❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) What we must do to pave the way for the future (Psalm 143) Andy Nagahara Today’s text is Psalm 143. It contains the secrets that will enable us to move forward into the future with hope, no matter what situation we find ourselves in. Let’s read with anticipation. 1. There is no one righteous (0-4) 0 A psalm of David.1 O LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.2 Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you.3 The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground;…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Racism and Church (Matthew 25:31-46 and others) Mari Ikeda      Today I would like to speak specially on the subject of “Racism and Church”. I will tell you later why I decided to do so. First, I would like to begin by reading the words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew 25:31-46. 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Jesus Healing the Blind Man and Our Society that Continues to Discriminate (Part I) Series “Theology of Interdependence and Disability,” Part 2 (John 9:1-23) Mari Ikeda      Last month we began a series on Kathy Black’s book, and today is the second in the series. In the first part, we read the first five verses of John 9 and talked about what Kathy Black calls “the theology of interdependence.” Today we will read the entire chapter 9, which is a continuation of that series, but since it is long, I decided to split it into two parts, one for today and the other for…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Lift up your voice to the LORD for mercy (Psalm 142) Andy Nagahara Today’s text is Psalm 142. It is a psalm written by the psalmist imagining David’s prayer about the events that occurred before he became king of Israel. Let’s read the whole thing first. 0 A of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer.1 I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.2 I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble.3 When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who know my way. In the path where…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Efforts We Must Continue To Make To Avoid Repeating Our Mistakes (John8:31-47) Mari Ikeda      August is a time for Japan to recall memories of the war, but this year, due to the heat of the Paris Olympics, I have the impression that media coverage of war-related issues has been reduced compared to previous years. Last week, there were Peace Memorial Ceremonies in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, respectively. Hiroshima did not invite the ambassadors of Russia and Belarus, and Nagasaki did not invite the ambassador of Israel in addition to those two countries.      The cover of today’s bulletin is a picture of the…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) What to ask God to protect our heart (Psalm 141) Andy Nagahara We have been reading the Psalms together for several years, and we have now come to the last ten. Today’s text is 141. I have previously mentioned that the verses of the Psalms were basically sung as worship, and it is clear from their structure that this psalm is also typical of that. The basic attitude of worshippers is established in the first two verses and in the concluding verses 8-10, where they call out to God. And between them are placed the two main wishes that make this psalm unique. So, as…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Is Disability God’s Will? Series “Theology of Interdependence and Disability,” Part 1 (John9:1-5) Mari Ikeda      Last Christmas, I read Isaiah 11 to think about what peace means. At that time, I thought that true peace is not only that the strong do not exploit the weak, but also that the weak can remain weak and ask for help without fear, and that it is the natural responsibility of the strong to meet the needs of the weak. In this sense, the weak are the leaders in creating true peace.      This is very well expressed in the words of Kazuo Itoga, the…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) I know (Psalm 140) Andy Nagahara We are nearing the end of our Psalm series that we have been reading for several years. Today’s text is 140th. In Psalm 139 I talked about what we are “known” by God, but today I will talk about what the psalmist knows and what we know. It has been a while since we last saw a psalm using the word “Selah” but “Selah” which appears in 40 of the 150 psalms, indicates a musical break. It reminds us that the psalms are traditionally sung as worship songs. In particular, the first half of the song is easy to…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Jesus Kept Speaking To His Enemies (John 8:21-29) Mari Ikeda Today we continue in the Gospel of John, and today we will read 8:21-29. What we see throughout this passage is that, as the title suggests, Jesus continued to speak to His enemies who were tormenting Him. Jesus did not give up on the Jewish leaders who were trying to kill Him, and He wanted to save them as much as possible. Jesus taught us to love our enemies. So today’s story could be interpreted as teaching us that we must follow Jesus’ example and continue to communicate with those who torment us. But I…

❖ Video ❖ Audio (Message) Being known by God (Psalm 139) Andy Nagahara Today’s psalm is Psalm 139. Let’s read it in four parts. 1. We who do not want to be known (0-10) 0 For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.1 O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.4 Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.5 You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon…