New Creation Albuquerque: Recent Episodes
Jesse
Sharing transformative life with Jesus and one another we pursue the peace, justice and flourishing of the International District.
Jesus calls us into regular and repeated practices that shape us in loving relationship to God and neighbor. Giving, prayer and fasting are gifts that grow us in God's love, not rules that earn God's love.
In Matthew 6:1, Jesus introduces the next section of the Sermon on the Mount, reminding us that The loving attention, affection and acceptance we are so anxiously trying to get from others is already ours in Christ Jesus.
Hannah brings us good news regarding God's faithfulness and our following from Exodus 14!
We live in a world that needs us to make enemies to stay in control and remain profitable.
We live in a world that teaches us to withhold love only for the special few who deserve it.
Matthew 5:43-48 reminds us that
Jesus is freeing us from the “enemy making machine,” healing our hearts to love completely those who do not completely love us
In a world of retaliation and getting even, Holy Spirit is filling us with courage to resist evil with humanizing love. Jesus invites us into a life that disrupts cycles of violent retaliation with surprising acts of nonviolent resistance that humanize both the oppressed and oppressor, making space for restored relationships.
In a world wounded by words that deceive, demean and dismiss people, Jesus is inviting us to heal the wounds of deceit by being people who tell the truth with our words and our lives.
God’s loyal love is fully redeeming our marriage relationships. Jesus calls us into deep covenant commitment while protecting the vulnerable, especially women, in these covenant relationships.
Matthew 5:27-30. Jesus describes the serious and sacred beauty of our sexual desire, inviting us to return to the goodness of our sexual desire that we might honor our own bodies and that of others.
Our series on the Sermon on the Mount continues as we look at Jesus teaching on murder in Matthew 5:21-26, declaring that:
The Holy Spirit is making a way to step toward the person on the other side of the anger that is dividing, destroying and de-humanizing us.
Jesus declares our true identity as the salt of the earth and the light of the world. As we follow Jesus on His Way of Righteousness, we become who we are, a beacon of hope and healing in a world trapped in cycles of destruction.
Sarah Dumas invites us to place ourselves on the path of beholding the beauty of Jesus, learning from Mary in Matthew 28:1-10.
This Mother's Day, we look at 2 Kings 4:1-7 and God's provision for a mother experiencing profound struggle.
The Spirit of the living God is making us strong to walk the right path even when its the hard road.
When we follow Jesus into a life formed by the cross and ethics of the sermon on the mount, we will experience resistance.
The Spirit is active in the middle of conflict, healing us back to the fullness of peace.
Guest preacher, Anna Bellum, proclaims good news from Daniel 4, helping us seek the peace of the places we are planted.
We continue you series in the Sermon on the Mount, looking at the sixth beatitude: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." - Matthew 5:8
We proclaim the good news that: Your life is being freed into focus, you can see love clearly, want love only and pursue love fully.
We continue our series exploring the Sermon on the Mount with the fourth beatitude: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.In a world experiencing deep hunger and pain, we declare that:
God is restoring us hungry ones to our place at God’s table where there is more than enough of all that we need.
Meekness is not weakness: The Spirit is making us strong to choose love no matter the cost, trusting God’s way is the way into our promised future of flourishing.
We don’t groan alone, God is strengthening us to make room for deep grief in great hope.
We continue our series exploring Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, engaging with the first of Jesus nine invitations into the flourishing life - "blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." - Matthew 5:3
If you have less, you are not less, if you have more, you are not more. All have worth, value and dignity in the kingdom of God. The Spirit is inviting all of us into a lifestyle of flourishing, joyfully dependent and expectant on the love of God!
We continue our series “The Good Life,” exploring the Sermon on the Mount delivered by Jesus in Matthew 5-7. Today we intro the beatitudes looking at two of the most important words in Jesus’ sermon.
We introduce the Sermon on the Mount by looking at the Jewish origins of Jesus' proclamation of Good News!
Beginning our Sermon on the Mount series, we start with the prophet Isaiah's declaration of the Kingdom that Jesus brings.
Jesse invites us into the inefficiency of love that is healing the world, proclaiming good news from Galatians 5:13-15
Guest preacher, Anna Bellum declares good news from Jeremiah 29, inviting us to plant our lives in the places God has us.
We continue our series on the Apostles' Creed, looking at what it means to be the "Holy catholic (universal) church, the communion of saints.
The Holy Spirit is a person, fully God and fully available to lead and empower us to be Jesus' hands and feet in the world.
Parker leads us to pay consent to the Spirit at work in and around us. allowing our spirit to intertwine and be one with God at work in the world.
Many of us fear the final judgment. We declare that the judgment of Jesus is to be welcomed into our lives, declaring that Jesus judgment is his love shining now and forever into our hearts.
The ascension of Jesus is central to our Faith, even if it's rarely celebrated. The ascension of Jesus is not the absence of Jesus, but instead, it is the increase and expansion of his rule and reign in the world. We declared that
The loving presence of Jesus is “ascending down” into the depths of our lives, joining us to his loving authority at work in us, through us and all around us.
The Spirit is inviting us to live facing our death without fear and to grab the hand of Jesus who will meet us there in victorious love.
Once a quarter, New Creation dedicates one week where we rest, reducing our schedule and stepping into intentional rest with God and one another. Today, we hear and respond to Jesus' invitation to come to him and learn the rhythms of rest.
Parker continues our series, unpacking the beautiful and anchoring mysteries of the Apostles' Creed, declaring the good news that:
Jesus made a way for suffering to be redemptive, and he is inviting you to join in.
Jesus is fully God and fully human, taking all of our humanity into all of his divinity. This is ground zero for our healing, restoration and salvation.
We proclaim the good news from Colossians 1:13-25 that Jesus' loving lordship liberates us from every lesser lord.
In creating the world, God has made room for us and all creation to have abundant life in relationship with the Giver of life.
We continue our series on the Apostles' Creed. In what way is God All-Powerful? What are we saying we are trusting when we confess belief in "God, the Father Almighty?"
Hear some good news from I Corinthians 1:18-25 and the power of God.
The video clip shown during the sermon can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H76qa1Ctg-g
In world built on trust, devastated by breach of trust, God offers himself to us as the Trustworthy One.
The Spirit is inviting us into the story of God’s very life, a story that was before us and is beyond us, grounding us in love.
Evonne Harden declares the good news from Galatians 6:11-18 that we are living in a new reality created by the cross. The cross, and nothing else, awakens our imaginations to live a life of flourishing free of shame, religiosity, and status divisions.
Jesse declares good news from Galatians 6:1-10. We've been empowered to the sacred process of restoring one another to our true selves in the loving presence of Jesus.
Analisa bring the good news about the freedom we have to serve one another in humbly love. By choosing to walk by the Spirit and not by the Flesh.
We believe in the bad news that we are enslaved others, that we maybe believers trying to find belonging, or that we are free believers seeing others being enslaved.
Kristal gives the good news about that we are free of all slavery and religion through a relationship with God and one another.
Hitomi remind us of the good news of God’s promises to Abraham
to bless all nations, bring all people to become one family
is fulfilled through Jesus in ALL of us. We have received His Spirit so we can continue to learn to trust God and discover what He is doing in all circumstances
with love and hope, not with fear and measurements.
Stephen talks about his days as a "Church Person" and how todays "Church Persons and Non Church People" are describes in Paul's letter to the Galatians.
"We are no longer slave to fear, we are the Children of God". God is calling all of us into the rest of his grace.
As we read the second part of Galatians 2, Analisa reminded us of the division we create as humans. She help us see that In Christ, we are liberated from our divisions so we can freely live in love and unity with one another.
Eloise guides through God's grace to look at Honor vs. Same and Collective vs. Individual. Bringing the good news about how by grace we are free from being justified by how we live. We can confidently receive acceptance over ourselves AND others by putting our faith in Jesus and His gospel of grace.
As we continue our series in Galatians, Sarah centered us in growing in unity by asking each other how God has been revealing Himself to us!
As followers of God, we have a doorway into unity when we share the ways that God has revealed Himself to us in JESUS CHRIST
Continuing our series in Galatians, Parker proclaims the good news from 1:1-10 that
Jesus is calling us in! To get lost in the beauty and mystery of His presence. while also…Empowering us to go out! And be part of the flourishing of the neighborhood.
In a world that divides. In a world that excludes. In a world that discriminates, others, shames and alienates…
The promised blessing of God is here!
The Spirit of God is creating a new multi-ethnic family empowered to live a life of love, centered on Jesus.
We hear good news from John 14: 25-27:
The Lord is near, even when we feel He is far, offering access to an enduring, overcoming, deep peace that transcends the world.
In a world that ruthlessly cancels all they disagree with OR weakly consents to everything done under the sun, Christ is inviting us to CALL IN everyone toward the center of God’s transforming love.
John 1:14 says that Jesus is full of Grace and Truth. This is his posture. This is how love lives.
Sarah Dumas shares from Matthew 26, proclaiming God’s invitation to us to surrender to God’s presence, power and plan even when we feel we have the resources to take care of things ourselves.
God is just like Jesus and he is freeing us from the anxiety, guilt, shame, and violence we inflict on ourselves and others.
We continue to introduce each of the four practices we are living into as a community. Today we introduce ROOT, the practice of staying put, paying attention and partnering with a good God, healing a groaning creation.
We launch into our four ways of life with Jesus, beginning with CENTER. We center everyone and everything on Jesus.
God is not behind our suffering, but he is in it with us and ahead of it to pull us through it in healing love.
Blanca encourages us to imitate Mary and trust that God is empowering us to step into the Kingdom in ordinary and risky ways. Luke 1:36-55
God's advent, his healing arrival in our lives, is disruptive. We learn from Mary's courageous obedience to root our identity in God's grace, declaring from Luke 1:26-38 that:
God is inviting you, God’s favored ones, to courageous cooperation with the healing disruption of his advent.
Parker proclaims the good news from Acts 27 that, God is calling you home again, to hear your identity in a fresh and new way.
We declare from Paul's encounter with Jesus in Acts 26 that Jesus meets us in the dirt, saying: "rise, stand, and live into your purpose, a forgiven witness to the love of God."
Jesse proclaims the good news from Acts 24 that
We have been freed to enter into a new possibility of human flourishing together, a lifestyle rooted in the healing justice & judgement of Jesus.
Josh Harrelson proclaims the good news of Acts 22 that God is uniting us and ending the divisions of “us” vs “them."
Peter's sermon in Acts 2 points to baptism as our pledge of allegiance to a new King, leading in a new direction toward new creation.
We embrace the good news from Acts 20 that The Spirit is healing us at the very place of our wounding. The healing waters of God’s love are flowing between us and through us as we share life in the shared life of God.
Sarah Dumas proclaims the good news from Acts 19 that:
The Holy Spirit is sending God's healing power into creation in real and tangible experiences of physical touch and presence.
The good news of Acts 17:16-34 is that God is closer than we ever imagined, inviting us to know and be known in his life and in this divine union to know our deepest desires finally satisfied.
Hannah proclaims the good news from Acts 16 that God is inviting us to be present in the waiting because it is there that we also experience transformation and the movement of God.
Seth Platt declares good news from Acts 15, naming our tendency to yoke ourselves and others to things other than relationship with Jesus.
Holy Spirit is always stirring up Heaven on Earth, inviting regular people like you and me to ENTER the Kingdom, not just as a final destination when we die, but as a daily opportunity to experience heaven take root on earth here and now.
In Acts 14 we see what happens when normal people step into the the Kingdom work stirred up by the Spirit in our everyday lives.
Reflecting on Acts 13, Blanca Pedigo proclaims that: Jesus is bringing joy where there was pain and suffering to the excluded and to those who exclude, making both God's people.
Acts 12 shows us the true nature of Empire and God's heart to free those caught in systems and behaviors that bind. We declare that:
In a world in which the Powers of Empire/Culture seek to either appease you or oppress you,
The Spirit of God is empowering us to live a shared life of resistance by prayer and active presence that is bent toward Jesus living love.
Jared Lujan declares good news from Acts 10, inviting us to receive the healing salvation of God that we might pursue the Kingdom with those we view as unclean.
The Spirit urges Philip toward the desert place to meet a Eunuch in Acts 8:26-40. We hear the good news that:
The desire of God is a desire to embrace all people and places, empowering us to embrace and be embraced at the very boundaries of difference.
Hannah Town declares the good news from Acts 6 that God is calling us out of the fear of the unfamiliar into a new way full of fresh anointing.
Josh Harrelson preaches from Acts 4, proclaiming that:
In a world where we limit God or create God in our own image, God is inviting us to join him as he works in ways and with people that we don’t expect.
The Spirit is on the move, empowering us to see people and places, not just as they are, but for who they truly are in the resurrection light of Jesus.
Amid the nationalist temptation to preserve our own way of life by means of border and boundary, alliance and allegiance, isolation and defense,
The Spirit is on the move to extend the love of God to all people, a love that cannot be contained by any nation, a love that slices through borders and boundaries, alliance and allegiance, reaching to every people group, every clan, every tribe, and every family.
We intro the book of Acts and declare: The Spirit of God is on the move inviting us into the revolution of an intimate life that transgresses border and boundary!
God’s always increasing love is available to us as we learn to be a people where heaven and earth come together for the healing of the world.
Praying Paul's prayer for the Philippian church.
January 24-31 is our rest week. We will be learning the spiritual practice called “Daily Examen.”
You can use this audio Examen as a guide into this life giving practice w Jesus.
You can find a written guide here with more background and suggestions.
Jesus is revealed to be like an unquenchable fire - Not a fire that destroys us, but that destroys what is killing us, a fire that unrelentingly purifies, resulting in wholeness and healing to everyone and everything it touches.
We look at the first part of John 15:1-17, defining loneliness as disconnection from the Vine, and observing how loneliness leads to an anxious presence in the world. Insecure that we are not safe in the love of those around us, we constantly are needing to get love, approval and affection from those not designed to provide them. It is only when we learn to be alone with Jesus as the only complete source of life and love that we are free to love others well.
We conclude and culminate our Advent series, exploring healing atonement, with the "Gospel in Chairs," comparing two versions of the salvation story: 1. The more modern, Western, and legal/retributive model with 2. The more ancient, restorative/healing story of God revealed in Jesus.
In a sin sick world of disconnection and relational trauma, we proclaim that joy is possible:
The place of your wounding is the place of your healing. Jesus is inviting you back home into the healing relationship of joyful connection in the life of God.
Join us as we discover how neuroscience reveals, not only the devastating effects of relational sin, but also how our brains can be healed and restored by God in and through the life and presence of Jesus with us. Joy is life lived in the loving presence of Jesus.
I John 1:1-4
We continue our Advent series reflecting on the Healing Work of Jesus life, death and resurrection, proclaiming the good news from Hebrews 4:15, 5:7-10 and Matthew 3:13-4:11 that
God in Jesus by his Spirit is re-telling your story, healing the wounds of sin you’ve inflicted on others and that others have inflicted on you.
God is making peace in your humanity with God, others and all Creation.
Join us as we begin our Advent series on healing atonement. We will explore the meaning of Jesus' life and death, especially as the early Christian community understood it for the first 400 years after Jesus' ascension.
From Deuteronomy 30:6 and Jeremiah 31:31-34, we declare the good news that:
Into a world dying from the terminal disease of sin, Jesus comes! There is HOPE!
The Great Physician, Jesus Christ, has shared in our diseased humanity, so that we might share in his healed humanity. The Spirit of God is coming to us and the world now, healing and restoring us to new life.
We find ourselves in the middle of a greater Story that gives us meaning, purpose and identity. The beginning of this Story, and glimpses of its conclusion, are recorded in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures, but there is still more being written.
Scripture can be summed up in 5 Acts and we find ourselves in Act 5 as spirit filled partners with God in his healing and restoration of the world!
We all live out of stories we believe about ourselves, others and God.
The stories we believe are what often determine our actions and
responses to people. These stories are true and false, given to us and of
our own making.
Join Reina, Blanca, John, Alex, Enrique and Jesse as they talk the stories we tell and are told that form us in the International District.
In Acts 10 God introduces Peter and Cornelius and afterwards the world will never be the same.
As we jump into this month, exploring prejudice in ourselves and our neighborhood, we proclaim from James 2:1-9 that God holds no prejudice and is healing us of our prejudice, so we can walk in love toward all people, refusing to other one another.
We not only weep and wait with God in seasons of pain, we are also invited to work with God in pain and suffering. James 5:7-8 points us to the farmer as an example of hopeful patience in the midst of suffering, working with God to bring about the fruitfulness of God's Kingdom.
In suffering, we are given permission and space to groan, lament and voice our pain in protest and even complaint before God. Alongside this permission to groan is the invitation to rejoice in our sufferings. We look at how the Way of Jesus is full of joy even in suffering in 1 Peter 4:12-14.
As we begin our conversation on personal PAIN and move into this week's reflections on neighborhood pain, we look at Romans 8:18-28 and find that God is with us in our groaning, inhabiting our groans, transforming our pain as our co-suffering Savior.
Jesse sits down with Enrique, Reynaluz and Alex to grapple with experiences of pain in the International District.
The Spirit of God is empowering us to party in protest of the principalities and powers of sin, evil and injustice. Parties are our joyful resistance to despair. Starting with Passover and Miriam (Exodus 12 & 15) leading Israel out in parade, God leads us out into celebration as a proclamation of hope in God's healing of all Creation.
Having reflected on and discussed: Genesis 1, Ex. 15:1-21, Ex. 12:1-27, John 2:1-11, Lk. 5:27-32, 14:7-14, Luke 15, Revelation 19:6-9...We see God as the host and the occasion for celebrations of all kinds. The invitation list welcomes all Creation and all people to experience the relational joy shared with Father, Son and Holy Spirit and available to all that God has made. God delights in introducing his beloved to one another as we gather in celebration.
Charlie recently started a church in our neighborhood as well as "Creators Community" which seeks to stir the creative imaginations of youth in our neighborhood through after school programming.
Listen in on our conversation to learn more about Charlie's heart!
God is a God who is full of celebration and joy. God not only shares perfect joy in God's self, but we are invited into the divine celebration between Father, Son and Holy Spirit! In Jesus we see God joining the celebrations of the people and places in which he dwells as a sign of God's heart and healing.
Who, what and how we celebrate reveals our values as a neighborhood. Listen in on this month's neighborhood convo as we discern how we party in the International District!
Jesus was often found at parties and still is! How do you feel about parties? What do these feelings reveal? As we begin this month's look at how our neighborhood celebrates and what partying in the Kingdom looks like, let's name and be curious about our relationship to celebration.
From II Corinthians 5:14-6:1 we proclaim that in the midst of this world full of division and demonization, separation, bitterness and broken relationships, Jesus Christ is making all things new, the Spirit of the Living God in our midst invites us to be reconciled at his table. We are a reconciled people who are reconciling people to God, one another and all of Creation. We are a people of Shalom.
We declare good news from John 16:33. In a world full of trouble, tension and turmoil, Holy Spirit is enabling us to work for peace from a place of peace.
Listen in on our conversation with longtime International District residents as we discuss where we see peace springing up in our midst.
Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you (2 Thess. 3:16). God is in our midst, inclined to cultivate peace among us and through us.
We look at the crucifixion of Jesus in Luke 23:32-49, using the lens of posture. The posture of Jesus in death was the same as in life, cruciform. He takes the posture of solidarity, forgiveness, weakness, restoration, and trust and empowers us to do the same.
Luke 19 gives us so much to reflect upon and learn from as we learn to posture ourselves in the Way of Jesus looking love.
Viewing ourselves, our interactions and others interactions with one another through the lens of posture helps us love God and neighbor in the Way of Jesus.
As we continue our Dwell series, we are looking at our posture in the neighborhood. How do people position themselves and their bodies in relationship to others? How does it change based on who, when, and where the interaction takes place? What does this tell us about the antagonisms, love and community/lack of community?
Listen in on this great conversation with our long time neighborhood residents!
As we continue looking at how God Dwells in Place with People, we are reflecting on our posture toward one another. Our posture, the way we position our bodies toward others and God, matters in the Kingdom of God!
We have a crisis of power in our homes, churches, neighborhood, nation and world. Jesus is empowering us to be powerful in new ways. We need a new definition of what power looks like and lives like and his name is Jesus. Jesus models and invites us into a new way of inhabiting power and it is cross-shaped: powerful like a lion, living like a lamb. This is the kind of power that saves the world.
As we continue our series on God's dwelling with us in place amidst the social dynamics we face as a people, the book of Esther reveals how humanity is always grappling with power. Will we leverage our power according to our identity as God's people? Or will we be co-opted into the uses and abuses of power that the world and empire lay out for us?
Luke 8:22-25 reminds us that the power of Jesus is a lifeline and anchor for the powerless in life's storms.
Listen in on this conversation with the International District neighbor all-stars! We are talking about power in the neighborhood.
We all hold some power and there are people and forces who hold power over us. The dynamics of power effect every part of our lives from what we buy to how we earn a living. How we relate to and use our own power has ripple effects through our families and neighborhood.
Before we can be a part of transforming power dynamics in our neighborhood and world, we must first name and face our own relationship to power.
We continue our series, looking at the social dynamics at work in the International District. this week we looked at the "Paintings"/symbols giving meaning to and revealing the hopes, dreams, strengths, experiences and disappointments of our neighborhood.
We proclaim good news from Psalm 106 that God's steadfast love outlasts all of our pain, brokenness and failure.
Our neighborhood is filled with images, symbols, sounds and art. Some of these are our creations, growing out of our experiences and identity in the neighborhood. Others, have been created and placed here by others, as charity, control or commercialization. These "paintings" tell a story. They tell our story. A story of resilience, resistance, freedom, oppression, conflict, and much more!
Listen in on our conversation with Enrique, Reyna, John, Blanca and Alex as we discuss the history and present reality of "Paintings" in the International District.
For the pictures with time-stamp of when they are discussed, click here:
WEEKEND SCRIPTURE READINGS
SATURDAY APRIL 17
- Numbers 13 (1-3, 17-33)
- Psalm 121
- Mark 11:1-26
SUNDAY APRIL 18
- Numbers 14 (1-31)
- Psalm 122
- Mark 11:27-12:12
Every life and home tends to be filled with "paintings," symbols of who we were, who we want to be, and what we have experienced. Whether they are poignant songs, family pictures, or brandname clothes, the symbols we surround ourselves with reveal our story, and the meanings that inform our way of life and who we want to become.
Genesis 1:26-28 reveals God to be our Creator and we, his icons. We learn about who God is and what he desires through his work of art. Likewise, we bear the image of God as we create and our creations reveal who and where we really are and want to be.
Listen in on this great conversation with Joey! He lives on San Pablo next to Mariah and is a part of the micro church on Grove! Hear a bit of his story and how God met him on the streets, is bringing reconciliation to his relationships and is continuing to walk with him in our shared life together.
WEEKEND SCRIPTURE READINGS
Saturday, April 10:
- Leviticus 20
- Psalm 101
- Mark 7:1-23
Sunday, April 11:
- Leviticus 23 (9-32; 39-43)
- Psalm 102
- Mark 7:24-8:10
Death has died because the Author of Liife lives and because Jesus lives: love has power, Sin is powerless and death has died.
God is working to expose & heal systems that crush the poor. He is moving to bring a year of Jubilee, a re-ordering of wrongs and making them right.The widow giving her last two coins in Luke 21:1-5 is often used as an example of generous giving. She is commended for her great generosity out of her great poverty. However, we learn that in context, Jesus is not commending the widow's great sacrifice, he was condemning the religious political system that sacrificed the widow and brought her to the point of such a devastating moment.
Listen in on a convo with the one and only Mike Platt as we hear his story and journey toward open doors living, processing death and living a shared life on mission with Jesus.
As we continue our DWELL series, looking at the different social dynamics within the International District, we see God's heart of provision revealed in scripture and through the life of Jesus. As we cooperate with God's heart of provision, we will participate in a beautiful dance of enough, in which every person's needs are provided with equity and peace, justice and flourishing result.
We chat with Kim Obregon about beauty of the ID, the meaning of floral arrangements and learn some cool stuff about her life and work!
WEEKEND READINGS
SATURDAY
- Exodus 27
- Psalm 80
- Matthew 24:29-end
SUNDAY
- Exodus 28 (1-6, 15-21, 29-43
- Psalm 81
- Matthew 25:1-30
This week we got to see and hear stories of the way God is already at work restoring the flow of resources within our neighborhood. We got to see and hear stories of beauty and of disparity. As we dwell with God in place with one one another we remember we are a people of Open Hands, moving from independence to interdependence as Jesus models for us in Philippians 2.
As we learn to dwell with God in place with people in the International District, we have invited some neighbors to be our guides on this journey. Each month, during the week of our neighborhood reflection on social dynamics at play within the ID, we will listen to and learn from a lively conversation with some neighborhood "all-stars" who are deeply rooted in our place and deeply committed to our people.
This convo is centered around the social dynamic of "Pennies"/Money, how it flows, works, is distributed and acquired in the International District. This is a lot of fun and well worth a thoughtful listen.
WEEKEND READINGS
SATURDAY
- Exodus 20
- Psalm 73
- Matthew 20:17-end
SUNDAY
- Exodus 21 (1-19, 22-29)
- Psalm 74
- Matthew 21:1-22
Jesus delights to meet real people where they really are. The problem is, we often don't want to be met where we really are. We hide, pretend, and avoid where we really are to avoid the shame, guilt and fear of being truly known. But, where Jesus dwells, shame, fear, and guilt are banished. He meets and dwells with us where we really are, cutting through the facade with deep compassion and healing, allowing us to notice, name and own reality.
Listen in on this conversation with RJ as we hear a bit of his story navigating the loss of both of his parents, taking care of his siblings and learning to dwell with Jesus in place with people through it all.
WEEKEND READINGS
Saturday
- Exodus 13
- Psalm 66
- Matthew 15:29-16:12
Sunday
- Exodus 14 (5-31)
- Psalm 67
- Matthew 15:16:13-end
Listen in on our intro to our new series, called DWELL. God dwells in place with people, inviting us to the same. Where God is dwelling there is healing and transformation (Revelation 21:3-4). Over the next months, we will be responding to the Good News of God's dwelling with us in the International District, looking at 9 social dynamics that God's healing love transforms.
Listen in on our conversation with Julie, who has lived in the neighborhood and has been a part of our community for about two years! We hear a bit about her journey to Albuquerque and our community and how her passion for people experiencing homelessness has grown.
Scripture Readings
Saturday
Exodus 6 (1-13)
Psalm 59
Matthew 12:1-21
Sunday
Exodus 7
Psalm 60
Matthew 12:22-end
So often the idea of "witnessing" makes us nervous, anxious and fearful. We believe the good news that Jesus is always and everywhere present and at work. To witness is simply to see what God is up to in our lives and to speak it, inviting others to recognize the good news of God's presence in our lives.
Listen in on a conversation with Joanna (JoJo) Harden! She talks her tattoos, life in the neighborhood and where she is praying for God to move.
**WEEKEND SCRIPTURE READINGS
SATURDAY**
Genesis 50
Psalm 52
Matthew 8:1-17
SUNDAY
Exodus
Psalm 53
Matthew 8:18-end
We are desperate to receive the living water that only Jesus provides. In our thirst, we are often tempted to drink from other wells that only leave us more thirsty and even more deprived of life. Jesus' invites us to the true and unending source of living water that we may be truly satisfied, healed and unleashed as a source of refreshment in the world.
Listen in on this beautiful conversation with Glenn of the St. Francis Catholic Worker House which has established their presence in our neighborhood in our building. New Creation partners closely with Glenn and St. Francis and we learn so much from one another as we share life with Jesus in the neighborhood.
WEEKEND SCRIPTURES:
Saturday
Genesis 43 (1-10, 15-34)
Psalm 45
Matthew 3
Sunday
Genesis 44 (1-20,30-34)
Psalm 46
Matthew 4
Listen in as Blanca shares her immigration story, her history in the ID and her love for Jesus, people and strawberry cheesecake!
SCRIPTURE READINGS
SATURDAY
- Genesis 36
- John 19:1-37
- Psalm 38
SUNDAY
- Genesis 37 (3-8, 12-36)
- John 19:38-end
- Psalm 39
Listen in on our latest community conversation with Dave and Sarah Dumas!
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Saturday:
Genesis 29 (2-28)//Psalm 30//John 15:18-end
Sunday:
Genesis 30 (1-2,22-43)//Psalm 31//John 16:1-15
John 11 reveals Jesus to be the resurrection and the life in the shadow of death. He meets us in the shadow of death, open to our questions and pain, grieving and opposing death.
In our sin, shame and brokenness, the most joyful place we can find ourselves is in the loving light of Jesus' judgment. In Jesus' interactions with the woman from Samaria (Jn 4) and with Peter after his betrayal (Jn 21), we see that those who knew Jesus, ran toward them in their deepest shame, longing for his judgment and justice.
Listen in on our conversation with Maribeth Troyer and Tiara Lujan as we talk about following Jesus as a nurse in the trauma unit of UNMH.
Psalm 9 exposes all nations vying for our allegiance and claiming to be our source of provision and protection as false idols. The Psalmist points us to the everlasting and true King who rules with righteousness and justice forever as our only hope and refuge.
Listen in on a conversation with Kendall Corley! We talk family, neighborhood and business (Not to mention which is his favorite Disney princess).
Saturday Readings:
Gen 9
John 5:1-24
Ps. 9
Sunday Readings:
Gen 10
John 5:25-end
Ps. 10
In John 1:9, John sees Jesus and says, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." All creation groans under the weight of sin and death. Jesus, on the cross, draws all the sin, wrath and hatred of the world into himself and injects new and healing life by his blood. He is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
Listen in on a conversation with our very own Malik, owner of "Malik's Gift of Thrift," and a part of the NCA Fam the last three years or so.
READINGS FOR THIS WEEKEND:
Saturday, Jan. 2 | Gen 2 | | John 1:29-end | | Ps. 2 |
Sunday, Jan 3 | Gen 3 | | John 2 | | Ps. 3 |
Mary's response to the arrival of God to her and the world in Luke 1:46-55 is a song of revolutionary praise. Her theme is the mercy of God which comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable.
Mark 1:1-8 depicts John preparing the way for the arrival of King Jesus. Our response to the good news of Jesus' Kingdom arrival is the joyful calibration of our lives through confession and repentance.
- Ps. 20, 21:1–7 (8–13)
- Ps. 110:1–5 (6–7), Ps. 116, 117
- Isa. 4:2–6
- 1 Thess. 4:13–18
- Luke 21:5–19
- Ps. [120], 121, 122, 123
- Ps. 124, 125, 126, [127]
- Zech. 11:4–17
- 1 Cor. 3:10–23
- Luke 18:31–43
In a time where death, disease and division seem to be inevitable, ADVENT exposes the powers and systems of Sin and Death as bankrupt, and reminds us that the ARRIVAL OF GOD'S LOVE IN JESUS IS WHAT IS TRULY INEVITABLE. We will look at Mark 13:24-37, proclaiming the Good News that in Jesus second coming God's inevitable love will arrive, undoing all wrongs done past, present and future.
Psalm 127:2 reminds us to lay down our anxious striving and to receive God's rest. We proclaim the good news that Jesus is present and at work when we can't be and when our presence and work isn't enough.
Paul's letter to Philemon proclaims the hope and healing of the deepest divisions and relational woundings that we experience and inflict upon one another. Jesus changes everything, empowering us to live by the law of Love rather than that of our Land and culture.
In John 14:18, Jesus promises his people that "I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you." War and antagonism run on the FEAR that there won't be enough for me and mine. War runs and is fueled by a scarcity mindset. The seeds of war are already planted within the American political landscape. We thrive on demonization of the other, antagonism and polarization.
Holy Spirit meets our fear with love, enabling us to be a people of peace in a culture at war. He meets our insecurity with his promise of loving provision by his very presence. We, no matter the result of the election or the state of the world, will not be left as orphans. Jesus has come and is coming to us.
In the midst of political polarization and our entanglement with political powers and principalities, Psalm 146 urges us to pledge our allegiance to Jesus and to hope in God alone, resisting the temptation to trust in princes (or presidents). As the church do not strive to change the world, but rather be the world changed by Christ, living under King Jesus' reign of love and embodying his politic. The Church is not a voting block to be wooed but a political body to bear witness.
- Ps. 20, 21:1–7 (8–13)
- Ps. 110:1–5 (6–7), Ps. 116, 117
- Ecclus. 3:17–31
- Acts 28:17–31
- Luke 9:37–50
In a world that is full of longing for more and discontented striving after our deepest desires fulfilled, Philippians 4:10-23 declares that the very power of Jesus is strengthening us to consent to Christ's provision of our deepest desires and longings.
- Ps. [120], 121, 122, 123
- Ps. 124, 125, 126, [127]
- Micah 1:1–9
- Acts 23:12–24
- Luke 7:1–17
In a culture that profits off of our polarization, division and the demonization of the "other," Jesus is breaking down divisions and inviting us to participate in the reconciliation of all things, starting with our concrete and local relationships. In Philippians 4:2-3, Paul gets concrete and local, pleading with Euodia and Syntyche to "agree in the Lord."
For some practical tips on how to have difficult conversations, check out this helpful article:
https://gravityleadership.com/how-to-have-a-difficult-conversation/
Ps. 101, 109:1–4 (5–19) 20–30; Ps. 119:121–144; Hosea 4:11–19;
Acts 21:15–26;
Luke 5:27–39
Ps. 101, 109:1–4 (5–19) 20–30; Ps. 119:121–144; Hosea 4:11–19;
Acts 21:15–26;
Luke 5:27–39
The Spirit is freeing us from the tyranny of the calendar so that we may seize the significance of the moment. We explore Ephesians 5:15-21 and the invitation to enter into the Kairos moment of our current seasons in life. Our focus on what time it is can cause us to miss what moment it is.
In a culture of unchecked consumption, as citizens of heaven awaiting a Savior who brings the Kingdom of abundance to earth, we are free to be full of the joy of sharing.
Thomas Merton said, "we must learn to realize that the love of God seeks us in every situation, and seeks our good." Philippians 3:12-16 describes Paul's single-minded effort to cooperate with the love of God in pursuit of the upward call of God in Jesus Christ that he may attain the resurrection from the dead. Christ has made us his own and we get to cooperate with this wonderful work by making him our own.
Philippians 3:1-11. As our worship of Jesus becomes more exclusive our love for everyone, everywhere, regardless of externals becomes more expansive. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Jewish Law and expands the promises made to the people of Israel to every tribe, tongue and nation. Our external religious observance or ethnic, cultural identity is not what marks us as the people of God. Allegiance to Jesus alone marks us and expands our love, enabling and freeing us to worship Jesus with all that we are.
Ps. 146, 147; Ps. 111, 112, 113;
Job 4:1–6, 12–21;
Rev. 4:1–11;
Mark 6:1–6a (Reflection)
Ps. 137:1–6 (7–9), Ps. 144; Ps. 104;
Job 3:1–26;
Acts 9:10–19a (Reflection)
John 6:41–51
Philippians 2:14-30 proclaims that, as we are caught up in the greater purposes of God in the world, we can do all things without grumbling or complaining.
Ps. 101, 109:1–4 (5–19) 20–30; Ps. 119:121–144;
Judges 13:15–24;
Acts 6:1–15;
John 4:1–26
This week we look at Good News from Philippians 2:12-19. Specifically vv. 12-13 where Paul invites us to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling knowing that it is God who is at work to will and act according to his purpose! God is at work, saving all creation, bringing renewal to us and all things. In awe and reverence we get to participate with and consent to the redemptive work around us!
All the encouragement, affection, sympathy and love we need is already abundantly available to us through Jesus self-emptying love. We are free from achieving a life of love and can simply receive his love flowing to and through us. Philippians 2:1-11
Ps. 61, 62; Ps. 68:1–20 (21–23) 24–36;
Judges 2:1–5, 11–23;
Rom. 16:17–27;
Matt. 27:32–44
Philippians 1:27-30 urges us to walk in a manner worthy of the good news way of King Jesus, calling us out of comfort and complicity into conflict with the powers and principalities.
Ps. 63:1–8 (9–11), Ps. 98; Ps. 103;
Joshua 6:15–27;
Acts 22:30—23:11;
Mark 2:1–12 (Reflection)
We declare good news from Philippians 1:12-26 that King Jesus is filling us with comfort and confidence in the midst of crisis. Responding to this good news moves us away from asking "Why is this happening?" to "WHO is with us and Who are we to be with?"
Ps. 148 (Reflection)
Ps. 149, 150; Ps. 114, 115;
Joshua 1:1–18;
Acts 21:3–15;
Mark 1:21–27
Ps. 20, 21:1–7 (8–13); Ps. 110:1–5 (6–7), Ps. 116, 117;
Deut. 34:1–12;
Rom. 10:14–21 (Reflection)
Matt. 24:32–51
Philippians 1:9-11 prays that discerning love would ever be increasing in our communities that we might be "filled with the fruit of righteousness" (right relationship with God and others).
We declare the good news that God's love that meets us right where we are and provides exactly what we need is always and already growing in our communities!
Ps. 140, 142; Ps. 141, 143:1–11 (12);
Num. 24:1–13;
Rom. 8:12–17;
Matt. 22:15–22 (Reflection)
Ps. 131, 132, [133]; Ps. 134, 135;
Num. 23:11–26;
Rom. 8:1–11 (Reflection)
Matt. 22:1–14
Ps. 119:145–176; Ps. 128, 129, 130;
Num. 22:41—23:12;
Rom. 7:13–25;
Matt. 21:33–46 (Reflection)
Ps. [120], 121, 122, 123; Ps. 124, 125, 126, [127];
Num. 22:21–38;
Rom. 7:1–12;
Matt. 21:23–32 (Reflection)
We are MULTIPLYING into 6 churches! We get some details as to what this will look like and we hear good news from Philippians 1:3-6 that God is at work completing the good work he's begun in us as we partner together in a shared gospel life!
Ps. 118; Ps. 145;
Num. 21:4–9, 21–35;
Acts 17: (12–21) 22–34;
Luke 13:10–17 (Reflection)
Ps. 107:33–43, 108:1–6 (7–13);
Ps. 33; (Reflection)
Num. 20:14–29;
Rom. 6:1–11;
Matt. 21:1–11
God in Jesus is radically committed to being present to us. He is the Good Shepherd who leads us beside still waters, into paths of righteousness, and dines with us in the presence of enemies. He is Jesus who is with us always, even to the end of the age.
As we are present to the presence of Jesus, we will be present to those to whom he is present. Our lives will be present to God, one another and our neighborhood.
Ps. 50; Ps. [59, 60] or 8, 84;
Eccles. 3:16—4:3 (Reflection)
Gal. 3:1–14;
Matt. 14:13–21
Ps. 101, 109:1–4 (5–19) 20–30; Ps. 119:121–144;
Isa. 4:2–6;
Eph. 4:1–16 (Reflection)
Matt. 8:28–34
Ps. 97, 99, [100]; Ps. 94, [95] (Reflection)
1 Samuel 16:1–13a;
Eph. 3:14–21;
Matt. 8:18–27
Good News! Jesus, the wounded God with human memories, is enthroned as king at the right hand of God.
- His rule of resurrection is overcoming death,
- His rule of forgiveness is overcoming sin,
- His rule of welcome is overcoming estrangement.
Now and forever no other human except Jesus Christ governs this wide globe, no matter how certain their control may seem(statement adapted from Kenneth Tanner)
We look at the fourth petition of the Lord's Prayer, proclaiming the good news that God’s forgiveness is forming a family of forgiveness that is enabling the healing of every human relationship.
This recording includes our full service of lament in which we corporately name and lament white supremacy and the systemic and institutional racism that allows black and brown lives to be disregarded, degraded, and destroyed.
Ps. 55; Ps. 138, 139:1–17 (18–23);
Exod. 40:18–38 (Reflection)
1 Thess. 4:1–12;
Matt. 5:38–48
Ps. 50; Ps. [59, 60] or 114, 115;
Exod. 34:1–17;
1 Thess. 2:13–20;
Matt. 5:21–26 (Reflection)
This prayer is a prayer for provision and justice. God is deeply concerned that we have our daily needs met and that our neighbor is not left out of this provision.
Ps. 63:1–8 (9–11), Ps. 98; Ps. 103;
Exod. 28:1–4, 30–38;
1 John 2:18–29;
Mark 6:30–44 (Reflection)
Craig Greenfield continues our look at Jesus' Prayer in Matthew 6 and then we listen to Tom Wuest's "Thy Kingdom Come" and conclude with a brief discussion on the kingdom. It was a wonderful time!
Ps. 148, 149, 150 (Reflection)
Ps. 114, 115;
Exod. 18:1–12;
1 John 2:7–17;
Mark 16:9–20
Ps. 145; Ps. 67, 96;
Ecclesiasticus 2:1–11 (Reflection)
Acts 12:25—13:3;
2 Timothy 4:1–11
Ps. 119:1–24; Ps. 12, 13, 14;
Exod. 15:22—16:10;
1 Pet. 2:1–10 (Reflection)
John 15:1–11
John David joins our community to proclaim the good news that we are invited to approach God as our Father, to connect and to communicate with the Creator and Sustainer of all that is! We have intimacy and access to God as our Father and His name is our hope. Our great joy is to pray and to live that His Name might be known throughout all the earth.
Ps. 146, 147; Ps. 148, 149;
Ps. 115 (Reflection)
Exod. 13:3–10;
1 Cor. 15:41–50;
Matt. 28:16–20
This Resurrection Sunday we declare the Good News that the resurrected and living Jesus is leading us from the fear of death toward the depths of death through the finality of death into shared life in God’s love now and forever.
Ps. 148, 149, 150; Ps. 113, 114, or 118;
Exod. 12:1–14 or Isa. 51:9–11;
John 1:1–18 or
Luke 24:13–35(Reflection)
John 20:19–23
Ps. 95, 22;
Ps. 40:1–14 (15–19) (Reflection)
Ps. 54;
Lam. 3:1–9, 19–33;
1 Pet. 1:10–20;
John 13:36–38 or John 19:38–42
Ps. 102 (Reflection)
Ps. 142, 143;
Lam. 2:10–18;
1 Cor. 10:14–17, 11:27–32;
Mark 14:12–25
Ps. 51:1–18 (19–20) (Reflection)
Ps. 69:1–23;
Lam. 1:1–2, 6–12;
2 Cor. 1:1–7;
Mark 11:12–25
We are free from impressing or convincing God to love us in prayer. As we pray with Jesus, we are being filled and shaped by God’s love, conformed to his image and joined to his mission.
Ps. 24, 29; Ps. 103;
Zech. 9:9–12 or Zech. 12:9–11, 13:1, 7–9;
1 Tim. 6:12–16 (Reflection)
Luke 19:41–48
Ps. 137:1–6 (7–9), Ps. 144; Ps. 42, 43;
Exod. 10:21—11:8;
2 Cor. 4:13–18 (Reflection)
Mark 10:46–52
Ps. 95, 22; Ps. 141, 143:1–11 (12);
Exod. 9:13–35;
2 Cor. 4:1–12;
Mark 10:32–45 (Reflection)
Ps. 131, 132, [133]; Ps. 140, 142;
Exod. 7:25—8:19;
2 Cor. 3:7–18;
Mark 10:17–31(Reflection)
Ps. 119:145–176; Ps. 128, 129, 130;
Exod. 7:8–24;
2 Cor. 2:14—3:6;
Mark 10:1–16 (Reflection)
Ps. [120], 121, 122, 123; Ps. 124, 125, 126, [127];
Exod. 5:1—6:1 (Reflection)
1 Cor. 14:20– 33a, 39–40;
Mark 9:42–50
From beginning to end, the theme of scripture centers on God's commitment to be WITH US. In Jesus, God enters into our suffering, joins us in our pain and, as our co-sufferer, brings healing, forgiveness and hope. We discover God's commitment to be with us from Psalm 46.
Ps. 95, 69:1–23 (24–30) 31–38; 73;
Gen. 43:1–15;
1 Cor. 7:1–9;
Mark 4:35–41(Reflection)
Ps. 61, 62 (Reflection)
68:1–20 (21–23) 24–36;
Gen. 42:1–17;
1 Cor. 5:1–8;
Mark 3:19b–35
Matthew 17 gives us an inside look at the Transfiguration of Jesus. We discover the good news that Jesus in his glory, meets you in your misery. He is dismantling every false security you’re tempted to trust in. He meets you in the dirt, touches you with compassion and speaks courage into your fear.
Lift up your eyes and see Jesus alone meeting you right where you are.
Ps. 56, 57 (Reflection) [58]; Ps. 64, 65;
Gen. 41:46–57;
1 Cor. 4:8–20 (21);
Mark 3:7–19a
Ps. 55; Ps. 138,
Ps. 139:1–17 (18–23) (Reflection)
Gen. 41:1–13;
1 Cor. 4:1–7;
Mark 2:23—3:6
Ps. 50; Ps. [59, 60] or 19, 46;
Gen. 39:1–23 (Reflection)
1 Cor. 2:14—3:15;
Mark 2:1–12
Jesus is calling us out of the shadows of shame, guilt and fear, inviting us to hide inhim rather than from him.
Join us as we look at the Lectionary passages for week one of Lent: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-9; Romans 5:12-19; Psalm 32.
We can be our full selves before God, trusting him to meet us in our shame with love, grace and healing forgiveness.
Ps. 63:1–8 (9–11), Ps. 98;
Ps. 103 (Reflection)
Gen. 13:2–18;
Gal. 2:1–10; Mark 7:31–37
Into a world and an American Church that has a confused political identity and misplaced allegiance, we proclaim the good news from Romans 12 & 13 that God is forming us to be a uniquely political people with Jesus as our King and Love as our Law.
Ps. 107:33–43,108:1–6 (7–13); 33;
Gen. 35:1–20;
1 John 3:11–18;
John 11:1–16 (Reflection)
Ps. 101,109:1–4 (5–19) 20–30; 119:121–144;
Gen. 31:25–50 (Reflection)
1 John 2:12–17;
John 10:1–18
The American Church and Christians tend to grasp for control, thinking that this is the way we save the world. John the Baptist speaks truth to the religious powers of his day, calling them to repent of their various strategies to gain control and usher in the Kingdom. We proclaim the good news from Matthew 3:1-12 that:
We don’t have to control the world to save the world! Jesus is Lord! We are free to consent to his power, rather than grasping for our own. He is already at work among us & ahead of us.
Ps. [83] or 146, 147, 85,
Psalm 86 (Reflection)
Gen. 27:30–45;
Rom. 12:9–21;
John 8:21–32
Jesus is transforming us to be the witness the world longs for. The world is desperate for an embodied, concrete witness to the reality of a better world lived under the lordship of Jesus. The Church is this witness, a demonstration and experience of the world made new by Christ.
Ps. 61, 62, 68:1–20 (21–23) 24–36;
Gen. 21:1–21; Heb. 11:13–22;
John 6:41–51 (Reflection)
Ps. 64 (Reflection)
Ps. 56, 57,65;
Gen. 19:1–17 (18–23) 24–29;
Heb. 11:1–12;
John 6:27–40
Ps. 119:1–24; Ps. 12, 13, 14;
Gen. 4:1–16;
Heb. 2:11–18 (Reflection)
John 1: (29–34) 35–42
All the power and love you need and long for are already yours in Jesus Christ. In Jesus' baptism (Matt. 3:13-17) he is empowered by the Holy Spirit and the Father's unconditional love for him is affirmed. As followers of Jesus, united to Christ in baptism, we receive the same power and love from the Father.
Ps. 121, 122, 123; Ps. 131, 132;
Isa. 45:14–19;
Col. 1:24—2:7 (Reflection)
John 8:12–19
SCRIPTURE READINGSPsalms 85, 87, 89:1-29
Joshua 3:14-4:7
Ephesians 5:1-20 (Reflection)
John 9:1-12, 35-38
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Psalm 68, 72
I Kings 19:9-18
Ephesians 4:17-32 (reflection)
John 6:15-27
TODAY's SCRIPTURE READINGS:
Psalm 34
I Kings 19:1-8
Ephesians 4:1-16(Devo Reflection on this passage)
John 6:1-14
TODAY's SCRIPTURE READINGS:
Psalm 103
Isaiah 62:1-5, 10-12
Revelation 19:11-16
Matthew 1:18-25
Into the dried up, broken cracks of our lives and neighborhood, Christ our hope appears to strengthen, heal, and restore - transforming our sighs of sorrow into songs of flourishing.Isaiah 35:1-10 gives us a vision of the world God is on mission to cultivate, inviting us to be co-gardeners of flourishing.
God is mending the world torn by injustice with the thread of his Spirit empowered people. Isaiah 11:1-10 describes God's beautiful future in which King Jesus rules with justice and righteousness, bringing about holistic and universal shalom to the world.
Check out the Bible Project video on the biblical theme of Justice HERE for a great overview.
We step into Advent and continue our series unpacking our vision statement, declaring that the God of peace is re-shaping the world to be a place of peace, forming us to be a people of peace that walk in the light of the Prince of Peace. Isaiah 2:1-5
The Spirit is forming family on mission, not meetings in buildings. God is restoring us to communion in the very life of God. Church within the "American Dream," often falls short of God’s dream for the Church. Our shared life with one another is rooted in the very nature of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Gospel creates community. Shared life with Jesus creates shared life with one another.
Jesus, the source of life and love, is at work bearing fruit in the world and he's inviting us to share fruitful life with him. As we unpack our vision for life as the church, we start with the source of all spiritual fruitfulness, life with Jesus. "I am the Vine, you are the branches...remain in me and I in you and you will bear much fruit. Apart from me you can do nothing."
In Luke 18:1-8, Jesus strengthens us to always pray and never give up. In a world of injustice that ignores cries for justice like an unjust judge, God is listening. God is attentive to our cries for justice. God is moving the world toward sudden justice.
Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7 proclaims that God is at work unravelling hostility and enabling we who are immigrants to be cultivators of shalom in our neighborhoods, cities, nation, and world. The peace of our city is found in the welcome of the immigrant and our embracing our citizenship in the Kingdom of God.
In a world that teaches us to suffer in silence, doubt in secret and stuff our emotional reality, God is inviting us to show up as we really are, uncensored and unedited in God's presence. Lament is the gift of God to the community and the beginning of our healing.
Not everyone likes that Jesus eats with outcasts and sinners. In Luke 15, Jesus tells three parables that begin to unravel an "us vs. them" culture. Jesus reveals a God who smiles rather than frowns as he engages with us and other sinners. We are learning to behold the God who is beholding us and smiling.
Luke 14:25-33 describes, what many call, "the cost of discipleship." Do you hear Jesus' call to forsake all, take up our cross, and follow him as good news or bad news?
In Luke 14:1,7-14, Jesus disentangles us from the honor-shame game we play. Jesus removes our shame and restores our honor, so that we can view ourselves and others through the lens of Jesus life, death, resurrection, and ascension rather than through the lens of what we've done, experienced or has been done to us.
Hannah Town proclaims the good news that Jesus invites us to step out of our fear toward HIM from Matthew 14:22-33. In the face of our fear, it is the knowledge that God is near and more powerful that will ultimately bring us peace.
Sometimes the invitation of Jesus into discipleship sounds foolish to our ears. We hear, "sell your possessions and give to the poor" as an unwise investment strategy, or "Love your enemies" as impractical and foolish. Jesus comes announcing the Kingdom of God, which turns our worldly sense of wisdom upside down. We need a Kingdom vision over a worldly wisdom. We will look at Hebrews 11 and the men and women who lived lives with a kingdom vision.
In Luke 12:13-34 declares that Jesus is unmasking the false security of money, unraveling our anxieties, and offering us lasting security in fearless generosity.
Josh Harrelson declares the good news from Luke 10:25-37, proclaiming that we can neighbor with gospel love because God has neighbored us. We have to get a neighbor to be a neighbor, receiving the love of God that awakens our heart to love others without limits.
II Kings 5:1-14 proclaims the good news that our identity, security and significance is not based on our work, but on consenting to God's work. Jesus exposes the lies that we labor under: We are what we do, have, and/or what others think/say about us. God calls us out from these false stories of identity into relationship with him that is one of consenting to his work already done and continually being done in our lives.
Romans 5:1-8 proclaims the good news that, in Christ, our suffering is a meeting place with our co-suffering, all-loving God. And, it is in this place, that God does some of His most gracious and healing work.
Guest preacher, Justin Richter, encourages us on the path toward unity in a diversity of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences from the book of Colossians.
In John 13:31-35 Jesus invites his disciples into the kind of love he has brought and nurtured among the disciples and in the world. We are called and enabled to love as Jesus loved us. God is at work building a community of "differents."
Jesus shows us what God is really like and invites us to follow this God in an eternal kind of life here and now, forever. John 10:22-31 reveals to us this good news and calls us to allow Jesus to confront the God we invent through our preferences, experiences and theological backgrounds. Will we follow the God revealed in Jesus, or pick up stones to kill him?
It has been said that, reconciliation is God's language for a broken world. The reconciling love of God is reaching to us and through us no matter what divides us. In Christ, God is reconciling the world to Himself, and we have been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:19). We see this powerfully demonstrated through Jesus reconciliation with Peter in John 21:1-19.
The Good News of Resurrection is that we are free to be held and compelled by love alone. In a world held by hurt, anger, bitterness, greed, violence and all manner of sin, Jesus frees us to be held and compelled by love. Through the lens of Mary Magdalene's encounter with the resurrected Christ, we see love has won and has always been God's posture towards us.
The peace of God is for you, his peace is for us, and his peace is for the world. As Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey, he comes as a different kind of king bringing a different kind of peace.
In a world that prefers the false security of violent and coercive power, Jesus invites us to the true security of his vulnerable love. Luke 13:31-35 depicts Jesus responding to the death threat issued by Herod with an invitation to come underneath his wings as a mother hen shelters her chicks. The Gospels present a choice between two kings, Herod, the Fox, who rules by means of coercive and violent power, or Jesus, the Mother Hen, who shelters us with his vulnerable love.
Jesus resists the satanic temptation to save the world in ways that destroy it. He resist the temptation to be a mere social program, a violent conquerer, and a traveling showman. In Luke 4:1-13, Jesus is faithful to the way of the cross, rather than the sword. He chooses the way of making disciples over gathering crowds, and providing Bread from heaven, not just food for the stomach.
Joel 2:1-2; 12-17 sounds the alarm of coming judgment. However, God's invitation to mercy rings louder than the alarm of God's judgment. Our return to God is our restoration. Our mourning hearts will meet mercy. Our sinful hearts will receive forgiveness. Our wounded hearts will receive healing.
Your heart of stone has been made alive to beat in rhythm with the heart Jesus. Transformed to beat for his glory, to be captured by his beauty, to feel with his passion, to think with his wisdom, and to love with his affection. Ezekiel 36:22-27 proclaims the good news that God, not only wants to change our status, he wants to change our hearts, the very operating core of who we are.
In Christ, God has disarmed and put to shame the demonic systems that oppress us. Colossians 2:8-15 proclaims the Good News that we are free from these systems that train and shape us into a culture of death. We are alive in Christ and free to walk in the Good News Kingdom of Jesus.
Jesus saves us from the religious burden of good advice to the transforming power of good news. 1 Corinthians 15 proclaims the good news that has the power to save us from the devastation of Genesis 3.
The full worship service of our celebration of 2 years in the neighborhood! Kingdom stories of God's faithfulness in us and through us as we seek the peace and flourishing of the International District through a shared Gospel life.
In Jesus, the light of God's Kingdom calls us out of darkness into a life of joy, freedom, peace and justice. The Light will win. The Darkness will die. We are free to walk in the Light. Isaiah 9:2-7 declares the good news of Advent and untangles the lie of darkness, pointing us to the source of Light and Life.
Craig Greenfield, founder and director of Alongsiders International, shares 4 vital keys to coming alongside those who walk alone in life. Craig works with orphans around the world, empowering youth to mentor youth in their own communities.
Mike Potter explores Genesis 15, encouraging us to be still and know God's irrevocable covenant love and commitment to us.
God urges his people to, "be still and know that I am God." Whether we are responding to a stressful situation or a difficult person, we must learn to respond from a place of stillness and knowledge of God's character and his mission in the world. The world, our families and communities are desperate for a people courageous enough to be still and know God before reacting.
Wrapping up our summer discussion of Kingdom Encounters in Matthew 8-9, we dive into Matthew 9:35-10:1. When Jesus shows up the good news of the Kingdom confronts the lies of isolation, hunger and fear. Jesus heals, looks with compassion on the crowds and recruits and empowers a people to go on mission with him.
All followers of Jesus experience doubt. Is doubt and enemy or friend to faith? We are called to faith and trust in the God revealed most clearly in Jesus. As we look at Matthew 9:18-34, we will see how we are called into faith that does not ignore doubt, but allows God to work in and through it.
The good news of Jesus' Kingdom is that all are invited to dine with their savior and healer. Matthew 9:9-17 reveals Jesus to be one that eats with outcasts, traitors and sinners. The gospel moves us from hostility to hospitality, from exclusion to embrace and from independence to interdependence. These moves of the gospel are made possible by the freedom and forgiveness Jesus offers.
Forgiveness is the way of the Kingdom. Jesus sees our need holistically and brings freedom through forgiveness, sometimes when we are not even looking for it. Matthew 9:1-8 shows us to forgive completely and unconditionally is nothing less that freedom fighting in the way of Jesus.
Whenever Jesus encounters barriers that exist between people and God or people and people, he creates a bridge to overcome that barrier. As people of the Kingdom, we are called to do the same. Where the world puts up barriers, we are called to create bridges to gospel life and reconciliation.
Baptism is a public proclamation of our allegiance to the Lamb that was slain and to the Kingdom which he set up. In so doing, we are declaring our union with a Person: Jesus Christ and A People: the Church.
The storms of our life our revelatory. They reveal who we are and who God in inviting us to become. Most importantly, they reveal who Jesus really is as he is with us, speaking to us and acting for us in the midst of the storm. Matthew 8:23-27 shows us the power of the storm when we listen and look to Jesus.
Walking with Jesus is full of Invitation and Challenge. The challenge is often inherent in the invitation. He comes offering, not a class, but a quest. We often come seeking information, Jesus offers transformation.
Jesus enters into the household of Peter. He comes inside with eyes to see, healing Peter's Mother In Law. Then, this house is turned inside out.
Every Kingdom has a king. We cannot serve two masters. Matthew 8:5-13 records Jesus asking a Roman Centurion, "Shall I come and heal?" The Centurion encounters Jesus and shifts his allegiance from Caesar's Empire to Jesus' Kingdom. If Jesus is Lord, then Caesar is not. If Jesus is Lord, all else becomes infinitely second, and it is for our greatest gain.
An encounter with Jesus is an encounter with the kingdom. In this series, we will look at 10 encounters with Jesus in Matthew 8-9. This sermon examines a leper's encounter with Jesus which leaves him forever changed and restored to life, society and worship.
Mike Potter brings us a message from Romans 8:1-17, encouraging us as those who live life in the Holy Spirit.
Jesus reveals God's posture towards those who resist and reject him as one of sorrow rooted in compassion. In Matthew 23:37-39, Jesus laments Jerusalem, expressing his longing to have gathered them up like a Hen does her chicks under her wings. Our sin is God's sorrow. His posture towards us is one of protection more than punishment.
By God's resurrection of Jesus from the dead, a new people, telling a story of God's new world has come into being. We proclaim the manifold wisdom of God through our diversity and our way of life. Ephesians 3:10
He is Risen! God is faithful and Jesus is Lord. We tend to worship the Jesus made in our own image. Jesus challenges us and our expectations of him. He is Lord.
The resurrection is the origin and source for resurrecting power in our lives and in the world. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead breaks the power of sin and death and empowers us for new creation mission in the world! The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is in us (Rom. 8:11)!
God is with us in every season of our life, even when everything is not fine. The Psalms give us language to put our pain to speech. Psalms of disorientation, or lament, are bold and honest speech that give us permission to speak honestly about our pain, doubt and suffering to God. Jesus suffers ahead of us, for us and with us.
This is a message given on March 27, 2017, at Foothills Fellowship in Albuquerque, NM, following the unexpected death of Auline Platt a dear wife, sister, mother, and friend. Today, March 2, 2018 is her 51st birthday. We pray it continues to bring comfort and hope in the midst of grief, suffering and death.
In the face of great need, Jesus takes the little we have and does more than we can think or imagine. In Matthew 15:29-39, Jesus reveals God to be full of compassion, fundamentally positioned against death, sickness, hunger and disease, multiplying life and fulfillment through the meager resources of his disciples.
Jesus calls us to move from independence to interdependence, from building our own empire to being a part of his kingdom movement. We are to be a people of open hands, serving one another in love with the time, talent and treasure that God has given us.
As we pick up our plates, we put down our divisions. Jesus was and is at work among us as we gather around the table, turning the world upside down. Around the table, the kingdom of God breaks through and separation, hostility and division are turned upside down. All are welcome, all can be forgiven, and all will be restored. The Stranger becomes friend, friend becomes family and family becomes empowered for mission.
So often, the lens through which we look at others is that of hostility, suspicion and competition. Jesus calls us to move from hostility to hospitality. We are called to create spaces of welcome that enable strangers to become friends, rather than enemies.
We kick off our series on Open Rhythms by looking at biblical hospitality. As followers of Jesus we are called to create spaces of welcome in which the presence of Jesus can be known and experienced. This love and welcome is not only for those we know, but is also for the stranger.
Join in on our celebration of God's faithfulness during our first year of living church life as a weekly rhythm of loving God, one another and our neighbors. We will look at Philippians 1:3-11, as we celebrate family on mission and all the partners we share in the proclamation of Good News.
God has moved into our neighborhood. The Incarnation is a comforting truth in which to believe and a stunning example for how we are to live. God is most fully known through Jesus, and Jesus is known in the world through his people. Jesus is God with us who sends us.
The Good News has the power to transform us and the world from the inside out. How do we appropriate it? This wraps up our series on the Gospel in 1, 3 and 30 words! We'll look at Ephesians 2:8-10, and learn what it looks like to trust in and receive the greatest gift.
Jesus is God with us so that we can share in God's life. We are meant to live in loving and fruitful relationship with God. When we follow Jesus, we are given a new family on a new mission. The result: New Creation!
The good news is not only that we have been saved FROM the bondage of sin, Satan, and death, but that we have been saved TO new life and mission in God's Kingdom here, now and forever.
We worship what we love and we become what we worship. We are in constant need to recalibrate our worship to worship Jesus as Lord.
The world is in bondage under sin. Apart from Christ, sin's power is crushing. We suffer under the weight of sin, held captive by the fallen world, the sins committed against us and the sins we ourselves commit. All creation groans under sin. Jesus saves us from sin. Jesus breaks the chains of personal, corporate and systemic sin!
Continuing our discovery of the good news in Jesus, we find that Jesus is God with us come to show us God's love.
The Good News is founded upon this fundamental reality: Jesus is God with us. This is the ground of the gospel. The Incarnation changes everything and shows God to be a God who gets us, is with us and is for us.
The gospel in one Word is Jesus. The gospel in three words is Jesus is Lord. We'll unpack the significance and life transforming power of this earliest creed of Jesus followers.
The gospel, in all its multidimensional beauty, comes down to one Word, one Person and one Life: Jesus. In the end, the Word on God and God's message to the world is Jesus.
The gospel reimagines race. God desires every tribe, tongue and nation to worship him and Jesus' death and resurrection breaks down the wall of hostility between all people, making possible a worship that maintains distinction while abolishing disparity. The Church must be the reflection of God's kingdom in which the convergence of cultures puts on display the manifold/multi-colored wisdom of God.
The good news of Jesus is part of a big good news story of God's relentless pursuit of humanity. God, from the moment of the Fall, has been on the move to redeem the world. We find Jesus is the apex of the Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration story of God. You can find the video shown in the sermon here: https://thebibleproject.com/explore/how-to-read-the-bible/
Jesus calls us to live in light of God's dream for the world. This dream is upside down and subversive of the competing dreams offered to us.
Jesus shocks the world as he begins his "Sermon on the Mount" with an unlikely list of the blessed ones to whom the kingdom is available.
Psalm 23 is often a comfort for the hour of our death, but it is also about every moment of our life.
The Kingdom is God's reign, reflected through God's people, realized on God's earth. We will discover that every Kingdom has to have a King. Central to the Jewish understanding of God's Kingdom was that God was creator and sovereign over all the earth. Jesus comes proclaiming the Kingdom of God arrived with him and is revealed as the true, good and loving King of an upside down Kingdom.
The message of Jesus, his disciples and the early church was clearly and consistently the good news of the Kingdom of God. To watch the video played toward the end of the sermon, copy and paste: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmFPS0f-kzs into your web browser.
This message introduces us to the supreme value of the Kingdom of God, and kicks off our series looking at the depth, joy, and all-consuming, life defining beauty of the Kingdom of God.