❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Why Jesus Had to Die (First Sunday of Lent) Mari Ikeda Today is the first Sunday of Lent. Lent is the 40-day period leading up to Easter, the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. This year, Lent runs from March 5 to April 17, with Easter on April 20. During this time, as is the tradition of the Church, we are especially encouraged to spend time reflecting on the suffering of Jesus. Today we will continue to read the Gospel of John, and I think it is an appropriate passage to begin Lent. I hope that through today’s passage we can reflect on what Jesus suffered for…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) There Is No One Who Is Unclean Series “Theology of Interdependence and Disability” Part 7 (Mark 1:40-45) Mari Ikeda Today is the seventh in our monthly series, an attempt to re-read the Bible from the perspective of a person with a disability, based on the book by Kathy Black. Today we will read Mark 1:40-45. Since this is a short passage, I would like to begin reading it as a whole quickly. 40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” 41 Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) This is not a church! (Matthew 10:1, 5-8, Mark 6:30,31, Luke 10:38-42) Andy Nagahara I am very happy to say that we have had an increase in the number of people who are new to Your Church or have not been here for a long time and have joined us again in worship together, so this morning I would like to talk about how we value the way we are as a church. Of course, we would also like those of you who have been here a long time to take this opportunity to double-check, so please listen carefully. A. Worship service and Mini-church 1. Where…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) If you listen to wisdom (Proverbs 1:20-33) Andy Nagahara Today, in the third time of our Proverbs series, we will read from verse 20 of chapter 1 onward. This part is not written in the form of a father admonishing his son as in the previous passage, but rather as “wisdom” speaking to him.The Japanese Bible does not make it clear what the personified “Wisdom” who speaks is, but the English Bible, the NIV, tells us that she is a woman.As we continue reading Proverbs, we come across another personified woman in chapter 9. This woman also speaks to people just like “Wisdom,” but her…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Resurrection of the Dead? (John 11:1-44) Mari Ikeda Today we will continue our series on the Gospel of John by reading chapter 11. This chapter is the story of Jesus raising a man named Lazarus from the dead, and it is a long passage that goes from verse 1 to verse 44, so today I will skip some parts of it. The resurrection of the dead is something that is scientifically impossible, and there is no scientific proof that it actually happened. However, the heart of the Christian faith lies in the death and resurrection of Jesus, and we cannot talk about faith in Jesus…