Southside Baptist Church Podcast

We all want justice, but not everyone agrees on an objective standard for justice. In a world that increasingly accepts the idea of moral relativism, it can be hard to distinguish between right and wrong. Who ultimately decides? Who has the right to judge? The author of the book of judges describes a period in the history of srael that sounds very much like our culture today. He sums it up with the statement, "In those days, there was no king ... everyone did what they thought was right in their own eyes." Join us for the final message in a series from the book of Judges, in which Pastor Gary Webber asks the question, who has the right to judge?

In the beginning, God created man in His own image, and man has tried to return the favor ever since. So much of what we pass off as religion is really an effort to craft a god to fit our preferences. If we are not careful, we can pick and choose what we believe about God and His ways, leaving out those character traits and commands we find uncomfortable and inconvenient. This is nothing new. People have been tempted to create designer gods from the very first pages of the Bible. Join us for part nine of Anarchy, where Pastor Gary Webber looks at Judges 17-18 to uncover some of the very real dangers of designer gods.

Throughout the ancient book of Judges, there is an ongoing battle between what is right “in the eyes of the Lord,” and what people thought was “right in their own eyes.” That battle has persisted throughout history and continues to rage on some 3,300 years after the events recorded in Judges. The effects of this conflict are clearly summarized in the life of Samson. Join us for part 8 of “Anarchy,” as we consider the results of living a life that is right in your own eyes.

When God delivered the solution for the problem of sin, it came in the form of a baby born to a refugee couple in a barn in a town called Bethlehem. But Jesus was not the first baby born to fulfill a promise of God. Throughout the Old Testament, God conditioned His people to expect Him to fulfill His promise through the birth of a child. Today, according to some calculations, nearly 1 out of every 4 pregnancies are ended by abortion. Join us for part seven of Anarchy, where we will consider what the Bible teaches us about the value of life and the promise of every child.

Like fish are unaware of the water in which they swim, humans can be unaware of the culture in which we live. Our culture and customs have tremendous power over us and the decisions we make. What we eat, how we dress, how we view the opposite sex, how we handle money, and raise our children, are all influenced by the culture in which we live. Some instinctive cultural decisions are good, some are benign, but what about those that are contrary to God’s Word? Am I even aware of them? Join us for part six of Anarchy as we look at a little-known character and the tragic decision he made because he was more influenced by his culture than by the God who was pursuing him.

Success is dangerous; it not only tests our faith, it exposes any pride and reveals the truest nature of our character. People throughout history, from politicians to clergy have accomplished amazing victories only to fail at the height of their success. One of the most famous characters in the book of Judges is a man named Gideon. His rise from being an obscure, fearful figure to one of the most successful leaders in Israel’s history is a Sunday school favorite. But we seldom look at the rest of Gideon’s story. In part five of Anarchy, Pastor Gary Lee Webber explores the part of Gideon’s story that is often overlooked, where we see the dangers of success and the secret to overcoming those dangers.

When everyone does what is right in HIS own eyes, people always get hurt, and those people are most often women and children. The mistreatment and oppression of women is well documented throughout history in every culture. A reality that, unfortunately, is still true today. Some people are surprised to learn that, not only does the Bible not promote such behavior, but it strongly opposes it. In fact, many sociologists have noted that the condition for women and children almost always improves when Christianity is introduced to a culture. In part three of Anarchy, Pastor Gary Webber shares the story of two extraordinary women from the book of Judges and how this story might shape our understanding of how the Bible portrays the relationship between men and women.

Throughout the Bible God employs unlikely heroes, using unconventional resources, to accomplish unimaginable results. The Book of Judges has many examples of how God delights in using the weak things of this world to overpower the strong, so that He alone might get the credit for the unexpected victories of His people. In this, the second message in this series based on the book of Judges, we will consider three men God used to rescue Israel from their self-imposed slavery and consider what we should do the next time we face the discouraging, hopeless situations of life.

Moral decline is a process. Much like erosion, our ability to maintain our integrity requires constant effort. Because spiritual decline is inevitable, spiritual renewal is critical. Between Joshua and David, Israel experienced significant moral decline. The book of Judges sums up this period with the statement, "In those days, there was no king ... everyone did what they thought was right in their own eyes."

Join us this Sunday for the conclusion of the Gospel of John. For the past three years, we have walked with the Disciple Jesus Loved as he followed Jesus from the Sea of Galilee to the grave and beyond. In this final message, Pastor Gary Webber explains why the world cannot contain the books that could be written about all the things Jesus has done and continues to do.

Great novels sometimes include an epilogue. This is an additional chapter that comes after the climax and resolution of the story. It isn't usually essential to the plot, but it may provide readers additional information and a greater sense of closure. John included an epilogue to his Gospel, but unlike modern epilogues, John’s closing lines contain a significant message from the resurrected Jesus. Join us for the final message in ALIVE! and learn what Jesus says to drifting disciples about how important it is to get back to shore!

It is said that seeing is believing. It certainly was for the Apostle Thomas. His response to the news that Jesus was alive earned him the title Doubting Thomas. But that title is unfair. After all, if it had been you, wouldn’t you have been tempted to respond the same way? Well, maybe not. According to Jesus, those of us who believe today are exercising a faith that Thomas and the other disciples couldn’t. Join us for a message about the true meaning of faith and how it has the power to change us.

Jesus once told His disciples that He would eventually leave them. While this idea upset His followers, Jesus assured them that it was for their own good because it would usher the arrival of the Holy Spirit. It would be the Holy Spirit that would empower Jesus’ followers to change the world.

Letting go is hard. When Mary first realized that Jesus was alive, she wanted to grab hold of Him and never let Him go. Jesus, however, told Mary that she couldn't hold on. She had to let go. Jesus wasn’t going to stay and things could never go back to the way they were before. We often try to cling to the past when God is inviting us into His presence. A presence that will lead us to a future that we can only experience if we are willing to let go of the past and embrace His plans.

The resurrection of Jesus has been the most debated event in all human history. That debate is nothing new. It started on that very first Easter as Mary, John and Peter arrived to find the tomb empty and each had a very different reaction. Join us as we see how our responses to the empty tomb are reflected in those first reactions.

The Christian faith is based entirely on a single event in history, the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But what if no one had ever known about that event? What if the circumstances of Jesus’ burial had been different and His body hadn’t been laid in a tomb, but rather tossed in the city dump like so many other executed criminals? If there had been no tomb, no one could have known that a tomb was empty. The events surrounding Jesus’burial reveals the faith of two individuals who had been secretly following Jesus. Through their willingness to step out of the shadows, we see the power of a public faith. Join us for the final message in the CROSSROADS series as we look at the events of Jesus burial from John 19.

John was the only one of Jesus’ disciples to accompany Him all the way to the cross. As such, John offers a unique and powerful account of the events of Jesus’ crucifixion. It is important to John that his readers believe that Jesus lived and died, because what John reports next depends on the acceptance of these two facts. Join us for part 6 of Cross Roads, as Pastor Gary Webber teaches that doubt is a necessary crossroad between unbelief and a pursuit of truth.