Hometown Church Podcast

Let's take a look at the character of Joshua Son of Nun from the Bible and how he and his story foreshadow the gospel.Contact us at [email protected]

Jim Palo joins to talk about the Men's Game Feed and how God has used his cancer diagnosis to change his perspective and open doors for the Gospel.Contact us at [email protected]

This week, we set out to answer all your questions about baptism wrapping up our Worship Proclaim Baptize series.00:00 Introduction3:00 Why is baptism important?11:27 What are the basic requirements to get baptized?15:19 Does baptism save you?20:12 What about the verses that imply baptism saves?32:36 Why do some churches practice infant baptism?46:21 Is there an age when a child can make the decision to get baptized?52:25 Is there a difference between a christening and baptism?53:09 Mode of baptism: Immersion, sprinkling, pouring55:50 Can we change the mode of baptism for special circumstances?57:47 Can someone get re-baptized?58:07 Should I get re-baptized if I was baptized as an infant?59:46 Should I get re-baptized if I didn’t understand the gospel in my first baptism?01:02:51 Should I get re-baptized if I wandered from my faith?01:05:46 Who is allowed to perform baptisms?01:08:02 Can I get baptized privately?01:11:21 What is baptism for the dead? Should we practice it?01:15:50 Final ThoughtsContact us at [email protected]

This week we explore the practice of baptism through the Scriptures and who it connects back to the Old Testament to reveal its true meaning.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we take a look at how John Jesus and the Apostles carried on the message from the Old Testament and fulfilled the story it began.Contact us at [email protected]

As we continue to look at our new Church vision, Worship Proclaim Baptize, and how these words were used throughout the Bible, we ask the question, how was the gospel proclaimed in the Old Testament?Contact us at [email protected]

As continue to unpack our new church Vision, we take a look at what changed in regards to Worship from the Old Testament to the New Testament.Contact us at [email protected]

Worship Proclaim Baptize. This is our new church vision for how we plan to carry out the mission to make healthy disciples who passionately love Jesus and authentically love people. Join us as we explore what each of these words mean through the Old and New Testament.Contact us at [email protected]

As we reach the end of our 40 Days of Transformation, hear from a variety of Hometown Church pastors and leaders as they share how they've integrated their faith into their everyday lives.Contact us at [email protected]

As we continue our 40 Days of Transformation, hear from Hometown pastors and leaders as they share their experiences going from being disciples to making disciples.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue our 40 Days of Transformation by hearing stories and reflections of shifting focus from ourselves to others.Contact us at [email protected]

Here from a variety of Hometown pastors and leaders as they share reflects and stories about going from knowledge to obedience during our 40 Days of Transformation.Contact us at [email protected]

Members of Hometown Church share their thoughts and reflections from Week 2 of our 40 Days of Transformation series.Contact us at [email protected]

Hear from a variety of Hometown Church pastors, leaders and attendees as we reflect on the first week of our 40 Days of Transformation.Contact us at [email protected]

You might have a few lingering questions about generosity, tithing and how we practically decide how much to give and where to give our money to. We asked the pastors of Hometown to share all the lingering questions that they have received after our Thanks and Giving series and attempted to answer them in this week's podcast.Contact us at [email protected]

Pastor Casey Flynn joins to discuss the importance of a healthy prayer life, his journey of renewing his own prayer life and how to renew your own.Contact us at [email protected]

This week Oleh Korol from Steiger Ukraine joins the podcast to share an update on the missionary efforts in Ukraine, how the war has affected their ministry and the importance of continuing to share the gospel. Contact us at [email protected]

Bryan Haville joins the podcast to discuss his role as deacon and how we can rethink what worship is and how that impacts the way we worship on Sundays. Contact us at [email protected]

Pastor Spencer Bernard joins the podcast to discuss his role as the Lead Teaching Pastor and overseer of the Sunday Service Experience at Hometown. Is the Sunday service for the visitor or the member? How do you go about putting together a sermon? Should we be preaching expository or topical style?Contact us at [email protected]

Pastors Deacon Ales and Jim Bosholm join the podcast to discuss the importance and challenges of running a successful kids ministry, their roles in it and why it is one of our Divine Focus ministries at Hometown. Contact us at [email protected]

Tom McManus joins the podcast to discuss the importance of teen ministry at Hometown, his new role as deacon and how we go about discipling our youth. Contact us at [email protected]

Pastor Kitt Guerrier joins to talk about his new role overseeing leadership development at Hometown, why this is something so important to us and what the fundamentals of good leadership is.Contact us at [email protected]

Pastors Jeff Groen and Mike Langlois join the podcast to talk about one area of our Divine Focus as a church: Small Groups. Over the last few years, we have narrowed down our church's focus into 5 specific ministries to become more effective in carrying out our mission to make healthy disciples who passionately love Jesus and authentically love people. Pastors Jeff and Mike oversee one of those five; small groups. They join to share more about their role, the importance of small groups and where we hope to go in the future. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we break down the final chapter of Colossians and look back on the message of Paul's letter as a whole.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue our journey through the Letter of Colossians. Paul begins to move away from the behaviors and attitudes that we need to avoid and into the behaviors and attitudes we must adopt. How do we live out the new nature in Christ? How do we express that new nature? How does that new nature affect our relationships?Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue into chapter 3 of the Letter to the Colossians as Paul begins to describe what the transformed life of a Christian should look like beginning with putting our old life to death.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue our journey through the Letter of Colossians unpacking Paul's warning to beware of false teachings. Contact us at [email protected]

We continue our journey through the letter of Colossians discussing the suffering of Paul and the mystery of the gospel. What does it mean for Paul to “complete in his flesh what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for his body?”Contact us at [email protected]

As we continue our study through the book of Colossians, we unpack Paul's poetic description of the identity and supremacy of Christ and what that means for us today.Understanding Eternal Security:https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/5ebae0906778cb4708ca1cc0/63c2b44c6a006244a70e3b35_Eternal%20Security%20A.pdfContact us at [email protected]

We continue our study through the Book of Colossians breaking down Paul's intercessory prayer for the church in Colosse in Col 1:9-14 including what it means to discern God's will, what fruit we are looking for, why endurance and gratitude matter and the theme of redemption and rescue. Contact us at [email protected]

Today, we are starting a new series going through the letter of Colossians. This last Sunday as a church we began a new sermon series called Colossians: A Blueprint for Faith that Lasts where we will be going through the letter of Colossians over the next 8 weeks learning about how to build a foundation on the gospel that sets us up for a life of faith that endures. And so, what we are going to do on this podcast is go through the letter alongside the sermon series from a more Bible study approach. There is a lot of information that we just can’t cover on in a 30-minute sermon, and so we will be using this podcast to go more in-depth. There is so much that we can learn from Paul and what he was communicating to this church that speaks to us here and now and so we are going to go through this letter slowly, thoughtfully and open to hearing whatever the Lord has to say.Contact us at [email protected]

ColossiansA BLUEPRINT FOR FAITH THAT LASTSA lot of people start strong in their faith—but not everyone finishes well. What makes the difference? In the book of Colossians, Paul gives us a blueprint for building a spiritual life that’s rooted in truth, fueled by grace, and centered on Christ.This 8-week series is for anyone who’s started walking with Jesus and wants to keep growing stronger. We’ll learn how to stay grounded when life shakes us, pray with purpose, let go of old habits, and live a faith that shows up in our relationships and multiplies through our influence.Because your faith wasn’t meant to be short-term; It was built to last.August 3: "Foundation First," Pastor Deacon Ales live at Hometown-Bloomington; on video at Hometowns-New Hope & Lakeville.August 10: "What to Ask God For," Pastor Brent Knox live at Hometown-Lakeville; on video at Hometowns-Bloomington & New Hope.August 17: "Know Who You’re Built On," Pastor Spencer Bernard live at Hometown-New Hope; on video at Hometowns-Bloomington & Lakeville.August 24: "Built Strong, Rooted Deep," Pastor Joel Fredricks live at Hometown-Bloomington; on video at Hometowns-Lakeville & New Hope.August 31: "Don’t Build on the Wrong Stuff," Pastor Spencer Bernard live at Hometown-Lakeville; on video at Hometowns-Bloomington & New Hope.September 7: "Tear Down the Old, Build Up the New," Pastor Kitt Guerrier live at Hometown-New Hope on video at Hometowns-Lakeville & Bloomington.September 14: "Character That Endures," Pastor Spencer Bernard live at Hometown-Bloomington; on video at Hometowns-Lakeville & New Hope.September 21: "Built to Multiply," Pastor Deacon Ales live at Hometown-Lakeville; on video at Hometowns-Bloomington & New Hope.Contact us at [email protected]

Today we are continuing our look ahead to MTOC which is our annual local mission trip that we do as a church. And in preparation for that we wanted to have a few conversations centered around outreach and sharing our faith. And so joining us for this  to help us get ready for this is Pastor Rob. Today will be the second in a two part conversation where we first looked at 10 lies that people believe that prevent them from sharing their faith which was last week’s episode. This week we will go practical and discuss how to go about sharing your faith and the methods we have used as a church.Contact us at [email protected]

Today we are continuing our look ahead to MTOC which is our annual local mission trip that we do as a church. And in preparation for that we wanted to have a few conversations centered around outreach and sharing our faith. And so joining us for the next couple of weeks to help us get ready for this is Pastor Rob. Today will be the first in  a two part conversation where we first look at 10 lies that people believe that prevent them from sharing their faith. Contact us at [email protected]

About two months ago, we sent a team to Milan, Italy to work alongside our mission partners at Le Refugio church led by Pastor Frank Apisa and his wife Pam as well as missionaries, Justin and Amanda, who moved to Milan several years ago to help build the church and bring the gospel to the people of Italy. This week, we have assembled all 9 members from that trip to share some reflections and lessons learned from our time in Italy. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 16. Last week, we read about the death of Jesus, his trial before Pilate, the suffering he endured on the cross and his final moments as he offered up his life as a sacrifice for our sins. This week we reach the good news and we finish the gospel of Mark and discuss the strange ending to the story.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 15. Last week, we read about Jesus’ final moments before being arrested as he taught his disciplines about the meaning of his death through the symbolism of Passover, prayed in the garden in agony, was betrayed and abandoned by his disciples and eventual arrested and handed over to the Jewish council for an unjust trial. This week reach the hardest moments of Jesus’ life as he is beaten mocked and crucified.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with chapter 14 of the Gospel of Mark. As Jesus reaches the final hours of his life, he's has an interaction with a woman who wants to give him a generous gift, he teaches his disciples about the meaning of his death through the symbolism of the passover meal and is betrayed and abandoned by all of his disciples as he is arrested and taken before the Jewish council.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 13. We find ourselves right in the middle of Holy week. Jesus has made his way to Jerusalem for the Passover and has been spending the days leading up to the feast speaking in the temple being challenged by Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians and an many others trying to get him to slip up so that they can arrest him. Now as he and his disciples make their way out of the city, Jesus takes the opportunity in private to reveal to his followers things that are yet to come. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 12. Jesus has made his way to Jerusalem for the big showdown with the those in positions of authority. And last week he made his presence felt as he rode into town on the back of a donkey fulfilling prophecy, cleared out the temple courts and challenged the Pharisees as they tried to test him on his authority. This week Jesus continues to be tested in a variety of ways as he takes on challenges from every direction during the Passover week.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 11. And here we reach the beginning of the end of the story as Jesus and his disciples reach Jerusalem. The first 7 chapters we focus on Jesus and his ministry in the region of Galilee as he proclaimed the good news of the Kingdom of God slowly revealing himself as the Messiah along the way. Then in chapters 8 through 10 we transitioned as Jesus began his journey south towards Jerusalem and began to unpack what that meant, what his mission truly was and what it means to follow him. Now pivot again as Jesus makes his triumphant entry into Jerusalem for the Passover week ready to confront the religious, political and most importantly spiritual powers of the world. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 10. For the last couple chapters, Jesus has been traveling with his disciples on their way to Jerusalem for the Passover and ultimately for the big confrontation with the powers that will culminate in his death as he unpacks for his followers what it means for him to be the Messiah. Last week we covered the transfiguration, a story about Jesus healing a demon-possessed boy and a number of teachings from Jesus about the nature of the upside-down value system of the Kingdom. This week Jesus takes his last few steps before his triumphant entry into Jerusalem as he confronts more misconceptions about him and his kingdom from the Pharisees, a rich man, and his followers. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 9. Last week we hit a major transition moment in the story as Jesus took his ministry which had been primarily focused on the region of Galilee and began make his way south towards Jerusalem. The focus had been really on who Jesus is and what he was doing and how people were responding to him, but as we transition in the story, so does our focus go from who he is to what it means for him to be the Messiah. This week Jesus pulls back the curtain further to his disciples on who he is and what it means to follow him. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 8. To this point, Jesus has been traveling around the region of Galilee performing miracles, casting out demons, upsetting the status quo and teaching about the kingdom of God. Last week we read stories of Jesus pushing the boundaries when it comes to religious traditions and expanding the kingdom outside the bounds of the people of Israel. This week we get our first big narrative shift in the story as Jesus takes his ministry that has been focused on the region of Galilee and begins his journey south towards Jerusalem, but first we get a little déjà vu with a story that is eerily similar to one we read just two weeks ago.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 7. To this point, Jesus has been traveling around the region of Galilee performing miracles, casting out demons, upsetting the status quo and teaching about the kingdom of God. Last week we read about Jesus being rejected in his hometown, sending out the 12 apostles, John the Baptist’s death, the feeding of the 5,000 and Jesus walking on water. This week we read stories of Jesus pushing the boundaries when it comes to religious traditions and expanding the kingdom outside the bounds of the people of Israel. Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 6. To this point, Jesus has been traveling around the region of Galilee performing miracles, casting out demons, upsetting the status quo and teaching about the kingdom of God. Last week we read a few stories of Jesus helping people who were in hopeless situations. He cast out a legion of demons from a man living among the tombs away from society, he healed a woman with a seemingly incurable condition that kept her isolated from her community for twelve years and finally he raised a little girl from the dead. This week we’ve got a loaded chapter with a few stories of Jesus experiencing resistance to his ministry, interacting with his disciples and performing one of his most famous miracles.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 5. To this point, Jesus has been traveling around the region of Galilee performing miracles, casting out demons, upsetting the status quo and teaching about the kingdom of God. Last week we unpacked a series of parables that Jesus taught and talked about why he spoke in parables and how we can interpret them. We left off with Jesus calming the storm and revealing himself to be the One who commands even the weather. This week, we read a couple of well-known stories of Jesus sending demons into a herd of pigs and healing a bleeding woman and dying girl.Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 4. Jesus is full steam ahead on his mission to bring the good news of the Kingdom of God to the people of Israel traveling all over the region of Galilee met with mixed reactions and creating controversy just about everywhere he goes. Last week we talked about healing on the Sabbath, how he brought people together both in opposition to him and against him, the appointing of the 12 apostles and how Jesus responded to those who blatantly rejected him in the face of indisputable evidence. This week we read about how Jesus begins to teach his followers about what it really means to follow him and reveals more of his identity.  Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 3. Jesus is full steam ahead on his mission to bring the good news of the Kingdom of God to the people of Israel traveling all over the region of Galilee met with mixed reactions and creating controversy just about everywhere he goes. Last week we talked about Jesus as the Son of Man with the authority to forgive sins and what it means for him to be Lord of the Sabbath as well as how he viewed the religious practices of the day and who he spent his time with versus who he came into conflict with. This week we read about how Jesus continues to amass a following while being met with skepticism.  Contact us at [email protected]

This week we continue with Mark Chapter 2 and we pick up right where we left off. Jesus has begun his ministry bringing the good news of the kingdom of God to the people of Israel in the region of Galilee healing the sick and casting out demons along the way. To this point, he has tried to keep his ministry under wraps, but word has spread quickly, and many are gathering to see what this new young Rabbi is all about. He’s met with mixed reactions as some support him and others attack him. We pick up with Jesus returning to the city Capernaum. Contact us at [email protected]