International Church of Prague

Psalm 120This summer we'll be looking at a group of Psalms known as the Songs of Ascents, Psalm 120-134. Sung by the Israelites as they traveled up to Jerusalem for different religious festivals each year, these Psalms have come to be seen as the songs that narrate the life of discipleship. As Eugene Peterson describes them, they are "Songs for the Road" as we follow Jesus through this life. This Sunday we will look at the first one, Psalm 120, which describes the discomfort many of us experience in this world, but that ultimately points us toward home. 

Psalm 34Throughout David's early life he faced many troubles, and often the possibility of death, yet the Lord delivered each time. He wrote Psalm 34 in response to one of these episodes, inviting people to praise the Lord with him. David wanted others to share the joy of what God had done for him. He wants everyone to "taste and see' God's goodness in the same way he has. 

Nehemiah 1This week we welcome to the pulpit Sam Raju. Sam is the founder and president of Engage International, an apologetics ministry that engages people all over the world with good reasons to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. He says "his passion lies in reaching people for Christ and seeing them grow in understanding God's love, ways, and purposes." Sam is also one of the main speakers on Monday and Tuesday night at Crossroads Center. We are glad to have him with us to preach a message that explores how God works through a man who is totally committed to him.  You can learn more about him here. 

Hebrews 12Join us today as elder Preston Pearce delivers the message.

Exodus 32:1-14As we continue to move through the Easter season, this week we take a look at a passage from the Old Testament and consider how it points ahead to the salvation offered to us in Jesus Christ. For the Israelites, their Exodus from slavery in Egypt was the story of God's redemption of his people for many years. This week's passage tells us much about our condition as humans, but more importantly shows us God's faithfulness to us in spite of ourselves. 

Please join us this Sunday, 27 April as Youth Praha will lead us in our Sunday morning worship service. From music, to moderating, prayers and the message, students will be leading in every aspect of worship. We look forward to hearing what God has been teaching them and how he has been at work in their lives. .  

Mark 15-16 Mark's gospel recounts the many different responses to Jesus's death and resurrection. To his death - darkness, a torn curtain, a declaration of faith. To his resurrection - wonder, fear, and then also belief. Join us this Sunday as we consider the events of Easter and why a man from Galilee came to be worshiped as the Son of God, whose death means new life for us.  

Psalm 118, Mark 11:7-11When Jesus entered Jerusalem the week before his crucifixion and resurrection, crowds of people greeted him shouting "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Mark 11:9). The people were quoting from Psalm 118, a prayer of praise that speaks of human need, God's faithfulness, and ultimately looks forward to the Messiah who would save God's people.  

James 5:13-20As we come to the end of our time in James, we have been challenged in many ways. He has instructed us in how to live wisely, and given us a picture of the new life in Jesus Christ. But to end his letter, James calls us to prayer. It is not the first time he instructs us to do this, and it is a good reminder that what he wants most for his audience is that they would tend to their faith in the Lord as they live the life God has given them. 

James 5:7-12As we near the end of James's letter, he comes back to a topic he addressed earlier - patience in the midst of suffering. James knows the struggles of his audience and the temptation we all have to take matters into our own hands. But he calls us all to patience and perseverance instead, encouraging us to trust in God's goodness and mercy, even when facing the troubles of life.  

James 5:1-6In this week's passage, James gives a hard word to wealthy people who use their money only to enrich themselves more. The message here continues with his earlier themes of caring for the poor, the need for humility, and the temporary nature of this life. The rich oppressors he is speaking to are living in opposition to all of these ideas. Again we hear James's implicit call to repentance and living faithfully and wisely instead.  

James 4:13-17As James continues to instruct us in wisdom, this week he turns to an idea that runs through scripture - the brevity of life. It is an idea that is perhaps most explored in Ecclesiastes and the Hebrew word for it is hevel. As James says, we "are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes" (James 4:14). James ties recognizing this reality to being wise, as does Moses's prayer recorded in the Psalms, "teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12)  

James 3:13-4:10As we return to the book of James this week, he continues to instruct us in wisdom. In this week's passage James contrasts the wisdom of the world with the wisdom that comes from God, and emphasizes the necessity of humility if we are to be wise in the eyes of the Lord.  

Luke 15:11-32We often rehearse our own speeches when coming to the Father, all of them some variation of the same speech the son prepared, “I have sinned, and I'm no longer worthy to be called your son…” As we dig into this parable, we will see the Father's love in a new light, and come see that he comes to us when we are far off, because he loves us. Join us as a longtime member of the ICP Family, Vince Corpus, brings us God's word this Sunday.

James 3:1-12As James continues to instruct us in how to live wisely, in this week's passage he turns to matters of speech. Our words have more power than we give them credit for, with the ability to both build up and tear down. James reminds us again of the fact that all human beings have been "made in God's likeness," and we should always take this into account in how we use our words.  

James 2:14-26One of the more well-known passages from his book, here James expounds on the relationship between faith and works. We see here his emphasis on followers of Jesus living with a sort of righteous integrity - where what we claim to believe and how we live are in line with each other. For James, a living faith in Jesus Christ will be expressed in how we live day to day. Otherwise, our faith is as good as "dead" (James 2:17).  

James 1:26-2:13It can be difficult not to judge a person by their external appearance; however, James warns us of playing favorites based on how people dress. This, as with many other warnings in the Bible, is likely to have been an admonishment of an early church - but is just as valid today. Join us this week as we continue to explore the book of James, and hear Pastor Mike highlight the numerous 'take aways' available in this brief passage.

James 1:18-27One of James's main purposes is to encourage his audience to live with what might be described as "Godly integrity," meaning that the way they live would line up with what they proclaim to believe about Jesus Christ. In this week's passage he reflects on the role of God's word in all of this. It is through his word of truth that God gives us new birth, and also how he instructs us in this new life.

James 1:9-18After instructing us to ask for wisdom from God in responding to life's trials, James addresses one of those trials that is common to all people - temptation! Why is temptation so powerful, and how can we persevere when faced with it? James points us back to the goodness of God, and the good gifts that have been given freely to us from him.

Hebrews 4:16This Sunday we are glad to welcome Josef and Daniel Pavliňák to our worship service. Josef is the founder and director of In-Life, a ministry to university students in the Czech Republic and Slovakia where Daniel works as well. ICP has partnered with In-Life for many years. You can find out more about them here. We look forward to hearing more about their ministry and to hearing Josef bring us the message from God's word.      

James 1:1-8This week we begin a new series in the Book of James, a letter written to the early church by one of its main leaders. Similar to the wisdom books of the Old Testament, James uses his letter to teach God's people how to live well in this world. James addresses many topics, from trials and temptations to faith and works, but always with the purpose of instructing us in how to live out our faith in practical ways. It is a challenging book, but one from which there is much to be gained    

Ephesians 1:15-23As we begin a New Year, we look to Paul's letter to the Ephesians and his prayer for them in Chapter 1. Paul prays specifically that they "may know him better" and in several specific ways. May we adopt this prayer for ourselves and our church family for 2025 as we grow in our knowledge and love of God together.    

Matthew 2:1-23This Sunday we'll be looking at the story of the Magi from Matthew's gospel, considering how the different character respond to the news that a new king had been born in Bethlehem.    

Merry Christmas! In tonight's special Christmas Eve message, follow along while we learn about God's gift to us in 4 parts - creation, fall, redemption, and fulfillment. We hope that you are able to celebrate this Christmas season with your family, friends and loved ones - while sharing this message with them.

John 3:16-21We continue in the season of Advent, the time each year when the church prepares for Jesus Christ to enter the world. It is meant to be a time of reflection and repentance, of hope and joy. This year, each of the four Sundays of Advent we'll consider the different themes of the candles on the Advent wreath and explore what it means that Jesus is the source of our hope, peace, joy, and love. This week: Love    

Psalm 16, Luke 2:8-11We continue in the season of Advent, the time each year when the church prepares for Jesus Christ to enter the world. It is meant to be a time of reflection and repentance, of hope and joy. This year, each of the four Sundays of Advent we'll consider the different themes of the candles on the Advent wreath and explore what it means that Jesus is the source of our hope, peace, joy, and love. This week: Joy!   

Isaiah 9:2-7, Ephesians 2:11-18This week we continue in the season of Advent, the time each year when the church prepares for Jesus Christ to enter the world. It is meant to be a time of reflection and repentance, of hope and joy. This year, each of the four Sundays of Advent we'll consider the different themes of the candles on the Advent wreath and explore what it means that Jesus is the source of our hope, peace, joy, and love. This week: Peace.  

Isaiah 40, Mark 1:1-8This week begins the season of Advent, the time each year when the church prepares for Jesus Christ to enter the world. It is meant to be a time of reflection and repentance, of hope and joy. This year, each of the four Sundays of Advent we'll consider the different themes of the candles on the Advent wreath and explore what it means that Jesus is the source of our hope, peace, joy, and love. This week: Hope.  

Psalm 110This week we return to the psalms, this collection of prayers, songs and poems that guide us in our own prayers and worship. Psalm 110 is said to have been used at the coronation of Israel's kings, assuring them of God's presence with them. But it is also the most quoted psalm in the New Testament, one consistently used in reference to Jesus and the authority given to him by the heavenly Father. This psalm has something to tell us about Jesus and what it means to see him as our king.  

Psalm 26This week we'll be looking at Psalm 26, a psalm of lament. The psalms are full of laments; honest prayers from places of hurt and hardship where people make their complaints to God and call out to him for deliverance. As we learn how to pray, these psalms teach us important lessons about how to be open and honest with God ourselves. In Psalm 26 we see how David makes his complaint before the Lord, and how by being honest with God he is brought from a place of lament to praise.  

2 Corinthians 3:1-18Circumstances in life – the short days and long nights of winter in Prague, the daily challenges, the latest news, or meaningless distractions can rob us of our intimacy with Jesus. We can fill the void with more activities or noise or more distractions, but eventually we're left empty and realize something is missing. This text shows us how the new covenant – which we will celebrate in communion this Sunday – shows us the way to intimacy with Jesus, enjoying him more, and becoming more like Him. 

John 4:7 - 5:21As we come to the end of 1 John, we are reminded once again of the same themes the Beloved Apostle has been emphasizing throughout his letter - What do we believe about Jesus? Do we obey him? Do we love each other? How we answer these questions are good indicators of whether or not we are walking in the light of God's truth. But we're also reminded that it is God's love that comes first, and that in his great love God claims us as his children and assures us of our eternal life in him.  

Exodus 3:1-10

1 John 3:23 - 4:6In his letter, John seeks to assure believers of the salvation they have received in Jesus Christ. In this week's passage, John addresses the role of the Holy Spirit in this assurance. John reminds us that not everyone who claims to be a prophet actually speaks through God's Holy Spirit, and that we are to "test the spirits to see whether they are from God" (v. 4:1). But in the end we are to be encouraged because "the one who is in [us] is greater than the one who is in the world" (v. 4:4). It is God's Spirit who lives in us, and as we look to him he will guide us as we walk in the light.. 

1 John 3:11-24In our last passage, John emphasized our identity as God's children, reminding us of our heavenly Father's great love that has been poured out on us in Christ. In this week's passage, John reminds us again that with the love God has given us we should also love our brothers and sisters in Christ - not just by what we say, but by what we do. 

1 John 2:28-3:10One of John's main purposes in this letter is to reassure his audience. He wants them to have certainty of the things they have learned about Jesus, sin, salvation and the life of discipleship. In this week's passage, John makes his strongest appeal yet, reminding us of God's great love for us, and that in Christ, we have been made God's children. 

Psalm 32The psalmist David declares that the one who is forgiven is in a very happy place—an enviable position. But very often, in our culture we tend to think that it's God's job to forgive (“To err is human, to forgive, divine.”). David instructs us in the way to forgiveness and fulness of joy. It's only when we clearly see the seriousness of sin and the great cost of forgiveness, that we can begin to experience the joy of being forgiven by a holy God. 

1 John 2:15-27One of John's main purposes for writing this letter is to refute the lies that some former members of their community had been spreading, seeking to lead people astray in what they believed. John writes to remind people of the truth that they already know, and to affirm it for them once again. In particular John is concerned about the truth of Jesus Christ, knowing that what we believe about him serves as the foundation for everything else in our faith. 

1 John 2:3-14One of 1 John's main purposes is to encourage people to walk in the light, meaning to live according to God's truth. In this week's passage, John reflects on the relationship between our love of God and our obedience to him, reminding us that our love for God can't be isolated from our love (or lack of it) for other people.

THIS SUNDAY Walking in the Light1 John 1:1-2:2This week we begin a new series looking at the first letter of John. Written in response to some false teachings that had come into the church, this letter emphasizes many of the basics of the Christian faith, reminding it's readers of the truth of the Gospel and how we should live in light of it. John writes particularly about love: God's love for us in Christ, and how we should love each other in return.

Acts 28:17-21This week we conclude our series in the Book of Acts, with Paul having made his dramatic journey from Jerusalem to Rome, the capital of the Empire. We know from history that Paul's life ends there, but not before he continues to share the gospel with the people he met there. And while this brings us to the end of Luke's narrative, the Holy Spirit's work of drawing people to salvation in Jesus Christ continues on.

On the Road with PaulActs 17-18Paul's missionary journeys took him to many of the major cities in the eastern Roman Empire, including Athens and Corinth. Paul was adept at presenting the gospel in response to the culture of each place he visited, yet the heart of the message was consistent - Jesus is God's Messiah. And in the face of growing opposition, God tells Paul "do not be afraid...for I am with you."

Trust the Story. This exhortation from our guest pastor Ian Martin, ICP's former youth pastor, was also the theme of last week's TCK (Third Culture Kids) Camp. From Genesis, throughout the Old Testament and culminating with Christ's death on the cross - there is a single narrative of the Bible: Jesus Saves.Join us this week to hear how Moses' exclaimation "Yeshua is salvation" is equivalent to "Jesus Saves" nearly 1500 years before the birth of Christ - and how you can be confident in your own salvation.

Acts 16:6-10, 16-40After being directed by the Holy Spirit to go and preach in Macedonia, Paul and his companions go to the city of Philippi. There they find both opposition and openness to the gospel, so that by the time they are asked to leave the city, they leave behind many people who have put their faith in the Lord Jesus.  

Acts 13:16-42We return to the book of Acts this week as the focus shifts to the Apostle Paul and his ministry. In today's passage we find Paul preaching a powerful sermon that walks through God's work in Israel's history, ending with Jesus Christ and the forgiveness and freedom that are found by believing in him..  

Trusting God in Difficult TimesMark 5:21-43This text looks at two desperate lives; both find their answer in Jesus. No matter what we face, he is, indeed the answer.  We are glad to welcome Chuck Lawless to the pulpit this Sunday, good friend of Preston Pearce. Dr. Chuck Lawless currently serves as Richard and Gina Headrick Senior Professor of Evangelism and Missions, Dean of Doctoral Studies, and Vice-President for Spiritual Formation and Ministry Centers at Southeastern Seminary, in addition to serving as Team Leader for Theological Education Strategists for the International Mission Board (IMB). He previously served as a Vice-President for Global Theological Advance for the IMB. Prior to that, he was dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, where he also served as Vice President for Academic Programming and the Director of Professional Doctoral Studies. He received a B.S. degree from Cumberland College and M.Div. and Ph.D. degrees from Southern Seminary. He is the author or co-author of thirteen works, including Spiritual Warfare in the Storyline of Scripture and The Potential and Power of Prayer and has written numerous articles. He and his wife Pam have been married for 33 years and reside with their dog, Max, in Wake Forest, North Carolina, USA.

We are glad to welcome Will Brooks to the pulpit this Sunday, good friend of ICP's own Preston Pearce. Will Brooks (Ph.D., Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, USA) lives in Southeast Asia with his wife and three children. (more about Will can be found at the end of the description).Do You Do Well to be Angry?Jonah 4 God is faithful and merciful, always fulfilling his promises. But what happens when God works in unexpected ways – or in ways that don't align with the purposes or causes that we hold dear? Or what about when we are faithful and obedient to his word, but God desires to show favor to someone else? How do we respond to God in such situations?  Will Brooks is the Provost and Director of the Doctor of Missiology and MA in Intercultural Studies programs at Malaysia Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the author of Love Lost for the Cause of Christ (2018), Interpreting Scripture across Cultures (2022), and the co-editor of World Mission (2019). Will is an avid runner and has completed multiple ultra-marathons and endurance obstacle course events.

We are glad to welcome Avi Snyder to the pulpit this Sunday, good friend of ICP's own Mastona Khalilova. Avi currently serves as the European Ambassador of Jews for Jesus. He came to faith in Jesus in 1977 with the help of a Jews for Jesus tract and the forthright witness of Christian friends. (more about Avi at the end of the description)Romans 1:15-16In his epistle to the Romans, the Apostle Paul wrote, “So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:15-16).” In those two brief verses, Paul tells all of us who are sincere followers of Yeshua (Jesus) at least five crucial truths. He tells us what we must proclaim (the Gospel); he tells us how we must proclaim (without shame); he tells us why we must proclaim (because only the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation); he tells us to whom we must proclaim (to the Jew first and also to the Greek); and he tells us when we must proclaim –now (with eagerness).   After pioneering the work of Jews for Jesus in Ukraine and Russia, Avi and his wife Ruth launched the German and Hungarian works of the ministry as well. Avi received his theological training from Fuller Theological Seminary, the School of World Mission, and he's written two books: Jews Don't Need Jesus – and Other Misconceptions, and Never Ashamed – Stories of Sharing Faith with Scoffers and Skeptics. You can feel Avi's passion for Jewish evangelism in Central and Eastern Europe when he says, “For us Jews to proclaim God's message of eternal life in the countries where so many of us died – that's a redemption of history. That's life from the dead” (Romans 11:15). For more information, click here.

Acts 10The visions of Peter and Cornelius in Acts 10 are together a significant moment in the spread of the gospel. While there have been a few individual instances of gentiles (non-Jewish people) putting their faith in Jesus before this point, it is here that the door is opened wide for the gospel to be spread to all peoples of the earth. Again we see how the gospel breaks down barriers between people, as God tells Peter "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean" (Acts 10:15).  

Acts 9:1-22The story of Saul's (soon to be the Apostle Paul) conversion is Acts 9 is one of the better known stories in scripture. A zealous persecutor of the early church, Saul's life is completely turned around when he has an encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus. From that moment Saul's life is committed to the spread of the gospel so that others might come to know Jesus as he has. 

Acts 8:26-40As the gospel continues to spread, opposition grows against the early church until Stephen is killed and the other believers begin to be persecuted for their faith. But even as they are scattered across Judea and Samaria, they carry the gospel with them and more people come to faith in Jesus Christ. This week's passage recounts the encounter between Philip and the Ethiopian. As Philip explains the scriptures to him, the Ethiopian comes to faith and is baptized, becoming another follower of Jesus Christ, who then carries the gospel home with him. .