At the beginning of his ministry, Jesus was attacked by an angry mob simply for speaking well of the enemies of his own people, and he later taught that God would bless us when people hated and mistreated us on his account. Elsewhere, the Scriptures guarantee that to be faithful to Jesus and to love those he loves will often put us at odds with others, and often with our own people. This week we will consider how Christians around the world and throughout history have experienced persecution and opposition not only for their faith in Jesus, but for their faithfulness to love the wrong people in his name, and we will seek God for courage and wisdom to embrace this same cost as part of our life with God.

- Series Description -

Jesus’ greatest commandment is to love God and love neighbor. Paul, a famous church planter, simplifies it even more: love your neighbor as yourself. In a city like New Haven, there are many people to love. Some are lower on our list because some of us have to move in and past discomfort to love people God has placed nearby. Some are simply harder to reach. In this short series, we will look at what it means to neighbor New Haven. This will include an overview of the topic, a specific look at folks in the incarceration system, immigrants, and people others see as “wrong” to love. Multiple Sundays will have tangible ways of serving our neighbors that we can do during our worship service. If you want to grow in loving people in the new year, be a part of this series!