Southside Baptist Church Podcast

God entered the world in the distressing disguise of a baby born to a refugee couple with no place to lay their heads. Most people in Jesus’ day missed Him. They couldn’t see Him for His distressing disguise. They expected a king with all the wealth and power of David, or a prophet who would come with the grandeur of Moses, or a priest who would practice all the religious eccentricities of Aaron. What they got instead was God on a cross, a most distressing disguise. Join us for week 4 of Christmas in Exile where we discover that Jesus still comes today in the most distressing disguises.

Forced to flee from Bethlehem in order to save Jesus’ life, Joseph and Mary once again pack their meager belongings to head into the unknown. Meanwhile, every mother left behind would weep for their murdered children and wonder how the angels’ promise of peace on earth could possibly be true. Join us for week three of Christmas in Exile where we explore how grief and loss are often magnified at Christmas time and how Jesus meets us in the sorrow. 

The Christmas story begins with the forced migration of a poor Jewish carpenter and his pregnant wife. These innocent victims of a corrupt political system were forced to deliver their baby in a stable where the Savior entered the world as a displaced person. Join us for week two of Christmas in Exile as we see how God uses the weak, poor, and even the corrupt of this world to accomplish His purpose of bringing peace on earth. 

From a group of nomadic refugees fleeing persecution in Egypt, to a young refugee couple forced to deliver their baby in a stable, the Bible tells the story of God working through aliens and strangers to bring about His kingdom. The subversive message of Christmas is that God Himself endured a self-imposed exile from heaven to deliver us from our exile in sin. Join us online or in person this advent season as we reexamine the Christmas story. 

You can’t see the wind or control where it blows, but the evidence of the wind is undeniable. Join us Sunday as we learn to discern where God is working and the evidence of His movement among us.

The disciples were not men of influence, power, wealth, or education. Still, eleven of the twelve went on to change the world. How was this possible? Their enemies recognized the answer . . . they had been with Jesus, and He had changed them. Join us for the final installment of What’s in a Name? where we learn the only name that will ever matter and why that name is everything we need.

Abram and Sarai set out for an unknown destination and after a lifetime of wondering, found themselves and God’s purpose for their lives. The process of discovering our identity in Christ is a life-long pursuit that requires faith in God through all the challenges of life. Join us for week 6 of What’s in a Name as we discuss God's purpose for our lives. 

Jacob spent most of his life fighting to get what he felt was rightfully his. Then, one night, he met a foe he couldn’t defeat. Jacob’s wrestling match with God left him with a limp and a new name. Developing a durable faith requires us to engage in the tough battles. Through the intimacy and struggles that come with wrestling God in the discipleship process, we will also leave with a limp and a better understanding of our true identity in Jesus. 

Daniel and his three friends were removed from their homes and made to live as exiles in a foreign land. Their names were changed but their commitment to God remained steadfast, and as a result they changed the nation that set out to change them. Join us for week 4 of What’s in a Name as we discuss our commitment to be a church that is for Christ, for the city, for good. 

Jesus changed Simon’s name to Peter based on his declaration about Jesus’ true identity. In doing so, Jesus not only revealed Peter’s true identity, but the identity of every person who would become a part of the Jesus movement. The Church is not a building, but a body; not a meeting, but a movement, not an organization, but an organism. Join us for week 3 of What’s in a Name as we consider what it means to be the church.

Regardless of the name we use, God’s people are to be known by one defining characteristic: Love. That love is not defined by Hollywood or Nashville, it is defined by Jesus on the cross. Join us for week 2 of What’s in a Name as consider what it means that God’s banner over us is love.

The name you were given at birth may or may not be an accurate description of who you are. Your identity as a human depends on more than what is written on your birth certificate. Your character, experiences, hopes, and hurts, like fingerprints, are unique to you. And beyond the uniqueness of your story, is a unique design and purpose crafted by God. What is true of individuals is true of churches. God does not recognize a church based on the name printed on its sign or letterhead, but by the way the individuals in that church work together to reflect His Son, Jesus to the world. Join us for What’s in a Name each Sunday, in person or anytime online, as we explore examples of individuals who experienced a change of identity based on their encounter with God.

If you could go back in time and talk to yourself five, ten, twenty years ago, how much money would you have said you needed to be content? There is a chance you’ve already achieved and surpassed that dollar amount today. Yet, we never seem to arrive at that ideal financial destination. As our income increases, so does our appetite. Join us for the final message in Money Talks to learn how to control your appetite and make your money tell a better story. 

We measure financial success by how much of our wealth we are able to stockpile. But the “extra” money and resources we possess can become the very thing that takes possession of us. After you’re dead, other people will take possession of everything you’ve “saved” for one of two reasons. Join us for part 2 of Money Talks to discover those reasons and what your money is saying about your faith. 

Status symbols can be everything from cars to watches to the clothes we wear. The way you spend your money says a lot about you. In fact, it says far more than you think it does. Join us for part one of Money Talks where we explore what it means to be rich and how the amount of money you possess has very little to do with your true wealth. 

An idol is made when we worship one of God’s good gifts rather than the One who gave us the gift. Our culture has made an idol of romance and marriage. This has not only damaged the institution of marriage, but our understanding of God’s plan and purpose for marriage. Join us for the final message in Ever After where we learn that marriage is a broken and temporary signpost pointing us to something far more permanent and perfect.

In the 1980’s comedy, The War of the Roses, Barbara and Oliver Rose go from marital bliss to all out war. Unfortunately, this is not an unusual story in America today. The average length of a marriage in the United States is currently 8.2 years. How does a couple go from the marriage altar to divorce court in less than 10 years? While there are many answers to this question, one sure way is by fighting the wrong enemy. Join us for part 4 of Ever After where we expose the myth that our spouse is the enemy and reveal the identity of the real villain behind every relational conflict.  

“You complete me.” These three words are not only the most famous line from the hit movie, Jerry Maguire, they capture the expectations of many who long for a romantic relationship that will make them feel whole. But can two halves really make a person whole? Join us for part two of Ever After where we discuss God’s surprising intention behind marriage and the true source of wholeness.

The happy couple returns from their honeymoon and begins to unpack their bags. As soon as the bags are emptied, the happy couple begins to discover that this wasn’t what they’d expected. Those bags were full of expectations they’d each collected over a lifetime; expectations their spouse may be unwilling or unable to meet. Join us for part one of Ever After… where we explore the myth of great expectations and learn what Jesus taught us to do with them.