Transformed Episode #165 – Jesus, Our Lord of Lords!

Posted on July 28, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

“You mean I will have to give a full accounting of my life to Jesus?”

Yes, a detailed and full explanation of your life will be expected of you! – whom you lived it for, what you did, why you did it – all of this is part of the final judgment for all believers.

In today’s study, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, lead Pastor at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California helps us answer the greatest issue in our lives: Who is really in charge of my life? For whom do I live my life for?

Let’s join Pastor Matt as we explore nine realities of why one should live their lives for Jesus Christ.

 

And with that final prayer for help from Dr. Smith, it is our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

 

 

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Transformed Episode #164 – Jesus, Our Victorious Conqueror!!

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

What is life all about? Is it just random events and chaos or is there a plan?

If there is a plan, who is the Planner?

In today’s study, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, lead Pastor at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California gives us a glimpse into the Throne Room of God.

While there, we discover there a cosmic battle has been raging all around us and Jesus is the key to its past, present and future fulfillment.

Let’s join Pastor Matt as he tells us about Jesus … the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and teaches us about His sacrifice on behalf of all humanity as the Lamb of God!

 

And with that prayer thanksgiving, it is our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

 

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Transformed Episode #163: Jesus, Our Life Coach

Posted on July 7, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

How do we know what is right? Isn’t all “truth” relative?

If it works for you, isn’t it good enough?

What credentials does someone need before we pick them to be our “life coach,” someone who can guide us through the quagmire that is life these days?

In today’s study, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, lead Pastor at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California returns to the broadcast to show us the two evidences that reveal Jesus is qualified to lead you for the rest of your life!

Let’s join Pastor Matt as he tells us about Jesus … Our Life Coach!

 

And with that prayer thanksgiving, it is our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

 

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Transformed Episode #162 – Jesus, Our Eternal God!

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

What’s so special about Jesus? Wasn’t He just another religious leader? Wasn’t He just a good teacher?

In today’s study, Brandon Lyons speaks at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California shows us that Jesus was more than a religious leader, much more than a good teacher: Jesus was actually the eternal Son of God who longs to have a personal, intimate and constant relationship with us!

Let’s join Brandon as he tells us about Jesus … Our Eternal God.

 

And with that thought, Brandon concludes with this life-changing challenge. Remember, it is our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

 

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Transformed Episode #161 – Jesus, Our Life Giving Spirit!

Posted on June 23, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

Do you feel like you are on the outside of life? Perhaps others ostracize you? For sure you are not welcome by church people.

Yet, despite the hurt and harm you have suffered from people who claim to be “better” than you, you long for more … for meaning and value, satisfaction and hope in this life.

In today’s study, Pastor Jay Kranda speaks at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California shows us that Jesus came to provide an endless stream of life and love for people just like you!

Let’s join Pastor Jay as he tells us about Jesus … Our Life Giving Spirit.

 

As Pastor Jay concludes with that prayer of gratitude, our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

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Hard Sayings and Shallow Faith!

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Jesus - Hard Sayings Of

Belief is truth held in the mind; faith is a fire in the heart.

~ Joseph Fort Newton

Faith in Jesus isn’t an app we can turn on and turn off when we want to. Faith is an absolute calling to the Person, to His agenda, to His will, to His leadership and to His kingdom. That calling is absolute … resolute. Repeatedly during His earthly ministry, Jesus called His disciples to a greater and higher trust in His words and will.

As the crowd begins to thin at the synagogue in Capernaum long ago, Jesus’ discussion about the eternal is more than many of those who have been loyal to Him can stand. As He declares the need to participate in the Passover Meal, Him being the focal point as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, the Jews begin to react en masse …

“Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?” When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe.”

For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.” (John 6:60–66, NKJV)

We imitate Jesus when …

  • We accept that He calls us to hard things that will take all of our commitment, all of our loyalty and, at times, all of our tenacity to trust Him, despite the difficulty of that call and command.

There in the worship center that day in Capernaum, the bottom line of walking with Jesus became clear. Either “Christ … is our life …” (Colossians 3:4, NKJV), or He is not. Despite the confusion or the conundrum, regardless of the difficulty or the displeasure, Jesus is Lord, or He is not.  For many of those in Capernaum that day long ago, Jesus was not.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said, “When Jesus bids a man come, He bids Him come and die.” Truly this is the call of faith. We “deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him.” This is Jesus’ pathway to the eternal, abundant life He speaks of. (Matthew 16:24-25) Any commitment of lesser strength causes one to go back to the old life and walk with Him no more.

What shall it be today? Is He worthy of all my commitment, all my loyalty, all my life? Or is Jesus just an app I pull out when I need some help and close when the situation passes?

 

© 2013 Dr. Matthew Lee Smith. All rights reserved. Not for resale.

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Transformed Episode 160 – Jesus Our Life Provider

Posted on June 16, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Easter Web slider - Jesus name_above_all_names_by_jcrod-d493yuy

Welcome to the Transformed podcast.

So why is Jesus so important? Don’t all religions pray to the same God? Aren’t all faiths equally valid?

In today’s study, Dr. Matthew Lee Smith, Lead Pastor at Pacific Baptist Church in El Segundo, California shows us that Jesus explains the 7 provisions of Jesus that set faith in Him apart.

From His own lips, Jesus sets Himself apart from all other religious people, declaring that He is the only way to a personal, real relationship with God Almighty.

As we open John 10 today, we discover that for the connected disciple of Jesus, life is radically different!

 

As Dr. Smith concludes with that prayer of gratitude, our deepest hope is that you will grow to know Jesus in a much more personal, intimate manner so that you can imitate Him before others in your world.

Perhaps you would you consider sharing this message with a friend? God longs to release the captives of our culture into the freedom of faith. Thank you!

If you would like to explore how to enjoy a deeper life with Jesus, one that God is pleased with, Dr. Smith writes a weekly blog to help you do just that!

Becoming Like Jesus is a chronological walk with Jesus through His life and ministry. This weekly blog is built around the premise that Jesus lived a transparent life with His disciples so that could imitate Him. Becoming Like Jesus helps you become the hands and feet of your Master, the Lord Jesus, in your daily life.

You can subscribe FREE of charge to Becoming Like Jesus at the Eagles In Leadership website by clicking the appropriate link on the right hand side panel of the Eagles In Leadership website.

Today’s episode was recorded live in El Segundo, California and edited by Ryan Longsworth in Los Angeles, California.

And now, until next time, we are praying that you would be filled with the love of God so that you can demonstrate His love to the lost and dying in your city! God bless!

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Eternal Life, Eating Flesh, Drinking Blood!

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

eternal life - What is it

But what is eternal life? Is it eternal self-esteem? Is it a heaven full of mirrors? Or snowboards, or gold links, or black-eyed virgins?

No. Jesus tells us exactly what he meant: “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). What is eternal life? It is to know God and his Son, Jesus Christ.

~ John Piper

Eternal life … what is it and what do we do to get it? While evangelicals and conservatives love “salvation formulas and prayers,” Jesus knows nothing of such simplicity. Jesus is longing for something much deeper, more sincere and abiding.

At the synagogue in Capernaum, Jesus’ discussion with the Jews has escalated to the eternal in ways few could comprehend. In speaking to them about who possesses eternal life and who does not, we read …

“Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”” (John 6:53–58, NKJV)

We imitate Jesus when …

  • We consume His flesh and blood, participating in the very celebration of His death through the communion service He initiated.

“Christ … is our life …” (Colossians 3:4, NKJV) Is He? Does He so captivate our waking moments and possess our plans and goals that He is truly our life? This is what Jesus is explaining. He is so committed to us that He died on the cross, giving His body and blood for our eternal redemption and relationship.

Now He asks if we feel the same way about Him. If we do, we will participate in the Passover Meal, the sacrifice of His life, the death of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The bread represents His body. The cup represents His blood. The ceremony represents our faith commitment to Jesus alone – there is no greater call or purpose.

And who would complain about such commitment? After all, every married person expects nothing less of his or her spouse. Why would it be any different from the Bridegroom of the Church?

 

© 2013 Dr. Matthew Lee Smith. All rights reserved. Not for resale.

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Transformed Talks with Daniel Henderson About Strategic Prayer!

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

daniel hendersonTransformed spoke recently with Daniel Henderson about prayer and its centrality to the life of the disciple and the Church of the Lord Jesus.

As a Senior Pastor for over two decades, Daniel Henderson brought prayer-based revitalization to several mega-churches. Today he is dedicating his full-time efforts to help congregations across the country experience renewal and turn-around as he speaks to thousands each year at conferences and prayer events. He is President of Strategic Renewal, which exists to ignite personal renewal, congregational revival, and leadership restoration for Christ’s glory.

You can learn more about Daniel and Strategic Renewal on their website.

Transformed highly recommends the work and ministry of Daniel Henderson and Strategic Renewal.

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So That You May Not Die!

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Dr. Matthew Lee Smith

Bread SlicedPhoto Credit: slicedbreadmag.com

Saving faith is the cry of a new creature in Christ. And the newness of the new creature is that it has a new taste. What was once distasteful or bland is now craved. Christ himself has become a Treasure Chest of holy joy. The tree of faith grows only in the heart that craves the supreme gift that Christ died to give: not health, not wealth, not prestige, but God!”

~ John Piper

What’s your favorite food? I love steak! What do you love? Now I know that I can’t eat steak at every meal – it’s not good for my heart. However, it is a wonderful treat. When I get real, I have to admit that we eat more of the “staples” than the luxuries in life. Beans and rice are commonplace at our table.  

As we join Jesus, he continues his debate with the Jews on the beach in Capernaum. They are talking about the issue of who He is and how He is connected with the gift of eternal life. As the discussion unfolds, Jesus says …

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”” (John 6:47–51, NKJV)

We imitate Jesus when …

  • We trust that Jesus is the mainstay of our lives, the nourishment of our souls and the key relationship we have from Heaven for life abundant and eternal.  

Relationship – it is what Heaven and eternal life is all about. It is all about enjoying and loving Jesus. When Jesus uses the metaphor of eating the bread (his flesh) he is speaking of him being our life source. We feast on his presence … as Paul tells us: “Christ … is our life …” (Colossians 3:4, NKJV)

When Jesus is your life, he is the source of your life. You can’t exist without talking with him throughout the day. You can’t make it through the week without his guidance and wisdom. In those times of struggle and distress, you would simply lose it and give up if it wasn’t for the reassuring words of the One who loves us and gave his life for us as he constantly whispers in our ear.

Jesus came from Heaven to bring hope and help, to rescue and reconnect us to himself. When Jesus is the “staple” of our life, he gives us all we need for life and godliness.

 

 

© 2013 Dr. Matthew Lee Smith. All rights reserved. Not for resale.

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