Mosaic Boston

We live in a world that is fractured by "isms": racism, classicism, sexism, ageism, etc. We live in a world plagued by prejudice, partiality, and favoritism. We're constantly sizing people up by superficial externals: looks, education, wealth, status, race, sex, faith, etc. Then, we treat that person according to their level of "worth" in our eyes. This system of merit is diametrically opposed to grace and mercy, the essence of Christianity. In our text tomorrow, James quotes Jesus: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." We've heard this. But do we do it? Do we do it on a practical level? James teaches us this hard truth: how we relate to people reveals how much we understand God's impartial and unconditional love for us. James reminds us that living faith leads to loving others with unconditional love, the same love Jesus has for us.

I'm wicked excited about kicking off our brand new sermon series through the book of James!! James is one of my favorite books in the Bible because James is a doer. He understands that God's grace is given to us to transform us and motivate us to live for the Glory of God. James is all about Getting Stuff Done (GSD). At Mosaic, we're all about GSD for SDG (Soli Deo Gloria - Glory to God Alone). James is just like that, GSD for SDG. James is one of the most practical books in the whole Bible. It's also super simple, straightforward, and clear. It's pretty much "The Idiot's Guide" to the Christian life. I don't know about you, but I enjoy simplicity. Tomorrow's sermon will cover James 1:1-18, where James helps us discover not just the answers, but also the questions, in life's most important tests: like what do when we life doesn't go according to plan. Start reading James, and join us tomorrow at one of our 3 services.

We're closing out our series on the "Seven Deadly Sins" with the deadliest one -- Pride. Someone once remarked that the seven deadly sins are the pallbearers of the soul. I think that's a strong way of putting it. However, I would separate pride from the other six. If the others are deadly, pride is damning. It's not just a pallbearer, it's an incinerator. It estranges us from God like nothing else, because it actively rebels against God, vies for his throne, and writes him out of existence from our pseudo-reality. Moreover, the self-entitlement produced by pride leads to every other sin. Our self-entitlement leads to the sins of lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, and envy. "Of course I can do those things," our pride tells us, "I deserve it."

Wrath is probably the most complicated of the 7. Many us us wouldn't say we have a problem with anger, not outright, flipping out, off the chain, destructive, violent anger. However, how often do you feel slighted? How often do you take offense at how people treat you? How often do you get irritated? How often do you grumble or complain? These feelings, though not necessarily sinful, do point to potential problems with anger. The sin of wrath is further complicated because it can be righteous or unrighteous. Scripture often talks of the wrath or the anger of God. Actually, the wrath of God is mentioned more than 600 times in Scripture. The reason God feels wrath is because God is love; his wrath flows out of his love. This is highly counterintuitive, but makes sense when you think about it. As a result of Gods great loves for us, he despises absolutely anything that might hurt us, even our own sin. A good way to discern whether your anger is righteous or unrighteous is the following question: are these fe

This Sunday, we're talking about the 4th Deadly Sin: Sloth. Now, at first glance, it wouldn't appear that Bostonians have a problem with sloth. If anything, we struggle with overwork, right? However, when Scripture talks about sloth, it doesn't just talk about laziness in general, it talks about laziness in relation to God, which makes all the difference in the world! For our text tomorrow, we'll look at the Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25:14-30, where Jesus teaches us that the opposite of "slothful" is not "diligent," but "faithful." The implications of this great truth are truly life-transforming.

Tomorrow, we're talking about the 2nd Deadly Sin: Gluttony. Jesus had a lot to say about food. He actually, really loved to eat and drink, one of the many reasons I really love Jesus. Three times, Scripture uses the phrase "The Son of Man came..." In Mark 10:45, "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." In Luke 19:10, "The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." Both of these verses tell us why Jesus came. But Luke 7:34 tells us how he came: "The Son of man has come eating and drinking." Join us tomorrow as we think through the mind-blowing, heart-igniting, soul-satisfying and life-transforming implications of this truth. Only when we experience Jesus is the Bread and Water of Life, will our souls be satisfied.

For centuries, the Church has attempted to understand the depth of human sin, evil and depravity. In order to equip Christians to understand themselves and defeat their sinful inclinations, by the power of the Holy Spirt, theologians have defined seven of the most dangerous sins, which are absolutely deadly to human souls and flourishing. For the next seven weeks, we'll be studying these "Seven Deadly Sins" and learning how the Gospel of Jesus Christ offers us the power of God to save us from these sins and bring healing to the brokenness these sins have caused in our lives and relationships. Don't miss tomorrow's sermon on "Lust" from John 4

What's Mosaic Church all about? What are our core values? What's our identity? What's our vision? Who are we? Who do we hope to become. Join us tomorrow, as we explain what we mean when we say Mosaic is all about "Love. Jesus. Simple."

be sure to join us Sunday for our concluding sermon in the "Minor Prophets :: Major Profit" series. We'll be studying the book of Malachi and talking about "True Worship."

When you think about "happiness," what's the first thing that comes to mind? What needs to be added to, or removed from, your life, for you to be truly happy? Now, if you reach this point of bliss, how do you sustain it? How do you protect it from all the evil and suffering in this world? How do you protect it from yourself? How do we find and sustain happiness in a world so full of sadness and brokenness? Who are the happiest people you've ever met? What made them happy? Prophets don't have a reputation for being happy. However, one of the surprisingly happiest prophets in the Bible is Habakkuk. He found a happiness which had absolute nothing to do with his circumstances (which were miserable). We'll be studying this short book tomorrow. It's only 3 chapters so definitely read through it today. His conclusion in chapter 3 is, though everything seems to be going wrong, "YET, I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength."

We love stories about redemption, don't we? Just think about how many of your favorite books or movies boil down to stories about a person struggling to redeem themselves or someone else. If you look at IMDB's list of top 250 movies of all time, the #1 movie is the classic, "Shawshank Redemption." Then, as you make your way down the list, almost every other movie (arguably) is about redemption--a story of someone ingeniously and determinedly atoning for their mistakes and/or saving themselves or loved ones. Why is the plot line of redemption so compelling to our hearts? Could it be, because we long for our own redemption? Could it be, because we all long for another chance? Could it be, because we all long to be saved?

We're continuing our series through the books of the Bible called "The Minor Prophets." Tomorrow, we'll focus our attention on the book of Amos. The big idea of the book is that God, as the just Judge of the Universe, cares about what we do with our lives and how we relate to the people around us. He cares about Justice. He wants His people to "do justice," which in Scripture includes sharing food, shelter, and basic resources with those who lack them. In particular, Amos reminds us that God cares how we relate to those who are vulnerable: the weak, sick, elderly, mentally and physically handicapped, refugees, immigrants, working poor, natural disaster victims, unemployed, single parents, widows, and orphans. One of the famous verses for the book is found in chapter 5, verse 24: "Let Justice roll down like waters and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." I pray for Mosaic Boston to continue to growing into a church from whom justice flows torrentially.

“Come and see!” Hearing those words can evoke different emotions. There’s a bunny that we have been watching in our backyard, and we have seen it grow from its infancy into adulthood. When my wife says to “come and see,” I know that I’m going to be looking at a cute rabbit that's getting bigger and more fluffy by the day. But “come and see” can also bring about negative emotions. Last week I was at my parent’s house and the “come and see” that was used there on a regular basis was directed at my sister, telling her to “come and see” the messes that her daughter was making. Whether good or bad, the invitation to “come and see” should be answered by us actually coming to see what’s going on. In John 1:35-51, the passage that we will be looking at on Sunday, Jesus gives an invitation to “come and see”. What he invites us to come and see is far greater than anything that we have ever beheld on earth, and it will forever change our lives. Join us at Mosaic Church this Sunday, as we come and see what it is that is

This week at Mosaic we’re going to talk about how the Gospel moves us beyond slacktivism, and toward a purpose in life that is eternally meaningful.