Crazy Love Podcast

Have you ever asked yourself, “What is beautiful in God’s eyes?” In today’s episode, Francis and Lisa share about some of their struggles and failures in marriage, the beauty of a gentle and lowly spirit, and an unashamed declaration of what God says about marriage.

For those of us that have been married for a few years, you may have discovered that some marriage issues have nothing to do with your marriage. In today’s teaching, Francis and Lisa Chan share their greatest hope and a key to marriage that’s far more valuable than better communication skills or parenting strategies – it’s seeing God for who He truly is.

When you worship the Lord, how easy is it for you to forget about everyone else in the room and express yourself with all your heart to God without feeling self-conscious? For a lot of us, that can be difficult. In today’s message, Francis describes the depth of love that God has for His children and calls us to a joy that should blow our minds as we go and serve the Lord with gladness.

Do we really believe that God can do anything? Or do we make sure our strategies and resources are lined up just in case we need to fall back on them? In today’s message, Francis takes us through stories about the kings of Israel and Judah, and the power of the church in Acts chapter 2, to confront our hearts with a weighty question: Do we really believe that God will strongly support and do what only He can do through the one who fully trusts in Him?

In the New Testament, Jesus is referred to as “Lord” over 700 times. But even though that term is used so frequently in scripture, do we truly understand the impact of that name? In today’s episode, Francis explains the foundational reality of what it means for Jesus to truly be our Lord – and why we should want Him to be our King.

Have you ever noticed how empty the messages of the world are? In contrast, as God’s ambassadors, we are called to fill the earth with His eternal message of life and hope. In this second half of Francis and David Platt’s shared session at Biola’s 2023 Missions Conference, Francis and David build on the theme of unity by exhorting us towards what should unify believers: an unwavering, unashamed commitment to the Word upheld by God’s people since ancient times, spoken by God Himself.

There is a direct, crucial connection between unity in the Body of Christ and the spread of the Gospel in the world. In this first part of a shared session at Biola’s yearly Missions Conference, Francis teams up with David Platt to unpack the mind-blowing invitation of God from the Gospel of John: to enter the oneness Jesus shares with the Father, and then share that unity with one another, so that the world may believe.

When you pray, how do you address God? Do you really take the time to let who He is to you sink into the core of your being? In today’s episode, Francis walks us through meditating on what it means to really approach God as our Creator, our Father, and our Bridegroom. In this message, there will be a few times when Francis stops to give time to pray and address God as who He is. We encourage you to pause the episode at those points and take the time to really go before the Lord and be blown away by who He is to you.

Many Christians put a high priority on the church believing and teaching the Word of God – but can we really claim to be standing for the truth without confronting sin? In this message from his time at Cornerstone Church, Francis calls believers to both hold up and live out the truth of God’s Word and lovingly stand for the purity of the Body of Christ.

Does it ever seem like the older you get, the less faith you have? We start our walk with the Lord with such a childlike excitement, but it sadly can change over time. In this week’s message, Francis challenges us to believe in a God that – even today – reveals Himself to His creation. We pray that this message stirs your faith and builds an expectation of the supernatural.

Welcome to the Crazy Love Podcast. As each day passes, it can feel like time is slipping away faster than ever before. It's easy to get caught up in the busyness of life and lose sight of what’s most important. None of us know how much time we have left. In this week's episode, Francis brings us through several parables and reminds us that there is no better time than now to start walking with Jesus. We hope this episode will inspire and encourage you, giving you a renewed understanding of the incredible worth of Jesus.

You probably know that God loves you – but do you really, deeply believe that He loves you? In this teaching, Francis opens up about a way that his perspective on God’s love often gets twisted, and invites us to trust in the Love that is so infinitely beyond our own.

In all of human relationships, marriage is the one expression that God wants to be a picture of Christ and the Church. That’s a high calling! In today’s episode, Francis and Lisa Chan share some of the lessons that they've learned about their marriage at the Antioch Marriage Conference. We pray that this message encourages you and helps you to see your marriage through the lens of the mission and Kingdom of God.

When we focus on only one aspect of who God is, we get dangerously close to heresy by having a lopsided view of Him. In today’s episode, Francis highlights an attribute of God he feels he’s neglected his whole life, and invites us to join him in drawing near to an incredible reality: God’s throne of grace.

What’s the treasure in your life that you can’t stop talking about? In today’s episode, Francis shares about one of his greatest treasures – the fear of the Lord – and walks us slowly, meditatively through Hebrews 12 towards a greater reverence and awe of the God we worship.

When you read scripture, it doesn’t take long to come across ideas that seem to contradict our natural logic - - things like God’s power being perfected in our weakness or the least will be the greatest in the kingdom of God. In today’s teaching, Francis unpacks Scripture’s counter-cultural wisdom and why it’s better to be at the house of mourning than at the best party.

If I asked you to name a miracle that’s recorded in Scripture, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? The blind receiving sight, or the dead to life? In today's episode, Francis calls the church to seek God for a miracle only He can give: godly sorrow. We encourage you to listen in as Francis directs our hearts towards repentance, weeping over what grieves the Lord, and being the kind of "progressive" church that He desires.

When gathering together for worship, it’s good to minister to other people. Scripture commands us to look after the needs of those in the Body, but how often do we focus on ministering to the Lord? In today’s episode, Francis points us back to making what the Lord desires our highest priority: preparing ourselves for the moment we see His face, unashamedly declaring his truth, and ministering to Him with true worship.

The New Year is well underway, and many of us have set goals or made resolutions for things that we want to see happen in 2023. But, as Francis teaches in today’s episode, the New Year is a wonderful time to take a step back from your life and ask yourself: “Am I living with a reverence for God?” “Am I willing to obey whatever He’s speaking to me this year through His Word?” Like Paul instructed in the book of Philippians, we pray that this teaching encourages you to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

In this, the final episode of the One Table Series, the Chans and Vitales share from personal experience of the lessons learned from pursuing unity in their own lives. How do you walk through the process of reconciliation when you’re the one who’s been hurt? Is repentance something that we just have to do when we’ve sinned, or is it a gift that God gives us to draw closer to Him and others?

In discussions about unity, it’s easy to get so caught up with side issues that we miss the very center of it all: Jesus, Himself. Today, as we continue the One Table series, Francis, Lisa, Vince, and Jo open their hearts to talk about who Jesus is to each of them, what they love about Him, and what it means for our unity when we move “beyond” Jesus to focus on other things.

Scripture clearly commands believers to pursue unity with one another - but what about those passages where it commands us not to associate with certain people? How do we discern if a potential point of division is a core doctrine or a disputable matter? Is it possible that our unity isn’t hindered by our differences, but actually requires them? Listen to Part 4 of the “One Table” series on the Crazy Love Podcast.

Join us as we continue with Part 3 of our “One Table” series where Francis and Lisa Chan along with apologists Vince and Jo Vitale unpack the topic of unity within the church. In today’s episode, Francis shares about his recent trip to Israel, the impact it made in his view of scripture, the beauty of what God is doing uniting both Jewish and Palestinian believers, and what it means to live with a longing to see the Lord’s return.

In the book of First Corinthians, Paul tells the church, “If anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he should know.” (8:2) In other words, if we think we know it all, we really don’t know anything. So how do you know whether what you believe is true? Is it because you discovered it yourself and trust your own opinion? Or is there a better way? Francis and Lisa Chan unpack these questions with Vince and Jo Vitale in today’s episode – the second discussion in our “One Table” series.

Join Francis and Lisa Chan for a series of honest conversations with Vince and Jo Vitale about a seemingly impossible dream: unity in the Church. In this episode, the Chans and Vitales probe into some foundational questions around pursuing unity: How can we ask honest questions about what we or others believe, despite our fears of being judged by others or facing our own doubts? How can we walk in constant humility to learn from those different from us without compromising the essentials? Is it naive to hope that the Church could ever be united again around one table?

We are living in a time like no other in the history of the Church. In this message given at Antioch's World Mandate conference, Francis Chan shares his excitement over the things that God is doing in the earth, and exhorts this generation to leave aside the free-thinking of our modern world and anchor itself in the ancient truth of God that unites all believers.

In the Old Testament, whenever the temple of God was mentioned, reverence, fear, and honor quickly followed. There was a great understanding that in the Temple, in the Holy of Holies dwelt the very real presence of God. Now, imagine you were there. How would you respond? In this week’s episode, Francis Chan, not only reminds of this truth but points us to 1 Corinthians 3 to reveal a truth about us, the body of Christ, that is often overlooked.

It is said that the average person speaks approximately 7000 words a day. Has it ever crossed your mind that if this is true for you, what percentage of those words were used for the purpose that God designed? In this week’s episode, Francis Chan, brings us through scripture to remind us of God’s heart for our words and the purpose for them.

When Jesus established the Church in the New Testament, He created it to be unstoppable, powerful, beautiful, and different from the rest of the world. But for many, Sundays have become more religion and tradition than a place of worship. When you gather with your local church, what do you look for? Is it Jesus? In this week’s episode, Francis Chan encourages our hearts to seek Christ, that He would be our lifeline, the center of church and the center of our lives.

In the book of Ephesians, the Apostle Paul prays that the church would be strengthened in the inner being, that God would do a miracle in their heart that would manifest itself in holiness and righteousness. In this week's episode, Francis Chan brings us through Scripture and reminds us how beautiful it is to know God and be known by Him.

One of the more beautiful Truths about God and man is that the Father loves us deeply, but the reality is, many people live as if this Truth wasn’t…true. In this weeks episode Francis Chan reminds us how deep the Father truly loves us and how this perfect love should be reflected in our gatherings as the Church.

When you read the story of the early believers in the book of Acts, what goes through your mind? The way they live amongst each other, the way they love one another, it seems beautiful but for many people, their experience of the Church looks like quite the opposite. In this week’s episode, Francis Chan takes through the story of the early Church in Acts 4 and encourages us to not only pursue living like the biblical church but to believe the Holy Spirit can do in us what He did in them.

For a lot of people, each day looks exactly the same. We wake up, we get dressed, we commute to work, we work, we go home, we sleep, and then it repeats all over again. When we live like that, it gets hard to see outside of our little bubble, and it’s quite easy to miss what God is doing everywhere else in the world. In this week’s episode, Francis Chan takes us to 1 Timothy 3 and shows us that there is a spiritual reality happening right now and if we pay attention, we’ll find our encouragement and bravery in the cross of Christ.

It’s not difficult to live a life in pursuit of our own dreams and ambitions and while those things aren’t bad in itself, when you consider the reality of who God is, it’s hard to know Him and walk away unchanged. In this weeks episode Francis Chan brings us to Ephesians 3:14-18 and reminds us to search our hearts and understand what it means to be filled with the fullness of God according to all the riches of His glory.

As human beings, it’s oftentimes much easier to talk about other people’s sin than it is to evaluate ourselves and assess our own lives in light of righteousness and holiness. In this week’s classic episode, Francis Chan reminds us to not flirt with disaster but to be diligent at taking every thought captive, addressing any sin, and bringing it to the cross.

When Jesus ascended into Heaven after His resurrection, He promised we would never be alone but rather, He would send His Comforter the Holy Spirit to indwell every Believer. In this week’s episode Francis Chan brings us back to 2 Peter and reminds us what it means to be led by the Holy Spirit in every area of our life.

If you took an assessment of your life - what would you say you work hardest at? For some, it’s your job or career, or raising your kids. Some would say its ministering to people, and while all these areas are important, the greatest thing you can do in your life is pursue Christ and His character. In this classic teaching, Francis Chan takes us to 2 Peter chapter 1 and reminds us what God thinks about holiness and character.

What does it mean to call Jesus your “Lord?” And what impact should that have on our lives? In this week’s episode Francis Chan reminds us of the reality of God and explains how the Holy God of the Universe desires us and loves us but is also our authority.

In a hyper-individualistic society, its easy to find answers in isolation and develop definitions for scriptural truths on our own. But have you ever thought about how you know what you know and whether it’s correct? In this week’s episode Francis Chan reminds us of humility in the church and how submission to authority is vital for unity in the body of Christ.

In this day and age, experts believe that there is estimated to be more than 200 Christian denominations in the U.S. and a staggering 45,000 globally. As astonishing as that number is, is this what Jesus had in mind when He established the Church? In part 1 of this week’s episode, Francis Chan reminds us of the power and weight of what it means to be the Church - The Body of Christ - as Jesus intended.

The Apostle Paul desired that the church “stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.” But sadly, in this day and age, the Church seems more divided than it's ever been. Francis Chan exhorts us with a message reminding us that unity in the body of Christ is worth fighting for but it must begin with a proper perspective of the holiness of Christ.

When you read and study Scripture, what is your ultimate goal? Is it to find yourself in the story and focus on your needs? Or is it about something much bigger? In this week’s episode Francis Chan reminds us that Scripture isn’t about us. It’s always been about God from the very beginning. When we take a step back and maintain this perspective, it changes how we read and comprehend His Word, and ultimately how we give Him glory.

The prayer of many committed followers of Christ is simply, “Here I am, send me.” But in our desire to be used by God, Francis Chan explains that we need to make sure we don’t forget the most important things – to see Him clearly, to remain humble, and to tremble at His Word.

Walking with Jesus is the greatest joy of our lives. At the same time, we’re also navigating life’s challenges. But when you read the Scriptures you see people walking into adversity with courage and confidence. In this week’s episode Francis Chan takes us through Psalm 23 and reminds us what it truly means for the Lord to be our Shepherd.

When you’re studying the Bible, and you come across scriptures that just seem a little strange, what do you do? Do you just ignore it and keep reading? Or maybe try to rationalize it in the hopes that somehow it will make sense? In this week’s episode, Francis Chan explains how to approach those times when God’s thoughts just don’t line up with ours.

We live in a culture that celebrates independence. We love to hear stories of people who take on the world by themselves and overcome the odds to become a success. But oftentimes, that mentality can impact how we view the Church. In this week’s episode, Francis Chan shares from his heart how the Lord has convicted him of the importance of unity and the need to be built together, as living stones, into His temple.

For those of us that have been walking with Christ for many years, there’s a tendency to become so familiar with some portions of scripture that we are desensitized to their weight and urgency. In this week’s episode, Francis Chan brings us to Matthew 25 and reminds us how important it is to love the “least of these” in light of Jesus and eternity.

How do you respond when things get stressful? For a lot of us, we react with anger or annoyance. But what if there was a better way? In this week’s episode, Francis Chan points us to James 1:19. He reminds us what it means to slow down and show grace in situations like these and to approach things with the same grace and patience God shows us.

As time moves forward it is quite easy to be frustrated, angry, and maybe even depressed at the world’s current state. You look around and things seem to be falling apart. You look inside yourself to muster up your own peace but can’t find it there either. In this classic teaching from Francis Chan, we’re reminded to look up, at God, and consider how the Scriptures describe Him, because having a high view of God changes our perspective of the entire world. We pray that your heart of worship is elevated towards God today.

Life is moving so quickly. We are constantly jumping from one thing to the other, balancing time between work and family and personal life. Have you ever thought to check where God is in the midst of all of it? Because oftentimes we forget to make Jesus our priority. In this week’s episode Francis Chan brings us through 1 Peter 1-2 in order to remind us how sweet it is to spend quality time with the One who loved us first - JESUS.