Episode Archive
512 episodes of Acts 2 Sermons since the first episode, which aired on November 30th, 2014.
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The Answer to Cancel Culture
July 26th, 2020 | 24 mins 11 secs
Cancel culture isn't something new to our society today, and it isn't something that the church has been immune from. From the earliest days of the church, we have struggled to not separate ourselves into "them" and "us." Pastor Mark wraps up "The Book of Acts" sermon series by exploring how the early church formed unity community.
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The Anointed Church
July 19th, 2020 | 30 mins 11 secs
The leadership of the church in Acts 13 was a multicultural, multi-ethnic, and economically diverse group that models what is possible when God's people come together. In this sermon, Dr. Mark Foster and Dr. Victor McCullough explore how we can achieve that unity and diversity in a divided society.
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The Great Reversal
July 12th, 2020 | 26 mins 14 secs
In 15 years, the church of Jesus Christ grew from a small sect in Jerusalem to a group of thousands in Samaria, along the Mediterranean seacoast, and into modern Syria and Turkey. In another 15 years, it would spread all the way to Rome, the capital of the empire. Dr. Mark Foster tells the story of how the church grew and spread, even in the face of challenges and persecution.
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No Longer Them and Us
July 5th, 2020 | 23 mins 17 secs
When we do what's right, we expect to be applauded, but sometimes we're criticized. Yet when we persevere in doing good, God works through us to unite people so there's no longer them and us—there is unity. In that unity, we can rejoice in what God is doing and encourage those around us.
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Peter Learns a Lesson
June 28th, 2020 | 28 mins 19 secs
We all grow up with assumptions about which people are "our people," but God moves us beyond those assumptions. In Acts 10, Peter finds himself in the 'wrong' neighborhood with the 'wrong' people, and the Holy Spirit comes to a Roman centurion and his family. In one of the great turning points in the history of the church, people who were enemies become family. Today, the Holy Spirit still invites us to broaden our circles of welcome.
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Heaven on Earth
June 21st, 2020 | 27 mins 13 secs
True fellowship shares much more than common beliefs or core values. It involves time together and shared meals in homes, and it reflects heaven on earth. The early followers of Jesus came together from all over the known world and formed a community where everyone was welcome, showing us the possibilities for true fellowship today.
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Come, Holy Spirit
June 14th, 2020 | 22 mins 31 secs
After all the disruptions of recent weeks, now is the time to remember who the church really is. We are much more than people who gather in a building once a week. We are the people of God on mission with Jesus and empowered by the Holy Spirit. In this message, Dr. Mark Foster shares about the birth of the church and what it means for us today.
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Love God with All You Are
June 7th, 2020 | 24 mins 55 secs
Even in Jesus' day, racism was an issue. Jesus' teaching challenged his hearers to go beyond loving people who were easy for them to love. He taught them even to love their enemies—like Samaritans. And when we love God and love neighbor, unity happens.
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Take Life as it Comes
May 31st, 2020 | 32 mins 20 secs
When we go through events like a global pandemic, we desperately want things to be different than they are. Yet if we don’t learn to take life as it comes, we will always be waiting for our real lives to begin, and God’s desires for the world through us will go unrealized. In the stories of the Babylonian Exile and the early church, the Bible teaches us how to take life as it comes so that we can experience the abundant life that Jesus offers to all.
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Embrace Problems as Gifts
May 24th, 2020 | 27 mins 1 sec
In the midst of a global pandemic, problems abound, and we often want out of those problems as quickly as possible. But God is not as concerned about getting us out of problems as in getting us through them. Problems bring us to the end of ourselves, and they teach us to rely on God, who uses those problems to help us grow. While it's uncomfortable, when life is disrupted, we can learn to embrace problems as gifts.
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Own Your Stuff
May 17th, 2020 | 26 mins 51 secs
Blame feels good at first, but ruins us over time. It keeps us stuck in shame. But when we learn to own our stuff, Jesus helps us create a new life of freedom and joy.
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Leave Your Baggage Behind
May 10th, 2020 | 31 mins 22 secs
If we don't leave our baggage behind, our past will become our present. But baggage we carry around does not go away until we deal with it. In week 4 of the Disrupted sermon series, Dr. Mark Foster shares how acknowledging, grieving, and forgiving can set us free to enjoy the freedom God has for us.