienced that recently. So let’s do it…join us as we dive in!

LAMP ON A STAND This week in Dive In with Matt and Joe, we are taking a look at the encouragement and warning in Jesus’ parable about a lamp on a stand in Mark 4:21-25. We also get to hear a couple of great stories from Susan, who shares what it looks like when the light shines. Join us as we dive in together!

In this episode, Joe and Matt talk about the theme of sabbath that stretches from Genesis to Revelation. As we wrestle with this good gift that God has given, we more fully experience his presence and love. Sabbath is also a practice that subverts the prevailing story of our day: that our identity and worth is tied to what we produce and consume. Jesus reminds us in Mark 2 that sabbath was made for humanity as good gift from the Father. So let’s dive in together!

In the first chapter of Mark, we are drawn into the heartbeat of Jesus as he announces his arrival. John the baptizer has announced that Messiah is on the way. Now Jesus, the Messiah, is here. His message? The time has come! The Kingdom of God is near. In this episode, Matt and Joe will talk about the cosmic significance of the Kingdom of God as we respond to the deeply personal invitation of the King. Join us as we Dive In together!