Podcasts about Phillips Brooks

The Lord is responding to the disciple's question to teachthem to pray. Jesus first gives them a lesson on the pattern of prayer andbegins it with the words, “Our Father”. One for the first things we shouldlearn about prayer is that it is based on our relationship with God. We havethe privilege and honor of prayer because we are sons and daughters in Hisfamily by being “born again” through salvation in Jesus Christ. We should alwayspicture prayer as children coming to a loving, giving, and kind father who delightsin our dependance upon him.  In Luke 11:5-10, it is like the Lord is now taking Hisdisciples up several grades, from elementary and middle school to high school. Hedoes this by telling the story of some friends. In this lesson, the Lord isteaching the disciples, and us, that not only do we have a relationship withGod as “Our Father”, but that we can also picture God as our friend who caresabout us. And in His story of these three friends, He is teaching the disciplesand us the importance of persistence in prayer. In this story, Jesus did not say that God is like thisgrouchy neighbor. In fact, He said just the opposite. If a tired and selfishneighbor finally meets the needs of a bothersome friend, how much more will aloving Heavenly Father meet the needs of His own dear children! He is arguingfrom the lesser to the greater. If we intend to do much through prayer we musthave some endurance. We must persist in our praying, never quit, be steadfastregardless of circumstances. If we quit after praying once because nothinghappened, we will never experience answers to our prayers like we should. There are three friends in this story. There is a friendwho is on a journey. There is a friend who is without bread for this friend whois on a journey. Then there is a friend who has plenty of bread but is at home asleepwith his family. How do you know someone is a true friend? You can tell by theirattitude and actions toward you that they genuinely care about you and theneeds you might have in your life or family.  The argument in this story is clear: If persistence finallypaid off as a man beat on the door of a reluctant friend, how much more wouldpersistence bring blessing as we pray to a loving Heavenly Father! After all,we are the children in the house with Him! The word translated “persistence”, ("importunity"in OKJ), means "shamelessness" or "avoidance of shame." Itcan refer to the man at the door who was not ashamed to wake up his friend, butit can also refer to the friend in the house. Hospitality to friends and even tostrangers is a basic law in the East (Gen. 18). If a person refused toentertain a guest, it could bring disgrace on the whole village. The man in thehouse knew this and did not want to embarrass himself, his family, or hisvillage; so he got up and met the need on the friend on a journey. And so didthe friend who had plenty of bread! Why does our Father in heaven answer prayer? Not just tomeet the needs of His children, but to meet them in such a way that it bringsglory to His name. "Hallowed be Thy name." When God's peoplepray, God's reputation is at stake. The way He takes care of His children is awitness to the world that He can be trusted. Phillips Brooks said that prayeris not overcoming God's reluctance; it is laying hold of His highest willingness.Persistence in prayer is not an attempt to change God's mind ("Thy will bedone") but to get ourselves to the place where He can trust us with theanswer. God's first no does not always mean it is His final no. It might mean “wait”.We will study more about this tomorrow.  Today, we need to learn that God is not only our Father,but He is our friend, who has “plenty of bread” for our every need and we shouldnever give up on approaching Him with our request! God bless!

••• Overcoming Stress, Ep368 .••• Bible Study Verses: 1 Kings 19.1-18, Psalm 23, John 6.35, Ecclesiastes 3:11, Psalms 118:5-6 . ••• “To be a true minister to men is always to accept new happiness and new distress. The man who gives himself to other men can never be a wholly sad man; but no more can he be a man of unclouded gladness. To him shall come with every deeper consecration a before untasted joy, but in the same cup shall be mixed a sorrow that it was beyond his power to feel before”, Phillips Brooks, 1835-1893, The Influence of Jesus, H.R. Allenson, 1875, pg191. † ••• “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” Philippians 4.6-7, NKJV .••• What are 5-reasons why Elijah got so stress out that he wanted God to take his life? ••• Why did Elijah run from Jezebel?••• How did Elijah get from being the bold and confident prophet to being a stressed out prophet on the run?••• What are 7-negative consequences of being stressed out?••• What were 5-life actions in Elijah's life that pulled him out of despair?••• What is the “activation energy”?••• How does a 15-minute power nap affect one's stress levels?••• How does receiving a touch from Our Creator affect stress in our lives?••• How does the Christian regain full strength and vitality?••• Why can't you win in life, when you are stressed?••• What is a reason for people to eat the wrong things?••• What is rest's affect on personal perspective?••• What is the ‘Bread of Life'?••• When you are at the point, of contemplating the absurd what do you do?••• Are you going to ask your small group to pray that you will be more intentional about reducing stress in your life through Godly wisdom & the power of Holy Spirit? ••• Pastor Otuno expounds on this and much more on the exciting journey of Fresh Encounter Radio Podcast originally aired on October 12th, 2019 on WNQM, Nashville Quality Ministries and WWCR World Wide Christian Radio broadcast to all 7-continents on this big beautiful blue marble, earth, floating through space. Please be prayerful before studying The Word of God so that you will receive the most inspiration possible .••• This Discipleship Teaching Podcast is brought to you by Christian Leadership International and all the beloved of God who believe in it's mission through prayer and support. Thank you . ••• Broadcaster's Website - https://www.lifelonganointing.com/ . ••• Exceeding Thanks to Universe Creator Christ Jesus AND photo by Etty Fidele Photography, Paris France, https://www.fideletty.com/, https://www.instagram.com/fideletty/, https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/FideleEtty, Art Direction by gil on his mac with free mac layout software . ••• Study Guides at - https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/episodes . ••• SHARING LINK: https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/250215-winning-the-battle-of-the-mind-part3of9-ep368 . ••• † https://gracequotes.org/author-quote/phillips-brooks/ , Phillips Brooks was an American clergyman best known for authoring the Christmas carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem" . ••• RESOURCE - IONA, “Burning Like Fire” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaXikLXH_sQ .••• RESOURCE - https://www.soundcloud.com/thewaytogod/ .••• RESOURCE - https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/kjv/john.1%20 .••• RESOURCE - PRAYER@SWRC.COM .••• FERP250215 Episode#368 GOT250215ep368 .••• Winning the Battle Of The Mind, Part-3 of 9: Overcoming Stress .Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION“Worry is a cycle of inefficient thoughts whirling around a center of fear.” “Never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.”~Corrie Ten Boom (1892-1983), imprisoned for hiding Jews from the Nazis “Jesus Christ, the condescension of divinity, and the exaltation of humanity.”~Phillips Brooks (1835-1893), writer of “O Little Town of Bethlehem” “He, who first spoke through patriarchs and prophets, afterwards spoke in his own person…saying, therefore, ‘Now, in my own person, I speak of him of whom I spoke through the prophets.' The world could not hear him in his thundering, but may it hear him, at least, in his crying.”~St Jerome (c.342-420), theologian and Bible translator “The majesty of the Father is expressly imaged in the greatness of the power of the Son, that the one may be believed to be as great as the other…. So, the apostle delivered to us the continuity and eternity of that existence which the Only Begotten has of the Father, calling the Son ‘the brightness of God's glory.'”~Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-c.394), theologian and bishop “Therefore, he is true God, existing consubstantially with the true Father…. For he is the ‘very stamp' of the Father's ‘being,' and ‘light' from ‘light,' and the ‘power' and true ‘image' of the Father's substance.”~Athanasius (c.296-373), theologian and church leader from Alexandria, Egypt “‘You are no saint,' says the devil. Well, if I am not, I am a sinner, and Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Sink or swim, I go to Him; other hope, I have none.”~Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892), famed London preacher “He's got the whole world in His hands.”~Traditional African American spiritual, first published in 1927SERMON PASSAGEHebrews 1:1-4 (ESV) 1 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

Phillips Brooks wrote the lyrics to the beloved carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem” after visiting Bethlehem. Brooks, pastor of a church in the US, was so moved by his experience that he wrote this to his Sunday school students: “I remember . . . on Christmas Eve, when I was standing in the old church at Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with the splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices that I knew well, telling each other of the ‘Wonderful Night’ of the Savior’s birth.” In 1868, Brooks put his thoughts into a poem, and his church organist set it to music. The song spoke stillness and peace into the unsettling aftermath of the American Civil War: “O little town of Bethlehem / How still we see thee lie . . . The hopes and fears of all the years / Are met in thee tonight.” The apostle Matthew wrote of our Savior’s birth in Bethlehem in Matthew 2. When the “Magi from the east” (v. 1) followed the star to Bethlehem (see Micah 5:2), “they were overjoyed” to find Jesus (Matthew 2:10). Today, as we celebrate Epiphany, we too need the glorious news of our Savior’s birth. He came to “cast out our sin and enter in” and “be born in us.” In Him, we find peace. Where in your life do you need the peace the Savior offers? What aspect of the Jesus’ story touches you most?

“How silently, how silently the wondrous gift is given! So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of his heaven” (Phillips Brooks). Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, CA 2E76 Christmas Eve 11:00 p.m. Eucharist Tuesday 24 December 2024 | Austin Rios' First Xmas at GC Isaiah 9:2-7 Psalm 96:1-4, 11-13 Titus 2:11-14 Luke 2:1-20 What for you is god? By god I mean, your goal, where your life is going. I mean what is most real to you. The answer to this question is not theoretical or abstract. It will determine the entire character and direction of your life. It will dictate how you spend your time and what you think about.  

Passage: 2 Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; one will come from you to be ruler over Israel for me. His origin is from antiquity, from ancient times. 3 Therefore, Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of the ruler's brothers will return to the people of Israel. 4 He will stand and shepherd them in the strength of the Lord, in the majestic name of the Lord his God. They will live securely, for then his greatness will extend to the ends of the earth. 5 He will be their peace. -- Micah 5:2-5 (CSB) Song: O Little Town of Bethlehem (https://open.spotify.com/track/3VRqNBXZoZeKWkIfwqhvUo?si=1a20007a15764540) by Adrian Disch, Lewis Henry Redner, Phillips Brooks, Ross Aaron Fishburn, Shane Barnard Lyrics: O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight For Christ is born of Mary And gathered all above While mortals sleep The angels keep their watch Of wondering love O morning stars together Proclaim the holy birth And praises sing to God the King And peace to men on earth How silently how silently The wondrous gift is given So God imparts to human hearts The blessings of His Heaven No ear may hear His calling But in this world of sin Where meek souls will receive Him still The dear Christ enters in O holy Child of Bethlehem Descend to us we pray Cast out our sin and enter in Be born to us today We hear the Christmas angels The great glad tidings tell O come to us abide with us Our Lord Emmanuel Prayer: Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and as we are sorely hindered by our sins from running the race that is set before us, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

'Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, well, except for my dad who was putting together the air hockey game, or large electronic toy crane, or other present that would be one of ours the next morning. I have two younger brothers and a sister.   Those are some of my memories of Christmas past, but I wonder what some of my dad's memories of those past holidays were when HE was a kid. And did those memories have a soundtrack filled with some of the music you are about to hear.  Because I have a feeling these are my dad's dad's 78 RPM shellac records. Most of these disks came out around the time my dad was born. So, get ready to hear sounds of seasons greetings past with records that were probably my grandfathers in Volume 208: A 78RPM Christmas. Credits and copyrights I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus - Jimmy Boyd written by Tommie Connor and first released by Jimmy Boyd accompanied by Norman Luboff in September 1952 Adeste Fideles - Bing Crosby written by John Francis Wade in 1743 Silent Night - Bing Crosby written by John Freeman Young, Joseph Mohr, Franz Gruber in 1859. This record was originally released in 1935. By dad had the repress released in 1938 Oh Little Town of Bethlehem - Charles Paul written by Lewis Redner, Phillips Brooks in 1868 Paul released his version in 1937 O, Holy Night - Lucy Isabelle Marsh with Lyric Quartet written by John Sullivan Dwight, Placide Cappeau, Adolphe Charles Adam in 1855 Night Before Christmas - The Music Hall Drama Group and Orchestra a poem first published anonymously under the title "Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas" in 1823 put to music by Johnny Marks, Henry Livingston, Jr. in 1942 Released in 1952 Frosty the Snowman - Bud Roman and the Toppers with the Hal Lomen Orchestra written by Jack Rollins, Steve Nelson in 1950 Released in 1952 I do not own the rights to this music. ASCAP, BMI licenses provided by third-party platforms for music that is not under Public Domain. #christmasmusic #78RPM #oldchristmasmusic

The Olde Park Hotel has stood for over 130 years in Ballinger, Texas, which is known as the Greatest Little Town in Texas. From the outside, the hotel looks pretty unpretentious, but it has a storied history. The building has housed not only a hotel, but a brothel, a boarding house, school, restaurant and antique store. Today, it is run as an event host that can be rented. This is mostly for ghost hunts because this hotel is said to be one of the most haunted hotels in Texas. Join us for the history and hauntings of the Olde Park Hotel! The Moment in Oddity features the Dr. Suess House and This Month in History features Phillips Brooks born. Check out the website: http://historygoesbump.com Show notes can be found here: https://historygoesbump.blogspot.com/2024/12/hgb-ep-567-1886-olde-park-hotel.html  Become an Executive Producer: http://patreon.com/historygoesbump Music used in this episode:  Main Theme: Lurking in the Dark by Muse Music with Groove Studios (Moment in Oddity) "Vanishing" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (This Month in History) "In Your Arms" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Outro Music: Happy Fun Punk by Muse Music with Groove Studios Other music used in this episode: Creepy Western created and produced by History Goes Bump Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Father Paul leads Evening Prayer and tells the story of the man who we know as the author of “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” but in his own day he was known as one of the America’s best preachers.

The Root of the Tongue, Ep 348 . ••• Bible Study Verses: James 3.1-18, Luke 6.43-45, Proverbs 4.23, WHAT EVER IS LOVELY VERSE FROM PAUL, Genesis 6.5, Jeremiah 17.9, Romans 3.23, Proverbs 23.26, Ezekiel 36.26, Matthew 5.8 . ••• “Holiness of heart and life. This is not the perfection of the human nature, but the holiness of the divine nature dwelling within” A.B. Simpson, Founder of the Christian and Missionary Alliance and author of 70 books on Christian living. He pastored several churches in Ontario. Later, he accepted the call to serve as pastor of the Chestnut Street Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. It was there that his life and ministry were completely changed in that, during a revival meeting, he experienced the fullness of the Spirit. He continued in the Presbyterian Church until 1881, when he founded an independent Gospel Tabernacle in New York" † ••• The real war is inward of which the outer action is but the echo and reverberation. Phillips Brooks,† † ••• Our power is not so much in us as through us.† † ••• “Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me”, Psalm 51:10, NKJV .••• Why did James warn believers from becoming teachers? ••• What type of wisdom is demonic? ••• What is the tongue full of? ••• What is the root cause of the tongue's evil produce? ••• What are 4-reasons why people don't focus on the heart? ••• What are 4-reasons why people have a hard time changing the condition of their hearts? ••• What are 3-reasons why the heart is so difficult to control? ••• What are 333-life actions for renewing one's heart? ••• Are you going to ask your small group to pray that you be more intentional about desiring a more pure heart through the power of Holy Spirit? ••• Pastor Godwin Otuno expounds on this and much more on the exciting journey of Fresh Encounters Radio Podcast originally aired on September 28, 2024 on WNQM, Nashville Quality Ministries and WWCR World Wide Christian Radio broadcasted to all 7-continents on this big beautiful blue marble, earth, floating through space. Please be prayerful before studying The Word of God so that you will receive the most inspiration possible .••• This Discipleship Teaching Podcast is brought to you by Christian Leadership International and all the beloved of God who believe in it's mission through prayer and support. Thank you . ••• Broadcaster's Website - https://www.lifelonganointing.com/ .•••• Exceeding Thanks to Universe Creator Christ Jesus AND photo by Nicole Hallden Photography, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, https://www.pexels.com/@nicoleh/ and added Heart&Tongue clip art by www.pngtree.com . ••• † http://christian-quotes.ochristian.com/A.B.-Simpson-Quotes/ .••• † † gracequotes.org••• SHARING LINK: https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/240928-human-heart-problem-ep348 . ••• https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/2409121-works-james-vs-pauls-grace-ep347 .••• Study Guides at - https://shows.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast/episodes . ••• RESOURCE - https://www.biblegateway.com/audio/mclean/kjv/john.1%20 .••• RESOURCE - https://www.soundcloud.com/thewaytogod/ . ••• FERP240928 Episode#348 GOT240928Ep348 .••• The Problem of the Human Heart, The Root of the TongueSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/fresh-encounter-radio-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 28th of January, 2024, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.One of my favourite scriptures, Philippians 4:13: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." The emphasis here is in Christ who strengthens me. There was a great preacher named Phillips Brooks and this is what he said: "O, do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men! Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks! Then, the doing of your work shall be no miracle. But you shall be a miracle. Every day, you shall wonder at yourself, at the richness of life which has come to you by the grace of God." That is what brings glory to the name of Jesus Christ - when the Lord gives us the courage, the power and the strength to perform a miracle that people know a man could never do - and who gets all the glory? That's right - Jesus Christ gets all the glory. That is why we say at Shalom, "You must attempt something that is so big that if it is not from God it is doomed to fail." "Why?" you might ask. Well, when it works, people say, "Those people at Shalom could never have performed such a miracle. It must be God." And He gets all the glory. So today, step out by faith. Trust in the Lord to be your strength. If your vision doesn't scare you, it's not big enough. We really must do things that bring glory to the name of Jesus Christ and not to ourselves. Have a wonderful day,Jesus bless you and goodbye.

It was a Christmas memory, of all things, rich with history and spiritual stirring, that first breathed life into “O Little Town of Bethlehem.” A memory that has since become a treasured part of countless Christmas celebrations, including ours in that little mountain church on the side of the road so many years ago. The... The post Episode 46 – Phillips Brooks' Christmas Memory appeared first on Forgotten.

WHAT HAPPENS IN THIS EPISODE: This Jesus Stories episode tells the whole Christmas Story. Did you know that the story begins with Creation? “In the beginning….” From there it proceeds until the baby is born in Bethlehem that is destined to change the world. After he is killed, Jehovah God raises him from the dead giving new life, reconciliation, salvation, and love to all mankind. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:16-17) MUSIC HEARD ON THIS PODCAST: This episode contains a lot of music for a Jesus Stories podcast. Here is a list of the selections. Joy to the World, by Isaac Watts. Performed by Quincas Moreira Music O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles), attributed to John Francis Wade. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale I Come to the Garden Alone, by C. Austin Miles. Performed by Praise and Harmony TV. https://youtu.be/FxPXJmUqkaA O Come, O Come Emmanuel (Veni Emmanuel), M. Neale. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Away in a Manger, attributed by Martin Luther. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale O Little Town of Bethlehem, by Phillips Brooks. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Hark the Herald Angels Sing, by Charles Wesley. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Why Did My Savior Come to Earth?, by J.G. Dailey. Performed by Margie Mitchell, from the Worship Ministry of the New York City Church of Christ. WE'RE ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook Instagram X Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

QUOTES FOR REFLECTION“On a starlit hillside, shepherds watched their sheep.Slowly, David's city drifted off to sleep.But to this little town of no great renownThe Lord had a promise to keep. Prophets had foretold it, a mighty King would come,Long awaited Ruler, God's Anointed One.But the Sovereign of all looked helpless and smallAs God gave the world His own Son. Wondrous gift of heaven: the Father sends the Son.Planned from time eternal, moved by holy love.He will carry our curse and death He'll reverse,So we can be daughters and sons. And who would have dreamed or ever foreseenThat we could hold God in our hands?The Giver of Life is born in the nightRevealing God's glorious planTo save the world.”~“Who Would Have Dreamed,” Sovereign Grace Music “The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.”~“O Little Town of Bethlehem,” Phillips Brooks “God promises to keep His people and He will keep His promises.”~ Charles Spurgeon, 19th century Baptist preacher “King of Kings yet born of Mary,As of old on earth he stood,Lord of lords in human vesture,In the body and the blood,He will give to all the faithfulHis own self for heavenly food.”~“Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence,” The Divine Liturgy of St. JamesSERMON PASSAGEMicah 5:1-5, 7:7-20 (ESV)Micah 51 Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops;   siege is laid against us;   with a rod they strike the judge of Israel   on the cheek.2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,   who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,   from you shall come forth for me   one who is to be ruler in Israel,   whose coming forth is from of old,   from ancient days.3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time   when she who is in labor has given birth;   then the rest of his brothers shall return   to the people of Israel.4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock   in the strength of the Lord,   in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.   And they shall dwell secure,   for now he shall be great   to the ends of the earth.5 And he shall be their peace.   When the Assyrian comes into our land   and treads in our palaces,   then we will raise against him seven shepherds   and eight princes of men;   Micah 77 But as for me, I will look to the Lord;   I will wait for the God of my salvation;   my God will hear me.8 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy;   when I fall, I shall rise;   when I sit in darkness,   the Lord will be a light to me.9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord   because I have sinned against him,   until he pleads my cause   and executes judgment for me.   He will bring me out to the light;   I shall look upon his vindication.10 Then my enemy will see,  and shame will cover her who said to me,   “Where is the Lord your God?”   My eyes will look upon her;   now she will be trampled down   like the mire of the streets.11 A day for the building of your walls!   In that day the boundary shall be far extended.12 In that day they will come to you,   from Assyria and the cities of Egypt,   and from Egypt to the River,   from sea to sea and from mountain to mountain.13 But the earth will be desolate   because of its inhabitants,   for the fruit of their deeds.14 Shepherd your people with your staff,   the flock of your inheritance,   who dwell alone in a forest   in the midst of a garden land;   let them graze in Bashan and Gilead   as in the days of old.15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt,   I will show them marvelous things.16 The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might;   they shall lay their hands on their mouths;   their ears shall be deaf;17 they shall lick the dust like a serpent,   like the crawling things of the earth;   they shall come trembling out of their strongholds;   they shall turn in dread to the Lord our God,   and they shall be in fear of you.18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity   and passing over transgression   for the remnant of his inheritance?   He does not retain his anger forever,   because he delights in steadfast love.19 He will again have compassion on us;   he will tread our iniquities underfoot.   You will cast all our sins   into the depths of the sea.20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob   and steadfast love to Abraham,   as you have sworn to our fathers   from the days of old.

Devotional from Carols and Lessons for Advent on YouVersion by Phillips Brooks.According to The United Methodist Church, Phillips Brooks (1835-1893) wrote this beloved Christmas hymn for the Sunday school children at his Philadelphia parish, Holy Trinity Church, following a pilgrimage to Bethlehem in 1865, according to British hymnologist J. R. Watson. The hymn was printed on an informal leaflet in December 1868 and then appeared in The Sunday School Hymnal in 1871.In the United States, the hymn is generally sung to its original tune, ST. LOUIS by Louis H. Redner (1931-1908), a wealthy real estate broker who served as a church organist for his avocation. UM Hymnal editor Carlton Young notes that Redner “increased Sunday school attendance at Holy Trinity Episcopal, where Phillips Brooks was rector, from thirty-six to over one thousand during his nineteen years as superintendent.”According to the story, Brooks traveled on horseback between Jerusalem and Bethlehem on Christmas Eve.“Before dark we rode out of town to the field where they say the shepherds saw the star. It is a fenced piece of ground with a cave in it, in which, strangely enough, they put the shepherds. . . . Somewhere in those fields we rode through, the shepherds must have been. As we passed, the shepherds were still ‘keeping watch over their flocks,' or leading them home to fold.”https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-o-little-town-of-bethlehem

Today we're talking about another surprising Brattle find: a fairly nondescript album that turned out to contain photos of prominent 1800s abolitionists. The collection includes small, sepia-toned portraits of Charles Sumner, Phillips Brooks, and even Sojourner Truth. We'll also discuss other historical photos that have arrived at the shop, and the way that studio photography democratized image-making during the Civil War era, offering life-like portraits for a fraction of the cost of a commissioned painting. It all comes into focus on a flashy new #brattlecast.

The Ole Miss Spirit's Zach Berry this week is on-site and in attendance in Nashville, Tennessee, for SEC Media Days — the league's annual four-day kickoff event.In this Talk of Champions special, Berry brings you the very latest from the premier college football event of the summer, with interviews conducted Wednesday and Thursday morning with Chris Phillips of The Spurs Up Show, Sports Illustrated's Brooks Austin and Brett Norsworthy of Sports56 in Memphis and the Ole Miss Radio Network.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Josh White, pastor of Door of Hope church in Portland, Oregon, speaks with Mike about the necessity of being honest with ourselves and honest about ourselves as we preach the gospel. They speak about the importance of confession, vulnerability and honesty. “Truth through Personality is our description of real preaching. The truth must come really through the person, not merely over his lips, not merely into his understanding and out through his pen. It must come through his character, his affections, his whole intellectual and moral being. It must come genuinely through him. I think that granting equal intelligence and study, here is the great difference which we feel between two preachers of the Word. The Gospel has come over one of them and reaches us tinged and flavored with his superficial characteristics, belittled with his littleness. The Gospel has come through the other, and we receive it impressed and winged with all the earnestness that there is in him. In the first case the man has been but a printing machine or a trumpet. In the other case he has been a true man and a real messenger of God.” Phillips Brooks (1835 – 1893) In Stumbling Toward Eternity: Losing and Finding Ourselves in the Cross of Jesus (Multnomah) writer, pastor, and recording artist Josh White offers confessional stories and theological insights as he interprets the pain and trauma of his own past, the complicated “mixture” of the present, and the beautiful uncertainty of the future through the lens of grace. Using crisp and honest prose, White reveals why the most familiar symbol of Christianity—the cross of Jesus—is also the most misunderstood. He shows us why the goal of our desperate existence is not arriving at perfection or success but knowing the crucified Christ. You can purchase it here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/673914/stumbling-toward-eternity-by-josh-white/ Follow Josh on Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KTkQA8GYHDdnF85o70VoO?si=t-H3iah3QJWv-HT8iWZijg Josh White is a speaker, recording artist, writer, and founding pastor of Door of Hope, a thriving church community in the heart of Portland. He has recorded multiple worship albums, including as the frontman of Telecast. Josh has also produced numerous records, including Liz Vice's first album, There's a Light. Josh and his wife, Darcy, reside in Portland, Oregon, with their son and daughter.Resources Mentioned: ¿Por Qué No? Taqueria https://porquenotacos.square.site/HTB Church : https://htb.org/ "Lit" by Mary Karr : https://www.marykarr.com/lit.html Portland Cyclist : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3nMnr8ZirI Recommended Episodes: Rafael Manzaneres - The Power and Danger of Personal Illustrations : https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2020/2/24/zj3d28nijrb4moagh63yp2znkqhijs Armando Garcia - Transparency, Vulnerability and the Pulpit https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2020/4/17/episode-102-transparency-vulnerability-amp-the-pulpitAttila Nyári - Cultivating Humility : https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2020/4/28/episode-104-cultivating-humility For information about our upcoming training events in Texas and Indiana visit ExpositorsCollective.com The Expositors Collective podcast is part of the CGNMedia, Working together to proclaim the Gospel, make disciples, and plant churches. For more content like this, visit https://cgnmedia.org/Join our private Facebook group to continue the conversation: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ExpositorsCollective

Addresses by the Right Reverend Phillips Brooks

In today's episode I break down a quote from Phillips Brooks that I read in the book I am reading for 75Hard. The book I am reading is The Masculinity Manifesto by Ryan Michler. This quote struck home to me and I wanted to share it with you as it speaks to us sometimes thinking we may want the easy life. Tune in to see what the quote says and my thoughts on it.JOIN RedBeard's Fit Crew on FB:https://www.facebook.com/groups/redbeardsfitcrew/ Join the 1st Phorm Outdoors Group on FB:https://www.facebook.com/groups/2873404999633900/hashtagsYouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEeozMakHMvdwkNJPLs-3AwEmail me:redbeardoutdoors1@gmail.comAlpen Fuel for your backcountry nutrition:www.alpenfuel.comcode: RedBeardHeather's Choice meals:https://www.heatherschoice.com/discount/REDBEARDCode: RedBeard1stPhorm app for nutrition and workout tracking:https://www.1stphorm.app/RedBeardOutdoorsBlackOvis:https://www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=cl&merchant_id=47ec7bc0-1638-4806-a92b-a0a68166ad5d&website_id=4c9673dd-f3b0-4f33-9bde-eadbe5ba84c4&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.blackovis.com%2FOllin Digiscoping:https://ollin.coCode: RedBeard10% off and free shipping over $150A3 Archery Bow Strings:https://a3archery.comRedBeard10Kryptek:https://kryptek.comKestrel Glassing System:https://kestrelglassingsystems.comRedbeard10Quattro Archery:https://quattroarchery.comAbsolute Aid CBD:absoluteaid.comCode: RedBeard10Affect Beard Oil:https://affectbeard.comcode:  RedBeard10Other discounts below:https://linktr.ee/RedBeardOutdoors

For the first time since Baz Luhrmann's Elvis dropped, Ryan returns to TCBCast for an extensive discussion on Elvis's final two appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show on October 28, 1956 and January 6, 1957, with the latter being the infamous "filmed from the waist up" program. Are these performances truly as legendary as the myth around them? We'll find out together! Then, Ryan finally get to put forward his list of favorite Elvis songs by year in lieu of Song of the Week while Justin closes out the episode and 2022 by spotlighting the history behind the understated hymn, "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem," from Elvis's best selling 1957 Christmas album. It wouldn't be a TCBCast Christmas without starting out scratching the surface of the life story of its lyricist, Phillips Brooks, and his choice to imitate an archaic style of writing and ending up spiraling into an unexpectedly heartfelt exploration of the history of the Puritans and the Church of England, early America, the literary impact of the King James Version of the Bible, Abraham Lincoln's funeral, and the perpetual conflict between sincerity and crass commercialization. Happy holidays to all our listeners near and far! Thank you for a wonderful 2022 - see you next year!

Today's Scripture: https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/111/LUK.16.NIV Welcome to the Daily SOAP from New Hope.  This is Paul Brooks, your guest host for today.  I hope you are having a good day.      Today we will explore Luke 16.  If you haven't read it yet, you might want to do so now.  I will be focusing on Luke 16:1-15 and, specifically, Luke 16:9 from the NIV version.    Scripture – Luke 16:9: [Jesus said,] “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”   I am drawing here a passage from The Parable of the Shrewd Manager.  Let me set the stage.  We learned in Luke 15:1-2 the following: 1Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus.  2But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”  We can surmise from a passage later in Luke 16 that The Parable of the Shrewd Manager was shared at this same time.  So, Jesus is speaking to the detestable tax collectors and other sinners (like us) and is teaching about “true” wealth versus “earthly” wealth while the Pharisees sneer at Him.    Like some other parables, this one made me think twice.  In it, a rich man calls in the manager of his estate, accuses him of wasting his possessions, and summarily fires him.  The manager, worried about his future, then proceeds to contact his master's debtors and forgive large portions of their debts.  He does this to curry favor, hoping that his future will be better for that favor.  These are debts owed to his master, not to him personally.  In our world, this would set off a string of police filings, lawsuits, legal expenses, social media rampaging, and overall ugliness.  Yet in this lesson, the master actually commends the manager for these actions because he had acted shrewdly.  Jesus goes on to say, “8For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light.  9I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”    What is Jesus saying to us here?  This sounds confusing.  I think he is contrasting our way of life as “People of the world” with the life we should lead as “People of the light”:     Our Earthly World – “People of the world” Shrewdness often means figuring out how to get more out of others for our own benefit.       Take care of yourself at others' expense.    The Goal is to attain worldly wealth and other “valuables”.    Jesus's Perfect World – “People of the light” Shrewdness is blessing others who, like us, have debts to pay – just as He blessed us and forgave our debts through his birth, death, and resurrection.   Take care of yourself by living like Jesus.      The Goal is to follow His Commandments and Example, and so attain eternal life with Him.     On its face, this seems to be a money-related lesson.  Jesus ends this parable as follows: 13 “No one can serve two masters.  Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve both God and money.”  But there is more to this lesson than simply money.    Luke goes on to write in verses 14 and 15: 14The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.  15[Jesus] said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts.  What people value highly is detestable to God.”  This, in my opinion, goes well beyond money.  What did the Pharisees value, and what does our society still value, in addition to money?  We value respect.  We value status.  We value power.  We value consideration.  We value positive feedback.  We value like-mindedness.  We value things that build us up on the eyes of other human beings.  We lock them in the treasure chest of our souls.  Sometimes we count them.  And where we have been “slighted” or “shorted” or “affronted”, we write that down and track it as one of those worldly debts.  It's all part of our personal “portfolio” … our “treasures.”    But what does Jesus tell us to value?  The list is long, but it starts here, from Matthew 22:37-40: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like unto it, love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”    In this season of Christmas, as we approach that glorious day after tomorrow when we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, maybe we should take a minute and think about those “treasures.”  Who owes us a worldly “debt”.  Who do we hold accountable for any of those worldly assets?  How can we forgive them of that burden, thus unburdening ourselves in the process? Wouldn't you treasure the gift of “forgiveness” by someone you had offended in some manner?  I know I would.  After all, God gave us the greatest gift of all – full free forgiveness and a welcome into “eternal dwellings” with Him.      As Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-20: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”    I invite you to pray this with me.    Almighty and most merciful Father.  I am too quick to focus my attention on the treasures of this world.  I store them in the vault of my soul and pull them out and count them as valuable items.  These “assets” include the “debts” I perceive others “owe” me.  Like money or status, I pull them out from time to time and recount them, often to make myself feel better, or more “righteous” in some way.  But, in reality, they tear me down.  Doing so is not what you command of me – to love others as myself.  I am sorry and I want to do better.  Please forgive me and help me be more like you.  As you forgive me, let me also forgive others of these worldly things, and in doing so glorify you.  And, even more so, let me be a blessing to my neighbors in other ways.  Let me be part of your ministries, bringing your Gospel, your help, your love to all who need them.  As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, help me remember that you came to be with us that we might know you, to listen to us, to walk in our shoes, to care for us, to teach us, to die for us, and through your resurrection, to live with us now and through eternity.  I pray this in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.    This has been the Daily SOAP from New Hope.  We hope you will join us to celebrate the birth of Jesus on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning or both.  But wherever you are, Celebrate!  God is with us!!  God is with you!!!  Rejoice!!!!   I'll leave you with a poem by Phillips Brooks titled, Christmas Everywhere.    Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight!  Christmas in the lands of the fir-tree and pine, Christmas in the lands of the palm-tree and vine, Christmas where snow peaks stand solemn and white, Christmas where the cornfields stand sunny and bright.  Christmas where children are hopeful and gay, Christmas where old men are patient and gray, Christmas where peace, like a dove in flight, Broods o'er brave men in the thick of the fight;  Everywhere, everywhere, Christmas tonight! For the Christ-child who comes is the master of all; No palace too great, no cottage too small.    Paul Brooks . . . . . We hope you have a blessed Christmas! We invite you to worship with us this Christmas Eve at one of our Worship services, Saturday, December 24th at 3, 5, or 7 pm, in-person or online at https://www.findnewhope.com . And Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25th in English or Spanish at 11 am in-person or online. Go to findnewhope.com to plan your visit! Our staff and leadership employ what's called the “S.O.A.P. Method”. It stands for Scripture, Observation, Application, and Prayer. Each day, we read one or two chapters of Scripture and focus on one particular verse. We make some observations about how that verse touches us, discern how it applies to our lives, and offer a prayer related to what we have read. -- Donate via PayPal to support the podcasts and the Technical Arts Ministry of New Hope! https://goo.gl/o2a9oU Subscribe at: http://www.findnewhope.com/soap (813) 689-4161 keywords: devotional, bible study

IN THIS EPISODE: "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Phillips Brooks (1835-1893)Before dark, we rode out of town to the field where they say the shepherds saw the star. It is a fenced piece of ground with a cave in it (all the Holy Places are caves here), in which, strangely enough, they put the shepherds. The story is absurd, but somewhere in those fields we rode through the shepherds must have been.Show Notes:  "O Little Town of Bethlehem" performed by Ulrika A. Rosén "O Little Town of Bethlehem" sung at Grace Community Church "Cello Suite No. 1" by Bach performed by Arend "Cloud Postcards" by Luis Alvarez Facebook: www.facebook.com/storiesofhymnsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/hymn.stories/Hymn Stories is a part of the Media Gratiae Podcast Network.

Join Mrs. Totty in story-time as she reads "O' Little town of Bethlehem" a beautiful story about the origin of a famous Christmas carol written by Phillips Brooks. You can find this story and plenty others within the book "It's a Time for Christmas" by Elizabeth Hough Sechrist and Janette Woolsey. Which is a book from our library! This story is one of many from this book, and the whole collection of stories is well worth reading through. Be sure to check out your local Library to check out what books or events they may have! Brought to you from the Pike-Amite-Walthall Library system #kidsbooks #readaloud #library #books

Phillips Brooks was the minister of Holy Trinity Church in Philadelphia and visited Bethlehem in December of 1865.   When Pastor Brooks traveled to the Holy Land, the journey included a horseback ride from Jerusalem to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Back then, it truly was a small village, far removed from the bustling city it would later become. By nightfall, he was in the field where, according to tradition, the shepherds heard the angelic announcement. Then he attended the Christmas Eve service at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.   Years later, the pastor recalled that first visit to the place of Jesus' birth. “I remember especially on Christmas Eve, when I was standing in the old church in Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with the splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices I knew well, telling each other of the ‘wonderful night' of the Savior's birth.”   He wrote a poem about his experience, asking the church organist to set it to music for the children's choir to sing at Christmas time.    O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by   Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting Light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight   Let's pray.   Dear Lord, what a gift we were given long ago in the form of baby Jesus. The birth of our Savior in a small town stable changed everything, and we are so grateful for His legacy of hope. Help us to focus on the true reason for this season of celebration. Amen.

Opening Song: O Little Town of Bethlehem (https://open.spotify.com/track/3VRqNBXZoZeKWkIfwqhvUo?si=2f8e09374bce4407) by Lewis Henry Redner and Phillips Brooks, arranged by Ross Fishburn and Shane Barnard Lyrics: O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight For Christ is born of Mary And gathered all above While mortals sleep The angels keep their watch Of wondering love O morning stars together Proclaim the holy birth And praises sing to God the King And peace to men on earth How silently how silently The wondrous gift is given So God imparts to human hearts The blessings of His Heaven No ear may hear His calling But in this world of sin Where meek souls will receive Him still The dear Christ enters in O holy Child of Bethlehem Descend to us we pray Cast out our sin and enter in Be born to us today We hear the Christmas angels The great glad tidings tell O come to us abide with us Our Lord Emmanuel Passage: 2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. 3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. 4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. 5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men; (Micah 5:2–5 ESV) Musical Reflection: O Come, O Come Emmanuel (VENI, VENI, EMMANUEL) by Thomas Helmore Reflection Notes: The tune VENI IMMANUEL comes from a 15th century chant and originally served as part of a requiem mass. Thomas Helmore adapted it for congregational use as a hymn in the late 1800s, while still retaining the speech-like flow of the original chant. The text dates back to the 8th century and was translated from Latin to English by J. M. Neal. Prayer: Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and as we are sorely hindered by our sins from running the race that is set before us, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

Over 1800 years after the wondrous events in Bethlehem, the town was still providing inspiration to those who visited the area. Such was the case with Phillips Brooks. Thinking back on his trip to the Holy Land, he penned the lines to O Little Town of Bethlehem, having in mind the children he wanted to sing it. What a marvelous inspiration his trip must have been. To think of the night Jesus' birth, there was little fanfare to announce His coming. Of course, we know the sky was split and the lowly shepherds in the countryside received the good news of the birth but beyond that, there was no pomp, no announcements in the city or towns, simply the quiet of Bethlehem, unaware of the birth of baby Jesus and its significance. It changed the world and when we receive Him, there may not be great fanfare, but our lives will be changed. Article taken from Living Stories of Famous Hymns by Ernest K. Emurian. Copyright © 1955 by Baker Book House Company. Used by permission of Baker Book House Company.

Prayer is the linchpin of the Christian life and the more effectively you pray, the more powerful your life will be for God. Remember, there are all kinds of prayers, as Paul wrote to the Ephesians: “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” (Ephesians 6:18). Our private prayer time will have a different nature than corporate prayer. We need to be aware of what is appropriate in a group setting versus our personal prayers. In Matthew 6:8 Jesus is again teaching on prayer and he says don't try to impress God with many words like pagans do. God is not impressed with lengthy prayers. Lengthy prayers do not carry more weight with God just because they are long. We also need to be careful that we don't get into “vain repetitions,” which can happen if we just repeat the same phrases and clichés in every prayer without truly thinking of what we're saying. Phillips Brooks has written: “Prayer is not conquering God's reluctances but taking hold of God's willingness.” We don't pray to try to persuade God to do what we want him to do. We pray so that we can align ourselves with his purposes in our lives and take hold of all he wants to do for us and through us. Prayer is for our benefit. God has no need-to-know. We don't have to educate him; he knows everything before we ask him or tell him. But when we bring our needs and petitions and praise to God, we show him and remind ourselves that we are letting go of the controls of our lives and giving them to the Lord. We are presenting our cares to God, not to inform him of our need, but to demonstrate our trust in him. To show that we recognize our inability and trust his ability. (Click here to download the devotional for the entire week.)

Phillips Brooks, the nineteenth-century minister who wrote “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” defined preaching as “the communication of Truth through Personality.” Truth is “the most authoritative statement of God's will,” he said. Personality refers to a preacher's “character, his affections, his whole intellectual and moral being.” (As Pentecostals, we would add “or her” to Brooks' statement.) Absent genuine character, a preacher is merely a “printing machine” or a “trumpet,” not “a real messenger of God.” In this episode of the Influence Podcast, I'm talking to Bob Eby about the relationship of preaching to the character or virtues of the preacher. I'm George P. Wood, executive editor of Influence magazine and your host. Bob Eby is director of the Cordas C. Burnett Preaching Center and associate professor of Biblical Exposition and Preaching at Assemblies of God Theological Seminary in Springfield, Missouri. He is author of Virtue Hermeneutics: New Horizons in Textual Understanding, published by Pickwick Publications. ----- This episode of the Influence Podcast is brought to you by My Healthy Church, distributors of Bible Engagement Project. Bible Engagement Project gives churches access to a library of kids curriculum and small group resources all in one subscription. Visit BibleEngagementProject.com to download sample lessons.

Proverbs 25:18 NLT 'Telling lies about others is as harmful as hitting them with an axe, wounding them with a sword, or shooting them with a sharp arrow.' Lying is a terrible business and the writer of Proverbs captures its awful destructiveness. It is a very tempting route when the truth is hard to face and passing it on feels impossibly difficult. The temptation is to at least massage the truth, so that its sharper edges aren't obvious. But the fact is, when you start lying it is very hard to stop. Washington Allston, the American artist and poet wrote, “Nothing is rarer than a solitary lie; for lies breed like toads; you cannot tell one but out it comes with a hundred little ones on its back.” Lying becomes nothing less than a tragic way of life for those who choose its path. The writer of Proverbs wants his readers to understand that the only way of life worth living is one where the truth is treasured. Hymn writer, Phillips Brooks, wrote, “Truth is always strong, no matter how weak it looks, and falsehood is always weak, no matter how strong it looks.” During Jesus' ministry, he spoke a great deal about truth. He said to those who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teaching. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8.31-32). Later, he spoke of himself as being the truth when he declared, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” (John 14.6). When we choose to follow Christ, we are committed to a life of truth as we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us. The truth is not a narrow set of facts but embraces every part of life and every relationship we have. In the Christian life, we not only discover more and more truth about God, but about ourselves and the world. Every day is an adventure in the truth. We have the encouragement of knowing that it is the role of the Holy Spirit to guide us. Question: In what situations have you found it hard to tell the truth? Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, I thank you that you are the way, the truth and the life. Help me to live close to you and to allow your Spirit to lead me into all truth. Amen

WHAT HAPPENS IN THIS EPISODE: Jehovah God creates the earth and his ultimate creation, man and woman Man and Woman mess up by disobeying Jehovah God and breaking the relationship between them and Jehovah God Jehovah God starts the process of mending a now broken relationship. A nation is built which has a special relationship with Jehovah God But, that nation is just as rebellious and disobedient as the first Man and Woman Jehovah God sends prophets – messengers – with message s of hope and promise Finally, a messenger comes to a priest – after 400 years of silence A messenger comes to a young teenager with word of a baby The baby is born Shepherds hear the message of this birth before anyone else The Messiah is killed but then resurrected The word goes to the world with a message of a new life, reconciliation, salvation, and love. SCRIPTURES USED IN THIS EPISODE: Genesis 1:1-2 Genesis 2:1 Genesis 1:26-28 Genesis 2:15-17 Genesis 3:1-13, 23 Isaiah 9:1-5 Isaiah 7:14 Isaiah 9:6-7 Micah 5:2-5 Luke 1:11-17 Luke 1:26-38 Luke 2:1-7 Luke 2:8-20 1 Corinthians 15:22 Romans 5:6-11 John 3:16-17 Music on this Podcast: O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles), attributed to John Francis Wade. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale I Come to the Garden Alone, by C. Austin Miles. Performed by Praise and Harmony TV. https://youtu.be/FxPXJmUqkaA O Come, O Come Emmanuel (Veni Emmanuel), M. Neale. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Away in a Manger, attributed by Martin Luther. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale O Little Town of Bethlehem, by Phillips Brooks. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Hark the Herald Angels Sing, by Charles Wesley. Performed by the Robert Shaw Chorale Why Did My Savior Come to Earth?, by J.G. Dailey. Performed by the West London ICOC. Find us on social media platforms: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JesusStoriesThePodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jesus_stories_the_podcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/JesusStoriesPod YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgJ3Tf0R_aiF-uxG-G97ortxPZMFC7kPu Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesusstories/ We're on most of the podcast platforms. Just don't forget to subscribe where you listen and leave a rating for us there and on Apple Podcasts. If you'd like to be a sponsor for this podcast, want to leave a comment or a correction, contact us at jesusstories@outlook.com. Check this link for sponsoring this podcast on a monthly basis. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

This short Christmas Day sermon, based on the popular carol by Phillips Brooks, inspires us about the Jesus who doesn't just defeat fear but also brings hope. As you listen, be reminded that, no matter how hopeless you might feel, hope is here and His name is Jesus - God with us!

Phillips Brooks was the minister of Holy Trinity Church in Philadelphia and visited Bethlehem in December of 1865.   When Pastor Brooks traveled to the Holy Land, the journey included a horseback ride from Jerusalem to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Back then, it truly was a small village, far removed from the bustling city it would later become. By nightfall, he was in the field where, according to tradition, the shepherds heard the angelic announcement. Then he attended the Christmas Eve service at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.   Years later, the pastor recalled that first visit to the place of Jesus' birth. “I remember especially on Christmas Eve, when I was standing in the old church in Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with the splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices I knew well, telling each other of the ‘wonderful night' of the Savior's birth.”   He wrote a poem about his experience, asking the church organist to set it to music for the children's choir to sing at Christmas time.    O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by   Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting Light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight   Let's pray.   Dear Lord, what a gift we were given long ago in the form of baby Jesus. The birth of our Savior in a small town stable changed everything, and we are so grateful for His legacy of hope. Help us to focus on the true reason for this season of celebration. Amen.

Opening Song:   O Little Town of Bethlehem by Lewis Henry Redner and Phillips Brooks, arranged by Ross Fishburn and Shane Barnard Lyrics: O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by   Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight   For Christ is born of Mary And gathered all above While mortals sleep The angels keep their watch Of wondering love   O morning stars together Proclaim the holy birth And praises sing to God the King And peace to men on earth   How silently how silently The wondrous gift is given So God imparts to human hearts The blessings of His Heaven   No ear may hear His calling But in this world of sin Where meek souls will receive Him still The dear Christ enters in   O holy Child of Bethlehem Descend to us we pray Cast out our sin and enter in Be born to us today   We hear the Christmas angels The great glad tidings tell O come to us abide with us Our Lord Emmanuel Passage:  2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. 3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. 4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. 5 And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our palaces, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men; (Micah 5:2–5 ESV) Musical Reflection: O Come, O Come Emmanuel (VENI, VENI, EMMANUEL) by Thomas Helmore Reflection Notes:  The tune VENI IMMANUEL comes from a 15th century chant and originally served as part of a requiem mass. Thomas Helmore adapted it for congregational use as a hymn in the late 1800s, while still retaining the speech-like flow of the original chant. The text dates back to the 8th century and was translated from Latin to English by J. M. Neal.  Prayer: Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us; and as we are sorely hindered by our sins from running the race that is set before us, let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen. 

Theme – Why Bethlehem?Scripture references - Matthew 2:1 &2 "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him."John 7:41 "Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"Intro and Outro Song - "We Give Thanks To Thee" by Marlene Jenkins CooperClosing Song - Bethlehem Medley "O little town of Bethlehem”(St Louis Version) by Phillips Brooks and Lewis Redner "Angels We Have Heard On High" - French Carol"O Come All Ye Faithful" Latin Hymn Attributed John F. WadeScriptures mentioned in the podcast - Luke 2:1- 4, Matthew 1:1-17, Matthew 2:1, John 6:48, Revelation 22:16 (KJV)

Audio Transcript: This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston and our neighborhood churches, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Morning. Welcome to Mosaic Church, my name is Jan, one of the pastors here along with Pastor Shane and Pastor Andy. If you're new or visiting, we'd love to connect with you. We do that through the connection card that you should have gotten at the back at the welcome table. If you fill it out legibly, and then redeem it at the welcome table, you'll get a gift there. And then if you give us your mailing address, we'll send you another gift in the mail to say thank you for coming out. With that said... Oh, also we have a membership class today. So if you're not a member, you're interested in membership, and if you're not interested you should be, we have a class with lunch provided with I think Burritos. Burritos, heavenly manna. And so we usually order more, so if you didn't sign up, you're still welcome to come, I'll give you mine.With that said, would you please pray with me over the preaching of God's Holy Word? Heavenly Father, we thank you that you created a place for us, a space for us, you created this earth, and you gave it to us to rule over under your dominion. And Lord, we rebelled against you, we like the prodigal son ran from you because we thought life would be more enjoyable without you, without your love and it's not. Jesus, we thank you that you the older brother, you did came looking for us, you lived with us and you loved us, and you loved us enough to speak the truth to us, and the truth got you crucified. Our sin got you crucified.We thank you Holy Spirit that you are with us and we repent of the fact that often we have grieved you, we repent. I pray that you bless our time in the Holy Scriptures, I pray that you make us the people who know the truth and love the truth, repent when we transgress against the truth, people who know your love as you define, and people who carry a culture of speaking truth and love anywhere we go. We speak what needs to be said, we have the courage to say it, but it's only because we love. We pray that you bless our time in the Holy Scriptures and show us that you call us to make room for people who disagree with us, to engage with them, to have hard conversations. I pray you remove any spirit of self-censorship from our church, from our homes. Bless our time in the Holy Scriptures, we pray this in Jesus name. Amen.My last sermon two weeks ago, I said some things that ruffled feathers, and I will address those comments today at the end of my sermon, so you have to pay attention until we get there. I've learned from my mistake, don't do it in the introduction. The title of the sermon is Ride or Die. I come from a big family, I have four siblings. And my extended family is also large, my dad has five siblings, my mom has 10 siblings. So I have family all over the world. And one of the things that our family, or one of the culture or core values of our family is we're ride or die. If you're part of my family and you text me when you're in a bind, I am there and I roll deep.I'll give you just a story from my own family. I remember when I was 13 years old, my goal in life, my American Dream, other people want picket fences, my American Dream was to get a car. So at age 17 I finally saved up enough for a car, I got my license. I bought a stick shift but I didn't know how to drive a stick shift, but it was cheaper than the not. So I got this car and I loved it. It was an Audi 80, just old, nasty, just problems all the time, but it was fast. And one time I got pulled over by a cop for doing 79 in a 35. It was a speed trap. I was doing 79 in a 55 but it turned to 35 downhill. And so my ticket was $450, I go to my dad and I say, "Paps, help me out." He said, "You bought the car, all the bills with the car are your bills."So I had to get a job, and I got a job. The only job I could get was delivering newspapers. So I'd wake up at 3:30 AM, and go to the place and fold up the newspapers. And then this is back in the day. This is people used to read newspapers. This is back like AOL, like Juno, like Jan.Vezikov@juno.com. You know what I'm saying? AIM, my name was Jantheman. Way back. Way back. So I realized it's hard to drive stick shift and deliver newspapers, so I would just stall all the time and it was terrible, late for school that first day. I come home, I tell my sister, "I can't deliver newspapers in my car." She said, "What time are we waking up?" 3:30 AM she's with me. I'm driving, she's tossing. And we did that for a month, just long enough to get $450. Ride or die.This text doesn't make any sense unless you understand that St. Paul views church like that, many of us don't. Many of us don't understand church like that. Many of us view church as it's like the movies. How often do you go to the movies when something good is playing? St. Paul viewed as family. He was like, "I'm a spiritual father, and I'm going to say things that are going to grieve you because I love you. And I'm doing it for your good, for your benefit because we're ride or die." That's the heart. And if you know me, I preach expositional message, I go verse by verse, and we explain. This one's a little different. I'm going to cover all the verses, but this one is kind of like an onion. You don't really understand the heart of what's going on unless you go layer by layer, by layer, by layer and then you get into the heart, and that's what we'll do today.2nd Corinthians 7:12-16, would you look at the text with me? "Make room in your hearts for us. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. I do not say this to condemn you for I said before that you are in our hearts to die together and to live together. I'm acting with great boldness toward you, I have great pride in you. I'm filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I am overflowing with joy. For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest but we were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within. But God who comforts the downcast comforted us by the coming of Titus. And not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoice still more. For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it, for I see that the letter grieved you though only for a while.As it is I rejoice, not because you are aggrieved, but because you were aggrieved into repenting, for you felt a Godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this Godly grief has produced anew but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing with zeal or punishment, at every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God. Therefore, we are comforted. And besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.For whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame, but just as everything we said to you was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. And his affection for you is even greater as he remembers the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. I rejoice because I have perfect confidence in you." This is the reading of God's Holy and infallible, authoritative word may write these eternal truths upon our hearts. St. Paul starts with this phrase, this metaphor, this image of making room. "Make room for us," he says. He started the language. 2nd Corinthians 6:11-13, he said, "We've spoken freely to you Corinthians, our heart is wide open. You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. In return, I speak as to children, widen your hearts also."St. Paul is speaking as a spiritual father. This is Papa Paul. I love you, that's why I've spoken hard words to soften your hearts. It was only because of love. My heart's wide open, is yours toward me? And then in 7:2 he says, "Make room in your hearts for us." In the Greek it just says, "Make room for us in your hearts." In the English translation, they put that in because the parallel is in your hearts, but he's saying, "Make room. Is there a room at the church that I planted? Is there room for me?" St. Paul is saying. "We have wronged no one and we've corrupted no one, and we have taken advantage of no one.In Mark chapter two, Jesus Christ goes back to his hometown of Capernaum, and he starts preaching, he starts preaching in the house. And the house is filled with religious leaders, they want to know what Jesus is teaching. And then the gentleman that gets to the door he gets carried there by his four friends, and his friends want this gentleman to be healed by Jesus, but the religious leaders won't let him in. They won't make room for a person who is different than them. They don't make room for a person who needs Jesus more than they need Jesus. And then finally, the friends were like, "All right." They climbed to the top of the house, they dismantled the roof, so I always feel bad for the owner of that house, but what are you going to do? The guy is more important.Lo and Jesus heals and forgives his sins. Jesus makes room for him. Jesus knows what it feels like to be rejected, and so Jesus really does care about making room for those on the fringes, those who have been ostracized. And that's what St. Paul is saying is that, "I make room in the church. I love you." He said, "You have room in my heart, now let's reciprocate." And this is how we'll frame up our time. You know someone is in your heart when you're willing to be grieved by them. You're willing to grieve them, you're bold around them, you're willing to eagerly repent, you're willing to joyfully forgive, you're comforted by them, and you die or live with them. This applies to every relationship.First, you're willing to be grieved by them, this is what it means to love. What it means to love is you open your heart to someone else. You let them in, you make them family, and you make yourself susceptible, you make yourself vulnerable to being hurt by them. That's what it means to love. It's the same thing God did, he creates us. And he's not aloof. He's not just transcended, he's also imminent, he's with us and he feels when we offend. Genesis 6:5-6, this is right before the flood, "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually, and the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth and had grieved him in his heart."He saw what was happening. Where is God when there's evil in the world? He's right there. He feels it. Just like Jesus Christ, he made himself vulnerable, God becoming man. He let those whom he loved crucify him. Isaiah says that Jesus was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He was despised and we esteemed him not. This explains why St. Paul is so worried about this church. He planted the church, he's in Ephesus planting another church, he hears the church isn't doing well. They've allowed unrepentant sin in the church. They're actually celebrating the sin. And he hears about it, writes 1st Corinthians, hard words for hard hearts.And then he's grieved. How are the words accepted? Did they receive them and did they repent? And he says in verse four, he's worried, "I'm acting with great boldness toward you, I have great pride in you, I'm filled with comfort in all our affliction. I'm overflowing with joy for even when we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest. We were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within." He's anxious for the church. He's afflicted with thoughts about the church. How many of you think about church outside of church? How many of you think about church on vacation? I had last Sunday off, I could do anything I want. I could have slept in till 2:00 PM. I came to church. On my day off? Yeah. It's my favorite thing in the world. Which service did you? I went to both. I was the last person out of the room.You know what I do for fun? I study other churches. You know what I do? Honestly, you know what? I listen to sermons. I watch football, but I listen to sermons while watching football. I redeem the time. Tanya and I went to a marriage retreat to Maine, the Cliff Hotel. It's awesome. We had an oceanfront room and I didn't think about church once. We were there Monday through Wednesday. Didn't think about church once for like an hour. Then I got texts and emails and phone calls, and then I realized, "Yeah, it's family." If your mom calls you when you're on vacation, will you pick up? It's family. That's how he feels.St. Paul here picks up from the excursus. In chapter 2:13 what he did was, he was telling us about why he's writing, how he felt. He was writing about the fact that he's in Ephesus and he sends Titus to Corinth, and Titus then is supposed to bring a message back to Paul, but Paul waited. Titus didn't come, he goes to Troas hoping to meet Titus there, and then he goes to Macedonia's church planting, and still thinking about the church the whole time. He's exhausted. He said, "Our bodies had no rest." I once heard a pastor say, "Don't complain about how hard your job is to your people." He said, "Everyone thinks you work one hour a week and you play golf the rest of the time." He said, "What do you want? A violin? What do you want?"Well, St. Paul knows, he's comforted by the fact that God knows. God knows. This is verse six. "But God who comforts the downcast," the word downcast here is depressed. St. Paul experienced a spiritual depression. Not a physical depression, a spiritual depression over his concerns about the church. He said, "But God comforts the downcast. Comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal, so that I rejoice still more." His joy is so wrapped up in the joy of the church and their health and their maturity and their growth, that he doesn't experience joy until they experience joy.Any parent knows when your baby is sick at night, you can't sleep normally. You can't. You're riddled with anxiety because you love this little human being. You're allowing that person's pain to be your own pain. You're allowing them to grieve you. Phillips Brooks was a pastor in Boston, you see his statues Downtown. He said this and he wrote a work called The Influence of Jesus. He said, "To be a true minister to man is always to accept new happiness and new distress. The man who gives himself to other men can never be a holy sad man, but no more can he be a man of unclouded gladness. To him shall come with every deeper consecration of before untasted joy, but in the same cup shall be mixed a sorrow that it was beyond his power to feel before." That's how deeply St. Paul loved. He's willing to be grieved. God knows this, God's experienced that kind of love.Titus finally arrived, brought encouragement to Paul, and Paul experiences immense relief. That the message was received, the people repented, the relationship has been reconciled with God. They showed Titus hospitality, communicated their eagerness to see Paul. But it wasn't until that moment that he could rest. 2nd Corinthians 2:13 before the excursus he said, "My spirit was not at rest, because I did not find my brother Titus there so I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia." Parallel language, 2nd Corinthians 7:5, meaning this is the end of the excursus. "For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest but we were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within."Do you love your brothers and sisters like this? Do you love brothers and sisters in the church like this, where you're willing to be grieved by them? And I say this specifically to a church in Boston. I mean a lot of people, they just come to Boston, this is just a pit stop. This is just, "I'm here. I'm going to get what I need, and then I'm out. I'm going to Florida." "Can I come with you?" But while you're here, love like this. 2nd Corinthians 7:13, "Therefore we are comforted." This is the whole idea of like he's comforted by them, meaning he was grieving over them, meaning he wraps up his joy with them. "And besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more at the joy of Titus because his spirit has been refreshed by you all."You can't love without opening yourself up to being grieved. God loves God. Jesus loves Jesus. Holy Spirit loves us. As Christians, we are filled with the Holy Spirit, and Ephesians 4:30 says, "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit with your sin. Don't grieve the Holy Spirit." Second is you're willing to grieve them. If you really love them, you're willing to grieve them. 2nd Corinthians 7:8, "For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I see that the letter grieved you, though only for a while." What's going on here? "I regret writing what I wrote, but I don't regret writing what I wrote. I'm sorry that it made you feel sorry, but I'm not really sorry because you're sorry." That's what he's saying.And sometimes I do this where I say something, and I'm like, "Oh, I'm so sorry." And they're like, "Are you really?" I'm like, "No, because we're finally talking about the thing." That's what he's saying. He loves them enough to have the hard conversation, the uncomfortable conversation. That's what it means to love. You want the best for the person. This is what it means to love a child, to parent a child. You want the best for the child, so every once in a while you get down and you look your child in the eyes and you say, "I love you more than anyone else on earth. I love you more than your mom does. I love you more than anyone else on earth."And listen to me, I need to tell you something. This is not a comfortable conversation. Do you think I want to have this? No, I don't. But I love you more than I love my comfort so I'm going to speak. No one likes a surgeon's knife, but pain is worth it if it cuts out the disease. Unpleasant truth, life-altering truths. This is what it means to preach the gospel and to teach how to live a life in a manner worthy of the gospel. You tell people, "Hey, your life is not in step with the gospel of Jesus Christ. You're not living as someone who is saved." To have that conversation, you tell people that they need to change their life. That's not easy.Life-altering, lifestyle implication truths. Sit down with someone and say, "Hey, we got to talk. I know where you were this weekend. I saw from your Instagram story. It wasn't even your story, you got tagged in it, and I know exactly where you were. And that story didn't stay in Vegas." A conversation like that. Lifestyle conversations. St. Paul says, "If you love, you speak directly." Jesus was willing to grieve the people closest to him. His closest friends. Who Was Jesus' best friend? It was Peter. John thinks it was John, but he wrote down in the Gospel of John, a little biased I think. I think Jesus was like, "John, you're my best friend," and then, "Peter, you know you're my best friend."He goes to Peter, he's like Peter, "You're my rock, you're my foundation. I will build my church using you as you proclaim the Gospel." And sometimes Peter was dumb as a rock too. So in the very next breath, he says to Jesus, Jesus just told him, "Hey, I'm going to die to save you." And Jesus says, "No." "Jesus, I will go to war for you." And Jesus says, "Get behind me," and what does he call him? Satan. "Get behind me Satan." That's offensive. And at that moment, Peter could have written Jesus an email and said, "Jesus, you're not a good pastor. I'm leaving this church. I'm going to find another one of our pastors that doesn't call me Satan."He doesn't deal with the state of friends like, "Yeah, all right, my bad. Hug it out." Truth, love. You can speak truth when you know you love each other no matter what." I got a sister who's a vegan. She's done all the analysis and she says she believes that this is the healthiest way to live. I always tell her, "You got a supplement. If you got a supplement and stuff, then you're not getting that stuff." "Oh, yeah..." I make fun of her all the time for it, she makes fun of me for eating meat. We're still family. On her birthday, I got her a vegan sweatshirt. It's pink. It's made with vegan materials. Because that's what families do. You speak about uncomfortable things because you know you're not going anywhere. You're not going anywhere. That's love.And three is you're bold around them, because you're not afraid of offending them because they're not going anywhere. You're bold around them. 2nd Corinthians 7:4, "I am acting with great boldness toward you. I have great pride in you. I'm filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I'm overflowing with joy." So look how, "I love you, I am proud of you, I take comfort in you. You know that. And I'm going to speak with great boldness." And all this is in the Greek is freedom to speak. Cut to the chase, speak plainly. Jesus used the same phrase in John 16:25. He said, "I have said these things to you in figures of speech, the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father." I'm going to speak plain. I'm going to speak plain to you.The more you love a person, the more you're willing to just cut to the chase, and I respect that. That's when I know you really love me. When you have to sit down with someone and you have to say, "All right, this meeting is going to be an hour. We'll spend the first 45 minutes talking about how I really appreciate this person and I love this person, and then finally, I'm going to say what needs to be said. And the whole time I'm like, "I know what you're doing. Just get to the point." The longer you know each other, my wife and I, 16 years. October 23rd was 16 years from the day that we met. We're at a point where she was sitting in the first service up top. She sits up top when she thinks it's going to be controversial sermon, and she communicates with me through the air.If you've been married for a while, you know. "I know exactly what you're saying." She didn't like my sermon last week, or two weeks ago. I said, "Why didn't you?" I said, "Did I say anything untrue?" She said, "No." She said, "I'm just afraid people are going to hate you and you're going to end up in prison." I said, "Oh, so you get it. We're on the same page." She's like, "Yeah." She said, "Also, can you stop freaking people out with General Jan?" I was like, "I was talking about holy war. What do you want?" So today I'm, "This is Papa Jan." This is more. I even wore a different shirt. This is my dad bod shirt. Just I didn't even do anything to my hair. I'm like, "This is dad. We're going to have dad jokes and we're going to talk about what matters."You're bold, you can speak. What the Holy Spirit has laid on you, you can speak that with people that you truly love. And I'm afraid, I'm afraid that we're losing that at this church. We're definitely losing in the culture, I'm afraid we're losing it. One of my jobs as lead pastor and founder of this church, one of my jobs is I am a culture creator. Whenever I see something in the church, where I don't like the culture, I speak and we change things. For me, it's really important to have tremendous music. I love... I wish so...We have one of the best worship bands in all of the nation. And I know it because I watch other church services for fun. We do. They crush it, they crush it. Even on the livestream like, "Yeah." It's better in person, but even in a live stream, meeting it up. That's culture.Good coffee, its culture. If we have food, we're going to have good food. We're going to have a brisket and there's going to be enough brisket for everyone. I kind of laid an egg last time, I take ownership. Next time we're going to have more brisket. Culture. And I want a culture, I dream about a culture of being able to speak truth however uncomfortable, because we love each other that much. Where there is no self-censorship, where there are no topics off the table, bring whatever topic, free liberal exchange of ideas. Harvard University was started with that at the heart by the Puritans. They said, "This is how we are going to reclaim, recreate culture. We're going to take every single idea, whatever subject, and we're going to analyze it through the lens of Holy Scripture. If the idea is God glorified, we test the spirit, it glorifies God, it's going to further the common good, it's a good true beautiful idea, yes, we take it.""No, we reject it." We'll say it has gone to war against truth, and it does that with postmodern, there is no truth. And then censorship, people aren't speaking about what's true. St. Paul here says no. Like Jesus who is truth, we don't tiptoe around the truth. I get emails and texts and calls every once in a while with good friends of mine listening online, they're like, "I can't believe you said that thing." And I always, I like, "Why? Is it not true?" Like, "No, it's true, you just can't say in Boston." I say, "Why not? Is there some force field around Boston where there's things you can't say?" Apparently there is. And you know this force field, I experienced this force field.I just spent three days with my wife in Maine, we had our room was ocean view. I've never had that in my life. I spent three hours on the balcony just staring at the ocean, talking to God. My wife's like, "You going crazy?" I was like, "No, I'm praying." Because I like praying, I'm going to keep worshiping God, turn on music. And then I'm driving home on Store Road, my wife and I we weren't even talking. We were talking but not talking. As soon as I hit Store Road, I go, "Oh." Just angst, pain, ennui, the Russian word called toska, and you should look it up, T-O-S-K-A, toska. Tolstoy wrote about it, and Solzhenitsyn did. My soul was crushed. My wife is like, "What's happening to you? Can we go back to Maine?" I was like, "Please."Going honestly four hours. I had a brother who stopped by my place and he's like, he didn't say anything but he knew. And then three days later, he's like, "Yeah, you were just weird." It was like depressed, I was depressed. It's spiritual war, and it manifests itself where you can't say things. No, we're going to speak truth in Boston as it is in heaven. And we need to fight for that culture. Four is you're willing to eagerly repent when someone speaks truth to you. And you say, "Yeah, this is true. It's from the Holy Scriptures. I'm not lying. My life isn't in line with the scriptures." Verse two he says, "Make room in your hearts." For us, we've wronged no one, we've corrupted no one, we've taken advantage of no one. So before St. Paul, the great St. Paul starts poking around in other people's eyes to take our specs, he checks his own eyes. He looks at the Holy Scripture as a mirror and he said, "I got a log."Do I? If I got a spec. He says, "Show me where I'm wrong. Show me where I've sinned. Change my mind. I'm willing to repent." The false teachers accused him of lying, of being unreliable, because he didn't come for a visit. He couldn't control those things, he's not a sovereign. He's asking, "Did we sin against you?" He's saying, "I have a clear conscience to you." We don't believe, I don't believe in sinlessness. Only Jesus was sinless. So we don't believe in sinlessness, but we do believe as Christians in sinning less. As you grow in your faith, you are to be more sanctified. You are to grow in holiness. With day by day, a year goes by, you should be more holy then you were a year ago. And when people see you they should say, "What happened? You're different."Too many of you are managing sin, the same sin over and over. You commit the sin and then you go repent, you take communion, you go commit the sin. Just a cycle of wasted life, wasted talents, wasted zeal. My wife told me last week, she's like, "You're talking about holy war? There's people in the church who have not won the war over porn." Holy War. We'll win that war first, win that battle. I'm tired of pastors getting up and talking about, "Oh, we're so broken. Oh, yeah, we're so sinful," and talking about it with a defeatist spirit as if true freedom can't be experienced from a sin. Jesus Christ said, "If you struggle with sexual sin, cut off your arm and pluck out your eye." Savage.I'm going to write a book called Savage Jesus. And I'm saying that out loud just so no one steals the title. Stop. Stop sinning. Stop sinning. True freedom can be found, and it feels so much better than sin management. So we repent when we are called out? Jesus never repented so we can't look to him and say, "What does repentance look like?" But he did repent on our behalf. On the cross he said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." Meaning ignorance is not a defense against God. At the judgment, you can't say, "I didn't know." Because you know what Jesus says? It doesn't matter, you're still guilty, and you're still guilty because you didn't know. You didn't know. You did know that was a sin, you did know. And God knows that you know.So we are to repent, and we are to believe, and this is how we grow in the Christian life. We repent and we believe, we repent and we believe and we got blind spots brothers and sisters next to us. They tell us speak truth in love. The first of Martin Luther's 95 theses, he says this, "When our Lord and master Jesus Christ said repent, he will the entire life of believers be one of repentance." Real. That's your whole life. Every day repent, believe, repent, believe. What is repentance? How can we know that it's real repentance? How can we know that it's true, and can it be distinguished from its imitations? Yes. And that's what St. Paul continues. He says, "I'm willing to joyfully forgive," and that's point five, "because I know that this is a real, true repentance."Verse nine, "As it is, I rejoice not because you were grieved but because you were grieved into repenting. For you fairly Godly grieved so that you suffered no loss through us, for Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret. Whereas worldly grief produces death." Now he's differentiating, he's qualifying repentance. There's true repentance and there's false repentance. There's true repentance that starts with a Godly grief, and there's false repentance that starts with a worldly grief and it only ends in death. This one ends in salvation without regret. The reason why he needs to differentiate is because they look the same in the very beginning.In the early stages, it's hard to differentiate which one's real and which one isn't. Because they're sorrow. Both of them are grief. When you sin and you experience the consequences of that sin, you don't have to be a Christian to be miserable about messing up your life. You ask anyone in prison, if they're grieved, they'll tell you they're grieved at being there, at their situation. When the debts run up and the bills come in, and they can't be paid and bankruptcy looms. Played around with a sin, all of a sudden you got addicted to it, and it seems like you can't live without it. You're unmarried and there's a baby on the way. Words are spoken and there's no taking them back.Marital infidelity, the damage is done, you try to rebuild but things will never be as they were completely before. A lie was told, found out, theft, impure. Whatever the sin, troubled pain, heartbreak, grief and sorrow follow in the wake. And tears flow, self-accusation, emotional wounds, but the question is, are you convicted of the sin? Is it grief over the sin or is it grief over being exposed? Worldly grief is what people will experience at the judgment. It's when you're weeping and gnashing of teeth as they're sent to hell. That's grief. It's not Godly grief. You feel bad for yourself. You feel bad that you've sinned against yourself. You don't feel bad that you've sinned against God. You're not grieved that you grieved God. You're grieved that you're grieving.Issa, the Scripture says saw repentance with tears and never found. Judas Iscariot, three years with Jesus Christ, and then finally he realizes what he did. It's not real repentance. Peter and David, they weren't just sorry that they got caught, Peter and David were sorry that they sinned against the Holy God. And St. Paul does this, and I think he does this intentionally because I've seen him do it before. Before he gets to the word that he really wants to use, repentance, he uses a word that's very similar to it but it's very different. Verse eight, "For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it though I did regret it. For I see that letter grieved you, though not only for a while."The line between heaven and hell is the line between remorse and repentance. Regret, remorse, you feel sad on account of how things ended up. If you got on a time machine, you went back, you might change things. But it's my bad, I shouldn't have done that, it's my mistake. That's remorse. And it doesn't matter how deep your remorse, if it doesn't turn into repentance, it's not going to do anything. Matthew 27:3-5, the story of Judas, "Then when Judas his betrayer saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and the others saying, "I've sinned by betraying innocent blood. I've sinned. I've sinned." They said, "What is that to us? See to it yourself." And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed and he went hanged himself. "I've sinned. I've changed my mind. I shouldn't have done that."And he didn't repent to Jesus Christ for betraying him. He could have and Jesus would have forgiven him. 2nd Corinthians 7:9, "As it is, I rejoice, not because you are grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. You were grieved into repenting for you felt a Godly grief so that you suffered no loss through us." Repent. This is metanoia. Turning around, it's a change of mind that leads to a change of heart. And the change of mind, change of heart leads to a change of life. You change how you live. Your pattern of life changes. The things you do change. Luke 22:54-62, Peter who denied Jesus shows us what true repentance looks like."Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest's house and Peter was following at a distance. They had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl seeing him as he sat in the light, and looking closely at him said, "This man also was with him." But he denied it saying, "Woman, I do not know him." And a little later, someone else saw him and said, "You also are one of them." But Peter said, "Man, I am not." And after an interval of about an hour, still another insisted saying, "Certainly this man also was with him for he too is a Galilean." But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you're talking about." And immediately as he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter, and Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, "Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times. He went out and wept bitterly."Judas was grieved over the fact that he sinned. Period. Peter, as he was sitting, looks and sees the eyes of Jesus Christ looking at him, blood, sweat, tears, crown of thorns. He realized that he didn't just sin, he sinned against Christ. That's true repentance. "God, I'm sorry, I've sinned against you. I grieve over the fact that I've sinned against you. I grieve over the fact that I've grieved your heart." Sin isn't just breaking commandment, sin is breaking the heart of God. "Yes, I shouldn't have but I did. I repent." There's no lawyering up, there's no self-justification. We've sinned against God. Our sin doesn't just offend God, it pierces God.Zechariah 12:10, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy so that when they look on me, on whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly for him as one weeps over a firstborn." So when caught in sin, repent to Jesus, for your sin against Jesus. And even better, repent before getting caught. And better yet, mortify your sin. When repenting, repent with the spirit of King David who when the prophet comes and the prophet Nathan comes to him and convicts him of sin, David repents. Psalm 51:1-4, "Have mercy on me oh God, according to your steadfast love, according to your abundant mercy. Blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly for my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin, for I know my transgressions and my sin is ever before me against you. You only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment."Against you only. He sinned against Bathsheba, he sinned against Uriah, but he said, "Yeah, I've sinned against them, but the most egregious sin, the reason why I sinned against them is because I already sinned against you." That's where true repentance starts. Jesus Christ told us to mourn over our sin, that it's a blessing. Matthew 5:3-4, "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted." Verse 11, "For see what earnestness this Godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves with indignation, with fear, with longing, with zeal, with punishment. At every point you've proved yourself innocent in the matter. Remorse led to true repentance and true repentance leads to reconciliation, restoration, relationship with God and relationship with people. This is why repentance leads to action.Westminster Shorter Catechism defines repentance like this. What is repentance unto life? Repentance unto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner out of a true sense of his sin, an apprehension of the mercy of God and Christ does with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God. Full purpose endeavor after new obedience. True repentance, "And God forgive me, and God I'm yours. How do you want me to live? What do you want me to change? It leads to a change of life. And St. Paul, I just love his heart. They've hurt him, they've hurt God, but when he hears about their repentance, the first thing, he doesn't gloat, he's not like, "I told you so. You wicked sinners." They repent and he's like, "Come on. You're back in the family. You're back in the house. We'll make room for you."When people repent, we don't gloat. Just like God doesn't gloat. God is so willing to forgive. God is standing at the door and he's waiting. He's waiting for the prodigals to come home. He's right there. And Scripture says that there's more joy in heaven over the repentance of one sinner than over 99 who are no need of repentance. The fact that God rejoices when we repent should make us eager to repent. Six says, "You know you love someone when you're comforted by them. When just their presence brings you comfort, that's when you know you really love them. 2nd Corinthians 7:12-16, "So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God." I'll deal with that verse."Therefore, we are comforted, and besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all, for whatever boast I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as everything we said to you was true, so also our boasting for Titus has proved true, and his affection for you is even greater as he remembers the obedience of you all and how you received him with fear and trembling. I rejoice because I have complete confidence in you." He's saying, I didn't write just because of the one who did the wrong, that's the man who committed an incestuous relationship with his dad's wife. I'm not writing just because of the man that was wronged and suffered the wrongness of his dad. He said, "I wrote so that you would change."The culture of the church would change. And when they repented, he rejoices with those who rejoice, he takes comfort in them, delight from them just like God does in us. 2nd Corinthians 7:6, "But God who comforts the downcast comforted us by the coming of Titus." And point seven is you know you love someone when you die or live with them. 2nd Corinthians 7:3, "I do not say this to condemn you, for I said before that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together." What a strange way to talk to Christians. Have you ever talked to a Christian like this? We're ride or die. He spent 18 months with them. I would die with you and I'd live with you.There's some people I would die for, living with? Oh. It's like die and live. And he starts with die to show us how deadly serious he is. He's saying, "I'm not condemning you, we're family, we're brothers and sisters." And this is really the heart of the whole text. Every other verse is just a layer of the onion. Paul never lost confidence of the fact that they were Christians, and they proved Paul right. He says, "You're already in our hearts, and we know that we are in your heart as well. We saw that from your repentance." This is what he does in verse 12. "So although I wrote to you, it wasn't for the sake of the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God."He's saying, I wrote those hard things not just to deal with a particular situation, I wrote it so that you see just how much you love the family of God already. You've made room for us. Continue to do so. We're already in your hearts, just like you are in our hearts. What he says is, "Live together and die together." He uses that language so flippantly because he's like, "It doesn't matter." We're going to spend eternity together, brothers and sisters so we might as well start getting along now. You will spend eternity with people who got vaccinated and you will spend eternity with people who did not. If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior, repent of your sins, then you will say at the family table. You will have dinner together for all of eternity.If you don't believe in Jesus, you will spend eternity in hell, which is just like COVID but for eternity. The COVID tension, you know that? That's what hell is. Quarantine here and isolation, that's hell. So trust in Jesus. That's my simplest way of contextualizing the gospel. So since we're on the topic, my wife has three trigger words that turn off her mind. COVID, vaccine and masks. As soon as she hears them, mind off. It's just like something trips and that's it. So I'm going to say a few things right now that will be hard to hear for two reasons that I see. The first reason is the sensitivity of the topic, the second is the simplicity of the analysis. Sensitivity of the topic. People have died. People have lost and people have suffered.I know I've lived through it. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't talk about a hard topic, so don't let the sensitivity of the topic check you out right now. Keep listening, please. And the simplicity of the analysis, I'm going to tell you words that you've heard before. And perhaps it's just the order of the words just slightly different and I don't want you to miss the profundity of the concept because the words are so simple. "Pastor Jan, why did you mention the politically charged topic that you did two weeks ago? Emotionally charged topic? Why did you mention? You usually don't." That's right. I usually don't. Because the things we deal with here are so much more important.Whenever something out there happens, just love each other, love God. Make sure you're going to heaven. But this thing is different. This thing is different because it's not going away. I waited, and I waited and I waited, and I was like, "A vaccine is going to come and we're stuffed. It's going." It's not. Because we have been so caught up in the details of our disrupted lives in the last 20 months, we perhaps have not understood the historical significance of what we have lived through. We have just lived through one of the greatest turning points in all of world history. Climactic. Things have changed. We're talking about the before times, and the new normal. Like an epoch has changed. We're talking about the New World Order.This one's different, and you say, "What about love, Jesus, simple? Isn't that what we focus on?" This has everything to do with love, Jesus, simple because the battle right now, the battle is being waged over the definition of love itself, of what it means to love, of what it means to be a loving person. That's under question right now. Jesus Christ gave us the great commandment, he said, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as yourself." I see my neighbor is hurting. You say, "But Pastor Jan, the reason I got the vaccine is because this is how I love God and how I love my neighbor." So should you. See, the first part I don't have issue with. That first part, you did the risk analysis. You got informed, educated, and this is how you choose to love yourself and how you choose to love your neighbor. It's a conscience issue.Okay, great. We're in the family of God together, that's... The very second you say, "So should you," you have entered different territory. You are adding rules to the commandment of God. It's called legalism. It's what the Pharisees did. Jesus Christ didn't tell me to love my neighbor as you love your neighbor, or as you love yourself. Jesus Christ didn't tell me, "Love my neighbor as the government tells me to love my neighbor. CDC, WHO, Fauci, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna." Jesus Christ told me to love my neighbor as I love whom? Love your neighbor as you love whom? Say it together, yourself. Well, that one word changes things. As you love yourself.So I put myself in the shoes of the person in my community group, she has antibodies. But she's being forced to get injected to keep her job, her livelihood. And I said, "Would I want to be put in that situation? No, I would not." And God forbid if the church ever put me in that situation. I'd have two questions, the first to myself, "Jan, why didn't you lead better? Why didn't you have the hard conversation? How did we get here?" And I'd ask, "Lord, is this a sign that I need to go plant a new church in Idaho, on a volcano with an airstrip, or Florida? Make America Florida again. Or Russia, that last bastion of freedom?" I just want to share my heart.And I know I'm an outlier here, I know, but just bear with me for just a little bit. I see out there creation of two classes, and I can't change that out there. I can't. I see it creeping in here. That's what concerns me. Point to one time in world history that this has been done, the creation of two classes and it hasn't led to bloodshed. The Nazis had their Untermensch, the underclass, the inferior people, Jews, gypsies, slobs, Black people, and people with physical disabilities, political prisoners. You're subhuman, you're not even human. And then there's the Übermensch, that's what it means to be a true human. That's what a loving human being is.Now we're living through, "Get the vaccine, enjoy society. Don't get it, but if you don't get it, it's your fault." Phrase, the pandemic of the unvaccinated? You're creating scapegoats and I know how this ends. I've seen this movie before. Two classes clean, unclean, obedient, stubborn, in, out, righteous, unrighteous, good, evil, loving, hateful. I know, I know. I'm one of the only people in the nation whose doing this. I was on a marriage retreat, 70 pastors and their wives. That was Monday. Tuesday we have breakfast, we have breakfast. All the pastors are in one room, all the pastor's wives are in the other room. And it's Q&A. "I got a Q&A, all right, I'll go."So I go. I sit in the back. I always sit in the back. I know I'm weird, and I start talking and people are like, "This guy is weird. What's he talking about?" I just know. There's not many rooms I walk into I'm like, "All right. I belong." I'm just weird. So I walk in and I sit in the back, I'm drinking my coffee, and the head guy comes up to me. He's like, "Hey, Jan, I want you to sit in the front. I got three seats up there and I want the room to look a little more full, so would you please sit there?" I hate when people do that. I never do that to anybody. Whatever. I respect the guy, I go to the front, I sit down, there's question and answer. "How do you lead your wife? How do you love your wife?"I'm like, "You guys are all pastors. Just love her. Talk about Scripture together. pray together, eat good food together. Have fun together. Tell her a joke. Make her laugh. That works." I'm sitting there, I'm like, "All right." Okay, now we're half an hour in, we got another half an hour to go, people stop asking questions. And I'm like, "All right, I got nothing else to do." And I said, "Are all questions allowed?" They're like, "Sure." The guy who was leading is from Brooklyn, the guy who was ahead of church planting here in Greater Boston, and the guy who's a megachurch pastor in Georgia, those were the three guys. First guy says, "Oh, here's my question." I said, "How do you minister to people in your church who are getting fired from their jobs for not getting the vaccine, and the religious exemption isn't accepted?"First guy says, "Religious exemption? I didn't know we have two different religions." I know. What he's saying is, Christians don't even ask this question, because the loving thing to do is to get the vaccine. In his mind, this isn't even a category. It's like these Christians aren't even welcome to the conversation. The second guy said, "I have never even thought about that." The third guy said, "We just decided not to give out religious exemptions." I know. I'm one of the only people that's ringing the bell. Do you realize what is happening here? This is an ungodly worldly sentiment that's creeping. There's churches. I used to deeply respect these pastors. On their website it says, "We have seating arrangements. On the first floor, it's for vaccinated people. For everyone else, you can sit over there."Okay, verses in James that says not to do that. What concerns me is this ungodly sentiment creeping in here where there's people in the church and I hear things, walk around asking, "Are you vaccinated so I know whether I can hug you?" No, no, no, get that out of here. Do what the rest of us do. We don't hug. We awkward fist bomb just like, "Yeah, I'll hug you with my eyes." Do that. Don't bring... I don't check for vaccination status at the door of my house. I don't do that. I'll close with this. I was at another pastors meeting this week in Truman Temple, and they had chicken and rice guys, it was so good. And they had trays of food, really, really good. And so I heaping plate, annihilated it, and then see there's more food. I'm like, "Which tray am I taking home?"But they didn't do that. But they gave us styrofoam little things that you can take food home, so I pile it up. And just I'm pumped, I'm bringing food home for my girls. How do you love your wife? You bring food home. Hunters and gatherers. So I'm walking down the street, walking Park Street into the T, and as I'm on Park Street there's a gentleman sitting there in front of the Park Street, and he says, "Do you have money?" "I don't have cash." I wish he had a sign with those little Venmo. I wanted to give him that tip. Then he looked at, he's like, "Food. Give me your food." I was like, "All right." I gave it to him. He opens it up, and he says, "My man." It looked that good.And then I walk into the T and I have so much joy on my heart and I'm thinking, "Why do I have so much joy?" It's not because I did this thing because it wasn't my food, it was just like, God. And I was like, it hit me, "He treated me like a human being not as a disease carrier." He looked at me and he said, "You're a human being. I'm a human being, you got food, can I have some?" "Yeah, okay." That's love. That's love. That's what it means to love each other. You see the humanity in the person. And this is my fear, it's only lasted 20 months. We stopped seeing the humanity in each other. We stopped loving each other the way Jesus called us.In the church of God, it's a family and there's no partiality. There's no prejudice, there's no discrimination. It doesn't matter what you look like, it doesn't matter how you dress, it doesn't matter how you smell, it doesn't matter where you're from, it doesn't matter to me your vaccination status, I will love you either way. And also you're not made righteous through your vaccine, you're not made righteous through not getting vax. So this spirit of judgmentalism, of classifying in your mind who are the right Christians and who are the wrong Christians, no, no. We're made righteous by the blood of Jesus Christ. His blood gives us immunity from Satan, sin and death. Have you repented to Jesus Christ? Well, welcome to the family."I'd live with the family," St. Paul says, "I'd die with the family." Jesus lived with the family, died for his family. He makes room for us. Have you made room for him and have you made room in your hearts for those whom he has accepted, even if their perspective is different than yours? Make room in your hearts for us just like Jesus made room in his heart for you. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for this word. We thank you for the fact that in this church we can have hard conversations because we love each other and we want to make room for more people here. Holy Spirit continue to use us in that. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen.

Audio Transcript: This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston and our neighborhood churches, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com. Morning. Welcome to Mosaic Church, my name is Jan, one of the pastors here along with Pastor Shane and Pastor Andy. If you're new or visiting, we'd love to connect with you. We do that through the connection card that you should have gotten at the back at the welcome table. If you fill it out legibly, and then redeem it at the welcome table, you'll get a gift there. And then if you give us your mailing address, we'll send you another gift in the mail to say thank you for coming out. With that said... Oh, also we have a membership class today. So if you're not a member, you're interested in membership, and if you're not interested you should be, we have a class with lunch provided with I think Burritos. Burritos, heavenly manna. And so we usually order more, so if you didn't sign up, you're still welcome to come, I'll give you mine. With that said, would you please pray with me over the preaching of God's Holy Word? Heavenly Father, we thank you that you created a place for us, a space for us, you created this earth, and you gave it to us to rule over under your dominion. And Lord, we rebelled against you, we like the prodigal son ran from you because we thought life would be more enjoyable without you, without your love and it's not. Jesus, we thank you that you the older brother, you did came looking for us, you lived with us and you loved us, and you loved us enough to speak the truth to us, and the truth got you crucified. Our sin got you crucified. We thank you Holy Spirit that you are with us and we repent of the fact that often we have grieved you, we repent. I pray that you bless our time in the Holy Scriptures, I pray that you make us the people who know the truth and love the truth, repent when we transgress against the truth, people who know your love as you define, and people who carry a culture of speaking truth and love anywhere we go. We speak what needs to be said, we have the courage to say it, but it's only because we love. We pray that you bless our time in the Holy Scriptures and show us that you call us to make room for people who disagree with us, to engage with them, to have hard conversations. I pray you remove any spirit of self-censorship from our church, from our homes. Bless our time in the Holy Scriptures, we pray this in Jesus name. Amen. My last sermon two weeks ago, I said some things that ruffled feathers, and I will address those comments today at the end of my sermon, so you have to pay attention until we get there. I've learned from my mistake, don't do it in the introduction. The title of the sermon is Ride or Die. I come from a big family, I have four siblings. And my extended family is also large, my dad has five siblings, my mom has 10 siblings. So I have family all over the world. And one of the things that our family, or one of the culture or core values of our family is we're ride or die. If you're part of my family and you text me when you're in a bind, I am there and I roll deep. I'll give you just a story from my own family. I remember when I was 13 years old, my goal in life, my American Dream, other people want picket fences, my American Dream was to get a car. So at age 17 I finally saved up enough for a car, I got my license. I bought a stick shift but I didn't know how to drive a stick shift, but it was cheaper than the not. So I got this car and I loved it. It was an Audi 80, just old, nasty, just problems all the time, but it was fast. And one time I got pulled over by a cop for doing 79 in a 35. It was a speed trap. I was doing 79 in a 55 but it turned to 35 downhill. And so my ticket was $450, I go to my dad and I say, "Paps, help me out." He said, "You bought the car, all the bills with the car are your bills." So I had to get a job, and I got a job. The only job I could get was delivering newspapers. So I'd wake up at 3:30 AM, and go to the place and fold up the newspapers. And then this is back in the day. This is people used to read newspapers. This is back like AOL, like Juno, like Jan.Vezikov@juno.com. You know what I'm saying? AIM, my name was Jantheman. Way back. Way back. So I realized it's hard to drive stick shift and deliver newspapers, so I would just stall all the time and it was terrible, late for school that first day. I come home, I tell my sister, "I can't deliver newspapers in my car." She said, "What time are we waking up?" 3:30 AM she's with me. I'm driving, she's tossing. And we did that for a month, just long enough to get $450. Ride or die. This text doesn't make any sense unless you understand that St. Paul views church like that, many of us don't. Many of us don't understand church like that. Many of us view church as it's like the movies. How often do you go to the movies when something good is playing? St. Paul viewed as family. He was like, "I'm a spiritual father, and I'm going to say things that are going to grieve you because I love you. And I'm doing it for your good, for your benefit because we're ride or die." That's the heart. And if you know me, I preach expositional message, I go verse by verse, and we explain. This one's a little different. I'm going to cover all the verses, but this one is kind of like an onion. You don't really understand the heart of what's going on unless you go layer by layer, by layer, by layer and then you get into the heart, and that's what we'll do today. 2nd Corinthians 7:12-16, would you look at the text with me? "Make room in your hearts for us. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. I do not say this to condemn you for I said before that you are in our hearts to die together and to live together. I'm acting with great boldness toward you, I have great pride in you. I'm filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I am overflowing with joy. For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest but we were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within. But God who comforts the downcast comforted us by the coming of Titus. And not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoice still more. For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it, for I see that the letter grieved you though only for a while. As it is I rejoice, not because you are aggrieved, but because you were aggrieved into repenting, for you felt a Godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. For see what earnestness this Godly grief has produced anew but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing with zeal or punishment, at every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God. Therefore, we are comforted. And besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. For whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame, but just as everything we said to you was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. And his affection for you is even greater as he remembers the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. I rejoice because I have perfect confidence in you." This is the reading of God's Holy and infallible, authoritative word may write these eternal truths upon our hearts. St. Paul starts with this phrase, this metaphor, this image of making room. "Make room for us," he says. He started the language. 2nd Corinthians 6:11-13, he said, "We've spoken freely to you Corinthians, our heart is wide open. You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. In return, I speak as to children, widen your hearts also." St. Paul is speaking as a spiritual father. This is Papa Paul. I love you, that's why I've spoken hard words to soften your hearts. It was only because of love. My heart's wide open, is yours toward me? And then in 7:2 he says, "Make room in your hearts for us." In the Greek it just says, "Make room for us in your hearts." In the English translation, they put that in because the parallel is in your hearts, but he's saying, "Make room. Is there a room at the church that I planted? Is there room for me?" St. Paul is saying. "We have wronged no one and we've corrupted no one, and we have taken advantage of no one. In Mark chapter two, Jesus Christ goes back to his hometown of Capernaum, and he starts preaching, he starts preaching in the house. And the house is filled with religious leaders, they want to know what Jesus is teaching. And then the gentleman that gets to the door he gets carried there by his four friends, and his friends want this gentleman to be healed by Jesus, but the religious leaders won't let him in. They won't make room for a person who is different than them. They don't make room for a person who needs Jesus more than they need Jesus. And then finally, the friends were like, "All right." They climbed to the top of the house, they dismantled the roof, so I always feel bad for the owner of that house, but what are you going to do? The guy is more important. Lo and Jesus heals and forgives his sins. Jesus makes room for him. Jesus knows what it feels like to be rejected, and so Jesus really does care about making room for those on the fringes, those who have been ostracized. And that's what St. Paul is saying is that, "I make room in the church. I love you." He said, "You have room in my heart, now let's reciprocate." And this is how we'll frame up our time. You know someone is in your heart when you're willing to be grieved by them. You're willing to grieve them, you're bold around them, you're willing to eagerly repent, you're willing to joyfully forgive, you're comforted by them, and you die or live with them. This applies to every relationship. First, you're willing to be grieved by them, this is what it means to love. What it means to love is you open your heart to someone else. You let them in, you make them family, and you make yourself susceptible, you make yourself vulnerable to being hurt by them. That's what it means to love. It's the same thing God did, he creates us. And he's not aloof. He's not just transcended, he's also imminent, he's with us and he feels when we offend. Genesis 6:5-6, this is right before the flood, "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually, and the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth and had grieved him in his heart." He saw what was happening. Where is God when there's evil in the world? He's right there. He feels it. Just like Jesus Christ, he made himself vulnerable, God becoming man. He let those whom he loved crucify him. Isaiah says that Jesus was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He was despised and we esteemed him not. This explains why St. Paul is so worried about this church. He planted the church, he's in Ephesus planting another church, he hears the church isn't doing well. They've allowed unrepentant sin in the church. They're actually celebrating the sin. And he hears about it, writes 1st Corinthians, hard words for hard hearts. And then he's grieved. How are the words accepted? Did they receive them and did they repent? And he says in verse four, he's worried, "I'm acting with great boldness toward you, I have great pride in you, I'm filled with comfort in all our affliction. I'm overflowing with joy for even when we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest. We were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within." He's anxious for the church. He's afflicted with thoughts about the church. How many of you think about church outside of church? How many of you think about church on vacation? I had last Sunday off, I could do anything I want. I could have slept in till 2:00 PM. I came to church. On my day off? Yeah. It's my favorite thing in the world. Which service did you? I went to both. I was the last person out of the room. You know what I do for fun? I study other churches. You know what I do? Honestly, you know what? I listen to sermons. I watch football, but I listen to sermons while watching football. I redeem the time. Tanya and I went to a marriage retreat to Maine, the Cliff Hotel. It's awesome. We had an oceanfront room and I didn't think about church once. We were there Monday through Wednesday. Didn't think about church once for like an hour. Then I got texts and emails and phone calls, and then I realized, "Yeah, it's family." If your mom calls you when you're on vacation, will you pick up? It's family. That's how he feels. St. Paul here picks up from the excursus. In chapter 2:13 what he did was, he was telling us about why he's writing, how he felt. He was writing about the fact that he's in Ephesus and he sends Titus to Corinth, and Titus then is supposed to bring a message back to Paul, but Paul waited. Titus didn't come, he goes to Troas hoping to meet Titus there, and then he goes to Macedonia's church planting, and still thinking about the church the whole time. He's exhausted. He said, "Our bodies had no rest." I once heard a pastor say, "Don't complain about how hard your job is to your people." He said, "Everyone thinks you work one hour a week and you play golf the rest of the time." He said, "What do you want? A violin? What do you want?" Well, St. Paul knows, he's comforted by the fact that God knows. God knows. This is verse six. "But God who comforts the downcast," the word downcast here is depressed. St. Paul experienced a spiritual depression. Not a physical depression, a spiritual depression over his concerns about the church. He said, "But God comforts the downcast. Comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal, so that I rejoice still more." His joy is so wrapped up in the joy of the church and their health and their maturity and their growth, that he doesn't experience joy until they experience joy. Any parent knows when your baby is sick at night, you can't sleep normally. You can't. You're riddled with anxiety because you love this little human being. You're allowing that person's pain to be your own pain. You're allowing them to grieve you. Phillips Brooks was a pastor in Boston, you see his statues Downtown. He said this and he wrote a work called The Influence of Jesus. He said, "To be a true minister to man is always to accept new happiness and new distress. The man who gives himself to other men can never be a holy sad man, but no more can he be a man of unclouded gladness. To him shall come with every deeper consecration of before untasted joy, but in the same cup shall be mixed a sorrow that it was beyond his power to feel before." That's how deeply St. Paul loved. He's willing to be grieved. God knows this, God's experienced that kind of love. Titus finally arrived, brought encouragement to Paul, and Paul experiences immense relief. That the message was received, the people repented, the relationship has been reconciled with God. They showed Titus hospitality, communicated their eagerness to see Paul. But it wasn't until that moment that he could rest. 2nd Corinthians 2:13 before the excursus he said, "My spirit was not at rest, because I did not find my brother Titus there so I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia." Parallel language, 2nd Corinthians 7:5, meaning this is the end of the excursus. "For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had no rest but we were afflicted at every turn, fighting without and fear within." Do you love your brothers and sisters like this? Do you love brothers and sisters in the church like this, where you're willing to be grieved by them? And I say this specifically to a church in Boston. I mean a lot of people, they just come to Boston, this is just a pit stop. This is just, "I'm here. I'm going to get what I need, and then I'm out. I'm going to Florida." "Can I come with you?" But while you're here, love like this. 2nd Corinthians 7:13, "Therefore we are comforted." This is the whole idea of like he's comforted by them, meaning he was grieving over them, meaning he wraps up his joy with them. "And besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more at the joy of Titus because his spirit has been refreshed by you all." You can't love without opening yourself up to being grieved. God loves God. Jesus loves Jesus. Holy Spirit loves us. As Christians, we are filled with the Holy Spirit, and Ephesians 4:30 says, "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit with your sin. Don't grieve the Holy Spirit." Second is you're willing to grieve them. If you really love them, you're willing to grieve them. 2nd Corinthians 7:8, "For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I see that the letter grieved you, though only for a while." What's going on here? "I regret writing what I wrote, but I don't regret writing what I wrote. I'm sorry that it made you feel sorry, but I'm not really sorry because you're sorry." That's what he's saying. And sometimes I do this where I say something, and I'm like, "Oh, I'm so sorry." And they're like, "Are you really?" I'm like, "No, because we're finally talking about the thing." That's what he's saying. He loves them enough to have the hard conversation, the uncomfortable conversation. That's what it means to love. You want the best for the person. This is what it means to love a child, to parent a child. You want the best for the child, so every once in a while you get down and you look your child in the eyes and you say, "I love you more than anyone else on earth. I love you more than your mom does. I love you more than anyone else on earth." And listen to me, I need to tell you something. This is not a comfortable conversation. Do you think I want to have this? No, I don't. But I love you more than I love my comfort so I'm going to speak. No one likes a surgeon's knife, but pain is worth it if it cuts out the disease. Unpleasant truth, life-altering truths. This is what it means to preach the gospel and to teach how to live a life in a manner worthy of the gospel. You tell people, "Hey, your life is not in step with the gospel of Jesus Christ. You're not living as someone who is saved." To have that conversation, you tell people that they need to change their life. That's not easy. Life-altering, lifestyle implication truths. Sit down with someone and say, "Hey, we got to talk. I know where you were this weekend. I saw from your Instagram story. It wasn't even your story, you got tagged in it, and I know exactly where you were. And that story didn't stay in Vegas." A conversation like that. Lifestyle conversations. St. Paul says, "If you love, you speak directly." Jesus was willing to grieve the people closest to him. His closest friends. Who Was Jesus' best friend? It was Peter. John thinks it was John, but he wrote down in the Gospel of John, a little biased I think. I think Jesus was like, "John, you're my best friend," and then, "Peter, you know you're my best friend." He goes to Peter, he's like Peter, "You're my rock, you're my foundation. I will build my church using you as you proclaim the Gospel." And sometimes Peter was dumb as a rock too. So in the very next breath, he says to Jesus, Jesus just told him, "Hey, I'm going to die to save you." And Jesus says, "No." "Jesus, I will go to war for you." And Jesus says, "Get behind me," and what does he call him? Satan. "Get behind me Satan." That's offensive. And at that moment, Peter could have written Jesus an email and said, "Jesus, you're not a good pastor. I'm leaving this church. I'm going to find another one of our pastors that doesn't call me Satan." He doesn't deal with the state of friends like, "Yeah, all right, my bad. Hug it out." Truth, love. You can speak truth when you know you love each other no matter what." I got a sister who's a vegan. She's done all the analysis and she says she believes that this is the healthiest way to live. I always tell her, "You got a supplement. If you got a supplement and stuff, then you're not getting that stuff." "Oh, yeah..." I make fun of her all the time for it, she makes fun of me for eating meat. We're still family. On her birthday, I got her a vegan sweatshirt. It's pink. It's made with vegan materials. Because that's what families do. You speak about uncomfortable things because you know you're not going anywhere. You're not going anywhere. That's love. And three is you're bold around them, because you're not afraid of offending them because they're not going anywhere. You're bold around them. 2nd Corinthians 7:4, "I am acting with great boldness toward you. I have great pride in you. I'm filled with comfort. In all our affliction, I'm overflowing with joy." So look how, "I love you, I am proud of you, I take comfort in you. You know that. And I'm going to speak with great boldness." And all this is in the Greek is freedom to speak. Cut to the chase, speak plainly. Jesus used the same phrase in John 16:25. He said, "I have said these things to you in figures of speech, the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you plainly about the Father." I'm going to speak plain. I'm going to speak plain to you. The more you love a person, the more you're willing to just cut to the chase, and I respect that. That's when I know you really love me. When you have to sit down with someone and you have to say, "All right, this meeting is going to be an hour. We'll spend the first 45 minutes talking about how I really appreciate this person and I love this person, and then finally, I'm going to say what needs to be said. And the whole time I'm like, "I know what you're doing. Just get to the point." The longer you know each other, my wife and I, 16 years. October 23rd was 16 years from the day that we met. We're at a point where she was sitting in the first service up top. She sits up top when she thinks it's going to be controversial sermon, and she communicates with me through the air. If you've been married for a while, you know. "I know exactly what you're saying." She didn't like my sermon last week, or two weeks ago. I said, "Why didn't you?" I said, "Did I say anything untrue?" She said, "No." She said, "I'm just afraid people are going to hate you and you're going to end up in prison." I said, "Oh, so you get it. We're on the same page." She's like, "Yeah." She said, "Also, can you stop freaking people out with General Jan?" I was like, "I was talking about holy war. What do you want?" So today I'm, "This is Papa Jan." This is more. I even wore a different shirt. This is my dad bod shirt. Just I didn't even do anything to my hair. I'm like, "This is dad. We're going to have dad jokes and we're going to talk about what matters." You're bold, you can speak. What the Holy Spirit has laid on you, you can speak that with people that you truly love. And I'm afraid, I'm afraid that we're losing that at this church. We're definitely losing in the culture, I'm afraid we're losing it. One of my jobs as lead pastor and founder of this church, one of my jobs is I am a culture creator. Whenever I see something in the church, where I don't like the culture, I speak and we change things. For me, it's really important to have tremendous music. I love... I wish so...We have one of the best worship bands in all of the nation. And I know it because I watch other church services for fun. We do. They crush it, they crush it. Even on the livestream like, "Yeah." It's better in person, but even in a live stream, meeting it up. That's culture. Good coffee, its culture. If we have food, we're going to have good food. We're going to have a brisket and there's going to be enough brisket for everyone. I kind of laid an egg last time, I take ownership. Next time we're going to have more brisket. Culture. And I want a culture, I dream about a culture of being able to speak truth however uncomfortable, because we love each other that much. Where there is no self-censorship, where there are no topics off the table, bring whatever topic, free liberal exchange of ideas. Harvard University was started with that at the heart by the Puritans. They said, "This is how we are going to reclaim, recreate culture. We're going to take every single idea, whatever subject, and we're going to analyze it through the lens of Holy Scripture. If the idea is God glorified, we test the spirit, it glorifies God, it's going to further the common good, it's a good true beautiful idea, yes, we take it." "No, we reject it." We'll say it has gone to war against truth, and it does that with postmodern, there is no truth. And then censorship, people aren't speaking about what's true. St. Paul here says no. Like Jesus who is truth, we don't tiptoe around the truth. I get emails and texts and calls every once in a while with good friends of mine listening online, they're like, "I can't believe you said that thing." And I always, I like, "Why? Is it not true?" Like, "No, it's true, you just can't say in Boston." I say, "Why not? Is there some force field around Boston where there's things you can't say?" Apparently there is. And you know this force field, I experienced this force field. I just spent three days with my wife in Maine, we had our room was ocean view. I've never had that in my life. I spent three hours on the balcony just staring at the ocean, talking to God. My wife's like, "You going crazy?" I was like, "No, I'm praying." Because I like praying, I'm going to keep worshiping God, turn on music. And then I'm driving home on Store Road, my wife and I we weren't even talking. We were talking but not talking. As soon as I hit Store Road, I go, "Oh." Just angst, pain, ennui, the Russian word called toska, and you should look it up, T-O-S-K-A, toska. Tolstoy wrote about it, and Solzhenitsyn did. My soul was crushed. My wife is like, "What's happening to you? Can we go back to Maine?" I was like, "Please." Going honestly four hours. I had a brother who stopped by my place and he's like, he didn't say anything but he knew. And then three days later, he's like, "Yeah, you were just weird." It was like depressed, I was depressed. It's spiritual war, and it manifests itself where you can't say things. No, we're going to speak truth in Boston as it is in heaven. And we need to fight for that culture. Four is you're willing to eagerly repent when someone speaks truth to you. And you say, "Yeah, this is true. It's from the Holy Scriptures. I'm not lying. My life isn't in line with the scriptures." Verse two he says, "Make room in your hearts." For us, we've wronged no one, we've corrupted no one, we've taken advantage of no one. So before St. Paul, the great St. Paul starts poking around in other people's eyes to take our specs, he checks his own eyes. He looks at the Holy Scripture as a mirror and he said, "I got a log." Do I? If I got a spec. He says, "Show me where I'm wrong. Show me where I've sinned. Change my mind. I'm willing to repent." The false teachers accused him of lying, of being unreliable, because he didn't come for a visit. He couldn't control those things, he's not a sovereign. He's asking, "Did we sin against you?" He's saying, "I have a clear conscience to you." We don't believe, I don't believe in sinlessness. Only Jesus was sinless. So we don't believe in sinlessness, but we do believe as Christians in sinning less. As you grow in your faith, you are to be more sanctified. You are to grow in holiness. With day by day, a year goes by, you should be more holy then you were a year ago. And when people see you they should say, "What happened? You're different." Too many of you are managing sin, the same sin over and over. You commit the sin and then you go repent, you take communion, you go commit the sin. Just a cycle of wasted life, wasted talents, wasted zeal. My wife told me last week, she's like, "You're talking about holy war? There's people in the church who have not won the war over porn." Holy War. We'll win that war first, win that battle. I'm tired of pastors getting up and talking about, "Oh, we're so broken. Oh, yeah, we're so sinful," and talking about it with a defeatist spirit as if true freedom can't be experienced from a sin. Jesus Christ said, "If you struggle with sexual sin, cut off your arm and pluck out your eye." Savage. I'm going to write a book called Savage Jesus. And I'm saying that out loud just so no one steals the title. Stop. Stop sinning. Stop sinning. True freedom can be found, and it feels so much better than sin management. So we repent when we are called out? Jesus never repented so we can't look to him and say, "What does repentance look like?" But he did repent on our behalf. On the cross he said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." Meaning ignorance is not a defense against God. At the judgment, you can't say, "I didn't know." Because you know what Jesus says? It doesn't matter, you're still guilty, and you're still guilty because you didn't know. You didn't know. You did know that was a sin, you did know. And God knows that you know. So we are to repent, and we are to believe, and this is how we grow in the Christian life. We repent and we believe, we repent and we believe and we got blind spots brothers and sisters next to us. They tell us speak truth in love. The first of Martin Luther's 95 theses, he says this, "When our Lord and master Jesus Christ said repent, he will the entire life of believers be one of repentance." Real. That's your whole life. Every day repent, believe, repent, believe. What is repentance? How can we know that it's real repentance? How can we know that it's true, and can it be distinguished from its imitations? Yes. And that's what St. Paul continues. He says, "I'm willing to joyfully forgive," and that's point five, "because I know that this is a real, true repentance." Verse nine, "As it is, I rejoice not because you were grieved but because you were grieved into repenting. For you fairly Godly grieved so that you suffered no loss through us, for Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret. Whereas worldly grief produces death." Now he's differentiating, he's qualifying repentance. There's true repentance and there's false repentance. There's true repentance that starts with a Godly grief, and there's false repentance that starts with a worldly grief and it only ends in death. This one ends in salvation without regret. The reason why he needs to differentiate is because they look the same in the very beginning. In the early stages, it's hard to differentiate which one's real and which one isn't. Because they're sorrow. Both of them are grief. When you sin and you experience the consequences of that sin, you don't have to be a Christian to be miserable about messing up your life. You ask anyone in prison, if they're grieved, they'll tell you they're grieved at being there, at their situation. When the debts run up and the bills come in, and they can't be paid and bankruptcy looms. Played around with a sin, all of a sudden you got addicted to it, and it seems like you can't live without it. You're unmarried and there's a baby on the way. Words are spoken and there's no taking them back. Marital infidelity, the damage is done, you try to rebuild but things will never be as they were completely before. A lie was told, found out, theft, impure. Whatever the sin, troubled pain, heartbreak, grief and sorrow follow in the wake. And tears flow, self-accusation, emotional wounds, but the question is, are you convicted of the sin? Is it grief over the sin or is it grief over being exposed? Worldly grief is what people will experience at the judgment. It's when you're weeping and gnashing of teeth as they're sent to hell. That's grief. It's not Godly grief. You feel bad for yourself. You feel bad that you've sinned against yourself. You don't feel bad that you've sinned against God. You're not grieved that you grieved God. You're grieved that you're grieving. Issa, the Scripture says saw repentance with tears and never found. Judas Iscariot, three years with Jesus Christ, and then finally he realizes what he did. It's not real repentance. Peter and David, they weren't just sorry that they got caught, Peter and David were sorry that they sinned against the Holy God. And St. Paul does this, and I think he does this intentionally because I've seen him do it before. Before he gets to the word that he really wants to use, repentance, he uses a word that's very similar to it but it's very different. Verse eight, "For even if I made you grieve with my letter, I do not regret it though I did regret it. For I see that letter grieved you, though not only for a while." The line between heaven and hell is the line between remorse and repentance. Regret, remorse, you feel sad on account of how things ended up. If you got on a time machine, you went back, you might change things. But it's my bad, I shouldn't have done that, it's my mistake. That's remorse. And it doesn't matter how deep your remorse, if it doesn't turn into repentance, it's not going to do anything. Matthew 27:3-5, the story of Judas, "Then when Judas his betrayer saw that Jesus was condemned, he changed his mind and brought back the 30 pieces of silver to the chief priests and the others saying, "I've sinned by betraying innocent blood. I've sinned. I've sinned." They said, "What is that to us? See to it yourself." And throwing down the pieces of silver into the temple, he departed and he went hanged himself. "I've sinned. I've changed my mind. I shouldn't have done that." And he didn't repent to Jesus Christ for betraying him. He could have and Jesus would have forgiven him. 2nd Corinthians 7:9, "As it is, I rejoice, not because you are grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. You were grieved into repenting for you felt a Godly grief so that you suffered no loss through us." Repent. This is metanoia. Turning around, it's a change of mind that leads to a change of heart. And the change of mind, change of heart leads to a change of life. You change how you live. Your pattern of life changes. The things you do change. Luke 22:54-62, Peter who denied Jesus shows us what true repentance looks like. "Then they seized him and led him away, bringing him into the high priest's house and Peter was following at a distance. They had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl seeing him as he sat in the light, and looking closely at him said, "This man also was with him." But he denied it saying, "Woman, I do not know him." And a little later, someone else saw him and said, "You also are one of them." But Peter said, "Man, I am not." And after an interval of about an hour, still another insisted saying, "Certainly this man also was with him for he too is a Galilean." But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you're talking about." And immediately as he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter, and Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, "Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times. He went out and wept bitterly." Judas was grieved over the fact that he sinned. Period. Peter, as he was sitting, looks and sees the eyes of Jesus Christ looking at him, blood, sweat, tears, crown of thorns. He realized that he didn't just sin, he sinned against Christ. That's true repentance. "God, I'm sorry, I've sinned against you. I grieve over the fact that I've sinned against you. I grieve over the fact that I've grieved your heart." Sin isn't just breaking commandment, sin is breaking the heart of God. "Yes, I shouldn't have but I did. I repent." There's no lawyering up, there's no self-justification. We've sinned against God. Our sin doesn't just offend God, it pierces God. Zechariah 12:10, "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy so that when they look on me, on whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly for him as one weeps over a firstborn." So when caught in sin, repent to Jesus, for your sin against Jesus. And even better, repent before getting caught. And better yet, mortify your sin. When repenting, repent with the spirit of King David who when the prophet comes and the prophet Nathan comes to him and convicts him of sin, David repents. Psalm 51:1-4, "Have mercy on me oh God, according to your steadfast love, according to your abundant mercy. Blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly for my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin, for I know my transgressions and my sin is ever before me against you. You only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment." Against you only. He sinned against Bathsheba, he sinned against Uriah, but he said, "Yeah, I've sinned against them, but the most egregious sin, the reason why I sinned against them is because I already sinned against you." That's where true repentance starts. Jesus Christ told us to mourn over our sin, that it's a blessing. Matthew 5:3-4, "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted." Verse 11, "For see what earnestness this Godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves with indignation, with fear, with longing, with zeal, with punishment. At every point you've proved yourself innocent in the matter. Remorse led to true repentance and true repentance leads to reconciliation, restoration, relationship with God and relationship with people. This is why repentance leads to action. Westminster Shorter Catechism defines repentance like this. What is repentance unto life? Repentance unto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner out of a true sense of his sin, an apprehension of the mercy of God and Christ does with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God. Full purpose endeavor after new obedience. True repentance, "And God forgive me, and God I'm yours. How do you want me to live? What do you want me to change? It leads to a change of life. And St. Paul, I just love his heart. They've hurt him, they've hurt God, but when he hears about their repentance, the first thing, he doesn't gloat, he's not like, "I told you so. You wicked sinners." They repent and he's like, "Come on. You're back in the family. You're back in the house. We'll make room for you." When people repent, we don't gloat. Just like God doesn't gloat. God is so willing to forgive. God is standing at the door and he's waiting. He's waiting for the prodigals to come home. He's right there. And Scripture says that there's more joy in heaven over the repentance of one sinner than over 99 who are no need of repentance. The fact that God rejoices when we repent should make us eager to repent. Six says, "You know you love someone when you're comforted by them. When just their presence brings you comfort, that's when you know you really love them. 2nd Corinthians 7:12-16, "So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God." I'll deal with that verse. "Therefore, we are comforted, and besides our own comfort, we rejoice still more the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all, for whatever boast I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as everything we said to you was true, so also our boasting for Titus has proved true, and his affection for you is even greater as he remembers the obedience of you all and how you received him with fear and trembling. I rejoice because I have complete confidence in you." He's saying, I didn't write just because of the one who did the wrong, that's the man who committed an incestuous relationship with his dad's wife. I'm not writing just because of the man that was wronged and suffered the wrongness of his dad. He said, "I wrote so that you would change." The culture of the church would change. And when they repented, he rejoices with those who rejoice, he takes comfort in them, delight from them just like God does in us. 2nd Corinthians 7:6, "But God who comforts the downcast comforted us by the coming of Titus." And point seven is you know you love someone when you die or live with them. 2nd Corinthians 7:3, "I do not say this to condemn you, for I said before that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together." What a strange way to talk to Christians. Have you ever talked to a Christian like this? We're ride or die. He spent 18 months with them. I would die with you and I'd live with you. There's some people I would die for, living with? Oh. It's like die and live. And he starts with die to show us how deadly serious he is. He's saying, "I'm not condemning you, we're family, we're brothers and sisters." And this is really the heart of the whole text. Every other verse is just a layer of the onion. Paul never lost confidence of the fact that they were Christians, and they proved Paul right. He says, "You're already in our hearts, and we know that we are in your heart as well. We saw that from your repentance." This is what he does in verse 12. "So although I wrote to you, it wasn't for the sake of the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God." He's saying, I wrote those hard things not just to deal with a particular situation, I wrote it so that you see just how much you love the family of God already. You've made room for us. Continue to do so. We're already in your hearts, just like you are in our hearts. What he says is, "Live together and die together." He uses that language so flippantly because he's like, "It doesn't matter." We're going to spend eternity together, brothers and sisters so we might as well start getting along now. You will spend eternity with people who got vaccinated and you will spend eternity with people who did not. If you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior, repent of your sins, then you will say at the family table. You will have dinner together for all of eternity. If you don't believe in Jesus, you will spend eternity in hell, which is just like COVID but for eternity. The COVID tension, you know that? That's what hell is. Quarantine here and isolation, that's hell. So trust in Jesus. That's my simplest way of contextualizing the gospel. So since we're on the topic, my wife has three trigger words that turn off her mind. COVID, vaccine and masks. As soon as she hears them, mind off. It's just like something trips and that's it. So I'm going to say a few things right now that will be hard to hear for two reasons that I see. The first reason is the sensitivity of the topic, the second is the simplicity of the analysis. Sensitivity of the topic. People have died. People have lost and people have suffered. I know I've lived through it. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't talk about a hard topic, so don't let the sensitivity of the topic check you out right now. Keep listening, please. And the simplicity of the analysis, I'm going to tell you words that you've heard before. And perhaps it's just the order of the words just slightly different and I don't want you to miss the profundity of the concept because the words are so simple. "Pastor Jan, why did you mention the politically charged topic that you did two weeks ago? Emotionally charged topic? Why did you mention? You usually don't." That's right. I usually don't. Because the things we deal with here are so much more important. Whenever something out there happens, just love each other, love God. Make sure you're going to heaven. But this thing is different. This thing is different because it's not going away. I waited, and I waited and I waited, and I was like, "A vaccine is going to come and we're stuffed. It's going." It's not. Because we have been so caught up in the details of our disrupted lives in the last 20 months, we perhaps have not understood the historical significance of what we have lived through. We have just lived through one of the greatest turning points in all of world history. Climactic. Things have changed. We're talking about the before times, and the new normal. Like an epoch has changed. We're talking about the New World Order. This one's different, and you say, "What about love, Jesus, simple? Isn't that what we focus on?" This has everything to do with love, Jesus, simple because the battle right now, the battle is being waged over the definition of love itself, of what it means to love, of what it means to be a loving person. That's under question right now. Jesus Christ gave us the great commandment, he said, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind and love your neighbor as yourself." I see my neighbor is hurting. You say, "But Pastor Jan, the reason I got the vaccine is because this is how I love God and how I love my neighbor." So should you. See, the first part I don't have issue with. That first part, you did the risk analysis. You got informed, educated, and this is how you choose to love yourself and how you choose to love your neighbor. It's a conscience issue. Okay, great. We're in the family of God together, that's... The very second you say, "So should you," you have entered different territory. You are adding rules to the commandment of God. It's called legalism. It's what the Pharisees did. Jesus Christ didn't tell me to love my neighbor as you love your neighbor, or as you love yourself. Jesus Christ didn't tell me, "Love my neighbor as the government tells me to love my neighbor. CDC, WHO, Fauci, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Moderna." Jesus Christ told me to love my neighbor as I love whom? Love your neighbor as you love whom? Say it together, yourself. Well, that one word changes things. As you love yourself. So I put myself in the shoes of the person in my community group, she has antibodies. But she's being forced to get injected to keep her job, her livelihood. And I said, "Would I want to be put in that situation? No, I would not." And God forbid if the church ever put me in that situation. I'd have two questions, the first to myself, "Jan, why didn't you lead better? Why didn't you have the hard conversation? How did we get here?" And I'd ask, "Lord, is this a sign that I need to go plant a new church in Idaho, on a volcano with an airstrip, or Florida? Make America Florida again. Or Russia, that last bastion of freedom?" I just want to share my heart. And I know I'm an outlier here, I know, but just bear with me for just a little bit. I see out there creation of two classes, and I can't change that out there. I can't. I see it creeping in here. That's what concerns me. Point to one time in world history that this has been done, the creation of two classes and it hasn't led to bloodshed. The Nazis had their Untermensch, the underclass, the inferior people, Jews, gypsies, slobs, Black people, and people with physical disabilities, political prisoners. You're subhuman, you're not even human. And then there's the Übermensch, that's what it means to be a true human. That's what a loving human being is. Now we're living through, "Get the vaccine, enjoy society. Don't get it, but if you don't get it, it's your fault." Phrase, the pandemic of the unvaccinated? You're creating scapegoats and I know how this ends. I've seen this movie before. Two classes clean, unclean, obedient, stubborn, in, out, righteous, unrighteous, good, evil, loving, hateful. I know, I know. I'm one of the only people in the nation whose doing this. I was on a marriage retreat, 70 pastors and their wives. That was Monday. Tuesday we have breakfast, we have breakfast. All the pastors are in one room, all the pastor's wives are in the other room. And it's Q&A. "I got a Q&A, all right, I'll go." So I go. I sit in the back. I always sit in the back. I know I'm weird, and I start talking and people are like, "This guy is weird. What's he talking about?" I just know. There's not many rooms I walk into I'm like, "All right. I belong." I'm just weird. So I walk in and I sit in the back, I'm drinking my coffee, and the head guy comes up to me. He's like, "Hey, Jan, I want you to sit in the front. I got three seats up there and I want the room to look a little more full, so would you please sit there?" I hate when people do that. I never do that to anybody. Whatever. I respect the guy, I go to the front, I sit down, there's question and answer. "How do you lead your wife? How do you love your wife?" I'm like, "You guys are all pastors. Just love her. Talk about Scripture together. pray together, eat good food together. Have fun together. Tell her a joke. Make her laugh. That works." I'm sitting there, I'm like, "All right." Okay, now we're half an hour in, we got another half an hour to go, people stop asking questions. And I'm like, "All right, I got nothing else to do." And I said, "Are all questions allowed?" They're like, "Sure." The guy who was leading is from Brooklyn, the guy who was ahead of church planting here in Greater Boston, and the guy who's a megachurch pastor in Georgia, those were the three guys. First guy says, "Oh, here's my question." I said, "How do you minister to people in your church who are getting fired from their jobs for not getting the vaccine, and the religious exemption isn't accepted?" First guy says, "Religious exemption? I didn't know we have two different religions." I know. What he's saying is, Christians don't even ask this question, because the loving thing to do is to get the vaccine. In his mind, this isn't even a category. It's like these Christians aren't even welcome to the conversation. The second guy said, "I have never even thought about that." The third guy said, "We just decided not to give out religious exemptions." I know. I'm one of the only people that's ringing the bell. Do you realize what is happening here? This is an ungodly worldly sentiment that's creeping. There's churches. I used to deeply respect these pastors. On their website it says, "We have seating arrangements. On the first floor, it's for vaccinated people. For everyone else, you can sit over there." Okay, verses in James that says not to do that. What concerns me is this ungodly sentiment creeping in here where there's people in the church and I hear things, walk around asking, "Are you vaccinated so I know whether I can hug you?" No, no, no, get that out of here. Do what the rest of us do. We don't hug. We awkward fist bomb just like, "Yeah, I'll hug you with my eyes." Do that. Don't bring... I don't check for vaccination status at the door of my house. I don't do that. I'll close with this. I was at another pastors meeting this week in Truman Temple, and they had chicken and rice guys, it was so good. And they had trays of food, really, really good. And so I heaping plate, annihilated it, and then see there's more food. I'm like, "Which tray am I taking home?" But they didn't do that. But they gave us styrofoam little things that you can take food home, so I pile it up. And just I'm pumped, I'm bringing food home for my girls. How do you love your wife? You bring food home. Hunters and gatherers. So I'm walking down the street, walking Park Street into the T, and as I'm on Park Street there's a gentleman sitting there in front of the Park Street, and he says, "Do you have money?" "I don't have cash." I wish he had a sign with those little Venmo. I wanted to give him that tip. Then he looked at, he's like, "Food. Give me your food." I was like, "All right." I gave it to him. He opens it up, and he says, "My man." It looked that good. And then I walk into the T and I have so much joy on my heart and I'm thinking, "Why do I have so much joy?" It's not because I did this thing because it wasn't my food, it was just like, God. And I was like, it hit me, "He treated me like a human being not as a disease carrier." He looked at me and he said, "You're a human being. I'm a human being, you got food, can I have some?" "Yeah, okay." That's love. That's love. That's what it means to love each other. You see the humanity in the person. And this is my fear, it's only lasted 20 months. We stopped seeing the humanity in each other. We stopped loving each other the way Jesus called us. In the church of God, it's a family and there's no partiality. There's no prejudice, there's no discrimination. It doesn't matter what you look like, it doesn't matter how you dress, it doesn't matter how you smell, it doesn't matter where you're from, it doesn't matter to me your vaccination status, I will love you either way. And also you're not made righteous through your vaccine, you're not made righteous through not getting vax. So this spirit of judgmentalism, of classifying in your mind who are the right Christians and who are the wrong Christians, no, no. We're made righteous by the blood of Jesus Christ. His blood gives us immunity from Satan, sin and death. Have you repented to Jesus Christ? Well, welcome to the family. "I'd live with the family," St. Paul says, "I'd die with the family." Jesus lived with the family, died for his family. He makes room for us. Have you made room for him and have you made room in your hearts for those whom he has accepted, even if their perspective is different than yours? Make room in your hearts for us just like Jesus made room in his heart for you. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for this word. We thank you for the fact that in this church we can have hard conversations because we love each other and we want to make room for more people here. Holy Spirit continue to use us in that. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen.

Everyone knows the name Billy Graham, but we gain some great insights into facets of life and faith by being more familiar with his story. At least that is how Stephen and I felt after reading more about him. Stephen Burnett joins us again for an absolutely fantastic discussion on Doth Protest Too Much.Episode shownotes:The title of this episode is actually taken not from Graham but from the words of the Rt. Rev. Phillips Brooks in a quote found at this link: https://gracequotes.org/quote/every-true-prayer-has-its-background-and-its-foreground-the-foreground-of-prayer-is-the-intense-immediate-desire-for-a-certain-blessing-which-seems-to-be-absolutely-necessary-for-the-soul-to-have-t/Larry King's full interview of New Year's interview of Billy Graham (12/31/1999) that Andrew references can be found at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTnLk6-QhgIStephen and Andrew make references to the following books in this episode:*Billy Graham. Just As I  Am: The Autobiography of Billy Graham. Harper One, 2011. *Greg Laurie. Billy Graham: The Man I Knew. Salem Books, 2021. Podcast shirts are for sale athttps://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/23843715-doth-protest-too-much-t-shirt?store_id=854252Money made from sales by Doth Protest Too Much will be donated to the Institute of Lutheran Theology for their continued mission and formation of pastors and scholars. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Welcome to the Study of God Podcast. This is episode #75 I am your host, Daniel Whyte III, president of Gospel Light Society International. This podcast is designed to give you a basic understanding of God, the Bible, and Christian beliefs. J. Dwight Pentecost said, "There is no higher activity in which the mind may be engaged than the pursuit of the knowledge of God." Let's start out reading the Word of God Itself. Today's passage of Scripture is Jeremiah 24:7 which reads: "And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart." Today's words from a theologian are from Phillips Brooks. He said: “.The solution to sin is not to impose an ever-stricter code of behavior. It is to know God.” Our topic for today is titled "Theology of Paul (Part 10)" from "The Moody Handbook of Theology" by Dr. Paul Enns.

Genre: Poetry, Free Poetry, Best Poems of All Time, Free Audiobooks, Audiobooks Best Free Audiobooks of All Time: Collection of the Best Poetry of All Time Authors, Poets: Robert Frost, Carl Sandburg, Paul Dunbar, Caroline Mason, Phillips Brooks, Stephen Vincent Benet, Conrad Aiken, Ben Johnson, Matthew Arnold, John Hall Wheelock Other Languages: استمع إلى أفضل الكتب الصوتية المجانية في كل العصور সর্বকালের সেরা ফ্রি অডিওবুকগুলি শুনুন 聆听有史以来最好的免费有声读物 Écoutez les meilleurs livres audio gratuits de tous les temps Hören Sie sich die besten kostenlosen Hörbücher aller Zeiten an ऑल टाइम के बेस्ट फ्री ऑडियोबुक को सुनें Dengarkan Buku Audio Gratis Terbaik Sepanjang Masa Ascolta i migliori audiolibri gratuiti di tutti i tempi 史上最高の無料オーディオブックを聴く 역대 최고의 무료 오디오 북 듣기 Dengarkan Buku Audio Percuma Terbaik Sepanjang Masa به بهترین کتابهای صوتی رایگان همه زمان ها گوش دهید Posłuchaj najlepszych darmowych audiobooków wszechczasów Ouça os melhores audiolivros gratuitos de todos os tempos ਸਰਵਉਤਮ ਸਮੇਂ ਦੀ ਸਰਬੋਤਮ ਮੁਫਤ ਆਡੀਓ ਕਿਤਾਬਾਂ ਸੁਣੋ Ascultați cele mai bune cărți audio gratuite din toate timpurile Слушайте лучшие бесплатные аудиокниги всех времен Escuche los mejores audiolibros gratuitos de todos los tiempos Sikiliza Vitabu vya Usikivu Bora vya Wakati wote Lyssna på de bästa gratis ljudböckerna genom tiderna எல்லா நேரத்திலும் சிறந்த இலவச ஆடியோபுக்குகளைக் கேளுங்கள் ฟังหนังสือเสียงฟรีที่ดีที่สุดตลอดกาล Tüm Zamanların En İyi Ücretsiz Sesli Kitaplarını Dinleyin Слухайте найкращі безкоштовні аудіокниги всіх часів ہر وقت کی بہترین مفت آڈیو کتابیں سنیں Nghe sách nói miễn phí hay nhất mọi thời đại Poslechněte si nejlepší bezplatné audioknihy všech dob Lytt til de beste gratis lydbøkene gjennom tidene ସର୍ବକାଳୀନ ସର୍ବୋତ୍ତମ ମାଗଣା ଅଡିଓ ବୁକ୍ ଶୁଣନ୍ତୁ | എക്കാലത്തെയും മികച്ച സ Audio ജന്യ ഓഡിയോബുക്കുകൾ ശ്രദ്ധിക്കുക Vypočujte si najlepšie bezplatné audioknihy všetkých čias Poslušajte najboljše brezplačne avdio knjige vseh časov Ouça os melhores audiolivros gratuitos de todos os tempos Ascultați cele mai bune cărți audio gratuite din toate timpurile --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/henry-gindt/support

REFLECTION QUOTES “The Son of God became man so that men might become sons of God.” ~Athanasius, 4th century church leader and Bishop of Alexandria “If Jesus didn't come, the story of Christmas is one more moral paradigm to crush you. If Jesus didn't come, I wouldn't want to be anywhere around these Christmas stories that say we need to be sacrificing, we need to be humble, we need to be loving. All that will do is crush you into the ground, because if it isn't true that John saw Him, heard Him, felt Him, that Jesus really came to do these things, then Christmas is depressing.” ~Tim Keller, Author and retired pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church New York City “O little town of Bethlehem how still we see thee lie. Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by. Yet in thy dark street shineth, the everlasting light. The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.” ~Phillips Brooks, 19th century minister and author of the Christmas hymn “O Little Town of Bethlehem” “If the genealogy of Jesus comes as a stinging rebuke to human pride, it can also come to us as a gentle solace to whatever we have experienced at the hands of human devastation and dysfunction.” ~Scotty Smith founding pastor of Christ Community Church of Franklin, TN “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before Him.” ~1 Corinthians 1:27-29 SERMON PASSAGE Matthew 1:1-16 (ESV) 1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. 12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

Thanks for praying and worshiping with me today. As always, our Scripture readings and general order come from the Book of Common Prayer (1979) Daily Office. In the Church calendar, it is Christmas Eve. We'll begin with "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Phillips Brooks and weave it throughout. Our Scripture Reading is Luke 1: 26-38. After the Apostles' Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Collect of the Day, we'll sing a bit more (it's Christmas, after all!). Photograph by me :) If you have a prayer request please submit it at https://benwardmusic.com/prayerrequest. If you'd like to be on the email list visit https://benwardmusic.com/email. I have a brand new Christmas Album! https://benwardmusic.bandcamp.com/album/one-voice-one-guitar-one-holy-night Visit https://patreon.com/morningprayer to give and support Morning Prayer!

Thanks for praying and worshiping with me today. As always, our Scripture readings and general order come from the Book of Common Prayer (1979) Daily Office. In the Church calendar, it is Christmas Eve. We'll begin with "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Phillips Brooks and weave it throughout. Our Scripture Reading is Luke 1: 26-38. After the Apostles' Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Collect of the Day, we'll sing a bit more (it's Christmas, after all!). Photograph by me :) If you have a prayer request please submit it at https://benwardmusic.com/prayerrequest. If you'd like to be on the email list visit https://benwardmusic.com/email. I have a brand new Christmas Album! https://benwardmusic.bandcamp.com/album/one-voice-one-guitar-one-holy-night Visit https://patreon.com/morningprayer to give and support Morning Prayer! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/prayerandworship/message

Tonight’s gospel reading begins with three very important words: In those days!  “In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.”  As we think about this treasured story, I am going to say something that just may shatter some of your preconceived notions.  I must tell you, there is no historical evidence that this decree, as told by Luke, ever took place.  And, unless there is something we do not know, the writer of Luke’s gospel also seems to be incorrect about Quirinius or Herod the Great or both because traditional dating of the birth of Jesus would locate it during the reigns of neither Herod the Great nor Quirinius.  So, what is going on here?  Well, Luke is not interested in giving an historical account of Jesus’ birth because he is interested in proclaiming a much deeper truth! Luke gives us this information, not as history, but as a theological work to tell the story of One who has come into this world to change and quite literally shatter the status quo.  Luke’s gospel, more than any of the other gospels, addresses the social, cultural, and political environment. So, Luke gives us this information as a way of setting the political and social context for the coming appearance of this One we call Jesus and the astonishing, awesome arrival of a brand-new world. Luke begins with “In those days…” as he depicts a time of census taking and taxes, a time of authoritative orders and pronouncements, a time shaped by business as usual in a world organized by accepted oppressive power structures, a world where those in power work to maintain the tired and hopeless status quo. The setting of Luke’s version of the Jesus story begins in the context of manifest political power, a context that, quite frankly, describes almost any time in history.  Luke names the status quo way political, economic, and social forces shape our lives and our minds and our hearts to the point where we think that is the only reality. You see, that is the story of the world, that is the human story, the story of our human predicament.  That is the story of “in those days.” Yes, this gospel begins by naming the story of the status quo, tired and hopeless, business as usual human predicament of “in those days.,” so that we can begin to grasp the earth-shattering news that is announced about “This day…!”  You see, a new time, a whole new age, has entered the world on “this day…” in the most unexpected way – in the form of a small, vulnerable baby.  And, this new time is characterized not by the drudgery of business as usual or the threat of imperial power, but by the inbreaking of the heavenly realm, the wonder of the songs of angels, and the “good news of great joy for all people!”  For “this day” has a political dimension; this new time is a direct challenge to the imperial world of “in those days.”  There is a new Savior, a title formerly reserved only for the emperor.  And, this new Savior comes in the form of a vulnerable baby, as God is birthing a whole new creation.  This new day brings the extraordinary wonder of God becoming flesh – Immanuel, God with us.  Can you now begin to grasp the magnitude of this earth-shattering news?  Friends, on this night, the news we receive is astounding, and we dare not forget the scandal and magnitude of this news, news of both the cradle and the cross.  We dare not be lulled by our culture’s attempts to sentimentalize Christmas. We all do it and to be honest, it even happens in the church. Think for a moment about how our own hymnody conspires to tame this festival day into something more palatable and more feel good. Consider the opening of the beloved carol O Little Town of Bethlehem. “O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie.” Lovely words from Phillips Brooks.  But, if we think about the tumultuous history of the Middle East, imagining Bethlehem as peaceful more expresses a longing than a historical reality. And what about Away In A Manger telling us, “The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes, but little Lord Jesus no crying he makes?” No crying? Any nurse or doctor would call that a zero on the Apgar score and would start resuscitation attempts immediately. Seriously, while we need these images to help us ponder the wonder and mystery of this night, they also soften and sentimentalize the scandal and earth-shattering nature of Christmas.  Between sentimentality, emotional burdens, the pain so many are presently feeling, and unrealistic cultural expectations, perhaps we need this child of God to shake up what we have made of Christmas.  Friends, the reality is we come together this night to pay honor to our God who subversively came to change everything!  And, how does God create this earth-shattering disruption?  By bringing unconditional, transformational love to the world. This subversive God snuck into the back door of history on a mission to truly disrupt and change the world by turning our lives inside out and upside down with a love that truly changes us, a love that can transform everything and everyone. Coming as one of us – vulnerable, poor, and powerless – he came to upend the world as we have constructed it by bringing love into the world, a love the world would otherwise have never known. He came to shatter our selfishness and narcissism, so that we might be able to love God and others. He came to shatter our fear of death, so that we might be able to live more fully and freely in this life. He came to shatter and change the political systems that choose who is in and who is out, so that we might embrace a wider vision the human family and discover that God’s family includes all people. He came to shatter our tendency of tribalism, something we presently see pushed to the extreme as it pits one group against another. He came to change our economy of values to build a different one based on valuing the eternal and life that truly matters. He came to shatter the old regimes of “in those days,” and bring in a whole new regime. Yes, he came to shatter every structure we try to build which puts us first at the expense of everyone else.  He came to change us, and he calls us to follow him. This is no small thing. For 2000 plus years, people have gathered to mark the birth of Christ as God’s subversive way of dwelling among us.  Tonight, as we gather in the darkness of this pandemic, even if our gathering is online, we gather to celebrate this subversive God and mark a vision of the kingdom of God unfolding right here in our midst.  And we do this because to you is born this day a Savior, who is the Messiah, Christ the Lord.  May the wonder and mystery of this holy child disrupt and change your life, and bring you renewed hope not only on this day, but on every day as we move forward into yet another year.  And, may the grace and love of this child be planted in your heart so that you may more deeply come to know how immeasurably you are loved by the God of all creation!

'Twas the night before Christmas....what surprises are in store for children across town as they await this special holiday? Extension activities:“A Visit from St Nicholas” BY CLEMENT CLARKE MOORE (portions of the poem) were read today. Focus on the vivid descriptions of St. Nicholas (or Santa Claus). Write a poem with imagery that describes someone interesting! 2. Listen to the Christmas carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem” by Phillips Brooks (1835-1893). Draw or paint your own scene of the manger!3. The following scriptures were read in this episode from the Bible: Luke 2:1-20 (NIV)Isaiah 9:2,6 (NIV)Micah 5:2 (ICB)Talk about why the themes of “bread” and “light” might be important in the Christmas story! 4. Research the Norse traditions of Yule and listen to our previous episode on Leif Erikson and the Vikings! 5. Listen to the “Thanksgiving” episode for a story about the Pilgrims! (One of the reasons they left England had to do with not wanting to celebrate Christmas!) Sources:https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmashttps://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43171/a-visit-from-st-nicholashttps://www.britannica.com/topic/Christmas

Thanks for praying and worshiping with me today. As always, our Scripture readings and general order come from the Book of Common Prayer (1979) Daily Office. In the Church calendar, it is Christmas Eve. We’ll begin with “O Little Town of Bethlehem” by Phillips Brooks and weave it throughout. Our Scripture Reading is Luke 1: 26-38. After the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Collect of the Day, we’ll sing a bit more (it’s Christmas, after all!). Photograph by me If you have a prayer request please submit it at http://benwardmusic.com/prayerrequest. If you’d like to be on the email list visit http://benwardmusic.com/email. I have a brand new Christmas Album! https://benwardmusic.bandcamp.com/album/one-voice-one-guitar-one-holy-night Visit https://patreon.com/morningprayer to give and support Morning Prayer!

Phillips Brooks was the minister of Holy Trinity Church in Philadelphia and visited Bethlehem in December of 1865.   When Pastor Brooks traveled to the Holy Land, the journey included a horseback ride from Jerusalem to Bethlehem on Christmas Eve. Back then, it truly was a small village, far removed from the bustling city it would later become. By nightfall he was in the field where, according to tradition, the shepherds heard the angelic announcement. Then he attended the Christmas Eve service at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.   Years later, the pastor recalled that first visit to the place of Jesus’ birth. “I remember especially on Christmas Eve, when I was standing in the old church in Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with the splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices I knew well, telling each other of the ‘wonderful night’ of the Savior’s birth.”   He wrote a poem about his experience, asking the church organist to set it to music for the children’s choir to sing at Christmas time.   O little town of Bethlehem How still we see thee lie Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting Light The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight   Let’s pray.   Dear Lord, what a gift we were given long ago in the form of baby Jesus. The birth of our Savior in a small town stable changed everything, and we are so grateful for His legacy of hope. Help us to focus on the true reason for this season of celebration. Amen.

For a little treat we've uploaded the entire Lessons & Carols service for your listening pleasure. Fr. Alex's sermon was short and sweet and you can skip ahead to the 0:58:30 mark if you'd rather just hear his words. RSVP for our in-person Christmas Eve service: https://www.servantsanglican.org/reopening Learn more about us: https://linktr.ee/servantsanglican https://www.servantsanglican.org/ Song Credits "O Day of Peace" by Carol Daws & Josh Garrels. (c)2016 Josh Garrels Small Voice LLC "Drive Out the Darkness" by Dan Marotta, John Swinton, Isaac Wardell & Paul Zach. (c)2020 Integrity Worship Music "O Worship the King" by Robert Grant, Johann Michael Haydn, Wendell Kimbrough. (c)2012 Wendell Kimbrough "All Creatures of Our God and King" by Francis of Assisi, David Crowder, William Henry Draper & Brent Milligan. (c)2002 Moon and Musky Music, sixsteps Music, worshiptogether.com songs, (c)2003 Sparrow Records "Come Ye Sinners" by Bruce Benedict, Joseph Hart. (c) 1759 Public Domain "Comfort, Oh Comfort" by Caroline Cobb. (c)2020 Sing the Story Music "Come Light Our Hearts" by Sandra McCracken. (c)2014 Drink Your Tea Music "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" by John Mason Neale. Public Domain "O Little Town of Bethlehem" by Phillips Brooks. Public Domain "Oh Righteous Branch" by Caroline Cobb. (c)2020 Sing the Story Music "Joy to the World" by Isaac Watts. Public Domain "Mary's Arms" by Sandra McCracken. (c)2019 Integrity Worship Music, Paper News Publishing "Come Thou Long-Expected Jesus" by Katy Bowser, J. Wilbur Chapman, Charles Wesley. (c)1744, 1910 Public Domain, (c)2015 Velveteen Songs

In today's podcast John Ourensma joins us and closes our time by singing the carol. O Little Town of Bethlehem was written by Phillips Brooks in 1868.

Episode 84: Real Life Story--Phillips Brooks

“No ear may hear His coming, but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in.” Those words from Phillips Brooks’ much-loved hymn, “O Little Town of Bethlehem” point to the very heart of Christmas. Jesus came into our broken world to rescue us from our sin and give all who would put their faith in Him a new and vital relationship with God. In a letter to a friend decades after he wrote the hymn, Brooks poignantly described the outcome of this relationship in his own life: “I cannot tell you how personal this grows to me. He is here. He knows me and I know Him. It is no figure of speech. It is the realest thing in the world, and every day makes it realer. And one wonders with delight what it will grow to as the years go on.” Brooks’ calm assurance of God’s presence in his life reflects one of the names of Jesus prophesied by Isaiah: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). The gospel of Matthew gives us the meaning of the Hebrew name Immanuel: “God with us” (1:23). God drew near to us through Jesus so we could know Him personally and be with Him forever. His loving presence with us is the greatest gift of all.

We consider the year 1647 and the death of the “father of Connecticut,” Thomas Hooker. The reading is from "Tomb thou shalt not hold Him longer" by Phillips Brooks. — FULL TRANSCRIPTS available: https://www.1517.org/podcasts/the-christian-history-almanac GIVE BACK: Support the work of 1517 today CONTACT: CHA@1517.org SUBSCRIBE: Apple Podcasts Spotify Stitcher Overcast Google Play FOLLOW US: Facebook Twitter Audio production by Christopher Gillespie (gillespie.media)

Using a prayer by Phillips Brooks. Rev. Elissa Johnk First Congregational Church of Burlington

Daily devotional offering for 1/23/2020 Acts 7:57-58 Phillips Brooks, Archive Meditation

Scott talks about how he's gotten better at "issue-spotting" and addressing communication gaps with his school and board, as well as how he uses his training as an ordained minister.

11:08: "O Little Town of Bethlehem" is a popular Christmas carol. The text was written by Phillips Brooks (1835–1893), an Episcopal priest, then rector of Church of the Holy Trinity, Philadelphia and later of Trinity Church, Boston. He was inspired by visiting the village of Bethlehem in the Sanjak of Jerusalem in 1865. Three years later, he wrote the poem for his church, and his organist Lewis Redner (1831-1908) added the music. (WikiPedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_Little_Town_of_Bethlehem)

In this episode, Gina shares with listeners a post from Leo Babauta: "How to Work With Whatever Come Up". A core part of the message is that there is value (if not outright magic!) in dropping into the discomfort of anxiety-panic rather than running away from it. Staying with the discomfort is a way to avoid feeding the fear that ultimately strengthens anxiety-panic. Leo Babauta's post at Zen Habits: https://zenhabits.net/always/ To learn more go to: http://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program  What is anxiety? Quote: Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle. -Phillips Brooks

In this episode, Gina shares with listeners a post from Leo Babauta: "How to Work With Whatever Come Up".  A core part of the message is that there is value (if not outright magic!) in dropping into the discomfort of anxiety-panic rather than running away from it.  Staying with the discomfort is a way to avoid feeding the fear that ultimately strengthens anxiety-panic. Leo Babauta's post at Zen Habits: https://zenhabits.net/always/ To learn more go to: http://www.theanxietycoachespodcast.com Join our Group Coaching Full or Mini Membership Program  What is anxiety? Quote: Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle. -Phillips Brooks

Cancer is a very difficult subject, especially when you or someone you know gets diagnosed with it. If you’re diagnosed, how would you go about telling your friends? What kind of help should you be asking for? How do you explain to your kids? For myself personally, it had been an incredibly difficult subject to approach. My mother passed away from cancer in 2010 and only recently I’ve been able to be more open to talking about hers and my experience. Talking about cancer simply sucks out all the air in the room and can make conversations extremely awkward. Many people avoid talking about their own cancer because they don’t want to be “pitied,” nor do they want to be viewed as simply a “host” of cancer. And for friends of people with cancer, its equally difficult to maneuver. Its not something you talk about everyday—so how do you respond? You might want to offer condolences, but it often comes off as trite and/or insincere. It might even sound like you’re more interested in the cancer than the person, which plays exactly into what the patient is afraid of. If you avoid talking about cancer, then it becomes an 800 lb gorilla and you risk coming off like you don’t care about the patient’s well-being at all. So where can we strike a good balance, and how can we support our loved ones if a family member gets diagnosed? To help us answer these questions, I’ve invited Jessica Buscho (twitter: @TenaciousJess, Instagram: @Tenacious_Jess) onto the show. She’s a friend of mine and probably top 20 when it comes to the most healthy, active, people I know. Last year, she was diagnosed with stage IV colorectal cancer. So today we’ll be catching up on life, running, volunteering, early 2000’s emo music, and being outdoors. We then talk about her cancer diagnosis and how she’s had to adjust her life. We conclude by talking about things we can all do to support our loved ones and what we can do to prevent cancer and to spread awareness. Please remember to rate and review the show wherever you get your podcasts to help others find our show. And as always, Stay Intelligent! If you’re interested in learning more about colorectal Cancer, please visit the Colorectal Cancer Alliance located at https://www.ccalliance.org/. There you can learn all about colorectal cancer, how you can get screened, and how you can support the cause. You can even rent a giant inflatable colon for corporate events to raise awareness. You gotta check it out, if nothing else but to see what a giant inflatable colon even looks like.  An as an additional note, the actual quote I had in mind was: “Don’t pray for easy lives, pray to be stronger men.” It was indeed uttered by JFK. Of course, he wasn’t the only one to say that. Similar quotes have been attributed to other figures, including 19th century bishop Phillips Brooks and even Bruce Lee. External Links http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=9548  https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Phillips_Brooks https://www.brucelee.com/podcast-blog/2017/10/25/69-the-easy-life  https://www.ccalliance.org/ https://www.everykidinapark.gov https://www.nps.gov/planyourvisit/passes.htm https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/the-running-blog/2017/may/12/dean-karnazes-ultramarathoner-ancient-greek-spartathlon

“In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.”  Now, as we begin to ponder this cherished and treasured story, I am going to say something that just may shatter all your preconceived notions about this reading.  I must tell you, there is no historical evidence that this census, as told by the writer of Luke’s gospel, ever took place.  And, furthermore, unless there is something we do not know, the writer of Luke’s gospel also seems to be incorrect about Quirinius or Herod or both because the traditional dating of the birth of Jesus would locate it during the reigns of neither Herod the Great nor Quirinius.  So, what is going on here?  Well, Luke is not interested in giving us an accurate historical account of Jesus’ birth because he is interested in proclaiming a much deeper truth, a truth that is full of wonder and awe.   Luke gives us this information, not as history, but as a theological work to tell the story of One who has come into this world to change and quite literally shatter the status quo.  The writer of Luke’s gospel gives us this information as a way of setting the political and social context for the appearance of this One we call Jesus and the astonishing, awesome arrival of a brand-new world. The story begins, “In those days…”  It begins by denoting a time of census taking and taxes, a time of authoritative orders and pronouncements.  Luke begins by telling of a time shaped by business as usual in a world that is organized by accepted oppressive power structures, a world where those in power work to maintain the tired and hopeless status quo.  Luke begins by telling about manifest Roman political power, the power of empire and the political elite.  Luke begins by naming the way political, economic and social forces shape our lives and minds and hearts to the point where we think that is the only reality.  That is the story of the world, that is the human story, the story of our human predicament.  That is the story of “in those days.” The writer of Luke’s gospel begins telling the story of the status quo, tired and hopeless, business as usual human predicament “in those days.,” so that we can begin to grasp the earth shattering, awe inspiring, news that is announced about “This day…!”  You see, a new time, a whole new age, has entered the world on “this day…” in the form of a small, vulnerable baby.  And, this new time is characterized not by the drudgery of business as usual or the threat of imperial power, but by the inbreaking of the heavenly realm, the wonder of the songs of angels, and the “good news of great joy for all people!”  Quite honestly, from the viewpoint of the emperor – the viewpoint of the “powers that be” – the good news of what has happened on this day may even be treasonous.  For “this day” has a political dimension; this new time is a direct challenge to the imperial world of “in those days.”  There is a new Savior, a title formerly reserved only for the emperor.  And, this new Savior comes in the form of a vulnerable little baby, as God is birthing a whole new creation.  In the ordinary birth of a vulnerable baby, comes the extraordinary wonder of God becoming flesh – Immanuel, God with us.  Can you now begin to grasp the wonder and magnitude of this earth shattering news?  On this night, the news we receive is earth shattering and scandalous.  We dare not forget the scandal and magnitude of this earth shattering news, the news of both the cradle and the cross.  We dare not be lulled by our culture’s attempts to sentimentalize Christmas. We all do it and to be honest, it even happens in the church. Think for a moment about how our own hymnody conspires to tame this festival day into something more palatable and … dare we even say … nice. Consider the opening of the beloved carol O Little Town of Bethlehem, “O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie.” Lovely words from Phillips Brooks.  But, if we think about the tumultuous history of the Middle East, imagining Bethlehem as peaceful more expresses a longing than an historical reality. And what about Away In A Manger telling us, “The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes, but little Lord Jesus no crying he makes?” No crying? Any nurse or doctor would call that a zero on the Apgar score and would start resuscitation attempts immediately. Seriously, while we need these images to help us ponder the wonder and mystery of this night, they also may just be conspiring to sentimentalize the scandal and earth shattering nature of Christmas.  Between sentimentality, emotional burdens, and unrealistic cultural expectations, perhaps we need this child of God to shatter and shake up what we’ve made of Christmas.  In fact, we need to really listen to the words and fury of the song the choir just sang: This little Babe so few days old, is come to rifle Satan’s fold; All hell doth at his presence quake, though he himself for cold do shake; For in his weak unarmed wise the gates of hell he will surprise.   The reality is we come together this night to pay honor to the One who subversively came to shatter and change everything!  This child’s birth was the plan of a subversive God who snuck into the back door of history on a mission to truly change the world, to truly change creation. Coming as one of us – vulnerable, poor, and powerless – he came to upend the world as we have constructed it. He came to shatter our selfishness and narcissism, so that we might be able to love God and others and to receive that love in return. He came to shatter our fear of death, so that we might be able to live more fully and freely in this life. He came to shatter and change the political systems which choose who is in and who is out, so that all of God’s children would be included in the kingdom. He came to shatter our tendency of tribalism, pitting one group against another. He came to change our economy of values to build a different one based on valuing the eternal rather than things that pass away. He came to change our ideas of family to embrace a wider vision of God’s family, which includes all people, not just the ones like us. He came to shatter the old regimes of “in those days,” and bring in a whole new regime. Yes, he came to shatter every structure we try to build which puts us first at the expense of everyone else.  He came to change us and he calls us to follow in his path. This is no small thing. For 2000 plus years, people have come together to mark the birth of Christ as God’s subversive way of dwelling among us, shattering our preconceived notions and changing everything for the sake of bringing about something greater than we could ask for or imagine.  Tonight, we come together to celebrate this subversive God and mark a vision of the kingdom of God unfolding right here in our midst.  And we do this because to you is born this day a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.  May the wonder and mystery of this holy child shatter, disrupt and change your life, and bring you renewed hope on this day, so that the grace of God might be planted in your heart and you may more deeply come to know Christ’s love.   

                         WELCOME WHOLE WIDE WORLD                                  A prayer, in it's simplest                               definition is merely a wish                                  turned heavenward.   Phillips Brooks               HAPPY NEW YEAR.  BLESSINGS AND SHALOM ONE AND ALL SEE YA HERE, AS THE LORD WILLS, IN THIS GLORIOUS NEW YEAR EVANGELIST LACEY KAY GREEN www.laceykayministries.org    REMEMBER TO PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF JERUSALEM, WIDOWS ORPHANS                            NEW  YEAR  NEW  BEGINNINGS  

Phillips Brooks was a renowned preacher, but in the days of America's Civil War, the fire of was extinguishing in his soul.  However, a trip to Bethlehem kindled the fire long missing.  Hear his story in this episode!

Continue to explore the dangers of humor in preaching. We should not be the only one in the house laughing or crying. Consider that some stories need time before you can tell them in public. We should NEVER make our family, especially our spouses, the butt of the joke. We can make ourselves one, but not our family. We should almost never end a sermon with humor. Explore the value of humor in preaching. Humor can be used as a social lubricant. People who laugh together are drawn together. Humor can be an emotional experience. Humor can be used as a test to see how closely the audience is listening. Thielicke recognized that “laughter is always a form of engagement.” Humor can show that “I am like you”. It shows that we do not have a messianic complex. Humor can also be a means to attack other ideas. Many presidents have been attacked in sermons, as well as other politicians. Even after Lincoln’s death a Rev. Stimson asked, “What was a decent person doing in the theatre?” On the subject of politicians it has been remarked, “We already have the best politicians money can buy.” Humor has been used on other denominations. Humor is also used against other religions or philosophies. “Phillips Brooks was sick and all were barred from seeing him. The famous atheist Ingersoll, however was admitted. When Ingersoll asked why, Brooks said ‘well I feel confident of seeing my other friends in the next world but this might be my last chance to see you.’” Some non-Christian ideas on humor include that slavery was often the butt of jokes in the North and pacifists have often joked about the value of war. Warren W. Wiersbe and David Wiersbe state in “The Elements of Preaching: The Art of Biblical Preaching Clearly and Simply Presented”, “In the pulpit, humor must be either a tool to build with or a weapon to fight with, but never a toy to play with. We have thirty minutes in which to raise the dead. We have no time for toys.”

Continue to explore the topic of humor in church history. Helmut Thielicke enjoyed “the blessed seasons of ‘Easter laughter’ in the church,” recognizing that ‘laughter is always a form of engagement.’ Peter Cartwright preached at camp meetings and humor was often used to gather a crowd. He stated, “Our divinity don’t need no doctorin.” Sam Jones stated, “I would rather be in heaven learning my ABCs than in Hell reading Greek.” Charles Finney was blessed with a keen sense of humor and had a constant struggle to confine it to proper occasions. D. L. Moody spoke to more people than any other person of his lifetime. Tickets were often needed to get in because the crowds were so great. Often the first few sermons of a series were filled with humor to attract crowds. Much of this humor is not caught in his written sermons. Henry Ward Beecher’s wit and humor appeared in his preaching, which, nevertheless, was earnest and edifying, and revealed a great character, sincere and reverent; his public prayers in particular were truly devotional. Humor is mentioned a number of times in the lectures, both positively and negatively. Phillips Brooks states, “There are passages in the Bible which are soiled forever by the touch of ministers who delight in cheap and easy jokes.” Yet Brooks did have a place for humor in the pulpit. Broadus warns that any calculated effort to be humorous can be deadly. Kelman stated “an awful doom awaits that preacher who allows his sense of humor to master him.” Reinhold Niebuhr stated, “Humor is, in fact, a prelude to faith.” Charles Reynolds Brown stated, “Any preacher who proclaims that he has no sense of humor is hopeless.” Tucker admits that “the humor of one preacher may be as reverent as the solemnity of another.” Consider the topic of humor today. Consider a story recounted by Billy Graham. View a short clip of Martin Luther King relating a humorous story. View a short humorous segment of a sermon by W. A. Criswell. Consider a story recounted by Dr. D. James Kennedy. Consider the dangers of humor in preaching. We should not force humor. It should happen naturally or come from the story. What are the listener’s expectations? Some feel or have been taught that church is no place for humor. We should not tell jokes because people have already heard them. We should not let jokes replace arguments. We should not be inappropriate. There is a fine line and it is different with different audiences, yet humor must be appropriate.

Brad Sullivan Ash Wednesday, Year C February 10, 2016 Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, Bay City, TX Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 Feasting On Reconciliation 19th century Anglican priest and famous preacher, Phillips Brooks, gave a sermon entitled, Nature and Circumstance, in which he preached about Jesus’ teachings on greatness and the two worlds in which we find ourselves: the world of men, and the world of the kingdom of God. In this sermon, he wrote about Nicodemus questioning Jesus’ teaching that men must be born again to enter the kingdom of God. Father Brooks said: “Nicodemus wanted Christ to meet him in a lower world, a world of moral precepts and Hebrew traditions, where the Pharisee was thoroughly at home. But Christ said, ‘No, there is a higher world; you must go up there; you must enter into that; you must have a new birth and live in a new life,-in a life where God is loved and known and trusted and communed with.” - Phillips Brooks, Sermons: Nature and Circumstance Jesus brought to his followers a realization of these two worlds in which we live, and he continually encouraged his followers not to be satisfied with the things of the world of men, but continually to strive for greater things of the kingdom of God. Jesus taught in our Gospel reading today, “Beware of practicing your piety before others,” and instead “pray in secret so that your heavenly Father who sees in secret will reward you.” Through the prophet Isaiah, God taught that he does not desire the religious fasts of the kingdom of men, but desires fasts from human strife and discord. Fast from the ways you harm each other and feast on justice, mercy, reconciliation, and love. Feast on Jesus and the ways of the kingdom of God. We see in Jesus’ teachings about fasting and prayer, a collision of worlds. The people were living in the world of their religion, a good world, in which they were seeking to fulfill their religious duty and to be good men. Jesus was, however, trying to pull his people up to a higher world, to his kingdom in which they deeply encounter God and therefore deeply love each other. In the lower world of religious practice, much of what was done made little difference in the world or even in the self. Much of religious practice in Jesus’ day dealt with ritual purity. Follow a set of religious rules, and you’ll be righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, those practices don’t matter. As Jesus taught concerning ritual hand-washing before eating a meal, ritual cleanliness before God doesn’t really matter in the kingdom of God. The cleanliness of our heats is what matters in God’s kingdom. In our context of Lent, ritual fasting can be a very helpful tool toward opening our hearts to God’s way for our life. The fasting itself, however, does not make one righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, Jesus makes us righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom drawing near to God through Jesus is the way of life. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, believing in Jesus, his teachings and ways, and faithfully seeking to love others as he loves them is our way of life and the feast he would choose for us. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, then, our fasting would be to fast from whatever hinders us from drawing near to God, to fast from whatever hinders us from believing in Jesus, to fast from whatever hinders us from following in Jesus’ ways, and to fast from whatever hinders us from loving others as he loves us. Fast from whatever is keeping you from reconciling with another. Fast from whatever keeps you from prayer. Fast from whatever keeps you from seeking justice, loving mercy, and respecting the dignity of every human being. In the kingdom of men, we get to judge one another and proclaim our righteousness by comparing ourselves to those we see as less righteous around us. That was the trap of the Pharisees. In the kingdom of God, however, we are freed from this trap. As Bishop Doyle writes, “Christians are free to follow their conscience and are free from the burden of judging or changing others. Christians are prohibited from indicting and sentencing those who are different because of the freedom we have in Christ Jesus.” Jesus frees us from making ourselves righteous by noticing the speck in someone else’s eye. Instead, Jesus loves us, even with the log in our eye, makes us righteous through him, and frees us, thereby, not to judge the other but to love and serve the other. Jesus frees us from the trap of the world of men and allows us to live in the kingdom of God. I invite you all, therefore into a holy Lent. I invite you to seek the higher world of Jesus’ kingdom. I invite you to fast during this season, to fast from anything that keeps you from reconciliation and love. I invite you to repent of the ways that keep you from living Jesus’ kingdom. Finally, I invite you to feast on Jesus during this season of Lent. Feast on his forgiveness and love. Feast on his reconciliation and healing. Feast on his ways and his presence. God bless you. God loves you. Amen.

Brad Sullivan Ash Wednesday, Year C February 10, 2016 Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, Bay City, TX Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 Feasting On Reconciliation 19th century Anglican priest and famous preacher, Phillips Brooks, gave a sermon entitled, Nature and Circumstance, in which he preached about Jesus’ teachings on greatness and the two worlds in which we find ourselves: the world of men, and the world of the kingdom of God. In this sermon, he wrote about Nicodemus questioning Jesus’ teaching that men must be born again to enter the kingdom of God. Father Brooks said: “Nicodemus wanted Christ to meet him in a lower world, a world of moral precepts and Hebrew traditions, where the Pharisee was thoroughly at home. But Christ said, ‘No, there is a higher world; you must go up there; you must enter into that; you must have a new birth and live in a new life,-in a life where God is loved and known and trusted and communed with.” - Phillips Brooks, Sermons: Nature and Circumstance Jesus brought to his followers a realization of these two worlds in which we live, and he continually encouraged his followers not to be satisfied with the things of the world of men, but continually to strive for greater things of the kingdom of God. Jesus taught in our Gospel reading today, “Beware of practicing your piety before others,” and instead “pray in secret so that your heavenly Father who sees in secret will reward you.” Through the prophet Isaiah, God taught that he does not desire the religious fasts of the kingdom of men, but desires fasts from human strife and discord. Fast from the ways you harm each other and feast on justice, mercy, reconciliation, and love. Feast on Jesus and the ways of the kingdom of God. We see in Jesus’ teachings about fasting and prayer, a collision of worlds. The people were living in the world of their religion, a good world, in which they were seeking to fulfill their religious duty and to be good men. Jesus was, however, trying to pull his people up to a higher world, to his kingdom in which they deeply encounter God and therefore deeply love each other. In the lower world of religious practice, much of what was done made little difference in the world or even in the self. Much of religious practice in Jesus’ day dealt with ritual purity. Follow a set of religious rules, and you’ll be righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, those practices don’t matter. As Jesus taught concerning ritual hand-washing before eating a meal, ritual cleanliness before God doesn’t really matter in the kingdom of God. The cleanliness of our heats is what matters in God’s kingdom. In our context of Lent, ritual fasting can be a very helpful tool toward opening our hearts to God’s way for our life. The fasting itself, however, does not make one righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, Jesus makes us righteous before God. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom drawing near to God through Jesus is the way of life. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, believing in Jesus, his teachings and ways, and faithfully seeking to love others as he loves them is our way of life and the feast he would choose for us. In the higher realm of God’s kingdom, then, our fasting would be to fast from whatever hinders us from drawing near to God, to fast from whatever hinders us from believing in Jesus, to fast from whatever hinders us from following in Jesus’ ways, and to fast from whatever hinders us from loving others as he loves us. Fast from whatever is keeping you from reconciling with another. Fast from whatever keeps you from prayer. Fast from whatever keeps you from seeking justice, loving mercy, and respecting the dignity of every human being. In the kingdom of men, we get to judge one another and proclaim our righteousness by comparing ourselves to those we see as less righteous around us. That was the trap of the Pharisees. In the kingdom of God, however, we are freed from this trap. As Bishop Doyle writes, “Christians are free to follow their conscience and are free from the burden of judging or changing others. Christians are prohibited from indicting and sentencing those who are different because of the freedom we have in Christ Jesus.” Jesus frees us from making ourselves righteous by noticing the speck in someone else’s eye. Instead, Jesus loves us, even with the log in our eye, makes us righteous through him, and frees us, thereby, not to judge the other but to love and serve the other. Jesus frees us from the trap of the world of men and allows us to live in the kingdom of God. I invite you all, therefore into a holy Lent. I invite you to seek the higher world of Jesus’ kingdom. I invite you to fast during this season, to fast from anything that keeps you from reconciliation and love. I invite you to repent of the ways that keep you from living Jesus’ kingdom. Finally, I invite you to feast on Jesus during this season of Lent. Feast on his forgiveness and love. Feast on his reconciliation and healing. Feast on his ways and his presence. God bless you. God loves you. Amen.

What does the Christmas story teach us about God? Why did He come to a "Nowhere" place? And why did He come to "Nobody" people? And why did He come as an unnoticed treasure? Phillips Brooks wondered the same thing and wrote a beautiful poem while reminiscing about his Christmas Eve experience in Bethlehem. What can we learn from this song?

In Christ, the Word of God, we have received grace upon grace. The undeserved gift of grace brings gratitude, and this transforms life.