Let’s be honest—if there’s one part of the Bible that makes people squirm, it’s the Old Testament’s violence. Holy wars. Entire cities “devoted to destruction.” Trumpets knocking down walls. It reads, at first glance, like God’s unleashing ancient wrath with indiscriminate fury. But what if we’ve been reading it wrong?

The OT can be hard to understand. Too many have reduced it, or manipulated it, or simply ignored it. But the true beauty is that Christ fulfilled it by embodying its true purpose—to restore humanity to God’s image through love, justice, and holiness. For those that belong to Christ, that Law is now written on our hearts and as His people, we are now called to be a distinct, grace-filled community that reflects His character to the world.

Though disciples of Jesus are only baptized once, our baptism serves as an ongoing means of grace and a reminder to our daily commitment to follow Jesus in self-giving love and resurrection life.

In this message, we rediscover the sacred mystery of Communion — not as a hollow ritual, but as a real encounter with Christ and His Church. We walk through Scripture and 2,000 years of Church history to see how the Table has always been a place of awe, unity, and life-giving fellowship. Come hungry, come thankful, and come expecting to meet Jesus at the Table.

Christ’s resurrection isn’t just a past event—it’s a present invitation. The empty grave calls us not only to believe but to practice resurrection daily: to live with hope, walk in newness of life, and become more like Christ in a world desperate for restoration.

Through the cross (an instrument meant for death and dehumanization), Christ, the perfect human took all of the world’s sin-inducing death and shame and put it to death in his own body. Because of it, for those who respond in faith (i.e. embodied loyalty, fidelity, and allegiance to him and him alone) he offers reconciliation with God, redemption from our sin, a propitiation from God’s righteous wrath, and the pronouncement of justification.

City Parish desires to be a a community of justice, mercy, and reconciliation in a culture of injustice and division, through the practice of service and a community of hope and hospitality in a culture of sorrow and hostility, through the practice of witness.

God desires for his people to flourish. The rule of life practices of fasting and generosity help us walk with God in an intentional way that enables that flourishing. Take a listen as Joe helps us understand the what, why, and how of both of these incredible spiritual practices.

This week in our 'Rule of Life' mini-series within our Year of Biblical Literacy we tackled the practices of Prayer and Community. Both of those are wider known/adopted practices, but both come with an entire myriad of conflicting and problematic misunderstandings. Take a deep dive with us in this week's sermon.