The Pious Podcast

This famous story has many lessons to be learned. In this episode we learn 3 ways of being in the Kingdom; we also learn what to do with our offerings when they are insufficient. Date: September 24, 2023Scripture: John 6:1-15

The very first capital campaign Moses led, ended in a strange request. We can learn something from the Israelites response to the opportunity to give to the Lord’s work. Preached: September 17, 2023Scripture: Exodus 36:1-7

Four men with leprosy stumble upon incredible fortune (providence), this puts them in a position of choosing between greed or generosity. Their response teaches us how to view material wealth properly. Listen as Pastor Meshach introduces them.Scripture: 2 King 7:1-16Preached: September 10, 2023

The Widow of Zarephath obeys, even when it seems foolish, and is blessed. Why did she do this? What can we learn from her foolish obedience and from the God that calls her and us into such trust that leads to salvation? Join us as Pastor Meshach introduces the widow of Zarephath.Preached: 9/4/2023Scripture: 1 Kings 17:7-17

Epaphras doesn’t get much buzz in the bible, but what he is known for sets an example for all of us who would participate in God’s work of salvation. He is one of the original prayer warriors. Listen as Pastor Meshach shares 3 things we can learn from Epaphras on prayer.Preached: August 6, 2023Scripture: Colossians 4:12-13

Jesus and his disciples have crossed into Cannanite country to rest, but immediately his presence is known as a woman with a demon possessed daughter seeks him out. Her faith is tested and proven to be great when she refuses to leave without the thing she sought from Christ. Join us as pastor Meshach teaches on why this woman's faith is so great.Preached: July 16, 2023Scripture: Matthew 15:21-28

Bartimaeus couldn't see, but he could shout! He would not let the crowd keep him from getting the attention of the one who could deliver him. He is an example to us of the necessity of chutzpah and positive stubborn determination to receive from the Lord. Join us as pastor Meshach introduces to us a man formerly known as Blind Bartimaeus.Preached: July 9, 2023Scripture: Mark 10:46-52

Naaman is a man who is the envy of all others. He has rank, status, wealth, and connections, but after all that is said about him, there is one thing that stands above them... he has leprosy. In this story, his deliverance comes by surprising means... humility. Join Pastor Meshach as he introduces us to Naaman.Preached: July 2, 2023Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-19

Transformation was never meant to stay private. In this final session we ask what it looks like when formation actually works — in your home, your workplace, your neighborhood. We look at the local church as a Trinitarian community, not a service provider, and close with a reframe that might change how you think about your ordinary week.We often talk about taking Jesus with us places. What if we reversed that — and brought our lives to him instead?Formation Lab is a four-week course from Northminster Presbyterian Church on what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus — not just a believer.

Nobody performs their way to mastery — they train their way there. In this session we explore Willard's VIM framework: the Vision that captures the heart, the Intention that turns admiration into decision, and the Means — the spiritual disciplines that arrange your life so God can do what only he can do.The goal isn't trying harder. It's training differently.Formation Lab is a four-week course from Northminster Presbyterian Church on what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus — not just a believer.

To truly care for something, you have to understand it. In this episode of Formation Lab, Meshach walks through Dallas Willard's model of the human person — spirit, mind, body, social dimension, and soul — and explores why sin is harder to shake than we think. The problem isn't effort. It's that we've been working with an incomplete picture of what a human being actually is.If you've ever wondered why you keep running into the same walls in your spiritual life, this one is for you.Formation Lab is a four-week series from Northminster Presbyterian Church exploring what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus — not just a believer.

Most of us grew up with a gospel built around one question: If you die tonight, where will you spend eternity? It's not a bad question. But the better question is, what if you wake up tomorrow morning? What does your gospel say then?In this session, we explore the gospel Jesus actually preached — the Kingdom of God. What it is, what it's like, and what it means that it's available now.Formation Lab is a four-week course from Northminster Presbyterian Church on what it means to be an apprentice of Jesus — not just a believer.

Revelation closes with a tale of two cities. Babylon — the city of human achievement — lies in a pile of dust and ashes. The New Jerusalem — the city of God — descends as a gift from God. The enduring vision of both calls all of God's people to arrange their lives in light of the end of both cities. Resist Babylon, embrace the New Jerusalem.Revelation 21-22

Judgement is often mistaken for something horrible, punitive. But seen through the eyes of Jesus, it takes on a completely different picture.Revelation 15-18

In the Two Witnesses, we see a picture of how God’s people are meant to function in an ungodly world.Revelation 10 - 11

Worship has always been something that happens in the throne room of God, that we participate in here on Earth. In Revelation, we see a clear picture of how what happens in heaven impacts Earth.Revelation 4&5

While the letters were for specific churches, the warnings and exhortations are important for churches of every age.

The vision of Jesus Christ in Revelation is different than that we have in the gospels. Both are true; one leads to the other. This teaches us something about the way of God and the kind of life we’re being ushered into. A life in which Christ is always with us.Revelation 1:9-20

Only a moron would hear Jesus's words and not do it. The wise thing to do is hear and do, lean on him with all your being. The End. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion for the final sermon in the Glorious Life Series.Preached on May 28th, 2023Scripture: Matthew 7:24-29 NRSV

The way Jesus presents is narrow, but it leads to abundance. How can this be? It's actually true of many good things in life. The Olympic athlete chooses a narrow way of life, but this narrow way results in a kind of freedom very few experience. So it is when we follow Jesus. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers another wonderful message about how to hone in on a life with Christ.Preached on May 21st, 2023Scripture: Matthew 7:13-23 NRSV

Asking is the most powerful force in the universe because it connects us to the most powerful force. Join Pastor Meshach as he teaches on the simple method that is essential to helping people and receiving help.Preached on May 14th, 2023Scripture: Matthew 7:7-12

In the last chapter of The Sermon, Jesus brings the message home by focusing on how we can help one another. Many have learned to sprinkle judgement into their efforts, but Jesus recommends a better way. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he talks about giving non-judgemental help.Preached on May 7th, 2023Scripture: Matthew 7:1-6

Life in the Kingdom enables one to think differently about security and treasure. Indeed, you’ll see everything clearly because you’ll be looking through a kingdom lens. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a powerful message about gaining Freedom From the Trappings of Wealth.Preached on February 2nd, 2023Scripture: Matthew 6:19-24

The old external righteousness created people who would use words (oaths) to get their way. Jesus suggests that this is of the evil one. Why? Because of how it causes us to think about our sisters and brothers; not as people who should make the right decision with the appropriate information, but those we should manipulate to get our way. Rather, we should let our yes be yes, and our no be no. This kind of simplicity honors the other person as a person. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers this message on moving beyond manipulative speech and towards God.Preached on January 22nd, 2023Scripture: Matthew 5:33-37

Anger naturally leads to dehumanizing lust; just consider the cause of most divorces… Those are two of the great scourges of humankind. Jesus presents a kind of righteousness that doesn’t merely avoid the cultivation of lust through action, but looks to honor the other person, not as an object, but as a beloved child of God. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a powerful message about freeing yourself from the grips of lust.Preached on January 15th, 2023Scripture: Matthew 5:27-32

We discovered who is well off, or who has the good life, in Jesus’s teaching on the beatitudes. The next question is, how do we become good? Not, how do we do good deeds — this is the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, but how do we become the kinds of people through which good deeds naturally flow? This is going beyond the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about Inner Righteousness.Preached on November 20th, 2022Scripture: Matthew 5:17-20

Those who place themselves within the Kingdom of God will immediately have a different kind of life; a life that makes a different impression in the world. Kingdom people are not meant to fit in; we were made to bring light to darkness, flavor to blandness, all to the glory of God. Join Pastor Meshach as he delivers a message about bringing light to the darkness.Preached on November 13th, 2022Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16

Everyone wants the good life, and depending on what one holds as ultimate, the perspective of the good life will change. Jesus offers a vision of the good life that is available to anyone who would enter the Kingdom of God by trusting in him. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about what the good life in Christ looks like.Preached on October 30th, 2022Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Jesus’s life was so powerful that even demonic entities were powerless, even fearful, when he was near. One of the most famous of these stories is when Jesus cast a legion of demons out of a man, and the community was so shaken by it that they asked Jesus to leave their region. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about casting the darkness out of your heart and bringing in the light of God.Preached on October 23rd, 2022Scripture: Mark 5:1-20

In our world, contagious things are often negative: viruses, diseases, and bad habits. However, when Jesus arrived, he introduced a new kind of contagion. Through his holiness of life, he could touch or speak a word, and those who were sick would be healed. This kind of epidemic caused widespread hysteria wherever Jesus went. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message about the Purifying Presence of Jesus Christ.Preached on October 16th, 2022Scripture: Mark 2:1-12; Luke 8:40-48

When students disciples themselves to a rabbi, they did so with the hope of one day becoming like him. The request to be a disciple was akin to asking, “Do you believe I could emulate you?” If the rabbi responded affirmatively, the student could follow. Conversely, if he declined, the student would be assigned menial tasks such as fishing, masonry, or collecting taxes. Jesus’s encounter with these boys and his declaration, “Follow me,” signifies his belief in their potential to emulate him. This concept would have been mind-boggling, especially considering their previous experiences with his miraculous feats. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he delivers a message titled “A Surprising Offer.”Preached on October 9th, 2022Scripture: Luke 5:1-11

John’s prologue paints a picture of the immensity of Christ. Matthew uses the image of people sitting in darkness seeing a great light. Together, these introductions point to a different kind of reality that Jesus brought into the world. Preached by Meshach Kanyion on October 2, 2022Scripture: Matthew 4:12-17

What does it mean to reckon that we are dead to sin and alive to God? This is actually a vital part of living freely in Christ. Join Pastor Meshach Kanyion as he preaches on baptism, identity, and faith.Meshach Kanyion -- 7/3/2023

In this story about Naaman, the Aramean General, pastor Meshach focuses on the lessons it teaches on experiencing salvation in everyday life.Passage: 2 Kings 5:1-15aPreached at Northminster Church April 19, 2025

In this sermon, Pastor Meshach teaches on the importance of bearing witness to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Our journey with Peter follows into the Garden of Gethsemane with Jesus.

Peter was great because of his many failures. Jesus asked him an important question when he began to sink, a question we must not let go unanswered: "Why did you doubt?"

Preached at Friendship UMC on October 4, 2016Don't Worry, Pray, Be Thankful, and Rejoice!

Preached on September 25, 2016, at Friendship UMCIn this message, Pastor Meshach teaches on the necessity of intentional action in our lives with God. We must focus on one thing above all.

Preached at Friendship UMC on September 11, 2016.To experience the life of God, we cannot be passive. Paul says we must "Work out our salvation with fear and trembling." Pastor Meshach explores what that means for us.

Preached at Friendship UMC on September 4, 2016.In Philippians 2, Paul tells the Philippian Christians to have the mind of Christ. In this message, Pastor Meshach explores what that is and how it relates to greatness.

Preached at Friendship UMC on August 21, 2016.Paul urges the Philippians to lead a life "worthy of the gospel." In this message, Pastor Meshach explains what that meant for the Christians in Philippi and us.

This message was preached at Friendship UMC in Wyoming, OH, on August 21, 2016.In this message, Pastor Meshach provides an overview of the book and explains how their evaluation of the gospel influenced their daily lives.

As we bring this series to a close, pastor Meshach Kanyion will share on the importance of actually strategizing to become like Jesus.Preached on November 26, 2023Scripture: Psalm 139:7-12; 23-24; Matthew 11:28-30

In this session, Pastor Meshach will teach on how the disciplines of engagement help us create new habits of Christlikeness.Preached on Sunday, November 19, 2023

In this message, pastor Meshach teaches on the purpose of disciplines for the spiritual life, and explores a few disciplines of abstinence that may disrupt life as it is, and help one be able to choose habits of righteousness.Preached by Meshach Kanyion on November 12, 2023

If we were to live our lives as disciples of Jesus, we would need to learn to live as spiritual beings under God’s guidance, moving away from a life governed by fleshly desires. Preached by Meshach Kanyion on November 11, 2023Scripture: Romans 8:1-14

If we were to comprehend the profound understanding Jesus possessed about human nature, we would likely be overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of it all. In this message, we will dive into the reasons behind his mission of rescue and explore its significance for us as his devoted disciples.Preached on October 29, 2023 by Meshach KanyionScriptures: Genesis 1:26-27; Psalm 8:3-9; John 2:24-25

Christianity is properly understood as a body of knowledge, not faith. Biblical faith emerges from a context of knowledge. That's how Jesus lived, with faith that was rooted in knowledge. As his disciples, we are invited to follow him into the kind of knowledge that sets us free to live as he did in this world. Preached by Meshach Kanyion on October 22, 2023Scriptures: Colossians 1:15-20; John 17:3-5; 25-26

What is the Good News that Jesus brought into the world? We’ve already discussed some incomplete gospels. Now we’ll look more fully into the gospel that Jesus brought and taught.Preached by Meshach Kanyion on October 15, 2023Scripture Reference: Matthew 4:17