Church of the City New York

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson closed out our Advent series, To Us a Son is Given, with a teaching on Jesus as the Son of God and the true story of Christmas. Jesus’ life fulfilled the prophecies about the Messiah, His ministry was marked by power and the miraculous, and even His suffering on the cross revealed His divine nature. This is the cornerstone of the Christmas story, that God’s one and only Son took on flesh and came to earth to be with His people.

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Advent Series with a teaching on Jesus as the Son of Man. During the Christmas season, we often tell stories of hearts changing for the better, but what does it take for a heart to truly change? In our teaching text from Matthew’s gospel, two disciples’ mother ask Jesus to grant them seats of honor in His kingdom, but Jesus disrupts their understanding of greatness, servanthood, and sacrifice by showing them the path to true greatness—through hearts that are changed through humility.

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Lindsey Arcaro

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk kicked off our Advent series, “To Us a Son is Given” by calling us to reflect on two questions over the next few weeks leading up to Christmas Day: What kind of Son has been given to us? What is His name? Pastor Suzy invited us to consider one of Jesus’ prophetic names, the “Son of David,” and how it highlights Jesus’ ministry of mercy.

Click here if you would like to partner with us and give to Living the Liturgy this year.

Welcome to Church of the City New York's Advent Devotionals.

Jesus was good news in the first century, and He is still good news today.

One of the most iconic passages read during the Advent season comes from Isaiah 9, where the Prophet proclaims the light has dawned for those living in darkness, a child will be born, and a son will be given, the Messiah, who will bring peace with God and with mankind by ruling on David's throne. We hope that during this season everyone listening will gain a renewed desire to walk in intimacy with Jesus and to boldly proclaim the story of God's Son to others.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This week, pastor Tim Brown closed out our Formed series with a message on the importance of multiplication laid out in the Great Commission (Matthew 28), in which Jesus tells His disciples to go and make more disciples, baptizing them in His name, and teaching them to obey His Word. This encompasses Jesus’ plan for His Gospel spreading on the earth, and is a call to action for all believers still today. 

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Formed series with a teaching on participation, challenging us to move beyond head knowledge and into the active, daily practice of discipleship. It is only through proactive participation in our discipleship that we can overcome the massive gap between mere resonance towards teaching and active obedience. By living with intentionality—abiding with God, joining in His work, and contending for His will on earth— we can find true rest, health for our souls, and an eternal identity.

Click here if you would like to partner with us and give to Living the Liturgy this year.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Formed series with a teaching on vivification. Vivification is the process by which the Holy Spirit imparts new spiritual life to a believer, animating them with the life of Christ and empowering them to live in obedience, faith, and love. It's the positive aspect of sanctification, where the individual is not only turning away from sin (mortification) but is also being energized and renewed to live a life of righteousness and holiness. As Christians, we want to build an inner world that can handle the pressure of anything happening in the outer world.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Formed series with a teaching on mortification, the practice of subduing one’s sinful impulses, desires, and passions to grow closer to God and lead a life of holiness. Mortifying our sin is not self-hatred, but rather an embrace of God’s love that purges impurity through the conscious denial of sin, the deliberate restraint of the flesh, and the nurturing of one’s spirit to align more closely with the will of God.

This week, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our series on being Formed into the image of Christ with a teaching on affliction. Affliction is suffering that we undergo, often not of our own volition, but that the Holy Spirit can use to further His purposes in this world. The Bible tells us that while suffering is an inevitable part of this life, Jesus also suffered greatly for us so that we would not have to suffer forever. The goal of this life is to be transformed into the image of Jesus, the Suffering Servant, we need to understand not only the concept of affliction, but how to respond to it.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, with a teaching on the doctrine of sanctification. Sanctification is the ongoing process by which believers, through the work of the Holy Spirit, are progressively transformed into the likeness of Christ (Titus 2:11-12). God faithfully sanctifies His people because He wants us to reach our full potential in Jesus.

This Sunday, guest teacher, Pastor Guy Mason from City on a Hill church in Australia, continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, and explored the doctrine of regeneration as outlined in Ephesians 2. By believing in Jesus, we are made alive through Him; the Holy Spirit takes what is decaying and breathes new life into our spiritual deadness. This renewal fulfills our deep hunger for true life—significance, peace, and belonging—which can only be satisfied in Christ.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, with a teaching on the doctrine of justification and being made righteous before God. The reality is that there is nothing we can do to justify ourselves or make ourselves holy. We are unable to perfectly follow the law, and therefore unable to earn our own righteousness. Only by faith in Jesus Christ can we receive the righteousness He won for us, and freely come before the Father.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, with a teaching on how the act of confessing Jesus is Lord and believing in His resurrection in our hearts forms the foundation of salvation for Christians. Pastor Jon unpacked the heart of the Gospel story and its profound implications for our lives today. The Gospel reconnects us with the God we were made for, explains the beauty and brokenness of the human story, deals with the deep problems of sin that we cannot solve ourselves, and gives us hope for the future. Our salvation allows us to be formed in Christ's image, and live our lives in a way that brings the Kingdom of God into this world.

This Sunday, we had the opportunity to hear from guest teacher, Mark Sayers, with a teaching out of Revelation 3 on how to become a pillar for God despite living in a "platform society”, and our culture’s need for spiritual revival.

This Sunday, Pastor Tim Brown continued our Fall sermon series, Formed, an exploration of the key doctrines surrounding a believer’s transformation from being dead in sin to being alive and formed in the image of Christ, with a teaching on election. This has been considered one of the most controversial and unsettling doctrines of the Christian faith, but Pastor Tim’s goal was to present the Scriptures with clarity, and allow his teaching to orient us around what God says instead of human opinion. Being rooted in truth, he encouraged us to go forth and seek God on this topic for more understanding.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson kicked off our Fall sermon series, Formed, where we will be journeying through the key stages of a believer’s transformation process from dead in their sin to being formed into the image of Christ and sent out as His image-bearers. We are all being formed in one way or another into someone, and Pastor Jon called us to begin this season by leaning into intentional, not accidental, formation in the way of Jesus. Out of His love for us, Christ invites us into a life long journey of being transformed into His image by His power, not our own.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson closed out our Come & See series with Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11 to come to Him. After spending a whole Summer unpacking the seven I AM statements of Jesus and the signs He performed to back up His claims in the Gospel of John, Pastor Jon extended Jesus’ call to come and receive everything our souls need in Him. In a world full of pressure and exhaustion, Jesus is the only one who truly cares for our souls, offering us true rest and satisfaction at His table of grace and mercy.

This Sunday Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Summer sermon series on the words and deeds of Jesus in John’s Gospel with a teaching on the ultimate sign Jesus preformed, His Resurrection. In John 2, Jesus declares that He is the new temple, meaning He is the new primary way for people to access God. It is only through belief in His words and following Him that we can have a relationship with God and spend eternity with Him. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus demonstrates that He has full authority over life and death and is the only way to true, eternal life.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Come & See sermon series with a teaching from John 11 on Jesus’ sixth miraculous sign — raising Lazarus from the dead. Similar to Lazarus’ story, we are deeply loved by Jesus, but spiritually dead and unable to save ourselves. Yet, Jesus was willing to die for us and save us from our sins and transgressions. By hearing and receiving the good news of salvation, we, as children of God, are brought back to life in Christ. Just like Lazarus, our new lives in Christ become our defining characteristic and should ultimately point to glorifying God. When troubles arise in the world we live in, we can rest in Jesus’ loving presence, knowing that we are deeply loved by the God of all creation who has conquered the grave.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Come & See series by teaching through the healing of the man born blind in John 9. We live in a world obsessed with trying to see things rightly. From identity and sexuality, to justice and sustainability, humanity has looked to all forms of science, religion, and psychology to explain the world around us and the longings inside us, but everything seems to come up short. In this story, we see Jesus claim to be the light of the world, the only one able to give the sight we are longing for.

This Sunday, Pastor Tim Brown continued our Come & See series with a teaching on Jesus’ feeding of the 5,000 in John 6. This sign concludes with Jesus declaring, “I am the bread of life,” emphasizing that Jesus does not only provide physical nourishment, but offers eternal, spiritual sustenance. While all other sources of fulfillment will ultimately fail, His true bread provides lasting satisfaction.

This Sunday, Pastor Ralph Castillo continued our Come & See sermon series with a teaching on Jesus’ healing of a nobleman’s son in John 4. The story of this sign hinges on steps of faith taken by a desperate father as he moves from despair to hope, seeking a sign to seeking Jesus, and finally from unbelief to belief. Breaking down the nobleman’s journey, Pastor Ralph encouraged us that no matter the circumstances we find ourselves in, there is always an invitation before us to take a step of faith.

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Come & See series by teaching on John 5:1-18, where Jesus heals a man at the pool of Bethesda. This controversial sign is still relevant in our world today, and calls us to ask the question, who has the authority and the ability to bring healing to humanity? Whether it’s physical healing, healing of our hearts, or healing in the world around us, we don’t have to earn it on our own strength or efforts. Jesus calls us to surrender to Him, receive His healing, and join in His mission to restore the broken world.

This Sunday, Pastor Keithen Schwahn brought us into part two of our "Come & See" sermon series with a teaching from John 2:1-12 on Jesus’ first miraculous sign—turning water into wine. Reinforcing the first half of the “Come & See” series, anchored in what Jesus said about Himself through His seven “I am” statements, the second half of this series focuses on what Jesus did by considering His seven miraculous signs as recorded in the Book of John. Though the hour of His death had not yet come, Pastor Keithen called us to consider that Jesus was looking beyond the present moment to His own wedding in eternity, and the price that would have to be paid for that celebration to come to pass. Jesus gives this sign to give a glimpse of the joy, union, and abundance offered to all who will believe in Him.

This Sunday morning, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our “Come and See” sermon series with a teaching out of John 11 on Jesus’ declaration, “I am the Resurrection and the Life.” As Christians, we can stand firm on this central claim of the Christian faith, knowing that we no longer have to fear judgment because judgment already happened on the cross. We don’t have to fear death because of Christ’s resurrection. We can experience a taste of the life and peace that Jesus promises us now, and join God in the renewal and healing of shalom in the world today.

Listen to Church of the City New York's first live album, Where He's Wanted, on all streaming platforms Friday, June 28th.

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This week, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our “Come and See” sermon series by teaching on Jesus as the Good Shepherd out of John 10:1-42. With this statement, Jesus directly references the prophecy that there will be a coming Messiah who will lead God’s people and that God Himself will shepherd them. In doing so, Jesus not only claims to be the best leader, but God Himself, demanding a response to either reject Him as a crazy man or follow Him as a sheep into the fold of God. 

This week, Pastor Ashley Anderson continued our “Come and See” sermon series by teaching on Jesus as the door in John 10:1-10. Jesus makes a radical claim to be the only entry point through which all people can access God and experience abundant life through Him.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Come & See sermon Series with a teaching on Jesus’ I AM statement, “I am the light of the world” out of John 7 and 8. Each of Jesus’ I AM claims were incredibly radical for the original audience, and because we live in a world where light is a resource readily available to us, we can easily miss the weight Jesus’ words should still carry for us today. Jesus calls us to believe that He is the true source of light and to follow Him into whole life discipleship. When we walk in step with Jesus, we are able to possess His light, be transformed into children of light, and share in being the light of the world with our Savior. 

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our new Come & See series with a teaching on Jesus’ first “I AM” statement, “I am the bread of life.” Jesus has shaped history and radically transformed lives, but our modern understanding of Him often leaves us bored and disinterested. The Christian religion has been reduced to following rules and restraining desire, but following Jesus is meant to be a life of passion, freedom, and deep satisfaction.

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson and Pastor Suzy Silk wrapped up our sermon series on Controversial Faith with a Q&A to answer some of the common questions and objections skeptics and seekers have regarding Jesus, the Scriptures, and living as a Christian in our modern world. Pastor Jon framed this time with 1 Peter 3:15-16, and claimed it is more important than ever for Christians to deal with their controversial faith.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Controversial Faith series with a teaching on Biblical sexuality. We live in sexually confusing and chaotic times, and as we begin to examine the effects the secular sexual ethic has on individuals and our culture at large, instead of flourishing, we find decay, pain, and brokenness. However, we are called to honor God with our bodies by faithfully stewarding our sexuality, because we were bought with a price, and one day we will be with Christ forever in a soul satisfying union that is a fulfillment of every desire we’ve ever had.

Additional resources:

Making Sense of the Church: Marriage - Jon Tyson

Listen

The Controversial Jesus: Sexual Formation - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

The Controversial Jesus: Jesus and the Gay Community - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

The Controversial Jesus: Jesus, Gender, and the Trans Community - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

This Sunday Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Controversial Faith series by asking the question: How can a good God allow evil and suffering in the world? The tension between the sovereignty of God and the realities of suffering often hold people back from experiencing and accepting the person of Jesus, or eventually drive people away from Him. In an effort to address this problem of pain, Pastor Suzy laid out five reasons not to turn away from Jesus when faced with evil and suffering.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our series on Controversial Faith with a message on how we, as Christians, should engage with politics. As people of God, we can participate in politics with eschatological hope and humble conviction instead of despair. Ultimately, we pray, vote, protest, and practice principled pluralism because we know the solution to the problem of politics in our modern world: declaring Jesus is Lord.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our series on Controversial Faith with a teaching on why we can trust the Bible. Translated into 698 languages, the Bible is the best-selling and most influential book in world history, and is worth reading based on these merits alone. Pastor Suzy then provided context on why the Bible is different from all other books through analyzing the genre and style, the authorship and preservation, and how we should respond to reading the text as followers of Jesus.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our new series on Controversial Faith by addressing Jesus’ scandalous exclusivity. The claim, “Jesus is Lord”, has been highly contested throughout history, and it is no different today. However, as His followers, we must acknowledge our own sinfulness, lead with with gentleness and respect when sharing our beliefs, and be willing to be misunderstood as we publicly witness about Jesus Christ, the only name that can save.

This Easter Sunday, Pastor Jon taught about how we come to believe in the resurrection from the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus from Luke 24. Believing in the resurrection of Jesus is a key belief for salvation, and the Apostle Paul goes so far as to say that if Christ has not been raised from the dead, then our faith is useless and futile. Pastor Jon laid out the three things it takes to believe in Jesus’ resurrection: evaluating the historical facts, gaining a theological understanding, and having a personal encounter with the person of Christ.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk closed out our sermon series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on envy. A prohibition against coveting, or envy, is included in the Ten Commandments, because it is a slippery slope that begins in our thoughts and quickly leads to death. Holy Week reminds us that Jesus Himself demonstrated costly trust and costly obedience in the Father’s plans for Him, and costly love towards even those who took part in His death. We can choose to turn away from envy because we have the better thing—the presence of Jesus, now and forever.

This Sunday, Pastor Ralph Castillo continued our Lenten series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on pride. Our current culture has a way of turning vices into virtues and praising disordered loves, making it difficult to identify pride, and can result in practicing righteousness as a way of being seen and honored by others. However, when we choose the way of humility, and practice our righteousness in secret, we recieve the better reward because the Father Himself is rewarding us.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Lenten series over the Seven Deadly Sins by exploring the often unnoticed dangers of sloth. Originally, the Desert Father’s understanding of sloth was less akin to laziness and more in line with acedia: spiritual resistance to spiritual progress. As followers of Jesus, we must push back against the spirit of acedia through the power we have received in the Holy Spirit and make every effort to persevere in our faith.

This Sunday, Pastor Tim Brown unpacked the destructive power of wrath as part of our Lenten series on the Seven Deadly Sins. Anger often signals us to something that is wrong or unjust, but when we express our anger through violence or scorn, we lose God’s heart for ourselves and for others, and allow wrath to rage in our lives. However, Jesus calls us to confess anger like the sin that it is, and follow Him in the way of mercy, that freely forgives.

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our sermons series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on the destructive power of lust, and how Jesus calls us to become people of love and integrity in Him. Although we can lust over things like money and power, in Matthew 5, Jesus addresses lust in the context of strong sexual desire. Pastor Jon urged us to consider that walking in the way of Jesus includes pursuing a counter-cultural sexual formation.

This week, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our sermon series on the Seven Deadly Sins with a teaching on gluttony versus living a Spirit-filled life. We often end up over-consuming when we seek comfort and pleasure outside of intimacy with God. However, the Lord longs to satisfy our deepest desires with Himself, and calls us to a life full of His Spirit.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson closed out our Leverage series with a teaching on leveraging our money for the Kingdom and how we should have a vision for giving. Developing a vision and theology of giving is essential to our spiritual maturity and discipleship. We need a Godward view of giving, remembering that all we have has been given to us by God and is His to do with as He pleases.

If you want to get in touch with Pastor Jon to learn more about being a Gospel patron, please reach out at [email protected].

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Leverage series with a teaching on leveraging our love and the importance of an “undivided heart” from Psalm 86. There will always be a temptation to withhold part of our heart from God, but we were created to remain in His love. When we humble ourselves to learn how to fear His name and rely on His faithfulness, God promises to change our hearts to bear enduring fruit connected to Christ. 

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our January sermon series, Leverage, with a teaching on how we can leverage our time for the glory of God. While the modern world is riddled with deceptive mindsets and mechanisms created to steal and waste our time, God calls us to be conscious stewards of our time, and aim to live in our current seasons with the knowledge and hope of our future in eternity with Him.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our January teaching series, Leverage, with a teaching on leveraging our spiritual gifts for the Kingdom of God. We are each given one life, but often don’t know how to live in ways that are honoring to God. We might end up wasting, or wrongly using our lives, but as followers of Jesus, we can actually live a life fully pleasing to the Lord.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our January sermon series, Leverage, which is centered on the idea of living a life free of regret and fully leveraged for the Kingdom of God. Regret is a distinctly human feeling, and Pastor Jon laid out how regret happens, the real life consequences that cause regret, how we can avoid regret, and how regret can be redeemed as we move into 2024.

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Lindsey Arcaro

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This week, Pastor Suzy Silk continued our Advent series, Resound, with a teaching on Mary’s Song recorded in Luke. The accounts of the Christmas story given in Luke’s Gospel are intentionally noted as eye witness accounts, establishing the story of Jesus’ birth as historical fact, not fable or fiction. His approach invites us to receive the Good News of the birth of the Messiah, as true, and respond as Mary did, with great joy.

We invite you to prayerfully consider practicing the way of generosity through financial giving to the Living the Liturgy offering at church.nyc/give.

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Isle'r

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

In this week’s message, Pastor Jon Tyson led us through Zechariah’s song, found in Luke 1:57-80, that broke forth after Zechariah and Elizabeth received their promised, long awaited son. Zechariah and Elizabeth serve as examples of waiting well, a discipline that receives little regard in our world of instant gratification. By attuning our thoughts to the Lord, worshiping Him together with preemptive praise, and spending time in the promises of His Word, we can follow their example of waiting with hope.

We invite you to prayerfully consider practicing the way of generosity through financial giving to the Living the Liturgy offering at church.nyc/give.

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Emily Lindquist

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This week, Pastor Suzy Silk began our Advent series with a message from Luke 2:25-35, which recounts Simeon’s encounter with baby Jesus in the temple. Through his faithfulness to the Lord, despite so many years of waiting, Simeon was finally able to see not only his personal prayers answered, but also recognize the greater picture of God’s redemption of the world through Jesus.

We invite you to prayerfully consider practicing the way of generosity through financial giving to the Living the Liturgy offering at church.nyc/give.

Welcome to Church of the City New York’s Advent Devotionals. 

Jesus was good news in the First Century, and He is still good news today. In the Christmas stories recounted in Scripture, people always responded to Jesus with amazement and praise. This response came from deep longings and heartbreak being met with God breaking in to fulfill His promises, offer His forgiveness, bring His justice and peace, and extend His love.

This Christmas, we hope you will have your own encounter with the person of Jesus and the good news of His birth, and like those of old, let your song of praise resound to the world around you.

Song Credits: Lindsey Arcaro

Written By: Church of the City New York Editorial Team

This Sunday, Pastor Tim Brown closed out our Compelling Missional Disciples series with a teaching on Jesus’ missional call to believers to share the Gospel with all people. Evangelism is often misunderstood and neglected in the Western church, but the reality is we must embrace this practice to fully live into the identity Jesus won for us on the cross and become His ambassadors on the earth.

We invite you to prayerfully consider practicing the way of generosity through financial giving to the Living the Liturgy offering at church.nyc/give. 

This Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Compelling Missional Disciples series by surveying the current cultural landscape, and pointing us to the Biblical mandate God has given us to create and steward a culture that glorifies Him. As the only creatures with the distinct ability to acknowledge what is beyond ourselves, Pastor Jon invited us to live with God’s vision of cultural renewal in our time, brought about by our intentional stewardship of God’s gifts to us.

We invite you to prayerfully consider practicing the way of generosity through financial giving at church.nyc/give.

This Sunday, Pastor Keithen Schwahn continued our Compelling Missional Disciples series by unpacking the pessimism and passivity that has invaded the American church and tend to drive its view on the next generation. As we continue to develop as compelling missional disciples, we must embrace the mission to reverse the narrative that young people are a lost cause in the Western church, and dedicate ourselves to being a part of raising up the next generation.

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our sermon series on Compelling Missional Disciples with a teaching on how to become fully trained. As maturing disciples, our goal is to become like Jesus, our master, unwilling to settle for anything less than all that He offers us. So in order to level up our training, Pastor Jon gave us three shifts to help fill our “formation gaps.”

This week, Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Compelling Missional Disciples series with a teaching on the importance of being intentional in our formation. By asking who we are becoming by what we are doing, committing to go to the depths with God and our community, and listening daily for the truth God is speaking over us, rather than the pressures of the world, we will be increasingly formed in the way of Jesus. 

We invite you to join us for the Altars Conference this coming January. To register and learn more visit altars.nyc.

This week, Pastor Ashley Anderson continued our Compelling Missional Disciples sermon series with a message on the role of identity formation in becoming a compelling missional disciple. We must consider what we have falsely believed about ourselves, and then ask God to reveal our true selves and invite us into our purpose.

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

This Sunday, guest teacher, Pastor Darren Rouanzoin, continued our Fall sermon series, Compelling Missional Disciples, focusing on one major point: God’s presence is everything. As followers of Jesus, we are called to seek the things of the Kingdom instead of the things of the world, make space in our hearts for God, humbly ask for more of His presence, and continually be filled with His power for the expansion of His Kingdom here on earth.

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

In place of this week's podcast we have a few special announcements from Pastor Jon. 

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

Sanctuary is an original song, written within our community, and reflects the desire of our church to be a people who close the gap between knowing God and experiencing what He offers. Captured at a Break the Soil worship night earlier this year, Sanctuary (Live) is available now anywhere you stream music! We invite you to download, share, and listen to Sanctuary (Live) here, today.

We would like to invite you to join us at the Altars Conference this upcoming January. For early bird pricing and more information you can visit altars.nyc.

We hope you can join us this upcoming Sunday in person or online. All of our gathering information can be found at church.nyc/services.

You can find all of this information and more at church.nyc.

This Sunday, Pastor Sam continued our Fall sermon series, Compelling Missional Disciples, with a teaching on the importance of devotedly pursuing the knowledge of God, because having a proper view of God will determine everything else in our lives. The more we recalibrate our lives to the radical pursuit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God, the more of His splendor can be released on the earth through our lives.

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Fall sermon series, Compelling Missional Disciples, with a teaching on living a life that is attentive to the presence of God through the story of Mary and Martha. Being attentive to the presence of God is not just about big, dramatic encounters with Him, but about cultivating an awareness of Him in every area of our lives. We have been given access to live in full awareness of His presence, so let us not be a people who are pulled apart or dragged away from the invitation of Jesus to come and sit at His feet.

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our Fall sermon series, Compelling Missional Disciples, with an overview of Church of the City’s vision for discipleship. As a church community, we must resolve to close the gap between what we are experiencing in our culture and what Jesus actually offers through discipleship to Him. Saying ‘yes’ to Jesus is surrendering to the best love we will ever know. Jesus is worthy of giving up everything to be wholeheartedly devoted to Him and His invitation to walk in the fullness of life.

We are looking for people to join our team! Visit church.nyc/staff to read descriptions and apply.

This Sunday, Pastor Sam Gibson finished out our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching from 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28 on Jesus and His Church. As we look to and learn from the early church, we must be careful not to elevate them above the person of Jesus. The Church throughout time has always experienced difficult relational dynamics, because humans, in all of their brokenness, are involved. However, as the Bride of Christ, the Church is still called to operate in a different way. We must gather as the Body to exalt Jesus in the present, establish His Kingdom where we are, and look together toward our eternal future.

This Sunday, Pastor Matt Ro continued our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching on how we ought to live between Jesus’ resurrection and His promised return. The reality of His return is imminent, and should be both the anchor and driving force of our hope. As followers of Jesus, we are meant to be a community marked by faith, hope, and love, that anxiously awaits His return and His Kingdom being fully realized on the earth.

This week, Pastor Jon continued our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching out of 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 on sexual formation in the way of Jesus. The stories that the world sells about sexuality lead to disillusionment, disappointment, and fear. They drive us into false fulfillment or cycles of shame and guilt, but God’s vision for sex is one that leads to transformation and joy, and ultimately points us back to the greatest love story in all of history: the union of Christ and His Church. As followers of Jesus, we must chose to live out of this sacred story, both as individuals and as a community, and offer our world a credible and compelling alternative to human flourishing.

This Sunday, Pastor Ashley continued our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching on Christian persecution and the appropriate response of the Western Church. While it may appear that persecution is a burden of the past that only the early Church faced, the reality is that one in seven Christians today are facing persecution because of their faith. In light of this realtiy, perhaps the most significant thing we can do with our lives is to live beautiful and compelling lives of faith that echo back to those suffering for their faith that Jesus is indeed worthy.

This Sunday, Pastor Sam continued our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching on Paul’s encouragement to the Thessalonians about suffering well. At this time, the Thessalonians were undergoing severe suffering for their beliefs, and Paul knew the importance of having an established faith in order to endure through trials, and the same is true for us today. As we experience moments of disappointment and doubt in seasons of suffering, grief, and pain, we must be continually rooted in Truth, and welcome the support of the Holy Spirit and community.

Click here to watch the video mentioned at minute 45:43.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Rediscovering Church series with a teaching on the importance of understanding and receiving “the word of God” in all its forms; the Scriptures, the person of Jesus, The Holy Spirit, and the Gospel message. The Word of God is living and active, God-breathed, sharper than any double-edged sword. It is time that we invite God back into our understanding of His Word and give it the rightful place of authority in our lives it was always meant to have.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued the “Rediscovering Church” series, teaching on restoring leadership credibility to a scandalized church with 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12 and laying out a guide for Godly leadership rooted in Jesus centered motives, methods, and mission.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our sermon series, Rediscovering Church, with an exploration of the Thessalonians as the model church: what set them apart, what sustained them, and how we can learn from their example to bear fruit that lasts in the church today. As a church in a diverse and bustling city, we have influence in how the gospel is shared and lived out. It is our responsibility to present a beautiful model of following Jesus with deep, theological conviction, and to develop faith in our community that can withstand cultural pressure.

This Sunday, Pastor Keithen Schwahn kicked off our Summer sermon series, Rediscovering Church, a study through 1 Thessalonians, with an overview of the book and an invitation to the church. As the leader of our growing Youth and College ministries, Pastor Keithen holds a unique perspective on what is happening in the next generation, and challenged us to rediscover the church of Jesus now, so that Gen Z can discover it for the first time.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon closed out our “We Want You Here” series with a call to consecration. In a time of theological compromise and the normalization of godlessness, God is calling us to devote ourselves to a Person, to a purpose, and to power through sacrifcal devotion and consecration.

This Sunday, Pastor Ashley Anderson continued our “We Want You Here” series with a message on joining God on His mission to seek and save the lost through prayer. As God’s image bearers, Jesus declared that every person has incredible value to Him whether they turn to Him or not. As followers of Jesus, we are called to pray for the lost because we know what it was to be lost, and the great joy of being found.

This Sunday, we were joined by Compassion International, and Pastor Jon preached a special sermon on Biblical justice. When we love someone, we want to delight them, and this is what delights God: steadfast love, righteousness, and justice (Jeremiah 9:23-24). Compassion alum, Keewani Cook, was also able to share her powerful testimony about her own impoverished childhood, recieving sponsorship through Compassion, and learning that poverty was not her destiny. God provided a way for Keewani to go to school and start a career, and she ultimately learned—through another's compassion—that nothing is impossible for the Lord. Through stories like Keewani's, we see that what we do for the least of these, we do for Jesus.

If you would like to join Compassion International on mission through the sponsorship of a child we invite you to head over to compassion.com/churchofthecity to see children still in need of sponsors.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our series “We Want You Here” with a teaching on joining in creation’s chorus of praise through Psalm 148. Today, we are invited to join the chorus of praise that is happening right now in heaven and in creation. Praise unhindered by circumstances and feelings puts us in the right position before God, and allows us to live out our true purpose as His beloved creation. 

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our “We Want You Here” series with a teaching on prayer through tears. Our world is a fallen place, and it has become the cultural norm to be cynical and numb to the pain, injustice, and sin that surrounds us. However, not only has God never gone numb to the world, He invites us to weep our way back to the tenderness of His heart. 

This Sunday, Pastor Ralph Castillo continued our “We Want You Here” series with his sermon, “This is How We Fight Our Battles.” Learning from the story of the Israelites’ victory over the Amalekites in Exodus, we observe three key ways that we, as believers, should fight our battles: (1) We fight for people who are in a fight, (2) We fight together for people who are in a fight, and (3) We celebrate the victory–God’s way. As believers, we can be confident that when we fight, we do not fight for victory, that instead, we fight from victory because we serve a victorious God.

Pastor Jon continued our current sermon series 'We Want You Here' with a deep dive into our human struggle with temptation. As we resist temptation and actively confess by bringing things into the light, shame melts away under the power of the cross. God rewards us with a new name in Christ, the affirmation of heaven, and the increased ability to walk into our purpose on earth with with freedom and authority.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our "We Want You Here" series by discussing prayer, grief, and lament through the prayer of the prophet Habakkuk. We join God in the restoration of the world when we enter into the brokenness in our own lives, the lives of other, and in our world. God does not always remove the mountains of grief and hardship, but instead gives us the ability to scale them, allowing them to become ebenezers of His faithfulness, places where we can make our homes.

This Sunday, Pastor Sam continued our "We Want You Here" sermon series by encouraging us to spend time in the Bible and pray Scripture back to God to move us toward a confident assurance about His character. We are able to rest in God when we have clarity and confidence about who He is, which comes from studying the Bible with the help of the Holy Spirit.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our Eastertide sermon series, "We Want You Here," with a discussion of how we can grow in love. He broke down the four stages of Christian love described by medieval theologian Bernard of Clairvaux, and summarized them as “me, my, you, and us.” As we move through these stages, the goal is to grow in deeper union with our Father.

This Easter Sunday, Pastor Jon preached on how the resurrection of Jesus proves that death is not the end. Ultimately, the resurrection is the most credible, surprising explanation for what happened to Jesus and the resulting spread of Christianity, and it requires a response from us. The Christian life is about readjusting our entire selves around Jesus. Despite the rise and fall of empires and ideologies, the story of Jesus is still, and always will be, breathtakingly credible and satisfying.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy closed out our series, “God Comes Where He’s Wanted 2.0” by teaching on the collision of kingdoms Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday caused in the hearts of all who gathered to welcome Him. As we remember Jesus’ sacrifice during Holy Week, we are called to head His cries and seek His Kingdom first, laying down short-sighted satisfaction for eternal peace and the opportunity to see His Kingdom come.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our “God Comes Where He’s Wanted 2.0” series by taking a closer look at how Jesus calls us to pray in Luke 11. After He prays the Lord’s prayer as a model, Jesus teaches that the posture we should pray from is one of shameless confidence for others and ourselves.

This Sunday, fueled by the urgent movement of God at Asbury University and elsewhere, Pastor Jon dug into the spiritual roots of revival as part of our extended series, “God Comes Where He’s Wanted.” Pointing to King Josiah’s story from 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles as an example, Pastor Jon emphasized our need to repent and draw near to God, tear out sin by the roots, recover the heart of worship and understanding of scripture, and restore redemptive spiritual practices to usher in revival.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon taught from his reflections on his time at Asbury University last week. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Asbury is a clue that God is doing something, and He is asking us to pay attention. It’s time to lean in with increased devotion, preparing our hearts, and strengthening the walls of our souls to carry the coming glory of revival. We must remember that as God is drawing near to us, He's inviting us to continue to draw near to Him.

In our final week of ‘God Comes Where He’s Wanted’ Pastor Suzy emphasized the importance of understanding God’s cry for our vital consecration and purity, as we desire and call upon our Holy God in our hearts, homes, church, and region. As King of the universe, we need to seek Him based on His terms, not our own, and we must consecrate our hearts and bodies to His holiness so that the cry of our heart, home, church, and region ushers in the revival we long for.

This Sunday, Pastor Sam continued our teaching series, “God Comes Where He’s Wanted” by unpacking the cry for the region through Isaiah 64. He offered three invitations to help us move from complacency, to concern, to crying our for God to intervene and reveal Himself in our region based on the pattern evident in Scripture. We must discern the season we are in, and develop a desperation for God to come have His way in every area of the world around us. 

This Sunday, guest Pastor Lee Cummings continued our teaching series, “God Comes Where He’s Wanted” by teaching on the importance of building altars through our lives. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God allows His people to be living temples of the Holy Spirit, invites us to walk in holy confidence, and equips us to invade the darkness of our world with His glory.

Click here to listen to Heart on Fire by Emily Lindquist, a song inspired by what God is doing in our community at Church of the City New York.

Sunday was a historic day in the life of Church of the City as we installed the men and women of our first Elder Cohort as official Elders in our church. After a year long process, the Elders were commissioned at all four of our Sunday Services. We are so excited they have each joined this office of leadership, and look forward to the care, guidance, and wisdom they will provide as they shepherd our community.

This Sunday Pastor Jon Tyson continued our teaching series “God Comes Where He’s Wanted” with a teaching on cultivating the cry of our homes. Whether we are parents, married, or single, we can make the cry of our homes, “God I want you here,” and be a part of raising up the next generation in faith. We are being called to embrace this heart of prayer, and take up responsibility for the transfer faith to the generation to come.

Our Living the Liturgy campaign is still open for giving through the end of January. We encourage you to prayerfully consider joining us in giving to our Living the Liturgy campaign at church.nyc/give.

This Sunday Pastor Jon Tyson continued our teaching series “God Comes Where He’s Wanted” by diving into the practice of cultivating our hearts in such a way that they would be a place God delights to dwell.

Our Living the Liturgy campaign is still open for giving through the end of January. We encourage you to prayerfully consider joining us in giving to our Living the Liturgy campaign at church.nyc/give.

Click here to listen to Heart on Fire by Emily Lindquist, a song inspired by what God is doing in our community at Church of the City New York.

This Sunday Pastor Jon Tyson began our first teaching series of the New Year, “God Comes Where He’s Wanted”, that will focus on cultivating the altars of our hearts, homes, church, and city in hopes of ushering revival through an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

Our Living the Liturgy campaign is still open for giving through the end of January. We enoucourage you to prayerfully consider joining us in giving to our Living the Liturgy campaign at church.nyc/give.

Click here to listen to Sanctuary by Emily Lindquist, a song inspired by what God is doing in our community at Church of the City New York.

This Sunday, we celebrated the birth of Jesus with our annual Lessons & Carols service, an ancient church tradition of proclaiming the story of Jesus’ first Advent through hymns and the reading of Scripture. The songs and stories of Christmas that we know so well have toppled kingdoms, delivered people, and transformed history. However, it’s so easy for us to hear them year after year, and yet still miss the things that God is doing in our midst. As His people, we must be hungry for the hope and glory Christmas holds for the world, and celebrate Jesus’ coming with wonder and amazement.

We encourage you to prayerfully consider joining us in giving to our Living the Liturgy campaign at church.nyc/give.

This Sunday Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Advent series with a teaching from John 14:1-10 about Jesus coming to make a way out of darkness for us. It is through His first advent that we see the mission of God to come and get humanity and lead us back to Himself. We need Christmas, because despite all of the evil in the world and ourselves, Jesus makes a way for us when we are lost, reveals truth in a world of lies, and gives us life in a world of death.

Click here to listen to Sanctuary by Emily Lindquist, a song inspired by what God is doing in our community at Church of the City New York.

This Sunday Pastor Jon Tyson continued our Advent series with a teaching from John 3:16-21 about the darkness that exists within the world and within us. Advent makes room for us to face the darkness Jesus rescues us from, and invites us to ask Him to lead us into the freedom of His marvelous light forever. It is out of this truth that we can offer a “Merry Christmas” out of a place of deep joy to everyone we meet, knowing that our darkness has been conquered by His light.

Click here to listen to Sanctuary by Emily Lindquist, a song inspired by what God is doing in our community at Church of the City New York.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy began our Advent series with a teaching from John 1 about the Light of God coming into the world through the person of Jesus. Jesus has overcome all darkness, but we must receive Him as the Light in the beginning, the Light of the World, and that He will be the Light of His people in the age to come. When we believe and receive Jesus’ Light, we are freed from having to illuminate ourselves, given the ability to wholly live in His presence, and called to be witnesses to His Light for all the world to see.

We encourage you to prayerfully consider joining us in giving to our Living the Liturgy campaign at church.nyc/give.

This Sunday, Pastor Ashley concluded our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, with a teaching on truth, not as an ideological framework, but as the person of Jesus. Jesus promises that when we abide in God’s Word, we will know His truth, and His truth will set us free.

This Sunday, guest teacher David Bennett continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, with a teaching on the radical and mysterious love of God. Framed under the idea that God has a love that is unique for every person, David shared his testimony of moving from an atheistic, gay activist, to becoming a follower of Jesus, who now advocates for a positive moral vision of biblical sexuality and discipleship.

You can hear more about our beliefs on sexual formation in the sermons and podcasts below or visit our website church.nyc/sexual-formation.

Making Sense of the Church: Marriage - Jon Tyson

Listen

The Controversial Jesus: Sexual Formation - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

The Controversial Jesus: Jesus and the Gay Community - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

The Controversial Jesus: Jesus, Gender, and the Trans Community - Jon Tyson

Listen / Watch

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, with a teaching on the way Jesus used His margin to do justice and love mercy as He walked with God. Jesus went above and beyond in His care for people to the point that He poured out His whole life, and He calls us to do the same.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, by digging into the most controversial aspect of Jesus's ministry: who He ate with. Jesus created space for people to encounter the Father's scandalous grace.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, by taking a deeper look at the importance of communion with God in the secret place. The source of flourishing in Jesus’ ministry was His consistent time withdrawing to the secret place to pray and spend time with His Father, and through His death and resurrection we also have access to this source of life.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, by diving into the importance of being dependent on the Holy Spirit and interdependent on the body of Christ.

This Sunday, guest Pastor Darren Rouanzoin continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, with a powerful and practical teaching on healing. When we look at the ministry of Jesus, it is clear that He prioritized preaching the Kingdom, healing the sick, and casting out demons, and as His followers, we are called to continue this ministry here on earth through the power of the Holy Spirit.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, with a clarifying teaching on the what the Kingdom of God actually is and what it looks like to seek it first in our world today. The Kingdom of God is the reality of God bringing about His will on earth. The gospel of the Kingdom is a threat, and pursing it will bring resistance into our lives, but we cannot do The Jesus Stuff without the Kingdom stuff.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, by posing three questions we can ask before we walk into any situation that will help lead us to live as Jesus did, not just manage our sin. As we pursue The Jesus Stuff, we must have faith that God is moving so we can join Him, listen for His promptings so we can hear His whispers of where to go, and move in obedience towards where He leads no matter the cost.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our Fall sermon series, The Jesus Stuff, where we will examine the kind of disciples Jesus calls us to be by taking a deeper look at how He lived His life. When we obey what Jesus calls us to do, resolving to not only learn from Him but act like Him, we move from participating in generic faith to living explicitly for Jesus. The Gospel is our invitation to burn with passion for the person of Jesus, and our call to the missionary adventure of reminding people of the beauty of the Jesus Stuff.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon wrapped up our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians, with Paul’s closing message to the church at Philippi. When we study Paul’s life and church history, it is evident that the Gospel is always moving along relational lines. Through Paul’s relationship with the Philippians we see the Gospel being carried out because of their sacrificial commitment to Jesus and His Kingdom, long, loyal relationships to one another, and generous partnerships to promote the movement. Paul’s life of mission was a response to the love that saved him, and he calls us to respond in the same way, giving everything we have for the sake of the Gospel.

This Sunday, Pastor Ashley, continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians, by focusing on Paul’s insight into the peace of God and the God of peace being available to us. Paul’s message is not meant to dismiss anxiety, but to reveal our access to peace in the midst of distress. Pastor Ashley taught that Paul first calls us to rejoice in the Lord and what He’s done, to be gentle with one another, and finally to not be anxious about anything. The order of these exhortations tell us that peace is not found in the absence of anxiety, but in the reorientation of every circumstance in the presence of Jesus.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians, by teaching on Paul’s call for us to live into our heavenly citizenship. Believers have been given the benefits of being co-heirs with Christ because of His sacrifice on the cross, but we must live up to what we have attained through Him. This passage tells us that we are citizens of heaven, but that we are called to live up to that truth in this life.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians, by unpacking the beginning of Chapter 3. Here, Paul delivers insight into his own transformation of faith and highlights how we can follow his example of being thoroughly converted. Being thoroughly converted calls us to take all of our broken pieces and direct them towards the person of Jesus, trusting that in Him we will one day be made whole.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by teaching on the last section of Chapter 2. Here, Paul commends Timothy and Epaphroditus as men who care deeply about the church and the gospel. Paul makes a connection between the Philippians church, the proclamation of the gospel, and the interests of Christ.

This Sunday, Pastor Keithen continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by preaching on Paul’s encouragement in Philippians 2 to live as the people of God in the world. Paul wrote to the church of Philippi, whose people were the new Israel. Ultimately, as we live as true disciples of Jesus, joy becomes the mark of our spiritual authority in the world.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by taking a practical look at what it means to love people like Jesus did. Loving others can seem increasingly difficult in today’s world, but this passage urges us to have the same, loving mindset as Christ in our relationships. Jesus loved us in an unreasonable way, and calls us to be like Him, finding joy in someone else’s prospering, even when it is at our own expense.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by examining Paul’s call to the church to be a place of defiant unity in the face of the narcissism, contempt, and division in our current culture. Pastor Jon reminded us that while we can love God on our own, we cannot be the people of God on our own. Jesus calls us to value others above ourselves and sacrifice our preferences to become a compelling, alternative community of love and unity for our world.

This Sunday, Pastor Matthew Ro continued our Summer sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by looking at Paul’s mission statement, “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain,” and how it enabled him to have defiant joy no matter what. Paul knew everything Jesus endured was for us, so we have the ability to endure anything for His sake, and our earthly realities can become second by the beauty and glory of Jesus breaking through.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our new sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by looking at Paul’s prioritization of the proclamation of the gospel. We find Paul rejoicing at the end of this text because the gospel message was still being advanced even while he was in prison. Paul’s letter should not only encourage us to reassess and reorder our own priorities around the glorification of Christ, but also strengthen our courage and resolve to share the gospel in every circumstance.

Guest Pastor Banning Liebscher gave a word about the importance of guarding our hearts against the lies of the enemy. Jesus came to connect us to truth and bring us freedom and abundant life, so the enemy’s main strategy against us is to disconnect us from truth through lies and lead us into a life of bondage. By keeping a vigilant watch over our hearts, meditating strategically on God’s Truth, praying consistently, and liberally casting our cares and burdens on the Lord, we can disrupt the enemy’s schemes to keep us from the life freedom Jesus has for us.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our new sermon series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians by looking at the Work of God. As we continue in Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we quickly see that, even though he is in prison, he is still able to rejoice. Paul’s source of defiant joy was in the work of the everlasting God, not in the work of any one man. As believers, we can share in this confidence and this joy, that God is always working in us, through us, and around us to bring forth the Good News of the Gospel.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our Summer series, Defiant Joy: A Study Through Philippians. The apostle Paul is writing to the church he planted at Philippi, a community dear to his heart, and through the themes spiritual mentoring through his own life’s examples, defiant joy unshaken by circumstances, steadfast unity in the Spirit, and a reorientation around the worth of the person of Jesus, Paul reveals the secrets of the art of living a life of flourishing.

This Sunday guest Pastor Guy Wasko gave a teaching on the importance of Seizing Divine Moments. Through part of Jonathan’s story in 1 Samuel, we learn that sometimes God is asking us to just show up with nothing but an expectation that He will move.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon taught on “Seeing Jesus Through Denying Faith” by taking a closer look at Judas’ betrayal and denial of Jesus. While Pastor Jon reminded us that while we cannot lose our salvation, we can deny our faith. It is confusing and painful to examine why faith fails, but it is increasingly necessary in our culture where people are rapidly turning away from faith. Judas’ story invites us to examine our motives for believing in Jesus.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon taught on "Seeing Jesus Through Doubt" with the story of Thomas’ reaction to the news of Jesus’ resurrection. After missing Jesus’ first appearance to His disciples after His resurrection, Thomas begins to wrestle through his doubts around who Jesus is and what He came to do. Thomas’ story is not meant to be a cautionary tale for believers today, but display the encouraging truth that facing down our doubts will deepen our faith.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon began a series called Seeing Jesus, focused on different post-ressurection accounts of Jesus and the impact they had on the faith of His followers. Through Peter, Pastor Jon pointed out three things that the can enemy use to block our view of the mercy and hope that we have been given through Jesus. However Jesus calls us back to Himself like He called Peter; to return to Him and strengthen others.

For Easter Sunday this year, Pastor Jon focused on “seeing Jesus” in John’s gospel account of the resurrection. Through using three different Greek words for sight/seeing, John lays out the different ways Jesus is viewed in our world today. The invitation of Easter is to “come and see” Jesus for yourself, and find that through faith in Him and His story, all questions of origin, meaning, morality, and identity are answered, and that He alone can satisfy all your needs.

In this week's sermon, Pastor Jon Tyson concluded Jesus' prophetic woes to the Pharisees by providing the cultural and historical context with which He made His triumphant entrance into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Jesus' rebuke of the Pharissee's ends with a final, heartbreaking plea to repent and recieve the mercy of God, and the same call is presented to us today.

This Sunday, our Converting the Church series continued as Pastor Jon called us to focus on the major parts of our faith over the minor details which can easily cloud our vision. To be disciples of Jesus, we need to be like Him and weigh with the actions of our lives and our motivations against His words, and make sure we can see clearly, discern, and practice the things that truly matter to the heart of God.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon unpacked Jesus’ second ‘woe’ to the Pharisees in Matthew 23, where He called out their toxic evangelism converting people into children of hell instead of children of Heaven. We are challenged to reflect on how we can bring the good news of Jesus to people without the coercion and cultural baggage that seems to do so much damage. Jesus promises that if He is lifted up, He will draw all people to Himself and satisfy them. All we are called to do is present the free gospel to the thirsty world, and it will bring the Kingdom of Heaven and turn people into children of God.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our new sermon series centered on Jesus’ seven woes to the Pharisees in Matthew 23 called Converting the Church. This series will invite us to examine our own ways and beliefs, and create opportunities for us as individuals and a church to repent for the ways we have tried to add to God’s law or avoid parts of it. Jesus began His public rebuke of the religion of His day by warning His disciples and the crowds that while the Pharisees’ tradition was rooted in truth, their practices were not. The modern, evangelical church must also heed the warning of Jesus to convert religious burdens into freeing grace so that it properly reflects the live giving Good News of His Gospel.

This Sunday, guest pastor Corey Russell continued our Seeking God series by teaching on the Intercessor. Anchoring his teaching in Isaiah 59, Pastor Corey pointed out that God is deeply and emotionally invested in the state of humanity, and in His longing for justice, sought out a human intercessor to stand in the gap for the purpose our reconciliation to Him. Intercessors are living proof of God’s love for humanity, emerging for the purpose of salvation, and when God could not find an intercessor on earth, He stretched out His own arm towards us, becoming fully human in Christ Jesus, so that He could be our intercessor.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our January sermon series, “Seeking God,” by examining the story of Zacchaeus and the lengths that God will go to seek to save the lost. Jesus’ Great Commission at the end of Matthew’s gospel commands His followers to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” establishing that the priority of Heaven is bringing the lost home, and forcing us to ask, “Is it also ours?” For the Gospel of Jesus is the only message in the world that acknowledges both the beauty of the human soul and the brokenness of it, and still says it is worth saving. The church of Christ was made to continue His mission to seek and save the lost, meeting them with the unexpected, life-altering, grace of the Gospel.

SEEKING GOD: SURRENDERED HEARTS — This Sunday, we began our January sermon series, “Seeking God.” Pastor Jon pointed out that though we know God is a “seeking” God, we rarely consider who or what He is seeking. This week we saw that God is seeking surrendered hearts, wholly devoted to Him, by looking at the life of King Asa in 2 Chronicles. Asa’s reign over Judah displays both whole-hearted devotion and the tragedy of half-heartedness. Pastor Jon exhorted us to resolve to diligently seek God, identify and renounce any division in our hearts (not managing idols but destroying them), and reignite our passion for seeking God. A half-hearted response is inappropriate towards a whole-hearted God who loves us and spared no expense to save us.

This Advent Season, we have been exploring Christmas through different characters in the story of Jesus’ birth, and this week, Pastor Suzy took a closer look at Mary in her sermonette for Lessons & Carols. Through Mary, we see a beautiful picture of what happens when the deep longings of both a people, and an individual, are fulfilled. The core longing of each person is to be loved, and at the end of the day, the Christmas story is a love story that we are invited to recognize, respond to, participate in, and witness about to the all the world.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon explored the curiosity Christmas stirs up in the human heart through the story of the Wise Men in Matthew’s gospel. In their journey we see the importance of humbly seeking answers beyond ourselves and actively evaluating and deciding what is worth our whole life devotion.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Advent series by examining the story of Joseph and what he teaches us about embracing a spirit of peace in contested spaces. Pastor Jon explained that peace that relies on perfect circumstances is actually no peace at all. Instead, Joseph’s life shows us that true peace is disruptive and anti-fragile, is found in the miraculous ordinary, and comes through costly obedience. 

This past Sunday, Pastor Olivia kicked off our Advent sermon series with a message on deferred longing being an invitation to hope. Jesus knows that desires lurk within us, both pure and unpure, and that it is much safer to open up these desires in His presence. Once we acknowledge these longings, we are inevitably led into the reality of waiting and hoping for these longings to be fulfilled.

This week, Pastor Ashley concluded our "The Way of Jesus" series with "The Way of Justice." When Jesus inaugurated His ministry, He announced Himself as the same God of the Old Testament who defended the fatherless, the widowed, the poor, and the oppressed. Ultimately, she taught that Jesus' biblical justice requires us to sacrifice privilege with suspended judgment for the restoration of others.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued in our “The Way of Jesus” series by teaching through “The Way of Gratitude.” She focused on a story in Luke’s gospel of Jesus healing ten men with leprosy, only to have one of them return and thank Him, and pointed out that we often suffer from a similar lack of gratitude when it comes to Jesus. She encouraged us to create rhythms of gratitude, so that we will be able to give thanks in all circumstances and not forget who God is and what He has done for us.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon preached about the personal and intentional steps he routinely practices to encounter the Lord. He used the acronym of T.I.M.E to explain his process which consists of identifying Truth, asking for Insight, going on Mission, and the resulting experience of true Encounter. Through the devotion of our time, patience, and obedience we continue forward on our journey into understanding and the living out of the depths of joy and freedom our heavenly Father has to offer us.

This week, Pastor Jon continued our Fall series with "The Way of Prayer" by preaching about how to become a people of peace in the midst of anxiety. When we look to the example of Jesus, we see that He pursued the promised peace of God by committing to a life of consistent prayer.

This past Sunday, guest speaker Pastor Ralph Castillo preached on "The Way of Mercy," showing us from the story of Jonah how God orchestrates moments of mercy in our lives to draw us closer to Him. Though we may often believe our way is better than His, God reminds us through his kindness that His ways are higher than our ways, and no matter how far we stray, He is always able to redeem our lives and use them for His glory.

This past Sunday, Pastor Ashley continued in our The Way of Jesus series by examining "The Way of Dependence." She broke down how we define abiding, how we know if we’re abiding, and why the invitation to abide is good news.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our The Way of Jesus series with "The Way of Remembrance." He taught that remembering who God is and what He has done is one of the most important parts of our discipleship, while one of the enemy's greatest schemes to destroy our faith is to have us forget. Pastor Jon urged us to remember Jesus, our salvation, and our mission as believers by setting the Lord before us in every moment, always thinking of Him, just as He is always thinking of us.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our "The Way of Jesus" series with "The Way of Confrontation." The work of God's formation in us unsurprisingly takes place at the points where we are not yet formed in Christ's image. One of the first steps in formation is that of confrontation: a challenge and call to come out of our brokenness and into the fullness of Christ.

This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued "The Way of Jesus" series with "The Way of Devotion." She pointed us to two of Jesus’ parables about the Kingdom of God being a treasure of immeasurable value that is worth sacrificing for. When Jesus calls us to follow Him, He requires us to give our whole selves, just as He joyfully did for us, to live a life devoted to His Kingdom cause.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our "The Way of Jesus" series with "The Way of Self-Denial." The greatest challenge to our discipleship is the centrality of our self and our desires. Jesus extends us an invitation for a transformed life by denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Him. We must not soften sin to the point of pain management, but rather kill it completely in our pursuit of Jesus. Only His love breaks the spell of our own self.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off a new sermon series called "The Way of Jesus." He warned us against the ways our fallen world can trap and form our hearts through lusts, pride, and toxic religion, and instead spurred us to follow in the way of Jesus so that we can be formed, transformed, and conformed to His likeness. We were created to enjoy God and walk with Him, imaging our Creator, and living in the way of Jesus fulfills our ultimate destiny of experiencing the our fully formed selves living with Christ in us.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy finished out our Summer Colossians series by teaching about the “Movement You Long For.” She reminded us that, as believers, we have all been called into the God’s movement to bring His Kingdom by spreading the good news of the gospel and making disciples.

This Sunday, Pastor Adam Durso continued our series through Colossians by diving into “The Mission You Long For.” He broke down Paul’s exhortation for the church to be devoted to prayer, watchfulness, and thankfulness as the starting point for living on mission in our daily lives. He pointed out that this heart posture brings an awareness of where God wants us to partner with Him, and that often times our mission field is at the intersection of our pain and in the comfort of the Gospel. It is out of the overflow of how God comforts us, that we can begin to comfort others.

This Sunday, Pastor Olivia continued our Summer series by breaking down the relationships in the home mentioned in Colossians with “The Family You Long For.” She reminded us that we are called to live like Jesus, who came “not to be served, but to serve,” and by taking this posture into our familial relationships, we can present a redemptive vision of families to the world. 

THE PEACE YOU LONG FOR: This Sunday we continued our journey through the book of Colossians with "The Peace You Long For" from guest Pastor Ralph Castillo, who implored us to let Jesus and the peace only He can provide reign supremely in our hearts.

This past Sunday, Pastor Ashley continued our Colossians series with "The Transformation You Long For." When Paul wrote his letter to the church at Colossae, he urged them to stay true to the Christian story, which starts with a funeral and ends with a wedding. The path to true transformation only comes through death, resurrection, and return.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Colossians series by preaching about the freedom we long for. Culture tells us that freedom is found in expressing ourselves and satisfying our cravings, but the scriptures reveal living this way actually enslaves us to addiction and sin. Instead, freedom can only be found in Jesus by accepting His death for our sins and receiving a new Spirit that will allow us to walk in true freedom in His love.

This past Sunday, Pastor Phil Manginelli from The Square Church in Atlanta continued our Colossians series with "The Victory You Long For." There is an inevitable human ache within all of us for victory. When victory is pending, we have to figure out which voice we're going to trust and whose call we're going to respond to. Victory is in Jesus's essence, and He's the only one who can get us through sin and death.

THE STABILITY YOU LONG FOR - This Sunday, Pastor Suzy continued our Summer series on Colossians by preaching about "The Stability You Long For." Often, we look for stability in a multitude of places so that we can feel free and self-actualized. In reality, we only find true security in the person and promise of Jesus Christ, our hope of glory.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Colossians series with "The Maturity You Long For.” He addressed the tragedy of rampant immaturity in the culture and the church, and revealed that God wants to show us a better way by developing spiritual maturity.

This Sunday, we continued our summer series on Colossians with "The Holiness You Long For." Pastor Jon broke down last week's meta-level teaching on our beautiful salvation with a more practical understanding of what salvation means for us in our culture today.

This Sunday, Pastor Olivia continued our summer series on Colossians by preaching about "The Savior You Long For." She dove into the importance of knowing who Jesus really is and having an accurate theology of Him so that we can have a true understanding of the Gospel message.

This Sunday we heard from guest Pastor Ralph Castillo, who admonished us to root God’s power in our hearts through patience, long-suffering, and joy as we continue our series in Colossians with “The Power You Long For.” If we earnestly seek His power, we can praise the Lord in the midst of any trial, because we will be able to see His fruit in our lives; His kingdom, our redemption, and the forgiveness of all our sins.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon kicked off our Summer sermon series called “The Life You Long For”.  Pastor Jon set up the context of the book of Colossians and revealed that Paul wrote it with the purpose of reminding and encouraging the church at Colossae that they need to be faithful to Jesus above all else, because He is the only one who can bring true freedom, maturity, and community.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon closed out our Unexpected Jesus Series by teaching on the unexpected change we can experience when we encounter Jesus. By laying down the pursuit of external righteousness, and instead going to Jesus with a broken spirit and contrite heart, the grace of God can render deep, noticeable change in our hearts and our lives.

This Sunday, Pastor Ashley took an in depth look of Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well, and revealed how His example of unexpected inclusion led to intimate revelation of the gospel and widespread revival.

This Sunday, Pastor Jon pointed us to Jesus’ unexpected faithfulness in the face of criticism, cultural pressures, disappointments, and suffering. He reminded us that as Jesus’ disciples we must follow His lead, not losing the nerve to stand apart or hearts that freely love through seasons of hardship.

UNEXPECTED PEACE - This Sunday, Pastor SUZY preached through the story of Jesus calming the storm and ushering in unexpected peace in the midst of fear. She encouraged us to learn from the disciples, and instead look to Jesus with eyes of faith, trusting that He is who He says He is, and that His heat and plan are always good.

UNEXPECTED VISITATION - This past Sunday, guest Pastor Rafael Castillo preached about the power behind the resurrected Jesus’ encounter with the disciples on the road to Emmaus. He taught that, like He did for these disciples, Jesus can defy our expectations, bring revelation, inspire a spirit of hospitality, and set a fresh fire in our hearts.

NO QUID PRO QUO - This Sunday Pastor Dr. Bryan Loritts, called on us to follow the command of Jesus to give up our rights, love our enemies, and be reconciled to each other.

UNEXPECTED EXTRAVAGANCE - This past Sunday, Pastor OLIVIA preached about Mary of Bethany pouring out a year's worth of wages onto Jesus' s feet. Just like King David before her, Mary became undignified before the Lord, washing His feet with her hair and sitting on the floor to listen to Him speak, all because she was able to recognize the presence of God and the beautiful opportunity she had to worship Him.

UNEXPECTED KINGDOM: This past Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson kicked off the Unexpected Jesus series by exploring Jesus as an unexpected king bringing about a new kingdom, and challenged us to reorient ourselves toward the true Gospel.

SIN: FALLING SHORT - This Sunday, as we enter into Holy Week, Pastor Suzy preached on sin as falling short of God's perfection, by reflecting on Jesus's suffering in the garden of Gethsemane the night before his crucifixion. While many of us may want to skip from Palm Sunday straight to the victory of Easter, Holy Week is an invitation for us to look at our sin, recognize everything it cost Jesus to forgive and to redeem us, and enter into his suffering with him.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon preached about lawlessness — an utter disregard for God and his laws. Lawlessness manifests as rebellion and causes devastation, not fulfillment, keeping us from being apostles of love and instead dragging us into the world's toxic, selfish culture.

SIN: ADULTERY - This past Sunday, Pastor Ashley preached on sin as adultery. Adultery can be defined as not only violating a law, but also as breaching our relationship with the God who loves us enough to tolerate no other lovers in our lives. Just like the Israelites, we can fall into the sin of adultery in three ways: 1) distrusting God; 2) not sharing in God's purpose; and 3) forgetting God's faithfulness. Even though we still break His covenant today, God has paved a path of mercy and restoration for us through the life of Jesus and the price He paid on the cross.

SIN: IDOLATRY - This past Sunday, Pastor Olivia preached on how idolatry can creep deep into our hearts without us even knowing something has become an idol until we actually sin. If we are not careful to guard and examine our hearts, our impatience with the Lord can lead us into idolatry, which can then lead to immorality and consequently, independence from God.

SIN AS REBELLION: This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our sin series, defining sin as rebellion against God and as sovereignty of the self. The same lies that Adam and Eve believed in Genesis 3 still haunt us today, but God pursues, covers, and restores us, just as He did for them. It is only through His divine mercy and Jesus's death and resurrection that we can be more than conquerors of sin.

SIN: AN OVERVIEW - This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy dove into the topic of sin, how it affects us, and why it's so insidious. Identifying sin is the first step in understanding the gravity of Jesus's sacrifice.

CREATIVE MINORITY: PARTICIPATION - This past Sunday, Pastor Jon preached about the importance of the way we as Christians participate in our culture. We must show up in hard places with the presence of Jesus Christ and welcome the vulnerable to push against the darkness with light and faith.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy challenged us to ponder what we do when our narratives, ethics and practices as Christ-followers come into conflict with the many authorities of the world. She exhorted us to remember that as Christ-followers, our one true allegiance is to God, and when we live as a creative minority and choose to be exiles, we can be light in dark places, in the world but not of it.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon preached about examining our own tangible practices as we continue to develop into the likeness of Jesus. We can continue to form as disciples by developing our practices of abiding in Jesus, discerning where He wants us to move, and interceding on behalf of others privately and publicly.

This past Sunday, we continued our Creative Minority series, and Pastor Olivia challenged us to consider ethics and how we make decisions in our lives. Christian ethics must be a response from our hearts to the grace, character, and love of God, putting a spotlight on our Savior, and forming us in a way counter to our culture, especially in the areas of money, sex, and power. As Christians, we must ask ourselves: how can I love generously, faithfully, sacrificially, and humbly so that the world is enticed to ask follow-up questions for which the gospel is the answer? Ultimately, the Christian ethic is love from beginning to end.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our Creative Minority series by talking about the importance of the stories we believe in. Living in a time of warring narratives, we must deeply root ourselves in the one, true narrative that Jesus Christ is Lord. By routing our actions, thoughts, and expectations through the person of Jesus, our lives will become compelling stories that display the Gospel, and shake the world from spiritual sleep.  

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon launched our new sermon series, A Creative Minority, and laid the groundwork for how we can begin to grow a new kind of community in our current moment. If we build a web of stubbornly loyal relationships, we can then knit them together in a living network of persons who are committed to practicing the way of Jesus for the renewal of the world. Communities built on covenantal relationships like this can create nets that have the power to capture the hearts of those around us and reveal Jesus like never before. 

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon cast a vision for where our church's confidence needs to be rooted going into the new year. When we go beyond stating our belief in God and place our trust in Him, we develop an unshakeable confidence in His divine ability. Setting our hearts rightly before God, and prioritizing His presence in our habits, will allow us to attain a hidden source of life that will enable us to flourish no matter our circumstances.

For the last Sunday of 2020, Pastor Jon walked us back through this year that has been full of disruption and division, and revealed that our current world mirrors the one Jesus was born into. He pointed us to Mary who, despite her difficult circumstances, pondered the work of God around her and in her, and treasured these things up in her heart. Pastor Jon encouraged us to finish the year like Mary by taking time to remember God's faithfulness in our church, our city, and our lives, and store these things up in our hearts as we prepare for the new year.       

This Past Sunday, Pastor Jon wrapped up our Advent series by talking about the defiant love of God that is manifested in Jesus the Messiah. By looking at Isaiah 61, we learn that Jesus is the prophesied Servant of the Lord who would come to restore the world and usher in a celebration of redemption. Pastor Jon reminded us that once we receive the renewing love of Jesus, we are called to join Him on mission, and be the ministers of His scandalous, radical, love here on earth. 

This Past Sunday, Pastor Susy brought good news in her message in the midst of our Advent series, talking about the great joy that is available to us all through Jesus Christ. After such a difficult year, and an uncertain future ahead of us, it is more important than ever for us to find the source of a lasting, defiant Joy. Proverbs 13:12 defines joy as the fulfillment of a longing, stating, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.”

This Sunday, Pastor John continued our advent series by talking about having defiant peace. When we look to our own selves or earthly systems for peace, we will be met with darkness and despair. But God shines light in the most surprising places. Ultimately, we have defiant peace inside us because we have the Prince of Peace inside us.

 To wrap up our series on disruptive discipleship, Pastor Jon preached on Jesus's closing metaphor for the Beatitudes: that those who embody Jesus's kingdom are the salt and light of the world. To be salt is to be radically devoted to Jesus and His teachings in a culture of compromises. To be light is to engage in boundary-crossing missions into dark places that Jesus calls us to. In being salt and light with purity and integrity, we can become potent disciples of our times, that our cities and communities need.

 This past Sunday, Pastor Jon taught on Christ’s words of blessing over those who are persecuted and His calling to rejoice in the midst of it. In a world that is offended by righteousness and claims of Christ’s exclusivity as the way to freedom, our efforts to follow Jesus and cling to His words will increasingly set us against the current of our culture. Yet in this we rejoice, remembering that we are exiles in this world and following Christ’s example of enduring persecution with joy and humility.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson preached about Jesus’ call to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). At a time when the world thought leadership meant violence and military prowess, Jesus declared that peacemakers were the children of God.

This past Sunday, Dr. Derwin Gray, lead pastor of Transformation Church in South Carolina, preached on the fifth beatitude: “Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.” In the divisive times we are living in, he encourages us to take up a mantle of mercy, and through the parable of the Good Samaritan, shares with us how to truly love our neighbors as ourselves.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon examined the fourth beatitude and its vision for righteousness as both personal holiness and social justice. In the midst of our current cultural decline, he exhorts us to become people who are desperate to see biblical righteousness break into our world today.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy illuminated the third beatitude in Jesus's Sermon on the Mount, blessed are the meek, and walked us through how to become more like Jesus by posturing ourselves toward meekness so that we can inherit the New Jerusalem.

This past Sunday, Pastor Olivia, our new pastor of discipleship and formation, shed light on Christ’s blessing and invitation to enter into redemptive mourning. As we mourn the brokenness of this world, as well as our individual and collective experiences of it, we are comforted by the promise and hope of Christ’s resurrection life.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon reminded us of the importance of maintaining our relationship with God by recognizing our spiritual bankruptcy. Being welcomed into the kingdom of God requires us to relinquish our pride and choose humility, else we are blind to what is above us.

This week, Pastor Jon set the foundation for our season-long study of Jesus’ teaching of the Beatitudes. In the face of the crises around us, we need to be rooted more deeply than ever in the core teachings of Jesus about discipleship and the Kingdom of God.

This week, Pastor Jon cast a vision for our church as we head into the fall season. We are tired, but resolved to regroup and rebuild through pressing deeper into our core values--Presence, Formation, and Mission. However, in this season, we are taking these values to a deeper level. We are pursuing the tangible presence of God, understanding that no human solutions can rescue us from our cultural trauma; we are committed to counter formation, recognizing that there is no neutral ground and fighting against culture's attempting to pull us away from becoming like Jesus; and we are pursuing sacrificial mission, adopting the "I sacrifice, we win" mentality of Christ and embracing the high cost of living for the good of this city. New York needs a community of champions, and now is not the time to shrink back but to rise up.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy preached about what it looks like to prayerfully join Jesus in his mission to seek and save those who are far from God. Luke 10:1-4 tells us that we are to: look, ask, go, and sacrifice — to see with compassion the harvest, to ask the Lord to raise workers up, and to go ourselves willingly, knowing that Jesus sends us to where He is already going.

This past Sunday, Pastor Dimas Salaberrios preached a powerful word about prioritizing prayer. As humans, we were built to need constant communication with God and to flourish in intimacy with him. In Daniel 6:1-11, Daniel distinguished himself in Babylon by consistently tapping into the spirit of God, and by prioritizing God over man’s decree. Prioritizing prayer is hard work, and at times, can feel like fighting a brick wall, but the results are astounding. Church, may we seek the face of the Lord, trust him in prayer, and be patient.

In this past Sunday's sermon, Pastor Jon discussed the importance of repentance in following God. The full journey of repentance begins with the radical pursuit of God, followed by total annihilation of idolatry, the repair and rebuild of the ruins, and finally ruthless obedience to the Word.

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon preached about the opportunity for divine intervention through intense, persistent, and united prayers. It is only through prayer that we can shape our communities, church, and city, and ensure 2020 ends differently than how it started.

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk shared with us how God's wisdom is far better than the wisdom of this world. Through scripture, we see that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, wisdom comes from and is given by the Holy Spirit, the path of wisdom is in obedience to God’s laws, the wisdom of God is worth seeking, and most importantly, godly wisdom is available to every believer.

Dr. Bryan Loritts teaches about Christ’s exhortation and example of humility. As we look at Jesus’ words from the Sermon on the Mount, “blessed are the poor in spirit,” we see God’s invitation to posture our hearts in humble acceptance of His grace and extend that grace unto others.

Pastor Jon teaches about three encouraging exhortations from Hebrews 10:19-25: the encouragement to draw near to God, the encouragement to remain faithful, and the encouragement to love and good deeds. As we spur each other on, God can release the full potential of what He wants to do through us and make us into a community of hope.

Pastor Suzy Silk teaches about what it looks like to continue on in hope and prayer through seasons of fruitlessness, instead of asking that they immediately end. Throughout the Bible, we see God’s faithful ones crying out to Him in seasons of despair, remembering that God comes for His people and choosing to rejoice and be obedient. Like those before us, we can rest in the conclusion that God will strengthen us, transform us, and enable us to tread in the high places.

Pastor Jon Tyson teaches about sacrificially living for others. As the body of Christ, we can flip our current cultural narrative from "I win, you lose" to "I sacrifice, we win" and mimic Jesus by taking on the position of a humbled servant who gives from the heart. Regularly stewarding our resources and living in the way of the cross holds real power to change the world.

Guest pastor of Christ Church, Dr. David Ireland, preached about what it means to be more a multiethnic church, providing us with three coaching tips to bridge racial barriers based on how Paul coached Peter in Galatians 2:11-14: welcome confrontation, face the challenge and accept the coaching.

Pastor Jon Tyson teaches about intercessory prayer and the spiritual authority this kind of prayer gives us. Exemplifying the ultimate spiritual power in Jesus, God calls us to identify with the brokenness of the world, enter into an agony deeper than empathy, and move through the world with spiritual authority (Isaiah 53:12).

This past Sunday, Pastor David Bailey preached on the long history of racial injustice in America, and how our hearts may cry out in response with grief, anger, fear, and shame. God gave us the language to express these emotions through the Psalms, as a balm for our souls. Through the resurrection of Jesus, we have hope that God is doing the work of reconciliation and restoration in our time. Pastor David Bailey teaches on the long history of racial injustice in America, and how our hearts may cry out in response with grief, anger, fear, and shame. God gave us the language to express these emotions through the Psalms, as a balm for our souls. Through the resurrection of Jesus, we have hope that God is doing the work of reconciliation and restoration in our time.

Pastor Suzy teaches about the elements of prophetic lament in Scripture and what it means to weep with those who weep. Through the example of Jesus, God invites us to courageously enter into the pain of others and to bear the mark of lamenters (Ezekiel 9:4). We do this by looking closely at the sin in our hearts and communities, by learning our history of oppression, by listening to God’s voice and asking Him what grieves His heart, and by lamenting in a way that produces lasting change.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on self-denial and satisfaction.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on moving from temptation to testimony.

Pastor Jon teaches about self-control, wrapping up our series on the Fruit of the Spirit in a Time of the Flesh. Biblical self-control, at its core, is about cultivating a sacrificial stewardship of the self for the sake of others and redirecting our desires for Kingdom purposes. 

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on our gentle king.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on enemy love.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on restoration.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on gentle touch.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on listening.

Pastor Suzy reminds us to exercise gentleness during these difficult times, as Jesus exemplified throughout his life. In a time where self-confidence is valued over meekness, it’s important to learn from and turn our hearts to Jesus, our gentle King.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on faithfulness in exile.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on conviction and compassion.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on being faithful to God's word.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on functional trust.

Jon Tyson sat down with David Bailey, Executive Director of Arrabon, an organization that believes the Church should be a ​foretaste of a reconciled heaven to our divided world. They have a conversation about race and reconciliation in the kingdom of God, especially in light of Ahmaud Arbery's death.

Here you can find the link that David talks about, where you can find the tools to understand, discuss, and do something about the divisions you experience.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on faithfulness, spiritual adultery and restoration.

We continue our study of the fruit of the Spirit as Pastor Jon teaches about choosing faithfulness in a time of compromise. At a time when the loyalty of God's people is being tested, we are called to be faithful to him, knowing that our own faithfulness is not rooted in human willpower but in God's faithfulness to us.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one is on bathing your heart in beautiful goodness.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on goodness and resistance.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on remembering God's goodness.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on how God is good.

Pastor Jon Tyson teaches about the redemptive, beautiful, and confrontational nature of biblical goodness. With the Holy Spirit producing the fruit of goodness within us, we have the power to redeem, to bring beauty, and to overcome evil with good.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on kingdom kindness.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on truly believing that God is kind.

Pastor Jon teaches about having a spirit of kindness during a time of harshness. Through the Holy Spirit, we are called to manifest God’s kindness that is compassionate and others-directed.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on perseverance through suffering.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on persistence and Moses.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on persistence and Abraham.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on the patience we find in Matthew.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on the patience we find in Proverbs.

We continue in our study of the fruit if the Spirit as Pastor Suzy teaches about patience that endures. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and persistence in prayer, we are able to persevere in our suffering and meet others with a patience that imitates the Father’s.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on the beauty of peace with God.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on peace in the midst of chaos.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on peace and purpose.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on guarding the peace of your heart.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on courageous joy.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on gratitude and joy.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on choosing joy.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This one focuses on Psalm 73.

Pastor Jon teaches about defiant joy as as an internal reality, produced by the Holy Spirit, that sees the beauty in the Word and the world, enables a different response, and anticipates a glorious future. Especially in a time of despair, we must live out of the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit -- a generator of life that lets us operate in a different way than the world around us.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is about love and forgiveness.

We continue in our study of the the fruit of the Spirit as Pastor Jon shared a message about what it looks like to love in a time of selfishness. When we root ourselves in the love of God through Christ, we are able to bear the fruit of that love, turn away from oursleves, and let if flow freely to those around us.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is about love in secrecy. 

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is about 1 Corinthians 13.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is the fourth one of the week.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is the third one of the week.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is the second one of the week.

Following along with our current sermon series on fruit of the Spirit, this is a devotional to help you reflect on how the Spirit is moving in your life. This is the first one of this week.

Pastor Jon preaches about choosing a Spirit-led life over one driven by the flesh, which is any independent coping mechanism for life apart from God. The flesh uses and destroys, the law judges and excludes, but the Spirit transforms and loves.

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

This past Sunday, Pastor Jon Tyson shared a special message about how the Church has a chance to respond in the wake of this public health crisis. He urged us to use this time as an opportunity to grow deeper in our faith and move towards those around us with compassion. This has not taken God by surprise, and with our hope in Him, this could be the Church's finest hour.

Pastor Suzy Silk teaches about why sin is a "big deal" and why we will be studying it during this season of Lent. Sin is the opposite of God's original design for our world and is what separates us from Him, ourselves, and those around us. We cannot save ourselves, but we are ultimately freed from our sin through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and the resurrection on Easter. Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

Pastor Jon preached about the city of New York as an altar, calling for the people of God to come together in one heart and one mind, in order to seek the Lord, fast, and pray for our hearts to turn back to God.

In this episode, Pastor Suzy taught us about the importance of maintaining a communal altar of sacrifce and praise as a church, calling us to remember our first love, Christ, and cultivate a heart for Jesus together.

Pastor Jon talks about building altars in our home that pass on a spiritual inheritance to future generations. In Deuteronomy 6, God lays a clear pathway for how to develop resilient disciples. Specifically, He calls us to break off destructive generational patterns of spiritual complacency and worldliness, and to build a compelling vision of Himself, an ecosystem of discipleship, and a vision of spiritual legacy. This happens by creating environments where we’re always informing and discussing things of faith: at home, while we’re commuting, in daily transitions, when we leave and enter our home—every moment is an opportunity for discipleship.  - Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

Church of the City New York

https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

This past Sunday, Pastor Suzy Silk preached about creating a culture of honor that springs out of honoring Christ first. In turn, we receive honor from each other as we see each other's story, calling, sacrifice, gifts, authority, and future.

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

This past Sunday, Pastor @jontyson taught us that ambition is a good thing and a gift from God, when we can reframe it to have a holy ambition. We can do this through having kingdom vision, a crystallization of discontent and radical sacrificial action. A holy ambitions leads to divine accelerations.⁠

In this episode, Pastor Jon Tyson introduces our new series called CHURCH.NYC, discussing all the essential "Jesus stuff": the miracles, the message, and the mercy of Jesus. // 2020-01-05

In the third week of Advent, Pastor Jon Tyson reminds us that the incarnation was God chosing to make Himself known to us through Jesus Christ. Jesus showed up in the midist of scandal and obscurity, not to power over us, but draw us to Him, inviting all who believe to become children of God. // 2019-12-15

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

John 1:1-18

Church of the City New York

https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

In the second week of Advent, Jon Tyson reminds us that from Genesis to Relevation, God's desire is to be with His people. Throughout all the joys and all the sorrows of this season, God promises that He is with us and that we carry the gift of His presence with us wherever we go. // 2019-12-08

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him "Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). - Matthew 1:21-23

Church of the City New York

https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

This week, Suzy Silk kicks off our series by giving a word on who the God of the Bible is. God is infinite, yet personal; just, yet merciful; Holy, and yet incarnate. We can respond to His coming with fear(lessness), joy, and adoration. //2019-12-01

Mary’s Song:

"And Mary said:

My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”

-Luke 1:46-55

Church of the City New York

https://church.nyc | @churchofthecitynewyork

In this episode, Pastor Jon Tyson ends Fall Vision Day 2019 with three stories from members of our community: Laura, Peter, and Alicia. They share their experiences concerning Holy ambition, culture of honor, and an overcoming spirit. // 2019-08-24

"Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy."

Habakkuk 3:2

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @COTCNYC

In this episode, Pastor Suzy Silk continues our 1 Peter sermon series, Citizens, by examining the apostle Peter's exhortations to the church regarding Godly leadership, which starts with being a witness to Christ. Also included in this episode is one of the new worship songs written by our community, New Name. // 2019-09-01

"Humble yourselves therefore under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all of your anxiety on him because he cares for you."

1 Peter 5:6,7

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @COTCNYC

In this episode, Pastor Jon continues our 1 Peter sermon series, Citizens, by examining the apostle Peter's exhortations to the church in the midst of suffering. Pastor Jon in turn offers his exhortation to our church today in the midst of secularism. Also included in this episode is one of the first worship songs written by our community, We Behold. // 2019-08-25

"But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed."

1 Peter 4: 13

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @COTCNYC

Pastor Jon continues through Citizens, our summer sermon series in 1 Peter. As an old man reflecting on the highs and lows of his life as a disciple, Peter is urgent about how believers should live counter to their surrounding culture. Also included in this episode is a new worship song written by our community called We Tremble. // 2019-08-18

"The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray."

1 Peter 4: 7

Church of the City New York https://church.nyc | @COTCNYC

Pastor Suzy continues our summer sermon series through 1 Peter, Citizens. Citizens of the Kingdom of God are eager to do good, even in extenuating circumstances, because of the hope they have in Christ. // 2019-08-11

"But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. For it is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God."

1 Peter 3: 15-18a