In this guest message, Pastor Eric Phillips of Midtown Baptist Temple examines the story of David and Saul in 1 Samuel and challenges us to consider the thoughts and messages we continually speak to ourselves.

Our thoughts have a powerful influence on our decisions, our perspective, and ultimately our direction. Scripture warns that getting what we want is not always evidence of God’s favor—it can sometimes be the result of His judgment. Likewise, fear, despair, and spiritual deception can lead us away from God’s will.

Through the life of David, Pastor Phillips explores the importance of trusting God through the valleys, prioritizing spiritual growth over comfort, and learning to replace fear and despair with the truth of God’s Word.

What are you telling yourself?
Are your thoughts rooted in fear and convenience, or in the truth of Scripture and the will of God?

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

In this sermon series through the Book of Romans, we are working through Paul’s foundational teaching on the gospel of God and its implications for the believer.

In Romans 1:1, Paul introduces himself as “a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle.” As we continue examining Paul’s introduction, we consider the significance of his name being identified as Paul rather than Saul.

The change in name marks an important transition in Paul’s ministry. Saul, the Jewish name by which he was known, becomes Paul as his ministry turns toward the Gentiles, fulfilling Christ’s calling for him to bear His name before the Gentiles.

From Paul’s new identity and calling, we examine what it means to be saved and serving—a man whose life was transformed by the grace of God and given over to the service of Jesus Christ.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

In this message from Romans 1:1, we begin our study by considering the remarkable nature of God's preserved Word and its power to establish believers in the faith. After tracing the historical flow of Scripture—from Israel's history in the Old Testament, through the Gospels and Acts, to God's calling of the Apostle Paul—we see why Romans occupies such a foundational place in the New Testament. Though not the first epistle Paul wrote, Romans is the first church epistle God places before us because it lays the doctrinal groundwork upon which the Christian life is built.

This message also explores the purpose and structure of Romans, emphasizing how the book establishes believers in the doctrines of justification, sanctification, God's present dispensation of grace, and practical Christian living. Along the way, we examine God's intentional order of the church epistles, the biblical pattern of spiritual growth through doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness, and Paul's calling as "a servant of Jesus Christ." As we begin this verse-by-verse journey through Romans, we are reminded that God's desire is not merely that we possess truth, but that we be established, matured, and equipped to faithfully serve Christ and build up His body.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

The book of Romans has rightly been called the foundational epistle of the Christian faith. Before we can understand its doctrine, however, we must first establish the importance of biblical context. While all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for our instruction, faithful Bible study requires that we ask who God is speaking to, when He is speaking, and how each passage fits within His unfolding plan. Rather than forcing every verse to apply in the same way, believers are called to rightly divide the Word of Truth and interpret Scripture according to its intended audience and purpose.

In this introductory message, we explore the unique place of Paul's nine church epistles and why Romans stands first among them. As the doctrinal foundation for the Church, Romans establishes the truths upon which the rest of the New Testament builds. We also examine the book's threefold structure—doctrinal, dispensational, and devotional—and its central theme: the righteousness of God revealed through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Finally, we consider the distinct revelation entrusted to the Apostle Paul concerning the mystery of the Church, God's eternal purpose, and the dispensation of grace. As we begin this verse-by-verse study through Romans, this message provides the biblical framework necessary to understand the epistle in its proper context and to appreciate the remarkable calling God has given His Church in His eternal plan.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

What does it really mean to be "in Christ"?

In this message from 1 Corinthians 15:22, Pastor Blade explores one of the most foundational questions in Christianity: How is a sinner actually saved?

Many believers can explain that they are saved, but struggle to explain what God actually does to transform someone from being "in Adam"—dead in sin—to being "in Christ"—made alive through His righteousness.

This episode examines the Bible's teaching on baptism, distinguishing between water baptism and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You'll discover why Scripture speaks of multiple baptisms, why rightly dividing God's Word matters, and how the Spirit of God unites every believer to Christ through faith alone.

Whether you've wondered about baptism, salvation, or your identity in Christ, this study will strengthen your confidence in the gospel and the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

What does it mean to be “in Christ”? In this message, Pastor Blade teaches from 1 Corinthians 15:22 and Romans 8:8–9 that without a new identity in Christ, no one can please God.

All humanity is either in Adam (unrighteous) or in Christ (righteousness). Being “in Christ” is a complete change of identity from unrighteousness to righteousness before God.

This is seen in three major components of salvation:

• Justification – Forgiven of all sins, imputed with Christ’s righteousness, and permanently reconciled to God (Eph. 1:7; Rom. 3:20–26; Rom. 5:1).
• Sanctification – Dead to sin, alive unto God, and made sons of God (Rom. 6:2, 11; Rom. 8:14–15).
• Glorification – The one new man in Christ, citizens of His heavenly kingdom, and a heavenly vocation and impact (Eph. 2:15; Phil. 3:20; Eph. 4:1).

Salvation through the gospel of the grace of God is complete: justification in a moment, sanctification in the present life, and glorification in the future, all grounded in our identity in Christ.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

Guest Speaker: Pastor Hunter Sbisa

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

In this episode, we walk through the sobering reality of what it means to be “in Adam” a biblical identity marked by unrighteousness, condemnation, and separation from God.

From Genesis to Romans, Scripture shows that Adam’s fall didn’t just affect him it defined all of humanity by nature. Through one man, sin entered the world, and death passed upon all. In this message, we unpack three major dimensions of that fallen condition: condemnation, abomination, and alienation.

We trace how Scripture describes humanity as under sin, without perfect righteousness, and even as enemies of God. We look at what it means to be servants of sin, dead to righteousness, and walking according to the course of this world. And we examine the sobering truth of spiritual alienation separated from life, hope, and God, belonging by nature to the kingdom of darkness.

But the story does not end in Adam.

The final movement of this message turns to the hope of the gospel: “But now in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:13). What was once condemnation becomes justification. What was abomination becomes sanctification. What was alienation becomes reconciliation. In Christ, there is a new identity new life, new citizenship, and a new standing before God.

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
For more information, visit the LFSTL website.