Mountain Park Church

Genesis 9 contains one of the most puzzling and mysterious stories in the Bible—the “uncovering of Noah’s nakedness” by his son Ham and Noah’s curse of Ham’s son. What is happening in that story? How does it connect to Jesus and the Canaanite woman who comes to him begging for deliverance for her daughter? Are generational and bloodline curses real? What is the good news of Jesus about them?

What does the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 have to do with Genesis 6:1-4 and Genesis 11 and the story of Babel. The Divine Council worldview of the Bible. To rightly understand Pentecost we need to understand Genesis 1-12, but to rightly understand Genesis 1-12 we need to understand the Divine Council Worldview that undergirds all of Scripture.

Captivated By The Nearness Of The Kingdom Jesus said that the Kingdom of the Heavens was near, it was at hand. When Jesus healed, set free, ministered to the broken or sinful or preached, the Kingdom was at hand. For most of us, the struggle is in being aware of, and engaged with that Kingdom in our everyday lives. When we get a glimpse of the work of Jesus through the Holy Spirit it becomes a captivating force in our lives. UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById("row-unique-0"));

Captivated: Joining Jesus As He Ministers In Prisons Being captivated by Jesus isn’t just about having the right doctrine or theology, it is about seeing him minister to his favourite people in his favourite places. In John 17 Jesus said that he wanted his disciples to be with him where he is. But where is Jesus? What kinds of people does Jesus love to be with? What kinds of places does Jesus love to be in? In this episode, on of our friends shares about how he has been captivated by Jesus as he sees Jesus minister to men and women in the prison system. UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById("row-unique-3"));

Captivated: Eyes Like Fire and Feet Like Burnished Bronze There is a connection in scripture between where your eyes are looking and what your feet are standing on. It is not a matter of whether you are captivated, the question is what are you captivated by. Fear has the power to overpower and blind us, captivating us with its power, but there is someone great who is inviting us to put our eyes on him. UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById("row-unique-6"));

Captivating The Next Generation  We believe the call of God on our lives is to cultivate a culture of revival and renewal for the sake of the next generation. Our kids and students need to see and experience parents and church families that are living in renewal and awakening so that they can be men and women of awakening in the coming years. UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById("row-unique-9"));

Captivated Stories: Matt and Laila Srigley Matt and Laila have been a part of Mountain Park for a few years but about a year ago God began to speak to them about an area of their lives he was calling them to trust him with and surrender to him. As they began to learn to trust with this area of their lives things began to radically change in many areas of life for Matt and Laila. This is an encouraging story of God’s captivating generosity and trustworthiness. UNCODE.initRow(document.getElementById("row-unique-12"));

Captivated PT3: Captivated By The Father Heart Of God One of the most captivating things about Jesus is how he talked to, and talked about God. In a time period where the name of God was so holy and set apart that no one would even say it out loud, Jesus called God Father, Abba. He came to reconnect us with the heart of the Father and make the unapproachable, high and holy God, not less holy, but a holy God who is near and approachable. A high and holy God who is Father.

Captivated PT2: Captivated By The Heart Of Jesus Scripture tells us the Jesus is the exact representation of the heart and character of God. Jesus is what God is like as a human, and Jesus is a man of deep visceral emotion. His heart is huge and it feels with a depth of feeling that we struggle to imagine. When we read the gospel accounts of Jesus life we might expect that his primary disposition toward the world is anger over sin or frustration with our failings, but that is not the dominant response of Jesus, compassion and mercy is.

Captivated PT 1: Captivated By The Humility Of Jesus As humans, we are creatures drawn to beauty. What we find beautiful we give attention to. What we give attention to we become captivated by. Those things that captivate us become the things we love and the things that direct our lives. In Part 1 of our Captivated series Andrew talks about the humility of Jesus and how it has captivated his own heart.

Prologue-PT 11: God’s Vision For Community In light of Genesis 2, what might God’s heart be for community? What does a Kingdom of God community look like?

Spiritual Practices: Guided Prayer For Forgiveness (working through relational strain) We want to go beyond information into revelation and experience. Information does not bring about transformation, but encountering God through scripture, spiritual practices and prayer do bring transformation. In this guided prayer we want to practice a way to work through difficult relationships, hurtful experiences and painful encounters with others.

Prologue PT 10: God’s Vision For Relationships—Kingdom Leadership, Headship and Authority In Genesis chapter 2, God creates woman from man, but what is really taking place in this story? Is Eve really made from just a little rib? In Genesis chapter 2, God is laying out his vision for relationships and the radical difference between his kingdom vision for relationships and vision of the world around us. God reframes what leadership, headship, And authority within our relationships should look like under his rule

Prologue PT 9: The Tree of Life When Adam and Eve were in the garden there were two trees planted in the centre, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. The story focuses on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the restriction that God placed on it, but there is another tree present that Jesus wants to invite us to give greater attention to—the tree of life.

 Prologue PT : Eden As A Cosmic Temple And The Test At The Tree In this episode we unpack more of what the Garden of Eden actually was and what the tree of the knowledge of God and evil was. What was the was the writer of Genesis trying to communicate to us that has application for us in our own lives today.

Taking It Deeper – Conversation on being in the image of God In this conversation between Pastor Andrew and Pastor Brenda, we enter into dialogue together to unpack more of our last podcast episode and Andrew’s teaching on Genesis 2 and the image of God. We also take things deeper and move from information into a way to practice the presence of God in your own life.  

Prologue PT 7 – The Image in the Garden What was the Garden of Eden? Did it cover the whole earth? Was it a really beautiful orchard, or was there something greater going on? In this Episode we are talking more about the identity of humanity and the purpose of Eden as a divine throne room where heaven met earth. A place where the divine unseen realm met the natural realm, a place of deep connection to God.  

Prologue Pt 6: Genesis 1 And Our Identity In The Image And Likeness Of God Scripture opens with a stunning portrait of God; a window into what he is like. In a stunning turn, the writer of Genesis describes all of humanity as being made in the image and likeness of God, but what does that really mean and was the image of God broken when mankind sinned in the garden?  

Prologue Pt 5: Does God like me? This week Pastor Alex asks the question does God like me? We know that God loves us but we often wonder if he enjoys us. Does God just put up with me or does he desire to be with me? This week we speak about how much God loves us and look at the beginning of our relationship with God.  

Prologue Pt 4: Five practical ways to reorder our lives God’s way In Genesis 1-3 we see the story of God’s identity and our own identity as humans as created finite beings. The story of scripture is is one where humanity by nature is subject to certain limitations. Instead of seeing the wisdom of God in our limitations, we fight against them and often view those limitations as a liability or even a fault to overcome rather than a constructive gift. In this message we talk about our how our constant wrestle with our limits robs us of the peace that God promises and five practical ways to reorder our lives God’s way.  

Prologue: Bonus Episode-God’s Heavenly Family and Jesus As The “only” begotten Son. In part three, we introduced the possibility that when God uses the plural, let us make man in our image in Genesis 1:27 he is not referring to the Trinity, but to what scripture calls, the heavenly host, the sons of God or God’s divine council. But how can we take this interpretation of Jesus is God’s “only” begotten son?  

Prologue PT 3: GOD’S IDENTITY: MORE THAN A CREATOR—THE STORY OF A FATHER The story of Genesis is the story of a God who has created and ordered the heavens and the earth. The story of a God who is not only powerful, but present and personal. The story of a God who is interested and attentive. This is the story of a God who has created a home: an ordered sacred space to live with us in. Genesis is not just the story of a powerful creator, it is the story of a father. A relational God who has a heavenly family and a human family. In Part 3 we unpack some possible interpretations of Genesis 1:26-27 and what scripture means when God says: “Let us make man in our image and likeness…” What does the “us” and “our” refer to if God is one? Is God referring to himself as the trinity? Possibly, but there may be a better way to understand the plural language that pulls together the whole arc of scripture. Maybe after describing how he has ordered the cosmos, God is now describing the reality of the unseen spiritual realm in relation to humanity and the world.

Prologue PT 2: God’s Identity: The Story of a God of generosity who is filled with abundance and capacity. Stories have a powerful shaping influence on us. We are reintroducing ourselves to the story of Genesis 1-3 (the prologue of scripture) and the theological messages found in the first pages of scripture, asking “What does God want to reveal about who He is and what He is like? What does he want us to know about our identity? What does He want us to know about the shattering of his good world and why we experience life the way that we do—instead of the way we once did? What does God want us to know about the deep longing and ache in our heart for another world, a true HOME?In Part 2 we are asking what story has the greatest influence on your life. The story of God found in Genesis 1, which is the story of a good and generous God who has immense capacity and loves to give abundantly, or the story of our world, our own narratives and the narrative of the enemy which is a story of scarcity and fear. Which one has formed a stronger pull on your life? God wants to reset how we understand his identity and how we image him.

Prologue PT 1: God’s Identity: The Story of a master builder creating a HOME We long for another world and connectedness to God, but many of us feel trapped in the brokenness of this world and disconnected and distant from God. We know information about God, we know what we are supposed to believe, but He isn’t real to us. Many of us live with an inner conflict from the disconnection between what we believe should be and what we experience. We long and ache for beauty, purpose, and order, to know we are not alone and that rest and peace are possible. We ache for the day when death and pain are swallowed up. We are aching for something to make sense of, and bring healing to, the pain and grief we experience as normal life in a broken and dark world. We long for order in a sea of disorder. We are reintroducing ourselves to the story of Genesis 1-3 (the prologue of scripture) and the theological messages found in the first pages of scripture, asking “What does God want to reveal about who He is and what He is like? What does he want us to know about our identity? What does He want us to know about the shattering of his good world and why we experience life the way that we do—instead of the way we once did? What does God want us to know about the deep longing and ache in our heart for another world, a true HOME? In Part 1 we are asking if Genesis 1 isn’t so much about the material creation of the universe and the mechanisms required, but about the heart of God to reveal his true identity, our true identity and the reality of the world we live in? What if the main message of Genesis 1 is theological and not scientific? In this first part of our Prologue series we are unpacking how to read Genesis in context and how to understand the word create and how it is used in context.

GOD’S NOT DONE PT3 When we read the bible it can be easy to think that its characters don’t really struggle with the same things we do. It can be easy to read the highlights of their lives and come away thinking that they somehow had a different kind of spiritual life than we have access to today. But the scriptures are filled with men and women who struggled with sin, doubt, disappointment and failure just like we do. The message of scripture through their lives is that God is never done and the stuff of our lives, even right now, is not beyond his capacity to redeem and restore. God was not done with them and he is not done with us.

GOD’S NOT DONE PT2 When we read the bible it can be easy to think that its characters don’t really struggle with the same things we do. It can be easy to read the highlights of their lives and come away thinking that they somehow had a different kind of spiritual life than we have access to today. But the scriptures are filled with men and women who struggled with sin, doubt, disappointment and failure just like we do. The message of scripture through their lives is that God is never done and the stuff of our lives, even right now, is not beyond his capacity to redeem and restore. God was not done with them and he is not done with us.

GOD’S NOT DONE

IMPOSTER IDENTITY In the first century the Apostle Paul wrote to his protoge Timothy with the purpose of equipping and encouraging him to live out his spiritual calling and identity in really difficult circumstances. Timothy has been asked to follow after Paul in leading the church in Ephesus. Those are big shoes to follow. Paul is aware that leading in Ephesus is challenging and that Timothy will face opposition on all fronts. Paul knows that when we face great opposition it can be easy to revert to patterns and ways of dealing with struggle that are ungodly, unholy and unhelpful. In response, Paul gives Timothy 3 archetypes of Godly manhood and womanhood; the soldier, the athlete and the farmer. Paul is giving Timothy a vision for Godly character that is needed for us today.

IMPOSTER IDENTITY In the first century the Apostle Paul wrote to his protoge Timothy with the purpose of equipping and encouraging him to live out his spiritual calling and identity in really difficult circumstances. Timothy has been asked to follow after Paul in leading the church in Ephesus. Those are big shoes to follow. Paul is aware that leading in Ephesus is challenging and that Timothy will face opposition on all fronts. Paul knows that when we face great opposition it can be easy to revert to patterns and ways of dealing with struggle that are ungodly, unholy and unhelpful. In response, Paul gives Timothy 3 archetypes of Godly manhood and womanhood; the soldier, the athlete and the farmer. Paul is giving Timothy a vision for Godly character that is needed for us today.

IMPOSTER IDENTITY In the first century the Apostle Paul wrote to his protoge Timothy with the purpose of equipping and encouraging him to live out his spiritual calling and identity in really difficult circumstances. Timothy has been asked to follow after Paul in leading the church in Ephesus. Those are big shoes to follow. Paul is aware that leading in Ephesus is challenging and that Timothy will face opposition on all fronts. Paul knows that when we face great opposition it can be easy to revert to patterns and ways of dealing with struggle that are ungodly, unholy and unhelpful. In response, Paul gives Timothy 3 archetypes of Godly manhood and womanhood; the soldier, the athlete and the farmer. Paul is giving Timothy a vision for Godly character that is needed for us today.

IMPOSTER IDENTITY In the first century the Apostle Paul wrote to his protoge Timothy with the purpose of equipping and encouraging him to live out his spiritual calling and identity in really difficult circumstances. Timothy has been asked to follow after Paul in leading the church in Ephesus. Those are big shoes to follow. Paul is aware that leading in Ephesus is challenging and that Timothy will face opposition on all fronts. Paul knows that when we face great opposition it can be easy to revert to patterns and ways of dealing with struggle that are ungodly, unholy and unhelpful. In response, Paul gives Timothy 3 archetypes of Godly manhood and womanhood; the soldier, the athlete and the farmer. Paul is giving Timothy a vision for Godly character that is needed for us today.

A Consecrated Year: The prophetic word that God has given us for the life of the church in 2024 is consecrated. Pastor Brenda takes the first Sunday of 2024 to review what that word consecrated means and invite us to ask the Spirit what he might want to invite us to personally consecrate to him this year.

For Renewal PT 1 Our mission is to “live the way of Jesus for the renewal of Niagara” but what does the word “renewal” really mean? What do we mean when we say that word? The word renewal comes with a lot of excitement for some, a lot of fear for others and big shrug of the shoulders for a few. Many people have a preconceived idea of what they think renewal means, so we want to take a few weeks to clarify what we mean by that word and what we are calling you into this year.

Dawn —The Darkness Cannot Prevail How do you feel about the state of the world right now? It can be depressing to look around us because it seems as though things are just getting worse, getting darker. The story of the coming of Jesus is a story of the victory of God over the best efforts of the kingdom of darkness to overthrow the rule of God on the earth. The gospel of Matthew begins with a genealogy that may seem boring and irrelevant on the surface, but is pregnant with meaning about the purposes and power of God for us even today. Through this genealogy, Matthew is reminding us of the victory of God through every generation and that God is still overcoming the darkness.