Mission Saint James

Why did Jesus come as a human being? Couldn’t he have redeemed us some other way? The incarnation of the Son of God has many implications for us, but perhaps the most important is that he came to redeem our entire being, not just the invisible parts. On this First Sunday of Christmas, Fr. Ben Williams reminds us that we don’t have to escape our physical existence; even our bodies will be redeemed.

How are we to find joy when there is so much wrong in the world? This is the question Advent asks us every year. The Third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday. It marks the middle of the Advent season and means rejoice. This week, Dcn. Kevin Vailes encourages us to rejoice, even in the space between the first coming of Christ and his return, where sorrow threatens to steal our joy.

The Bible is a story about God’s love for his people. It is a bit of a romantic comedy. Not a comedy because it makes us laugh, but a comedy in the sense that it ends well. Advent is a season of anticipation and waiting. We know that Christ has already come, but we await his return. We wait in hope, knowing that man can be reconciled to God and at peace with his Maker. Join us as we listen in on t...

The season of Advent is about waiting. It is about anticipation. Ultimately, Advent is about hope. This week, we begin to observe the season of Advent, which marks the beginning of the Christian year. In the four Sundays leading up to Christmas, the celebration of the incarnation of the Word of God, we move from hope to joy to peace to love. Join us this week for the beginning of this journey as w...

Who do you serve? We all must ask this question. We either serve ourselves or we serve our Creator. This Sunday marks the end of the Christian Year as we celebrate the kingship of our Lord Jesus Christ. In a world full of rivals to our Lord’s kingship, it can be difficult to discern who we serve. Even our own selves vie for our worship, but only King Jesus promises an easy yoke and a light burden.

What lies in our future? To what work has the Lord called Mission Saint James? As we wrap up our first year of weekly services, Fr. Ben shares our vision for what our future together might look like. As a church that seeks to be a place for the wanderer to dwell, the possibilities are endless. Join us as we take a look ahead, not only to the next year together but much further beyond.

Where did we come from? What is our source? The answer to this question will determine whether we seek our own interests or the interests of others. In this week’s gospel passage, Jesus challenges us not to call anyone teacher, instructor, or even father. Is Jesus concerned with titles we give others or is he telling us something else? Join us as Fr. Ben Williams encourages us to seek our Source o...

Where did we come from? What is our source? The answer to this question will determine whether we seek our own interests or the interests of others. In this week’s gospel passage, Jesus challenges us not to call anyone teacher, instructor, or even father. Is Jesus concerned with titles we give others or is he telling us something else? Join us as Fr. Ben Williams encourages us to seek our Source o...

What are we to do when we find ourselves plagued by anxiety? St. Paul admonished the Philippian church to pray. But does prayer “work?” In this last passage of our series on the Book of Philippians, we discover that prayer is an invitation to intimacy with our Lord rather than a transaction. Join Fr. Ben Williams for some practical teaching on how a life cultivated in prayer is the path to joy and...

Where does anxiety come from? How are we to overcome anxiety when it is in the air we breathe? This week, we continue our sermon series in the Book of Philippians. In chapter 3, St. Paul tells us to keep aiming upward, where Christ is because when we set our minds on earthly things, we become enemies of the cross. Join us as Fr. Ben Williams encourages us to aim for the heavenly kingdom, where our...

How does the Church maintain a non-anxious presence in an ancient age? The answer is by becoming a community of joy. St. Paul teaches us that the path to joy is through humility. Join us on this second Sunday in our sermon series on the Book of Philippians, Anxious for Nothing. Fr. Ben Williams reminds us that just as there was joy on the other side of the cross for Jesus, there is joy on the othe...

With the rapid changes happening in the world around us, we face uncertainty, which produces fear. How we respond to these conditions can breed anxiety. As the Body of Christ, each of us brings our own anxiety into the Church, which is why it is important to discern its sources. Fr. Ben Williams begins a 4-Week series in the Book of Philippians this week. Rather than fight or flight, St. Paul admo...

How are the strong in faith to love those who are weaker? What determines the strength of one’s faith? In this final installment of our series in the Book of Romans, Fr. Ben Williams looks at Romans 14:5-12 to answer these questions. Within certain limitations, we allow one another to honor the Lord as we are resolved to honor him in our hearts.

In Romans 12 St. Paul admonishes us to let love be genuine or sincere. Our affection for fellow believers and our love for everything good must come from a heart that has been transformed by the heart of God. When we draw close to Him, we begin to smell like Him. And into the fog and stench of darkness, the Body of Christ carries the peaceful fragrance of the gospel, the scent of Jesus Christ. Joi...

These days, the Church is looking pretty rough…unless, of course, we look through the eyes of Christ who died for her. This week we turn a corner in St. Paul’s epistle to the Romans. Fr. Ben Williams points out that all Christians belong in the church, we belong to each other, and we are necessary in the very place we belong. Join us as we near the end of our series in Romans and remember what we...

God’s ways are not our ways. St. Paul said that God’s ways are inscrutable, which means they are hard or even impossible to understand. God’s plan of salvation is a mystery in this sense. How God fulfills his promises made to Israel while including the Gentiles is difficult to understand. When we encounter God’s ways we discover that he does things differently than we would. This week, Fr. Ben Wil...

Do we have to get all cleaned up to be loved by God? This is an honest question asked by many in the depths of the heart. The truth is, there is no way we could get cleaned up enough to enter into God’s loving presence. But the good news is that we don’t have to. By faith, all men and women, every Jew and Gentile have access to the righteousness of God in Christ. However, this good news is only be...

How can it be that some of the Israelites received Jesus as their Messiah and others didn’t? This is the question that St. Paul wrestles with in Romans 9. That God chooses some and not others is a difficult concept to grasp, especially when we understand him to be just and loving. This week, Fr. Ben Williams continues our series through St. Paul’s epistle to the Romans. Join us as we join Paul in...

This life is full of fears and dangers. After St. Paul spends three chapters explaining the implications of Christ’s death and resurrection, he ends chapter eight by telling us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. This week, Fr. Ben Williams preaches from Romans 8:35-39, where we see that through Christ we are more than conquerors. There really is nothing to be afraid of.

What is your destiny? This word may not be a part of our daily vocabulary but in Romans 8:26-34 St. Paul uses it to describe God’s will for all those who love him. In fact, he pre-destined, or predetermined that his children would be conformed to the image of Christ. Join us this week as Fr. Ben Williams explores one of the most controversial passages of the New Testament.

What good is our salvation when there is so much suffering in the world? What difference does the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ make when we experience hardship in this life? In Romans 8:18-25 St. Paul acknowledges these questions but says that our present sufferings do not compare to the glory that will be revealed in us. This week, Fr. Ben Williams explores Paul’s answer to these questi...

What does it mean to be adopted into God’s family? Why does Paul say we are fellow heirs with Christ? This Sunday we continue our series in the Book of Romans. In 8:7-17 St. Paul tells us to put to death the deeds of the body. Join us as Fr. Ben Williams helps us understand how the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit changes us to our very core.

If God’s grace is greater than our transgressions, should we keep sinning that his grace may abound all the more? This is a logical conclusion, but one that St. Paul adamantly refutes. This week, we continue our series in the Book of Romans to understand what we mean when we talk about the gospel. The good news is that, through our baptism, we have been so united to Christ that his death counts as...

What does St. Paul mean when he says that through one man death and sin entered the world? Why does he say that Adam was a type of the one to come? This week, Fr. Ben Williams continues our series in the Book of Romans. In the latter half of chapter 5, Paul lays out an important building block of his gospel. We are all born into Adam and inherit sin and death. The good news of the gospel is that w...

Paul tells us that we “rejoice in our sufferings.” This might make sense as we read through the Book of Romans, but when we encounter suffering in this world, how is it possible to rejoice? The answer, according to St. Paul, is that we have hope. This hope is not for a trouble-free life here and now, but a hope that is grounded in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. This week, Fr. Ben...