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“The Proclaimed Kingdom: Taking the Gospel to All Peoples and Nations” Acts 1:1-11I. THE NEW COVENANT AGE OF THE SPIRITII. THE NEW COVENANT AGE OF THE GREAT COMMISSION
The Mother of All Peoples and Queen of Peace has been calling the world to pray for peace. Join Dr. Mark Miravalle on how best to respond to Our Lady's request, especially in light of recent escalation towards a potential World War III.
A new MP3 sermon from Covenant Presbyterian Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: A Passover for All Peoples Speaker: Mr. David Myhren Broadcaster: Covenant Presbyterian Church Event: Sunday Service Date: 7/21/2024 Bible: Psalm 117 Length: 43 min.
“Omnism is the respect of or belief in all religion.[1][2] Those who hold this belief are called omnists. In recent years, the term has been resurfacing due to the interest of modern-day self-described omnists who have rediscovered and begun to redefine the term. Omnism is similar to syncretism, the belief in a fusion of faiths in harmony.[3] However, it can also be seen as a way to accept the existence of various religions without believing in all that they profess to teach. Many omnists say that all religions contain truths, but that no one religion offers all that is truth. Contemporary usage has modified "belief in all religions" to refer more to an acceptance of the legitimacy of all religions. The Oxford English Dictionary elaborates that an omnist believes "in a single transcendent purpose or cause uniting all things or people". Omnists interpret this to mean that all religions contain varying elements of a common truth, that omnists are open to potential truths from all religions. The Oxford dictionary defines an omnist as "a person who believes in all faiths or creeds; a person who believes in a single transcendent purpose or cause uniting all things or people, or the members of a particular group of people".[4] Edward Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, considered the first Deist, argued that all religions were true.[5] In the poem All Religions are One, William Blake professed that every religion originated from God's revelation.[6] Henry Stubbe and other Socinians synthesized a form of Muhammadan Christianity.[7] Unitarian Universalism, which grew out of the Protestant Reformation,[8] practices Omnist beliefs.[9] Other notable interfaith organizations include the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples[10] and The Parliament of the World's Religions was the first organization with the goal to unite all religions.[11]” -Wikipedia. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support
A new MP3 sermon from Pilgrim Orthodox Presbyterian Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: A Feast for All Peoples Speaker: Russell Hamilton Broadcaster: Pilgrim Orthodox Presbyterian Church Event: Sunday - AM Date: 3/31/2024 Bible: Isaiah 25:1-26:6; John 2:1-11 Length: 41 min.
Pastor Robert continues to introduce the concept of the decision making compass which is an essential discipleship tool at All Peoples for making godly decisions.
“Omnism is the respect of or belief in all religion.[1][2] Those who hold this belief are called omnists. In recent years, the term has been resurfacing due to the interest of modern-day self-described omnists who have rediscovered and begun to redefine the term. Omnism is similar to syncretism, the belief in a fusion of faiths in harmony.[3] However, it can also be seen as a way to accept the existence of various religions without believing in all that they profess to teach. Many omnists say that all religions contain truths, but that no one religion offers all that is truth. Contemporary usage has modified "belief in all religions" to refer more to an acceptance of the legitimacy of all religions. The Oxford English Dictionary elaborates that an omnist believes "in a single transcendent purpose or cause uniting all things or people". Omnists interpret this to mean that all religions contain varying elements of a common truth, that omnists are open to potential truths from all religions. The Oxford dictionary defines an omnist as "a person who believes in all faiths or creeds; a person who believes in a single transcendent purpose or cause uniting all things or people, or the members of a particular group of people".[4] Edward Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Cherbury, considered the first Deist, argued that all religions were true.[5] In the poem All Religions are One, William Blake professed that every religion originated from God's revelation.[6] Henry Stubbe and other Socinians synthesized a form of Muhammadan Christianity.[7] Unitarian Universalism, which grew out of the Protestant Reformation,[8] practices Omnist beliefs.[9] Other notable interfaith organizations include the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples[10] and The Parliament of the World's Religions was the first organization with the goal to unite all religions.[11]” I think all denominations of all religions have truths to them, but each denomination doesn't tell the entire truth. I'm a secular Hindu. All religious texts have moral views and immoral views in them. So religious texts doesn't always equal “
E261 Safe or the Plane?, We Love Our Buildings, Christ for All Peoples by Paul George
Family is so important to God! Over the next episodes we will be exploring the art and science of raising children in third cultures as people who are sent out to expand God's Kingdom. Here, Kendall interviews an All Peoples worker who has been a part of what God is doing in our movement for 13 years. You will learn about the challenges and blessings of raising third culture kids as part of a missions movement.
Pastor Corey delivers his weekly message titled "The Gospel is for All Peoples"Support the show
A false apparition of Pope Benedict to a Colombian nun alleges that Pope Benedict was poisoned and the fifth Dogma "proclaimed from Heaven." Listen to Dr. Miravalle's assessment of why this alleged apparition is unquestionably false, and what positive practices we can do during Our Lady's month of May for an authentic proclamation of Mary as Spiritual Mother of All Peoples!
Keynote message from Mandi Hart of Stellenbosch, South Africa at the All Peoples 2023 Commission Conference
Our friends from All Peoples' Worship join Chris Ward, our Connections, Young Families, and Communications Pastor, to bring us this week's gathering!The New Year seems to call for some restart, thus the tradition of the Resolution. But we need more than resolutions if we want real, lasting, and substantial life change. We need real solutions, and God invites us to come to Him for help.Join us as we look at decisions and directions that come straight from God via the Bible, which will empower us to live life and become the people we know we are meant to be!
Our friends from All Peoples' Worship join Chris Ward, our Connections, Young Families, and Communications Pastor, to bring us this week's gathering!The New Year seems to call for some restart, thus the tradition of the Resolution. But we need more than resolutions if we want real, lasting, and substantial life change. We need real solutions, and God invites us to come to Him for help.Join us as we look at decisions and directions that come straight from God via the Bible, which will empower us to live life and become the people we know we are meant to be!
A new MP3 sermon from Hudson Valley United Reformed Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: A Passover for All Peoples Speaker: Mr. David Myhren Broadcaster: Hudson Valley United Reformed Church Event: Sunday Service Date: 1/1/2023 Bible: Psalm 117 Length: 32 min.
Do you know who the Mother of all Peoples really is? Join Dr. Mark Miravaalle for a dynamic discussion of who the Mother of All Peoples truly is and why it is absolutely relevant to the present, gravely dangerous world situation.
For more information about your Identity in Christ listen to the "Identity Journey" declarations or get the book from Amazon.More equipping resources from All Peoples at allpeoples.tv
A Savior for All Peoples, Everywhere Mark 7:24-37 October 2, 2022 • Even if life seems stacked against you, Jesus has overcome the greatest hurdle for you • Even if you do not think there's room for you, Jesus lovingly invites you to the table • Even if you think you are out of options, Jesus is more than sufficient to meet your needs • Even if you think you are far from God, Jesus was willing to be the furthest from God for you • Even if you have been deaf to the things of God, Jesus is willing and able to heal, restore, and renew The mercy of Jesus is sufficient enough to reach all peoples - everywhere - through faith in His work on the cross. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS • Why can we describe Jesus as the “greatest missionary who ever lived”? • How do we see the compassion of Jesus in these stories? • What does it say about Jesus that He was willing to pull this deaf man to the side and heal him privately? • At the end, the people were astonished with Jesus. Why is amazement not enough? Why must we have actual faith in Jesus? • Based on Jesus' example, what should be our attitude towards people that we meet?
The post Isaiah 56:1-8 – “A House of Prayer for All Peoples” appeared first on Mt. Rose OPC.
The Assertion: Only those who accept the mystery of God's Sovereign Grace revealed in Christ can live in true wisdom. The Assertion Proved: Living in True Wisdom Rests in God's Sovereign Grace Due to All Peoples' Ungodliness (v25-27). Living in True Wisdom Rests in God's Sovereign Grace Due to His Irrevocable Election (v28-29) Living in True Wisdom Rests in God's Sovereign Grace Due to His Necessary Mercy (v30-32) The Assertion Applied: Thinking Covenantally about Christ's Reign throughout History Feeling Gratefully Generous and Committed to Christ's Ways Doing Humble Reconciliation with Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Rev. Dorsey O'dell Blake joins this episode of The Cosmic We with Dr. Barbara Holmes and Dr. Donny Bryant. Rev. Dr. Dorsey Odell Blake, Faculty Associate, Leadership and Social Transformation, was officially installed as Presiding Minister of The Church for The Fellowship of All Peoples in October, 1994. During Dr. Blake's installation service, Mrs. Sue Bailey Thurman presented Dr. Howard Thurman's robe — which had not been worn since his death – to Dr. Blake as a symbol of her trust in his leading the congregation “so that there will be no past greater than our future.” He has extensive field ministry experience with interfaith groups addressing justice and peace issues, including the California People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, The Interfaith Alliance for Prison Reform, Genesis and The San Francisco Interfaith Council. He served as a member of the steering committee of Religious Witness with Homeless People and has been in the forefront of peace and justice activities. Connect with us: To send a question to Dr. Barbara and Donny, or to share your thoughts, comments, or feedback with us about this show: Send us an email. Rev. Dorsey Odell Blake: Website The transcript for this episode will be available on Monday May 9th, 2022
Dr. Richard Konteh, the leading All Peoples' Congress Party (APC) flagbearer aspirant Dr. Richard Konteh discusses his plan for the APC party and more.
Pastor Gary Dawkins of Mercy Vineyard Church joins host, Angela Smith, to talk about Jesus clearing the Temple and what that means for the nations. Pastor Gary mentioned this book: A Multitude of All Peoples
The leading All Peoples' Congress Party (APC) flagbearer aspirant Dr. Richard Konteh discuss education in Sierra Leone - fake degrees & more.
“The places where we learn about God's love,” says writer Maisie Sparks, “should also be the places where we … learn to accept and respect and worship with each other. She speaks with the Monitor's Trudy Palmer about a respect that crosses religious and cultural lines, and about the healing work of The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco.
“The places where we learn about God's love,” says writer Maisie Sparks, “should also be the places where we … learn to accept and respect and worship with each other. She speaks with the Monitor's Trudy Palmer about a respect that crosses religious and cultural lines, and about the healing work of The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco.
“The places where we learn about God's love,” says writer Maisie Sparks, “should also be the places where we … learn to accept and respect and worship with each other. She speaks with the Monitor's Trudy Palmer about a respect that crosses religious and cultural lines, and about the healing work of The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples in San Francisco.
Rejoice! Pt 1. - Hope for All Peoples by CBC Las Cruces
Sermons-First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco
"Higher Love: Installation Service" (October 3, 2021) Worship Service "The Installation Service of Senior Minister Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern" This is a sermon (Higher Love) about where this ministry together takes us and some of what we learn along the way. Our preacher, the Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay, is the Senior Minister of the First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI. Rev. Maclay has been in Providence since 2017 in a congregation that first gathered in 1720! Rev. Maclay played a central role while serving in Maryland for the successful passage of that state's Marriage Equality legislation, as well as their DREAM Act and their repeal of the death penalty. In Providence she has led the organizing of faith communities for gun control and worked during this pandemic with other faith leaders, particularly Black religious leaders, to found and co-lead Faith in Science, promoting equity of vaccine access and uptake for people of color in Rhode Island. Shirley Gibson and Kathleen Quenneville, Members of the Search Committee that called Rev. Southern; Rohit and Leila Menezes, Rev. Southern's husband and daughter, respectively Dennis Adams, Worship Associate, UUSF; Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay, Senior Minister, First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI; Rev. Mr. Barb Greve, Hospice Chaplain with Vitas Healthcare and former Co-Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Rochelle Fortier Nwadibia, Board of Trustees Moderator of UUSF; Harry Arthur and Max Benbow, Representatives of the Family Ministry Program; Rev. Dr. John A. Buehrens, Former President of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Rev. Alyson Jacks, Associate Minister of UUSF; Jonah Berquist, Board of Trustees Vice Moderator of UUSF; Rev. Dr. Dorsey Blake, Presiding Minister, Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples; Charles Du Mond, Co-Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Michael Pappas, M.Div., Executive Director, San Francisco Interfaith Council; Rev. Rosemary Bray-McNatt, President, The Starr King School for the Ministry; Rev. Margot Campbell Gross, Minister Emerita, UUSF; Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern, Senior Minister, UUSF. Eric Shackelford, Camera; Shulee Ong, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Director of Communications; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Thomas Brown, Sexton; Dan Barnard, Facilities Manager; Judy Payne, flowers Reiko Oda Lane, Organist & Bell Choir Director; Mark Sumner, Pianist & Music Director; Wm.; Garcia Ganz, Pianist; Andrés Vera, Cellist; Jon Silk, Drummer; UUSF Choir; UUSF Bell Choir
Complete Service-First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco
"Higher Love: Installation Service" (October 3, 2021) Worship Service "The Installation Service of Senior Minister Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern" This is a sermon (Higher Love) about where this ministry together takes us and some of what we learn along the way. Our preacher, the Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay, is the Senior Minister of the First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI. Rev. Maclay has been in Providence since 2017 in a congregation that first gathered in 1720! Rev. Maclay played a central role while serving in Maryland for the successful passage of that state's Marriage Equality legislation, as well as their DREAM Act and their repeal of the death penalty. In Providence she has led the organizing of faith communities for gun control and worked during this pandemic with other faith leaders, particularly Black religious leaders, to found and co-lead Faith in Science, promoting equity of vaccine access and uptake for people of color in Rhode Island. Shirley Gibson and Kathleen Quenneville, Members of the Search Committee that called Rev. Southern; Rohit and Leila Menezes, Rev. Southern's husband and daughter, respectively Dennis Adams, Worship Associate, UUSF; Rev. Elizabeth Lerner Maclay, Senior Minister, First Unitarian Church of Providence, RI; Rev. Mr. Barb Greve, Hospice Chaplain with Vitas Healthcare and former Co-Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Rochelle Fortier Nwadibia, Board of Trustees Moderator of UUSF; Harry Arthur and Max Benbow, Representatives of the Family Ministry Program; Rev. Dr. John A. Buehrens, Former President of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Rev. Alyson Jacks, Associate Minister of UUSF; Jonah Berquist, Board of Trustees Vice Moderator of UUSF; Rev. Dr. Dorsey Blake, Presiding Minister, Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples; Charles Du Mond, Co-Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association; Michael Pappas, M.Div., Executive Director, San Francisco Interfaith Council; Rev. Rosemary Bray-McNatt, President, The Starr King School for the Ministry; Rev. Margot Campbell Gross, Minister Emerita, UUSF; Rev. Vanessa Rush Southern, Senior Minister, UUSF. Eric Shackelford, Camera; Shulee Ong, Camera; Jonathan Silk, Director of Communications; Joe Chapot, Live Chat Moderator; Thomas Brown, Sexton; Dan Barnard, Facilities Manager; Judy Payne, flowers Reiko Oda Lane, Organist & Bell Choir Director; Mark Sumner, Pianist & Music Director; Wm.; Garcia Ganz, Pianist; Andrés Vera, Cellist; Jon Silk, Drummer; UUSF Choir; UUSF Bell Choir
Psalm 46 said that Israel’s God is the true and powerful and victorious God. Psalm 47 says that all people witness this and are now called to obey Israel’s King and join in their chorus of enthusiastic praise. The psalmist is driving home this point: the Lord Most High is not a god like those other gods, He is the Great King over ALL THE EARTH, over ALL PEOPLES, over EVERYONE. “The reasons for God’s love are in Him, not in the ones He loves.” – David Guzik [v.6-7] give a specific command about how to celebrate – sing (5 times in 2 verses). Music is not only a means of connecting with and glorifying God, it also connects us to one another. When we sing the same song together, our differences begin to fade. God has “come down” in the form of a servant, taking on human likeness, giving up the glories of heaven, to be the perfect sacrifice for sin. And He has “gone up” in victory by defeating death and the grave, and sits at the right hand of God in triumph! Surely this results in praises from His people – sometimes LOUD praises.
Psalm 46 said that Israel’s God is the true and powerful and victorious God. Psalm 47 says that all people witness this and are now called to obey Israel’s King and join in their chorus of enthusiastic praise. The psalmist is driving home this point: the Lord Most High is not a god like those other gods, He is the Great King over ALL THE EARTH, over ALL PEOPLES, over EVERYONE. “The reasons for God’s love are in Him, not in the ones He loves.” – David Guzik [v.6-7] give a specific command about how to celebrate – sing (5 times in 2 verses). Music is not only a means of connecting with and glorifying God, it also connects us to one another. When we sing the same song together, our differences begin to fade. God has “come down” in the form of a servant, taking on human likeness, giving up the glories of heaven, to be the perfect sacrifice for sin. And He has “gone up” in victory by defeating death and the grave, and sits at the right hand of God in triumph! Surely this results in praises from His people – sometimes LOUD praises.
▪︎Frenzied Forays for Votes In New York City As Election Campaigns End Leid Stories listeners summarize what they consider the most significant citywide races and what they're hoping their outcomes will be. ▪︎For Trump, A Mountain of Troubles, No Matter Who's Elected Manhattan District Attorney ▪︎Mayor Bill DiBlasio Did Not Make A Name for Himself ▪︎Which Former NYC Mayor Would Have Been Perfect For Now? ▪︎Why Hasn't NYC Produced An Electrifying, Nontraditional, All-Peoples Mayoral Candidate? ▪︎The Election of Too Many People of Color To Office Will Cause A Mass White Exodus From NYC. Do You Agree? ▪︎Name Three Things That Can Be Done to Rid Politics of Corruption
Show notes can be found at claysteves.com/podcast Stephen is a songwriter, singer, and expressive worship leader, passionate about leading leaders and people into a place of joy and freedom. Stephen has served as a worship pastor for the past 15 years, and since 2012, has served as the worship pastor of All Peoples Church in San Diego, California, which is part of the Antioch International Movement of Churches. Stephen has produced 15 worship albums and trained dozens of leaders in ministry and is currently the leader of All Peoples Worship, the worship expression of the All Peoples movement. Their most recent album, entitled Live EP. Vol. 1, released in March of 2020. In this convo, we unpacked what real worship is and different types and expressions of worship, and the desire that God has to be in a relationship with each of us. Stephen unpacks his creative process on the creation and delivery of worship music. Enjoy!
Vince Bantu is an assistant professor of church history and Black church studies. He joins me to discuss his book, A Multitude of All Peoples, and the global identity of Christianity. Vince's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Multitude-All-Peoples-Christianitys-Missiological/dp/0830851070 Support (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/AdherentApologetics
Show notes can be found at claysteves.com/podcast Stephen is a songwriter, singer, and expressive worship leader, passionate about leading leaders and people into a place of joy and freedom. Stephen has served as a worship pastor for the past 15 years, and since 2012, has served as the worship pastor of All Peoples Church in San Diego, California, which is part of the Antioch International Movement of Churches. Stephen has produced 15 worship albums and trained dozens of leaders in ministry and is currently the leader of All Peoples Worship, the worship expression of the All Peoples movement. Their most recent album, entitled Live EP. Vol. 1, released in March of 2020. I can tell you this convo was full of joy and freedom. There was some Boyz 2 Men Motown Philly harmonization, absolutely not done by me!, and in this convo, we unpacked what real worship is and different types and expressions of worship, and the desire that God has to be in relationship with each of us. At the end of a long day, this conversation left me inspired to see God, and worship God, in many areas of my life I traditionally hadn't seen. Enjoy!
In episode 016 I interview Pastor Fred Gallop. Fred is a Chaplain in the USAF who served on the Element Church pastoral team while stationed here in Cheyenne. In this episode, we get real and raw by diving into the conversation on race: Fred answers questions like, "Why do we need Black History Month?" (Black Heritage Month) "Do you think we've made any progress in the right direction in the past year? If so, what is that?" "Where do you still see we need the most work when it comes to racial justice, equality, and reconciliation?" "How can we as individuals, no matter the color of our skin, be a part of the solutions?" "Besides Jesus, where do you see the most hope in this conversation?" Resources Mentioned: The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby A Multitude of All Peoples by Vince L. Bantu 13th on Netflix Jude 3 Project Podcast Pass The Mic Podcast One Night In Miami - Movie
Russ Whitfield joins co-hosts Cyril Chavis, Jr.; Noelle Shaw; and Alafia Bailey to discuss the Council of Nicaea, the origins of Christian orthodoxy, Athanasius, and much more. If you have heard that Christianity is the white man's religion, that Christianity was invented at Nicaea, or that Christianity emerges from Egyptian and Greek religions, then this episode is for you! Rev. Russ Whitfield is the lead pastor of Grace Mosaic Church in Washington, DC and the Assistant Coordinator of Cross-Cultural Advancement for Reformed University Fellowship (RUF). 1:20 Introduction of Russ Whitfield 3:25 Introduction of Athanasius 7:05 What is Orthodoxy?7:45 Was Christianity Invented at Nicaea?12:23 What is Christology? Theology?19:25 How human desires shape religions 22:58 How did Africans shape Christianity? 33:33 Athanasius Speaks on the Divinity and Humanity of Jesus40:40 The urgency and importance of getting Christology right43:03 Reflections from MLKJ and the danger of truth telling 45:18 Connection between Augustine and Athanasius 49:30 Final Inspirations from Pastor RussResources:How Africa Shaped the Christian Mind by OdenA Multitude of All Peoples by BantuThe Egyptian Book of the Dead The Great Athanasius by TysonA Defense of the Nicene Definition by Athanasius
Main Point: God's plan for the church in 2020 is that she would multiply followers of Jesus as she awaits God's new creation. A Nation within a Nation A Nation within a Nation Ross Tenneson / General Life Together / Politics / Jeremiah 29:1–14 God's people are a nation within a nation without a land Connection (Me) There is an election in two days and it feels different to me than other elections. I do not mean that “this is the most important election of our lifetimes” (the refrain we hear almost every other election). What feels different is that for the first time in any election in my lifetime, I have wondered, “is this going to end peacefully?” (A USA today article from Wednesday says, “Three of 4 voters express concern about the possibility of violence on Election Day”). To be honest, I think it will end mostly peacefully (outside of some possible demonstrations that get out of hand). Yet, I can’t help but feel the extra chaos, hostility, and desperation that is in the air. Tension (We) The fracturing of our society, the lack of clarity about the future, and the anger and emotion grabs at our attention and fixes it onto political outcomes. In light of this, the question I want to answer this evening is: How should All Peoples Church understand our role in America as Christians in 2020 and therefore, how should we live in the midst of this election and beyond? In other words, what’s God’s plan for us in this situation? To get a clear answer to these questions, we will turn in the Scriptures to a letter written over 2500 years ago. It was written by the prophet Jeremiah to Hebrew exiles who were in the land of Babylon. To give you a better idea of when this was, Jeremiah lived 400 years after king David and 600 years before Jesus was born. In king David’s day, God had brought his people into the Promised Land (a place where he would take care of them if they would obey them). However, in the years following David, the unthinkable happened. Generation after generation of God’s people disobeyed God. As a result God sent judgement after judgment on them, warning them to turn back. When they wouldn’t, he brought a severe judgment for their sin: exile. Exile is the removal of someone from their home to captivity in a foreign place. When Israel disobeyed God repeatedly, he sent the nation of Babylon to come and defeat the Israelites and carry them out of the special place God had given them into captivity in a foreign place. It is to these people who lost so much that Jeremiah writes this letter of hope and of promise. As we go through this letter together, I am going to try to explain what it means in its historical context of the Israelites in captivity in Babylon. Also, I am going to apply its hope and promises to us today in America in 2020. The reason why we can do that is because when we become connected to Jesus by faith, we get to receive all of the promises and hopes of the Old Covenant God made with the Israelite people. We receive them because through Jesus, God includes us in that people. One sweet benefit of following Jesus is that the hope and promises of the Old Covenant become addressed to us because we are now apart of God’s people. As I explain the letter in it’s Old Testament context, you will probably begin to make connections with our New Testament context on your own. I will circle back though and explain how it connects also. With that purpose in mind, let’s take a look at the letter Jeremiah wrote, Revelation (God) English Standard Version Chapter 29 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. Verse 1 clarifies that this letter is to the “exiles” in Babylon. As I mentioned earlier, exile would be an excruciating ordeal. After an army surrounds your city and cuts off food and water for months, they finally make a hole in your city wall and rush in. Chaos ensues and you witness many horrible sins being committed against your neighbors and families. Then, a soldier drags you away and you leave the familiar home you lived in and march hundreds of miles to a new and foreign land. You don’t understand the language or the customs, you are a second class citizen, and you are not allowed to go home. This is your new life. English Standard Version Chapter 29 2 This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. If you remember earlier in the Old Testament, God had promised to Abraham a land, and offspring, and that his offspring would be kings. He had promised to Abraham that he would establish his descendents into a kingdom. God would use that special kingdom to bless all the other nations through them. This beautiful kingdom reached its height under Kings David and Solomon when the other nations began to come to the kingdom of Israel to see this beautiful place. At this moment: that kingdom is gone! The king and queen mother, the officials and leaders, the significant people and places of this kingdom are either in exile or destroyed. An enemy kingdom Babylon now possessed them and they lived in their land rather than the Promised Land God had given them. Israel was no longer a nation among nations who were meant to bless those other nations and lead them to God, they had become a nation within a nation. Their purpose within that nation is not yet clear; it will be as we read on. An Israelite in exile would wonder at this moment, “have the promises of God made to Abraham failed? Will we ever hear God’s voice again or is he done speaking to us through the prophets? Will my children die in exile and God’s people fade from existence on the Earth?” If you have or are experiencing hopelessness, the exiles in Babylon would be able to connect with you. They would have felt like they lost everything both physically and spiritually. There would have been no reason left for them to live. Verse 3 says, English Standard Version Chapter 29 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: All of a sudden, this guy named Elasah arrives in Babylon. He has this letter. It’s addressed to the people from God. God wouldn’t remain silent after all. What would this letter communicate? Verse 4 begins: English Standard Version Chapter 29 4 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: The first thing God does is introduce himself as “the Lord of Hosts” (that means the king over the entire spiritual realm) and also… The God of Israel (that means he is still their God— though they ran from him, he has not abandoned them). Then God clarifies: “I sent you into exile.” This wasn’t any mistake or roll of the dice or even Nebuchadnezzar's idea: it was mine. You sinned against me and this is a punishment from me for your sins. I am sovereign over all that has happened and is happening! But then he goes on to say something completely unexpected, English Standard Version Chapter 29 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. God essentially says, “don’t despair, don’t give up, don’t commit suicide, start building a life here. Build a home where you can stay and build a garden where you can eat its food. God commands his people to keep having children and to keep multiplying just like God had promised they would to Abraham. Essentially God says, “Continue on with life as normal. Live as if you were home even if you are not yet home.”[1] Don’t try to escape from Babylon or topple the Babylonian government; instead, live like you would in the Promised Land even though you are in Babylon. “Okay God, I can do that, but should I even bother having children? What kind of life is this in this horrible place?” Verse 6, English Standard Version Chapter 29 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But, you might ask, “what does it actually mean for Israel to live as if they were in the Promised Land?” You will notice two of the things God commands his people to do are to “plant gardens” and to have children and “multiply.” I feel like I ask this same question and it has the same answer every week I preach: “where in the Bible does God first command someone to “garden” and to “multiply” through childbearing? These are the commands God gives to Adam and Eve in Genesis 1 and 2. God’s purpose at the beginning was to expand his garden (that is the place where God rules over his people) and for his people who are made in his image to multiply and fill his creation. To be made in God’s image was for people to resemble him spiritually and morally. God’s original plan was to fill the world with people who who are like him and resemble him in having godly character. Each person then would testify to the greatness of the God they resemble. Okay, maybe you might grand that, but certainly the plan changed when God’s people sinned to badly he sent them out of the promised land, right? Again, the answer is no! He commands the exiles to “multiply and do not decrease!” God is still doing the same thing he always has: he’s filling his creation with people who reflect and resemble him as the Hebrew people were meant to do. The point I am driving home here is at this moment: the plan hasn’t changed! Not the sin of his people, not the fall of the nation, not the exile into Babylon, not anything has caused God to change his mind or change his plan. As a chaotic world fell apart, God’s orderly plan pressed ahead. His people, no longer a nation among the nations, but now a nation within a nation, were meant to fill Babylon with godly people: they were to multiply and not decrease. What else does God command his people to do? English Standard Version Chapter 29 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. One thing God promised to Abraham was that his descendents would bless “all the families of the earth” (Gen 12:3). Here is another confirmation that God is keeping his promises to Israel even in their exile. Even though Israel had failed to be a blessing to other nations when they had the Promised Land, after God exiles them to the other nations, he uses them to be a blessing to those nations! (Bible project). Usually, two nations occupying the same space will fight each other over the land. Yet, Babylon is not Israel’s land. So, they don’t need to fight Babylon over it. In fact, though Babylon victimized them, stole from them, imprisoned them, marginalized them, they need not retaliate or fight against Babylon. We will see soon more why the reason they don’t have to fight against Babylon. For now though, it is sufficient to say that Babylon is not their land, so they do not need to fight them. Instead, they can pray for Babylon instead of against Babylon. Instead, they can seek the welfare of Babylon instead of warfare with Babylon. God promises: “In its welfare you will find your welfare.” In other words, contributing to the welfare of those around you will add to and not detract from your mission to multiply. In Babylon, as the Israelites contributed to the success of the nation around them (and friendships and relationships with their neighbors strengthened), it became easier to raise a God-fearing family in Babylon. Before we transition to what a the New Testament author Peter wrote, I want to sum this up: God send Israel into Babylon. They were not to become Babylonian, but neither were they to overthrow Babylon. They were to be a nation within a nation without a land. They were to multiply and not decrease. They were to seek the welfare of their neighbor around them and not their harm. With those thoughts in mind, I’m going to ask you to flip to 1 Peter 2:11-12, English Standard Version Chapter 2 11 Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. 12 Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. Amazingly, the Apostle Peter calls the church, God’s people in the NT age, “exiles”! Like Israel in Babylon, we are a nation with a nation. We don’t have a land. We are content without one. In this land, we are to multiply and not decrease! We are to do good to our neighbor. As we do good and love our neighbor, it will contribute to our goal to multiply. In other words, we are to be a family of servant missionaries in Minneapolis in 2020. I have been referring to the people of God often in this sermon. For the Old Testament passage of Jeremiah 29 and the New Testament passage of 1 Peter 1 to fit together, we have to understand that there has been a change in who God’s people are since Jesus came. Before Jesus came, God’s people was the ethnic nation of Israel. Since Jesus has come, God’s people are a multi-ethnic people from every culture and nation who put their faith in Jesus. There is no land we own like other nations, yet the church is a nation far more amazing that all of the nations in the world. Andy Naselli and Jonathan Leeman in their new book How can I love Church Members with Different politics ((pp. 28-29) explain this well, There’s been nothing like the church in the history of the world. Every other nation has been united either by powerful men with swords or by family relations, including ancient Israel. Yet now a new nation exists, held together by neither sword nor family but only by Word and Spirit. Indeed, it’s a nation that doesn’t presently possess a land. It’s like God wanted the world to see what he alone could do. So he took a bunch of natural enemies, saved them by his Son’s blood and his Spirit’s power, and created a united and peace-sharing people. The local church is where enemy tribes start beating swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks. It’s where black and white, rich and poor, young and old, educated and uneducated, American and Chinese, sanitation worker and senator, unite. As the nations of the world and our own divide and despair over numerous things, we unite over the greatest thing: God’s glory and God’s unchanging plan. Friends, no matter what happens on November 3rd, we have the name plan on November 4th: multiply and don’t decrease. Or, as Jesus said, “make disciples of all nations!” God’s will for our church is that we do not despair or become distracted by the chaos and pain in America, but that we double down in our mission to multiply followers of Jesus all around us. Which is why we are meeting right here at 6pm the day after the election to do just that. It’s not fun to be exiles, to not have a land we possess. It means we don’t have or seek political power, it means that we should expect to be outsiders and on the margins of society. It means that we should expect others to mistreat us and to insult us and we don’t retaliate. How does God strengthen us to live this kind of life in the here and now? If you would please turn back to Jeremiah 29, we see the answer in the next few verses. English Standard Version Chapter 29 8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, 9 for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord. Unfortunately, we don’t have time to get into these verses other than to say, if someone is telling you you are not an exile here on the earth, that this is your home, and you should try to live your best life now and triumph here and now, don’t listen to them. Rather, this is what God says to exiles, English Standard Version Chapter 29 10 “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. God says to his exile people in Babylon, you can endure your exile, because I will bring you back to the land and give it to you one day. When? In seventy years. That’s an average lifespan for a person.[2] So, live here in Babylon for the rest of your life before this nation receives its land back. God says that he will keep his promises. Israel’s sin and the invasion of the Babylonians did not thwart God’s promises. He would and he will keep them Then God says, English Standard Version Chapter 29 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. In the midst of his people’s lives falling apart, when they feel like God had abandoned them, when they feel like they had lost everything, God had not abandoned his people! God still had good plans for them and he was in the process of fulfilling them. His good heart toward his people had never changed. He would return them to their nation and take care of them. And as New Testament believers, we are in a similar position. We are exiles and strangers here on the earth. Yet, God has made promises to us. God has good plans for us. He means to bring us through this life and when we come back to life to give us a Promised Land. We will live with him in the new creation. There won’t be any pain or death or loss there. Only intimacy with God and happiness forever. This promise, this hope is our fuel that enables us to keep making disciples no matter what happens around us. Nothing can touch our hope. My main burden this evening is that in America in 2020, as things seem to fall apart, All Peoples church would multiply and not decrease by faithfully making disciples. Our sense of hope and courage to keep doing so would come from God’s sovereignty over history and good purpose to give us a home when Jesus comes back. I want to conclude by mentioning that Jesus is the reason we get to participate in this beautiful plan. In the center of all history he came and lived as a loving and sinless man. Yet, he died as a guilty sinner and suffered a brutal death like so many Israelites did under the Babylonians. He absorbed the penalty of all of our sins and transgressions, so that he could forgive us and make us pure like him. Because of him, we can join the nation of God’s people and become exiles on the Earth. Yes, it’s costly, but it ends up being with him forever in blessing. Remaining a citizen of this earth may last for a while and be fun, but ends in dismay and death. Oh how good and sweet it is that Christ has invited us to follow him and be exiles now, but citizens one day with him forever. We may suffer now, but one day no more. If you don’t know Jesus yet and want to follow him, please talk to any of our members before leaving. [1] John Calvin, Jeremiah 20-29, trans. David W. Rev. William Pringle, vol. 1, Calvin’s Commentaries 23 Volume Set (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2009). [2] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Je 29:10). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
Stan is a CPM trainer and a coach for leaders of CPMs around the world. He is Co-Facilitator of the 24:14 Coalition which is focused on Kingdom Movement engagements in every Unreached People and place by 2025. He is the VP for Global Strategies with Beyond. Stan and his wife Kay have been serving Unreached People Groups since 1994 while based in Indonesia, Singapore and Dubai. Their 3 adult children grew up in Indonesia and Singapore. He has a BA in History, an M.Div, and Ph.D in Missiology.Beyond24:1424:14 – A Testimony to All Peoples, co-editor with Dave Coles (Book)
An hour to sit with, and be filled. Two voices — one from the last century, one from ours — who inspire inward contemplation as an essential part of meeting the challenges in the world. Howard Thurman’s book Jesus and the Disinherited, it was said, was carried by Martin Luther King Jr. alongside the Bible and the U.S. Constitution. Thurman is remembered as a philosopher and theologian, a moral anchor, a contemplative, a prophet, and pastor to the civil rights leaders. Rev. Otis Moss III, himself the son of one of those leaders, is a bridge to Thurman’s resonance in the present day, and between the Black freedom movements then and now.Find the transcript for this show at onbeing.org.Rev. Otis Moss III is senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. He was born in 1970 and grew up with legendary civil rights figures in and out of his family home, from Fannie Lou Hamer to Andrew Young, and his parents were married by Martin Luther King Jr. His father, Otis Moss Jr., was an influential pastor and civil rights leader based in Cleveland. Otis Moss III is the author of several books and one of the voices in the documentary Backs Against the Wall: The Howard Thurman Story.Howard Thurman was born in 1899 and died in 1981 in San Francisco, where he co-founded the first fully intentional cross-racial church in the U.S., the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. Thurman insisted on a place for spiritual nurture at the heart of social activism, and he brought a searching theology of Jesus to that. He was, at the same time meditating in the early 20th century — traveling to India, bringing the teachings of Gandhi and Thich Nhat Hanh to the civil rights leaders, even influencing Jewish mysticism. Howard Thurman’s books include Jesus and the Disinherited. His meditations and sermons can be found at Morehouse College and Boston University.
An hour to sit with, and be filled. Two voices — one from the last century, one from ours — who inspire inward contemplation as an essential part of meeting the challenges in the world. Howard Thurman’s book Jesus and the Disinherited, it was said, was carried by Martin Luther King Jr. alongside the Bible and the U.S. Constitution. Thurman is remembered as a philosopher and theologian, a moral anchor, a contemplative, a prophet, and pastor to the civil rights leaders. Rev. Otis Moss III, himself the son of one of those leaders, is a bridge to Thurman’s resonance in the present day, and between the Black freedom movements then and now.Rev. Otis Moss III is senior pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. He was born in 1970 and grew up with legendary civil rights figures in and out of his family home, from Fannie Lou Hamer to Andrew Young, and his parents were married by Martin Luther King Jr. His father, Otis Moss Jr., was an influential pastor and civil rights leader based in Cleveland. Otis Moss III is the author of several books and one of the voices in the documentary Backs Against the Wall: The Howard Thurman Story.Howard Thurman was born in 1899 and died in 1981 in San Francisco, where he co-founded the first fully intentional cross-racial church in the U.S., the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. Thurman insisted on a place for spiritual nurture at the heart of social activism, and he brought a searching theology of Jesus to that. He was, at the same time meditating in the early 20th century — traveling to India, bringing the teachings of Gandhi and Thich Nhat Hanh to the civil rights leaders, even influencing Jewish mysticism. Howard Thurman’s books include Jesus and the Disinherited. His meditations and sermons can be found at Morehouse College and Boston University.This interview is edited and produced with music and other features in the On Being episode "Rev. Otis Moss III — The Sound of the Genuine: Traversing 2020 with ‘the Mystic of the Movement’ Howard Thurman." Find the transcript for that show at onbeing.org.
Reaksie word ontvang op die klagtes van die All Peoples-party en die Rundu Stedelike Gemeenskapsvereniging oor berigte dat die voormalige Hoof Uitvoerende Beampte van Rundu, Romanus Haironga wat deur die Rundu Dorpsraad op 19 klagtes wat bedrog insluit aangekla is, op die kortlys vir die vakante pos is. Frederico Links van die Instituut vir Openbare Navorsingsbeleid het sy mening so verwoord.
Acts 10 | The God of All Peoples by Central MP Sermons
COVID-19 has created many challenges related to children's education. In this episode, Katie Racine, All Peoples leader in San Diego, shares a crafted prayer for families with children returning to school.
COVID-19 has created many challenges related to children's education. In this episode, Tiffany Valdez, All Peoples church planter in South Africa, shares a crafted prayer for home school families during this time of disruption.
In this episode we discuss Dr. Vince Bantu's book "A Multitude of All Peoples" where he teaches on the various cultures and ethnicities impacted by the Gospel in early centuries. This emphatically refutes the "white man's religion" objection but also gives a great history lesson on Christianity and cultures. You do NOT want to miss this! Aye Aye Amen! Book: https://www.amazon.com/Multitude-All-Peoples-Christianitys-Missiological/dp/0830851070 1st Interview w. Dr. Bantu: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2OBP9R-jsg&t=111s
A new MP3 sermon from Grace Bible Church of Savannah is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Praying for All Peoples | 1 Tm 2:1–4 Subtitle: 1 Tim: Honoring God in Church Speaker: Shaun Marksbury Broadcaster: Grace Bible Church of Savannah Event: Sunday - AM Date: 6/21/2020 Bible: 1 Timothy 2:1-4 Length: 47 min.
Monday's U.S. Supreme Court ruling supporting workplace protections for LGBT employees surprised many people—the 6–3 opinion was written by conservative appointee Neal Gorsuch, who was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts as well as the liberal members of the court. Join us for a timely discussion with some real legal eagles. Once again, LGBTQ rights are up for judgment by the U.S. Supreme Court. The SCOTUS is issuing rulings on anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people in employment. The cases involved are Bostock v. Clayton County, Ga., Altitude Express Inc. v. Zarda and R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Meet our expert panel: Felicia Medina is a queer, latina attorney and founding partner of Medina Orthwein LLP. Her practice focuses on individual and class action employment discrimination and harassment cases relating to race, gender, gender identity and expression, and sexual orientation, as well as wage and hour collective actions. She has been honored as a 2018 San Francisco Business Times OUTstanding Voices, 2017 Daily Journal Leading Labor and Employment Attorneys in California; a 2016 National LGBT Bar Association – Best LGBT Lawyer Under 40; a 2015 National Diversity Council Most Powerful and Influential Woman; and a Law360 2014 Minority Power Broker. Felicia received her law degree from Yale Law School in 2006. Kevin Love Hubbard is a partner at Medina Orthwein LLP. He has dedicated his career to civil rights and brings extensive experience in civil rights litigation to his firm, including individual and class employment discrimination and wage and hour claims, as well as constitutional claims involving police and prison misconduct. Prior to joining Medina Orthwein, Kevin represented nationwide classes and collectives of women with claims of gender discrimination, as well as individuals with cutting-edge employment claims, including claims of LGBTQ+ discrimination. Kevin graduated from Yale Law School in 2012. Imani Rupert-Gordon is the executive director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights. NCLR is a national legal organization committed to advancing the civil and human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their families through litigation, legislation, policy, and public education. Previously, she served as the executive director for Affinity Community Services, a social justice organization that works with the entire LGBTQ community with a focus on Black women. She also served as the director of the Broadway Youth Center, a division of Howard Brown Health in Chicago, which has served more than 1,500 LGBTQ youth experiencing homelessness and housing instability. In 2019, the Illinois Human Rights Commission presented her with its 2019 Activism Award. This year she was recognized by the Chicago Foundation for Women with a 2020 Impact Award. Rupert-Gordon received a Master's degree from the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration and a Bachelor's degree in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara Rev. Elena Rose Vera, a Filipina-Ashkenazi trans woman originally from rural Oregon, joined Trans Lifeline's executive team in May 2018. A longtime organizer, educator and performing artist, she holds an M.Div. focused on social justice and community care work and was ordained as a minister by the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, a historic civil-rights church in San Francisco. Rev. Vera is proud to bring her deep commitment to love, support and liberation for trans people everywhere to her work with Trans Lifeline. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A cornerstone of our movement at All Peoples is racial reconciliation. Listen in on JT Thomas's story of being in the midst of riots in Ferugson, Missouri and boldly proclaiming God's Word.
Listen in on a conversation between some of the main leaders of women at All Peoples as they discuss issues affecting friendship between women in and outside the church today.
Peace & Blessings to you ALL! Welcome to the latest episode of Soulfrica entitled: African Evolution! This mix is dedicated to all our African brothers and sisters, African-Americans and ALL Peoples of Color! We are the EVOLUTION, We are the REVOLUTION, We are ONE! In the midst of social and economical disparities, AmeriKKKA still suffers in the midst of this deadly virus and the disparities in our communities are more prevalent than ever. As we fight for our rights, the MUSIC UNITES . . . Us ALL! Please give a warm welcome to my guest and collaborated, The Dreadman, Aka: Kinglion! My brother and I met a few years ago and have a strong intellectual & musical bond. He is an experienced and seasoned DJ / Producer with grassroots reggae / dancehall as his foundation. He brings an authentic deep vibe I am sure you will enjoy! For the 2nd hour I bless you all with the Soulfricaaaaa! Please Like & Share by Reposting! Thank you ALL!
Peace & Blessings to you ALL! Welcome to the latest episode of Soulfrica entitled: African Evolution! This mix is dedicated to all our African brothers and sisters, African-Americans and ALL Peoples of Color! We are the EVOLUTION, We are the REVOLUTION, We are ONE! In the midst of social and economical disparities, AmeriKKKA still suffers in the midst of this deadly virus and the disparities in our communities are more prevalent than ever. As we fight for our rights, the MUSIC UNITES . . . Us ALL! Please give a warm welcome to my guest and collaborated, The Dreadman, Aka: Kinglion! My brother and I met a few years ago and have a strong intellectual & musical bond. He is an experienced and seasoned DJ / Producer with grassroots reggae / dancehall as his foundation. He brings an authentic deep vibe I am sure you will enjoy! For the 2nd hour I bless you all with the Soulfricaaaaa! Please Like & Share by Reposting! Thank you ALL!
Peace & Blessings to you ALL! Welcome to the latest episode of Soulfrica entitled: African Evolution! This mix is dedicated to all our African brothers and sisters, African-Americans and ALL Peoples of Color! We are the EVOLUTION, We are the REVOLUTION, We are ONE! In the midst of social and economical disparities, AmeriKKKA still suffers in the midst of this deadly virus and the disparities in our communities are more prevalent than ever. As we fight for our rights, the MUSIC UNITES . . . Us ALL! Please give a warm welcome to my guest and collaborated, The Dreadman, Aka: Kinglion! My brother and I met a few years ago and have a strong intellectual & musical bond. He is an experienced and seasoned DJ / Producer with grassroots reggae / dancehall as his foundation. He brings an authentic deep vibe I am sure you will enjoy! For the 2nd hour I bless you all with the Soulfricaaaaa! Please Like & Share by Reposting! Thank you ALL!
Jesus Calls Twelve Ordinary Men Luke 6:12-19 Exegetical Main Point: Jesus called and trained twelve Apostles to spread his Kingdom in the world. The calling of these new leaders is a judgment on Israel and the creation of a new people of God. Sermon Main Point: Jesus called twelve ordinary men upon which he would build his church. Intro Do you ever struggle to believe that God could use someone like you? I do, quite often. In fact, I’m seeing more clearly that not just a few of us, but many, have a hard time believing that God could use us. Our lives our too messy. We believe that God only calls the qualified, those with good pasts, the ones who seem to have it all together. Sure, God saving us is one thing, but using us as effective evangelists, leaders, or for any other noteworthy kingdom building activity is another thing. If you feel unqualified, you’re in good company, and God has good news for you. Today’s passage shows us that the Kingdom of God is much different than the kingdom of this world. Jesus’s kingdom building strategy is rather surprising. He didn’t choose who you would expect to be his leaders, he called twelve very ordinary men. My prayer today is that you will see and believe in the God who makes the most unworthy sinners into beautiful and incredibly important in his kingdom. Let’s get into the text. Verse 12: 12 In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God. The first three words, “in these days”, call us to consider the context. Jesus’s influence was growing. Everywhere he went he preached powerfully and power for healing came from him. The Messiah had come to release Israel’s burdens and bring them into his rest. But the religious leaders were too distracted by their own influence and power to see that the Kingdom of God had dawned on them in Jesus. Instead, they wanted Jesus dead and they conspired his murder together. The pressures of ministry were building. How did Jesus respond? Look again at verse 12. Prayer First, Jesus got alone and prayed…all night. Before doing anything, he spent time with his Father. He did the thing that seems so unnatural to us, the thing that often feels like you are doing nothing at all. He didn’t worry. He didn’t sin out of anger at those who were rejecting him. He put his faith in God and talked to him. Prayer is nothing more than a conversation with God. God started the conversation by speaking to us first through his word, and now we make our requests known to him because he welcomes it. Notice that Jesus went out to a mountain. Jesus got alone. He found a place where he could get away from the craziness of life, ministry, and worries, like some of us need to do today, and sought God for direction. Jesus prayed all night. He didn’t whisper a five second prayer in this moment of need, though I’m sure he also did that regularly. He didn’t give up when he got tired, bored, or felt like God wasn’t listening. No, he waited on God. What about you? Think about the last big decision you had to make, the last time you were under pressure. Moving? A relationship? Job? Something that would significantly affect your time and money. How long did you wait on God in prayer? Pause. I’m not good at this. In fact, I don’t think people in our circles are very good at this. Some of us don’t know how to pray for more than five minutes, let alone all night! We want the quick fix, check the box and move forward kind of prayer life. But Jesus models for us a relationship with God that wrestles and waits and deliberates with God over hard decisions.[1] As you’ll see, God’s plans are not always in line with what would make most sense to us in this world. His wisdom is different than man’s wisdom. For this reason, we must seek him and wait on him in prayer. Some of us go to the opposite extreme and we are crippled by hard decisions. Some of us simply need to get up and do something. But I think, for the majority of us, we could grow in sitting with God, with his Word open in front of us, letting him guide our thoughts and decisions about important things. Do not overlook this, friends. Jesus’s kingdom strategy was always birthed out of a place of communion with his Father in prayer. In fact, Jesus tells his disciples that he only did what he saw his Father doing” (Jn 5:19). We must follow our master in this way. We must not be a prayerless church who makes our own strategy while never approaching our master for direction. The Apostles Let’s look at verse 13: “When day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles.” Jesus didn’t go to bed after staying up all night. He had plans from God to fulfill. It is implied here that Jesus received direction from God in this night of prayer who he would appoint as apostles. Jesus evidently had many disciples following him at this point and on this day he called them all together and chose from them twelve. Can you imagine having your name called that day. Everyone standing together and Jesus calling out one after another up to twelve. Jesus wanted these particular men near him. These men would be Jesus’s closest friends, those with whom he would share his last meal; he would wash their feet. He would even be betrayed by one of them. And he named them Apostles. What does it mean that Jesus “named” them Apostles? This word Apostle simply means “one who is sent”. There are others in Scripture who are called apostles but this group was unique, and everybody knew it. They are an exclusive group referred to as “the Twelve” in the rest of the Scriptures. Jesus had a particular purpose and mission in mind for these men. These twelve, in fact, would be the foundation of the church (Eph 2:20). They would witness Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection and instruct the church in all that they had seen and been taught. Judgment on Israel Why twelve? Do you remember where else this number shows up in Scripture? Just as there were twelve tribes in Israel, Jesus appointed twelve apostles. Even as Moses came down from Mt. Sanai to the newly rescued twelve Tribes of Israel, a brand new people of God at that point in history, Jesus comes down off of a mountain and selects his twelve Apostles, showing that he is beginning the process of creating a new people of God yet again. Jesus’ choice of twelvewas a deliberate move with a deliberate message. This act was, in part, a judgment on Israel, who had long been unfaithful to God in their purpose of multiplying and spreading his name and kingdom over all the earth. So, God was doing something new. The Kingdom would no longer spread through the expansion of Israel’s borders or through access to the temple. People would no longer belong to God on the basis of their ethnic identity or adherence to the Law, but rather on the basis of their relationship with Jesus. Through him they would live faithful lives. I will unpack this more later in this sermon. In fact, Luke hints at this in verse 17 where the crowds were made up of both Jews from Judea and Jerusalem and Gentilesfrom Tyre and Sidon. This New Covenant people would be made up of both Jew and Gentile. In calling the twelve Jesus was showing that he was creating a New Covenant people of God through Jesus, a people who would spread his kingdom over all the earth. The Team: Now let’s discuss what men Jesus chose to found this new people. They were probably highly skilled and successful people right? Let’s look at verse 14 and meet the team. I will highlight a few of them. There’s little known about this group of men, but of all of them Simon Peter the Galilean fisherman, whom Luke has already introduced to us in chapter 5 is most well-known. In every list of the twelve Peter is mentioned first as he seems to be a first among equals on this team. Andrew was Peter’s brother. James and John were also fishermen and perhaps business partners with Peter and would make up Jesus’s inner circle along with Peter. Matthew, who was also called Levi, is the tax collector we read about in the last chapter. He would end up writing the Gospel of Matthew. Thomas, who is called “the twin” is best known for being the doubter of Jesus’ resurrection. Sad to be caught with that reputation! Simon the zealot was a part of a revolutionary group that hated the Romans and looked for opportunities to murder and overthrow them. He and “Judas the son of James” who is also called Thaddeus in other lists is mentioned just four times.[2] Judas Iscariot, apparently the only one from outside of Galilee, finishes every list because of the fact that he is known as the traitor who betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. What do these men have in common? At least two things: 1) They are incredibly ordinary men and 2) they have very little in common. They aren’t who you’d expect God to choose as the core leaders of his church. This was a weird bunch, an extremely ordinary bunch. Not the priests. Not the politicians. Not the famous. Fishermen and tax collectors! This was a bold move! It was downright dangerous to have Matthew, the tax collector, who worked for the Romans anywhere near Simon the zealot. I wonder if Jesus often caught the two eyeing each other suspiciously. You’ve got blue-collar fishermen, a city boy, married guys with kids along with young singles. What was Jesus thinking?!Jesus wanted to start a new team and change the world and this was the team he picked? Jesus had a short time to train them and then he would be killed. There was no plan b, guys. Everything rested on these guys! Ultimately, the one thing that brought this rag tag bunch together was Jesus, the one who transforms lowly sinners and big mouths like Peter, into Apostles who would be used to write Scripture, establish the church, and turn the world upside down! Don’t you see? This is our humble beginning, a foretaste of what the Church would be like, a complicated mess of people who would be empowered by God’s Spirit to change the world. This would be a church made up of All Peoples. All Peoples Church. Training So Jesus had his team. Now what is the first step Jesus takes in preparing these men for their work? Verse 17: 17And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, 18 who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. And those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. 19 And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came out from him and healed them all. We’re told that after Jesus called the twelve he came down “with them” and immediately began ministering to the crowds. Notice the words “with them”. Jesus brought the twelve along in his ministry. This, friends, is discipleship. Jesus had the twelve “with him” so that he could demonstrate the kingdom through miracle working and to teach what the kingdom was like. Jesus didn’t buy a building and invite the twelve to come on Sunday’s at 5pm each week for a lesson. No, he brought them out into real life ministry and let them see how it works. Jesus spent nearly every waking moment with these men, equipping, empowering, and sending them to do what he did and teach what he taught. But this was only the beginning of the training. They would not be spectators for long as Jesus would soon give the same authority to these men to heal, cast out demons, and proclaim the kingdom. In Acts, Luke even describes the Apostles as having the same sort of power coming out from them for healing! This is why we believe and teach that discipleship is best done in the context of everyday life where we can be with each other and see the gospel incarnate into the everyday stuff of life. Jesus shows us that discipleship is better caught than merely taught. This is Jesus’s idea of disciple-making, and it lasted for three short years until his death. And it would continue by the Spirit after he ascended. God’s strategy is not like ours. In the incarnation, he became an ordinary man so that he could call ordinary men to watch him and see him live. He didn’t try to convert the world powers. He chose to raise up a small group of ordinary men to train and send as his messengers. This is where you and me fit in. The Church This was our start, church. It begins here. We exist today as a church through the Apostle’s Spirit-empowered witness. The Gospel has come down from one generation to the next through other faithful disciple-makers. And we who are trusting Jesus are the people of God! We’re a weird bunch like the Apostles, made up of sinners from every background, ethnicity, and social class, but transformed by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Most of us are not the elite of society, the rich, or powerful, but God has chosen us and filled us with his Holy Spirit for the cause of his kingdom advancement on earth. Don’t you see? God loves to call the ordinary to do his work. Why? Because it shows off his glory! When God uses ordinary people to transform the world, there is no confusion about who gets the credit for it. The Apostle Paul calls God the one who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist (Rom 4:17). There’s no boasting if you were dead and someone made you alive is there? You may be ordinary, even unqualified, but in Christ and by the Holy Spirit, you have become an indispensable part of the team. Man looks at outward appearances. But God is not partial and will use anyone who puts their faith in him. I hope you’re not still wondering if he wants to use you. Now So how should we live if this is who we are? Know your place and rejoice in it.God doesn’t make mistakes. God chooses particular people and leaders in particular times and places for the advance of his kingdom. Some of you are going to be like Peter who was a well-known prominent leader, and some of you will be like Bartholomew who was mentioned only once in Scripture but historically went on to accomplish great things for God. If you are named in the Lamb’s book of life, you have a reason to rejoice! Pray and pick a team to train up. Before Jesus ascended, he spoke the mission statement of the church, in which is given the chief command, to make disciples. This is Jesus’s strategy! If you want to change the world, replicate Christ by calling and training others to go and do the same. Jesus came down “with them”. He modeled the kingdom for them. In our circles we think discipleship means 1) giving a book for someone to read 2) or just talking it out. There’s a lot of information dumping. But the reality is most people don’t learn like that. Most people through history learned through apprenticeship. They watched someone model for them how to live and work and play and rest. Yes, books are helpful. Yes, talking will be weaved throughout the process, but we need to rethink our discipleship strategy based on Jesus’ model. We need to showour disciples how to fight, forgive, and reconcile. We need to showour disciples how to share the Gospel, how to pray, how to study and apply the Bible. We need to have people live with us, have people in our homes and around us so that we can show others how to rejoice in victories and take big hits. I want to challenge you this week to consider who God is calling you to disciple? I want each of you to spend some time in prayer this week and let God show you who you could walk with in this kind of way. Consider journaling out what God is showing you and share it with your DNA groups so that they can help you be faithful to what God is calling you to. Who has God given you a voice in their life? Speaking of DNA’s, this is the perfect place to put this in action. In fact, this is the whole purpose of that ministry structure! We’re trying to replicate Jesus’s model in our context. Perhaps there are a few in your Missional Community who you could invite into more of what you are doing, that you could spend more time in prayer and word together. How about outside of the church? Are their neighbors or co-workers who you have influence over? Maybe it’s time to invite them into your life in a new way for discipleship. If you don’t know who to disciple, find someone who knows just a little less about the Bible than you do and just ask them to spend some time with you. But discipleship doesn’t stop there. Not only are you called to make disciples. You are a disciple! Who in the church do you know that lives out the kingdom? Follow them. Don’t make this weird. But simply look for ways to get around these individuals and ask a lot of good questions. Let them model it for you – even if that’s over zoom! Are you taking seriously Jesus’s call to make disciples? Let’s realign our strategy with Jesus’s strategy. It seems to have been effective. This is God’s plan to transform the world. There is no plan b. He chose to change the world through ordinary men and women who train up other ordinary men and women to follow Jesus in the same way. Follow him. Maybe you’re not yet a disciple of Jesus.In the same way Jesus called these men to come and follow him, Jesus is calling you today to come follow him, to lay down your old life and find new life in him. On the cross Jesus paid the way for you to be his and to join his team. He rose from death proving that his team will be victorious, so you must repent so that you won’t have to die and face his judgment for rebelling against his kingdom. Every sinner who calls on Jesus gets to join the team as an essential member. Lay down your doubts and fears about your inadequacies and let him define your value and purpose. [1]For a helpful resource on extended prayer see http://www.stmichaelsnc.org.au/The%20Hour%20That%20Changes%20the%20World.pdf [2]https://markdriscoll.org/sermons/jesus-calls-the-twelve/
On this episode, Dr. Vince Bantu discussed his new book Multitude of All Peoples and early African theology.
Coronavirus and the Mother of All Peoples 2 We Can Do This!
Kendall interviews Nick Taylor, All Peoples Youth Pastor as they discuss getting "dunked." This episode is all about God's vision for baptism and the positive effect that baptism has in the lives of those growing in their faith in Jesus. "Dunk" is the 2nd step in the All Peoples "5 D's" pathway.
Weekend message at Cornerstone Church, November 17, 2019, by Roger Frederick, Pastor. Roger's Thanksgiving message, "God of All Peoples," is about family, not just those around the table at Thanksgiving dinner, but our worldwide family.
This is a black arts and culture site. We will be exploring the African Diaspora via the writing, performance, both musical and theatrical (film and stage), as well as the visual arts of Africans in the Diaspora and those influenced by these aesthetic forms of expression. I am interested in the political and social ramifications of art on society, specifically movements supported by these artists and their forebearers. It is my claim that the artists are the true revolutionaries, their work honest and filled with raw unedited passion. They are our true heroes. Ashay! 1. Always in Season director, producer, writer, Jacqueline Olive joins us to talk about this remarkable yet tragic story about Black lives that seems to always be in season. Roxie in SF, 10/23 (preview) and 11/1-7 screenings https://www.roxie.com https://www.alwaysinseasonfilm.com/team 2. Adia Tamar Whitaker, Have K(no)w Fear: A Bluessical: is an undoing spell that wants to untie all the knots that choke the future at ODC Oct. 18-19 https://odc.dance/Bluessical 3. Rev. Dr. Dorsey Blake shares information about Dr. Howard Thurman and The Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples which is having its 75th Anniversary this weekend, Oct. 19-20 with a Forum and Convocation http://fellowshipsf.org/2019/10/75th-anniversary-jubilee-weekend-celebration/
The last oracle -chapters 9-11- was about the nations - and Israel. This oracle -chapters 12-14- is about Israel - and the nations-----But it starts with who God is. Thus declares the LORD, who stretched out the heavens and founded the earth... The Lord, who is the Creator of all things. But not only is he the creator of heaven and earth - he is also the one who formed the spirit of man within him. This should get us thinking back to Genesis 1-2, where God breathed the breath of life into Adam.-- --Zechariah just said that this oracle is -concerning Israel-. But now he says that the LORD is the one who formed the 'spirit of man'. In other words, the point of this oracle will focus on Israel's distinctive role within humanity as a whole.----And Israel's distinctive role is to suffer. Jerusalem will be a cup of staggering to all the surrounding peoples. How- Through -the siege of Jerusalem-. Jerusalem will be under attack yet again.----The phrase -On that day- structures the passage as a whole. There were too many of them to include in the outline, but there are 10 of them in our passage- Three in point one, two in point two, and five in point three-----Outline- The Oracle Concerning Israel -ch 12-14-----1. The Creator of the Heavens and the Earth - the One Who Formed the Spirit of Man - Is about to Make Jerusalem a Cup of Staggering to All Peoples -12-1-6-----2. The LORD Will Save Judah and Jerusalem and David -12-7-9-----3. The LORD Will Pour Out His Spirit on the House of David and Jerusalem -12-10-13-6-----4. The Key to the Whole Story- Strike the Shepherd and the Sheep Will Be Mine -v7-9-
Donyelle McCray discusses Howard Thurman, civil rights leader, preacher, writer, mystic and thinker who was a mentor to Dr. King and the founder of the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. Donyelle focuses on Thurman’s tenderness: how his mother … Read More The post Solomon’s Son: The Wise Tenderness of Howard Thurman appeared first on The Project on Lived Theology.
Donyelle McCray discusses Howard Thurman, civil rights leader, preacher, writer, mystic and thinker who was a mentor to Dr. King and the founder of the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. Donyelle focuses on Thurman’s tenderness: how his mother and grandmother contributed to … Read More The post Solomon’s Son: The Wise Tenderness of Howard Thurman appeared first on The Project on Lived Theology.
Buenas Noticias para Todas las Personas // Good News for All Peoples - 02 Diciembre 2018 by All Peoples Church Tijuana
Have you ever thought about the power your testimony could have on someone else? This week Keith Layne shares with All Peoples his own personal testimony and how the testimonies of others in our house have helped him along the way.
Revelation 21:1-8- Making All Things New Problem: The Beauty of Creation is regularly overwhelmed and crushed by the Brokenness of our World. I. Why is the NH/NE a necessary part of the Gospel? a. Full Redemption was always meant to be PHYSICAL. (Is. 65:17-19) b. If not physical, then redemption would be a FAILURE. (Rom. 8:19-22) II. What will the NH/NE be like? a. All PEOPLES with God Forever (.v3) b. The EXTINCTION of Distress (v.4) c. A RENEWED Cosmic Order (v.5) d. Eternal SATISFACTION of the Soul (v.6) III. What difference does the NH/NE make to me today? a. The PRESENT benefits of Christianity can’t conquer my sinful practices (v.7-8) b. Heaven on Earth is future…so accept being an EXILE today. (Heb. 11:13-14,16) c. Creation governed for God’s glory is a PREVIEW of what’s to come. (Matt.5:14-16)
Queer & Trans Artists of Color Vol 2 A celebration of queer and trans black and brown genius...building on the groundbreaking first volume, Queer and Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives, Nia King is back with a second archive of interviews from her podcast We Want the Airwaves. She maintains her signature frankness as an interviewer while seeking advice on surviving capitalism from creative folks who often find their labor devalued. In this collection of interviews, Nia discusses biphobia in gay men's communities with Juba Kalamka, helping border-crossers find water in the desert with Micha Cardenas, trying to preserve Indigenous languages through painting with Grace Rosario Perkins, revolutionary monster stories with Elena Rose, using textiles to protest police violence with Indira Allegra, trying to respectfully reclaim one's own culture with Amir Rabiyah, taking on punk racism with Mimi Thi Nguyen, the imminent trans women of color world takeover with Lexi Adsit, queer life in WWII Japanese American incarceration camps with Tina Takemoto, hip-hop and Black Nationalism with Ajuan Mance, making music in exile with Martin Sorrondeguy, issue-based versus identity-based organizing with Trish Salah, ten years of curating and touring with the QTPOC arts organization Mangos With Chili with Cherry Galettte, raising awareness about gentrification through games with Mattie Brice, self-publishing versus working with a small press with Vivek Shreya, and the colonial nature of journalism school with Kiley May. The conversation continues. Bear witness to QTPOC brilliance. Included in the evening will be performances by: Ryka Aoki is the author of Seasonal Velocities, He Mele a Hilo (A Hilo Song) and Why Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul. She has been honored by the California State Senate for her “extraordinary commitment to free speech and artistic expression, as well as the visibility and well-being of Transgender people. Ryka was the inaugural performer for the first ever Transgender Stage at San Francisco Pride, and has performed in venues including the San Francisco Pride Main Stage, the Columbus National Gay and Lesbian Theatre Festival, the National Queer Arts Festival, and Ladyfest South. Ryka also appears in the recent documentaries “Diagnosing Difference” and “Riot Acts.” She has MFA in Creative Writing from Cornell University and is the recipient of a University Award from the Academy of American Poets. She is a professor of English at Santa Monica College.Winner of the People Before Profits Poetry Prize, Meliza Bañales aka Missy Fuego is the author of Say It With Your Whole Mouth (Poems) and the Xicana-Punk-Rock-Coming-of-Age novel Life Is Wonderful, People Are Terrific which was a 2016 Lambda Literary Award Finalist. She was a fixture in the San Francisco Bay Area spoken-word and slam communities from 1996-2010, where she became the first Xicana to win a poetry slam championship in 2002. She is a Visiting Professor of Literature and Counter-Culture at UC San Diego and the feature film of her novel is currently in pre-production in Los Angeles.Nadia Ann Abou-Karr is an artist, writer and practitioner of holistic healing arts. She has been self publishing her own zines since middle school, with the most recent being THE ICONOCLAST Revolutionary Love series which highlights the complexities and confusion that arise from loving in the 5th dimension. Ultimately she always come back to the realization that self love is the best kind, and she uses all of her creative production to create an optimal climate for free love.Kim Tillman is an LA-based singer/songwriter, lead singer of the band Tragic Gadget and half of the music duo Kim Tillman & Silent Films. Her songs have been featured in film and television including American Girl: Saige Paints the Sky, the 2014 documentary feature Off the Floor, on Love & Hip Hop Atlanta and the ABC Family series Switched at Birth. Armed with a honey-velvet voice and precise, evocative lyrics, she aims simply to move you. Praise for Queer & Trans Artists of Color Vol 2 “Nia King’s essential project is about demystifying the artist’s life, and centering expression at the heart of radically diverse QTPOC lives. This second volume of artists’ voices is full of heart and wisdom, struggle and triumph. Another must-read for anyone dedicated to living creatively.” —Jeff Chang, author of Who We Be and We Gon’ Be Alright“With all the talk in the entertainment industry about a lack of diverse voices in our media, Nia King does the big work that is necessary to rescue the entertainment industry from itself. She is going out there to highlight these voices, not because they are diverse, but because they are absolutely necessary.” —W. Kamau Bell, host of United Shades of America“Queer and Trans Artists of Color, Volume 2 continues to amplify beautiful voices that need to be heard. Refreshingly honest and illuminating, these interviews combine to form a powerful statement on the journey of the artist, and the person behind the art, towards creating a world where we can all thrive as our true selves.” —Mat Johnson, author of Loving Day and Pym“Nia King once again provides a vital space where LGBTQ artists of color can share their unique experiences working in their creative fields. This volume, like its predecessor, will be a must-read for years to come.” —Hari Kondabolu, writer and comedian“This book shines a spotlight on QTPOC artists, activists and self-proclaimed weirdos, a group who rarely receive such attention. Through fluid and compelling conversations with King, readers learn about the creative processes, identities, organizing, and politics that inform their art. This is a beautiful archive as well as a rich source of information for creative people seeking inspiration.” —Farzana Doctor, author of All Inclusive and Six Metres of Pavement“In this new volume Nia King continues the invaluable work of amplifying the voices and interrogating the ideas of a new generation of joyous, committed creators. If you want to know who is shaping the culture of the next century, this is a book you must have: a book brimming with honesty, intelligence and heart.” —Nayland Blake, artist and professor“This book is a revolutionary literary gesture, providing both practical information to artists and also doing the work of expanding the archive. I love the way that King brings interviews to the page, disseminating artists’ knowledge while also creating a window into their language and lives. The honesty of the unscripted conversations feels both intimate and subversive.”—Virgie Tovar, author of Hot & Heavy: Fierce Fat Girls on Life, Love and Fashion Nia King is a queer Black, Lebanese, Hungarian, and Jewish artist and activist from Canton, Massachusetts living in Oakland, California. She is the author of Queer & Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives and the host and producer of We Want the Airwaves podcast. Her writing and comics have been published in Colorlines, East Bay Express and Women & Performance: a journal of feminist theory. She has spoken about her work at schools and conferences such as Stanford University, Swarthmore College, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Facing Race, the Allied Media Conference, and the National Association for Ethnic Studies Conference. You can find more of her work at artactivistnia.com and contact her at NiaKing@zoho.com. Elena Rose, a Filipina-Ashkenazi trans lesbian mestiza, rode stories out of rural Oregon and hasn’t stopped telling since. As an ordained minister, writer, and organizer, she has been published in magazines including Aorta and Make/shift, co-founded the Speak! Radical Women of Color Media Collective, co-curated the acclaimed National Queer Arts Festival show Girl Talk: A Trans and Cis Women’s Dialogue, works as a nationally-recognized interfaith educator on justice issues, and serves on the boards of the Solar Cross Temple and the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples. She can be contacted at takingsteps@gmail.comand on Twitter @burnlittlelight.
I LOVE MY CHILDREN IN JESUS ALL OVER THE WORLD MOTHER IN JESUS, LACEY KAY HEY WORLD! YES, THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD LISTEN TO THE TRUE STORY OF PAUL AND SILAS IN THE BOOK OF ACTS. THEN I HAVE ANOTHER ONE I WANT TO SHARE YOU WITH ABOUT PAUL. HE HAD AN INTERESTING CONVERSATION WITH SOME INTERESTING MEN. WHILE WE ARE TALKING, LET'S TALK ABOUT PRAYING.. BREAKING THE POWER OF DARKNESS IN OURS AND OTHERS LIVES. PRAISE GOD, MAY THE GLORY OF THE LORD BE IN THE PLACE. EZ. 3:12 PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF JERUSALEM, PRAY FOR ALL NATIONS, ALL PEOPLES, ELDERLY, CHILDREN. BLESSINGS AND SHALOM USA ONLY BOOKING FOR SPRING AND SUMMER www.laceykayministries.org CONTACT ME. DONATE TO SUPPORT THIS MINISTRY. PAY PAL NO MAILING LIST, NONE BLESSINGS AND SHALOM EVANGELIST LACEY KAY GREEN
Buffalo Junction, Pastor Wally Kelly, Restoration for All Peoples, Zephaniah 3:9-13 November 20 2016
Kent McDonald, a member of the Whitworth campus ministry staff and Young Life Regional Trainer, presents "Eating with the Pharisees: A Holistic Salvation for All Peoples."
Gospel for All Peoples preached by Jamie Burkemper from Psalm 117.
Gospel for All Peoples preached by Jamie Burkemper from Psalm 117.
Gospel for All Peoples preached by Jamie Burkemper from Psalm 117.
Rosh Ruby begins his 3 part series on The Call to “Be Light” within scripture. In this teaching: The Call of Messiah (and therefore His disciples) was always the Restoration of Israel AND the Restoration of ALL Peoples! Teacher: Rosh Ruby Date: November 21, 2015
The Reverend Craig Thomas Robinson, Jr is the proud pastor of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, a dynamic community of faith located in the village of Bay Shore, New York. Bethel Church was founded in 1865 and remains a beacon of hope and healing for the residents of Bay Shore and Long Island. Reverend Robinson holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from Morehouse College and earned the Master of Divinity and Master of Sacred Theology degrees from Yale Divinity School. Upon completion of his Master of Divinity degree, in 2011, He was awarded two prizes in the area of preaching: The Charles S. Mersick Prize “for effective public address, especially in preaching,” and the Oliver Elsworth Daggett Prize “for ability, diligence, Christian character and promise of usefulness as a preacher.” He has also published in the African American Pulpit journal and the African American Lectionary online. Reverend Robinson’s second master’s, the Master of Sacred Theology, was an exploration into the life and legacy of Howard Washington Thurman. His thesis examined the prophetic edges of Thurman’s pastoral ministries at the Fellowship Church of All Peoples in San Francisco, California and his tenure as dean of Marsh Chapel at Boston University to the end of showing the indelible mark Thurman left on the trajectory of the Civil Rights Movement. In between Reverend Robinson’s pursuit of a professional education, he spent two years as a Lilly-Endowed Transition into Ministry Fellow which allowed him to serve as a Pastoral Resident at the Historic Charles Street African Methodist Episcopal Church in Boston, Massachusetts. He also served as an instructor in AME Liturgy and Hymnody for the New England Annual Conference Ministerial Training Institute.
We rebroadcast a special show featuring Rev. Liza Rankow and Rev. Dr. Dorsey Blake on the sad occasion of Dr. Thurman's last surviving child, Olive Thurman Wong, passing from this life on Thursday, April 5th, at the age of 84. She was surrounded by loving family and friends. The West coast memorial service will be held on this Saturday, April 14th, at 11:00AM at the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, 2041 Larkin St., San Francisco (www.fellowshipsf.org). An East coast memorial celebration will be held in New York City, sometime in May. We lost another wonderful woman, Christine Nyanda-Chacha this week as well. Mama Chacha, a mother, wife, sister, friend, philanthropist, innovator, pillar of strength passed while on a medical visit in South Africa and funds are needed to bring her body back to the USA for burial. She founded the organization African Immigrants Social and Cultural Services (AISCS), an organization that works to better the lives of African immigrants in the United States and of rural communities in Tanzania (www.aiscs.org). In 2012, Mama Chacha received the prestigious Jefferson Award as well as the Ubuntu Award from Priority Africa Network. She is survived by her husband Ezra, and her 5 children, Julius, Pamela, Eliazar, Jeremiah, and Sarah. It will cost approximately $25,000 to cover all the costs. Donations can be made directly via Pay Pal at http://www.mamachachafund.com. Visitation and funeral service arrangements are to be determined. For more information, contact samwario@yahoo.com.
Cutting Through the Matrix with Alan Watt Podcast (.xml Format)
--{ Banking Crisis and The New World Order: Praise 'Money Heaven' and The Banker King, With Golden Cherubs that Silver-Tongued Sing: "Birth Pangs of Crisis Cross Every Border, Economic Disorder of the New World Order, Bringing the Next Phase of Consolidation, Global Governance and the End of the Nation, Culmination of Wise Men's Machinations, Famine, Wars, the Cause of Vexations, For Mr. Moneybags, There is No Appeasement, His Front-Men Sign Each Global Agreement, Of All the Flags that Could be Unfurled, It's That of the Banker Rules the World, All Peoples to Suffer His Age of Austerity, 'cept the Banker who Sidesteps, Nimble Dexterity, We'll All Be in Want of Things We Need, Now the Banker is King, Salivating His Greed" © Alan Watt }-- Science of Economics and Banking, Record-keeping, Moneylending - Instruments to Bring in First Truly World Order - Democracy (Those at the Top Vote), Cover for Fascism - Alexander Hamilton, Life under Tyrants or Democracies - Ancient Greece, City-States and Alliances - Slavery, Wage Slaves and Taxation by Govt. - Greece Forced into EU, Greece Blamed for Economic Crash - IMF Takeovers of Countries, Slashes in National Budgets and Services - World Bank/IMF/BIS and World Government - End of All Sovereignty - BRIC Group of Emerging Nations - Crown Corporations - Planned Austerity - British Debt to Iran for Undelivered Tanks - Falklands War - Bankers Demand Payment. New "Carbon" Economy - Carbon Trading Racket - Streetwise Con Men. (See http://www.cuttingthroughthematrix.com for article links.) *Title/Poem and Dialogue Copyrighted Alan Watt - May 5, 2010 (Exempting Music, Literary Quotes, and Callers' Comments)
This episode of CS is titled, Back in the East – Part 2Last time we took a brief look at the Jesuit missions to the Far East; namely Japan, China, Vietnam and India.We encountered the revolutionary approach to mission work of Alessandro Valignano and his spiritual heirs, Michele Ruggieri and Matteo Ricci. Their accomodationist approach to evangelism, where the Gospel was communicated by seeking to build a cultural bridge with the high civilizations of the Far East, was officially suppressed by Rome, even though it had amazing success in planting a healthy and vibrant church. So healthy was the Church in Japan it came under fire from a fierce resurgence in Japanese nationalism that expelled the Jesuits and persecuted the Church, driving it underground.From the dawn of the 17th C, both Dutch and English trading interests moved into Asia. Their commercial and military navies dominated those of other European nations.The Dutch established bases in Indonesia and created a center at Jakarta. The Dutch East India Company was founded in 1602, and carried the Dutch Reformed Church to the East Indies. But don't think this means the Dutch conducted missionary work among indigenous peoples. It merely means they carried their religious institution with them and built chapels so Dutch nationals had a place to worship when doing business there. Any converts from among the native population was by accident, not any kind of planned outreach. Dutch interests in the Far East were exclusively commercial.The English equivalent of the Dutch East India Company was, the creatively named à English East India Company. Though the directors of the Company were suspicious of missionaries, they appointed chaplains to their trading communities. This provided an opening for those with missionary vision in England and India, such as Parliamentarian William Wilberforce and Charles Grant, an employee of the company.Two outstanding East India Company chaplains were Henry Martyn and Claudius Buchanan. Martyn was a leading Cambridge intellect and winner of numerous academic prizes. He and other Cambridge students were influenced by the long ministry of Charles Simeon, whose preaching urged that the Gospel be taken to All Peoples. Martyn was a brilliant linguist and translator. He was appointed a chaplain in 1805, translated the NT into Urdu and Persian and prepared an Arabic version before his early death from tuberculosis at 31. His Indian assistant, Abdul Masih, converted from Islam to become a Christian missionary and advocate of the Faith. He was ordained in 1825 as the first Indian Anglican clergyman. Many others were inspired by Martyn's life of scholarship and devotion.William Carey, often regarded as the father of Protestant English missions, was both a shoemaker and Baptist preacher in Northamptonshire. He arrived in India in 1793. He was soon joined by 2 other Baptist giants, Joshua Marshman and William Ward, making what came to be known as the ‘Serampore Trio.' Serampore being the region where they lived and worked. The trio greatly admired the Moravians and shaped their community on the Moravian model.Carey's passage to India had been denied by the East India Company, the de facto government of English holdings in India, with their own hired army enforcing their will on the regions they operated. That would be like Amazon being the City Council and Law Enforcement for Seattle. Later British colonies and India came under control of the Crown. The East India Company opposed Carey's plan to take the Gospel to the Indians. Chaplains for the British in India was fine, but they didn't want to foment hostility with the faiths of their trading partners. Carey had ONE goal in going to India; to evangelize the lost. His passion to raise support in England for foreign missions led to his being derided by critics like Sydney Smith, a clergyman and author of satire who wrote for the Edinburgh Review.But by steady perseverance, monumental labor at biblical translation, longsuffering through family tragedies and the loss of precious manuscripts by fire, Carey faced down all critics, became Professor of Sanskrit at Fort William College and earned the accolade from Bishop Stephen Neill, himself a missionary in India: “In the whole history of the Church, no nobler man has ever given himself to the service of the Redeemer.”For North Americans, an equivalent figure to Carey as a pioneer was the great missionary to Burma, Adoniram Judson. Judson received his inspiration to become a missionary from reading the sermons of Claudius Buchanan in 1809. After ordination as a Congregationalist minister, he applied to the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. On his voyage to India, he and his wife adopted a Baptist statement of Faith. On arrival in India he was baptized, having made his change of mind known to William Carey. He was refused permission to work by the East India Co as a Baptist missionary in India but began work in Rangoon in 1813. His work among the Karen people met with rousing success. The first Karen to be baptized was Ko Tha Byu, who came from a background of violent crime. Byu became a notable evangelist. The Karen became the largest Christian group of the region. In modern Myanmar they number 200,000 Christians in over 1,000 churches. Judson himself became a missionary icon and hero in mid-19th C North America.China closed its doors to foreigners of all kinds after imperial edicts against Christian preaching in 1720. Robert Morrison was the lone Protestant missionary from 1807, often at risk of his life. Although the East India Co was hostile to his mission, in 1809 he was employed by them as an interpreter so he could remain on Chinese soil. With the help of William Milne, he translated the entire Bible into Chinese and created a Chinese dictionary, which became a standard work for language studies. He and Milne founded an Anglo-Chinese school in Malacca.But any missionary incursion into wider China was impossible until the treaties of the mid-19th C opened the country by slow degrees.First, the so-called ‘treaty ports' became accessible in 1842 in the Treaty of Nanking, forced on China by British commercial interests. The Chinese were desperate for opium from India, supplied by the British, a major source of revenue.A bit later, the Treaty of Tientsin opened the interior to missionaries, preparing the way for the China Inland Mission.James Hudson Taylor was born in Yorkshire, England to a devout Methodist family. He trained as a doctor, but, before he qualified, offered himself as a missionary to the China Evangelization Society. Because of the political conditions in China during the pro-Christian Taiping Rebellion, he was sent to Shanghai in 1853.Hudson Taylor was inspired by Karl Gutzlaff, who'd travelled to the Chinese interior between 1833-9 as a freelance missionary.Gutzlaff was a German educated at a Moravian school. Drawn to the Far East by the urge to see China won to Christ, he began with the Netherlands Missionary Society in 1824 by serving in Thailand where he translated the Bible into Thai in just 3 years.In 1828 he broke with Netherlands Missionary Society because they wouldn't send him to China. From his perspective, that's why he was in the Far East. So, he became a freelance missionary, distributing Christian literature along the coast. He became an interpreter for the East India Co in Shanghai and helped negotiate the Treaty of Nanjing. He recruited Chinese nationals as evangelists to the interior and raised funds for their support through his writings in Europe, only to find that many of his recruits had deceived him and taken the money for other purposes. Although discredited in the eyes of some, Gutzlaff's strategy of using nationals as Christian workers was sound. No one doubted his missionary zeal. Hudson Taylor looked on him as the ‘grandfather' of the China Inland Mission and its work in the interior provinces.Hearkening back to the accomodationist policy of Valignano, Taylor experimented with identification in Chinese dress and the ‘queue'; that is, the pigtail hairstyle worn by Chinese men. But Taylor caught grief from other members of the missionary community, by his “going native” as it was called. In 1857, he resigned from the China Evangelization Society he'd been working with. Stirred deeply by the needs of the Chinese of the interior, Taylor founded the China Inland Mission in 1865, aiming to put 2 missionaries in each province, recently open to foreigners after the Treaty of Tientsin. He was now a fully qualified doctor and married to Maria Dyer, daughter of a missionary and a leader in her own right, he set out with a party of 16 from London to Shanghai in 1866, narrowly avoiding total loss by shipwreck.From the beginning the CIM was to be a so-called ‘faith mission', with no public appeals for funds; and its missionaries accepted the absolute, if gently applied, authority of Hudson Taylor, described by some as the ‘Ignatius Loyola of Protestant missions.'The CIM came to number over 800 missionaries, including Methodists, Baptists, Anglicans, Presbyterians and others. It planted churches that had a membership of some 80,000 by 1897. The public profile of the CIM was greatly enhanced in the 1880s by the arrival of the “Cambridge 7”, 2 of whom were well-known sports heroes and popularized as making great sacrifices for the Cause of Christ. CT Studd was 1 of these, later to found of the World Evangelization Crusade and the Heart of Africa Mission, which worked in the Belgian Congo.Hudson Taylor's publication, China's Millions, achieved a circulation of 50,000 and helped put the mission in front of the public. The society suffered heavily in the nationalist Boxer Rebellion of 1898 to 1900. A total of 200 missionaries, many of them Roman Catholic, and 30,000 Chinese Christians lost their lives. CIM lost 58 missionaries and several children. Even with this tragic set-back, the CIM continued to be an influential group under its 2nd director, Dixon Hoste, 1 of the Cambridge 7. In 1949 all missionary personnel were expelled by the Communists.Hudson Taylor is described by the eminent Church Historian Kenneth Scott Latourette as “1 of the 4 or 5 most influential foreigners who came to China in the 19th C for any purpose, religious or secular.”
Feast Video Transcript: Hey Missional Community families. I'm Mark Sellers, a member of the MC Staff Team. Today we are going to discuss the abiding practice of Feasting.When we think about our 10 abiding practices, some of them, actually most of them, push us in uncomfortable places physically, mentally, and emotionally. Let's be honest, Feast is not one of those. I'm guessing I won't be spending our short time together trying to convince you to feast. As soon as I say that word, your mind probably goes to some of the best parties, or feasts, that you've attended. You're probably smiling thinking about it. So why is it important for us to talk about feasting? Why is it even one of our abiding practices? And how then do we consider feasting in the daily rhythms of our Missional Community?As you journey through the bible, you will find that food is one of the most significant themes. The idea of the feast, of God's people feasting, finds its way into nearly every book of the bible. Food is deeply symbolic and regularly points to the gospel and the great provision of God, and our great need for God, both physically and spiritually. So we would say that disciples of Jesus Christ regularly commemorate the goodness of God and celebrate their redemption through Christ in feasting together.Let's jump into the biblical idea of feast. Eating tells us at least two primary things about the human race.First, eating is an expression of our dependence. We literally cannot survive without food and water. We were created to depend on something outside of ourselves to sustain us. This is a beautiful reminder that we cannot survive on our own without the truth of the gospel. Every time we gather around the table we acknowledge our inability to live on our own.Secondly, eating is an expression of our dependence on God. It's a reminder of His incredible grace. To all people, those who believe in His provision, and those who don't. God has graciously given us all things, even food. So everytime we gather around the table; everytime we feast, we get to celebrate with gratitude that God has given us everything we need, every molecule of water, food, and air. What an incredible reason to feast! And it's not just purely physical. God lavishes his grace and mercy upon us by blessing us with taste buds that light up with each delicious bite. How do we see this played out in God's story in the bible? It's literally from cover to cover. One of the first things God does with Adam and Eve is to invite them to feast on His creation. The fall has food front and center. And where does the story end? At the great wedding feast that promises to be the greatest feast in all eternity! There are so many places we could go but we will just look at a few:First: After 400 years of horrific slavery, God miraculously leads His children out of Egypt. Before this grand Exodus, he initiates the feast of Passover. This feast literally saves the firstborn from death. And this continues until God sacrifices His firstborn. Passover. Feasting here points to salvation. And God doesn't stop there. He introduces many other feasts so that his people remember His deliverance, His salvation. Just a few of these include: the feast of unleavened bread, feast of first fruits, feast of weeks or Pentecost, feast of trumpets, Day of Atonement, feast of tabernacles or booths. All of these point to the great salvation of Yahweh. God saves His people and it's costly but it's glorious, so we feast. We celebrate.Second: Jesus was the best feaster. So much so that He was accused of being a glutton. When talking about Jesus' life in Luke, Robert Karris states “...Jesus is either going to a meal, at a meal, or coming from a meal.” Jesus regularly eats with people, any people. People who loved him, people who hated him, people who questioned him, people who betrayed him. Jesus accepted all men and women and He did this at the feast. In fact, at the final Passover, the night before His crucifixion, Jesus establishes the feast of communion. He invites His followers to partake of the feast of the new covenant, His body and His blood. Jesus completes the feast.Let's end here: Isaiah 25O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.2 For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; 3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you.4 For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; 6 On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.7 And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.9 It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”“The Lord will make for ALL PEOPLES a Feast…”What is Isaiah talking about? I believe He's talking about the multitude in Revelation 7, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And what do they do? How does it end, In Revelation 19:7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”We feast. Why? Because it reminds us of our salvation and of future glory. We feast to invite the whole world to the table of God.Let's quickly discuss how feasting plays out in the rhythms of your Missional Community.The good news here is that eating is already built into your daily schedule. Now we get to enjoy making our meals a feast to the glory of God!First, the Family GatheringThe family gatherings of your MC give you an awesome and convenient avenue to feast. There are so many opportunities to celebrate God's goodness. Holidays, graduations, anniversaries, momentous occasions. The list goes on and on. Don't miss this low hanging fruit. Here's the challenge. Whenever you gather to feast, acknowledge the reason for the feast. Acknowledge how eating points to the gospel and our dependence on God. Make it a central point to do this every time you sit around the table. Invite others to participate in this gospel proclamation every time you feast.Next, DNA GroupsDNA Groups: On the surface, it might seem that the form and purpose of DNA groups prohibit feasting. On the contrary, the spiritual intimacy that is found in consistent DNA relationships gives great purpose to feasting together. On the one hand, the most convenient time to gather might actually be around a meal. So point to the goodness of God and His gospel as you feast and share. On the other hand, we would expect God to show up in mighty ways as you pursue Him together. Celebrate this! Take the chance to feast as a DNA group as you express your gratitude to the Father in His sanctification and provision.Neighborhoods to NationsFinally, let's look to the Neighborhoods and to the Nations. There is so much to say here. More than we have time for. Think of feasting in this rhythm in a few different ways.First, remember Revelation 7. Remember that a “great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb…”. Take the opportunity to feast as you pray desperately for these unreached peoples. Maybe even try eating their cuisine as you feast.Second, think about the unifying nature of food in your local context. Think of the feasts that your city and your neighbors observe. Join them and bring the gospel to the feasts in your culture. Or, do your own feast. BBQs and cookouts are the feasting language of our American neighborhoods. Pull the grill out, invite the neighborhood, cooperate as an MC family and watch the magic happen. Do it regularly. It's our prayer that our people will be famous for the feasts they put on. Maybe you have a neighbor from a different part of the world. Ask them to introduce you to their kind of feast. Know their culture and bring the kindness of the gospel to their table.ConclusionWe could go on and on. There is something to the feast. It draws people, it lowers relational walls, it unifies. It's the symbolic truth of the gospel. It's our prayer that we will be known for our feasts and that we glorify God's goodness in salvation as we feast.MC families, take the time to study the feast together. Work through the accompanying Feast Training Guide to plan out how you will feast together in your MC rhythms. We continue to pray that God will be seen and known in your hospitality as you feast together. See you soon.
Feast Video Transcript: Hey Missional Community families. I'm Mark Sellers, a member of the MC Staff Team. Today we are going to discuss the abiding practice of Feasting.When we think about our 10 abiding practices, some of them, actually most of them, push us in uncomfortable places physically, mentally, and emotionally. Let's be honest, Feast is not one of those. I'm guessing I won't be spending our short time together trying to convince you to feast. As soon as I say that word, your mind probably goes to some of the best parties, or feasts, that you've attended. You're probably smiling thinking about it. So why is it important for us to talk about feasting? Why is it even one of our abiding practices? And how then do we consider feasting in the daily rhythms of our Missional Community?As you journey through the bible, you will find that food is one of the most significant themes. The idea of the feast, of God's people feasting, finds its way into nearly every book of the bible. Food is deeply symbolic and regularly points to the gospel and the great provision of God, and our great need for God, both physically and spiritually. So we would say that disciples of Jesus Christ regularly commemorate the goodness of God and celebrate their redemption through Christ in feasting together.Let's jump into the biblical idea of feast. Eating tells us at least two primary things about the human race.First, eating is an expression of our dependence. We literally cannot survive without food and water. We were created to depend on something outside of ourselves to sustain us. This is a beautiful reminder that we cannot survive on our own without the truth of the gospel. Every time we gather around the table we acknowledge our inability to live on our own.Secondly, eating is an expression of our dependence on God. It's a reminder of His incredible grace. To all people, those who believe in His provision, and those who don't. God has graciously given us all things, even food. So everytime we gather around the table; everytime we feast, we get to celebrate with gratitude that God has given us everything we need, every molecule of water, food, and air. What an incredible reason to feast! And it's not just purely physical. God lavishes his grace and mercy upon us by blessing us with taste buds that light up with each delicious bite. How do we see this played out in God's story in the bible? It's literally from cover to cover. One of the first things God does with Adam and Eve is to invite them to feast on His creation. The fall has food front and center. And where does the story end? At the great wedding feast that promises to be the greatest feast in all eternity! There are so many places we could go but we will just look at a few:First: After 400 years of horrific slavery, God miraculously leads His children out of Egypt. Before this grand Exodus, he initiates the feast of Passover. This feast literally saves the firstborn from death. And this continues until God sacrifices His firstborn. Passover. Feasting here points to salvation. And God doesn't stop there. He introduces many other feasts so that his people remember His deliverance, His salvation. Just a few of these include: the feast of unleavened bread, feast of first fruits, feast of weeks or Pentecost, feast of trumpets, Day of Atonement, feast of tabernacles or booths. All of these point to the great salvation of Yahweh. God saves His people and it's costly but it's glorious, so we feast. We celebrate.Second: Jesus was the best feaster. So much so that He was accused of being a glutton. When talking about Jesus' life in Luke, Robert Karris states “...Jesus is either going to a meal, at a meal, or coming from a meal.” Jesus regularly eats with people, any people. People who loved him, people who hated him, people who questioned him, people who betrayed him. Jesus accepted all men and women and He did this at the feast. In fact, at the final Passover, the night before His crucifixion, Jesus establishes the feast of communion. He invites His followers to partake of the feast of the new covenant, His body and His blood. Jesus completes the feast.Let's end here: Isaiah 25O Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you; I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, plans formed of old, faithful and sure.2 For you have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin; 3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you; cities of ruthless nations will fear you.4 For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; 6 On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.7 And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations.8 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken.9 It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”“The Lord will make for ALL PEOPLES a Feast…”What is Isaiah talking about? I believe He's talking about the multitude in Revelation 7, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And what do they do? How does it end, In Revelation 19:7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”We feast. Why? Because it reminds us of our salvation and of future glory. We feast to invite the whole world to the table of God.Let's quickly discuss how feasting plays out in the rhythms of your Missional Community.The good news here is that eating is already built into your daily schedule. Now we get to enjoy making our meals a feast to the glory of God!First, the Family GatheringThe family gatherings of your MC give you an awesome and convenient avenue to feast. There are so many opportunities to celebrate God's goodness. Holidays, graduations, anniversaries, momentous occasions. The list goes on and on. Don't miss this low hanging fruit. Here's the challenge. Whenever you gather to feast, acknowledge the reason for the feast. Acknowledge how eating points to the gospel and our dependence on God. Make it a central point to do this every time you sit around the table. Invite others to participate in this gospel proclamation every time you feast.Next, DNA GroupsDNA Groups: On the surface, it might seem that the form and purpose of DNA groups prohibit feasting. On the contrary, the spiritual intimacy that is found in consistent DNA relationships gives great purpose to feasting together. On the one hand, the most convenient time to gather might actually be around a meal. So point to the goodness of God and His gospel as you feast and share. On the other hand, we would expect God to show up in mighty ways as you pursue Him together. Celebrate this! Take the chance to feast as a DNA group as you express your gratitude to the Father in His sanctification and provision.Neighborhoods to NationsFinally, let's look to the Neighborhoods and to the Nations. There is so much to say here. More than we have time for. Think of feasting in this rhythm in a few different ways.First, remember Revelation 7. Remember that a “great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb…”. Take the opportunity to feast as you pray desperately for these unreached peoples. Maybe even try eating their cuisine as you feast.Second, think about the unifying nature of food in your local context. Think of the feasts that your city and your neighbors observe. Join them and bring the gospel to the feasts in your culture. Or, do your own feast. BBQs and cookouts are the feasting language of our American neighborhoods. Pull the grill out, invite the neighborhood, cooperate as an MC family and watch the magic happen. Do it regularly. It's our prayer that our people will be famous for the feasts they put on. Maybe you have a neighbor from a different part of the world. Ask them to introduce you to their kind of feast. Know their culture and bring the kindness of the gospel to their table.ConclusionWe could go on and on. There is something to the feast. It draws people, it lowers relational walls, it unifies. It's the symbolic truth of the gospel. It's our prayer that we will be known for our feasts and that we glorify God's goodness in salvation as we feast.MC families, take the time to study the feast together. Work through the accompanying Feast Training Guide to plan out how you will feast together in your MC rhythms. We continue to pray that God will be seen and known in your hospitality as you feast together. See you soon.
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