Monday, December 30, 2019

The End or Just Beginning?


Chapters close, seasons end. This is the last episode of the Jesus' Outsider Podcast. But is it the end? Things are changing for us here. Please tune in to this farewell and find out what the Lord is doing next. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, October 21, 2019

Sexual Atheism


There is an area of people's lives that has become a center of living as if there is no God while claiming to follow and serve Him. It's sex. The practice is called sexual atheism and it's the acceptable sin of an entire generation. (From the Archives, Original Broadcast Date 2/18/2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, October 14, 2019

Screens


Sometimes screens are necessary. It's never a good idea for a company to hire just anyone. In the church, the screens aren't such a good thing. They can keep people from Christ. More often than not, we don't even see the screens for what they are. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, September 30, 2019

End Times Clarity


The last days teachers are upon us once again. On almost every Christian channel, those who claim to read the signs and know when the end will come abound. It's very easy to get caught up in the hysteria. There is genuine clarity in the Word of God, much of it from the lips of our Lord. Our most important response to the darkening days can be found there. It may not be what you think. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, September 23, 2019

Be Few


One of the signs of the end times is becoming apparent. In these days, James' words, "Be few those of you who teach" ring very true. The warning they carry needs to be heeded by all who approach the Word. (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 07-25-2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, September 16, 2019

Evil Times and The End of Days


(This archive was chosen as to lead into next week's update on this topic.) Terror attacks in Paris, Beirut, and Baghdad, earthquakes in Japan and Mexico, and rising immorality and violence around the world and here in the United States. Nations are rising against nations, kingdoms against Kingdoms. We are truly in evil times but are we in the last days? (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 11-16-2015) ©2015 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries

 


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Monday, September 9, 2019

Generosity, The Poor, and The Christian


Love is to be a hallmark of a follower of Christ. One of the best indicators of love is also one of the key characteristics of the righteous. God is serious about generosity. How serious is He? Tune in for details! ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, August 26, 2019

The Real War


The church seems to be losing on every front. No one who understands truth can argue that dark times are upon us. If anything is to change, we need to change some things to be able to engage in the Real War. (From the Archives, Original Broadcast 7/2/2015) ©2015 Mike Kerby and Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, August 19, 2019

Danger of Celebrity


Celebrity has its price. All too often it is the celebrity and those who put them there that pay the price. This is especially true with what some have called the rockstar preacher. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, August 12, 2019

After The Fall


Pastors and leaders fall. It happens all the time. Some are very high profile while others are more private. Not all of them are the same. Too often, many of these are leveled as a weapon at the church including a newer and growing threat. When it happens, what should we do? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, August 5, 2019

Disconnect


Did you ever wonder if there's something missing, that there's a disconnect in your walk with Christ? Is there a root for all the deep divides in the Body? Perhaps something is missing from too many of our lives. It might even be something important. (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date, 12-05-2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, July 22, 2019

Cult of Personality


We see them all the time, these cults of personality. Politicians and other live and die by them. There is a danger to them, especially for the Christ follower. They're a double edged sword and both sides can be lethal. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, July 15, 2019

Dangerous Cliches


We hear them all the time. We may even say them ourselves. Phrases and statements that drip so easily from the tongue usually offered in times of trial or grief. Is it possible that these cliches may actually be doing harm? (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 10/10/2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, July 1, 2019

Rather Than Men


We live in increasingly tumultuous times. New laws are being considered that will make our jobs harder, including a new one under consideration in California. Cultural pressure is against the Gospel. The temptation is to be like the world and engage in direct cultural assaults. However, what does the Word say about civil disobedience? When is it actually allowed? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, June 24, 2019

War Footing


Our world is not as it once was. No longer can we take for granted the religious freedom we long enjoyed. Already eroded, it may soon be lost. We, the church, need to be on a war footing but we don't fight like some think we should. (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 11-04-2014)


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Monday, June 17, 2019

Marketing Jesus


Marketing can help the church grow. At least, that's what we've been told for years. One major national preacher decided which parts of the Gospel were marketable and ignored the rest. In the midst of the chaos, are there principles that can help and what parts hurt us? (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date: May 9, 2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, June 10, 2019

A Code


For this Father's Day, I was impressed to talk about something my father passed on to me. It wasn't what he said or something he taught me directly. It was more than that. As I've grown, I've come to understand what it means to have a code and for it to be grounded in Scripture. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, June 3, 2019

Comforting Lies


There's more than one way to tickle ears. It's human nature to seek out those who tell us what we want to hear. To those who seek to remain faithful to the Gospel, what traps are out there? How do we fall into having our own ears tickled to our harm? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Tuesday, May 28, 2019

Watchdogs


I came to Christ in the early 90's. It was a challenging time and in the midst of a movement that still lingers to this day. Watchdog groups were on every corner, publishing magazines, and producing television and radio programs. Many of them still exist today and others have risen to take the place of the fallen. Are they really necessary? Is there a danger in following their methods? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, May 20, 2019

Faith and Ramens


Walking out the will of God isn't always easy. There are challenges along the way that we never entirely expect. Such has been this most recent leg of our journey. In this week's episode, we bring you up to speed on how the Lord has gotten us out of our Egypt and the trials He's used to bring Egypt out of us. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, May 13, 2019

Marital Restoration


Sometimes even in the church we are too quick to seek divorce. However, an affair doesn't have to be the end of a marriage. Restoration is possible. It will take work from both spouses. In this episode, we cover a summary of how restoration can happen including some of the steps to follow. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, May 6, 2019

Marriage Inoculation


Affairs don't happen in a vacuum. There are many conditions that can lead to adultery. Knowing them and the prescription from the Word can inoculate your marriage to greatly reduce the chances of a moral failure. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, April 29, 2019

A Path Apart


There are some among us who are called to walk a different path. It can be a lonely one. People don't get them or what they do. Maybe you're one of them. (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 6-5-2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, April 22, 2019

Problematic Pragmatism


"If it works, do it!" This has become the mantra of so much of the modern church. There are problems with this approach that may not be readily apparent. Before moving forward, there are questions that must be asked including the principles of the method and foundation. However, there is a way that always works but its results may not be what we're told we should have in the wider culture. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, April 15, 2019

Expecttions


When Jesus entered Jerusalem to the adulation and cheers of the people, they had great hopes and expectations. They believed the Kingdom of God to be on Earth and Jesus was coming to establish it. What they expected and the truth were two different things. We may criticize them, but are we truly so different? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, April 8, 2019

Citizenship


Immigration and citizenship and huge issues in today's political climate. In fact, I can't remember a time when there wasn't some debate although it is far more extreme than I remember it. However, beyond the political issue, there is a different kind of immigration and new citizenship that matter much more. Much like the political issue, it is divided into camps. What does the Word actually say about becoming a citizen of the Kingdom of God? The answer should change how you live. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, April 1, 2019

The Real Man in a Beta Male World


Our culture is presenting a soft, effeminate male as the ideal while a group of bullies have laid claim to the title of "Alpha Male." In a world of beta males and phony alpha males, where does the Real Man stand? (From The Archives, Original Broadcast Date 10/31/2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, March 25, 2019

MTD and The Self Help Gospel


Most Christians have never heard of MTD or Morally Theistic Deism but almost all of them know and even believe in a version of its theology. The self-help gospel is the most recent incarnation of a change that occurred in Christian language and teaching in the late Sixties. These two ideas have the same roots along with the prosperity gospel. The effects on the modern church and culture at large cannot be ignored. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, March 18, 2019

State of The Church


It's that time of year again when the studies on the state of the church come out. Some things are not news to anyone paying attention but perhaps there's something in there to stop the decline. The answer is right in front of us if we will have eyes to see it. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, March 11, 2019

Practical Righteousness


Preaching righteousness is not popular these days. Certainly, we are the righteousness of Christ but there's more to it than just being washed in His blood. He calls us and enables us to be and do so much more. (From The Archives, Original Broadcast 2/22/2016) ©2016 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, March 4, 2019

Engaging Dinengaged Men


As a whole, men are disengaging from culture. Some talk about the extended adolescence seen in the rise of video game play and addiction. The church especially is showing a lack of male participation. There was a time, not long ago, when both men and women drove the church. Something changed. Perhaps, we changed how we viewed Christ and His church. It's time to repair the rift. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, February 25, 2019

Real Men Sing?


The mantra is, "Men don't sing." Countless articles, programs, and talking heads in the worship world tell us that men in the congregation just will not sing. Experience seems to line up with this idea. Perhaps we need to be asking what will men engage with when it comes to music? Is there a way for a Real Man to sing? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Thursday, February 21, 2019

Part of The Solution

The last two episodes of the Jesus' Outsider Podcast have focused on different aspects of being the church in a time when we are no longer the dominant force in American culture. The first, Cultural Tipping Points and Revival, showed that we are past the point of no return yet there is still a role for a revived Body of Christ. The second, The Unity Mandate, is about the need to unite across denominational, racial, and ethnic lines upon the sure foundation of Christ to fulfill the mission of reaching the world with the Gospel. Both of these are challenging to hear and, at least for me, moreso to speak. They are a hard word, if you will.

Both episodes speak to a stirring in my heart and, I hope, in the hearts of many Christians in this nation. We are long past the point of any political solutions to the nation's and the church's ills. We are in a huge crisis. However, it is exactly where God needs us to be.

Crisis causes things to happen. It's painful. It flies in the face of a comfortable Western church's theology. In truth, we are soft and have allowed doctrines of comfort, ease, wealth, and complacency to dominate our pulpits, bookshelves, and media. To paraphrase I Samuel 18:7, "Poverty has slain its thousand, Prosperity its ten thousands." Pardon the use out of context but there is truth in this statement. The overall wealth and political power of the American Christian Church have left us ill-prepared for the dark days to come. Fragmentation, division, and doctrinal arguments about minutiae are a luxury of a church that has few battles to fight and has lost its identity. So, as the crisis grows, what shall we do?

Our instincts are to do what we have always done. Fight the war in the public arena, shout our beliefs from the mountaintops, and declare our rights in the streets and social media from the safety of our church bunkers. Hunker down, dig our trenches, and stand against the world in our separate congregations. I wish I was exaggerating but that is what has happened. We want to cling to what we've already done thinking it will work.

The second option is to compromise. Go along to get along, as the old idiom goes. Ignore or utterly refute Biblical teachings on sin, repentance, and the need to live holy, pure lives before God and man. Join in the calls for secular versions of justice and disregard the deeper understanding offered in the Word of God. Become just like the world or preach doctrines that allow us to look like the world while still believing we are right with God. This too is happening all too often.

Based upon what I've seen on social media and heard in conversation, one of these first two options are being taken by an increasing majority of those who call themselves Christians. Politics, protests, speeches, and often mean-spirited debate dominate the cultural landscapes and too many Christians are in the forefront. Infighting is growing even if much of the specifics have changed. We are as divided as we have ever been. However, there is a third and better way.

In times of persecution, the church thrives. Why? Because we are forced to focus on what matters. When we are fighting to grow the Kingdom of God against great adversity, we don't have time to argue doctrinal nuances or about denominational loyalty. We are on a rescue mission behind enemy lines and we need to be equipped with the power of God, His Word, and, above all, His love. We need to demonstrate a difference between us and the world that can only be done when we are truly obedient to the Word, pursue holiness and love, and cast aside the divisions that become prisons. Bind yourself to true brethren in Christ and work as a united force for Christ our Lord and King.

It's time to cast off the old loyalties, reliance on programs and church staff, and minute differences and center who we are upon Jesus, the only true King of Kings. We are citizens of His kingdom and need to act accordingly. Our purpose is to be the light of the world as we shine with the light of Jesus and bear His mark. We are to be different and by that difference, bring more into His life, His Kingdom, and His family. Once that is done, we are to equip them through teaching, encouragement, and example to do the same.

Will you join us and be part of the change? Will you help purge sin from the Body of Christ so that we will no longer resemble the world? Will you live humility, love, and true justice before a world that hates you? Will you love your enemies? Will you fight for those you love on your knees not caring about the so-called big picture? Will you trust the Lord for that? Can you love and work with someone whose doctrine isn't exactly like yours? (That's assuming they're not ignoring sections or adding to the Word.)

We cannot afford to remain as we have been. We can start to change now while we're still in the opening days of persecution and be prepared when it falls or we can wait and take much greater casualties. Which will you do?

Monday, February 18, 2019

The Unity Mandate


Our culture has changed. We're no longer living in an environment that supports the church. In fact, if they think of us at all, it's with hostility. In this climate, who are we to be? It's time to get back to the basics and rediscover what it means to be a holy nation and to live Christ's mandate that we be one. However, there are some caveats on that unity from the Word we need to address for the health of the Body. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, February 11, 2019

Cultural Tipping Points and Revivlal


Our culture has changed dramatically in recent years. It's the most turbulent and divided it's been in my memory. This brings up the question, have we passed the tipping point, the point of no return? What role, if any, would a revival play in transforming the culture? Will we see a Christian nation, or at least Christian friendly nation again? ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, February 4, 2019

Realities of Abortion


Abortion is a huge issue for our culture and recent developments in politics have made the lines clearer than they have been in decades. However, the reality of abortion is more than just a political talking point or part of a candidate's platform. There's a very real personal side of it. In studio is a special guest, My Lovely Bride and Pastoral Care Director for Jesus' Outsider Ministries Kimberly Kerby, sharing her experience with abortion and talking about how we can handle women who have had or are considering one. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, January 28, 2019

Abortion Rights or Rites?


There are times when we must stand up. When evil runs rampant in the land, truth must ring against it. Abortion has become a sacred thing to a large segment of the American culture. What is there at its root? There is more than meets the eye to this issue. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, January 21, 2019

SmutTech


They look innocent. Most of you have them on your phones or use them all the time. However, these apps and sites can be some of the biggest gateways to pornographic content available. There are common denominators to all of them that can be used to screen them. Parents, teachers, pastors, and anyone interested in sexual purity need this information. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, January 14, 2019

Overwhelming


Have you ever really considered this wonderous salvation? I'm not asking if you're following Christ with that question. This isn't about evangelism. The question asks you, Christian, if you've ever really thought about or studied salvation. Even touching on it is overwhelming. ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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Monday, January 7, 2019

Lordship, Authority, and Mercy


When I was young in the faith, back in the early 90's, there was a question I heard asked so often it became a cliche. "You say Jesus is your Savior but is He your Lord?" Now, years later, that question is on my mind again but with a difference. Part one of Faith ©2019 Mike Kerby & Jesus' Outsider Ministries


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