(Though there are some minor hiccups in the songs, overall the recordings came out good and I hope they are used for your edification and God’s glory as we reflect on the truths they express.):

We are only days away from Christmas, a day that the universal church celebrates the incarnation of Jesus, that is, God the Son taking on flesh, becoming like one of us, yet without sin!
The Christmas season is mostly celebrated as a joyful, happy occasion (and for good reason!) But it’s also a good season to remember the longing, the desperation, and the darkness in which the world awaited its coming Savior, and even now awaits His return.

The people who walk in darkness

Will see a great light;

Those who live in a dark land,

The light will shine on them.

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

- Isaiah 9:2; 7:14

This true light was none other than the Word of God, the Son of God, 2nd person of the Trinity, Jesus the promised Messiah:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

He was in the beginning with God.

All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

- John 1:1-5

Download: “O Come, O Come, Emmanual”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – O Come O Come Emmanual – 12-10-2010.mp3)

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Download: “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Come Thou Long Expected Jesus – 12-17-2010.mp3)

Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

…there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;
for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

…The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
- Luke 2:8-20

Download: “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Hark The Herald Angels Sing – 12-17-2010.mp3)

Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.

…behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
“BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.
- Matthew 1:20-23; 20:28

Download: “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence – 12-10-2010.mp3)

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.

We know the story does not end there, but this baby fulfilled the purpose for which he was born, namely, to “save His people from their sins.” (Matt. 1:21)

Download: “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – When I Survey The Wondrous Cross – 12-10-2010.mp3)

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

And He is coming again to judge the living and the dead and (as Psalm 98 says [which the following hymn is based off of):

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.
…Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples with equity.

Download: “Joy To The World”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Joy To The World – 12-10-2010.mp3)

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found!

“Behold, I am coming soon,
bringing my recompense with me,
to repay everyone for what he has done.

I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the first and the last,
the beginning and the end.”

… He who testifies to these things says,
“Surely I am coming soon.”
Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.
Amen.
- Revelation 22:12-13, 20-21

Pastor Emilio wrote a new song based off of the hymn “At Calvary” by Will­iam R. New­ell (1895):

Download “At Calvary”:

Download audio file (At Calvary – 02062011.mp3)

Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God

“Music as a good gift of God is, according to Luther, ‘the handmaiden of theology and second only to theology.’ As such, music in the church serves God’s Word by appropriately carrying truths to the hearts and minds of the church.” – Concordia

In Sunday’s sermon, Pastor Emilio encouraged us to learn more about the doctrine of union with Christ (3 minute clip below).

Download audio file (12411850440.mp3)

One way we can learn is through the worship songs we sing. As it turns out, Pastor Emilio has written a song entitled “The Merits of Christ” that deals with many aspects of our glorious union with Christ!

Listen to him singing it from Feb. 2009:

Download “The Merit of Christ (acoustic)”:

Download audio file (The Merits of Christ (acoustic).mp3)

And here is a slightly updated version that we sang this past Sunday:

Download “The Merits of Christ”:

Download audio file (The Merits of Christ – 01232011.mp3)

I was dead in all my sin, covered in the grave.

I was blind I could not see, my soul was only dead.

In the dungeon You appeared to set this captive free.

By your command, oh living Lord, I rose to follow Thee.

Counted righteous, justified, I have peace with God!

You redeem us by your blood, In You we’re made alive!

Only by the merits of Christ.

Only by the cross of Jesus Christ.

Only by His death I’m alive. (I’m alive.)

Only by (His death)… I am alive.

In the Son I am esteemed, God has called me friend.

In His light I do see light, alive and born again.

Condemned to die, Christ set me free, Jesus took my place.

By Your word and Your the decree, I live to honor Thee.

It is always important to reflect on the Lord’s faithfulness on New Years. More than anything we should use this as a time to reflect on God’s faithfulness and give thanks to Him for His unfailing love and mercy which He has so richly lavished us with in Christ.

I am personally grateful for the ministry of Sovereign Joy Community Church (SJCC).

I am grateful that God has taken our church through so much expositional terrain.

I am grateful for the installment of our small group ministry where we can challenge each other to reflect further on the Word of God and challenge each other to apply His Word in our lives.

I am grateful for God’s enduring patience with us as a small church that still has a long way to go in many areas.

Most of all I am grateful for the people of SJCC, their eagerness to serve, evangelize, and it has also been encouraging to hear all the stories of God’s faithfulness to provide and sustain His people through many trials and tests. This has been the most meaningful aspect of pastoring at SJCC, seeing people’s lives changed through the Word of God. SJCC is our family and I look forward to seeing more people become involved, receive meaningful ministry and fellowship, become more involved in each other’s lives, and serve one another with eagerness and zeal as they seek to bring glory to God by our love for one another.

To all at SJCC, Happy New Years, Soli Deo Gloria!

Pastor Emilio Ramos

(the following is a 1 minute clip from Friday’s sermon where Pastor Emilio talked about this past year and the New Year):

Download audio file (11111652190.mp3)

______________________

As a church, we learned a lot and went through a lot of changes in 2010.

• We moved over to a new website
• Started monthly Small Group Fellowships
• We started helping support a missionary to Chile
• Hosted a conference
• Incorporated a cappella into our congregational singing
• Moved from Keller to Haltom City
• And much more!

When we moved our website to SovJoy.com we also started hosting our sermons on SermonAudio, which gave us the ability to serve Christians all over the world with audio from our sermons. Here are some stats as of today:

Total Sermon MP3 Downloads: Total number of times your audio has been listened to (stream + download).	7,654
Total Mobile Downloads: Of the above total, the total number that are mobile streams or downloads.	249

Top 10 MP3 Downloads

195	…	Leadership Training Essentials • Steve Schneider
182	…	Preaching & It’s Content • Emilio Ramos
165	…	3 Aspects of Resurrection Life • Jay Jesuroga
159	…	Jesus Prays: Protect/Reprobate • Emilio Ramos
158	…	Principles Against Immorality • Jay Jesuroga
156	…	Trinitarian Gospel Unity • Jason Delgado
152	…	Contrasting Legalism & Faith • Emilio Ramos
150	…	God (Inaugural Service) • Emilio Ramos
148	…	Spiritual Unity in the Church • Alan Bowley
148	…	Apostasy in Progress • Emilio Ramos

Of the above downloads, here are the top 10 states that have downloaded our sermons since the beginning of 2010:

1. TEXAS – 2,992 (downloads)
2. CALIFORNIA – 792
3. GEORGIA – 296
4. NEW YORK – 138
5. NEW JERSEY – 136
6. WASHINGTON – 128
7. MISSOURI – 125
8. LOUISIANA – 110
9. COLORADO – 106
10. ILLINOIS – 93

And the top 15 countries!

1. UNITED KINGDOM – 109 (downloads)
2. CHINA – 106
3. CANADA – 87
4. AUSTRALIA – 73
5. ITALY – 44
6. NEW ZEALAND – 36
7. NETHERLANDS – 26
8. KOREA, REPUBLIC OF – 24
9. MEXICO – 20
10. INDIA – 20
11. MALAYSIA – 17
12. PHILIPPINES – 12
13. INDONESIA – 12
14. SINGAPORE – 10
15. GERMANY – 10

When we started as a church we focused heavily on the gospel. In 2010, we of course have not left the gospel but we are going deeper into it as we continued to go through the Bible we are learning a lot of implications that the gospel has on our lives and on our church.

Here is a summary of the past year broken up by month:

J A N U A R Y * * * * *

We started singing, as a corporate prayer,  “Jesus, With Thy Church Abide”:

Download audio file (Jesus%20With%20Thy%20Church%20Abide%20(with%201st%20person%20lyrics).mp3)

The preaching took us right into the heart of 1 John, teaching us that as true son’s of God how we ought to be discerning, have assurance, and how to love one another (because God first loved us as Emilio explains in the 2 minute clip below):

Download audio file (12710928583prev3.mp3)

Children of God: The Who, When, & How - 1 John 3:1-3

Contrast: God’s & Satan’s Children – 1 of 2 – 1 John 3:4-8

Love, Assurance & Obedience – 1 John 3:16-24

A Call to Discernment – 1 John 4:1

At the end of the month Pastor Emilio had the opportunity to preach at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar Missouri from 1 Tim. 4:1-5.

F E B R U A R Y * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For February, 2010: 361
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 601

We learned alot about the church. How, as a church to watch out for pride, how we ought to view ministers, and started learning about church discipline (here is Jay summing up the 1st four chapters of 1 Corinthians in 1 minute):

Download audio file (21610727440prev1.mp3)

Paul’s Two Rebukes on the Church – 1 Cor. 4:6-13

Paul’s Fatherly Ministry – 1 Cor. 4:14-21

Biblical Church Discipline (Pt. 1 & 2) – 1 Cor. 5:1-5

M A R C H * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For March, 2010: 498
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 1,087

This month we learned more on discernment and dove even deeper into the topic of assurance and how Christian love is affected by the gospel (2 minute clip):

Download audio file (3151064205prev2.mp3)

The Spirit of Truth & the Spirit of Error – 1 John 4:2-6

The Roots & Fruits of Christian Love – 1 John 4:7-12

4 Ways to be Assured – 1 John 4:13-16

4 Aspects of Perfect Love – 1 John 4:17-21

A P R I L * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For April, 2010: 407
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 1,496

This month we started off celebrating Resurrection Sunday and moving back in 1 Corinthians, which took us through an array of different topics. We talked about sexual immorality and ended the section on church discipline (2 minute clip):

Download audio file (41210431484prev1.mp3)

3 Aspects of Resurrection Life – Col. 3:1-4

Biblical Church Discipline (Pt. 3 of 3) – 1 Cor. 5:6-13

4 Aspects of Paul’s Rebuke – 1 Cor. 6:1-11

4 Principles to Help Us Avoid Sexual Immorality – 1 Cor. 6:12-20

The elders and Jason D. also had the opportunity to go to T4G:

M A Y * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For May, 2010: 645
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 2,144

This month we learned a variety of topics including marriage, overcoming faith, love, assurance, sin leading to death, and prayer (2 minute clip):

Download audio file (524101222560.mp3)

4 Principles of Marriage – 1 Cor. 7:1-7

The Children of God & What They Do – 1 John 5:1-5

The Testimony of the Triune God Concerning Jesus – 1 John 5:6-9

The Beneficiaries & Purpose of God’s Witness – 1 John 5:10-12

Assurance, Prayer, & Deadly Sin – 1 John 5:13-17

This was also the month that we hosted Wretched Radio’s first ever Psalm 119 Conference on Discernment. Pastor Emilio got to preach on “Discernment in the Local Church”, and the next day we sang A Cappella for the first time during corporate worship.

J U N E * * * * *

This month we started making our sermons available through mobile phone apps and mobile browsers:

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For June, 2010: 864
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 3,004
• .. of that total, downloads via mobile phone for June, 2010: 8
• Grand Total Downloaded via Mobile To Date: 11

This month we learned about the good of singleness, Christian vocation, and living to God’s glory in whatever our calling (2 minutes):

Download audio file (616101337307prev1.mp3)

Living as you are called – 1 Cor. 7:17-24

2 Reasons Why Singleness is Good – 1 Cor. 7:25-31

We also had Steve Schneider (the missionary to Chile that we help support) talk about what he would be doing in Chile and preaching for us. Here is the 4 minute introduction that Pastor Jay gave about Steve:

Download audio file (621101956160prev4.mp3)

June 20th Guest Preacher: Steve Schneider – 2 Tim. 2:2

J U L Y * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For July, 2010: 606
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 3,603
• .. of that total, downloads via mobile phone for July, 2010: 22
• Grand Total Downloaded via Mobile To Date: 30

We finished up 1 John and moved into 2 John, learning about discernment, love, and about being Word-hearers AND Word-doers (4 minute clip):

Download audio file (717101059554prev2.mp3)

4 Truths Every Christian Should Know – 1 John 5:18-21

2nd John Intro: Author, Audience, & Theme – 2 John 1-3

Walk in Truth, Love, & Obedience – 2 John 4-6

Word-hearers & Word-doers – James 1:22-25

Walk in Discernment – 2 John 7-9

This month we also had baptisms:

At the end of the month Pastor Jay had the opportunity to preach at Southside Bible Church in Dever Colorado from Colossians 3:1-4.

A U G U S T * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For August, 2010: 745
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 4,373
• .. of that total, downloads via mobile phone for August, 2010: 41
• Grand Total Downloaded via Mobile To Date: 71

Moving back into 1 Corinthians we learned more about the benefits of being single, started learning about the Trinity, learning about creation, and started getting into Christian liberty (2 minutes):

Download audio file (8910912563prev1.mp3)

Benefits of Being Single + Q&A – 1 Cor. 7:32-40

Christian Liberty: 3 Principles – 1 Cor. 8:1-13

Minister’s Liberty: Financial Support – 1 Cor. 9:1-15

Paul’s Liberty Unused for the Gospel – 1 Cor. 9:15-18

Paul’s Gospel Passion – 1 Cor. 9:19-27

S E P T E M B E R * * * * *

We had our final service in Keller (Sept. 3rd):

And now meet in Haltom City. Upon moving to the new location Pastor Emilio wanted to acknowledge all those who have helped to serve the church thus far and give some encouragement as well (3 mintues):

Download audio file (971068421.mp3)

In finishing up 2 John and moving into 3 John (and finishing it too), we learned more about imitating good (not evil), dealing with false teachers, prayer, church membership, and the blessedness of fellowship and doing it in true love (3 minutes):

Download audio file (913108672.mp3)

Dealing with False Teachers & Ministry Insights – 2 John 10-11

The Blessedness of Christian Fellowship – 3 John 1-8

The Doctrine of Church Membership – Selected Scriptures

Imitate Good NOT Evil – 3 John 9-15

O C T O B E R * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For September, 2010: 676
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 5,048
• .. of that total, downloads via mobile phone for September, 2010: 38
• Grand Total Downloaded via Mobile To Date: 109

We heard a special message on “The Great Commission”, finished up our 7 sermon series on Christian liberty, and moved into another controversial subject,  head coverings and the subordination of wives to husbands (4 minutes):

Download audio file (11110732570.mp3)

How to Avoid Spiritual Defeat – 1 Cor. 10:1-13

Analogies Clarifying Christian Liberty – 1 Cor. 10:14-22

The Great Commission: Make Disciples! – Matt. 28:16-20

5 Elements that Regulate Christian Liberty – 1 Cor. 10:23-11:1

Reasons Why a Wife’s Role Ought to be Subordinate to Her Husband’s – 1 Cor. 11:2-16

N O V E M B E R * * * * *

• Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded For November, 2010: 846
• Grand Total MP3 Sermons Downloaded To Date: 6,890
• .. of the downloads, total via mobile phone for November, 2010: 50
• Grand Total Downloaded via Mobile To Date: 207

Pastor Jay finished going through his detailed exposition of the oft debated passage “faith without works is dead”, and Pastor Emilio began his exposition through Philippians, which is all about joy (2 minutes):

Download audio file (118101841265.mp3)

Faith, Works, & Justification – James 2:14-26

Intro to Philippians: Paul’s Relationship to the Church in Philippi – Selected Scriptures

Author, Recipients, & Greeting of Philippians – Phil. 1:1-2

Paul’s Thanksgiving Prayer – Phil. 1:3-8

How the Church’s Love Grows – Phil. 1:9-11

This month we also started an alternative to Sunday Seminary. We started Sunday School for ages 0 to 7th grade.

D E C E M B E R * * * * *

Which brings us to our last month of the year where we dove into the first coming of Christ (His Advent), the Incarnation, and the Lord’s Supper (4 minutes):

Download audio file (121310715330.mp3)

Abuse of the Lord’s Supper – 1 Cor. 11:17-22

Lord’s Supper: Theological Truths – 1 Cor. 11:23-26

The Incarnation: What, Why, & How – Selected Scriptures

Manner of Taking Communion – 1 Cor. 11:27-34

May God bless us in 2011!

We are only days away from Christmas, a day that the universal church celebrates the incarnation of Jesus, that is, God the Son taking on flesh, becoming like one of us, yet without sin!
The Christmas season is mostly celebrated as a joyful, happy occasion (and for good reason!) But it’s also a good season to remember the longing, the desperation, and the darkness in which the world awaited its coming Savior, and even now awaits His return.

The people who walk in darkness

Will see a great light;

Those who live in a dark land,

The light will shine on them.

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

- Isaiah 9:2; 7:14

This true light was none other than the Word of God, the Son of God, 2nd person of the Trinity, Jesus the promised Messiah:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

He was in the beginning with God.

All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.

The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

- John 1:1-5

Download: “O Come, O Come, Emmanual”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – O Come O Come Emmanual – 12-10-2010.mp3)

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice!
Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

Download: “Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Come Thou Long Expected Jesus – 12-17-2010.mp3)

Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel’s Strength and Consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear Desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

…there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;
for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

…The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
- Luke 2:8-20

Download: “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Hark The Herald Angels Sing – 12-17-2010.mp3)

Mild He lays His glory by,
Born that man no more may die.
Born to raise the sons of earth,
Born to give them second birth.

…behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.
“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
“BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.
- Matthew 1:20-23; 20:28

Download: “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence – 12-10-2010.mp3)

Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
For with blessing in His hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.

King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth He stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood;
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.

We know the story does not end there, but this baby fulfilled the purpose for which he was born, namely, to “save His people from their sins.” (Matt. 1:21)

Download: “When I Survey The Wondrous Cross”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – When I Survey The Wondrous Cross – 12-10-2010.mp3)

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

And He is coming again to judge the living and the dead and (as Psalm 98 says [which the following hymn is based off of):

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth;
Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.
…Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth;
He will judge the world with righteousness
And the peoples with equity.

Download: “Joy To The World”:

Download audio file (SJCC Worship – Joy To The World – 12-10-2010.mp3)

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found!

“Behold, I am coming soon,
bringing my recompense with me,
to repay everyone for what he has done.

I am the Alpha and the Omega,
the first and the last,
the beginning and the end.”

… He who testifies to these things says,
“Surely I am coming soon.”
Amen.
Come, Lord Jesus!

The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.
Amen.
- Revelation 22:12-13, 20-21

Well, we did it again… we left all our instruments at home and sang entirely A Cappella. Many said they were blessed by this time so I thought I would make the recordings we got of the songs available for download in MP3 format (though there are some minor hiccups in the songs, overall the recordings came out good):

Download “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name”:

Download audio file (All Hail the Power of Jesus Name (A Cappella) 06272010.mp3)

“Ye chosen seed of Israel’s race,
Ye ransomed from the fall,
Hail Him Who saves you by His grace,
And crown Him Lord of all.”

Download “Crown Him with Many Crowns”:

Download audio file (Crown Him With Many Crowns (A Cappella) – 06272010.mp3)

“Crown Him the Lord of life, who triumphed over the grave,
And rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save.
His glories now we sing, who died, and rose on high,
Who died eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die.”

Download “There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood”:

Download audio file (There is a Fountain Filled with Blood (A Cappella) – 06272010.mp3)

“Dear dying Lamb, Thy precious blood shall never lose its power
Till all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.
Be saved, to sin no more, be saved, to sin no more;
Till all the ransomed church of God be saved, to sin no more.”

Download “It Is Well with My Soul”:

Download audio file (It Is Well (A Cappella) – 06272010.mp3)

“My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!”

And if you missed the last time we sang A Cappella here are those downloads:

Download “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing” (recording is missing the first two verses we sang):

Download audio file (O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing (A Cappella).mp3)

“He speaks, and, listening to His voice,
New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
The humble poor believe.”

Download “Come Thou Fount”:

Download audio file (Come Thou Fount (A Cappella).mp3)

“Oh that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Full arrayed in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;“

Download “Be Thou My Vision”:

Download audio file (Be Thou My Vision (A Cappella).mp3)

“Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.”

Download “Amazing Grace”:

Download audio file (Amazing Grace (A Cappella).mp3)

“Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.”

Download “To God be the Glory”:

Download audio file (To God be the Glory (A Cappella).mp3)

“To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.”

“For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints.”
- Hebrews 6:10

If you weren’t able to make it, you can listen or download Pastor Emilio‘s message “Discernment in the Local Church” from 1 Timothy 3:14-16:

Something else that was different this weekend, when we did our song service this Sunday we left all our instruments at home and sang entirely A Cappella. Many said they were blessed by this time so I thought I would make the recordings we got of the songs available for download in MP3 format (though there are some minor hiccups in the songs, overall the recordings came out good):

Download “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing” (recording is missing the first two verses we sang):

Download audio file (O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing (A Cappella).mp3)

“He speaks, and, listening to His voice,
New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice,
The humble poor believe.”

Download “Come Thou Fount”:

Download audio file (Come Thou Fount (A Cappella).mp3)

“Oh that day when freed from sinning,
I shall see Thy lovely face;
Full arrayed in blood washed linen
How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;“

Download “Be Thou My Vision”:

Download audio file (Be Thou My Vision (A Cappella).mp3)

“Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.”

Download “Amazing Grace”:

Download audio file (Amazing Grace (A Cappella).mp3)

“Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.”

Download “To God be the Glory”:

Download audio file (To God be the Glory (A Cappella).mp3)

“To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.”

We opened up our first service for this new year the same way we opened up our very first worship service together as a church, by praying together to God, by song, for help. The song we sang is called “Jesus, With Thy Church Abide” (and I [Jason Delgado] took the liberty to put the lyrics into first person so it makes it more of a prayer from the church to God). Listen below:

Download audio: Download audio file (Jesus With Thy Church Abide (with 1st person lyrics).mp3)

Jesus, with Thy Church Abide

Original Lyrics: Thomas B. Pollock (1871)
Edited Lyrics: Jason Delgado (2007)
Music: Christopher Miner (1997)

Jesus, with Thy church abide;

Be our Savior, Lord, and Guide,

While on earth our faith is tried:

We beseech Thee, hear us,

We beseech Thee, hear us.

-

Keep our life and doctrine pure;

Grant us patience to endure,

Trusting in Thy promise sure:

We beseech Thee, hear us,

We beseech Thee, hear us.

-

May we one in doctrine be,

One in truth and charity,

Winning all to faith in Thee:

We beseech Thee, hear us,

We beseech Thee, hear us.

-

Raise us to our calling high,

Let the nations far and nigh,

Hear Thy heralds’ warning cry:

We beseech Thee, hear us,

We beseech Thee, hear us.

-

May our lamp of truth be bright,

Help us bear aloft its light,

Through the realms of heathen night:

We beseech Thee, hear us,

We beseech Thee, hear us.

-

Often sorrow, often woe,

onward Christian, onward go!

-

Also, below is 1 new recording we got from a past worship services (hymn music and new chorus by our very own Pastor Emilio Ramos):

• Download O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing: Download audio file (O for a Thousand Tounges)

soli Deo gloria!

• You Are Great, You Are God: Download audio file (You%20Are%20Great%20You%20Are%20God.mp3)

Download audio in MP3 format.

soli Deo gloria!

Let me encourage you, if you have yet to make it to an “Afterglow” to try and make one and spend some extra time in worship through song and prayer.

Below is one new recording we got from last week’s “Afterglow” of a song by our very own Pastor Emilio Ramos:

• From Everlasting (afterglow version): Download audio file (From Everlasting (afterglow version).mp3)

Download in MP3 format.

soli Deo gloria!