WS Update: Getting the Ending Right
We all love a good ending to a story. When a hit TV series comes to a close, we feel invested in how it ends – and not just because we’ve given so many hours and weeks immersing ourselves in its world. No matter how great the entire series may have been, the finale can…
WS Update: Local and Global
In New York City, it can be easy for us to become so engrossed in our daily personal lives that we lose sight of the larger picture. It is crucial for us, as a church, to remember our role and impact within this city. We are called to love our neighbors and heal our city…
WS Update: Knowing God
Our July sermon series is about Jesus’ work in the history of the church. We looked at the Reformation period yesterday and no one is more influential than John Calvin. He begins his magnum opus, The Institutes with this: “Without knowledge of self, there is no knowledge of God. Our wisdom, insofar as it ought…
WS Update: Holy Reading
As Christians gather in worship and fellowship, we are reminded of the tremendous power of prayer and the significant role it plays in the life of a Christian and the world around us. In 1 Timothy 2:1, the apostle Paul instructs Christians to prioritize petitions, prayers, intercession, and thanksgiving for all people. He urges us…
WS Update: The Early Church
All July we are looking at different eras of church history and how God moved his people through the past 2000 years. His story of grace did not end with the close of the New Testament but continues today. The contemporary Christian church has little influence in Europe, largely treated more like a historic relic than…
WS Update: The Church’s Branding Problem
“Christianity’s got a branding problem.” This was the title of a recent NY Times article by Jessica Grose on declining religious observance in America. It’s no secret that the Christian church’s reputation has fallen on hard times in the U.S. There have been scandals and failures of ethical leadership. Many people are turned off by what they…
WS Update: The Gospel On Trial
Yesterday we wrapped up a 10-week series (watch yesterday’s message) on the book of Acts. Over the weeks, we’ve seen how the gospel had spread from a tiny band of Jesus’ followers in Jerusalem out into the whole world, even to the highest reaches of power in the Roman Empire. This was a message with…
WS Update: Pain And Hope
In yesterday’s worship service, I reflected on a text (Acts 19:11-20) that reminds us that the world is enveloped in what Christians identify as ‘spiritual warfare. In the words of the Apostle Paul, there is a cosmic power of evil at work (Ephesians 6:12) that leaves the whole creation groaning “as in the pains of childbirth” (Romans…
WS Update: Orange Skies, Spiritual Cries
Last Wednesday, at the height of the orange haze over Manhattan, my oldest daughter texted me one word to describe her view: “scary.” I responded how much more frightening these kinds of events must have been 300 years ago when the inhabitants of Manhattan wouldn’t have known the cause of the smoke and haze. This…
WS Update: Sundays and Mondays
Each Sunday after the benediction, I end the service with this exhortation: “Let us go forth to serve the world as those who love our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” The congregation responds: “Thanks be to God!”, affirming the grace that enables us to serve Jesus in our daily lives. In Manhattan, one of the…