Christ Church Jerusalem

On Pentecost Sunday, Mike Kerem speaks about the personal, communal, and global effects of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. On the Festival of Shavout, the Holy Spirit joins the nations to Israel for God's redemptive purposes. In Acts 2, Peter invokes Joel in Jerusalem on that festival day, but Joel is speaking globally. What we have now from the Holy Spirit is only a down payment. There is more! Let us hold on in these trying times and allow the Holy Spirit to refresh, equip, and empower...

God has been directing Moses to teach the people prior to the conquest of Canaan. Moses has reiterated the 10 Commandments, introduced monotheism, declared the Sh’ma, instructed us to both love and fear (although in the sense of awe) the Lord. Many of these commands are for Israel. Particularly the sons of Aaron! But what about other peoples and nations. Is not God the King of the Universe, has He not spoken to Gentiles too? What about the 7 Laws of Noah? The Laws before Sinai! How do they...

In this seventh week of Easter, the Rev. David Pileggi continues sharing from the Acts of the Apostles. Our western worldview, featured in the Beatles’ last recorded song “I Me Mine," puts the self in the center of all things and has become a dangerous impediment today to living out the gospel and being witnesses of that new life found through the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus of Nazareth. Pileggi address the need for unity and challenges the usual view of unity derived from the...

In Deuteronomy 6, Moses calls attention to the ‘One Command’; the one ruling principle amongst all others. The Hebrew is an emphatic statement in single form, this is ‘The Commandment!’, the greatest of commandments that God is telling Moses to teach the Israelites. Moses reminds us all that hearing the Voice of God and learning His instructions (Torah) should give us a healthy fear and awe of the Lord. Fear of the Lord, the wise man once said, is the beginning of wisdom. Wisdom leads to...

17 May 2020 - On this sixth week of Easter, the Rev. David Pileggi tells us how Acts fits into the overarching narrative of the Bible: out of love, God creates the world and desires to come into relationship with humanity. But humanity has rebelled. We choose idolatry -- finding our identity and security in some thing, ideology or person -- and thereby we choose death. Paul sees the effects of this disastrous choice in the Athens of his time. God's message to Athens then and for us today is...

Moses has called the assembly together, most likely addressing the elders, tribal leaders and representative heads of each of the communities, thus calling it ‘all Israel’. He proceeds to retell the Laws and Judgements of God, beginning with the 10 Commandments. The people of Israel have already received the Commandments from Mout Sinai, as recorded in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. Yet those people have since died in the wilderness and the rest apparently have forgotten the instructions...

10 May 2020 - Canon Daryl Fenton, in the fifth week of Easter, shares how the earliest disciples in Acts responded to God’s call through Messiah Jesus, and considers its implications for us today. Readings: Acts 7:55-60; Psalm 31; John 14:1-14 Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation. www.christchurchjerusalem.org/donate/ This sermon is also available on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/christchurchjerusalem

What sort of Bible did the Israelites have since they left Egypt? Written texts were still in the formative stages using paleo Hebrew, not the Persian script of modern Hebrew. Biblical stories remained in the Oral tradition. Moses asked the Israelites to think back on the stories of Creation, the first men and the miracles leading to the Redemption from Egypt. Rhetorically, Moses challenged them to ponder ‘has God ever done anything like this for any other people?’ Led by Aaron Eime. Notes...

3 May 2020 - In this fourth week of Easter, Deacon Aaron Eime shows us how we are called into a community. Peter exhorted the people of Israel to flee their corrupt generation -- but not to wander alone in the wilderness of individuality, but to rejoin the people of God in the unity of the Spirit and of Faithfulness. Acts 2 reveals that the unity of the early followers of Jesus was demonstrated through their communal behavior. Living as a disciple of Jesus MUST be done in the framework of a...

The command to remember is the most common command in the Bible. God asks us to remember more times than any other command. In Verse 9 Moses charges the people not to forget the things they have seen with their eyes, but also not to forget from the heart. Moses continues to draw focus to the intention of the heart. This is central to his commentary to the Torah and a major theme of Deuteronomy. Led by the Aaron Eime. Notes for this study can be found at...

26 April 2020 - The Rev. David Pileggi shows us that salvation, as presented in the book of Acts, is rich and nuanced. God takes the initiative through Jesus the Messiah to offer us forgiveness of sin and much, much more. Acts describes salvation as deliverance from Satan, idolatry, and present day troubles and as healing. In Acts 2, Peter's Pentecost sermon invites his listeners to be saved from their crooked generation. God extends that same rescue to us today. Readings for the third...

19 April 2019 - Rev. David Pileggi, discusses what brought about the transformation of the disciples from fearful cowards to courageous proclaimers of the gospel. Only when they encounter the risen Jesus does fear turn to joy, cowardice into boldness, doubt into belief. The peace that Jesus gives in the upper room to his disciples is the same peace he gives to us. This peace is nothing less than his enduring presence that enables us to be his witnesses without fear and anxiety. Readings for...

12 April 2020 - Rev. David Pileggi leads us through the Resurrection of Jesus and what it means for us in the modern day as His disciples from the roof of Christ Church. He is risen! He is risen indeed, hallelujah! Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation. www.christchurchjerusalem.org/donate/

11 April 2020 - Deacon Aaron Eime traces for us our role of participation in the narrative of Jesus’ death and resurrection, from the beginning of Creation through Abraham and the Prophets and up until the events of Holy Week. Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation. www.christchurchjerusalem.org/donate/

10 April 2020 - Rev. Daryl Fenton begins with the Hebrew phrase, ‘Tikkun Olam, Healing the World’, and how it has undergone many different changes in meaning throughout the years. How is this idea of Jewish theology relevant to Easter? As our world is within the grip of pestilence, how do we heal our world? In a sentence, “Healing the World cannot be accomplished without Jesus first healing the human heart.” Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large)...

9 April 2020 - Rev. David Pileggi gives us the narrative of Jesus’ capture, Peter’s zealous and overconfident attitude and Judas’ corruption and the betrayal of Jesus to the authorities. As followers of Jesus we all have the capacity of being either a Judas or a Peter. Blessed by our teachings? Consider saying thank you with a small (or large) donation. www.christchurchjerusalem.org/donate/

5 April 2020 - On Palm Sunday, Rev. Aaron Eime reminds us that the world still marks the passing of time by the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In this strange time of quarantine and social distancing, we will mourn Jesus' death, but not in vain, knowing that resurrection is coming. At the start of Holy Week, we remember with excitement and jubilation the entrance of the promised king into Jerusalem. Hosanna! the crowds shout. Save us! The world right now particularly knows it needs salvation....

Having concluded the historical narrative opening of his monologue (Chapters 1-3), Moses begins the commentary to the Torah. He starts by telling the assembly to hear (shma), that is to listen and obey the laws he is about to teach. However, they already have had Moses declare and teach the Torah at Mount Sinai. Here, though, in verse 1 what Moses instructs is not called Torah. These laws are conditional to taking possession of the Land and to Live! Which then begs the theological question:...

29 March 2020 - Rev. David Pileggi, on the fifth Sunday of Lent, asks us if we have sold ourselves short in how we read Ezekiel's story of the dry bones. In Ezekiel, the Land of Israel is polluted with the sin of the people and the land vomits the people out into exile. Even in this dark period, God does not divorce Israel but rather renews the covenant and promises Israel new life. God promises a renewed intimacy with his bride. But is this story of resurrection, as well as the Gospel story...

While avoiding mention of Balaam the prophet of Moab (Numbers 22-24), Moses reiterates the victory over Og the King of Bashan. Traditionally Og is the brother of Sihon, and they are descendants of the fallen Angel Shemhazai. The repeated references to the Refaim shows that God can assist Israel to defeat this race of fearsome warriors. This part of sacred history is not pleasant for the modern reader. It records the slaughter and extinction no prisoners) of a race of peoples, men, women and...