Sermon Rewind 3/10/13 - The Ministry Of Presence

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

New International Version (NIV)

2 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.^[a] 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. ³ I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. ⁴ My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, ⁵ so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.

Pastor Peter deepened our understanding of discipleship by sharing about the ministry of presence. Discipleship isn't about performance and isn't limited to programming. Discipleship can occur when we are present with each other. Peter offered the following tips:
     1) Show up  
     2) Leave room for the Holy Spirit to show up.  
As simple as this sounds, there is often a great cost because when we are present one place, we can't be present in others. Navy Chaplain Tim Seo shared about his ministry of presence among sailors at sea and the cost that he and his family pay during his deployments.

by Chris Cheung

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Sermon Rewind 3/3/13 - Following Christ With All Your Heart

Mark 10:17-27

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Rich Young Ruler

¹⁷ As He was setting out on a journey, a man ran up to Him and knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” ¹⁸ And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. ¹⁹ You know the commandments, ‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” ²⁰ And he said to Him, “Teacher, I have kept all these things from my youth up.” ²¹ Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.” ²² But at these words ^[a]he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who owned much property.
²³ And Jesus, looking around, *said to His disciples, “How hard it will be for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” ²⁴ The disciples were amazed at His words. But Jesus *answered again and *said to them, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” ²⁶ They were even more astonished and said to Him, “^[b]Then who can be saved?” ²⁷ Looking at them, Jesus *said, “With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.”

Alex Wu's message last Sunday was about following Christ… with all of our lives, with nothing holding us back. Will we be like the rich young ruler, who Jesus loved, but who turned away because he was not ready to lay his entire life for Him? Jesus knew the ruler wanted to follow Him, but he would rather be comfortable with his own wealth. That can be an idol in your life.

Idols in our lives can be more than just wealth. Power, status, even a relationship. They are not just idols, they are anchors that keep us from the Spirit. Christ wants us to pursue Him with all of our hearts and raise the anchors to Him. Let His Spirit guide your life.

by Ed Chu

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Sermon Rewind 2/24/13

1 Corinthians 4:14-21

New International Version (NIV)14 I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. 15 Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you to imitate me. 17 For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.
18 Some of you have become arrogant, as if I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. 20 For the kingdom of God is not a matter oftalk but of power. 21 What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod of discipline, or shall I come in love and with a gentle spirit?

Benjie Kim continued to explore what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Benjie explained that as a disciple, it is important to have a teachable spirit. Who we think we are is disconnected to the truth of who we really are  - we all have blind spots about ourselves that we are unaware of. The teachable heart is the portal to seeing who we really are. It means we are open to change and hearing truth in our lives. A teachable disciple must be able to do two things:
1. Receive hard truths even with imperfect circumstances. Even though the delivery of truth might not be ideal or harsh, there is still opportunity to be teachable.
2. Share hard truths even at the risk of losing a relationship.
Benjie finished by sharing one truth for each one of us: You are God's beloved child. The places in your life that you least want to confront, Christ became the ultimate teacher by dying for those areas. Never doubt that God deeply loves you.

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Sermon Rewind 2/3/13 - Fan or Follower?

1 Corinthians 13:1-7, 13

The Message (MSG)

The Way of Love

13 If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don’t love, I’m nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate.

² If I speak God’s Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, “Jump,” and it jumps, but I don’t love, I’m nothing.

^3-7 If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have.
Love doesn’t strut,
Doesn’t have a swelled head,
Doesn’t force itself on others,
Isn’t always “me first,”
Doesn’t fly off the handle,
Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn’t revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.

¹³ But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

Benjie Kim kicked off the new series, Fan or Follower. This series is about discipleship. Are we fans of Jesus or really followers of him in discipleship? Dallas Willard defines discipleship as followers who are willing to do anything and everything to master the craft. As followers of Christ, the ultimate craft is to love. From, 1 Corinthians 13:1-7, 13 (The Message), Benjie shares how we must pursue love with intimacy and vulnerability. As we enter vulnerability, we feel naked. Are we willing to be naked in front of God, so He can see our sins and pains? Our pursuit of God involves great fear and pain. Christ became naked and broken for us. When we become naked, God will clothe us in His love. He will heal and redeem us in His timing. Discipleship is relational, not transactional. As we pursue love, the byproducts will be change. God is the one that will change us. The price has already been paid by Jesus, so we’re free. The call for discipleship is to pursue love.

by Arnold Wang

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Sermon Rewind 1/27/13 - Busy With God

Matthew 28:18-20

New International Version (NIV)

¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

What is a disciple of God? Pastor Peter examined this question as Jesus gave the Great Commission to His disciples in Matthew 28:18-20. Simply put, a disciple is a follower of Jesus, one who is baptized and tries to teach and obey all His commands. The prerequisite to being a disciple is that we have to be a follower of Christ first. As disciples, we are able to teach with authority because Jesus promises to be with us until the last days. To be an effective disciple, we must spend time with Jesus. We often show our love for a person by spending time with them, and it is no different with Jesus. Quality time requires quantity time, and we each were made uniquely to spend time with God in our own way. What is one way God has created you to have a relationship with Him, and to reach out to others?

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Sermon Rewind 1/13/13 - Wrestling With God

Genesis 32:22-31

New International Version (NIV)

Jacob Wrestles With God

²² That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. ²³ After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. ²⁴ So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

²⁷ The man asked him, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,^[a] because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”²⁹ Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”

But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.

³⁰ So Jacob called the place Peniel,^[b] saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.”

³¹ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel,^[c] and he was limping because of his hip.

Benjie Kim shared about ‘encountering God in the midst of ugliness’ from his reflections during a recent vision trip to Thailand. Despite being a deceiver and a liar, Jacob encountered God in Genesis 32:22-31. An encounter with God does not require (a formula for) us to remove our idols. An encounter with God requires us to confront our past; to understand that all we really want in life is blessings; and to embrace your limp. Jacob wrestled with God all night long, and was taken to all the places he doesn't want to go. He gave you your pain and weakness to embrace and empower. God’s blessings communicate He sees you, He loves you, and He has your back. We are all created to receive a blessing from God. It's about our Lord Jesus Christ becoming weak first to save us.

by Arnold Wang

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Sermon Rewind 1/6/13 - Being Thankful

Cindy Park spoke last Sunday about starting the new year with an mindset and heart of gratitude, living in the present and giving thanks for even the smallest things in life. There is nothing wrong in planning for tomorrow, but we cannot be consumed with it. Neither should we be worried about what tomorrow will bring.  Whether we live in the worry of tomorrow or the fantasy of tomorrow, both take us away from today.  We are to be grateful for what we have now. God the Father is not limited by what we do not have, just as when He was able to feed the five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish.

We are to pause and think on what God has given to us. Just as Jesus trusted the Father, we are called to trust Him, in all things. We are to follow Christ, trust Christ, in this moment, beyond our pains and doubts.



by Ed Chu

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