Grace Downtown

There are times when an event reveals the core character of a person or society. For the Jews in exile in Persia, such a moment came when a powerful magistrate convinced the emperor to wipe the Hebrews out. It was a moment of life-or-death, with two of God's people placed close to the center of the action—but decidedly on the outside.

Within months of Jesus’ crucifixion, the earliest Christians had begun forming relationships that crossed ethnic, religious, cultural and class boundaries in ways the world had never seen before. This archived sermon from 2012 asks what the earliest generation of Christians understand about the cross that made radically diverse relationships spring up in their lives? And are the things they understood still true today?

In our continuing study of biblical figures who navigated competing cultures and value systems, we appreciate the ambiguity of the book of Esther. The story presents us with a series of actions but no insight into the decision-making process that led to them. Whether it is the way we are handling work, politics or friendships, it's almost impossible to not project our own struggles and confusions into the text—and learn from it to see Christ in our own decisions.

By the time he hit his thirties, Joseph had rebounded from a youth beset by tragic injustice and had ascended to one of the most powerful jobs in the world. How he got there and how he handled it are very, very instructive...

We received a request to re-run Glenn's three-part sermon series "Influenced by the Cross," exploring the ways in which understanding the meaning of the cross changes aspects of our lives. This week, we bring you part one, covering the words we use, what they reveal about what we trust and the purpose behind the things we say.

We kick off a new series looking at biblical figures who have served God well in pluralistic settings.

This week, we are flashing back to a sermon Glenn delivered in March 2011. Israel is at a place we are well familiar with: feeling like a barren landscape. Their relationship with God is at a low point morally and spiritually. Injustice is rampant. By way of the prophet Isaiah, they have just learned that they will be sent into exile as severe mercy. However, almost in the same breath, they learn of God’s intention to forgive, restore and renew them. And these grand promises are attached to one who is referred to as “The Servant of the Lord.” In Isaiah 40 we learn of this Servant’s compassion.

Guest preacher Rev. Owen Lee unpacks the beauty and the power of the communion table.

Grace Downtown member Sarah Park shares the ways she has come to better understand God's grace through her experiences on the Mercy Team.

"More money can't make you more generous." So, then, what can? And why should we care? Pastor Glenn Hoburg digs into the role generosity plays in our culture and why we probably teed to re-think our approach to it.

The Grace DC network brought together over 100 people from throughout Washington, DC, for a half-day of lectures and discussions on how we can better love our neighbors and serve our city. This week on the Grace DC podcast, we bring you pastor Glenn Hoburg's opening remarks.

Pastor Glenn Hoburg's sermon from Grace Downtown's 2015 Easter Sunday worship service.

Pastor Russ Whitfield's song and sermon from the Grace DC network's 2012 Good Friday service. If you are in the Washington, DC, area, please join us Friday at noon in downtown DC for a 40-minute lunch-hour Good Friday reflection. The service will be hosted at Calvary Baptist Church (755 8th Street NW).

Pastor Mike Park talks us through the story of Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem as we prepare for Holy Week 2015. If you would like daily email reflections to help you reflect on the meaning of the holidays that pepper this week, sign up online at gracedc.net/downtown.

For the next two weeks, as our community prepares to celebrate Holy Week and Easter, we will be revisiting recordings from Good Friday services from earlier in Grace DC's history. This week, Duke Kwon, David Noble, Russ Whitfield and Glenn Hoburg bring us reflections on Jesus' arrest and execution all the way from 2010.

Jesus' final prayer before his arrest is one of the clearest looks we get at what God wants for our lives. Visit gracedc.net/downtown for a response to this sermon from a member of our community.

This week, we bring you the conclusion to Dr. Howard Griffith's three-part class on The Trinity in Scripture. This class was offered as part of the Grace DC network's 2015 Winter Term. The next Grace DC network-wide event is March 28's Mercy Conference. If you live in the DC area and want to learn to better love your neighbors and serve your city, visit gracedc.net/downtown to register for the free half-day conference.

"The last part of us to convert is our wallet." Pastor Mike Park kicks off our road to Easter 2015 with a sermon reflecting on Mary's sacrifice of a full year's wages in order to celebrate Jesus eating in her home.

Dr. Howard Griffith, Dean of Reformed Theological Seminary, continues his three-part discussion of the nature and history of the Trinity.

In this first official episode of the Grace Downtown Podcast, Dr. Howard Griffith shares the first of three talks on the foundations and the history of the concept of the Trinity. Dr. Griffith is a long-time friend of Grace Downtown and dean of Reformed Theological Seminary in McLean, VA. Dr. Griffith delivered this talk as part of Grace DC's 2015 Winter Term.