Fresh Start in Christ with Viroqua Nazarene

When you think of any of the moms in your life that have had a positive impact on you, what quality do they share? In this podcast we'll look at the main quality that key moms of the bible all shared in their unique ways, How Jesus himself reflected this quality and how we can live it out in our own lives, even if we are a mom.Happy Mother's Day!

Prophets in all generations hold a solemn duty: relay the Word of the Lord. But what happens when a prophet shares his own advice? Might someone think it was prophecy? In this final message in the series about spotting True and False Prophets, we look once again at the "Signs of Prophet Ability" and see when the Bible says about Nathan, prophet to King David and King Solomon.I conclude this message with a timely warning about ministerial accountability and transparency, (spoiler alert: we should have it.)

Beauty and the Beast, Bonnie & Clyde, Georg and Maria von Trapp, and Romeo & Juliet.All complicated love stories with varying outcomes. One of the most complicated love stories is illustrated in the pages of the book of Hosea. Listen in to this podcast. You might discover something about your relationships that you hadn’t thought about before.

Have you ever seen someone being attacked, their home being broken into...and done nothing? Could you imagine doing nothing if it was your relative's home?The Book of Obadiah laws down the consequences for Edom (descendents of Esau's) indifference when Jacob (Israel) was in need. It serves as a warning for us today.Editing note: in the recording I mistakingly state that the October 7 attacks on Israel happened in 2024. That is incorrect. It happened in 2023. In my bible margins, I wrote Oct 7 2024 as I read Obadiah on the 1 year anniversary of the attacks. I just didn’t remember that’s what I did, nor did I check the historicity of my statement until after the sermon was presented.

The story of the Resurrection of Jesus, that which we especially commemorate during the season known as Easter, can make us feel a great many things. We may be reminded of the sorrow and loss of a loved one, much like Jesus' friends and family felt at his crucifixion and burial. We may be confused by this story, because grief for the loss of Jesus is short lived: He didn't stay dead.Either way we are confronted with the reality that the resurrection is true, with many evidences pointing to the affirmative. The question we need to ask ourselves is, "What am I going to do in light of the Resurrection?"

When you watch a parade, where do you watch from? The Beginning? The Middle, where most of the big performances happen? What about the end of the parade? In Zechariah 9 we get a picture of God's plan, The King who would come showing his strength through peace. In Mark 11 we see Jesus fulfilling the prophecy, and many cheering Him on...until they didn't. What happens when the Triumphal Entry has a disappointing destination?

Why shine a light on the topic of the difference between true and false prophets? Because Jesus Warned us ...so we've got to be ready and know how to respond. In this message we will look at and example of a False Prophet and a True Prophet from the First Century.

This message is mainly a guide through how we can determine, through scripture, if a prophet is from God or not.I do tag on an application of Samuel (of 1 & 2 Samuel) however, in my presentation I made this sound like it was the center of my message. Sorry for the confusion but I welcome the feedback.Also I was a bit mistaken when I was recalling the story from Matthew when Jesus asked, "who do the people say I am?" I incorrectly said who said what and said something about "John" when I was thinking ahead to John the Baptist. I should have just read the following passage instead of summarizing, so here you go:----13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”-----If you have any feedback, constructive or otherwise, feel free to leave them in the comments section. Thanks!

Have you ever wondered...how can I know God?In this podcast we look at the basics of getting to know God, accept the gift we prepared for the world, and how we might live like Christ.

If you had all Power and Authority in Heaven and on Earth, what would you do?In this message we wrap up our series on world missions. We also look at what it means to "take someone's name in vain." (And no, it's not what you think...)What does God want to do through you? To know, you've got to GO. And GO in His Name.

Do you ever feel guilty when people talk about evangelism and discipleship? Like you’re not doing enough or not doing it right?In this message we will look at two ways of discipleship, how they overlap, and Jesus’ litmus test to give us peace of mind as we make disciples.

God told people to GO. Jesus told his disciples to GO several times.An essential part of world Missions is…going into the World. But each time someone says yes to going where God told them to go…we see obedience to the will of God and submission of our own will. Going is all about obeying and trusting God.

Christianity has had a call from its very start to go into all the world and preach the good news of Jesus. A specific way we do this is referred to as World Missions. But..what is that exactly? What fuels the mission? How can you and I participate in missions? Do we have to go halfway around the world?

Solomon had one job: be a good king. Solomon was also smart enough to ask for the tools to accomplish that task: discernment to govern the LORD’s people. In this last sermon in “the Pursuit of Power” series, we aim to answer the question, “are we to pursue power at all?”

When you die, what do you want to be your last words? Do you want to go with a sense of peace, no unfinished business? 1 Kings 2, David is about to die and his last powerful words concerning his own unfinished business will have a lasting effect on Solomon’s reign as the new King of Israel.

Power or control is something most people seek. Maybe not control of a company or a country, but at least control over their own lives. But when does the pursuit of power get out of hand? Join us as we dive into this topic in a study of 1 Kings 1-3.

Happy Epiphany! Or what’s left of it. What is epiphany all about anyway?

I (Pastor Matt) was on sabbatical October through November of 2025. This message is a reflection on 3 things gleaned from this time that connects and applies to the pastor and the church.

Christmas Sunday message from our advent series.

(This message does start already in progress…)In this message we look at the heart that is missing from religious practices and their connection to a “do as I say not as I do” kind of lifestyle. I also outline my plan for Sabbatical in this message (though the introduction is what I missed recording.)

The rhythm of rest is a gift from God. As we will hear in this message, it can be a test of our trust in God. Do we trust Him to care for us on the day of rest? And what happened in history when this rhythm was extremely neglected?

Have you ever take a break? Like a real break. Unplug from the daily grind, quiet yourself and just listen and think on God? I usually move quickly from one thing to the next that I don't take intentional time to focus in on God. It's something He's showing me and our church...that sabbath is a gift. Will we accept it?

"It's my right to________, and you can't do a thing about it!" Are you familiar with this sentiment? The truth is we do all have certain rights. Rights given to us to use and we can use them for ourselves...or regarding responsibilities...laying them down for the betterment of others.Paul talks about this in 1 Corinthians chapters 8-10 and in this message we ask the questions, "What are our rights?" and "What are we going to do with them?"

Who says the Bible doesn't talk about the importance of intimacy in marriage? Paul gives some solid directions to the the Corinthians because of the current state of immortality...and because of Jesus coming back soon (tm).Will you be ready?

What would Jesus Do? Would he go to jail? Would he bring healing and help to those incarcerated, no matter the reason for the imprisonment? What do you think?Moreover, what can he do in a detention facility when someone follows him with his who heart, body, soul and mind?

How are we to handle someone, in the church, who is not repentant? Do we just marvel at God’s Grace, do we act prideful, or do we use spirit filled judgment and discipline? What does The Bible say on this? Check out this message from 1 Corinthians 5-6.

Woo hoo! Let's be MORE divided and throw shade at others!...said no one ever.But somehow, the early church got into quarrelling with one another over the human leaders, when they should have been focusing on following Jesus.

In this podcast we’ll unpack our upcoming outreach event and the early church activities that this event and things like it reflect. We are gathering dry kindling, preparing for the Holy Spirit to spark a flame.

In this message, we draw our series, "Restoration Business" to a close...for now.But God is not done restoring and calling people to relationship with Him. He wants all of creation to be restored...even better, remade - how it was originally intended.

"What's wrong with 'The Church?!' Why are they acting and behaving that way? Why do they put so much emphasis on human teachers & leaders?"If you've wondered this, you're in good company. In 1 Corinthians 1, Paul had some things to point out to the church in Corinth to their spiritually unhealthy devotion to human leaders. What might that say to us today?Join us as we walk through the books of 1 & 2 Corinthians!

What causes bitterness and what’s the cure?

What is "The Bottom Line"? It's usually spoken about in business when you are trying to figure out how much you can make over expenses. In car restoration, you might think of it as how much value you'll get out of the fully restored car verses how much time and money you had to put into.As for the Parable of the Lost (prodigal) Son? How much did it cost the father to welcome his wayward son back home...and did the father come out ahead?

You know that little annoying light on your dashboard? The one that tells you something's wrong on the inside of your vehicle? Many times we ignore it, but it's quite easy to get it check and then attempt to fix or restore what went wrong. Spiritually this happens during Repentation & Regeneration. Listen to find out more...

God is in the Restoration business. He wants something for us that we had way back when he made…everything. Question is, will you hop in and go with Him on your own journey of Restoration, or being made whole?

Have you ever wondered, “what do these ‘Nazarene’ people really believe?” This is a snapshot of the core values of the Church of the Nazarene. We are Christian, Holiness, and Missional.

Not all stories end with "and they lived happily ever after." The stores of Asa and his son, Jehoshaphat, kings of Judah had some bumps along the way, generally caused by their own poor choices. The hills and valleys of their stories make it easier for us to relate and also, hopefully easier for us to learn from.Teaching on selections from 2 Chronicles 15-20.

Commencement season is upon us. I think I’ve found a commencement speech in the book of 2 Chronicles. The question is, how motivational was the speech?

Thought the last two Joel message were a little too heavy and dark? It does come with the prophetic territory. But this message tries to look at the Day of the Lord as mentioned in Joel not only as a terrible day, but also a great day. It all depends on your perspective and your position on that day.

In our last podcast, we looked Joel chapter 1 and a little into the chapter two. Tragedy struck the people and the natural and right response is to turn our attention to God. In this message we take it one step further. We look God's response when people not only give their attention but their hearts and lives in his care.

At some point in your life, you will or have faced something tragic. How are you suppose to deal with that? We look at Joel chapters 1-2 to find the answer.

What does it really mean to "own" you faith? What would it look like if someone truly believed what they said they believed in? We get a good picture and example in the early days of the church in the book of Acts and the disciples and apostles shared about the Resurrection of Christ. Question is, do you want to go deeper?

Have you ever been to a parade? Chance are, you have. They are pretty cross-cultural and have many different reasons for parading. But one particular Parade in the bible had a deep purpose behind it. This message not only looks at the story of Palm Sunday, but the prophecy behind it.

What would you be willing to die for? Your best friend? Your family? Your Country? Your favorite sports team? Ok...maybe not that last one.But would you be will to lose your life for something you knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, was a lie.In this last message, we will example the witness reports of the resurrection as found in Luke 24, talk about the mortal fate of many of the disciples, and as the question that's the title of this podcast.

Jesus was the spotless lamb, but he was found guilty and executed for his crime. What was it?Next week concludes our series with Luke 24.

Luke 22 and a look where the Seder tradition and the Last Supper overlaps. Jesus uses sacred elements from the Passover Meal to illustrate what he will do for all mankind.

Luke 21 Jesus gives his followers a some heavenly insight to what really matters in life.

Special guest speaker, Wisconsin D.S. Andy Albright brings a message from 1 Kings 19.

Think back to the last time someone pulled a trick question on you, trying to get you to agree to something you didn't believe or at the very least, haven't given deeper consideration. Jesus could have brushed off trick questions. But instead he turned trick questions into opportunities.

Jesus took on challenges that were intended to make him look bad or unknowledgeable and turned them back around on his challengers. Luke 20:1-19

A tax collector getting special attention and treatment from a famous person. A ruler sentencing to death his enemies that disagree with him being their ruler. And a financial audit.I know, riveting! But Luke 19:1-44 is a penultimate selection of scripture, culminating in a ironic parade welcoming in a King, who the crowd would later reject.