Common Grace Church NYC: Recent Episodes
Common Grace Church
The vision of Common Grace Presbyterian Church is to exalt Christ through being an authentic, gospel-centered, disciple-making, multi-ethnic, multi-generational community with a sincere love for God, for people, and for the city. We want to look like Revelation 7:9 ("a great multitude...from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, worshipping the Lord") and to feel like (and be) family!
This week we Jesus interact with a Pharisees, a man with dropsy, and the attendees of party!
Are the parables of the Mustard Seed and Leaven meant to be positive or negative pictures of the Kingdom of God ? Listen and find out !
What caused Joseph and Mary to "wonder" at the prophetic words of Simeon? Listen and find out !
How does more revelation of Jesus help us as we wait for His return (the 2nd advent) - tune in to find out !
Why does God allow so many trials and so much suffering as we wait for His return ? Tune in and find out !
We all love the PG Jesus - the one who heals the sick, feeds the poor, and brings peace on earth. But what about the real Jesus - the one who in our text says He wants to bring division and fire to the earth?
In Luke 12:4-12, Jesus commands His disciples not to be afraid of the hostility of mankind when it comes to acknowledging Jesus as Savior and Lord. Instead, He commands them to fear God and to trust in the work of the Holy Spirit, as followers of Jesus faithfully live out the mission of the Gospel "to make disciples of all nations."
Today we look at the Lord's Prayer and discover why it still can encourage and invigorate our prayer lives !
Why did Mary make a better choice than Martha? Was Martha's hospitality really that bad of a thing? Watch and find out !
Can we really love God with all of our heart, soul and strength ? What about our neighbor ? Tune in and find out !
What does it look like to be called on mission ? What might we face if we accept this call ? Tune in to find out !
Today we take a look at the first time the disciples became apostles as they are sent out on a specific mission from Jesus.
What do you do when the timing of God and the plans of God simply don't make sense? Tune in to find out !
Tune in to find out what happens when Jesus heads all the way to Gadera and encounters a man possessed by numerous demons !
Although both Simon and the sinful woman sought out Jesus, only one was accepted - why ?
Why did Jesus say that no one born of a woman was greater than John the Baptist? What made him so special ?
Audio only - Today we look at Jesus' interaction with a leper, a paralytic, and a tax collector!
Today we look at the content of Jesus' first sermon and what he has to say about generosity.
Today we seek to gain a better understanding of the challenges we are sure to face this side of heaven - be they physical or spiritual.
Today we revisit Christmas and explore what the angels meant when the mentioned the concept of "peace on earth"!
Today we continue our Upside Down Kingdom series and look at the 3 prayers/statements from the key players in the text !
The "Virgin Birth" is one of the most widely know and shared stories. How important is this story to Christianity? As we shall see, the "virgin birth" is essential to our Christian faith, how we view God, and how we view ourselves.
We start our new series looking at the interesting interaction between the angel Gabriel and a priest named Zechariah.
As we continue our Advent 2023 series, we look at the reality of both heaven and hell and how they both should help us to better understand God while also motivating us to live on mission.
The advent season is about waiting -- yet taking comfort in the peace that Jesus Christ brings now while waiting for the fullness of that peace at His second coming.
As we begin our new advent series, we consider two of the traditional advent themes - death and judgment.
Today we test out a new mic :) and take a deep dive into some of the things that were destroying community in the early church (hint: they still effect us today).
How can we use our words to build up and not pull down, to praise and not curse? Tune in and find out !
What does true faith look like? Can it exist without works? It is not just an intellectual belief, existing on a separate sphere than works. James shows us that a "faith without works is dead." And therefore, true faith is accompanied by works.
How can we be slow to anger and embody what "true" Christianity is all about? Watch and find out !
Today we start the book of James and look at how we actually can "count it all joy when we go through various trials".
In our final sermon in what's been a year long study through the book of Acts, we see the importance of trials as they pertain to faith and mission.
Today, we look at the 1st leg of Paul's journey to Rome and gain a better understanding of why belonging to God matters.
In this chapter, Paul makes a defense of his faith, combining both his personal experience and his biblical theology. In the end, his witness is to the work of Jesus Christ in his life, and those who are sanctified by faith in him.
Today we take a look at the why, what and how of living our lives in light of the resurrection!
Guest preacher Arthur Yuen walks us through the parable of the great banquet, showing how Jesus has invited us to the table, to be partakers of His hospitality and love.
This chapter gives great insight as to how to share the gospel effectively in today's cultural moment!
What do you do when reality and the promises of God don't seem to be lining up in your life?
How do we deal with failure, especially in seasons where it seemed like we were doing exactly what God had called us to do?
How do you know which way to turn when life becomes confusing or hard? Tune in to find out !
Today we encounter opposition in the spiritual realm and see how it stacks up against the power of the gospel as Paul seeks to plant a new church in Ephesus.
Acts 11:1-10We apologize for only having audio. Our camera was down.The Apostle Paul enters Ephesus, where he encounters Spirit deficient and Spirit-less disciples.
Today we look at the striking similarities between Corinth and NYC and how the gospel can change any city regardless of time or place.
Paul continues the Macedonian Call with two stops - one in Thessalonica and one in Berea.
Our new easter series kicks off with a look at 6 pictures of the gospel from the Old Testament!
How does the gospel change a wealthy designer, a poor slave girl, and an "average joe"?
Why did Paul want Timothy to get circumcised after everything we read in Acts 15? Hint - it has to do with living on mission!
How will the church in Antioch respond to the letter from the church in Jerusalem, and why did Paul and Barnabus part ways?
Paul and Barnabus continue their missionary journey into Asia Minor and are invited to speak at a local synagogue - what will Paul's message be about ?
Why did James life end in death and Peter's life end in a miraculous escape? Does prayer matter? Tune in and find out!
In our final Advent sermon we look at love - how God embodies it and displays it to the world.
Our advent series continues with look at the Shalom (peace) that only comes from the Prince of Peace.
Sadly, the early church is more concerned about the fact Peter went into a Gentile house than they were excited that the Great Commission was being fulfilled before their very eyes - today we explore the lingering sin of racism and how the gospel stands up to it.PS - I mentioned segregation having been present even "40 years ago" in the USA - I meant 60, sometimes I don't want to recognize my age lol
Did God respond to Cornelius or was Cornelius responding to God? Today we tackle this and several other things as we continue through the book of Acts !
Today we look at what was going on behind the scenes of Saul's conversion.*Partial recording b/c our computer died towards the end of the sermon
Today we take a close look at how Christianity spread from the Samaritans to the Gentiles through 2 very unlikely converts.
Today we consider how the early church put a greater emphasis on mission than they did comfort - we hope you will be both encouraged and challenged as you listen!
This sermon takes a close look at the martyrdom of Stephen and the surrender and forgiveness he exhibited throughout the entire ordeal.
This sermon covers the longest speech in the book of Acts - in it, Stephen uses the back drop of Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, and Solomon to point out that the accusations of the Sanhedrin are unwarranted and unjustified.
How will the church respond to this 3rd form of attack and what can we apply from the 7 men chosen to serve the Greek widows?
The opposition manifests from verbal threats to physical beatings - how will the early church respond?
This text is a great snapshot of how we are to respond and how God responds to outside and inside attacks.
We take a close look at opposition - how it attempts to stop the early church and how it comes against us.
Today we look at the first miracle of the lame man being healed and the 2nd miracle of Peter's transformation !
A close look at the early church reveals that there devotion was tightly knitted to their understanding of the cross.
What's my purpose and how does the Ascension of Christ play into how I accomplish it ? Tune in to find out !
In this first sermon in our new series through the book Acts, we get a clear picture of the purpose of the church (every member) and the power that God gives us to accomplish it!
We made it! In this chapter, the entire bible ends with a beautiful invitation and exhortation - may we all heed the call !
God's perfect justice is once again put on full display as we look at the demise of the embodiment of evil and rebellion - Babylon !
Today we get a close up of 2 of the 3 primary enemies of the people of God - the prostitute (beguiling affluence) and the beast (aggressive violence).
We see a clear, complete picture of God's justified wrath on those who have rebelled and gotten away with injustice.
What's the secret to this nefarious number that has graced many a heavy metal album cover in the 80's? Is there more to it ?
In our final I Am sermon, we celebrate Easter through the lens of Jesus' interaction with Martha, Mary, and Lazarus.
What's the different between a False shepherd and The Good Shepherd ? Tune in the find out!
This sermon sets the stage for our 7 week series on the "I am" statements of Jesus leading up to Easter.
This chapter offers much insight as to who Satan is and how the people of God can best combat him.
Who are the two witnesses and what can we learn about the church from them today ? Watch the sermon to find out !
As we wait for the final blast of the 7th trumpet, we see the heart of God revealed through the awesome appearance of a mighty angel and a mysterious little scroll.
We continue through the Lamb's unrolling of the scroll of human history and see more and more chaos with the 5th and 6th trumpet blasts
While Part 1 of Revelation 7 gives us a picture of the church on earth, Part 2 gives us a picture of the church in heaven - it's diverse, set apart, and beautiful !
This sermon takes a closer look at who the 144,000 sealed servants of God are in the first part of Revelation 7 and how their description can provide encouragement for us today.
Our power supply went out on our mixer (it's ordered!) so we are back to poor sound quality - sorry ! Today we consider the shepherds and the manger scene as we wrap up our 4 week advent series.
Again, please forgive the sound quality - we will get this right! Today we explore how the reality of the darkness should effect how we live our lives - namely with a "calm urgency".
We got the sound right! Today we look at the lives of Simeon and Anna, two old saints who longed for the Consolation and Redemption that can only be found in Jesus.
Forgive the sound quality - we got it right on Advent 3 only to have the power cord break on Advent 4! Today we explore the ancient themes of advent (death, judgment, heaven, hell) and see how they prompt us to long for and live for the Light.
Today we look at the infamous 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse and the One Horseman who offers us true hope.
What is this scroll that no on an open? Who is this Lamb that was slain? Watch the video and find out !
This week, we move from the 7 churches to the throne room of God and begin a long section (until chapter 19) that primarily focuses on the ongoing battle between the the forces of darkness and the Kingdom of God.
Today's sermon is focused on the church in Laodicea - the infamous church that Jesus threatened to spit out of His mouth -
This small but faithful church is called "weak" but still receives more promises from Jesus than any of the 7 other churches.
Some of Jesus' strongest words were directed at this church that was rumored to be alive but in His eyes was dead.
Thyatira was a church that had many good things going for it except for the fact that it forgot the art of speaking the truth in love - it tolerated sin and allowed it to spread wreak and havoc. Today we look at Jesus' exhortation to this small church and see how it applies to us as well!
What does Jesus tell John to say to a church in the midst of incredible suffering? Tune in to find out !
Since last weeks sermon didn’t record correctly, here’s a retake on the church of Ephesus - forgive the ambiance :)
Since John was exiled on the Isle of Patmos, and since the church is described as being in exile on earth (1 Peter 2:11), we consider the apostle's words in Rev. 1 for practical ways to do this exile thing correctly!
Revelation 1:1-8
John describes himself in Rev. 1:2 as one "who bore witness to the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ" - today we look at 7 ways that we can do the same.