“Stop doubting and believe” (John 20:24-29)

↓Audio link to the sermon:(Sunday worship recording) (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) Sorry, this post is no translate, only available in Japanese. John20:24-29 24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus ), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them.

“What does the Lord require of you?” (Part 2) Micah 6:8

↓Audio link to the sermon:(Sunday worship recording) (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) This is Part 2 of my message on the book of Micah. The theme of this message is the same as before. But in particular today, I would like to focus on the idea of grace. Micah 6:8 says, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” First of all, about justice: I said in my last message that this kind of justice is based on God’s laws of

“Divorce and Marriage” (Mark 10:1-12)

↓Audio link to the sermon: (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) Today’s passage in the Gospel of Mark deals with a tough and controversial subject: divorce. Christians hold different views about divorce. Regardless, from reading the Bible we can see that it elevates the status of women in times when they were often considered the property of men. Before reading from Mark, let’s pray. [Read Mark 10:1-12] The Pharisees’ debate on divorce Back then, the Pharisees were caught in a debate about when divorce was permissible. The Law of Moses had only one reference to divorce, in Deuteronomy 24:1-4. It’s quite long, so I’ll summarize

“From Useless to Useful” (Philemon 8-22)

↓Audio link to the sermon:(Sunday worship recording) (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) The Epistle to Philemon is a personal letter. So, Philemon does not teach about the faith. It doesn’t teach the doctrine of Christianity, either. In the early church, believers wrote short letters like Philemon. But, these letters are not included in the canon. So why did people include this short letter in the canon? Aren’t you curious? Letters in the 1st century were usually very short. Interestingly enough, Philemon is longer than the letters of that time. Most of the letters in the New Testament are longer than the letters of that

“What does the Lord require of you?” (Micah 6:8)

↓Audio link to the sermon:(Sunday worship recording) (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) Beginning today, we will read from the book of Micah. Micah was a prophet in the same time as prophet Isaiah. The name Micah is a short version of the phrase “Who is like Yahweh (the Lord)?” It’s a beautiful name. Recently I have gone to a few concerts of Bach’s church cantatas, and I heard a reference to the book of Micah in cantata number 45. So let me begin by quoting the verse from Micah that I heard in the song, Micah 6:8: “He has shown you, O mortal, what

Do You Believe in the Resurrected Jesus? (John 11:25-26)

↓Audio link to the sermon:(Sunday worship recording) (If you can’t listen on your iPhone, please update your iOS) Happy Easter! Today is Easter Sunday, when our Lord Jesus Christ defeated the power of sin and death and rose again. Let us celebrate the resurrection of Jesus! As we study the meaning of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in more detailed ways, I pray that all of you would receive grace from God. I believe that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are the two main truths of human salvation. Without the death of Jesus, in other words, without the crucifixion of Jesus, there would be no forgiveness of our