The Future of Core Christianity

Hello and welcome to another episode of core Christianity and pastor Adria Sanchez and this is the Bible program will we answer your questions about the Christian faith every day. I might be a little bit rusty. During the intro there because usually it's Dr. Bill Meyer who is my cohost. He's not in today instead I have the privilege of being joined by Mark Green, Pres. and CEO of Christianity and were really excited for this national program that were recording today, which is an opportunity for us to talk about celebrate really what the Lord has done in core Christianity over the last two years. They can about just how the Lord has blessed us and also look forward to the things that the Lord is going to be doing in the future through your support and partnership. And so we are excited to be together today. Are we Mark yeah I think federal I am glad to be on the program with you just to reflect over these last 24, 25 months are God's gracious provision great truth you yeah and exit my thanks to the let me really to say thank you CRR supporters, but ultimately to the Lord. I mean, like you said is gracious provision is his kindness to us over the last two years enhancing all that he's done in and through core. Christianity is not to be just good to open us up with the word of Scripture and leader speaks to Mark I know you degree what we we long to see core Christianity do in the lives of our listeners. This is Paul in Philippians chapter 1 he says in verse eight, for God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus, and it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God. I love how the apostle Paul brings together a love for the Lord with the true knowledge and all discernment related to God's word that really is the heart of what we sought to do here core Christianity is in it yeah and I love that word yearn because I think that that really expresses all of us on the core team of what we long to see happen in the lives of people in that building up of believers in Christ because many of you don't know Mark, I just wanted take a brief moment to introduce him.

Mark is married to Lucy and is the father of four grown children actually prior to running core Christianity. He was an international executive living overseas with his family all over the world while running overseas operations for the oil company in those different countries and then Mark went back to earn his Masters in Divinity which is theological degrees know he knows what he's talking about when it comes to the Scriptures, actually an ordained minister now as well. We have the privilege of working together here at core Christianity radio so just say again Mark, welcome to the show and I'm looking for to talking about what the Lord is doing.

Yeah me too I think it's can be fun to talk about how God has blessed over these past two years on core Christianity ready.

It's kind of fun to be with you and think that it's been two years.

So yes God for it. It's pretty amazing to think about all the things that the Lord has done over over the time that we've been working on this broadcast and then just seeing God take it from from that starting point to where it is now just wanted to go little bit deeper. Mark into your background. Can you tell us why you left the corporate world to come and work with core Christianity. Yeah when I met Lucy my proposal essentially to her was a look overseas, and preach the gospel and she asked me well as as any good woman who is being courted would so how is it that organist sustain ourselves and in doing this you know Canada's visionary thing. I swear I don't really know but let's leave the Lord and he let us back to business school and then we we got to spend 20 years overseas and see the powerful work of the gospel in people's lives coming up I preached and I taught whenever I could and we saw the gospel work in the lives of people in the lives of our own children. We raised four of our kids overseas. I'm reminded of Romans 116. This is the gospel is the power of God, and we saw that in all those different countries that we lived in the power of God through salvation in Jesus Christ and you know Lucy and I towards the end of our career. We just decided we wanted to invest all that we had learned overseas on, you know, in this preaching and teaching and then from seminary in order to get the gospel out to a wider audience. If so, we want to live. The second half of our lives pointing people to Christ you know to this great Savior forgives our sins and invites us into his family. That family living God says, little bit about me. But the thing I liked when I met you a drill is that you had that same passion and I love that you are doing this church planting and in San Diego. So why was it that you and Isabel decided to industrialize in the gospel yeah is so funny Mark you tell your story about you and Lucy and how she was curious to know how you support us. It might my wife I think asked that same question, and I'm glad to see that you two are a man of faith because I didn't have a very good answer.

I got an idea that is that while this is in the Lord's hands and God has been really kind to it, but it really has been a yearning to bring that word up again yearning to see God work in people's lives had an absolute confidence in God's word in knowing that God builds his church edifies his people through the Scriptures, and that he uses people like me. And as we we are continue to advance his kingdom in the world, by the grace of his Holy Spirit time. I'm very blessed to be able to do this is our family is so grateful to one be able to do that, the church planting thing in Sandia mall of San Diego grew up in San Diego but then also to be able to reach a broader audience, and I think that that is always been the goal is we want to reach as many people as we can with the truth of God's word and so that's that's my passion. As you said Mark. I know that your passion is what I think that's why we make such a great team yeah and it's been fun and I really am looking forward to seeing how God uses this and will talk little bit more about that. Maybe later but what about this last year core Christianity.

This is Bena is been a wild ride. This last year.

Lots of blessings right absolutely had and some of them just complete surprises at least to me.

I'm back in February we won it was it was called the new broadcast ministry of the year was an award from the. The Bott radio network over the National religious broadcasters Association just really blown away by God's goodness to estimate.

I think any of us were expected at just how the Lord really blessed us so that was huge, and then in September we celebrated our second year of broadcasting. So that was another really big milestone to be just committed to answering people's questions about the faith. One of the I know is a is a pastor is that people have questions, our kids have questions and if it were not digging into the Scriptures in providing those biblical answers there to finance or somewhere else. That's our desire.

We've answered more than 2500 questions. To date, which is almost hard to believe but try. I love listening to those questions.

I would I listen you guys typically when I'm driving. I'm encouraged, as I think MSFT that's the way I need to answer that question right and I think you're right. Any people still have so many questions I still have questions and I still am looking for answers and coming across passages in the Scripture when I'm doing my quiet time to stuff in effect pursue their need to know the answer to that question and I think that's what you and Bill do so well is your answering these questions that we need answers to that can encourage us and build us up in our faith.

And I know some of these programs have been very popular.

You have to know what the top three programs are the it's actually interesting to to look at the numbers on that number one, believe it or not, is does God reveal himself in other religions and I think it speaks to something that so many people are asking today, not just people in the church but you mean you think about how outside of the church. So many people. This is the start of this mantra and always lead to God and so people want to be able to receive bond to that with the Scripture with something more than just I disagree with that and so I think that's one of the reasons why that happened to be our number one at least listens to episode for this last year. Number two was how should Christians respond to racism and you think of a lot of attention that we've had in our country over the last year really a relevant question and we want to be able to dig into the Scriptures to answer those kinds of questions that was that was number two and number three do we enter the presence of God at death or at the resurrection. Yet, it believe it or not, we've gone that question after quite a few times, but it is. I think a lot of people just have this assumption that hey the Christian life is about trusting in Jesus, so that you can get to heaven when you die. We don't have this robust understanding of everything that Christ accomplished for us from his life to his death to his resurrection so that we would have the hope of the resurrection as well, but the bodies that were in there breaking down day by day detangling a gratis can restore those as well and so I number four was do all dogs go to heaven.

Yeah well it's interesting on the number three entering the presence of got it deaf you know you you remember a few years ago, our youngest daughter coming home from University, was killed in a car accident which was of course complete shock to us and when we gather as a family. That was the question that all of the kids want to know where and Julia. Right now they want to know and you know what is our hope you are pleased that you give it give us some basis for the hope that in the hope really was in the over that she was in the presence of God.

But we would be reunited with her and the Savior at the resurrection.

What a great what a great hope that was so this is just so cool that that you know that the people are thinking about that right that they are actually contemplating what happens when we die and Mark II just want to say no, thank you for sharing just that information about your your youngest daughter because it does highlight I think how important it is for us to know the truth. I mean this is the start talking about in God's word is insanely practical and think about the year that we've had soap so many of us with with code 19. The job summary.

All of these things that people need they need. We need