International Christian Assembly -ICA / Tri-Cities

International Christian Assembly -ICA / Tri-Cities Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from International Christian Assembly -ICA / Tri-Cities, Christian church, University Parkway, Johnson City, TN.

The International Christian Assembly/Tri-Cities (ICA), launched on August 28, 2016, is a fellowship of Christians from different nations, races, cultures, languages and background living in the Tri-Cities and who have chosen to worship God together.

11/02/2020

Revelation 5:9

“They sang a new song: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to break open its seals. For you were killed, and by your sacrificial death you bought for God people from every tribe, language, nation, and race.”

I had separate conversations with two friends, one black and another white. They both believed blacks are inferior to whites and referred to the story of Noah in Genesis 6-10. These friends had been misled.

The Bible says God sent a flood to wipe out mankind on the earth because of their wickedness but spared Noah and his family of eight who sheltered in a boat. One day after the water dried up, Noah got drunk and lay naked inside his tent. His son Ham saw his nakedness but the two other sons, Shem and Japheth, covered their father. When Noah learned what had happened, he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers” (9:25).

Noah cursed Canaan, Ham’s son. He didn’t curse Ham. Ham had another son, Cush, whose descendants went to Africa, southern Asia and Mesopotamia. Canaan was the ancestor of the Canaanites. They inhabited Canaan, the Promised Land that The Israelites conquered.

Who inspired the myth that black people were cursed or inferior? Satan.

Did you know? Joseph married Asenath, an Egyptian (Genesis 41:45). Moses’s wife was from Africa. When his siblings Miriam and Aaron used racist arguments against her, God punished Miriam with leprosy (Numbers 12). The prophet Zephaniah who wrote the book with the same name was from black descent (1:1). Simon from Libya helped Jesus carry the cross (Luke 23:26). A rich Ethiopian eu**ch was baptized by Phillip (Acts 8). Simon the black and Lucius from Libya were among the prophets and teachers of the church at Antioch (Acts 13:1). Etc.

When God called Abraham, he said all the nations would be blessed through him. God was referring to Jesus who would become "a curse for us" and a blessing to all who would believe in him regardless of their origin or race. Any attempt to use the Bible to pretend that some races are inferior or superior is an insult to God who created all mankind in his own image.

God bless you!

Benjamin Kisoni.

10/28/2020

Acts 2:7-8

“They were completely amazed. 'How can this be?'" they exclaimed. "These people are all from Galilee, and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages!”

Our own native languages! The issue of language, tribe and race is very serious in communities and in churches as well.

Remember, people spoke the same language as we read in Genesis 11. But they misused that blessing and united to build a city and a tower, the Tower of Babel, to “make a name for themselves" and “reach into the sky.” They had the pride of independence to be like God. They wanted to make themselves the center of life and oppose God’s order to fill the earth. God confused them with different languages and scattered them all over the world.

The event in the verses above took place at Pentecost. Before ascending to heaven, Jesus promised that he would send the Holy Spirit to help his disciples continue the mission of preaching the good news of the kingdom of God.

At Pentecost, many Jews and people who had been converted to Judaism were in Jerusalem for the celebration. They had come from Africa, Asia, and Europe. When the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, they started speaking in languages they had never learned but that those visitors could understand.

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, preached that salvation was found in no one else but Jesus Christ who was crucified and rose from the dead. Thousands of people repented of their sins and believed in Jesus. A new community of believers united in Christ was created.

Why are those who claim to belong to the community of believers divided on the basis of the language they speak, the tribe they belong to, or their skin color? If God reunited under Christ what Babel had divided, why do we oppose God by preferring Babel’s disunity?

Prayer:
Holy Spirit, break the language, tribal and racial barriers in our lives, communities and churches. Help us to overcome futile divisions so that many people will be drawn to Christ.

God bless you!

Benjamin Kisoni.

10/23/2020

Mark 14:36

“Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Jesus said these words while praying in the garden of Gethsemane before he was arrested. Three of his disciples who were supposed to pray with him were asleep.

Most often I hear people end their prayer with “Not my will, but yours, be done.” I wonder if they say these words sincerely! A friend confessed that he uses them as an escape statement to cover up doubt when he prays. He’s never sure if God will answer and prefers to be on the safe side in case God doesn’t answer according to his expectation.

This attitude hides a wrong assumption my friend has: Why pray when God already knows what will happen? Here are a few helpful clues from Jesus’s words.

Jesus referring to “Abba,” which means “Father,” shows the intimate relationship he had with his Father. Jesus was not pleading with an impersonal “higher power” in the universe. He came before his Father with confidence knowing that the Father was always faithful to his word.

Jesus didn’t lose sight of his mission in the world: to die for the sin of mankind. On multiple occasions he told his disciples that he would be arrested and handed over to religious leaders who would crucify him, and that he would rise from the dead three days later. He knew God’s will.

When we pray knowing that our prayers align with God’s will revealed in his Word, we pray with confidence. Since we don’t know the specific way God will accomplish his will, we submit to his authority. God has instructed us to pray and only he knows how and when he’ll answer. We must pray and trust him.

God bless you!

Benjamin Kisoni.

10/17/2020

John 13:14-15, 17

“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you… Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.”

The individualistic culture we live in, which promotes selfishness, tends to convince us that we should live for ourselves and look only for our own interests. That’s not the way of Christ.

When Jesus knew his time to leave the world through crucifixion had come, he washed his disciples’ feet with water and told them to keep doing the same. But Simon Peter objected. That task was the lowliest performed by slaves/servants in the house. As the spokesperson of Jesus’s team and future leader, Peter didn’t want to be a leader who would be washing his colleagues’ feet. Jesus corrected him, “Unless I wash your feet, you won’t belong to me.”

Jesus wanted to teach his followers two things: a) As a community of believers, they should love and forgive one another; b) They should serve selflessly and not look down on others. When we do these things, which are counter-cultural, people will know that we’re truly followers of Christ.

God bless you!

Benjamin Kisoni.

Address

University Parkway
Johnson City, TN
37604

Opening Hours

Friday 6pm - 7:30pm
Sunday 2pm - 3:30pm

Telephone

+14239437719

Website

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