Summit Podcasts: BACK40, Sermon Audio, and Leadership Night

Leadership Night - The Fall of Leicester City

Pastor Mel unpacks the stunning fall of Leicester City from unlikely Premier League champions to back-to-back relegations, highlighting how overspending on underperforming players, desperate decisions, high turnover, and eroding cultural standards created a downward spiral. In the discussion portion we explore sustaining success through consistent disciplines, avoiding snap judgments in crisis, balancing short-term opportunities with long-term vision, wise financial stewardship at every scale, and practical ways to build and protect healthy organizational culture that values people and loyalty while confronting low standards. This one is full of insights for churches, businesses, and leaders facing pressure or success.

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BACK40 E117 - Focusing Local, Asking for a Friend, Keeping the Big Picture

Apr 2800:57:19Tap to summarize

In this episode we explored a timely question: what if the key to making the world better is to stop trying to fix the whole world at once? We made the case for narrowing our focus to local solvable problems in our homes, families, churches, and communities rather than getting overwhelmed by national politics. The conversation covers breaking down big challenges into manageable micro steps and rejecting the savior complex. We discuss the recurring themes from the Asking for a Friend sermon series such as sexuality, creation, God's sovereignty, heaven, and hell. The episode finishes on regret, repentance, legacy, and how God redeems our imperfect stories for His glory.

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Asking for a Friend - Week 2: Heaven

Apr 2600:56:33Tap to summarize

In part two of our Asking for a Friend series Pastor Mel preaches about Heaven. He challenges popular misconceptions—such as an ethereal realm of clouds, pearly gates, mansions, or endless worship—drawing instead from Scripture to portray it as a physical, renewed reality where the new heaven and new earth merge. He distinguishes the temporary paradise believers enter upon death from the permanent new creation, where heaven descends to a refined and restored earth, echoing Eden's pre-Fall goodness with meaningful work, glorified physical bodies free of weakness or imperfection, and the reunion of loved ones in perfected relationships. Mel affirms that believers will remember earthly life, animals will inhabit this renewed creation, and that pets may be present through God's extravagant generosity. He stresses stewarding God's gifts faithfully as "good and faithful servants" in the Parable of the Talents. Ultimately, he presents heaven as God's restorative plan through Christ to reconcile and renew all creation.Listen to this sermon's companion piece The Horrors of Hell

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Romans - Week 1 Discussion (Part 3)

Apr 2100:49:39Tap to summarize

In this episode we pick up right where we left off—exploring how Paul’s self-description as a “slave of Christ Jesus” reflects a remarkable downward trajectory in his own sense of importance: from the least of the apostles all the way to the chief of sinners. We talk about how true spiritual growth often looks the opposite of what our culture celebrates—less self-esteem, greater awareness of our sin, and a deepening dependence on the righteousness of Christ. We also examine Paul’s burning obligation to preach the gospel to everyone, both the civilized, educated Romans and the uncivilized outsiders on the fringes. We talk about what that means for our own biases in evangelism and ministry. Along the way we wrestle with humility versus self-deprecation, the role of discipline and ritual in the Christian life, and what it really looks like to come to the Lord’s Table in a worthy manner. Even though we didn’t quite finish Week One, the conversation was rich, honest, and full of gospel truth we hope will encourage and challenge you.

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Asking for a Friend - Week 1: Homosexuality

Apr 2000:55:12Tap to summarize

In week one of our series called Asking For a Friend, Pastor Mel directly confronts seven common questions about same-sex attraction and behavior by firmly placing biblical authority above personal feelings or cultural context. He begins by outlining four views on rules versus context (and Bible versus feelings), rejecting the first three positions that allow feelings to override Scripture and affirming the fourth: the Bible is God’s unchanging, authoritative Word, so any apparent conflict is resolved by submitting our context to it, not vice versa. Addressing the frequent objection that “Jesus never mentioned homosexuality,” Mel shows that Jesus explicitly upheld and intensified the moral law on sexuality—condemning lust as heart-adultery, restricting divorce, and reaffirming God’s creation design of male and female in marriage. He further cites the moral law in Leviticus, the judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah for “unnatural desire”, and Paul’s clear listing of homosexuality alongside other sins that exclude people from the Kingdom of God. Mel points out the immediate hope: “such were some of you” but you were washed, sanctified, and justified in Christ.

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BACK40 E116 - Synthesizing the Synthetic, Homosexuality, Biblical Inerrancy

Apr 1701:03:43Tap to summarize

In this episode of the Back 40 Leadership Podcast we have a raw, wide-ranging conversation that starts with the realities of cancel culture in an AI-augmented world. We talk about how leaders can become “cancel-proof,” we discuss the moral tightrope of using tools like Grok or ChatGPT for sermon prep and ministry admin. We explain why we see AI as a powerful tool rather than a replacement for human shepherds. Next we move into a deep, unapologetic biblical dive on sin, identity, and love: why unrepentant sin separates us from God, and the unique cultural weight of homosexuality and transgenderism compared to other sexual sins. We explore the difference between affirming people and affirming behavior and how pastors can speak truth in love without softening the gospel or driving people away. We close by explaining biblical inerrancy. Mel talks about his favorite translations and why extra-biblical books like Enoch don't threaten the reliability of God’s Word.

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Special Guest: Jon Kolb

Apr 1201:17:21Tap to summarize

Pastor Mel interviews 4-time Super Bowl champion Jon Kolb. Kolb played with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1969 to 1981. Mel and Jon discuss the role faith has played at various points in Jon's career. Jon overcame adversity and unlikely odds to become one of the most decorated offensive linemen in Steelers history. This conversation reveals our common humanity even with those who live special lives. Our common humanity reminds us of our universal need for a Savior. Jon competed at the highest levels for over a decade, and he brings this same tenacity to his faith. Enjoy the wisdom and witticisms of Jon Kolb as he walks us through his remarkable faith story.

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Romans - Week 10: Romans 5:12-21

Apr 500:30:23Tap to summarize

In his Easter sermon on Romans 5:12-21, Pastor Mel explained how Adam’s one act of disobedience introduced sin and death as a universal problem into the world, as seen in the Genesis 3 account of the Fall, affecting all humanity—even before the law was given—with Adam serving as a symbol of the coming Christ. Christ’s righteousness offers forgiveness, the gift of righteousness, new life, and a restored friendship with God to everyone who receives it, even those we disagree with. Mel defined grace as getting what we don’t deserve (unlike mercy, which spares us from what we do deserve). He noted that the law was given to reveal our sinfulness; yet where sin abounded, God’s grace abounded even more, allowing believers to triumph over sin and death as grace now reigns, resulting in eternal life. He closed by reminding listeners that no one is beyond God’s redeeming covering—illustrated by the animal skins God provided Adam and Eve.

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Bible Study E12 - Genesis 4:16-26

Apr 100:38:39Tap to summarize

In his Bible study on Genesis 4:16-26, Michael examines the aftermath of Cain’s murder of Abel, showing how Cain defiantly departs from God’s presence to settle in the land of Nod, east of Eden. He builds a city named Enoch after his son as an outward expression of his unrepentant rebellion and a headquarters of apostasy. The study traces Cain’s cursed lineage through seven generations to Lamech—the first polygamist—who dishonors his wives, boasts of murdering a man and a boy over minor offenses, and arrogantly claims seventy-sevenfold vengeance (surpassing God’s mark on Cain). His sons Jabal, Jubal, and Tubal-cain pioneer innovations in herding, music, and bronze/iron metallurgy that advance worldly prosperity without any pursuit of the Lord. Michael contrasts this degenerative line of self-aggrandizing evil, common grace, and multiplied sin with Adam and Eve’s merciful receipt of Seth as a replacement for Abel in the holy seed, followed by Enosh, at which point men begin publicly calling upon the name of the LORD in spiritual revival. This story illustrates humanity’s fundamental bifurcation into the profane (Cain’s city of impiety) versus the professors of faith (the emerging Church). The study finishes with the dangers of presuming on divine forbearance, the restlessness of life without God, and the tragic-yet-beautiful reality that even profound loss can seed redemption until Christ returns.

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BACK40 E115 - Your God, Your Spirit, Your Associations

Apr 101:09:13Tap to summarize

Mel, Joel, and Michael begin the conversation with a few words about Easter. Is Easter pagan? Next they talk about how God presents Himself differently to unrepentant sinners than He does to the faithful. If God is changeless then why does this happen? They discuss the differences in your spiritual condition should you choose a life of faith over against a life of sin. Scripture makes a point to distinguish between wicked and faithful men, so how should we steward our own associations with people? The conversation finishes with the question of whether sin is passed from one generation to another and how this happens.Wes Huff: Easter Isn’t PaganWhat are the origins of Easter?Pagan Easter? The Real Roots of Resurrection Sunday

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Leadership Night - The Fall of Leicester City