Fresh teaching from Andi Andrew, Liberty Church NYC

Watch this video for a huge announcement about our very first Gathering as a church on Sunday Sept 12th. If you or anyone you know lives in the Greater New York City Area… we’d love to have you there.

We’re meeting at the landmark 75 Wall St in Lower Manhattan- in a private rooftop lounge with 360 degree views of New York City. What a place to pray for the city, to talk about our vision for Liberty Church, and to connect with other New Yorkers looking for authentic community. Here are a few photos of the venue (yes, it’s worth coming just for the view!)

We’ll have our Guest Lounge open from 10am, then we’ll kick off at 10.30am. It’s right in the heart of the Financial District and short walk from the 2, 3, J, M, Z, 4, 5, R & W trains. There’s a kids program and catering for everyone so please use the RSVP below to let us know you’re coming…

RSVP Now-

This morning as I sat down to read my bible I had one of those moments that I will never forget. A moment with God that words will never completely be able to do justice to but of course I am going to try.

I grabbed my old bible off the shelf to read this morning. It was just one of those mornings that “Big Bertha” needed to be picked up. It’s the tattered bible that my parents bought for me for my 18th birthday, the one that sat on my shelf unread until I turned 19 and gave my life to Jesus and then I couldn’t put it down. It’s my favorite bible, the one with all the notes, underlines and stained pages from spills whilst reading it. I didn’t really know where to begin in all honesty this morning… I had my Iced 4 shot mocha and raspberry bran muffin at my bedside table so I was ready to go… but where to begin? It literally fell open in Matthew where I had a few cards and notes stuck in it… and when I looked down to read I knew grabbing Big Bertha off the shelf to read was no mistake, nor were the cards that fell out and brought me to the verse before my eyes…

Highlighted was this verse…. “And I tell you that you are Peter and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you lose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 16:18-19

The above scripture is one that always stands out to me because its just so powerful. The fact that God is going to do whatever it takes to build His church and come hell or high water (literally); nothing is going to overcome it. It’s the greatest thing you can put your hand to and build on this earth because it won’t fade away like money, the times or social trends. But this morning God “smashed me” in the few verses prior to that well know passage. It was here in Matthew 16:13-15 that my day was flipped upside down for the better.

When I read this I could just imagine Jesus and the disciples sitting around a crackling fire and Jesus striking up a conversation: “Hey guys, so what are the rumors? Who do people say that I am???” and the disciples banter a bit and say in casual conversation “Oh you know, some say John the baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets” And then the whole conversation switches from popular opinion to a personal conversation and this is where I got stuck (aka smashed)…

Jesus throws this question out there to see what they will say:

“But what about you??”

I didn’t even get to the next part of the sentence… I was overwhelmed with this question… It made me take a good look at myself and stop looking around at what everyone else is saying about Jesus, or doing for Him, and ask myself… but what about you?

So often our world is filled with noise, opinions, plans, thoughts that need to be taken captive, comparisons, old mindsets that are stuck in deep ruts that are hard to get out of but we desperately need to change… We get caught up in what everyone else is saying or doing and God is crying out to us….

“Focus! But what about you? Who do you say that I am”

Who we say Christ is in our lives (what we proclaim, stand on, and believe) is the personal bedrock on which our identity stands. And when we know who Christ is, we know who we are. Then when we know who we are we can build His Kingdom with strength and authority.

But what about you? Who do you say that He is through trials, tests, highs, lows, mountains, valleys, pressures, hard times, good times… What about you???

Now I know that this may come across as Christianity 101: Step 1 - Know who Christ is. Step 2 - Know who you are in Him. Step 3 - Put your hand to building the Church so expansive with energy that not even the gates of hell will be able to keep it out. But let’s be honest, this is the type of Christianity 101 that we never graduate from, but need to apply to life on a daily basis… and if we all live this, just watch what Christ’s Church as a body on this earth can do…

The lifestyle you live screams what you say about who He is to you, and in you.

So… What about you???

No wonder Lil’ Frankies was featured in New York Magazine who said that, ”The irresistible offspring of Frank is distinguished by its custom-built brick oven, a tool used to sublime effect on everything from torpedo-size eggplants and lasagne alla Bolognese, to whole fish and terrific thin-crust pizza.”

Irresistible is definitely no word of a lie, being our choice of dining twice in the last month. The menu is dangerous, in that you will wind up wanting more than your stomach can handle EVERY time. Authentic homemade gnocchi and ravioli is a specialty here and I’m not sure what their cheese special is called but it is insanely good… A large mound of goodness with a rich creamy centre accompanied by fresh tomato and basil… whatever it is, you need to try it.

Beyond the great food is a great atmosphere and superb down-to-earth service. The cramped quarters give this rustic setting a romantic, casual, family style feel - basically good for any type of outing. Located on 1st Ave it’s easy to miss this Italian gem but once you find it you’ll be coming back for more. Prices are $9.95-$17.95.