SELAH Commonwealth

In Acts 8, we see a shift in the spread of the Jesus movement. The persecution, culminating in the martyrdom of Stephen, caused the Church to scatter, and the message to spread to surrounding nations and people groups. This is all because a small group of people listened to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and did what he asked them to do. This is particularly on display in the life of Philip, who has the opportunity to tell people he never thought he'd meet all about Jesus. Through his interaction with a man from Ethiopia, we learn that when you are following the voice of the Spirit, he will take you to people and to places you never thought you'd go.

One thing that is made very clear in the book of Acts: when you follow after Jesus, suffering is unavoidable. Jesus invites us to join him in his mission, but in doing so, we also join him in his suffering. This reality is on full display in Acts 7 and 8, as Stephen becomes the first Christian martyr. In his final moments, Stephen reflects the story and the heart of Jesus to the world and to his murderers. Instead of destroying the Church, Stephen's suffering becomes the catalyst for its rapid spread across the world.

Spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Disciplines create the space for that formation to happen in and through us as we encounter the presence and power of God.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short workshop or story on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we continue our series of workshops on spiritual formation and disciplines with a conversation around fasting.

For centuries, the church has been a community that unites people across social, economic, racial, and cultural barriers. Jesus has called his people to unite on him and him alone. Unfortunately, we tend to drift back into our old identities and affinities - prioritizing those who are like us and overlooking or neglecting those who are different. This tendency causes deep hurt and insurmountable fractures within a community. In Acts 6:1-7, we see the leaders of the early church respond in a radical way to the hurt and fractures that were forming within the community. Instead of dismissing or simply placating the hurt, the apostles pursue healing by diversifying the leadership and sharing power with those who had experienced hurt.

Spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Disciplines create the space for that formation to happen in and through us as we encounter the presence and power of God.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short workshop or story on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we continue our series of workshops on spiritual formation and disciplines with a conversation around sabbath.

In the early pages of the book of Acts, things are going well for Jesus' church. The Spirit of God has filled the community and empowered them to fulfill the mission of Jesus in the world. But things take a disturbing turn in Acts 5, when a couple people in the community introduce something that could be the undoing of this faith family. In this passage, we learn about the importance of trust and honesty in community, and the danger that deception poses to authentic connection and intimacy. 

At the end of Acts 2, we get a beautiful portrait of the shared life of the early church community. It is something that Christians have aspired to imitate ever since. But we miss the point if we treat this passage primarily as a model on how to do church. Instead, this is a picture of God's character embodied by God's people. It is a display of what God had been calling his people to do from the very beginning. In other words, this is what it looks like when the church cares about what God's cares about.

Spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Disciplines create the space for that formation to happen in and through us as we encounter the presence and power of God.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short workshop or story on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we continue our series of workshops on spiritual formation and disciplines with a conversation around prayer.

As we come to Acts 2, the small community of Jesus' disciples are in Jerusalem waiting for a promise to be fulfilled. Jesus left them saying that he would send the Holy Spirit who would fill and empower them to engage in the mission that he set before them. In this passage, we learn that the Church must first wait on the Spirit, be filled by the Spirit, and then be propelled into the mission by the power of the the Spirit. 

Spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Disciplines create the space for that formation to happen in and through us as we encounter the presence and power of God.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short workshop or interview on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we introduce a new series of workshops on spiritual formation and disciplines.

Two thousand years ago, Jesus didn't give his followers the Church, he gave them a mission: "Be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth." (Acts 1:8) In the books of Acts, we see that the Church ends up being a natural product of a group of people living out that mission together. The problem is when we lose sight of the mission, we end up losing the Church. And we cease to be good news to the world around us. 

What makes the Church the Church? Throughout history, many have boiled the Church down to three essential rhythms - worship, community, and mission. Though these rhythms can take a wide variety of forms, almost every community of Jesus-followers across generations and traditions have incorporated these into the life of their community. Therefore, we use this as a framework for thinking about the life and rhythms of our microchurches.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short worskshop or interview on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we discuss the essential rhythms of a faith community (aka ecclesial minimum).

During the season of advent, we celebrate the fact that Jesus has come and the promise that he will one day come again. But it is also a time when we can celebrate and experience Jesus' presence with us right now! We invite you to take a moment to pause and listen to what Jesus might have to say to you in this season.

Daniel's final apocalyptic vision comes in Daniel 10-12. In this vision, he has a very personal and intimate interaction with the Son of Man. Ultimately, the Son of Man offers Daniel the greatest hope - one that can overcome even the greatest act of evil and destruction. This is the hope of resurrection.  

In Daniel 9, Daniel is faced with the reality that he may never return to his home in Jerusalem. He has spent his whole life as an exile in Babylon because of the actions and decisions of others. In this moment of revelation, Daniel does not give in to self-righteousness or self-pity. Instead, he comes before God with a display of radical humility. We get a unique look into the perspective on life that has sustained Daniel through unimaginably difficult circumstances.

In this episode, we hear from Brent Brewer, who is writing his doctoral dissertation on interfaith dialogue between Christians and Muslims. He is learning a lot from his studies that will be helpful for those of us who desire to build relationships across cultural and religious lines!

In Daniel 8, Daniel has a strange vision of two creatures—a ram and a goat—with the goat trampling the ram. These creatures represent human empires and illustrate one political reality giving way to another. With the shifting empires comes persecution for the people of God in the centuries leading up to the time of Jesus. The vision also implies an end to the persecution and God's sovereignty over history. We are reminded that, although the political realities of our world rise and fall, and the social favor toward or opposition against the people of God comes and goes, our hope lies in the alternative kingdom that Jesus inaugurated because God triumphs over all of the kingdoms of this world.

A short reflection on the 2024 presidential election.

In this episode, we get into part two of Daniel which is made up of a series of visions that Daniel receives while in exile. Daniel 7 is a particularly terrifying vision in which Daniel faces four monstrous beasts that represent human kingdoms that rule over the world. The fourth beast is particularly vicious and inhumane. The vision culminates with God defeating the beasts, and a character referred to as the son of man who comes on the clouds and is given authority over all of Creation. While there is a lot of debate around the meaning of this vision, Jesus gives us an important insight that we cannot overlook. And if we take his perspective on this passage seriously, it will hit a lot closer to home than we may realize at first glance.

In Daniel 6, we are reminded of the nearness of God's Kingdom and that it can break through in the most unexpected times and places.Daniel spent decades living in exile, and a major question throughout the accounts of his life is: What kingdom is he living in? Is he living in Babylon or the Kingdom of God? The answer is both. Yet, often times, the world around Daniel looks a lot more like Babylon than it does Heaven. Even in his darkest moments, Daniel holds on to hope that God is still the ultimate authority and that His Kingdom reigns. And sometimes that Kingdom shows up in the most hopeless of places. In the case of Daniel 6, it shows up in the lion's den.

In Daniel 4, we get a first-hand look at the destructiveness of pride. In our pride, we elevate ourselves over others. We erode our capacity for gratitude and contentment because we believe that we always deserve more. We destroy our relationships because we place our own desires over the needs of others. But as we see in the life of King Nebuchadnezzar, the destructiveness of pride reaches to the very core of who we are. Pride ultimately degrades are humanity. 

In the episode, we hear from Marjorie Thigpen-Carter, who is the Lead Organizer of Justice Knox. Justice Knox is a collective of faith communities throughout Knoxville who work together to build power and fight for justice in our city. Listen in to see how you can get involved! 

Jesus' kingdom and the kingdoms of this world operate in altogether different ways. One accomplishes its will by force, coercion, and the taking of lives. The other accomplishes its purposes through love, sacrifice, and the laying down of one's life for others. Daniel's friends risked their lives in defiance of the first. Jesus laid down his life to show us the second. This is the way of the kingdom. It is an upside-down, power-under way of being in the world that makes little sense to those who do not know Jesus. 

Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short training, interview, or story on microchurches and missional living followed by table discussions. In this episode, we hear from Jondra Brewer who is serving the Vestal neighborhood of Knoxville with BLOC Ministries!

Where do we find hope when the weight of the world is too heavy to bear? Where do we find hope when the currents of the culture seem too strong to overcome? In Daniel 2, Daniel and his friends find themselves in another impossible situation. It seems as though there is very little hope for them in Babylon. However, just when things seem to be nearing an all-time low, they receive a message of hope from a very unexpected place. 

We all have a story! Our story has the ability to connect with and inspire those around us. By learning how to share our stories in natural and meaningful ways, we are able to build relationships and point people to the greater story that God is writing through all of us. Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short training or interview on missional living and/or microchurches. This week, we hear from Erin Popova on the power of storytelling. 

How do we remain faithful to God in a world that is increasingly against God? As the culture around us changes, this question becomes more and more important. Daniel 1 gives us a great picture of how to subversively engage the culture without separating from the culture or becoming a product of the culture. Spoiler: It requires us to be deeply connected to the presence and guidance of God as we navigate life's hard questions and difficult decisions.

In this training, we conclude our exploration of the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. Every Christ-follower has specific gifts given to them by Jesus so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and participate in his ongoing mission in the world together.

In week one of our series in Daniel we are introduced to a handful of Jewish teenagers who are forced into exile in Babylon. As we study their lives and the scriptures that formed them, we seek to answer timely questions for God's people in our current cultural moment:How are we to navigate our faith in a culture that is increasingly hostile towards it? What does faithfulness look like amidst mounting pressure to compromise and conform? How do we walk in the way of Jesus in what can feel like a new and foreign land? Special thanks to Jim Davis, Michael Graham, Ryan P. Burge, John Mark Comer, and Tremper Longman III for their contributions to this message. 

In this training, we continue our exploration of the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. Every Christ-follower has specific gifts given to them by Jesus so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and participate in his ongoing mission in the world together. This week we look at the fifth of these five gifts: teachers.Special thanks to Alan Hirsch. J.R. Woodward, Nathan Brewer, Brentview Church, and Jon Ritner for their contributions to this episode.

Scripture: Mark 1:14-15"The time has come. The Kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe in the gospel!"The gospel is the core message of the Christian faith. How we understand and respond to the gospel means everything. But what did Jesus mean when he said gospel, and is it the same message that we think of when we hear the word?

In this training, we continue our exploration of the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. Every Christ-follower has specific gifts given to them by Jesus so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and participate in his ongoing mission in the world together. This week we look at the fourth of these five gifts: shepherds.Special thanks to Alan Hirsch. J.R. Woodward, Nathan Brewer, Jessie Cruickshank, John Ortberg, Bre Wiebe, and Susannah Crook for their contributions to this episode.

Fr. Foye Belyea joins us for a special workshop on hearing the voice of God. The ability to converse with God and follow his leading is vital to living as missionaries in our everyday lives. This practical workshop will help you to better understand the importance and purpose of prayer and how to recognize the different ways that God speaks to us each day.Here are two resources that are mentioned in the workshop:Encountering God's Presence Through PrayerDiscovering God's Voice in Your Story

In this training, we continue our exploration of the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. Every Christ-follower has specific gifts given to them by Jesus so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and participate in his ongoing mission in the world together. This week we look at the third of these five gifts: evangelists.Special thanks to Alan Hirsch. J.R. Woodward, Nathan Brewer, Jessie Cruickshank, Kurt Willems, Ashley Dalen, and Matthew Million for their contributions to this training.

Scripture: Acts 2:42-27 As Jesus leaves his followers to go be with the Father, he calls them to continue the work that he started and live as his representatives here on Earth. Their immediate response was to create a community. The description of this first church community reveals to us that community is an intentional work by both God and his people. 

In this training, we continue our exploration of the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. Every Christ-follower has specific gifts given to them by Jesus so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and participate in his ongoing mission in the world together. This week we look at the second of these five gifts: prophets.Special thanks to Alan Hirsch. J.R. Woodward, Nathan Brewer, Jon Ritner, Rich Robinson, Tim Catchim, Jessie Cruickshank, and Brad Brisco for their contributions to this training series.

Scripture: John 21Jesus desires us to be in unity with one another. The problem is that our experience of life and community is often characterized more by disunity than unity. Unity among believers is so important to Jesus that in his final hours with his disciples, he both demonstrated and taught them how to intentionally work towards unity in a world that trends towards disunity. 

In this week's training, we continue our journey in Ephesians 4 as we explore the five gifts that Jesus has given his church. These gifts come to us in the form of people. People are the gifts. Everyone has specific gifts given to them by Jesus for the serving of others so that we might all become more like Jesus, experience the fullness of God's presence, and together participate in his ongoing mission in the world. This week we look at the first of these five gifts: apostles. 

Scripture: John 13:1-15Jesus makes it clear that one of the most fundamental characteristics of his counter-cultural Kingdom community is radical and sacrificial service to one another. This requires us to put aside our egos and give up our incessant need to prove ourselves. It requires us to stoop low and lovingly serve one another no matter the cost.

Over the next couple of months, we will be exploring Ephesians 4 and its profound implications for us as Jesus followers. As we begin this journey, we find right away that Jesus has designed his church with great intentionality. It is to be a community in which each person has a unique and irreplaceable role to play in God's ongoing work in our midst. 

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:9-12, Exodus 19:3-6Throughout the story of Scripture, God's people are called, not to separate from the world, but to live as a distinct community in the midst of the world. This is key to our role as the representatives of God here on Earth. The call to distinctness began with the people of Israel after their Exodus from Egypt and has continued in the life of Jesus' Church. We are called to live different so that when people look at us, they see Jesus and His Kingdom.

In this episode, we talk with Foye about the "how-tos" of spiritual mentoring. Whether you have a mentor, are a mentor, or are seeking out a mentoring relationship, this conversation will give you some practical next steps for the journey!   

Scripture: Luke 24:13-35Easter 2024

In this episode, we hear from one of our microchurches! Over the past year, the Nichols and Mims have been creating a safe and encouraging community for medical students, medical professionals, and their neighbors! They set a great example on what it looks like to partner together around a common passion and mission! Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short training on microchurches and missional living followed by table discussions. This is a recording of one of those training portions.

Passage: Matthew 18:15-17,21-22 In community, one thing is certain: You will face conflict. And how you deal with conflict says a lot about what you believe about community. Unfortunately, most of us avoid conflict or respond in ways that only make matters worse. The good news is Jesus invites us to view conflict, not a threat to be avoided, but as a gift to be embraced. Through conflict, we have the opportunity to experience the wonderful gift of reconciliation.

Fr. Foye is back! In this episode, we talk about the importance of the mentoring relationship in our faith journey. We all need those who have gone before us to share life, wisdom, and guidance with us. Whether you have a mentor, are a mentor, or never knew you needed one, we hope this conversation will be both an encouragement and a challenge to you!   

"Make your home in me, as I make my home in you." Set before us is the greatest invitation ever given. And it is an invitation Jesus extends to each of us every day of our lives. So why do so few seem to experience God's ongoing presence in the everyday stuff of life? And is there any hope for us in the age of streaming services, social media, and the iPhone? We've got some good news.Special thanks to John Mark Comer, Tyler Staton, and Dallas Willard for their contributions to this episode. 

In this episode, we hear from one of our microchurches! Over the past year, Common Soil have been building relationships and creating space for mutual care and blessing amongst their neighbors.Our All-Family Gatherings begin with a short training on microchurches and missional living followed by table discussions. During this training, we hear from our friends of Common Soil. Check out what God is doing through this microchurch! 

There is a kind of community that our soul longs for; a kind of community we were created for. We see reflections of it in the stories we tell and the movies we make. We read about it in anthropology, see it in human history, find it in the scriptures, watch it in the early church, and hear about it in places like Africa, China and the Middle East. So why is it so hard to find in the modern American church?Special thanks to Tyler Staton, Victor Turner, Sabastian Younger and Adrian Plass for their contributions to this episode. 

Conversations around the church and money can bring up a lot strong emotions. For many people, this topic is characterized by a plethora of stories about misuse, abuse, and greed. For that reason, it is easy to avoid the conversation altogether. However, as followers of Jesus, avoidance is not an option. Jesus talks about money constantly and has a very clear vision for how his followers ought to approach money. In this conversation, we unpack how the Bible handles this topic and what it means to be radically generous people.  

Passage: Genesis 2-4We all deeply long to experience authentic community, but the reality is: community is hard! It is easier to settle for some counterfeit form of community that is far less than what Jesus has for us. For that reason, it is important that we truly understand Jesus' vision for community - what it is and what it isn't, the cost and the reward - so that we can experience it in our own lives today.