City of Refuge Church Podcast

How todo Missions Effectively

Special Guest, Pastor Tesfaye, Director of Ethiopian Missions

Rest Restored

¹⁶ Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

Colossians 2:16-17 ESV

Preacher, Brandon Fremion

Rest Redeemed

¹² “‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you. ¹³ Six days you shall labor and do all your work, ¹⁴ but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. ¹⁵ You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

Deuteronomy 5:12-15 ESV

Preacher, John Eigege

The Fall From Rest

For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel,
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
    in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.”
But you were unwilling, ¹⁶ and you said,
“No! We will flee upon horses”;
    therefore you shall flee away;
and, “We will ride upon swift steeds”;
    therefore your pursuers shall be swift.
¹⁷ A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
    at the threat of five you shall flee,
till you are left
    like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
    like a signal on a hill.

¹⁸ Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you,
    and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
    blessed are all those who wait for him.

Isaiah 30:15-18 ESV

Preacher, Brandon Fremion

Rest In Creation

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

³ And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ⁴ And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. ⁵ God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

⁶ And God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” ⁷ And God made the expanse and separated the waters that were under the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse. And it was so. ⁸ And God called the expanse Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.

Genesis 1:1-8 ESV

Preacher, John Eigege

The Story of Mary

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

The Beatitudes

² And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

 

Matthew 5:1-12 ESV

 

Preacher, Elijah Culpepper

The Story of Ruth

⁶ Then she arose with her daughters-in-law to return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the fields of Moab that the Lord had visited his people and given them food. ⁷ So she set out from the place where she was with her two daughters-in-law, and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. ⁸ But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother's house. May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. ⁹ The Lord grant that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband!” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. ¹⁰ And they said to her, “No, we will return with you to your people.” ¹¹ But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? ¹² Turn back, my daughters; go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, even if I should have a husband this night and should bear sons, ¹³ would you therefore wait till they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me.” ¹⁴ Then they lifted up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

Ruth 1:6-14 ESV

 

Preacher, Darrin Hanson

Oneness Restored - COVID Hits Different Ep.6

Oneness Restored

Episode Five: COVID Hits Different

Amos 5, 8:1-6, 1 John 3:16-18, Matthew 25:34-40

Guests: Susan Sorenson and Judy Kim

 

Episode Summary: 

No one could have predicted the way COVID-19 would affect our world. Our entire world ground to a halt because of a virus that was invisible to the naked eye. Economies crashed. Schools closed. Corporate worship services moved online. People fell sick. The death toll kept rising. A health crisis became politicized. There was mass hysteria and confusion. As we longed to go back to normal, normal never came, and we slowly came to grips with the fact that COVID-19 would define how we organized our lives for many years to come. COVID-19 truly seemed like the great equalizer in 2020.

 

But as the novel virus became more common, we started to see that not every community saw the same effects from COVID-19. The fragility of the US medical healthcare system became apparent. The coronavirus pandemic overwhelmed many hospitals. It also highlighted disparities in access to health care among communities of color. Death rates among African American, Latino, and Native Americans exceeded others. Racist remarks and actions were directed at Asian Americans, by citizens and by the President. Job loss and unemployment affected some communities more than others. The digital divide became apparent as many communities of color and low income communities struggled to keep up with virtual/online learning.

 

How should we care for fellow image bearers who are disproportionately feeling the effects of COVID-19? Are there things we can do individually, and as a church to create loving actions marked by justice and righteousness to make this new normal a little more bearable for others? How can we carry one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ?

 

Descriptions and Definitions:

Equity – the quality of being just, impartial, or fair

 

Bathsheba

The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

² Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, ³ and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,^[4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, ⁵ and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, ⁶ and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,

 

Matthew 1:1-6 ESV

Preacher, Brandon Fremion

Oneness Restored - White Privilege. Real or Imagined? Ep. 5

Oneness Restored

Episode Five: White Privilege. Real or Imagined?

James 2, Job 34:19, Luke 10, Philippians 2:7-9

 

Episode Summary: 

Privilege is difficult and uncomfortable to talk about. Nobody likes to be called privileged. It leaves us angry and defensive. It is often hard to acknowledge our privilege, or to even recognize it without others pointing it out to us or intentional examination. Privilege is sometimes relative and depends on our context and experiences, and at other times it has universal themes that resonate across time and space. 

 

If we are honest about the context of the United States of America, there is a reality that must be acknowledged. Historically and currently, certain advantages in society have been given to people considered white, without those same advantages being given to people of color. Many times, the advantages given come at the expense of people of color. This is not the way things are supposed to be in the kingdom of God. God shows no favoritism or partiality. What responsibility do we have as Christians to create a world marked by equity and flourishing, where God’s peace, justice, and righteousness reign? 

 

Descriptions and Definitions:

 

Privilege – to give a higher value or superior position

 

Favoritism – the practice of giving unfair preferential treatment to one person or group at the expense of another