Podcasts about sanctus church

Welcome back to another episode of the unSeminary podcast. We're talking with Jon Thompson, senior pastor of Sanctus Church, a multisite church on the east side of Toronto. Jon has served at Sanctus for 25 years and has helped lead the church through seasons of growth, renewal, revival, and cultural change. In this conversation, he shares insights from his latest book, Presence: Resilient Witness in Times of Retreat and Revival, and explores how churches can faithfully witness in an increasingly post-Christian—and even re-paganized—culture. Learn to minister in a re-paganized culture. // Jon believes Canada offers a glimpse of where many parts of the United States may be heading. Churches are increasingly engaging people with little or no Christian memory alongside Muslims, Hindus, atheists, New Agers, nominal Christians, and people shaped by contemporary cultural movements. The challenge is not simply to defend Christian truth, but to communicate the gospel thoughtfully and winsomely to radically different audiences at the same time. Open the three evangelistic doors. // Historically, love, word, and power describe three ways people encounter God. Love demonstrates God's character through hospitality and care. Word clarifies truth through preaching, apologetics, and teaching. Power reveals God's presence through experiences such as healing, deliverance, dreams, and other supernatural encounters. Jon argues that churches need all three doors open because different people encounter Jesus through different pathways. Admit your church's bias. // Most churches naturally lean toward one or two of these categories. Conservative evangelical churches often emphasize word. Other churches may prioritize love through compassion and justice, while still others focus heavily on supernatural experiences. Jon encourages leaders to honestly identify their bias and intentionally elevate the areas they tend to neglect. A healthy church needs all three working together rather than allowing one to dominate. Don't let fear quench what God is doing. // Jon tells the story of a woman who came to faith out of Hinduism after experiencing visions, spiritual conflict, and encounters with Jesus. When her church removed those elements from her baptism testimony because leaders were uncomfortable with them, she felt that an essential part of her story had been denied. Jon warns that fear, theological bias, and lack of experience can cause churches to suppress genuine ways God may be working in people's lives. Choose encounter and systems. // Jon believes churches often falsely pit spiritual encounter against organizational structure. Healthy churches need both. Leaders should build systems that support what God is doing without attempting to control it. As spiritual activity increases, churches may need to adjust volunteer processes, pastoral care systems, staff expectations, and leadership structures. The goal is not to eliminate order but to make the organization flexible enough to respond when circumstances change. Understand renewal, revival, and awakening. // Jon distinguishes between renewal, revival, and awakening. Renewal is the recovery of first love in individual believers. Revival is a sovereign move of God that He initiates and ends where sin is revealed and there’s widespread healing. Awakening happens when revival leads to widespread conversion. Leaders should not assume revival is guaranteed, but they should remain faithful and responsive whether God brings extraordinary renewal or simply calls them to steady obedience in an ordinary season. Start by refusing to resist God. // Before changing structures or launching new ministries, Jon believes leaders should begin with a simple posture: “Lord, whatever you want to do, I won't fight you.” Many pastors love God but still struggle to trust Him when ministry becomes unpredictable. Jon encourages leaders to confront their fear, relinquish control, and remain open to correction, repentance, and change. To learn more about Jon Thompson and his books, including Convergence, Perseverance, Presence, and the upcoming re-release of Deliverance, visit jonthompsonresources.com or Amazon.com. Other Conversations with Jon Thompson Reflections on Christian Ministry at the Halfway Point with Jon Thompson // February 8, 2024 What if John Stott, John Wimber, Dallas Willard & Andy Stanley Planted a Church with Jon Thompson? // March 14, 2019 Thank You for Tuning In! There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I'm grateful for that. 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Portable Church has assembled a bundle of resources to help you leverage your growing momentum into a new location by sending a part of your congregation back to their neighborhood on Mission. This bundle of resources will give you a step-by-step plan to launch that new or next location, and a 5 minute readiness tool that will help you know your church is ready to do it! Click here to watch the free webinar “Launch a New Location in 150 Days or Less” and grab the bundle of resources for your church! Episode Transcript Rich Birch — Hey friends, Rich from the unSeminary Podcast. Listen, you’re going to want to lean in today for this conversation because I think this kind what you’re going to get a sneak peek on is something that’s impacting churches all over the world that’s having, I think, an interesting kind of moment and is maybe points to a bit of where God is at work. And I think could for many churches that are listening in today, give them a sense of maybe some next steps, what the kind of evolution or the development of their church, what that could look like for the future.Rich Birch — Plus, it’s one of those times where I get to talk with like a real live friend, somebody that I know from the real world, not just on the internet, which is so fun. Excited to have Jon Thompson with us. He is the senior pastor at Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the east side of Toronto with four in-person locations plus church online. This church began in 1985 with just 40 people meeting and now averages over 2,600 weekend attendees with a plan to reach 3,600 by the end of the decade and open a sixth site in the T. Dot in Toronto in the six by 2030. Rich Birch — Jon has served at Sanctus for 25 years, starting as a youth pastor before becoming the senior pastor. He holds both a masters from Tyndale and a doctorate from Fuller. He grew up in Ecuador from missionary parents, he and his wife, Joanna, who’s incredible, have three kids. His books include Convergence, Deliverance, and Perseverance. And the brand new one that I’m excited to have him talk about today, Presence: Resilient Witness in Times of Retreat and Revival. And it’s from our friends at Zondervan Reflective.Rich Birch — Jon, welcome to the show. I am so glad that you’re here today. Welcome.Jon Thompson — Yeah great to be here. Great to be back on the podcast. Hang out with a real friend, like you said, and hi to anyone listening anywhere around the world today.Rich Birch — Yeah, this is good. I’m excited for this. For folks that haven’t maybe picked up a past episode, which you haven’t, you should go go back and find them. Jon’s been on a couple times, a few times. But give us kind of a picture of a normal Sunday at Sanctus. Who’s in the room? Give us a flavor for the church.Jon Thompson —  Yeah, so our church is located, like you said, on the east side of Toronto. And some of your viewers will know this, but lots might might not. Toronto is the most multicultural city on earth, more than London, more than, well, LA, more than New York, more than Singapore, more than Hong Kong. And so there’s between 150 and 300 heart languages spoken every single day in our amazing city, by the way, you got to come to Toronto. The food culture is unbelievable…Rich Birch — That’s true. That is true.Jon Thompson — …and unparalleled because everyone’s here. So on a Sunday morning, depending on our locations, again, because we have rural sites, urban sites, and suburban sites, which makes life interesting to say the least, but we probably got 55 plus identified nationalities. We probably I think we’re on 13 on staff right now. And so everything from someone from Hong Kong to someone who’s moved here from Pakistan. We’ve got Congolese. We’ve got Irish. I mean just fill in the blank and you’re going to discover the amazing diversity of the human race on this side of heaven. And we you know we made a decision a long time ago that we were going to fight for Revelation 7 on this side of uh the moment. Rich Birch — So good. Jon Thompson — And it’s exciting, it’s hard, it’s difficult, and it’s um and it’s worth it.Rich Birch — Yeah, it’s so good. You know, Canada is and I know we share this conviction. I know you’ve said it and I’ve said it on other podcasts when we’ve had Canadian friends on the podcast. But I think it’s really important, particularly, you know, 95 plus percent of the people listening are in the States. But I think it’s important just to to set the context. Because in a lot of ways, Canada is a few a few years ahead or behind, depending on what language you want to use, of our friends in the States. What do you mean by that? When you say that, what springs to mind?Jon Thompson — Yeah, so this is a very interesting place, right? Because Canada moved from, ah you know, Christendom worldview, to a nominal Christian worldview, to a struggling Christian worldview, to a post-Christian worldview. And now I think we’ve moved to a new place, which is not post-Christian, but repaganized.Jon Thompson — And so it’s a it’s a fascinating place. Because In our context, One moment, you’ll be talking to someone who still has Christian memory, who actually doesn’t love Jesus at all, but it’s a family thing. And it’s nominal Christianity. Jon Thompson — The next moment, you’ll still run into a Mormon telling you you’re worshiping the right and wrong Jesus. The next moment, it’s a New Ager. The next moment, it’s ah a Muslim activist. The next moment, it’s a transgender activist. The next moment, it’s someone who has no clue at all on anything.Jon Thompson — And so what’s fascinating about up here is you’ve got modern, postmodern. You’ve got conservative, you’ve got liberal. You’ve got the heart of the sexual revolution in the center center of our city. It’s one of the hubs of that globally. You’ve got every religion on earth. And you’ve got churches that are dying.Jon Thompson — I think, I don’t know of the latest stats. I still think that they’re they’re estimating one third of churches will close in the next decade in Canada, like physical ah buildings will close. And while that’s happening. And all that’s happening. You’ve got still sort of Christianity memory in certain groups, and then there are churches that are exploding. Jon Thompson — And so the the way I talk about we’re a little ahead is we are your future in some form. Because we’re facing down Jesus and how we deal with the gift of immigrants globally, but also the complication of that. We’re dealing with having to pivot the gospel to an a Muslim person, a Hindu person, a nominal Christian, and and a Mormon all in one conversation.Jon Thompson — There are Bible belts left in Canada, very small ones. But like Abbotsford, for example.Rich Birch — Little teeny tiny belts.Jon Thompson —  But but there are those places.Rich Birch — Sure. Yep.Jon Thompson — At the same time there is the post-christian thing. And the reason why I think our American friends should pay more attention to us is not because we’re we’re having a third cousin issue up here and we’re jealous. It’s because actually we reflect where you’re going. Because there are going to be sections in the United States that probably will remain nominally Christian and culturally Christian for a very long time. You know, in certain parts of Houston, for example, or maybe in sections of Kentucky or Louisiana. But then you go to New York and LA or Seattle. And here’s the point. The church has to speak to both audiences at once, which feels in contradiction. But isn’t.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s so good. Yeah and I’ve definitely seen that. I like the uh the re-paganizing language you know I’ve used the uh the pre-christian that we’ve it’s like we’ve gone kind of all the way through. And that that totally has been my experience serving here. You know I took a break. I was in the States for a number of years better part of a decade and then came back. And one of the things I’ve noticed has been this shift kind of under the current. We used to say we used to joke actually we ain’t your mama’s church. But like, you can’t make that joke anymore because like mom didn’t go to church. Grandma didn’t go to church. Like nobody in there, you know, we run into that all the time. Like that’s, you know, really common.Jon Thompson — So like literally this week. This week, my daughter is doing swimming lessons. A woman comes up to us and says, hey, I hear you’re a pastor.Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson —  Really tragic thing. She says, my husband’s dying, 45 years old. And so my wife and I end up speaking to her, praying for her. And she’s like, I have never. So she’s 45 grown up Canada. She says, I’ve never owned a Bible. I’ve never read a Bible. Could I have a Bible? Jon Thompson — Now, for you listening in the Bible Belt before you dismiss this conversation and say not our fight, I just…May I do something for a moment? That might not be true because you’re surrounded by 400 churches. But every time you go online, it is your reality. So what we experience physically in Canada you digitally experience every day. And you have to be as as adaptive thoughtful, winsome, orthodox on your digital thinking as you do your physical thinking. And again, I’ll say this a little strongly. I find a lot of you aren’t.Rich Birch — Okay. We’re starting off spicy, which is great. Okay, so you’ve seen a lot of people. Part of what I love about Sanctus, friends like, I’m trying to, again, give some context. For folks that are listening in, Sanctus is known as a, you know this is a life-giving church. People, they come to Jesus here. This is the kind of place where people take steps towards faith in in Christ, which is amazing. You’ve seen a lot of that happen over the years at Sanctus—thousands of people. When you look back on some of the patterns in people’s lives, some of the, you know, the kind of themes that come back time and time again and how they arrived at that sort of decision. What are you noticing in people’s lives?Jon Thompson —  Well, like I just said about the diversity of our place, the diversity of conversions come from those places. And so like on a Sunday morning, I mean, our baptisms aren’t more epic than yours or anyone else. I mean, praise the Lord. Right.Rich Birch — Yes.Jon Thompson — We’ve got we’ve got 10 year olds confessing the faith of their parents. But it won’t be unusual for literally, I mean, this just happened. So we’ll have like two or three, not babies, but children who say, you know, I want to get baptized. And the next person’s like, I grew up an atheist. I’ve encountered the living God through Christ. The next person is I’m a former witch. And I just actually want to renounce Satan in the tank. And the next person’s like, I used to be a Muslim. And now I’ve actually found out that Jesus is Lord.Jon Thompson —  So, so, that is not now an uncommon experience at any of our sites. And what is behind that is not only that the gospel is good for everyone—praise the Lord—but we worked really hard to make sure that all the doors are open evangelistically to all people. And that gets to our bias in spiritual gifts. But you know—and we’ve had this conversation many times, you and I, Rich—but there are three historic categories that Bobby Clinton invented years ago we’ve used where he divides all the gifts, love, word, and power.Jon Thompson — So love gifts demonstrate the love of God in the room. Word gifts clarify who God is, who he’s not, what he likes, what he doesn’t. Power gifts evidence his presence in the room. That’s true of gifts, but to take a farther step out, those are three doors evangelistically.Jon Thompson — And this is why this is so critical. Because we have to have all three of those doors—such as, hospitality, apologetic defense of the gospel, and miracles and deliverance—open all the time. Because these are the ways people have always come to faith in our movement for 2,000 years. Jon Thompson — Now, all three doors have to lead to the true Christ because there are fake Jesuses. And there’s lots of heresy out there. And it has to be involved in repentance and belief and evidence by baptism. Amen. But I find most churches, theologically and experientially, are comfortable with one or maybe two of those things. And as I always lecture on this, like formally, if you sit on a three-legged stool and there are three legs…Rich Birch — Right.Jon Thompson — …and one leg is missing. You wobble on the best of days, but you usually fall down.Rich Birch — Yeah. I’d love to kind of double click on love, word, and power, these three legs of the stool. And so familiar with, some people will be familiar with that framework for gifting like you talked about, and but kind of give us a little more, you gave you kind of a quick overview of each of them from an evangelistic point of view, but kind of give me some examples or what it might look like in a church that’s opening that that door evangelistically, you know, the love, word, and power door.Jon Thompson — Yeah, and um I think we’re going to talk about this a little bit later. I mean there’s a lot behind these statements.Rich Birch — Yep. Yes.Jon Thompson —  Like almost 30 years of conversation. Rich Birch — Yes. Jon Thompson — But like this is the best way I’ll say it. I’ve seen this in my life. I’ve seen this in my kids’ life. I’ve seen this across our church for two two plus decades, almost three now. Can I tell some stories that might help?Rich Birch — Yeah of course. I love a good story.Jon Thompson — Yeah, so… yeah so like here here’s a great example guy a young adult guy is in his basement.And he’s smoking weed, high as a kite. Freaks freaks out. Okay, great.Rich Birch — Shocker.Jon Thompson — Shocker. But actually sees a demon and like panics. Calls someone at our church, a friend of his, and is like, I’m really scared. And she laughs. And she’s like, no problem. So her first thing is not. Oh you’re an idiot. Her first thing is not, oh, you’re inventing that. The first thing is not, well, of course you’re high, you’re seeing that. Her first reaction is, well, I’ve got an answer to that.Jon Thompson — She’s like, yeah, his name is Jesus. By the way, if you say his name, watch the demon leave and then come talk to us. So the guy—total pagan—does it. Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson — The demon leaves. He shows up next Sunday. He’s radically converted. Didn’t used to be able to read, by the way, very well. Now reads at a PhD level and on a theology sort of thing, like radically converted. And his starting point was a power encounter.Jon Thompson — Now the person next to it, next to him in a conversation is the one listening to John Lennox at Oxford on the the lack validity and the historicity of Jesus.Jon Thompson — Or or you know, and we’re like, yeah, of course. And then the next person, we were just talking to this on staff. So one of our so SLT members (senior leadership team) was talking about his conversion story. And his conversion story is one of his relatives—I think it was his mom—was really sick in the hospital. Two nurses come in, and and are Christians, start praying over her, and basically start committing you know hospitality in the hospital, probably in a way they’re not supposed to. She’s radically saved, ends up leading her son to Christ, and the hus…Jon Thompson — And and so so here’s all I’m trying to say. We have a gift bias that everyone should know their gifts and be using them not only internally in the church, but see how they work out evangelistically, but beyond the gift thing. This for us is normal. We talk about this in our sermons. We actually take the Bible literally in the sense of what we’ve defended is what we believe. I find a lot of conservative people defend the scriptures and don’t believe the thing they’re defending.Jon Thompson — So for us, when I look at the book of Acts, I’m like, we will see people come to faith through healings and through deliverances and through visions and through dreams, as much as John Lennox or or our good new friend Wes Huff from Canada, who’s on every podcast showing up why the Bible is reliable, and also through that incredible, Hey. Can you just talk to me? I’m really sad. Jon Thompson — And what I’m begging churches to do is this this matrix gives you the ability to pivot to multiple people, but you have to have a culture that believes this, defends it, defines it.Rich Birch — Right. Right.Jon Thompson — And makes the weird normal, as we’ve said for years.Rich Birch — Yeah, okay. So you earlier you talked about how most churches are comfortable with one or maybe two, back to the three-legged stool.Jon Thompson —  Yep.Rich Birch — Unpack that a little bit. How have you seen that? Or maybe even more pointedly, how do you fight a get that against that in your own church? Because I you know I can see naturally we would all kind of lean in one way because of our giftings.Rich Birch — you know As a leader, I always see I see the world through my lens. And so the stuff that’s important to me, if I was leading, we would be we’d love all that stuff, but we might not be into the other two. So help help me understand, what does that look like? How do you fight against that at Sanctus?Jon Thompson — So I’ll step back and just say that you know this has been almost like a three-decade journey. For us, everything changed when we got serious about spiritual gifts, unpacking them and doing all of that. That’s a different podcast we’ve done. But what I will but what i will say is this… is that there are most conservative evangelical churches are word churches: Who God is, who he’s not, what he likes, what he doesn’t, the power of preaching. I’m all for it. I preach for a living. And by the way, for people who are starting to dismiss me, I’m reformed in my soteriology. And not only that, I’m an expository preacher. So you don’t get to throw me out the window too quick. Jon Thompson — So, I mean, i’m’m I’m all I’m all for that. But that is not the answer. It’s part of the answer. And so what we continually have done is when we realize that love, word and power are things that are all needed at once, we made them equally important. In staffing, in our conversations. That’s one. Jon Thompson — Two, you need to admit as a church where you’re comfortable and where you’re not. Because there’s a lot of churches, for example, that I always say it like this. You can have all the word people on earth in your church and know all truth, but you’re cold as anything and you’re not even sure if anyone’s been saved lately. Jon Thompson — I’m in all sorts of other churches where it’s love, love, social justice, and hospitality. But I’m like, but are you believing heresy? Do you even have any compass? Rich Birch — Right. Jon Thompson — And then I’m in other environments where it’s, you know, glory clouds and all this amazing spiritual stuff. But I’m like, do you even know the source of this?Jon Thompson — Where is this coming from? Rich Birch — Yeah that’s good.Jon Thompson — Just because it’s good doesn’t mean it’s from our Lord. The spirit of Antichrist and Christ are identical in action. So so what we’ve tried doing is saying, number one, we have to admit these three things are important. Number two, we have to come up with language for each one of them and affirm them. Number three, and you just did it live so I love this, you need to admit where you’re limited.Jon Thompson — So you’re like, Jon, I mean we know each other you’re like One of my strongest spiritual gifts is leadership. That’s what you said. This is the way I immediately instinctually and spiritually react. So, Rich’s responsibility, if he was the senior pastor, is then to publicly talk about why he’s actually not biased in other directions and why he needs to be, and find other people to be that voice.Rich Birch — Yeah. That’s so good.Jon Thompson — Because a lot of people want to be open to this, but since they have not experienced it, they don’t know what to do. And I’m like, right, because it’s about interdependence. It’s not just about you.Rich Birch — Yeah, it’s so good. I think this is a great framework. And you know, it it explains what I can think think could be what’s missing in, you know, so many of our churches and you know we so many of us are are led by uh very gifted word-oriented gift people. Like our churches are led by those people… Jon Thompson — Right. Rich Birch — …and which is amazing… Jon Thompson — Yep. Rich Birch — …but we could miss the other two. And you know in the last year our mutual friend Jeff Brody said something and that resonates with what you were saying. He’s talked about, you know you might believe that it’s true, but is it real for you? And that has like resonated with me so so deeply. It’s similar to when you talked about you know conservatives defend what they don’t necessarily believe. And you know, does this actually work out in our lives, I think is a powerful idea.Rich Birch — Now, there was a story in your book about a young woman who left Hinduism and then joined a reformed church.Jon Thompson — Yeah.Rich Birch — I thought this was a vivid example. And particularly for us on the system side, I thought, oh, this is a good way to kind of systematize this…Jon Thompson — Yeah.Rich Birch — …or think about this at a systems level. Can you unpack that story?Jon Thompson — A hundred percent. And I just want to acknowledge as we keep going, I know the vast majority of your viewers or listeners are more probably on the system side executive pastor, like that type of leader, which by the way, without you, we all die. So thank you for all your service and what you do.Rich Birch — Sure. Yeah. Yep.Jon Thompson — We’re so thankful for you. But as we keep having this conversation, think this is a challenge for you to think deeply theologically, even before your systems, because what you systematize better be true. Rich Birch — That’s good.Jon Thompson — And so this is a great example of what we’re talking about. So I teach a course up here in a seminary on spiritual conflict, a very boring, non-controversial course. And so I was teaching this, I think it was two years ago now, and a young woman comes on and takes the course, and she is in tears at the end of one of the lectures. And ah and it’s all, it’s online. So so she said, can I meet?Jon Thompson — So I said, yeah. She says, look, she said, I just, I was radically saved out of Hinduism, which is incredible, and and she said soI you know I became a christian, I renounced my hinduism, and I I have no background. Either my family are Hindus or atheists and nothing in between, which even shows you the contradiction there. Her family is made up of atheists and Hindus.Rich Birch —Right.Jon Thompson — Like she is the embodiment of what we’re talking about.Rich Birch — Absolutely.Jon Thompson — And so she says, well, I’m going to find a church. She goes to a very small Reformed church locally, like a Christian Reformed, Dutch Reformed church. They’re of course excited that she’s come to faith, which is great. The average age in the church is much older. She told me, I think she’s the first adult baptism in over a decade or maybe two.Jon Thompson — So, because of course they’re covenantal, they baptize children overall. Fun. So he’s like, well, we want to hear your story. So she writes the whole story of encountering Jesus through visions and dealing with demons and Jesus setting her free. And so submits the the testimony, and the pastor edits every single encounter out of it. And this is like in the last three years in Toronto.Rich Birch — Right. Right. Jon Thompson —  This is in Toronto.Rich Birch — Yes.Jon Thompson — And so she said, why have you edited this out? And he said, because I don’t fully understand this, though it’s true. My people will be afraid and I don’t want to make them afraid. And right there, she wept. And then she said to me. When I took your class, you not only affirmed everything that happened to me was true. Second of all, you gave me the theological principles and categories scripturally and historically to show that I am in the great line of succession of the church. If anyone should be defending the great line of succession of the church, it’s the Reformed kids. I mean, those reform kids.Rich Birch — Yes.Jon Thompson —  And so what I want to point out is in that story, fear and lack of experience, and theological bias ended up quenching what the Spirit wanted to do. Jon Thompson — And I just want to say to anyone listening. I’m not saying that every environment that you’ve been in has been perfect. I mean i think a lot of us have had experiences spiritually where people with right motives have done things wrong.Rich Birch — Yep, true.Jon Thompson — And we ended up getting hurt. So it’s sort of like dating. If you’ve ever dated and broken up or you married and and then and then got divorced, the amount of intensity it takes to re-engage is a lot. Rich Birch — Yep.Jon Thompson — So there’s a lot of you listening, you’re like, Jon, I don’t want this conversation because I don’t want to touch that again. And I’m like, you have to. You have to. The scriptures are chock full of this. This is the only way we’re going to do well between retreat and revival, whether you’re in an environment where everyone’s a false nominal Christian or everyone’s not a Christian at all. This has been the pattern since the beginning. And it’s the way the Spirit works. So maybe I’d encourage some of you to pray about your fear and your anger. So you can get on with the thing.Rich Birch — So good. and And I would say um this, what we’re talking about right here, that story of um you know, this this you know young Hindu woman who came to know Jesus, praise God, amazing story. And, you know, kind of God appearing in dreams and all of that. I feel like has, been or I don’t feel like, has become more normative in my church experience in the same kind of climate that that you’re in. And that was not normative 30 years ago when I started. Rich Birch — Like, you know, it is this kind of like, you know, we have a laundry list of similar conversations where it’s like, you know people are having dreams and then wandering into church you know they’re having dreams on a Tuesday you know between Monday and Tuesday night and then they’re just wandering to the church because they’re like I think that’s a church over there. And are like hey, Jesus told me to come here. And you know then we end up having you know deeper conversations and they you know their life gets transformed. Rich Birch — I don’t remember that stuff going on. That’s happening more, which makes sense, I think, in this context of you know this uh what did you call it repaganizing or you know pre-christian kind of context because, you know, the Spirit’s got to work directly. He’s got to, you know, get directly encounter people. So I think that’s, you know, interesting. Rich Birch — So the people that might be because people listening and…you want to say something?Jon Thompson — Well, I was just going to say, yes, and…Rich Birch — Yep. Good.Jon Thompson — 30 years ago, it was happening.Rich Birch — Sure.Jon Thompson — See, this is this is what we have to admit. Rich Birch — Yep.Jon Thompson — It was happening, but we weren’t open.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s true.Jon Thompson — So for a lot of you listening you’re like, well I don’t live in Toronto. I’m like, I know you don’t. But what you legitimize from your pulpit tells your people what you’re allowed to talk about.Rich Birch — Right. That’s good.Jon Thompson — So if you’re going to have a sincere conversation about love, word, and power, and how the Spirit really works evangelistically, whether you’re speaking again to a a cultural Christian or someone else, here’s the point. I guarantee you in the Bible Belt, lots of people are having dreams too.Rich Birch — Right.Jon Thompson — They just have been told that’s weird, and we don’t talk about that.Rich Birch — Those are the kind of things we don’t talk about here. Yeah.Jon Thompson —  Right.Rich Birch — That’s good. Okay, so pivoting in a slightly different direction. One of the things that I love about Sanctus that’s, you know, if you’re kind of in the outer orbit of the church, eventually you’ll start to hear like, oh, they have a deliverance ministry over there. That’s not on the list of like, you know, men’s ministry, women’s ministry, pioneer girls, deliverance ministry that I hear like in so many churches out there. And you’ve had it for a long time. What does that actually look like? So like an average Tuesday, how does that fit into what’s going on at Sanctus?Jon Thompson — Yeah, so this is a conversation we wanted nothing to do with. Again, we were just again, you know Willow Creek, seeker-sensitive, historic church.Rich Birch — Yep.Jon Thompson — And this is like 27 years ago now where people started coming to us and they’re like, I think I have something happening in my life that is beyond psychological or biological wiring. And we were like, we are not that church that does that. That’s the weird people down the street. You know, we’ll deal with them in heaven, but you know. And the Lord wouldn’t give it up. Jon Thompson — So 27 plus years later, I think we’ve had either been involved in or helped assist globally in a thousand cases. And just for, I love how you put that. It’s just normal for us. It’s not this thing. It’s a thing. Jon Thompson — So for us, a worship team practice and, you know, a youth gathering taking place, an Alpha running and a deliverance having the same building is just normal. Because again, our bias on spiritual gifts is there’s 21 gifts, 21 directions. We need to try to make sure that all the gifts are employed in some way. And this is a certain group of gifts.Jon Thompson — So, yeah, we’ve done it for years. The whole story of that is in the book, Deliverance, which I think you and I maybe have talked about. It’s coming out again in February through Zondervan Reflective.Rich Birch — Yep. Jon Thompson — That’s the whole story. But like for us, dealing with the demonic, both in oppression issues and demonization issues and sanctification with Christians, but also evangelistically with non-Christians is just sort of normal.Rich Birch — Yeah. So good.Rich Birch — Yeah, I yeah there’s ah there’s a lot there that you I just think is kind of ah a great part of the story that God’s writing at your church, and I think can be instructive to many of us as we’re thinking about the future.Rich Birch — So let’s let’s kind of draw in the person that’s listening, maybe like an executive pastor, church of, I don’t know, 800 to a thousand, something like that. And they’re struck by this idea this like ooh maybe we are only opening one door. We’re not talking about these other these other doors. We’re not engaged in any of that.Rich Birch — Where would you suggest that they start? (Outside of actually picking up a copy of the book.) I you know I think that’s an obvious thing where we’re going to get to, but like outside of that, how would you help them think about um you know what they should be thinking about?Jon Thompson — Yeah. So just to step back a little to this question. This book conversation we’re having is about how you deal with an environment where renewal and retreat are happening in the same place. That’s very true in our social media feeds and it’s true in a lot of our cities.Jon Thompson — So I happen to know you and I happen to know your church. Because I’ve been conspiratorially involved behind the scenes at points. So your church’s own story is where all your people need to begin.Jon Thompson — And it’s this. Only when the leaders decide not to resist God will things change. And what I mean by that is not like open rebellion against God. It’s this. The lead, I just happen to know there were moments in your church’s own story where the leaders went, you know what? We’re not going to resist you anymore, Lord. What do you want to do?Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson — That was it. That and that’s not, you know, like earthquake you know, feel. But it changed everything. I mean what are you starting this week? Is it this week you’re starting? 30 days of like. praying, or has that happened?Rich Birch — Well, yeah, we’ve done that already, which is amazing, and but there’s more of that coming… Jon Thompson — Yep. Right. But… Rich Birch — …like it’s there’s there’s lots of that stuff happening that wasn’t happening 10 years ago for sure.Jon Thompson — Right. The inception point, though, is when people just went like this. You know what? We’re afraid.Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson — We don’t understand. We prefer system over encounter. We prefer system over encounter and they’re not in competition, but both have to be there. So, Lord, what do you want to say? What do you want to do? That’s the starting point. Rich Birch — Right. Jon Thompson — Because before you work out the theology of love, word, and power and start thinking about how you, you know, witness to people from all the nations and not have a you know a vicious reaction towards them. And how you think through the, like all that.Jon Thompson — The first place is you say to the Lord, I won’t fight you. And the truth is the vast majority of us love God, but don’t trust him. And I said this on a former podcast with you. And and and lots of executive pastors, when they hear me talk, way more than this, get nervous because this starts sounding like Pandora’s box. Well, how do I systematize this? And what would be the implications?Jon Thompson — And I’m like, yeah, before any of that conversation, have you said to the Lord, whatever you want to do, I won’t I won’t fight you.Rich Birch — So good.Jon Thompson — Most pastors would say they have not prayed that. I don’t think. I also think, too, there are a series of systems that relate to what happens in an empowered encounterist church, a systemized church, and then a church going through a revival. Three very different things. And there’s there’s a set of systems.Rich Birch — You want to unpack…you want to unpack that a little bit?Jon Thompson — Yeah, sure. So I mean, there are lots of amazing churches that are commonly faithful who serve communion and preach God’s word and help the poor. And and and and those are all guaranteed places of encounter according to the scriptures. And so amazing. They’re that’s good. That’s right. That’s holy. And that’s one expression of it. Jon Thompson — When you start saying to the holy spirit not only common faithfulness but anything else you’d like to do? At that moment I have a saying, most people praying for revival aren’t praying for revival, they’re praying for a normal church on Monday, they just don’t know it.Rich Birch — That’s good.Jon Thompson — And what I mean by that is most people praying for revival are actually praying for a church where the Spirit is more present, there are more encounters, and everyone’s using their gifts and loving each other better. That’s not revival. That is actually what it’s supposed to be. So when you have a whole group of encounters taking place more than a system, there are other things you have to adjust like we’ve done. Jon Thompson — For example, you start asking your volunteers, what are your spiritual gifts? You start clarifying from the front what encounters look like. You start building house rules of how encounters are handled. It’s part of your intake process. You think about this through pastoral care. There’s no dismissing of experience. You now become an interpreter of experience 24-7.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s good.Jon Thompson — So like there’s that. And then there’s revival. And revival is a sovereign act of God where everything falls apart, and all sin is revealed, and there’s en masse healing. And if it’s a genuine move of God that moves from renewal to revival to awakening, there’s en masse conversion.Jon Thompson — And as I share in the book, because we went through a three year experience with that, it was documented. There’s another set of organizational rules. I was meeting with a lot of leaders in England for the last three years because they are experiencing this genuinely. And I was just telling them what we went through historically. And I used the analogy for the executive pastors or the admin leaders saying, You’ve got to think about renewal and revival like being on a bike. And I said, you’re all English and you all ride bikes, so you should be fine.Jon Thompson —  And I just said, you know how there are gears on a bike? And I just said, when a move of God actually takes place, you have one set of things that are in place for that. And then when you go back to normal, you use another set. And we just said, you have to have a code word for your staff where you literally say, Monday was normal. Wednesday is now not normal, so the whole system collapses and now looks like this. And when the Spirit walks back, you go, okay. We’re going back to the other gear. Jon Thompson — That thinking is incredibly important in renewal and revival environments for sustainability of staff, for clarification of experience, and also for literal helping people not burn out. Because when God shows up, all hell and heaven break loose. And and maybe I’ll just throw this out quickly too.Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson — We should never forget that a lot of people dismiss revival-like environments because a lot of things are done wrong. And that’s a horrific starting point. Actually, that’s true in all of this.Jon Thompson — So we forget that, you know, I don’t know if I said this on this pod one of this one of these episodes, but we forget that that that Moses went up the mountain. The people were looking at the physical Shekinah glory of God. And while God was present in the most magnificent of way, they still built the golden calf in real time while they’re looking at him.Rich Birch — Right.Jon Thompson — So anytime there’s a significant move of God, the devil is in the room, the flesh is in the room, and God’s in the room at the same time. If you think God’s just going to be in the room, you’re going to end up dismissing much of what he’s done.Rich Birch — That’s so good. Talk about, you kind of you breezed over this, but I think it’s an important piece of the puzzle—the connection between repentance and revival, you know, and how repentance fits into the overall picture. The reason why I asked that, I don’t know, a year ago, I was at an event where a bunch of leaders were there and there was a Gen Z leader who has been involved in some stuff that’s been going on. And led like a public confession experience with the leaders that were there. And he was challenging us around you know, basically the question was like, well, why why is why repentance? Why is that such a big deal? Rich Birch — And this leader, which I loved, you know, was like, Well, hasn’t that isn’t that always the way? Like isn’t that what isn’t that what this is about? Like aren’t we aren’t we shouldn’t repentance be a part of the transformation of Jesus in in our lives like that? How can you separate those two? And I was like, oh yeah, right. Rich Birch — But I think that that… issue could be the fear you know you’ve mentioned talked about fear a little bit could be a part of the fear that’s in many leaders lives today. Jon Thompson — Yeah. Rich Birch — It’s like man, I’m not sure I want to engage that. Unpack that. Jon Thompson — Yeah, so I’ll I’ll I’ll do it like this. The language we’ve come up with, because I always find that categories are helpful for translation and expectations. So we always talk about renewal as the recovery of first love in an individual’s life.Jon Thompson — Revival is a sovereign act of God that he initiates and he ends. Awakening is when mass conversions take place out of a revival. What you’re talking about is probably the renewal category even more than the revival. Rich Birch — That’s good. Jon Thompson — Revival people tend to mush everything together, which is never helpful.Rich Birch — Yes.Jon Thompson — And it really bothers me.Rich Birch — Yeah. That’s good.Jon Thompson — So and I’m friends with lots of the people. Rich Birch — Yeah, yeah. That’s good. Jon Thompson — So I keep helping I keep saying, please, please help us. Rich Birch — Yes. Jon Thompson — So here’ here’s what I would say about you know repentance. Yes, of course, it’s always part of the thing. Of course it is. And It’s a fascinating reflection when we look at Adam and Eve. The very first thing that Adam and Eve did when they sinned is they hid. So hiddenness is the first sign of trouble. Then they tried fashioning something to cover their hiddenness. Then, of course, God comes and finds them, exposes them and gives them a better, of course, covering. Jon Thompson — Why this matters is this gets back to the love and trust thing. Lots of us are comfortable with Jesus at the wedding of Cana. Most of us are not okay with Jesus glorified at the Mount of Transfiguration. Or actually the encounter between Jesus and John in Revelation 1. Jon Thompson — And so I think a lot of times as leaders, and and let me just say this boldly too, your people will not go beyond you. You are Moses to your movement. And so I think saying to the Lord, you know, I’m open to what you would say to me, good or bad. And would you help me be in a position where I would want to repent. Jon Thompson — And I think this is okay to say. Regularly, I pray that the Holy Spirit would give me desires I don’t have. Because I don’t have lots of desires for repentance or you know. Rich Birch — Right, right. That’s good.Jon Thompson — So I think for leaders listening, whether God decides sovereignly to bring revival to your church or awakening to your area is not the starting point. That’s actually a sovereign decision. And in in the book, I talk about how I’m really concerned these days that everyone’s saying revival’s coming, revival’s coming. I’m like, actually, the Bible says revival’s not guaranteed. You have to ask if he’s decided to come. If he says, yes, you pray back the prayers, then all Heaven and hell breaks out.Jon Thompson — But if he doesn’t do that, in other words, if summer doesn’t come and you’re stuck in winter you still have to be involved in common faithfulness, including no hiddenness as a leader. And so anyone listening, I would just encourage you to trust the goodness of the God you continually tell others to trust in.Jon Thompson — I was writing a section. yesterday for a sermon I’m doing out of Mark where, you know, Martha is serving in Lazarus’s house and Mary takes the nard and smashes it on Jesus’s feet. And Judas gets really pissed off and says, how dare you do this? Jon Thompson —  And I was reflecting on how her—everyone ready, system leaders?—her uncontrolled, embarrassing, inappropriate public activity exposed his double life. And so I just want to challenge everyone that when genuine encounter starts happening, systems are not the enemy, but it will expose double lives.Rich Birch — So good, Jon, this is I feel like we could go for so long about these things. And I’m always got I got a page of notes here and other questions I’d love to ask you. But this is super helpful.Rich Birch — So the thing for folks that haven’t been tracking along, you’ve been writing a number of books.Jon Thompson — Yeah.Rich Birch — And that, you know, and they they hang together as a bit of a the thing you’re tricking people into is it’s like they think it’s one book, but really it’s like it’s like a Tolkien, more than trilogy. Kind of talk to us how these all fit together. At least that’s how I see them. I see them as like, it’s kind of one continuous conversation around the similar kind of stuff. How does Presence, this current work, fit in the context of the other stuff that you’re working on?Jon Thompson — Sure. You are right about the conspiracy. And I’ll take I’ll take the Tolkien nod.Rich Birch — Yes, I figured you’d like that.Jon Thompson — That’s very kind of you, because I don’t deserve it. I only quote him once in all my books, though. So the only once for one section.Rich Birch — Oh nice. Yes.Jon Thompson — ah Yeah, here’s how I would say it. Convergence is the is the story and the theology of how we wrestled down love, word, and power from the gift side of things. How it was implemented. How we move, basically what is the theology thing what is it what does it feel like, how do you actually build house rules around it, all the good and bad that happened with it, and then tells the story of the renewal and revival we went through, and how we survived it. So that’s book one.Jon Thompson — Book two, well, it’s not really book two anymore, but I’ll do it like this. Deliverance, which comes out in February, is a 25-plus year theological and practical experience of how we dealt with the demonic.Jon Thompson — Perseverance, book three, which is still out which will disappear soon, is all my reflections at the midway point on survivability, because you and I have talked about this before, only 30% of leaders in the Bible end well; 70% fail. The stats have not changed. So there’s a lot of the first two things involved in this. Jon Thompson — This book Presence is talking honestly about retreat and revival, talking about incarnation and why multiple models of church that feeling contradiction to each other is the point. That’s always been the point, which again, for a lot of you as admin leaders, I’d really beg you to read this, not because it’s my book. Because a lot of the battles between churches is a misunderstanding of mission. Jon Thompson — And then I talk about how love, word, and power are employed evangelistically, and then walk again through revival and how you can ask for it and what you do if He says yes or no. But the majority of the book is actually on long-term witness to a very diverse, complicated world.Rich Birch — Yeah, so good.Jon Thompson — That’s the trellis.Rich Birch — Yeah.Jon Thompson —  And the book I’m writing right now is on suffering, but we’re not there yet.Rich Birch — Yeah, so good. Friends, I would strongly encourage you, you know, listen, I’ve had multiple friends, multiple teams who have just been incredibly blessed by by Jon’s work and has challenged and done the best kind of disruptive work that this kind of thinking can do. And so i would strongly endorse uh you know that you pick up copies of Presence for your team. Rich Birch — This could be a great um you know resource to work through with your leaders and ask the question all the time. So what does that mean for us? What does that mean for us? What does that mean for us? Don’t just let these be ideas in your head, but something you can really wrestle with. Rich Birch — Where do we want to send people to pick up, you know, to get copies and all that stuff. I’m assuming you can get them on Amazon, but are there other places we want to let people know about?Jon Thompson — Yeah, so Amazon, of course, is easy for all of us these days. But jonthompsonresources.com has it too. J-O-N. Jon Thompson Resources will have all of that. Like I said, Convergence is out. Presence comes out September 22nd. Deliverance is re-released in February 2027. And Perseverance is available now and will disappear and then we’ll come back…Rich Birch — It’s like the Disney vault.Jon Thompson — …sooner than later. It is like, it’s like the Disney. Yes, it is like the Disney vault.Rich Birch — That’s a throwback to the, the you know for people of a certain age, we’ll get that. And Gen Z friends will be like, what? What are you talking about? Rich Birch — Well, Jon, I just also want to just publicly honor you. You’re you’re doing a fantastic job. Like it’s been fun to watch over the years, your continued leadership and the positive impact you’ve been having and the community that you have stewarded. And you know I can’t I love when you know more people get a chance to interact with you. So thanks so much for being here on the show today. Appreciate your time with us. Thank you.Jon Thompson — Yeah, thanks for your friendship and your prayers. 

Are you on a mission in life? Maybe you have several missions you want to accomplish in your time here on earth. But Pastor Lucas challenges Sanctus Church in this next phase to engage in this world just as God has called us to. We are meant to be proclaiming the love of Jesus to the rest of the world, so there is a rich Kingdom harvest! Come join the mission!   Speakers: Lucas Prado Publication: April 26, 2026

Jon continues our series on Jubilee. He walks us through how Satan uses deception to enslave us, and invites us to ask God to free us. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, Canada.

Are you on a mission in life? Maybe you have several missions you want to accomplish in your time here on earth. But Lucas challenges Sanctus Church in this next phase to engage in this world just as God has called us to. We are meant to be proclaiming the love of Jesus to the rest of the world, so there is a rich Kingdom harvest! Come join the mission!

Do you find prayer difficult? You're not alone. Pastor Jon kicks off the first full sermon series of Plan 3 by looking at the existing culture of prayer in Sanctus Church, and outlining where we want to develop it next. He digs into what prayer itself can look like, and how we will develop our gifts and disciplines to become people who pray without ceasing in a Kingdom way.

Do you find prayer difficult? You're not alone. Pastor Jon kicks off the first teaching of Plan 3 by looking at the existing culture of prayer in Sanctus Church, and outlining where we want to develop it next. He digs into what prayer itself can look like, and how we will develop our gifts and disciplines to become people who pray without ceasing in a Kingdom way.

In this milestone episode, Jon Thompson—Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, global speaker, and author of "Convergence," "Deliverance," and "Perseverance"—shares wisdom from nearly three decades in ministry. Jon explores the sobering reality that only 30% of biblical leaders finish well, explains four types of vocational calling, and reveals why clarity on calling and spiritual gifts is essential for endurance. He also shares personal stories of wrestling with discontent, embracing God's “No,” and fostering unity in a divided age.In this episode:+Clarity of calling is your lifeline on the hardest days.+God calls in four ways—dramatic, family, gifts, and community.+Spiritual gifts fuel endurance; self-reliance leads to burnout.+Embrace God's “No” to avoid disappointment and jealousy.+Disunity destroys mission—pray for other churches, not fight them.+Stay focused—our cultural moment demands unity and perseverance.Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for 27 years. Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon speaks and teaches globally on spiritual conflict, spiritual gifts, spiritual practices & spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church. He also speaks on pastoral leadership and long-term ministry experiences. Jon is husband to Joanna and father to three teenagers –Hannah, Emma, and Noah.To learn more about Jon Thompson, please visit https://jonthompsonresources.com/.To learn more about Sanctus Church, please visit https://sanctuschurch.com/. Join The Sowers Community: https://join.thesowerspod.ca/

Join us as Pastor Jon and Pastor Lucas step through the details of Plan 3! Learn how we are aiming to grow in discipleship both within Sanctus Church and by expanding the reach of the Good News of Jesus in our communities and beyond! It's an exciting week you won't want to miss! Speaker: Jon Thompson and Lucas Prado Publication: December 7, 2025

Join us as Pastor Jon and Pastor Lucas step through the details of Plan 3! Learn how we are aiming to grow in discipleship both within Sanctus Church and by expanding the reach of the Good News of Jesus in our communities and beyond! It's an exciting week you won't want to miss!

What is Sanctus Church's role in God's Kingdom? Join us for another Vision Sunday where Jon refreshes our vision of what church is meant to look like, what discipleship is, where we have guaranteed places of encounter with God, and how this directs the future of Sanctus Church. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: November 23, 2025

What is Sanctus Church's role in God's Kingdom? Join us for another Vision Sunday where Jon refreshes our vision of what church is meant to look like, what discipleship is, where we have guaranteed places of encounter with God, and how this directs the future of Sanctus Church.

Unlock Biblical Deliverance: Get biblical answers & practical strategies for deliverance with Pastor Jonathan Thompson and the Remnant Team!This week on Remnant Radio, we're discussing deliverance ministry with Pastor Jon Thompson, senior pastor of Sanctus Church and author of the bestselling book Deliverance! Join Joshua Lewis, Michael Rowntree, and Michael Miller as they unpack how to practice biblical deliverance in today's church. Learn practical insights on spiritual warfare, confronting evil, and fostering freedom in Christ from seasoned practitioners!ABOUT THE GUEST:BOOK https://a.co/d/d15Rw9oSubscribe to The Remnant Radio newsletter and receive our FREE introduction to spiritual gifts eBook. Plus, get access to: discounts, news about upcoming shows, courses and conferences - and more. Subscribe now at TheRemnantRadio.com.Support the showABOUT THE REMNANT RADIO:

Pastor Jon Thompson of Sanctus Church joins us for a conversation on what it really means to be a witness in today's world. From practicing radical hospitality to understanding spiritual gifts, Jon shares how Spirit, word, power, and mission converge to shape the church. This episode will challenge how you see community, theology, and the supernatural working together. Learn more about Jon: https://jonthompsonresources.com/Learn more about There is More: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://thereismorecollective.com/Check Out Our Resources, including the Father's House Study, Go to Girls, and the Spiritual Warfare Workshop: https://thereismorecollective.com/resourcesGet 10% discount on Father's House Study with code: FH10Follow There is More Podcast on Instagram: @thereismorepodcastPartner With Us: ⁠⁠https://neveralonewidows.kindful.com/?campaign=1284937⁠



Pastor Jon takes a pause moment to look at the next ministry year ahead of Sanctus Church. He starts by looking at what we covered last year during our hinge moment, and sets the stage for the next steps we will take as a church.

Join guest speaker Jon Thompson as he speaks at our Hackney 11:30am service on Sunday 4th May 2025. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for 27 years. Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon speaks and teaches globally on spiritual conflict, spiritual gifts, spiritual practices & spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church. He also speaks on pastoral leadership and long-term ministry experiences. He is the Author of Convergence, Deliverance and Perseverance. Jon is husband to Joanna and father to three teenagers - Hannah, Emma, and Noah. Head to SAINT.CHURCH to find out more about what we've got going on as a church!

Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area and online where he has served for 25 years. He joins us to give us his unique perspective on deliverance, freedom, and what the Church is supposed to be doing. Learn more about Jon: https://jonthompsonresources.com/Widow's Might on Amazon: https://a.co/d/iaXVJV1Support There is More: ⁠https://neveralonewidows.kindful.com/?campaign=1284937⁠Get 10% discount on Father's House Study with code: FH10Get the Father's House Study: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.fathershousestudy.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get the Spiritual Warfare Course: https://www.thereismoreforyou.org/Follow There is More Podcast on Instagram: @thereismorepodcast

Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area and online where he has served for 25 years. He joins us to give us his unique perspective on deliverance, freedom, and what the Church is supposed to be doing. Learn more about Jon: https://jonthompsonresources.com/Widow's Might on Amazon: https://a.co/d/iaXVJV1Support There is More: https://neveralonewidows.kindful.com/?campaign=1284937Get 10% discount on Father's House Study with code: FH10Get the Father's House Study: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.fathershousestudy.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Get the Spiritual Warfare Course: https://www.thereismoreforyou.org/Follow There is More Podcast on Instagram: @thereismorepodcast

Alpha is an incredible evangelism tool that Sanctus uses for witnessing to both young and old alike. This week, Pastors Jon and Robin tell us more about updates to the Alpha program as well as the upcoming Alpha sessions at Sanctus Church.

Alpha is an incredible evangelism tool that Sanctus uses for witnessing to both young and old alike. This week, Pastors Jon and Robin tell us more about updates to the Alpha program as well as the upcoming Alpha sessions at Sanctus Church. Speaker: Jon Thompson and Robin Djokoto Publication: December 8, 2024

Have questions about demons and forces of evil? Have questions about the occult and new age spirituality? Jeff sits down with Jon Thompson, seminary professor who teaches on warfare, for a conversation about evil, demonology, satan, and how the forces of evil can be at work in your daily life, and most importantly how to live in freedom. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church — a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area and online — where he has served for 27 years. He holds a Master of Theological studies from Tyndale Seminary and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary. Passionate about engaging seekers, skeptics, and believers about the Christian faith, Jon has authored three best-selling books: Convergence, Deliverance, and Perseverance.

Our 2024 Strong Conference featured Jon Thompson from Sanctus Church. He led us through his work on Convergence, Deliverance, and Perseverance, explicitly inviting the Holy Spirit into our fears. While the conference was for men, you will be blessed and equipped to follow Jesus better while living in contested space as a follower of Jesus. You can purchase any of Jon's books, such as Convergence, Deliverance, or Perseverance.

Our 2024 Strong Conference featured Jon Thompson from Sanctus Church. He led us through his work on Convergence, Deliverance, and Perseverance, explicitly inviting the Holy Spirit into our fears. While the conference was for men, you will be blessed and equipped to follow Jesus better while living in contested space as a follower of Jesus. You can purchase any of Jon's books, such as Convergence, Deliverance, or Perseverance.

Our 2024 Strong Conference featured Jon Thompson from Sanctus Church. He led us through his work on Convergence, Deliverance, and Perseverance, explicitly inviting the Holy Spirit into our fears. While the conference was for men, you will be blessed and equipped to follow Jesus better while living in contested space as a follower of Jesus. You can purchase any of Jon's books, such as Convergence, Deliverance, or Perseverance.

In this episode of the Craft & Character podcast, Steve Carter interviews Pastor Jon Thompson from Sanctus Church in Toronto, Canada about the importance of perseverance in pastoral ministry. Jon is one of Canada's most thoughtful and insightful shepherds and he shares about a book he wrote that unpacks 15 different observations at the halfway point about how to finish well. Bobby Clinton, the legendary Fuller Professor once said only 30% of leaders finish well. How do you become one of the 30%? Reading and mediating on Pastor Thompson's observations are definitely a gift for those starting out in ministry, at the midway point, or closing in on the finish line. BIO Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church – a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area and online – where he has served for 25 years. He holds a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary. After spending his childhood in Ecuador with his missionary parents, Jon began his ministry as the Youth Pastor before assuming his current role as Senior Pastor at Sanctus Church. Jon is married to Joanna and has three kids. EPISODE LINKS https://jonthompsonresources.com @pastorjon_t on Instagram @steveryancarter @craft_character Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Building on last week's description of our current time as a hinge moment for Sanctus Church, Pastor Jon furthers the illustration to explore how we need to trust Jesus to use us as He wills. 

Building on last week's description of our current time as a hinge moment for Sanctus Church, Pastor Jon furthers the illustration to explore how we need to trust Jesus to use us as He wills.  Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: September 15, 2024

Welcome to the start of our ministry year! Join Pastor Jon as he refreshes our understanding of the vision for Sanctus Church for the fall of 2024.

Welcome to the start of our ministry year! Join Pastor Jon as he refreshes our understanding of the vision for Sanctus Church for the fall of 2024. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: September 8, 2024 Select music provided by https://www.soundstripe.com Building Legacies - Cody Martin: ZJ7BYITH9PVH2XCQ

In recognition of our Ajax site's 25th anniversary, Jon takes time to look at the past, present, and future of Sanctus Church's journey.

In recognition of our Ajax site's 25th anniversary, Jon takes time to look at the past, present, and future of Sanctus Church's journey. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: June 2, 2024 Select music provided by https://www.soundstripe.com Building Legacies - Cody Martin: ZJ7BYITH9PVH2XCQ

In this episode, Matt is joined by Pastor Jon Thompson of Sanctus Church in the Durham Region of Ontario.   Matt and Jon discuss the background and foundation of Sanctus' restoration prayer ministry, as well as the process for developing a spiritual theology to interpret spiritual experience from a biblical worldview.Jon joined Sanctus Church as a teenager after returning to Canada from his childhood years in Ecuador as the only child of missionary parents. He was hired on as the Youth Pastor before assuming his current role on the Pastoral Lead Team. When not immersed in leadership, prayer, and theology textbooks, Jon's most important roles include husband to his wife Joanna and father to three kids – Hannah, Emma, and Noah. As a family they are fond of great Thai food, strong coffee, the latest technology gadgets, trips to the East Coast, concerts, and Netflix.To learn more and signup for Sanctus' Restoration Prayer Conference, please visit https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/restoration-prayer-conference-tickets-838953611837?aff=rebrandly. 

Join Jon Thompson as he speaks at our Hackney 11am service on Sunday 5th May 2024. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church — a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area and online — where he has served for over 26 years. He holds a Master of Theological studies from Tyndale Seminary and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary.

The world is more interconnected than ever before and as a church, how we engage in local and global missions is growing in complexity.  In this week's episode of the podcast, Pastor Jon is conversing with Pastor Angela, discussing how Sanctus Church has navigated the changing missional climate and the systems and processes that have (and haven't) worked along the way.

Sanctus Church is located in one of the most multi-cultural centres of the world, the Greater Toronto Area. What does that mean for a Christian looking to share the Gospel? Pastor Jon looks to Acts and uses Paul's behaviour in Athens as a model for us in the modern era.

Sanctus Church is located in one of the most multi-cultural centres of the world, the Greater Toronto Area. What does that mean for a Christian looking to share the Gospel? Pastor Jon looks to Acts and uses Paul's behaviour in Athens as a model for us in the modern era. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: March 3, 2024 The Book of Acts - Week 17 (Table Talk) https://youtu.be/L3CEjaQOAzo

Listen to Lorie Hartshorn, an acclaimed international speaker, author, and Bible teacher being interviewed by Joanna la Fleur. Lorie recently left her role as co-host of the 700 Club Canada, and finished her new book entitled, Found - which is about identity, and how to find our true identity in Christ. She inspires us to take up the call to live out our true identity and true authority as children of God - to live with greater purpose and power and be a clear reflection of God in the world. ---Learn more about the Canadian Bible Society: biblesociety.ca Help people hear God speak: biblesociety.ca/donate Connect with us on Instagram: @canadianbiblesociety Whether you're well-versed in Scripture or just starting out on your journey, The Bible Course offers a superb overview of the world's best-selling book.  This eight-session course will help you grow in your understanding of the Bible. Watch the first session of The Bible Course and learn more at biblecourse.ca.  --- Lorie Hartshorn is an acclaimed international speaker, author, and Bible teacher and a beacon of warmth and inspiration in her role for the last 5 years as co-host of The 700 Club Canada daily TV show. With a passion for making Jesus known and empowering individuals to fulfill their God-given potential, Lorie's journey reflects a commitment to spiritual growth and leadership. Having dedicated 21 years to education, Lorie brings a wealth of experience as a teacher. She further honed her leadership skills as the Director of Advancement for EQUIP Leadership Canada, founded by Dr. John C. Maxwell, where she contributed to training leaders globally. Lorie holds a Master's Degree in Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary. Her dedication to fostering a sense of community was evident in her role as the pastor of Adult Ministries at Sanctus Church, where she oversaw the Small Group Ministry, fostering connections and spiritual growth within the congregation. Beyond her professional pursuits, Lorie finds joy in cottage life, meaningful conversations, and the richness of community.Learn more about Lorie Hartshorn: loriehartshorn.com

To be a true reflection of God now, a true mirror, an image bearer of God now, in the world now, and to actually share in His purpose as an ambassador, a reflection of God. 2 Corinthians 5: 17 - 21 is a key Scripture in this book that you're brand new, you're not sort of new, you're not that old self, you don't define yourself by that old man, that old nature, that old sin. You have a brand-new nature, you're a brand-new person in Christ, and you have, you get to share in His purpose and walk in His authority right now. And that's the clarion call in this book, is that everything that was lost in the garden has been found in Jesus. Will you take it up? Will you live out of the truth of all that's been found for you, and live with meaning and purpose and power in your life? Because that's where you find your true identity. It's all found in Jesus.---Listen to Lorie Hartshorn, an acclaimed international speaker, author, and Bible teacher being interviewed by Joanna la Fleur. Lorie recently left her role as co-host of The 700 Club Canada, and finished her new book entitled, Found - which is about identity, and how to find our true identity in Christ. She inspires us to take up the call to live out our true identity and true authority as children of God - to live with greater purpose and power and be a clear reflection of God in the world.Lorie Hartshorn is an acclaimed international speaker, author, and Bible teacher and a beacon of warmth and inspiration in her role for the last 5 years as co-host of The 700 Club Canada daily TV show. With a passion for making Jesus known and empowering individuals to fulfill their God-given potential, Lorie's journey reflects a commitment to spiritual growth and leadership.Having dedicated 21 years to education, Lorie brings a wealth of experience as a teacher. She further honed her leadership skills as the Director of Advancement for EQUIP Leadership Canada, founded by Dr. John C. Maxwell, where she contributed to training leaders globally.Lorie holds a master's degree in theological studies from Tyndale Seminary. Her dedication to fostering a sense of community was evident in her role as the pastor of Adult Ministries at Sanctus Church, where she oversaw the Small Group Ministry, fostering connections and spiritual growth within the congregation.Beyond her professional pursuits, Lorie finds joy in cottage life, meaningful conversations, and the richness of community.Learn more about Lorie Hartshorn: loriehartshorn.com

Welcome back to the unSeminary podcast. We're talking with Jon Thompson, the lead pastor at Sanctus Church in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Being a Christian leader is a marathon, not a sprint. In the middle of the social media and the politics and the pressures and the fear and the questions, we can be tempted to […]

Matt is joined by Jim DeMarsh and Mark Strickland of Milton Bible Church (MBC) to talk about leading a church to emphasize both the ministry of the word and ministry of the Holy Spirit.  Jim shares the history of MBC and why things needed to change.  Mark then shares about his history at MBC, leaving and then returning as the new lead pastor. Jim and Mark share practical tools of how to transition a church towards word and Spirit and some of the pain points along the way.  To attend a Spiritual Gifts Discovery Class, hosted by MBC on Saturday, March 2nd, please visit https://www.miltonbiblechurch.ca/spiritualgiftsclass.  Mark is also planning on doing a teaching series on the Holy Spirit around that time as well.  Past and current messages from MBC, can be viewed at https://www.miltonbiblechurch.ca/pastmessages. If you want to learn more about becoming a word & Spirit church, you can checkout the following books and resources:The Beginner's Guide to Spiritual Gifts by Sam StormsPracticing the Power: Welcoming the Gifts of the Holy Spirit in Your Life by Sam StormsThe Spirit-Filled Church: Finding Your Place in God's Purpose by Terry Virgo Joy Unspeakable: Power & Renewal in the Holy Spirit by Martin Lloyd-JonesHoly Fire: A Balanced, Biblical Look at the Holy Spirit's Work in Our Lives by R.T. KendallSpiritual Gifts Teaching Series by Jon Thompson of Sanctus Church

When did you first start attending what we now call Sanctus Church? Pastor Jon refreshes our vision of Sanctus, detailing the common faithfulness we hold with all other Christians and the unique assignment or calling that has been given to Sanctus Church. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: May 28, 2023 

When did you first start attending what we now call Sanctus Church? Pastor Jon refreshes our vision of Sanctus, detailing the common faithfulness we hold with all other Christians and the unique assignment or calling that has been given to Sanctus Church.

When did you first start attending what we now call Sanctus Church? Pastor Jon refreshes our vision of Sanctus, detailing the common faithfulness we hold with all other Christians and the unique assignment or calling that has been given to Sanctus Church. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: May 28, 2023

Welcome to a special Palm Saturday celebration for Sanctus Church. Held at The River in south Whitby, Ontario, Palm Saturday was extra special as it brought all of Sanctus's sites together under one roof to worship our amazing God and listen to the Word brought by Jon Thompson.

Jesus has delegated authority to the Church. In Matthew's gospel, Jesus tells Peter “…you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven…” (Matthew 16:18-19).In the last episode we began the discussion with a broad view of the Church's authority to proclaim the gospel and advance the kingdom of God, and over Satan and his domain. In this episode, the conversation continues specifically looking at the different types of authority that individual believers are given. Pastor Jon Thompson of Sanctus Church in Ajax Ontario provided a helpful perspective on this suggesting three types of authority: common authority, gift-based authority and positional authority.    Join me as we dive deeper  into understanding  common-authority, gift-based authority and positional authority including the leadership roles of elders and deacons within the Chuch.  

Join us as we celebrate on the eve of Christmas -- when we remember the Light of the World coming down to make the crooked things straight, the dark places light, and offer the joy and consolation we need all year long. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 24, 2022

Join us as we celebrate on the eve of Christmas -- when we remember the Light of the World coming down to make the crooked things straight, the dark places light, and offer the joy and consolation we need all year long.

Join us as we celebrate on the eve of Christmas -- when we remember the Light of the World coming down to make the crooked things straight, the dark places light, and offer the joy and consolation we need all year long. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 24, 2022

Kids are great at knowing how to be excited about what's coming next. Eager anticipation -- if not patience -- is usually pretty easy for them. Pastor Jon takes a look at Simeon and Anna as they waited for the long-promised Messiah. He uses them as our examples to keep going as we wait for our return to our true home with Jesus Christ.   Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 18, 2022

Kids are great at knowing how to be excited about what's coming next. Eager anticipation -- if not patience -- is usually pretty easy for them. Pastor Jon takes a look at Simeon and Anna as they waited for the long-promised Messiah. He uses them as our examples to keep going as we wait for our return to our true home with Jesus Christ.  

Kids are great at knowing how to be excited about what's coming next. Eager anticipation -- if not patience -- is usually pretty easy for them. Pastor Jon takes a look at Simeon and Anna as they waited for the long-promised Messiah. He uses them as our examples to keep going as we wait for our return to our true home with Jesus Christ.   Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 18, 2022

We've all become so accustomed to the Christmas songs that play over and over in shops, in movies, on the radio -- pretty much everywhere during the Christmas season. This week, Pastor Jon takes a close look at the Christmas hymn "Joy to the World" and how it illuminates what scripture has to say about the joy of Advent.

We've all become so accustomed to the Christmas songs that play over and over in shops, in movies, on the radio -- pretty much everywhere during the Christmas season. This week, Pastor Jon takes a close look at the Christmas hymn "Joy to the World" and how it illuminates what scripture has to say about the joy of Advent. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 11, 2022  

We've all become so accustomed to the Christmas songs that play over and over in shops, in movies, on the radio -- pretty much everywhere during the Christmas season. This week, Pastor Jon takes a close look at the Christmas hymn "Joy to the World" and how it illuminates what scripture has to say about the joy of Advent. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 11, 2022

The Christmas story can feel so incredible that we can forget it isn't just a fairy tale - it actually came true! It is the most wonderful reality that Jesus was delivered to us, and that He alone can free us from our sins. Pastor Jon spends this second week of Advent looking at the prophecies around Jesus's birth and how waiting can be a gift in itself. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 4, 2022

The Christmas story can feel so incredible that we can forget it isn't just a fairy tale - it actually came true! It is the most wonderful reality that Jesus was delivered to us, and that He alone can free us from our sins. Pastor Jon spends this second week of Advent looking at the prophecies around Jesus's birth and how waiting can be a gift in itself.

The Christmas story can feel so incredible that we can forget it isn't just a fairy tale - it actually came true! It is the most wonderful reality that Jesus was delivered to us, and that He alone can free us from our sins. Pastor Jon spends this second week of Advent looking at the prophecies around Jesus's birth and how waiting can be a gift in itself. Speaker: Jon Thompson Publication: December 4, 2022

Today's guest is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, Rev. Dr. Jon Thompson and we will be discussing how he approaches Scripture as someone who is known for his preaching. What is the difference between preparing Scripture to teach versus for our own personal reading? In this episode we also discuss how to untangle difficult passages for ourselves, and what to do when we change our minds, or disagree with other Christians on a theological issue.Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area (formerly called C4 Church or Carruthers Creek) where he has been an integral part of the pastoral staff for more than 20 years. Under Jon's leadership, Sanctus is characterized by dynamic Biblical teaching, vibrant community groups, compelling media, and powerful times in worship.Jon speaks and teaches globally and has authored a number of books including Convergence. He has a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California and is an adjunct professor at Tyndale University. Jon is husband to Joanna Eaton Thompson and father to three kids. As a family they are fond of great Thai food, strong coffee, the latest technology gadgets, trips to the East Coast, concerts, and Netflix.---Learn more about the Canadian Bible Society: biblesociety.caConnect with us on Instagram: @canadianbiblesocietyWhether you're well versed in Scripture or just starting out on your journey, The Bible Course offers a superb overview of the world's best-selling book.  This eight-session course will help you grow in your understanding of the Bible. Watch the first session of The Bible Course and learn more at biblecourse.ca. Give to the Canadian Bible Society: biblesociety.ca/donate---Learn more about Jon Thompson:Church: sanctuschurch.com/ourstaffBook: thrivewithconvergence.com/aboutInstagram: @pastorjon_t

Pastor Sam and Pastor Jon take some time to talk about what rebuilding and regrouping really look like on the ground in the coming year. In a post-pandemic world, so much is up in the air. What will the church look like in this new digital-physical space? Though we don't have all the answers, there are some key steps to move forward as a church in this new world.

Pastor Sam and Pastor Jon take some time to talk about what rebuilding and regrouping really look like on the ground in the coming year. In a post-pandemic world, so much is up in the air. What will the church look like in this new digital-physical space? Though we don't have all the answers, there are some key steps to move forward as a church in this new world. Publication Date: June 19, 2022 Speakers: Samuel Mills and Jon Thompson

Pastor Sam and Pastor Jon take some time to talk about what rebuilding and regrouping really look like on the ground in the coming year. In a post-pandemic world, so much is up in the air. What will the church look like in this new digital-physical space? Though we don't have all the answers, there are some key steps to move forward as a church in this new world. Publication Date: June 19, 2022 Speakers: Samuel Mills and Jon Thompson

Why does Sanctus Church exist? Why do all we do? We need to be vividly reminded of Jesus's direction for us as we consider what we are and what we want our future to still look like. Publication date: June 12, 2022 Speaker name: Jon Thompson  

Why does Sanctus Church exist? Why do all that we do? We need to be vividly reminded of Jesus's direction for us as we consider what we are and what we want our future to still look like. Date: June 12, 2022 Speaker: Jon Thompson

Why does Sanctus Church exist? Why do all that we do? We need to be vividly reminded of Jesus's direction for us as we consider what we are and what we want our future to still look like.

This episode of Spirit + Truth features Lee M. Cummings and Jon Thompson (Author & Senior Pastor at Sanctus Church) discussing deliverance from demonic spirits. Can Christians be demon-possessed? What are indicators in a person's life that there is demonic control? Listen now to hear the interview!

Spiritual warfare. William Gurnall says that all Christians are in the battle whether they realize it or not, and that the war is so serious that it makes the cruelest battle between human armies seem like child's play. -But what is spiritual warfare, anyway? -Why has it been neglected by some branches of Christianity in more recent times? -Who is our enemy? -Isn't the New Testament just “out of date” on some of this stuff? -Does “possession” still happen? -How should we think about the “armour of God” in Ephesians 6? -How do we win the battle? This episode of The Word at Westminster is a talk Pastor Ruttan had with Jon Thompson. And yes, we talk about all those questions. Jon's work and experience in this area isn't just academic. He has been in hundreds of situations where the demonic has been present. Let us tell you a bit more about our guest. Jon is the author of Deliverance and the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. He has a Masters of Theological Studies degree from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. He speaks and teaches globally on the convergence of spiritual gifts, spiritual practices, and spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church. You can listen to the audio version of our talk here or wherever you listen to podcasts (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Stitcher). You can link to a video of the talk on YouTube here. Beneath, you will also find links to Jon's books and the resources he mentioned, as well as a list of more specific topics and quotes from the interview itself. We hope... Read More

Can Christians be demon possessed? In this conversation with Jon Thompson, we talk about the difference between oppression, possession and demonization, spiritual gifts, and living in the midst of a renewed pagan cultural moment. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. Jon has a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary. He is the author of Deliverance: A Journey Toward the Unexpected and Convergence: Why Jesus needs to be more than our Lord and Savior for the church to thrive in a post-Christian world. Deliverance: https://www.experiencedeliverance.com/ (https://www.experiencedeliverance.com/) Convergence: https://www.thrivewithconvergence.com/ (https://www.thrivewithconvergence.com/) Find complete show notes & links on our site www.vast.faith. Instagram: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbkp1UjdmQmp3d3Z3UW9naTROREtjTVBWajJrQXxBQ3Jtc0tuWVY3YmRrUzA2VGJMalR4NDZ0R2VxOUhtWDZaekh6NUR1d2tSYVdiZ194SjFhb1VLdGtRTWZqZzRiX2Y2RDFIcGhkeXk0X3V5MnlUT0Ffc1pSRm1NNVZmX0k4Tlpob3FfbWc3clU5QWhsZlFiQm1Oaw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fvastfaith%2F (https://www.instagram.com/vastfaith/) Twitter: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqblB5cnBFbFhwZUtxeHFESEhFNG9qQ0pQVEJkZ3xBQ3Jtc0ttR1BYY3BuVGttdFRFeUhiZFdnQXN1cUJNOENmTHhBS0FrTVlseVZZMU1jMEh2aUNvNVNYTmJWSk9hQ3NpaHZJTmY1cHM5QUY0d0hyRXJrUzY5Z2hhUHJqcEJqWE1WSzZOd2lVdTB0YUctUFBmeU50QQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FVastFaith (https://twitter.com/VastFaith) Follow Jake: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbU5ic0R1NlNaZ1huSXlZNzVsMExhYkxia3FKQXxBQ3Jtc0tud1ozeDZUemtWZzdqcnRTVVNNMjlCT2p2TmRfalFIZW9rWkh5S3lJamFTR3ZxenlhYmVvZzFINTFmbUE5VUhPM1Q2MnpVUDcwQjd1UWl0VmZLcndBQXBtV0dJd2drY0tuU09CT0s1Ym53bXQyalJxOA&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fjakesweetman (https://www.instagram.com/jakesweetman) Follow Michael: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbXduMXp2Rk13WGlGZ0NTNnFGeERxcXc1NXV2QXxBQ3Jtc0ttQ1JBSFZHV29ZU0lTSklHZ0FPaFJWVUlkQkJPRHhvTldCSm5VcXlnbURTMXJoRzE1Wm9Yb3ROTTlFYkVFNFlBQldPSHdVbGltelhDODVSOEFxc2U1RDM4eURjMUxjbVJWVkxsekhFeFVVYk9uanQyVQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fmichaelwhittle (https://www.instagram.com/michaelwhittle) Feel free to shoot us an email at mw@vast.faith with any feedback, recommendations, questions, or ideas for future topics of conversation.

Can Christians be demon possessed? In this conversation with Jon Thompson, we talk about the difference between oppression, possession and demonization, spiritual gifts, and living in the midst of a renewed pagan cultural moment. Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. Jon has a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary. He is the author of Deliverance: A Journey Toward the Unexpected and Convergence: Why Jesus needs to be more than our Lord and Savior for the church to thrive in a post-Christian world. Deliverance: https://www.experiencedeliverance.com/ (https://www.experiencedeliverance.com/) Convergence: https://www.thrivewithconvergence.com/ (https://www.thrivewithconvergence.com/) Find complete show notes & links on our site www.vast.faith. Instagram: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbkp1UjdmQmp3d3Z3UW9naTROREtjTVBWajJrQXxBQ3Jtc0tuWVY3YmRrUzA2VGJMalR4NDZ0R2VxOUhtWDZaekh6NUR1d2tSYVdiZ194SjFhb1VLdGtRTWZqZzRiX2Y2RDFIcGhkeXk0X3V5MnlUT0Ffc1pSRm1NNVZmX0k4Tlpob3FfbWc3clU5QWhsZlFiQm1Oaw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fvastfaith%2F (https://www.instagram.com/vastfaith/) Twitter: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqblB5cnBFbFhwZUtxeHFESEhFNG9qQ0pQVEJkZ3xBQ3Jtc0ttR1BYY3BuVGttdFRFeUhiZFdnQXN1cUJNOENmTHhBS0FrTVlseVZZMU1jMEh2aUNvNVNYTmJWSk9hQ3NpaHZJTmY1cHM5QUY0d0hyRXJrUzY5Z2hhUHJqcEJqWE1WSzZOd2lVdTB0YUctUFBmeU50QQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FVastFaith (https://twitter.com/VastFaith) Follow Jake: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbU5ic0R1NlNaZ1huSXlZNzVsMExhYkxia3FKQXxBQ3Jtc0tud1ozeDZUemtWZzdqcnRTVVNNMjlCT2p2TmRfalFIZW9rWkh5S3lJamFTR3ZxenlhYmVvZzFINTFmbUE5VUhPM1Q2MnpVUDcwQjd1UWl0VmZLcndBQXBtV0dJd2drY0tuU09CT0s1Ym53bXQyalJxOA&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fjakesweetman (https://www.instagram.com/jakesweetman) Follow Michael: https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbXduMXp2Rk13WGlGZ0NTNnFGeERxcXc1NXV2QXxBQ3Jtc0ttQ1JBSFZHV29ZU0lTSklHZ0FPaFJWVUlkQkJPRHhvTldCSm5VcXlnbURTMXJoRzE1Wm9Yb3ROTTlFYkVFNFlBQldPSHdVbGltelhDODVSOEFxc2U1RDM4eURjMUxjbVJWVkxsekhFeFVVYk9uanQyVQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fmichaelwhittle (https://www.instagram.com/michaelwhittle) Feel free to shoot us an email at mw@vast.faith with any feedback, recommendations, questions, or ideas for future topics of conversation.

Welcome to On the Path, a podcast filled to the brim with encouragement, inspiration, interviews & life lessons to ignite you in your faith, push you to your purpose and challenge you to be exactly who You are called by God to be...a world changer! Get into the classroom of life, as we talk about the things that matter most. Join host Cheryl Nembhard along with incredible Leaders as they share their raw thoughts, feelings & life stories of triumph, tragedy and the big lessons they've learned along the way!This week we're speaking with one of our favourite voices on 'On The Path',  Jon Thompson:  Author, Global Faith Leader and  Lead Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area . Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. In this 2 part special, we speak about:-The importance of Christmas and how we should be thinking about it during this season-Why the Christmas story is the launch of a Divine Master plan of Freedom for humanity.  - How you and I  can truly walk in lasting Freedom, Joy, Peace and Love- The incredible lessons he has learnt in his rock bottom moments- Jon's brand new book Deliverance, a theological and experiential journey in dealing with evil so people can be set free to live as Jesus promised.ONE OF THE MOST REFRESHING CONVERSATIONS I'VE HAD ON CHRISTMAS!!**Please vote for Cheryl for 'Top Podcaster 2021' here (daily voting ends on December 31st):  https://byblacks.com/vote/165-podcaster-2021

Welcome to On the Path, a podcast filled to the brim with encouragement, inspiration, interviews & life lessons to ignite you in your faith, push you to your purpose and challenge you to be exactly who You are called by God to be...a world changer! Get into the classroom of life, as we talk about the things that matter most. Join host Cheryl Nembhard along with incredible Leaders as they share their raw thoughts, feelings & life stories of triumph, tragedy and the big lessons they've learned along the way!This week we're speaking with one of our favourite voices on 'On The Path',  Jon Thompson:  Author, Global Faith Leader and  Lead Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area . Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. In this 2 part special, we speak about:-The importance of Christmas and how we should be thinking about it during this season-Why the Christmas story is the launch of a Divine Master plan of Freedom for humanity.  - How you and I  can truly walk in lasting Freedom, Joy, Peace and Love in 2022- The incredible lessons he has learnt in his rock bottom moments- Jon's brand new book Deliverance, a theological and experiential journey in dealing with evil so people can be set free to live as Jesus promised.ONE OF THE MOST REFRESHING CONVERSATIONS I'VE HAD ON CHRISTMAS!!**Please vote for Cheryl for 'Top Podcaster 2021' here (daily voting ends on December 31st):  https://byblacks.com/vote/165-podcaster-2021

Today on the show we are talking to Jon Thompson. Jon is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church of over 3,000 people in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. We are talking about Jon's latest book, 'Deliverance: A Journey Toward The Unexpected.' Click here to visit the Deliverance website. You can connect with Jon on Twitter here. Jon recently gave a series of lectures and Q & A on Deliverance at Bridgetown Church and you can find them Below: Session 1 Session 2 Q & A Thanks so much for listening! We would love to connect with you on social media. You can find us at Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. If you want to watch any of our interviews, make sure to visit our YouTube page. We will be back next Tuesday with another episode!

Speaker: Jon Thompson Date: September 19, 2021

Speaker: Jon Thompson Date: September 19, 2021

Welcome to Episode 0032 Season 3 of the FOUR12 Canada Podcast! Subscribe: iTUNES | SPOTIFY | YOUTUBE Brooke Nicholls is back on FOUR12 Canada! Brooke is an artist and songwriter from Toronto, ON, where she serves as a Worship Leader at Sanctus Church. When she's not at her home church, she's leading worship at different churches and ministries across Canada and beyond. Brooke has been named the Female Vocalist of the Year for the last three years at the Canadian Gospel Music Awards and her album, ‘Pursue', was nominated for a 2020 Juno Award. Brooke is married to her guitar player Steve. In this episode, we chat about leading worship this last year and some of the struggles and blessings that have come out of it. Connect with Brooke  WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM  LINKS & PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS The Brooke Nicholls Show on KFM Worship online During This Time Created platform for worship online All brand new, nothing remained the same Unexpected blessings, the Lord showed up in their living room "The same power and presence that meets me when I am leading a congregation of 2000 people is the same power and presence that meets me when I am alone in my living room." - Brooke Nicholls Online Worship for Churches Designed to help churches with online worship services Free to use 35 sets ready to go Available to download and use for your service Is being used all over the world Live a Life Worthy of Your Calling Whatever it is that God has called you to Do it to the best of your ability to bring Him glory and honour Favourite Worship Song  "The Blessing" Sing it over their daughter every night What Does it Look Like to Lead Worship Now  Zoom, online meetings and retreats Videos for conferences Able to lead in person for 10 people Training New People  Being really intentional in how they reach out and communicate with people Let people know they are seen and heard Stay connected! Relationship is everything How we love and serve people comes first Bringing in Youth  Challenging to engage with them and the music they like But work to find it and use it to engage with them How to Reach Diverse Backgrounds and People  What will serve this situation or congregation the best? Who will be there? Let the Holy Spirit lead How to Grow Your Skills  Listen to a ton of worship music Watch other leaders and see how they do it What translates well on screen and in person Learn from other worship leaders An Encouraging Word for Those Serving You are doing what the Lord has called you to do There is a beautiful reward coming The Lord is so pleased with your dedication and work The church needs you People are being met by Jesus, so be encouraged by that An Encouraging Word for Those That Stepped Back We are called to serve the church We are called to be a part of what God is doing It's not good for us to not do it If God has called you to do this it will bring you back to life, it will bring joy and life For The Worship Leader Remind your team how much you love them and honour them Connect with your team Remind them they are doing an amazing job! Thanks for listening! We hope this episode has equipped you for greater influence through serving. We don't want you to miss a single episode, so if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Help us reach more people by writing a review on the Apple podcast app and other podcast apps that you use. The FOUR12 Canada podcast is a ministry of Faith Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ontario. Explore everything FOUR12 Canada at four12.ca. Thanks for spending some time with us. See you next time! Subscribe: iTUNES | SPOTIFY |YOUTUBE Up Next Episode 0033: Steve Lensink on Serving During Pandemic and Post-Pandemic Times and How That Impacts Serving Opportunities      

Episode 63 | Jon Thompson joins Jason this week for a unique conversation about calling in pastoral ministry. Based on a talk from a 2018 church leaders gathering, Jon shares what he believes is the foundation for long term, effective church leadership. Jon's own journey led him to question what biblical calling looked like. Experiencing a sense of supernatural leading and divine intervention in his twenties, he came to believe pastors without that “moment” might not be called. However, after stepping back to evaluate the scriptures, he came to see four biblical models for calling that he called: 1) “I have no choice”, 2) gift-based, 3) family-based, and 4) community affirmed. Based on biblical figures, Jon shares with Jason how most pastors experience one or a combination of these before or in their early years of ministry. Jason presses Jon on common objections or hesitations people might raise from seeing the idea of calling misused in church circles historically. About | Jon Thompson serves as the Senior Pastor at Sanctus Church (formerly C4 Church), just outside of Toronto, Canada. He has been on staff for more than 20 years. Sanctus is a regional church with a community of over 3,000 people that gather in multiple locations in the Greater Toronto area. Under Jon's leadership, Sanctus is characterized by dynamic Biblical teaching, vibrant community groups, compelling media and powerful times in worship. Jon has a Masters of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon is husband to his wife Joanna and Father to three kids - Hannah, Emma and Noah. Blog | www.ccln.ca/episodes/episode63 Website | www.ccln.ca

In all the many conversations we've been having about what the future holds for the post-Covid church, there's been one common idea that we keep hearing: a sense that God is at work doing something new in His church through Covid and a deep desire to participate with Him in whatever that is. But how do we know what it is that He's asking us to participate in? In this episode, Jessica Powell sat down with Jon Thompson, Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church and author of the books Convergence and Deliverance to talk about the importance of asking God if He has something specific for us to do before we jump into making our plans and what that actually looks like in practice for us as church leaders who are trying to discern what to do in a post pandemic world. More from Jon Thompson: www.thrivewithconvergence Books: Convergence Deliverance JON THOMPSON Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. Under Jon's leadership, Sanctus is characterized by dynamic Biblical teaching, vibrant community groups, compelling media, and powerful times in worship. Jon has a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon is husband to Joanna and father to three kids—Hannah, Emma, and Noah. Jon speaks and teaches globally on the convergence of spiritual gifts, spiritual practices, and spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church.

Welcome to Episode 0022 Season 3 of the FOUR12 Canada Podcast! Subscribe: iTUNES | SPOTIFY | YOUTUBE ****GIVEAWAY***** we have 5 copies of Brooke's book to give away so make sure you hop over to YouTube to follow the instructions for your chance to win a copy of Brooke's book. Giveaway ends on June 25, 2021 at Midnight. Brooke is a Worship Leader and Songwriter from Toronto, ON, where she serves as a Worship Leader at Sanctus Church. When she's not at her home Church, she's leading worship at different Churches and Ministries across Canada and beyond. Brooke has been named the Female Vocalist of the Year for the last three years at the Canadian Gospel Music Awards and her album, ‘Pursue', was nominated for a 2020 Juno Award. Brooke is married to her guitar player Steve. Connect with Brooke  WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM  LINKS & PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS Making Room by Brooke Nicholls Why a Devotional Prompted by God To encourage others To share different times that the Lord has met her and changed her life To remind others of who God is "When the Lord calls you to do something He equips you" What it involves  Lots of editing to make it sound like Brooke Read it over 6 time with an editor to make sure that every word sounded like her Self published through Amazon so that accessible to everyone across the country Was a 2 year process Why is a personal devotional time so important When you spend time with someone you become like them When we spend time with the Lord we become more like Him We are meant to resemble Christ Daily devotions are so important to help you know who God is Remember... To spend time with God each day When You Are Volunteering  You are doing a great job! If you need refreshing, spend time with Jesus If you need renewed strength, spend time with Jesus Thanks for listening! We hope this episode has equipped you for greater influence through serving. We don't want you to miss a single episode, so if you haven't done so already, subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen to podcasts. Help us reach more people by writing a review on the Apple podcast app and other podcast apps that you use. The FOUR12 Canada podcast is a ministry of Faith Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ontario. Explore everything FOUR12 Canada at four12.ca. Thanks for spending some time with us. See you next time! Subscribe: iTUNES | SPOTIFY |YOUTUBE Up Next Episode 0023: Dave Lane Leans into Parenting and the Next Generation      

We all know people who view leadership as something they've arrived at. Maybe we've even been that leader. But leadership is never supposed to be about you and what you achieve, but rather it is about empowering others and developing people. In this episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team is talking with speaker and author Lorie Hartshorn, host of the national daily show The 700 Club Canada. They discuss the need for leaders who are committed to investing into people—developing and empowering them in a way that lifts them up. You'll get to hear them talk about the importance of humility in leadership, how to lead when you're not the one in charge, and how we absolutely must grow in our emotional intelligence if we're going to be able to lead the way God intends us to. Books mentioned: Necessary Endings (Dr. Henry Cloud) I Have Walked with the Living God (Pat Robertson) Godmothers: Why You Need One. How to Be One. (Lisa Bevere) Put Your Dream to the Test (John Maxwell) Confronting Christianity (Rebecca McLaughlin) A Life of Listening (Leighton Ford) God and the Pandemic (N.T. Wright) From Fellowship Pacific: EQ Bootcamp LORIE HARTSHORN Lorie Hartshorn is a lover of Jesus, her family, and the local church. She's the Host of the National daily TV show, 700 Club Canada. Lorie is also an international speaker, author, and pastor. Her primary passion is to make Jesus known. She loves to see people grow in faith and experience spiritual freedom. Lorie served as the Pastor of Adult Ministries at Sanctus Church and was the Director of Advancement for EQUIP Leadership Canada, founded by Dr. John C Maxwell, training leaders worldwide. Her teaching can be seen on The 700 Club Canada, 100 Huntley St, Right Now Media, and Sanctus Church. Sunshine, books, cottage, food, and conversation, bring her joy! Lorie's bible study, Finding Freedom Bible Study, brings hope to many as a wake-up call to the reality of spiritual warfare and the power of prayer. Her newest speaking series, Do it Afraid, is enabling people to step through fear and into an adventurous life of faith! www.loriehartshorn.com

What does Sanctus Church believe about discipleship? What does it look like to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus in the middle of a pandemic? In the midst of disruptions, there are always opportunities for growth and impact.

What does Sanctus Church believe about discipleship? What does it look like to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus in the middle of a pandemic? In the midst of disruptions, there are always opportunities for growth and impact.

What does Sanctus Church believe about discipleship? What does it look like to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus in the middle of a pandemic? In the midst of disruptions, there are always opportunities for growth and impact.

Speakers: Jon Thompson & Dave Adams Scripture: Nehemiah 4 Description: Twice a year at Sanctus Church, we stop to recap where we've been and where we're going. It's a chance for us to celebrate what God has done among us, building faith to move forward.

Speakers: Jon Thompson & Dave Adams Scripture: Nehemiah 4 Description: Twice a year at Sanctus Church, we stop to recap where we've been and where we're going. It's a chance for us to celebrate what God has done among us, building faith to move forward.

Twice a year at Sanctus Church, we stop to recap where we've been and where we're going. It's a chance for us to celebrate what God has done among us, building faith to move forward.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: John 13:1, Philippians 2:9, Luke 22:3, Ephesians 2:8 Sermon Description:  As we wrap up our series, Fully Devoted, Pastor Jon shares about some key aspects of the last two dimensions of our discipleship worldview, share the work and engage in mission. Behind growing generosity, behind joyful gift based ministry there is something that is the spring that feeds all of this, it is one of the quintessential markers of Christianity. it is the spiritual discipline of service which every single follower of Jesus is called to. The one ongoing action that Jesus shows us, from him leaving heaven, living, dying, and being raised is his servanthood. He serves us and the world. He chose to come and live among us, loving us and showing us the best way to live. He died for us, He overcame sin, death and the demonic for us, He rose for us and He gives us His spirit. This is the generous, self-giving service of Jesus and is the foundation, frame-work and grounding for how we serve one another and the church. Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: John 13:1, Philippians 2:9, Luke 22:3, Ephesians 2:8 Sermon Description:  As we wrap up our series, Fully Devoted, Pastor Jon shares about some key aspects of the last two dimensions of our discipleship worldview, share the work and engage in mission. Behind growing generosity, behind joyful gift based ministry there is something that is the spring that feeds all of this, it is one of the quintessential markers of Christianity. it is the spiritual discipline of service which every single follower of Jesus is called to. The one ongoing action that Jesus shows us, from him leaving heaven, living, dying, and being raised is his servanthood. He serves us and the world. He chose to come and live among us, loving us and showing us the best way to live. He died for us, He overcame sin, death and the demonic for us, He rose for us and He gives us His spirit. This is the generous, self-giving service of Jesus and is the foundation, frame-work and grounding for how we serve one another and the church. Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

This morning Pastor Jon takes through our annual “check-up”, taking a moment to unpack what it really means what we say “fully devoted followers of Jesus.” Throughout this sermon we explore the importance of spiritual disciplines, spiritual gifts, guaranteed places of encounter and more, in the life of a believer. Our 5 discipleship dimensions were created as a way for our community to genuinely measure where they feel they are at in their discipleship journey and areas for growth.Series Description: Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: Romans 1:16, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 1 Corinthians 12:11 Sermon Description:  This morning Pastor Jon takes through our annual “check-up”, taking a moment to unpack what it really means what we say “fully devoted followers of Jesus." Throughout this sermon we explore the importance of spiritual disciplines, spiritual gifts, guaranteed places of encounter and more, in the life of a believer. Our 5 discipleship dimensions were created as a way for our community to genuinely measure where they feel they are at in their discipleship journey and areas for growth.   Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: Romans 1:16, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 1 Corinthians 12:11 Sermon Description:  This morning Pastor Jon takes through our annual “check-up”, taking a moment to unpack what it really means what we say “fully devoted followers of Jesus." Throughout this sermon we explore the importance of spiritual disciplines, spiritual gifts, guaranteed places of encounter and more, in the life of a believer. Our 5 discipleship dimensions were created as a way for our community to genuinely measure where they feel they are at in their discipleship journey and areas for growth. Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

As we launch into another ministry year here at Sanctus Church, we are getting back to our foundations. This series, Fully Devoted, is all about equipping each of us in our own discipleship journey as followers of Jesus. This week, Pastor Jon will be discussing one of our 5 discipleship dimensions, Engage in Mission. In a landscape that is post Christian, post modern and post social, one way we can engage in mission is to take the gospel, the good news of Jesus, to our families, workplaces and neighbourhoods. The ALPHA program has become incredibly helpful to Christians as a way to share the gospel clearly and facilitate healthy conversations about God and faith. Hundreds of churches across Canada, including our own, will be launching the Alpha program in a few weeks. Join us in praying for these ministries, but also consider who you could invite and journey with through this incredible ministry.Series: Fully DevotedSeries Description: Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 1:16, John 3:16 Sermon Description: As we launch into another ministry year here at Sanctus Church, we are getting back to our foundations. This series, Fully Devoted, is all about equipping each of us in our own discipleship journey as followers of Jesus. This week, Pastor Jon will be discussing one of our 5 discipleship dimensions, Engage in Mission.  In a landscape that is post Christian, post modern and post social, one way we can engage in mission is to take the gospel, the good news of Jesus, to our families, workplaces and neighbourhoods. The ALPHA program has become incredibly helpful to Christians as a way to share the gospel clearly and facilitate healthy conversations about God and faith.  Hundreds of churches across Canada, including our own, will be launching the Alpha program in a few weeks. Join us in praying for these ministries, but also consider who you could invite and journey with through this incredible ministry. Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

Speaker: Jon Thompson Scripture: Matthew 28:19-20, Romans 1:16, John 3:16 Sermon Description: As we launch into another ministry year here at Sanctus Church, we are getting back to our foundations. This series, Fully Devoted, is all about equipping each of us in our own discipleship journey as followers of Jesus. This week, Pastor Jon will be discussing one of our 5 discipleship dimensions, Engage in Mission.  In a landscape that is post Christian, post modern and post social, one way we can engage in mission is to take the gospel, the good news of Jesus, to our families, workplaces and neighbourhoods. The ALPHA program has become incredibly helpful to Christians as a way to share the gospel clearly and facilitate healthy conversations about God and faith.  Hundreds of churches across Canada, including our own, will be launching the Alpha program in a few weeks. Join us in praying for these ministries, but also consider who you could invite and journey with through this incredible ministry. Series: Fully Devoted Series Description:  Everyone at Sanctus Church is on a spiritual journey, whether it's your first Sunday or you've followed Jesus for years. There can be great highs, and challenging lows in our life of faith. But what does a fully devoted follower of Jesus really look like? How can we make decisions this year to grow? Together we Celebrate Big. Connect Small. Walk with Jesus. Share the Work. Engage in Mission. We're ALL in this together. All for the glory of God.

We at Sanctus Church (previously C4) believe every Christ follower is called to impact those around them through loving, joyful, gift-based service. We know that when we give God glory there is joy, we know that when we work in the areas God has gifted us we experience such powerful joy and we know purpose is given when we serve in our God-given assignments.But what if you don't know your Spiritual gifts? Or what if you have never been able to identify them and learn from others that have the same gifts? And what about the ongoing problem we have as the greater church body with so many different understandings of the gifts and our experiences with them. In this ten-week series, we're going to address all of these questions head on.Series Title: Spiritual GiftsSeries Description: Since we believe with all our hearts that Spiritual gifts are the only ongoing guaranteed place of power to serve from, we need to once again build the common script and understanding among all that make up Sanctus Church (previously C4) in this season.As we step out together, we all need to discover, rediscover, rededicate and walk in a power that is not our own, to do the impossible in this context we find ourselves. When we start using and growing in our gifts we will experience the joy that comes from honouring God, serving others and knowing part of our purpose in this life, that will ripple into eternity!