ReCreate Church’s Podcast

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, August 14, 2022

Church People and Jesus People: Not the Same Thing!

Today, Pastor Michael is in his series on Mark and Jesus is in Capernaum, going to a synagogue on the Sabbath.  Entering, Jesus was offered the chance to preach and was on a pretty good roll when one person in the crowd interrupted the service.

This guy jumps up and wouldn’t you know it?  He has a demon in him, not too cool, but he reacted to Jesus’ teaching, asking what Jesus was doing there and what he was wanting to do to the people.   But Jesus doesn’t break a sweat and tells the demon, it’s about time you exited that man’s body.  To which the demon obeyed because, the real teaching note here is, because of Jesus’ authority.  (CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) Jesus teaches and heals with one and the same authority.

Advice from Michael on how to avoid evil spirits: First, if you continually invite the devil to visit, he might try to move in!  Second, a saved person cannot be possessed by an evil spirit.  If you have the Holy Spirit in you, there’s only room for one!

Verses can be found today in Mark 1: 21-28.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, August 7, 2022

Is Following Jesus Worth the Cost?

Today, Pastor Michael is discussing Seward’s Folly, the purchase of Alaska coordinated by William Seward.  Many felt it wasn’t worth the cost, but William Seward felt it would be an asset for America.  Today only a few states have more millionaires per capita than Alaska, a treasure trove of natural resources.

Many felt it was not worth the cost.

The cost of following Jesus.  Be sure, there is a cost to follow Jesus. Is following Jesus worth the cost?

In Mark, we find John is in prison.  John is in prison for doing what was ‘right’.  King Herod would send for John to talk spiritual things, however he got upset with John when Herod confided to John that he had stolen his brother’s wife.  And John confronted him about that.  So what did Herod do?  He put John in prison.  So John paid a price for following Jesus.  Yet he never complained about that.  John understood the story wasn’t about him.  He sent a messenger to Jesus and wondered, did he do the right thing?  He became imprisoned over it.  The messenger told John of the miracles that Jesus was performing and lives were being changed by the Gospel.

John knew then he had made the right decision. 

Perhaps it’s time for us to step out of the way and let someone else to shine.  Or maybe YOU step up and prepare for the ministry God has prepared you for.  We are afraid to reach for the things God has set aside for us.  

The cost can be high but so worth it!

Verses can be found today in Mark: 1: 14-20.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, July 31, 2022

More Mark.

Today, Pastor Michael is starting round two of his series on the book of Mark. Jesus is in the wilderness, battling Satan, for 40 days.  Battling wild beasts with the angels supporting Him, in an area that is arid, rocky, open land.  And the wilderness is also a metaphor for places we are at in our life when the devil is just ‘picking’ on us, a place we’re alone at, a place with little hope.  

There are purposes for trials in our life that we do not understand.  Jesus wasn’t sent out to confront Jesus as a confrontation; it was to bring purpose to a trial.  A greater understanding, a greater faith can be found in our trials, as Jesus was there for 40 days, doing just that.  A period of testing, preparation and preparing Jesus for his purpose in the world.

We all have our ‘wildernesses’.  Just because God has allowed something in your life doesn’t mean He has planned on a hardship for you or a punishment for you.  God always has a purpose, even if we cannot see it at the time.  He will always bring purpose out of our pain!

(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) Immediately after the baptism, the Spirit literally “drove” Jesus out into the wilderness (1:12). The same Spirit who descended on Jesus at the baptism has an appointment for him with God’s adversary to determine whether Jesus will use his divine Sonship for his own advantage or in obedience to God’s saving purpose for the world. Jesus’s forty-day trial in the wilderness (1:13) may reflect God’s testing of Israel in the wilderness for forty years (Dt 8:2). The wilderness plays an important role in the OT, not only in the wilderness wandering after the exodus, but also in the prophets, as a place of Israel’s refreshment with God and refinement for obedience to his call.

Verses can be found today in Mark 1: 12-13.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, July 24, 2022

A New Series on the Book of Mark.

Today, Pastor Michael is starting a series on the Book of Mark.  A series of fast past action stories, Mark is the ‘good stuff’ in one book, even being the shortest of the Gospels. 

In these first two verses of Mark, the Old Testament is being quoted (Malachi and Isaiah, respectively) and it’s stating someone is going to come as an announcer for Jesus.  And that someone is John, as in John the Baptist.  

So, if this book’s about Jesus, why start with John?  In ancient times, when someone important was traveling, they sent an ambassador to ensure the roads were in good condition and to prepare the destination for their arrival.  Therefore, John was the herald for Jesus in these references.

John himself is an interesting character; a straight-up ‘caveman’ kinda guy!  Camelhair tunic, no haircuts, eating honey and locusts…the whole nine yards!

Jesus choosing John as his forerunner tells us a lot about Jesus and how he chooses those that are exactly right for the job.  Mark doesn’t give us a lot of background information on Jesus except that he came from Nazareth.  Mark first distributed this book amongst Romans.  The Romans were action-oriented; not talkers.  In Roman culture people could rise from obscurity to greatness.  That’s a huge reason this Gospel is so ‘action-oriented’.

Jesus was being baptized by John as an act of leadership.  To show an example of repentance.  Therefore John baptized Jesus in the Jordan river to show his followers he would submit to the Lord and it was a powerful symbol.  What could the baptism of Jesus foreshadow as a future event?

The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus was the foreshadow of His baptism. 

So after He was baptized a voice came from heaven and a dove floated down from heaven.  The voice that was heard was not for Jesus’ benefit; it was for the others that were there and listening.  The Lord was exclaiming that Jesus was His son, the son of God.

Verses can be found today in Mark 1: 1-11.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, July 17, 2022

The Gospel of Second Chances.

Today, Pastor Michael is at the beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Here, Christ means ‘the anointed one’, the Savior sent from God in a special role as The Savior.  

Mark is the Second Chance gospel writer.  Mark was taken under the wing of Simon Peter and they bonded.  Mark became his assistant, Peter considered Mark a son.  Mark’s book is essentially the memoirs of Peter!  So why the ‘Second Chance' moniker?

We first learn of Mark when Paul and Barnabas are planning their first missionary trip and Barnabas had suggested that his nephew, Mark, come along as a helper. But early into this  mission Mark bails out and returns home to Jerusalem.  So when they have a second mission journey, guess what?  Paul choses Silas as his partner but Barnabas chooses Mark, essentially giving him a second chance.   

We all have a bit of Mark in us; we all mess up, we all make mistakes.  Second chances are a way of redeeming ourselves and helping others. 

(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) 1:1. The first verse of Mark summarizes the content of the Gospel. “The beginning” recalls the opening words of Genesis, implying that in the gospel of Jesus Christ a new creation is at hand. “Beginning” should probably be understood as the first in terms of “source” or “essence.” Mark’s Gospel thus intends to set forth the essence of God’s redemptive work in Jesus Christ. The word “gospel,” or “good news” (cf. 1 Sm 31:9; 2 Sm 1:20; 1 Ch 10:9), means the story of salvation in Jesus. For Mark, the advent of Jesus is “good news” because it fulfills God’s promise of release from sin and oppression and the proclamation of peace foretold by the prophet Isaiah (52:7; 61:1–3).

Verses can be found today in Mark 1: 1, forward.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, July 10, 2022

A Bible Study in a Chariot!

Today, Pastor Michael is talking about being in the right place at the right time for others.  And that’s not just for professional preachers; it means all of us.  Today Michael is talking about Phillip and he wasn’t a preacher; he was a servant leader in a church in Jerusalem.  And the story is pretty fascinating!

Suddenly an angel appears to Phillip and tells Phillip to go down the road to Egypt.  Phillip did not know it at the time but he was about to be a part of the best recorded act of baptism in the Bible. 

The place where the Lord sent Phillip was the middle of nowhere!  While heading out to his destination, a man in a chariot appears.  He was just a man from Ethiopia, but in ancient times, Ethiopia was a powerful and influential country.  This man is the royal treasurer and a eunuch.  

He was going to Jerusalem on a religious pilgrimage and was returning to Ethiopia.  And Phillip is right on the side of the road when the Holy Spirit nudges Phillip to go and talk with this important official on the chariot.

The guy from Ethiopia was reading a bible passage and wanted some understanding of a passage about the one being led like a sheep to a slaughter, the one who had clearly given himself to others.

Phillip jumps up into the chariot and they start their little bible study!

Phillip knew exactly why the Holy Spirit had been nudging him, right then and there!  Phillip explained all about Jesus and His life and resurrection.  He also told the Ethiopian about water baptism.

Right about that time, wouldn’t you know it…they found a body of water!  Whoa, there’s some water!  The Ethiopian wanted to know if he could be baptized!

Phillips reply was if he believed with all his heart you may.  The Ethiopian replied that he did believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God.  Belief has to come first!

Water baptism comes after spirit baptism. The message that water baptism communicate is that the Holy Spirit baptism has taken place.

Back to Phillip and the chariot guy….so both Phillip and the dude go down to the water and Phillip baptizes him…immerses him in the water.

The Ethiopian goes back home to Ethiopia and proclaims the gospel of Christ.  And it all started with a nudge and happy confluence of two being in the place that they should have been in.

Verses can be found today in Acts 8: 26-40. 

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, July 3, 2022

Who’s On The Throne?

Today, Pastor Michael is turning the reins over to Nick Dowdy.  Nick’s message is about "Who is sitting on the throne of your heart?”.  Does the Gospel you’ve chosen to believe put the Lord on the throne of your life or you on the throne?  

Today, Nick covers ideology and world view contribute to beliefs from childhood on.  At some point we make a decision on how religion fits or doesn’t fit into our worldview.  At some point you are making a decision on theology.  Theology can be Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, or other world religions and we make decisions, heavily influenced on what we grew up in.  Human nature choses things we are comfortable with, so this influences our theology and typically fits our core beliefs.  

When our ideology determine our theology, it corrupts our view on God. Another way to look at this is we shape God to fit in our box.  Christians these days seem to have a consumer mentality; picking which church we want to attend, typically a place we are comfortable in.  This is a double edged sword; we want to be loved and accepted (good) but we may not be at the right place to study the gospel (bad).

Is our worldview taking in the Scripture, entirely?   We have to guard that we are growing in Christ and that our worldview isn’t taking over our relationship with the Lord.  One cannot earn a spot at the Lord’s table; Jesus Christ has earned that spot for us.  

Jesus’ words should make us uncomfortable; we are called to security in our standing in the Lord but we are never called to comfort.  Comfort is the enemy of growth; we stop growing when we get comfortable.  So, are Jesus’ words challenging you?  They should!   

Verses can be found today in 2 Timothy 4: 3-4, Ephesians 2: 8-9 and 2: 11-14 and Matthew 10: 34-39 and Psalms 139: 23-24.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, June 26, 2022

More and More.

Today, Billy Huneycutt is filling in for Pastor Michael. More and more is a loose term that came from a bible study that Billy was in, in the past.  More and more may not always be good in human terms but in God’s terms it is!

 In human terms we can do vices ‘more and more’ yet when we trust in the Lord we receive his blessings, ‘more and more’.  We struggle with ‘our’ ways; we like ‘our’ ways.  But God has asked us to follow Him.  So, therein lies the struggle.

But even with sin, we cannot have so much sin that God cannot forgive.  Real freedom is in Christ as he does ‘more and more’ for us.

It’s about following God, wholeheartedly and not let distractions pull us down.  It’s all about ‘more and more’!

(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) The exhortation is that the Thessalonians “do this even more” (see 3:12 and 4:10)—that is, excel and be outstanding to an ever greater degree in that which they have learned and are doing.

A commonplace in ancient letters was to remind the reader of what he or she already knew. In the same way, the apostles remind the Thessalonians of the fundamental teaching that has been handed over to them, which is not only doctrinal but moral (4:2). The authority behind this teaching is that of “the Lord Jesus.”

Verses can be found today in 1 Thessalonians 4: 1-8, Romans 5: 1-2, 2 Corinthians 3: 15 and Romans 12: 1-2.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, June 19, 2022

Father’s Day!

Today, Pastor Michael is talking about Fathers and Father’s Day.  

What does a hero look like?  We all have our ideas of what they may look like, however not all heroes look like modern day super heroes from Hollywood and the comic books.  Real heroes can be First Responders, those that go into harm’s way.  The pandemic may have even altered our ideas of what a hero is: those that worked the front lines in the beginning of the pandemic and those working supermarkets and other places that allowed us to function, normally.

Today, Michael is looking at the Midianites and at harvest time they would raid Israel and take their crops and their livestock.  In those days, there were no kings, no police, essentially: nothing, except your own village.  And everyone was scared of the Midianites.  And this is where Gideon comes in.  This man of courage is hiding in a hole, in the ground!  Does not look like a man with courage!  This particular hole was a wine press, no less.  And he wasn’t down there to make wine but was threshing wheat.  Normally this would take place on a hilltop, where wind would blow away the chaff and the grain would fall down.  But he’s in a hole; why isn’t he on a hilltop?

He’s hiding!  He’s afraid the Midianites will see him and come to take his grain and likely, kill him.  He’s not as alone in that hole as he thinks he is.  Somebody was watching him in that hole!  An angel was watching.  The angel comes up to him and says that the Lord is with him.  Gideon feels that the angel totally has the wrong guy! 

(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) 6:11–24. Nonetheless, an angel of the Lord, who turns out to be the Lord himself (cf. 6:14), appears to Gideon. The Lord affirms to Gideon his presence and addresses him as a mighty warrior (6:11–12). But Gideon merely questions why, if the Lord is indeed present, Israel has not experienced the kind of miraculous deliverance known during the exodus (6:13). In response, the Lord commissions Gideon to save Israel out of Midian’s hand (6:14). But Gideon simply stresses his clan’s weakness and his own insignificance (6:15).

To counter Gideon’s protestation, the Lord reiterates his presence, but Gideon still demands a sign (6:16–18). Not until the angel disappears, after causing fire to flare from a rock to consume the offering Gideon brought, does Gideon realize he has been in the presence of the divine (6:19–22). Upon assurance from the Lord that he will not die even though he has seen the angel face to face, perhaps to commemorate the Lord’s declaration of peace (6:23) Gideon builds an altar to the Lord and names it “The LORD Is Peace” (6:24).

So Gideon sees, it was God and it He wasn’t kidding around.  He gives Gideon a task to tear down the altar to Baal and build a proper altar to the Lord.  Which he does.  And the community ain’t exactly happy about it, demanding his death (sure are quick to judge, aren’t they?).  Gideon is supported by his Father, Joash, who challenges Baal to contend for his own altar.  To add to the craziness, a messenger tells everyone that invaders are coming yet the people rally behind Gideon and the folks solidify into an army. He faces a fighting force, bigger than his own and defeats the Midianites and they never bothered Israel again.

That’s a lot to take in.  Gideon did the right thing.  Courage isn’t that you’re not afraid, it’s when you don’t let fear stop you from doing what’s right.

Verses can be found today in Judges 6: 12-32.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Recreate Church, Pastor Michael Shockley—Service, Sunday, June 12, 2022

Simon, Jesus and Forgiveness.

Today, Pastor Michael is looking at Simon, when he invited Jesus to dinner.  Simon was the established person of faith and Jesus is this new, up and coming Rabbi.  

Simon being pretty confident in his spiritual position wanted to see what Jesus was all about.  So, he and Jesus and others broke bread together and while Jesus and the others were eating, a woman barges into the room.  Definitely not invited!  Then it gets even stranger…

Simon knew this lady and this lady apparently didn’t have the best reputation in the hood.  One thing for sure, she was not invited and as the stunned onlookers watched, this lady approaches Jesus’ feet and she is crying, crying so profusely her tears are streaming.  She then touches his feet and takes down her hair and used her hair to clean the dust off of Jesus’ feet!

By today’s standards, that sounds weird enough, but it was equally as weird, if not even worse, in those days, in that culture.  And Jesus told Simon the story of the creditor and the two debtors, each of which was forgiven a debt by the creditor, one being a larger debt.  Jesus used this parable to teach Simon that the one that loved him the most was the one he forgave the most.  And Jesus used that story to show Simon that the lady, whom had just washed his feet, had done for him things Simon didn’t even do, even though he was an invited guest in Simon’s home.

(CSB Baker Illustrated Bible Study Notes) 7:44–50. Jesus then applies the parable to the treatment that he has received from Simon and the woman (7:44). Jesus does not criticize Simon for being inhospitable, for these courtesies were not necessarily an expected part of ordinary hospitality. Jesus’s point is not that Simon was rude but that the woman showed “much” love (7:47). One would greet “friends” by kissing them on the head, but the woman kissed Jesus on the feet (7:45). On a special occasion one might put inexpensive oil on a guest’s head, but the woman poured expensive perfume on Jesus’s feet (7:46).

The woman’s love for Jesus is the result of her forgiveness (7:47a). That love and gratitude flow from forgiveness is clearly the point of the parable (7:41–42), and the woman’s actions of love toward Jesus stem from her experience of a forgiveness that has already been received. In 7:48 Jesus simply confirms the forgiveness of the woman. Indeed, 7:50 clearly shows that it is faith that has saved the woman. In the application of the parable, the statement “the one who is forgiven little, loves little” (7:47b) applies to Simon and has an ironic twist. People who assume they are righteous will never experience much love for Jesus since they are so unaware of their sinfulness.

The biggest spiritual obstacle for most people is that they aren’t sinners, in their own eyes.  Only sinners get saved!

Verses can be found today in Luke 7: 36-50.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.