Crossroads In The Bronx

Why? Isn’t one altar call enough? If an altar call is what you really want. Nicodemus didn’t want an altar call. He wanted to "see the kingdom of God.” Jesus knew this through divine discernment and could cut to the chase. “Except you be born again.” But Nicodemus suffers from “Viejitis,” a debilitating disorder that can strike at any age. Pastor Joe explains this condition that resists the mysterious and miraculous ways of God.

The Scribes and the Pharisees were pretty good at the law. But good was not good enough. They somehow lost the radical demand for the absolute holiness required by the law. Jesus WAS good enough and He teaches us, through the Sermon on the Mount, what that inward holiness looks like. This is a roller coaster ride through anger, murder, sex, testimonies under oath, church fights and being taken to court. But in the end, the Gospel of hope is unveiled.

It’s one thing to hear Jesus speaking to a crowd, letting them know that people are “blessed" when they do this or do that. But truth be told, till that point, the only one who's really been living the Beatitudes is Jesus. But when His eyes lock with yours, and He tells you directly to your face, “You are the salt of the earth!”...Ho Chi Minh! Listen in.

Sermons take texts and expound on it. None of that here. This is a portrait of Jesus himself, his Father in heaven and of the man-to-be. The end result is not just a code for living but the character of a person. Jesus is the face of the Sermon on the Mount. Pastor Joe invites us to look deep into that face, lest we run the risk of reducing the passage to an echo of scattered sayings out of the past. Ain’t nobody got time for that.

Years of gloom can serve as a a bittersweet backdrop to the story of the redemptive light. No matter how dark the night can get we can still hold fast to Psalm 27:1 "The Lord is my light and my salvation— so why should I be afraid?”. Let God use darkness to expose us and His light to redeem us!

It is not a small thing that the Lord is close to hear, see and rescue us from inherent and impending peril. It is too great a thing to not share in word and deed.

Most Christians are afraid or would not dare to explore, honestly, the Incarnation or engage in the wonder of it. We dare to at Crossroads because if we don’t, Christianity will dwindle to a type of cartoon or movie and the enemy of wonder, boredom, will take over. Pastor Joe contemplates God becoming so utterly human that he could be overlooked or ignored…on a bus in the Bronx.

If we are to take seriously Christ’s teaching at the end of Matthew, that whatsoever is done to them is done to Him…then we must conclude that the risen Christ is still a refugee. But don’t despair. It simply means that you and I can still meet Jesus and help Him in his need.

Jesus was not the kind of Messiah anyone had expected…including John. John could not understand why nothing Messianic and grand was happening. He could not understand why Jesus wasn’t doing anything revolutionary or cataclysmic. He didn’t understand why God was not inaugurating his powerful kingdom with apocalyptic splendor then and there. Jesus was offending his own cousin. Pastor Joe takes a daring and re-imagined look into the exchange between the the Word (Jesus) and the prophetic word (John The Baptist).

It’s hard to say which is more offensive to our ideas of getting ready for the holidays: Advent or John the Baptist. They both ruin the Western Christmas spirit. But even if your manger scene at home has the baby Jesus lying with hands raised up towards you, with a smile, there is no way to get rid of the insubordinate figure of John the Baptist announcing the coming wrath with the arrival of this beautiful baby. What are we going to do with this embarrassing guy? Pastor Joe has some ideas.

Watchfulness and readiness are the hallmarks of Advent. Are we ready for the coming of the Son of Man? In some ways yes, in some ways no because in the Advent life, we are saints and sinners at the same time. So we must find a way to believe and proclaim two seemingly paradoxical things at once.

In just two sentences by the thief on the cross, we encounter confession, genuine self-condemnation, astonishment and horror at the state of his fellow criminal’s mind and the ministry of reconciliation as he tries to bring him to his senses, while there’s 60-90 minutes of breath left. Wait! One more thing: His noble testimony to the innocence of Jesus and all the rightfulness of His claims as King of the Jews.

The Saducees created a scenario that places the resurrection in a real pickle: "One wife for seven brothers." It backfired because they "neither knew the scriptures or the power of God." But Jesus knows both very well. Pastor Joe shares, in a very personal message, that the Gospel may be more about the Good News concerning God, and not primarily the story of Jesus, the resurrection, or how we should behave.

We often see events that cause us doubt and despair. We must also learn to see God’s sovereignty of how He brings rescues in the most unconventional ways. Thorns can be lost roses waiting to be found.

"Don’t let post traumatic resentments derail you from walking in freedom. Be mindful that the freedom God gives goes beyond your circumstances and possessing. It is a grateful celebration causing a new innate need to embrace your Rescuer’s presence in all you walk and live.

It is a blessed thing for a man to call himself an unworthy servant. It is an awful thing for the Master to call him an unworthy servant. So before we start asking for more faith, let us first get the bitter, poisonous root of self-trust out of us, and confess, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’

The Rich Man and Lazarus is an account from Jesus that asks, rich or poor, who are you devoted too? Do you care for those in need or has your heart been ruined where only selfishness and neglect rule? The answers will have eternal consequences upon your soul.

Jesus had the whole world before him to use as examples to stimulate the spiritual zeal of his own disciples. Who did he choose? A dishonest, mischievous snake of a manager. Yet Christ says, ‘Do life like him!’ How can this be? You have to hear this.

What does philadelphia, hospitality, the incarcerated, sex, love of money, church leaders, and praises all have in common? They’re a punch list of hot topics the writer of Hebrews had to address before signing off. Pastor Joe pulls no punches with this list either as he tells his own modern version of each one.

This synagogue official has no eye for the beauty of Christ’s compassion, no heart to rejoice in the disabled woman’s deliverance, no ear for the music of her praise. The leader of the synagogue (and those like him today) were people who loved “systems” more than people. They were more concerned with laws than with lives. “But man was not made for the Sabbath.”

Seeking the kingdom of God was once burdensome for Pastor Joe. Now at 52, seeking is accompanied with joyous, brave confidence. "Why should I fear desires and efforts that run parallel with my ‘Father’s good pleasure’? If He gives His ‘little flock’ the Kingdom, will He withhold any gifts that I need? If I can trust Him to give me the Kingdom, I can surely trust Him for bread and clothes." And Pastor Joe loves bread…and cheese. Listen in.

From the cradle we are fed lies about love, creating gaps in human relationships and worse, in God-relationships. We are reminded over and over again that God is love but our lives get entangled with lies which are nurtured in this fallen world, creating anxiety, strife, and a lost of faith. But God’s desire is that we may know Him and His true unconditional love and grow in the grace of that understanding while living gratefully in this world. Pastor Linda Delerme explains.

We are often attracted to and distracted by different things, even during interactions with each other. The Lord doesn’t want His followers to miss out on present moments with Him. Be mindful that although we break valuables during anxious multitasking, Jesus is trustworthy to attend to keep ‘valuable you’ restored in Himself.

When the enemy is loved in a story, you know you’re looking at good writing. "Silence Of The Lambs” accomplished this brilliantly and was awarded for it with Best Picture. The Good Samaritan is the enemy in the Lukan passage. But he becomes the model of Christian love more than the very Christians in the narrative. It’s a shocking story and Pastor Joe makes sure the sermon is equally as shocking. This is a dramatic retelling of the parable, placed in the current tensions of race, religion, and nationality.

Whatever man’s belief or unbelief may be, it does not affect the fact that the kingdom of God has come near in Christ Jesus. And when they listen to you, they listen to Him. Sounds too good to be true? Listen in.

Men and women have vowed, and did not know what they were vowing, pledging themselves, in a moment of excitement. But no resolution to follow Christ can be too enthusiastic. Neither can there be any sluggishness towards his invitation and supreme authority. Jesus was houseless in the world he created, and his true followers must share his wandering life.

“We wish you to leave Jesus because we have this uneasy suspicion that if you come in, a good deal will have to go.” This was the prayer of a Gentile community that just witnessed an amazing miracle in its own town demoniac. It’s the same prayer of many our own loved ones. And while Jesus Christ can command unclean spirits, he will only plead with the hearts of men. Why? Listen in.

This week the Holy Spirit used Cain and Abel, Abraham and Isaac, Micah, King David, and the Apostle Paul to bring us further along the painful process of deconstruction. We’re moving towards the joyful and liberating process of reconstruction, towards a more authentic Christlikeness.

You cannot shake down God for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Not even on Pentecost Sunday. You can do what Jesus asked the disciples to do: Wait for it. Waiting as a lifestyle, not a checkbox event; Waiting as a state of constant expectancy, not as a one night vigil. It’s not so you and I can sing, “I Got it!” It’s so you and I can become an illuminated instrument, endued with power, to be His witnesses.

Don’t get so blessed by this passage. It was never written for that. It was written for training in righteousness, reproof, correction, and teaching about "fortune-telling, bad business, unjust incarceration and criminalization, attempted suicide, the fear of death and meeting your Maker,” and most of all, the glory of the Gospel which may be its conciseness and simplicity.

People keep referring to Jesus as the word. He is. Well…sort of. Depends on which word you're referring to. Jesus is not your bible. Jesus is the logos. You’re bible is the graphe. The Incarnate One didn’t write it. But he would like to introduce you and I to its real author. But before you read the book, meet the author, the Teaching Spirit, the personal companion who wrote the written companion. Confused? Listen in.

In this world there are a vast amount of shepherds wanting to herd us. As Christ believers we need to constantly live in the life source provided by the Lord Shepherd.

Spiritual discernment is developed after an intimate encounter with Jesus. Our physical but mostly spiritual blindness will be part of our past through a conversion and accepting Jesus as our Savior.

Jesus Christ gave power to the Church to forgive all sinners who truly believe and repent. For some reason, we're not carrying that out as much as we should. Why? Are we afraid of John 20:23? Pastor Joe looks to break it down so we can get back to our great commission: Announcing the forgiveness of sins to those who make Christ their sin-bearer.

By Acts 10, Peter preached nothing but amazing sermons. But in Cornelius’ house, his usual sermon notes were not going to do. He would need yet another conversion to deliver him from his spiritual racism because his resurrected Savior is no respecter of persons.

In celebration of Holy Week, we’re happy to release this message spoken in 1994 by founder, Rev. Aimee Garcia Cortese, entitled "The Triumphal Entry.”

He came riding on a borrowed ass. His rule rests on gentleness & peace, not on force or wealth. His ghetto fabulous procession was attended, not by marching soldiers or political dignitaries, but by poor men, unarmed. He was saluted, not with the blaring of trumpets, but with the shouts of joyful, fickle hearts.

Millenial reflections on Philippians 3

What happens to the believer that has forgotten the call to be “minsters of reconciliation”? Paul writes a letter to correct and clear confusion. Lorraine describes some of the pitfalls to the modern day church.

The parable of the barren fig tree is nothing but a load of crap and a shovel that Jesus, the gardener, uses with the intention and promise to apply the most energetic measures to stimulate the barren soul into fruitfulness. Jesus is working, making openings through loss, grief and even trials, whereby the elements of spiritual life, by the word and the Spirit, may reach their destination.

Abram and Sarai were the walking dead. But Jehovah is the God of resurrection and their dead bodies were the perfect thing for Him to act upon. This is the story of the "Quickener of the Dead."

Red and yellow, black and white, short and tall, skinny and chubby, straight and gay, Jew and Gentile. There is no difference between these groups because they all need Jesus. Any one of them who call upon the Lord will be saved…God’s way…through faith in Jesus.

Jesus’ transformation was for us to behold so that we may also be transformed into the same image. This is called change. But if you are someone who doesn’t like change, you probably don’t like transformation either and that’s not gonna work. Pastor Joe would like to talk to you about this? Do have a few minutes?

The song, its origins, and the people who knew something about the need to get mortality ready for immortality.

Do not trust the soon to be stagnant schemes of anxious self-proclaimed survivors. Set your confidence not on the universe’s power, but rather on its living and loving Creator.  

At the beginning of Peter’s journey, he wanted Jesus to "go away" from him and his sin. By the end of his journey, Peter was jumping out of boats in his underwear to get him and his sin sick self into the arms of Jesus. This is the story of where a sinner belongs.

We’ve heard this classic, poetic passage at weddings and funerals. But listen to our beloved Pastor Sam Meza come at 'the love chapter' in a way that…well…just listen.

It’s what they called me as a kid. It’s short for spastic. But it's really what the body of Christ becomes if it's not being controlled by the head. Real unity is not one part getting along with another. It’s each part under the control of Jesus Christ.