Episodes
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10-25-2026_Not_the_Outside,_But_the_Inside
Buying a used car can be an adventure. They generally do not have a warranty, so you have to decide if you believe that the car isn’t hiding some expensive problems. If you’re a mechanic, you know how to look inside and see for yourself. But for most of us, we have to do our best to asses from…
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Greater Than Jonah
There is no end to laundry. We all know it and somewhat resent it – especially if we are the ones responsible in the home for making sure there are clean clothes. You wash them only to see them get dirty again and need more washing. In Jesus’ ministry, He is calling people to come and be washed.…
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Where Is This Coming From?
If you drink bottled water, you may be someone who cares about the source of the water you are drinking. Regulations require that something labeled as “spring water” must come from directly from an underground water source. If your bottle says “purified” instead of “spring water”, then it was…
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Prayer
One basic of following Jesus is prayer. Of course, all religions have a form of prayer. Many in certain forms of Christianity think that you need to recite prayers or that the prayers of certain people matter more than others. Jesus actually taught on prayer and gave an example of how to do it.…
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Listening is Better
In our lives, we consume information and surround ourselves with noise and stimulation. We know that we can’t possibly take in everything available, but we join the chase anyway. Many times, becoming a part of a church just changes the list of the things we’re trying to know and do. But there is…
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Looking for a Loophole
Many people believe that being a Christian is an exercise in rule keeping. Make sure you do all of the right things and avoid all of the wrong things. Jesus famously uses the Sermon on the Mount to demonstrate the real problems with that way of thinking. In this episode, Jesus has someone come to...
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The Greatest Joy
What makes you happy? Many people spend their free time chasing the answer to this very question. In fact, it is very common to justify choices by asserting that a specific choice “makes me happy.” Luke stitches together a few statements by Jesus that talk about great joy, full joy, and being...
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The Cost of Rejection
Jesus came to give an invitation to every person on earth. He gave His very life so that they could be redeemed, forgiven, and have eternal life. The restoration of God’s original design and the desire of His heart is made possible by Jesus’ sacrifice. But most people reject this offer. Somehow,...
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What It Costs To Follow Jesus
Following Jesus is the greatest thing you could ever do. In theory, we all agree on this. But there are places in Jesus’ ministry where He describes the cost of doing exactly that. If we’re honest, we’d like to ignore the price we are called to pay to be a Christian. More than that, we probably…
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Misunderstood Greatness
Many people throughout history have claimed to be ‘great.’ Names that come to mind are Catherine the Great, Peter the Great, and of course, Alexander the Great. A boxer claimed to be ‘the greatest.’ Each time, the understanding of greatness was based on the idea of domination, power, influence…
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Power Over Darkness
Power outages are quick reminders of how much we depend on electricity. If it happens at night, we are a bit overwhelmed by the darkness. Our food might go bad. If it’s in the summer, the house will probably get unbearably warm. We take power for granted until we don’t have it. As we continue...
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The Case For Kids | VBS Closing Program
Raising children is not for the weak. With each passing day, what the world throws at young people is more and more difficult to deal with. Children naturally recognize their need for protection, provision and most times, guidance. Today, we will look at how Jesus invites children into his…
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Witnesses
We are embarking on our favorite week of the year. We love spending time with all of the precious children that join us. We love the music, the games, the laughter, the friendships, the energy and everything else that comes with being a part of VBS. But we don’t do all of this for the experience....
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See the Kingdom of God
Today’s world is filled with power struggles. They think that the way to win is have and use more human strength than the next person. Wars are fought with this understanding. Political campaigns often run in this mindset as well. Most people generally accept that the person with the most power...
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Lose Your Life
Many people today call themselves Christians. Basically, they are saying that they follow Jesus. But do we know what it means to follow Him? Jesus describes it in these verses, and it seems like most “Christians” would be shocked at what He says. Instead of talking about what someone gets, He…
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A Sacrificed Savior
Have you ever thought you saw someone you knew only to realize when you approached them that you were mistaken? Something about what they looked like resembled your friend so much that you were sure it was them. While those misunderstandings are generally low-stakes, the passage we read today is...
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Feeding A Crowd
Planning a party can be stressful. Imagine that you are hosting something and you don’t know how many people are coming. What if it could be 50 people – or 100 people – or 1000 people. How do you get ready for something like that? In this story, the disciples didn’t even know that a party was...
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Commissioned | Father's Day
Being a father is a high calling. It takes courage, strength, integrity, and honor. Unfortunately, many of these are in short supply today. But perhaps the greatest secret is that most fathers wonder if they have what it takes to step into all that they want to be as a dad. The ache in our soul…
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Faith Unleashes Power
We all know what hopeless looks like and feels like. We witness it from afar, hearing about things broken beyond repair in someone else’s life. But it hits differently when it’s our own life. Most of the time, it shocks us because we never thought we would be facing something like this. Some of…
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Nobody Wanted Jesus
What would you do if Jesus Himself walked into your kitchen as your family was sitting down to dinner? There would probably be a million thoughts running through your mind at the same time. You might wonder if you’re in trouble, if He is here to give you something, or if you are hallucinating.…
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Jesus Calms The Storm
We often call trials and struggles in our lives “storms.” It is a word that seems to fit because it describes the feeling of danger and chaos. It also sums up our powerlessness in the face of the circumstances. Since this is such an easy-to-understand picture, it is not a mistake that several...
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The Sower and The Seed: Part 2 – Which Are You?
In this second installment of the famous parable, we are going to take a closer look at the different types of people that Jesus describes. He makes it clear that the difference in fruitfulness is not a difference in sower or seed, but in the type of soil it lands on. Jesus explains this parable…
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The Sower and The Seed: Part 1 – The Choice
The story that Jesus tells about the Sower and the Seed is one of the most famous in the Gospels. It is found in three of the four of them. In Luke, it takes up a lot of space, so we’re going to take two weeks to try to digest the message of Jesus in this parable. This week, we’re going to focus…
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God’s Children
As we set aside a day to celebrate and give thanks for the mothers in our lives, we recognize that the One who came up with the whole idea of motherhood is God Himself. Most moms feel overwhelmed with the responsibility of caring for a precious child. Likewise, it is not unusual for dads to feel...
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Diagnosing Idolatry: Knowing God in a Distracting World
(Hosea 1:2-3, 5:4, 6:6, 7:11, 2:14-20, 3:1-3) Golden calves, statues of giant bulls, some guy named Baal: it can be all too easy to laugh and belittle the idol worship of the Old Testament. How could anyone bow down or devote themselves to a man made thing? Meanwhile we nervously check our bank...
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Building the Feeling
Many people come to Hope and talk about how it feels to come for the first time. We love the feedback that our church feels welcoming and warm. We are thrilled that Hopers own the calling to step towards someone they do not know and try to help them feel like they belong. But this feeling does…
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04-19-2026_Forgiven Much
Can you imagine if you were sick and needed some life-saving treatment, but had no way to pay for it? It would be torture to feel doomed while knowing that it was just money in the way of having what you needed. Now imagine that some person with lots of money stepped in to pay for everything. You...
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Misunderstood Jesus
Communicating with others is a challenge. They don’t think like you do and they don’t express themselves in your ways, so it can be hard to hear them and for them to hear you. Misunderstanding is at the root of so much of the conflict that happens in our lives. Mature people know how to backtrack...
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One or the Other
As we begin Passion Week, we are coming into our celebration of the most important events in the history of the world. The death and resurrection of Jesus demand response. Jesus confronted people all through His ministry on their need to respond to Him. In this episode, we see two different...
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Don't Stumble
Falling as an infant or toddler is a part of life. Falling as an elderly person can mean the end of your life. Not all falls are the same, but all of them stop our forward progress. Jesus uses the picture of stumbling to describe what can happen when a person looks at Jesus but misses out on the...
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A Dead Son Raised
Everyone knows what it feels like to be hopeless. All the way back in school, there were times we felt like we’d never understand what we were supposed to be learning or we’d never remember what we studied for the test. Throughout life, we are faced with too little time, too little money, too…
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Jesus’ Authority
Who is in charge? In any formal situation, that is a question that demands an answer right away. At work, you need to know who is in charge of what you will be doing. In homes that effectively raise children, it must be clear that the parents are in charge. When people reject this concept, chaos...
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Role Reversal
In so many parts of our lives, titles are given to define roles, assign responsibilities, and maintain a sense of order. Navigating life and the many lanes that we operate in can feel overwhelming, whether it be with family, friends, work, church, or even in our neighborhood. Jesus, by his life,...
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Trees and Houses
Whether it is fair or not, we tend to evaluate a person’s character by what they say. The words that come out of our mouths are thought of as a good indication of what we are all about. Jesus has some comments about how words can both expose what is inside of us and/or can be an attempt to…
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How God’s People See
Most people assume that being color blind means that a person only sees in black and white. But the truth is most colorblindness is about being unable to distinguish between reds and greens. There are glasses that can correct this issue and enable someone to see the full spectrum. Imagine what...
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Radical Responses
When people don’t like you, it is normal to not like them back. When someone makes you their enemy, the natural response is to defend yourself and to fight back. Somehow, Jesus has an entirely different take on all of this. For those of us who choose to follow Him, we will need to pay attention…
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Who Is Blessed?
We can go to churches or watch online and hear all kinds of ideas about God’s blessings. It seems like most people think that blessings are when God makes your life exactly like what you want. Bills are paid. Loved ones are healthy. Problems are far in the rearview mirror. But Jesus talked about...
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Picking Apostles
Jesus’ mission on earth was the most important ever undertaken. He came to give His life for our redemption, but He also came so that people would know the way to the Father. His plan included appointing twelve men to be apostles. With so much at stake, it would be wise for us to look at how…
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What God Meant
Communication is always a challenge. Every person you talk to is different than you are. We generally do better when we know each other, but our conversations can go off the rails anyway. Throughout time, humans have struggled to understand our Creator. Some people try to build their…
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New Wineskins
“This is the way we’ve always done it.” How often have you heard something like that to reject a new idea? It can be frustrating if you are the person most affected by the unwillingness to consider change. Of course, all of us get stuck in old ways. This is true even in religion and in church....
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Strong and Courageous
Whoever said that God never gives you more than you can handle has clearly never read the Bible before. God’s story is full of situations where his people are faced with overwhelming odds, and if we are honest, our lives mirror that pattern. Whatever challenge or calling God has placed in your…
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The Good Shepherd
Most of us know the pain of following someone that proved to be untrustworthy. Humans struggle with power because it seems to always grab the part of us that is self-centered and ready to use whatever power we have for our own purposes. Whether you agreed to follow that person or not, the feeling...
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A Child Is Born
When a child is born, there is a sense of all the possibilities that their life can hold. All of their days lay before them unwritten and full of potential. Many know this feeling from their own experience even though they would struggle to put it into words that fully express it. Can you imagine...
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God With Us
When we are little, we struggle with the fear of noises in the dark and the monsters we imagine. Almost always, the thing that calms the fears of children is the presence of a parent. We grow up and we grow past our childish fears. But life still brings us plenty of reason to worry, stress, and...
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Choosing Obedience
Did you ever have big dreams for your life? I know I have!! While we make so many plans for our family, career, and wealth, we often end up in situations that we didn’t plan for or never saw coming. Do we allow our faith to look past our challenges and still pursue the Lord? In this text, we see...
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GIVE: It’s God’s, Not Mine
The last holy habit we’re going to look at is the practice of giving. There are plenty of ways to give away what has been given to you, but we are going to focus on the Biblical teaching about money. It is ironic that the vast majority of Americans have more than almost anyone else in the history...
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Serve: The Habit of Love
People generally do not see serving as an upgrade to their lives. If anything, it carries a feel of being made lower than others. But Jesus said that He came to serve. If serving is a bad thing, why did Jesus choose to do it? The truth is that serving is central as a habit for those who are...
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WORSHIP: Who Is Worthy of Trust?
Those who follow Jesus worship Him. What does that mean? The Bible talks often about a physical response to Jesus like bowing down and worshipping or singing songs of praise to Him. Ultimately, it means living a life that brings glory to Him, testifying by our decisions and choices that He is…
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READ: God's Word Is Our Roadmap
There was a time before everyone had a smart phone with a map app that it was possible to get lost. You would have some directions in hand, but eventually, you would find yourself unable to figure out where you were and how exactly to get back on track. Truly it is easier to stay on the path than...
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LEAD: Pointing the Way for Others
Some people think the world is divided into leaders and followers. But the truth is that many people don’t realize that they are already leading. They may be leading in an unhealthy or dysfunctional way, but they are having an influence over those who are following them. Most people are both...
About this show
Biblical teaching from Hope Christian Fellowship church in Woodbury, NJ. Here you'll find our Sunday morning messages and more!
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Hope Christian Fellowship
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