❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Where does the strength come from to keep the Your Church Covenant? (Your Church Covenant II) Andy Nagahara Last week we heard a message about the Your Church Covenant. Today I would like to continue talking about the Covenant. That being said, I won’t be repeating the content. Remember the three pillars of the Covenant? They are to love God, love one another, and love the world. Now, I would like to ask those of you who were members of the Covenant last year: Please raise your hand if you were able to keep 100% of your Covenant commitments. So, then how about 50%… if…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) A Promise to Live Loving God and Loving Others (Your Church Covenant) Mari Yoshino 1. Love and serve God a. Trust and obey God above all else (Mark 12:29-31, 8:34-37) 29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:29-31) These two commandments spoken by Jesus encompass all three commitments of…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Heroes and villains (Proverbs 10) Andy Nagahara The Proverbs series has been on hold for a while, but starting today we will begin a new part both in content and format. The section we will be looking at today, from chapter 10 to chapter 22, is the second part of the book of Proverbs, entitled “The Proverbs of Solomon.” It contains 375 proverbs, each verse counted as a proverb. Although there are some unusual parts in the structure, most of the book presents two opposing ideas and encourages us to live a good life.However, what we should understand is not so simple, and there is…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Remain in Jesus (John15:1-17) Mari Yoshino The new year has begun. How are you feeling? For the first worship service of the year, I always choose a Bible passage I want to keep in mind throughout the year. This time, I felt a passage continuing from the Gospel of John was fitting. It’s a well-known passage from Jesus’ words: “I am the vine; you are the branches.” In the Old Testament, the vine represents the people of Israel and is often spoken of in a lamenting context, signifying that despite being planted and nurtured by God, it failed to bear fruit. Jesus, of course, knew…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) The Birth of Jesus as “the Word” (John 1:1-14) Andy Nagahara All the Advent candles have been lit, and today marks the last Sunday of Advent. Like many churches, we have always held a Christmas service on the Sunday just before Christmas Day. Last week we learned that before His birth it was prophesied that He would be named Jesus, which means “Lord is salvation,” and that He would be called Immanuel, which means “God with us.” And from that, we learned that the salvation we need is to walk through life with Jesus. Today, let’s start by looking at the beginning of the Gospel…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Immanuel, God With Us (Matthew 1:18-25) Mari Yoshino One word we often hear during this Christmas season is “Immanuel.” It is a Hebrew word meaning “God is with us.” How have we experienced this truth throughout this past year, and even at this very moment? “God is with us” means that God knows us completely, will not leave our suffering unattended, and will always lead us to what is good. Therefore, if we can believe in “Immanuel,” we should be able to regain hope even in the midst of any suffering. Yet we are not that strong. Even so, Jesus proved that “Immanuel” is a…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Receive like Mary, proclaim like John (Luke 1:28-45, 68-79) Andy Nagahara It’s the second Sunday of Advent. This chapel has changed completely since last week, and now it looks more like Advent. Decorating for Christmas is fun and exciting no matter what age we are, but it also reminds us of the anticipation people had at the time for the Savior to come. Thank you to everyone who helped put up Christmas decorations after the service last week. In reality, however, very few people were expecting and waiting for Jesus on the day he came. Although the Jews had been informed of the coming of…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Peace Through Violence and Peace Through Justice (Matthew 2:1-3, Luke 2:8-14, Matthew 10:34-39) Mari Yoshino Today is the first Sunday of Advent, marking the beginning of the season when we await the birth of Jesus. Christmas is often associated with a message of peace. This is likely because Jesus is called the “Prince of Peace” at His birth, and the image of the infant Jesus laid in a manger connects to this idea of peace. For the past three weeks at Your Church, whether in our Proverbs series or our Gospel of John series, the theme of what God’s peace truly is has continued. Though…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Awaiting the King of Peace (Zechariah ９：9-１０、Matthew 21:1-9) Andy Nagahara Although we have not entered Advent, today, as Advent Week 0, I would like to introduce one of the prophecies about Jesus recorded in the Old Testament.  We will resume our Proverbs series again next year. This prophecy also deepens our understanding of the true peace that only Jesus can give, which we learned about last week. Today we will look at the words of the prophet Zechariah.Zechariah’s prophecy is placed second to last among the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament.Zechariah was active about 500 years before the birth of Jesus, and he was…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) The Peace That Jesus Gives (John14:25-31) Mari Yoshino Today we continue with the Gospel of John, reading from 14:25-31. This passage summarizes the teachings Jesus gave to His disciples, which began in chapter 13. One of the most memorable and well-known statements in today’s passage is Jesus’ words in verse 27: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” When we hear the word “peace,” we usually think of “ the absence of war.” But the peace Jesus gives us is not merely the absence of war. Even in the midst of war, even in the midst of any suffering, it is an…