The Samaritan woman went out to the well in the hot of the day, hoping to be avoid people. Instead, she was met by Jesus. Listen to Dave as he explains their conversation and how the words Jesus spoke, changed her life.
Read MoreJohn 3:16 is a verse that many know, Christian and non-Christian alike. But when Jesus first spoke these words, they came as a surprise to his listeners. Listen to Dave as he unpacks six surprises in John 3:16-32.
Read MoreUndercover of the night, Nicodemus met with Jesus, seeking to ascertain more about him. Jesus told him that to see the Kingdom of God, one must be born again. Nicodemus was confused. Listen to Dave as he explains Jesus’ statement and the need to be born again.
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It wasn’t until Jesus rose from the dead that Jesus’ life and teaching began to really make sense to his disciples. One scene in particular, the cleansing of the temple in John 2, came alive for them. Listen as Dave explains what it meant when Jesus said, “Tear down this temple and in three days I will raise it again in three days.”
Read MoreThe gospels record Jesus' miracles in order to confirm both Jesus' authority and Jesus' mission. He gives sight to the blind to show how the gospel opens our eyes. He raises the dead to show how the gospel defeats death. But why then, for his very first miracle, does he turn water into wine? Listen as Dave explains the message behind the miracle.
Read MoreThe first disciples of Jesus were the Early Adopters of Christianity -- willing to sign on to faith in Jesus before it made sense to them and before it was even particularly helpful. As followers of Jesus in San Francisco, the least Christian city in the country, what can we learn from their bold faith? Listen as Dave recounts five qualities of Jesus' first disciples from these early stories of faith.
Read MoreUpon seeing Jesus, the first thing John the Baptist says (as the Ideal Witness) is “Behold, the Lamb of God!” What would this have meant to his first listeners, and what should it mean to us now. Nick Parsons explains what it meant and why it matters, and why we, too, should drop everything to follow Christ.
Read MoreGod's Kingdom grows through faithful witnesses and John the Baptist is the ideal witness. He knows who he is, who he's not, and who Jesus is. It is vitally important that we, as God's witnesses, know who we are and who we aren't.
Read MoreThe Gospel of John was written not only to emphasize how Jesus was God, but that Jesus was God Made Flesh. This claim is both amazing and unsettling! Listen as Dave explains the fourfold scandal of the incarnation, and why it's still good news.
Read MoreIf the Bible had elevation, John 1 might be Mount Everest. The Apostle John begins his biography of Jesus before there even was a beginning, when Jesus was simply God. In John 1, we learn that everything that can be said about God can be said about Jesus. He is God, Creator, Life, and Light.
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Every January, we take six weeks to walk through the Story of God from beginning to end. Our Sundays have less liturgy to accommodate more dialogue and reflection from everyone. Listen in as we wrestle through the beginning of God's story, including the First Creatures, the First Humans, and Separation.
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What are spiritual gifts for? The first mention of spiritual gifts is connected to building the Tabernacle. This teaches us that God gives spiritual gifts so that we might make space for God to dwell with people--with us and with others. Just like with the Tabernacle, God has given us a vision for life together as a church while also inviting us to bring anointed skills and ingenuity. At Citizens, how will we build God's church so that God might come and dwell?
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Isaiah teaches us that the promise of Christmas isn't just for one people. This might be old news to us, but it was mind-blowing to his first hearers. And while we might be used to the idea, the reality still feels unreachable. Is our gospel too small? In a divided world, Advent invites us to long for Christ to come again and unite all people under his gracious and good rule.
Read MoreThe Book of Isaiah teaches us what faith looks like in difficult seasons. Whether we are just entering darkness or enduring it, the prophet teaches us how the posture of faith always looks east expecting the dawn. Jesus, the Rising Sun, is coming and he brings healing in his wings.
Read MoreKey of David comes from Isaiah 22, when the people of God were given a good leader, but then they tore him down--not because they disliked him, but because they liked him too much. Judah hung more hopes on him than he could carry. Isaiah 22 is a warning, but also expresses our deep desire for one person to answer our every need. That need is met in Jesus, the true Key of David.
Read MoreThis week, we continue our Advent series through the O Antiphons with O Adonai, meaning Lord. Lord is a title Christians give to Jesus all the time, in song and prayer. Yet, do we really want Jesus to be lord? Listen as Georgia asks us to wrestle with our conflicted relationship to authority. Advent reminds us that we do need and want a Lord, but only one as good and righteous as Jesus.
Read MoreThis week, we're beginning a new series through the O Antiphons, a collection of seven poems inspired by the Messianic texts of Isaiah. The first week is O Wisdom. Our world's problems are too complicated for us to fix. No matter how hard we try, we can't think ourselves out of this mess. The Old Testament longs for a Savior who's not just wise, but who is Wisdom itself.
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As a church, we are focusing on doing what Jesus did through the spiritual practice of hospitality this quarter. Jesus invites us to open our tables and our lives to those who aren’t like us and can’t pay us back. As we do, may it be at our tables as it is in heaven.
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