Summit Life with J.D. Greear

How do we become more like Jesus? Is it by reading our Bibles more, getting an accountability partner, or volunteering at church? Those are definitely good steps, but they only deal with surface-level issues. As he continues our series called, Rushing Wind, Pastor J.D. explains how the Holy Spirit works to transform our hearts and our desires, to change us from the inside out.

In our series on the Holy Spirit called, Rushing Wind, we’ve learned who the Holy Spirit is and why we need him in our lives. In this message, Pastor J.D. gets really practical, explaining how you can experience the Holy Spirit in your own life. We’re learning how to tap into the Spirit’s power so we can do God’s work in the world.

As Pastor J.D. continues our series called, Rushing Wind, we’re studying the third person of the Trinity and learning how to live in the power of the Holy Spirit. Pastor J.D. explains what the “filling of the Spirit” is, when it happens, and how it happens. We’re in Ephesians 5:18-21.

Some Christians think you can receive the Holy Spirit months or even years after you’ve been saved. They believe that when he comes, there will be a clear, outward sign, like speaking in tongues or prophesying. Others think you’re sealed with the Spirit when you’re first saved, and that’s your only experience with him! They believe in the Spirit in theory, but don’t think he really change anything in their lives. Pastor J.D. reveals that neither of those views tells the whole story! It’s part of our series called, Rushing Wind.

When we give our lives to Jesus, the Bible says we’re sealed with the Holy Spirit. But what does that mean? Is the Spirit just a stamp we get in our spiritual passport to make sure we’ll get into heaven? As he continues our series called, Rushing Wind, Pastor J.D. explains that we aren’t just sealed with the Spirit. We’re also filled with the Spirit!

Cars either run on gasoline or electricity. If you tried to fill your car up with something else, like soda, you wouldn’t get very far! For a car to work, it has to be drawing from the right power source. And the same is true of us! Pastor J.D. points us to the power source for the Christian life as he continues our study of the Holy Spirit titled, Rushing Wind.

When scientists began experimenting with electricity in the 1800s, a whole new world of possibilities opened up. This incredible power source had always existed, but they’d never before been able to tap into it. And Pastor J.D. explains that you and I have access to a spiritual power source that we might be ignoring! We’re talking about the power of the Holy Spirit as we continue our series called, Rushing Wind.

The word “charismatic” has very strong connotations for Christians today, and it can be extremely divisive. But as he continues our series called, Rushing Wind, Pastor J.D. gives us clarity on this issue, revealing what the Bible really says about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers.

In certain churches, the Holy Spirit is talked about as something you experience during worship, when the music crescendos and you get a surge of emotions. Or, when we’re praying about a decision and we feel a warmth in our chest, we think that that’s the Holy Spirit telling us which way to go. But Pastor J.D. explains that the Holy Spirit’s role in your life is way bigger and way more real than just getting goosebumps. It’s part of our series called, Rushing Wind.

In some churches, you’ll hear a lot of talk about God the Father and Jesus Christ, but the Holy Spirit seems to sort of get pushed to the side. In other churches, people focus so much on trying to hear from the Holy Spirit, that they’ll interpret anything and everything as a sign from him. So which side is more biblical? What role is the Holy Spirit supposed to play in our churches and in our lives? Pastor J.D. unpacks those questions as he continues our new series called, Rushing Wind.

When most people try to picture God the Father, they think of him sitting on a throne in heaven. And when we try to picture Jesus, we imagine a bearded carpenter, maybe holding a lamb. But the Holy Spirit can be a little bit harder to relate with! In our series called, “Rushing Wind,” Pastor J.D. gets in-depth with what the Bible tells us about the Holy Spirit: who he is, what he does, and how he’s working in our world today.

Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world, and yet there are myths we believe inside and outside the church that make a season of political turmoil feel even darker. In this broadcast, Pastor J.D. continues to look at some of those myths and how, when we look at the words of Jesus as he stood before Pilate, we will be able to replace feelings of anxiety and despair with hope and urgency about sharing the gospel.

In this second message of our “Flags” series, Pastor J.D. explores several myths that are common in our approach to politics, both outside and inside the church. By focusing instead on Jesus’ revolutionary claim to Pilate in John 18, we’ll see that Jesus’ kingdom puts every other earthly kingdom—and political party—into stark perspective. It is a perspective that can transform cynicism and despair into hope and urgency.

While it is every Christian’s responsibility to bring their faith and understanding of God’s kingdom into all that they do, the church as an organization has a limited platform. In this broadcast, Pastor J.D. looks at the church’s duty to preach righteousness, justice, and compassion and our complementary role as church members so that we can be united by what is most important—our identity in Christ.

In this first message of our “Flags” series, Pastor J.D. Greear shows us that the hope of the gospel unites the most unlikely of people from all tribes, tongues, nations … and even political parties. As members of Christ’s eternal kingdom, we can declare that even in moments of great division, Jesus retains the power to heal, restore, and offer an eternal hope.

Chapters 22 and 23 of 2 Samuel felt like an ideal place to end David’s story, with a testament to God’s redeeming power. In this message, Pastor J.D. explains why 2 Samuel ends with 70,000 Israelites dying because of the sin of their king and how the story—the whole story of David’s life—points to the real King we’ve all been looking for and the only right response to him.

In this message, Pastor J.D. Greear focuses on a chapter that, frankly, many of us might find confusing—if not downright offensive. By walking through David’s mysterious census and the massive punishment that follows, Pastor J.D. deals with one of the biggest obstacles many people have to trusting in God: Deep down, we don’t think he’s really a good person. If God seems, to you, less loving and forgiving and more vindictive and cruel, this obscure story might just show you what God is actually up to in the world.

It’s no wonder David closes the psalm of his life glorifying God’s power in redemption, because there is nothing quite as amazing as God taking a life ruined by sin, like David’s, and making it new. In this message, Pastor J.D. continues to look at David’s life song and shares the three things God’s salvation gives us. Because of the gospel, we can say with David, “God is my hope, my Savior, and my restoration.”

A person’s last words can often be very telling. In this week’s message, Pastor J.D. gives us a glimpse into a song that David wrote during an earlier time in his life, which serves as a summary of both his life and his ministry. From these “last words” of David, we can learn important truths about God—truths that sustained David,and that can sustain us through even the darkest of times.

In the tragic story of David and his son Absalom, we’re left to wonder what might have happened if David had used his power to protect and heal instead of allowing his power to keep him detached in his palace. Pastor J.D. explains in this message why humanity is stuck in a perpetual cycle of brokenness and violence and how Jesus broke the cycle so we could experience healing and his grace.

As we near the end of 2 Samuel, this week’s message from Pastor J.D. is one that examines the often far-reaching consequences of sin. These consequences played out not only in David’s life, but in the lives of many in his family. For those who have experienced the tragic results of sin, either your own or that of others, things may seem hopeless—but there is healing to be found in the true King who redeems and restores.

After David’s sin against Bathsheba and Uriah, he walked through a process of restoration that models for us how to repent and take responsibility for our sin. In this message, Pastor J.D. shows us how our repentance points others to Jesus. Because Christ didn’t just die but also resurrected, God can take the dead remains of our sin and bring them back to life.

What does true repentance look like? This week, Pastor J.D. helps us unpack 2 Samuel 12, in which David is confronted regarding his sin against Bathsheba and Uriah. Following the prophet Nathan’s rebuke of him, David pens Psalm 51. It is in this psalm that we observe the components of true confession and repentance, which lead ultimately—and joyfully—to restoration.

David was Israel’s long-awaited and hoped-for king, and he’d started out so well by defeating Goliath and writing beautiful psalms about God. But his sin against Bathsheba and Uriah made Israel ask, if even King David, the man after God’s own heart, failed them, what hope was there? Pastor J.D. shares in this message why we, like Israel, needed a King far greater than David and how that King, Jesus, helps us overcome sin.