THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Fear"
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Fear"

The opposite of fear is saying yes to living fully.

The future is unknown. That scares the crap out of us. What do we do in the face of the unknown?

Jonathan Williams shares that the way forward is not fear, it’s faith. Faith is a choice to take action and move forward even when there is nothing guaranteed. To make the conscious choice to believe just for today that the great I AM is at work in our fears and in our unknowns. The opposite of fear is saying yes to being made in the image of God, of living fully alive, warts and all.

This is the fifth and final sermon in our “This Feeling's Got Me Like...” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchcovid, fear, faith, miracles, MAGA, walk on water
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Lonely"
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Lonely"

Lonely in the wilderness.

The pandemic of loneliness existed long before COVID-19, and being lonely can make us feel like we’re lost in the wilderness.

In this Sunday’s message, guest preacher and former Forefront Brooklyn associate pastor Jennifer Fisher of Launchpad Partners tells us that the wilderness can be the place where we come to know God the strongest, and can actually be a place of hope for us to grow deeper in relationship with God, each other, and creation.

This is the fourth sermon in our “This Feeling's Got Me Like...” series.

Read More
Jennifer FisherForefront Churchcovid, loneliness, anxiety, connection, hope, wilderness, community, launchpad partners
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Mental Illness"
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Mental Illness"

Covid has highlighted an unspoken struggle for millions of us. We're not doing well and don't know how to find healing. We suffer silently and are afraid to talk about mental illness in the church. We believe that we're not holy enough, godly enough. That's a lie!

In this sermon, Jonathan Williams explains how our struggles with mental challenges can actually shape the kin-dom of god.

This is the third sermon in our “This Feeling's Got Me Like...” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchdepression, anxiety, mental health, demons, covid
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Anger"
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "Anger"

“How anger is a gift and a gateway to positive change”

We’ve been taught that the Christian response to anger is to minimize it, but it’s actually *not* Biblical to deny our feelings of anger.

In this sermon, Jonathan Williams shows us that our anger is not a spiritual weakness or failure, but rather something we can employ to help create positive change.

This is the second sermon in our “This Feeling's Got Me Like...” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchanger, family systems, AA, jesus, lgtbqia
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "The Practice of Receiving"
THIS FEELING'S GOT ME LIKE | "The Practice of Receiving"

“I’m not doing enough.”

These days we're all about optimization, self-hacking, and efficiency. We feel enslaved to our to-do lists. How do we resist some of these values?

In this sermon, Sarah Ngu examines the value of productivity in our workaholic society. It all began with industrial capitalism, which led to the “machinization” of the human body. But the Christian tradition starts from a very different place. Our faith begins from the premise that human beings are not machines created for labor, but that we are created to receive.

This is the first sermon in our Lenten series: “This Feeling's Got Me Like...".

Read More
Sarah NguForefront Churchcapitalism, productivity, work, to-do lists
BE | "Intentional Life"
BE | "Intentional Life"

“But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Sarah Ngu, Makenzie Gomez, and Jonathan Williams discuss how to interpret this passage for today. The "narrow road" that Jesus talks about is not about orthodoxy -- believing and doing the right things. Instead, it's about living with intentionality and purpose, and embracing the process and not just the destination.

This is the fifth sermon in our “BE” series.

Read More
Jonathan Williams, Sarah Ngu, Makenzie GomezForefront Churchsermon on the mount, jesus, courage, orthodoxy, calling, meaning
BE | "Courageous Compassion"
BE | "Courageous Compassion"

"Be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect" is one of the most misinterpreted and damaging scriptures in our bible. How do we redeem the idea of perfection?

Jonathan Williams explores how striving for perfection has been incorporated into Christianity and reminds us that the real measure of worthiness is not perfection, it’s courage to be compassionate and justice minded towards others. God’s perfection is the simple practice of being courageous, compassionate, and creating connection.

This is the fourth sermon in our “BE” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchsermon on the mount, jesus, courage, compassion, perfectionism
BE | "Restorative Judgment"
BE | "Restorative Judgment"

Jonathan Williams asks the question - is judgment always bad?

Jonathan examines Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and the context in which Jesus judges others. He reminds us that God’s judgment is restorative justice in action. God’s judgment always believes the best in others. And so we believe the best in others because that’s how God sees the other.

This is the third sermon in our “Be” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchsermon on the mount, jesus, judgement, restoration
BE | "Integrity Matters"
BE | "Integrity Matters"

Integrity starts with being grounded in yourself.

Sarah Ngu reminds us that Jesus sees us as more than the worst decisions we’ve made or things we’ve said.

In Jesus’ sermon on the mount, he tells us that words matter and that truth matters. Integrity means not just saying what we really mean, but also realizing when we don’t really mean what we are about to say. This starts with being grounded in ourselves and recognizing when we are not in the right mind to speak honestly.

This is the second sermon in our “Be” series.

Read More
Sarah NguForefront Churchsermon on the mount, jesus, integrity
BE | "Attitudes"
BE | "Attitudes"

God is on your side.

Jonathan Williams tells us that when Jesus delivered the Beatitudes during his Sermon the Mount, Jesus was saying that God is on your side -- even when you're in the midst of a crappy year and it doesn't feel that way.

God doesn't need you to believe in certain principles, policies, or social agendas -- God just needs you to believe that God is on your side.

This is the first sermon in our “Be” series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchbeatitudes, sermon on the mount, God, love
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Radical Equity"
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Radical Equity"

Saying yes to new experiences brings about radical equity.

Jonathan Williams unveils the final of Forefront Brooklyn's new core values: Radical Equity.

Same is safe, different is dangerous -- or so the saying goes. We're afraid of new experiences because they take away our control and power, but God's kin-dom only comes when we're able to say "yes" to that which feels different. Our faith should always evolve and feel a bit dangerous, and we can only bring about radical equity when we're willing to say "yes" to that which feels different.

This is the fourth sermon in our "Make A Joyful Noise" series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchleadership, gender, progressive, Forefront Vision
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Worship Reimagined"
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Worship Reimagined"

Believing we're worthy reimagines worship.

Jonathan Williams unveils another one of Forefront Brooklyn's new core values: Worship Reimagined. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the first preacher of the New Testament, and by believing she was favored by God, she reimagined worship.

Just like Mary, when we truly believe we're already favored by God, we can reimagine worship as well.

This is the third sermon in our "Make A Joyful Noise" series.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront ChurchMary, worship, Forefront Vision
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Uncommon Kinship"
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Uncommon Kinship"

Building a community through uncommon kinship.

Sarah Ngu unveils one of Forefront Brooklyn's new core values: uncommon kinship. Common kinship often focuses on taking care of people who are in the center, but what makes kinship uncommon is taking care of people who aren't in the center of their community, and how it's worth having a community that will take a risk to ensure those who aren't typically centered feel loved, valued, and elevated.

This is the second sermon in our "Make A Joyful Noise" series.

Read More
Sarah NguForefront Churchjohn, disciples, love, giving, community, Forefront Vision
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Radical Church"
MAKE A JOYFUL NOISE | "Radical Church"

Why Forefront Church is as radical as Jesus.

In a time when duality and division is at an all time high, Jesus preaches a message about the radical love for all God's children. In the process he pisses everyone off. Perhaps we should do the same?

Pastor Jonathan Williams begins our “Make A Joyful Noise” series by sharing how Jesus’s first sermon changed his life and profoundly shaped Forefront.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchpolitics of jesus, progressive, Forefront Vision
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Heaven & Hell"
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Heaven & Hell"

Why does the concept of heaven and hell play such a powerful role in Christianity?

The death of Christ on the cross does not change God's mind about us. Our beliefs about heaven and hell originate from our inability to make sense of suffering in our present lives. Heaven and hell used to be ways to help us cope with suffering today. But when Christianity became an empire, they morphed into tools to make people suffer today.

Do your beliefs about the afterlife help you or prevent you from living your life presently?

Sarah Ngu walks us through an enlightening perspective and an emotional story about the limiting effects of living out of fear of hell.

Read More
Sarah NguForefront Churchheaven, hell, afterlife, early christians, kingdom of God
HOW WE GOT HERE | "The Cross"
HOW WE GOT HERE | "The Cross"

The death of Christ on the cross does not change God's mind about us.

So many of us believe in a wrathful God. We believe that God is upset with us and needed the blood of Jesus to make things right. The good news of the cross is that God is not angry with us at all. The cross isn't so that God changes God's mind about us. The cross happens so that we change our minds about the goodness of God.

In this 5th sermon in our "How We Got Here" series, Jonathan Williams reveals a provocative view on the traditional fear of God.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchinterpretation, God, Cross, Rebirth
HOW WE GOT HERE | "The Bible"
HOW WE GOT HERE | "The Bible"

Rethinking the role of the Bible in our faith.

In our fourth sermon in the "How We Got Here" series, Sarah Ngu presents an engaging perspective on the Bible and how we've interpreted scripture over the centuries. Biblical interpretation is not something to be afraid of but that is baked into our tradition. Wherever there is divinity, humanity is mingled in with it. We ourselves are living testaments. In fact, we are living Scripture.

Read More
Sarah NguForefront Churchbible, fundamentalism, interpretation, genesis, nehemiah
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Communion"
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Communion"

The incredible meaning of Communion.

Jonathan Williams reminds us of the origins, meaning and importance of communion. Communion is especially relevant today, as we fight to bring all people to the table of peace and prosperity. Communion is the reminder that we've never been separate from God, rather we've always been seen as sacred and holy. Communion is used too often to exclude. It's not a dividing line rather a unifying feast that reminds all of us that we're unequivocally qualified to be in the presence of God. Our activist, justice, and continued political work is a beautiful reflection of the communion table. Our work is holy.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsForefront Churchchurch history, communion, community
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Why God?"
HOW WE GOT HERE | "Why God?"

How we got God and the holy trinity.

In the second sermon of our "How We Got Here" series, Jonathan Williams tackles the big question: How we got God. God is largely a construct made up of time, place, and culture. So why are we here? Why church? Why even bother communing with God? Deep down we know that God is something greater. In finding out how God came to be, perhaps we find out that God is actually living in us.

Read More
Jonathan WilliamsGuest Userchurch history, god, why god