Matt O'Reilly, PhD

The first one was came on The Kuyperian Commentary and was hosted by Pastor Uri Brito. You can listen here. The second interview came in two parts on The Pastor Theologians Podcast hosted by Todd Wilson and Zach Wagner. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. I’m grateful to have had these invitations. Feel free to chime in with comments and questions. Thanks for listening. Dr. Matt O’Reilly is pastor of Hope Hull United Methodist Church near Montgomery, AL, a fellow of the Center fo

The new episode of the So What? Podcast went live this morning. In this edition we continue the discussion of Pelagius and Pelagianism. It was particularly fun to get clear on the Wesleyan critique of Pelagianism and how it differs from the Reformed (or Calvinistic) critique. There’s also some great Wesley quotes on original sin. Check it out below or subscribe in iTunes. And don’t forget to give us review. #HeresyandHeretics #SoWhatPodcast #CalvinandCalvinism #History #Pauli

The newest episode of the So What? Podcast went live today. This one is in two parts, and the topic is one of my favorites. That’s right: Kyle, Dave, Brad, and I are talking about the resurrection of Jesus. We dig into what it means and why it matters as an article of faith. What are the objections to Jesus’ resurrection? What’s the rationale behind those objections? Does it matter if Jesus was or was not physically raised from the dead? What does the resurrection of Jesus ha

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5402610/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Fbody-of-christ-bread-of-life-john-11-5-10-18-648-58-1272014-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 When we want to read about the birth of Jesus, we usually turn to Matthew and Luke. After all, that’s where we find angels and shepherds, magi and the manger, Mary and Joseph, and, not least, baby Jesus himself. We don’t usually turn to the Gospel of John. John doesn’

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5393909/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Fhis-presence-our-salvation-matthew-118-25-11302014-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 Advent is about Christ’s coming. And his coming is about the promise of his presence with us. But Christ is not present with us in exactly the same way as he was to his first followers. None of us have ever had an experience like that of the disciples, who were granted to look

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5358533/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Fgenerous-god-generous-people-2-corinthians-81-9-110214-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 There are many words to describe God. One of those words is “generous”. And what an excellent word to describe the big-hearted and overflowing extravagance of God’s grace. We can be exceedingly grateful that God relates to us with a generous grace. But if God treats us wit

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5338718/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Ffully-focused-on-the-finish-phil-312-43-101914-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 When I read the letters of Paul, I often wonder whether he was a fan of athletic games – foot racing, at least. On several occasions Paul draws on the language of the races to illumine the nature of the Christian life. For instance, “Do you not know that in a race the runners all

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5320402/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Fchristlike-in-real-life-phil-219-30-10514-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 How would you like to be part of a group of people who were always concerned with your best interests? A group of people who were consistently and genuinely looking out for your well-being? They would be loyal to you. They would encourage you. They would build you up. That would be gre

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5312367/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Fsaved-all-the-way-phil-21-18-92814-rev-matt-oreilly%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1 One reason I love Philippians is the constant attention Paul gives to applying the gospel to all of life. He really wants to see the light of the grace of God shine into every crack and crevice of the human heart. He wants to see us work out the grace that God has worked in us. One way he doe

http://www.podbean.com/media/player/audio/postId/5303679/url/http%253A%252F%252Fstmarkumc.podbean.com%252Fe%252Flife-worth-living%252F/initByJs/1/auto/1?skin=3 The apostle Paul said a lot of remarkable (and often surprising!) things. One thing that I find particularly remarkable is the fact that even in the midst of great suffering he was still able to find joy. This shows up with clarity early in his letter to the Philippians. Paul reports not only that he is in prison for C

Did you know that there are basically two kinds of people in the Church? Those who like to talk about sin and those who don’t. And you’ve probably noticed that those who like to talk about sin typically don’t want to talk about their sin. They would much prefer to talk about yours. Among those who don’t like to talk about sin, there are two more groups: those who don’t like to talk about it and so they don’t and those who don’t like to talk about sin but know it’s necessary.

What do you want in a church? It’s a common question with almost limitless answers. Traditional. Contemporary. Liturgical. A church with ministries for children. Ministries for youth. Seeker. Missional. The way we answer reveals a lot about our understanding of the Church. There’s another question that we need to ask, and this one is even more important: What does Jesus want for his Church? This question is important because it shifts the focus from our desires to Jesus’ desi

Gospel precision matters. That’s one reason Paul wrote his letter to the Romans. He needed to clear up some potential misunderstandings of the gospel, because gospel precision produces gospel power. Here’s the logic. If the gospel is “the power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16), then an imprecise gospel means reduced power. So, this SermonCast digs into the content of a precise gospel that proclaims the lordship of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ as a call to faithful

It’s a question that many regular churchgoers may never ask. Church, for a lot of us, is the default position. It’s just what you do. Why ask why. However, more and more people are finding the Church unnecessary. And a growing number are looking to places other than the Church to find spiritual fulfillment. Recent years have seen the rise of the “spiritual but not religious,” who find great importance in spirituality but don’t see traditional expressions of the Church as good

Every organization that wants to be around and be effective for the long haul must, at some point, ask the question: What is the most important thing? They must decide what matters most, and then they must resolve to keep that most important thing always before their eyes, always in front of them. They must pursue it relentlessly. They must keep first things first. The Church of Jesus Christ is no different. Like any other organization, we must decide our priorities and keep

What comes to mind when you hear the word “appetite”? Most of us probably think of food. Right? Appetite is, of course, primarily about our desire for food. But we use the word to express our desire for other things too. Maybe we have an appetite for popularity or status. Some people might have an appetite for power or control. We hear of people with an appetite for destruction. All of us probably have an appetite for relationships. Maybe our appetite is for entertainment or

I’m excited to announce that I’ve just begun a new appointment to St. Mark United Methodist Church in Mobile, Alabama. It’s a great church, and I’m honored to be the pastor. Yesterday was my first Sunday in the pulpit. I had a great time and am grateful for a very warm welcome. The church will be podcasting my sermons each week. You can easily subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, put the feed in your reader, or check out the player widget in the column to your right. Sermons w

I’m grateful for the recent opportunity to participate in the Converge Podcast at Ministry Matters with Angela Roberts Jones, Clifton Stringer, Jessica Kelley, Shane Raynor. Here the video in which we take up Galatians 3:26-29 and Romans 8:14-17 to discuss what it means to be a child of God, faith, how Christians relate to one another, and being led by the Holy Spirit. #Ministry #MinistryMatters #video #UnitedMethodistChurch #ConvergePodcast #Podcasts

I enjoyed the opportunity to participate in the most recent edition of the Converge Podcast at Ministry Matters with Shane Raynor, Grace Biskie, and David Dorn. The podcast is a companion resource to Shane’s four week Bible study on Who You Are in Christ, which is part of the Converge Bible Studies series. Here’s the video in which we discuss a variety of topics including grace, access to God, and the blood of Christ. #Ministry #MinistryMatters #UnitedMethodistChurch #Converg