​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service June 7 2026
Sermon Title–Cross Bearing Life
Text – Matthew 16:21-28
Rev. Key Min Lee

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service May 31 2026
Sermon Title–You Will Be My Witnesses
Text – Acts 1:8
Rev. Key Min Lee

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service May 24 2026
Sermon Title–The Spirit Leads Us into All Truth
Text – John 16:13
Rev. Key Min Lee

​ 
After Jesus died and rose again, He spent forty days with His disciples before ascending into heaven.  This event is very significant, because the promise Jesus gave at His ascension remains unchanged even today.  That promise is that He would send the Holy Spirit to us (John 16:7).  This promise has been fulfilled, and now we are able to live each day walking with the Lord through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
 
The Holy Spirit leads us into all truth.  That truth is Jesus Christ Himself (John 14:6).  In other words, the Holy Spirit is the only One who teaches us how to become more like Jesus Christ.  When the Holy Spirit comes upon us, the following things take place:

1. We become witnesses of Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8) Being a witness of Jesus means that everything we speak and proclaim is centered on Him alone.  What we have seen, heard, and experienced is that Jesus came to this world, died for our sins, rose again, and will come again.  A witness is called to faithfully share what they have seen and experienced.  No matter how others respond, we are to understand, be patient, and continue in prayer until they come to the Lord.

2. We deny ourselves and take up our cross (Matthew 16:24). Taking up our cross means choosing the opposite of what we want to say or do according to our own desires.  The key here is “what I want.”  We are those who seek what the Lord desires, not what “I” desire.  This is what it means to deny ourselves.

3. We bear the fruit of Jesus Christ (Galatians 5:22–24).  The easiest way to bear the nine fruits of the Spirit is to follow the teaching in Ephesians 5:16–18:  “Joyful always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances.”
 
When we walk with the Holy Spirit, we begin to live a heavenly life—one that moves according to love, just as Christ does.  This is what it means to live a life of fullness (Ephesians 1:23).  This fullness means finding contentment in every situation.  In other words, it is a life filled with thanksgiving every day, a life that overcomes circumstances and situations.
 
The Holy Spirit leads you into truth.  I pray in the name of the Lord that your life would reveal Jesus Christ so clearly that many souls will be brought out of darkness into light through your life.

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service May 17 2026
Sermon Title–Passing the Baton of Faith
Text – Deuteronomy 31:1-8
Rev. Key Min Lee

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service May 10 2026
Sermon Title–A Mother’s Prayer
Text – 1 Samuel 2:1-11
Rev. Key Min Lee

​The Bible clearly teaches us how essential prayer is in the life of a believer. Jesus Himself often withdrew to pray to God throughout the night, showing us that prayer was His habit. In Mark 9:29, we see that prayer carries healing power when Jesus casts out an unclean spirit from a boy. In 1 Samuel 12:23, Samuel boldly declares that he would never sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray. In this way, prayer is not optional for Christians; it is an essential part of our spiritual life.
So then, what kind of prayer does God desire?
Today, we encounter the prayer of Hannah. In 1 Samuel 1:10, Hannah is described as praying to the Lord with deep anguish and weeping bitterly. This struggle continued over a long period of time (v.12). She was also praying so intensely that only her lips moved, while no sound was heard (v.13). This shows that Hannah was in such deep sorrow and despair that she could do nothing but cry out to the Lord as her only hope.
In other words, the kind of prayer God desires is a sincere and desperate prayer from the heart.
But today, how often do we see prayers like Hannah’s? If we rarely see such prayer, it may indicate that something within us has lost its sense of desperation. Yet here is the grace of God: He often restores our sense of desperation when we lose it. Through our circumstances and struggles, God leads us back into deeper dependence on Him. In that sense, desperation becomes the key that opens the door to deeper fellowship with the Lord.
At first, Hannah’s prayer was a desperate cry for a personal problem to be solved. However, over time, her heart changed. Her desperation was transformed—not only for answered prayer, but for walking with God Himself. This is reflected in 1 Samuel chapter 2, which we read today.
What is most important in this passage is that Hannah’s desire to walk with God shaped Samuel into a faithful prophet. When our prayers are filled with praise, thanksgiving, and honor to God, the Lord Himself begins to touch, shape, and prepare those connected to us. God works not only in us but also through us for the sake of the next generation.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us reflect: is your prayer driven by desperation for solutions to your problems, or by a desire to please God?
Prayer that pleases God is not merely focused on solving problems or changing circumstances. Rather, it is a prayer that longs to dwell more deeply in His presence and seeks greater intimacy with Him.
When we pray with this kind of longing, God Himself will take care of our next generation. He will train them, prepare them, and raise them up in His time. This is the legacy of Hannah’s prayer—the prayer of a mother.
May we never stop praying. But more than that, may our prayers move beyond seeking solutions, and become a deep longing to dwell in the presence of the Lord. I pray that this kind of heart will be in each one of us.

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service May 3 2026
Sermon Title–We See the Father Every Day
Text – John 14:1-14
Rev. Key Min Lee

The Bible tells us that human beings are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). The phrase “image of God” comes from the Hebrew words tzelem - צֶלֶם (image—representative or supreme) and demut - בְּצַלְמֵנוּ (likeness—God’s character and attributes).  This means that human beings are created to resemble God and to represent Him as stewards over creation.  When we look more closely at this meaning, it teaches us that every person we encounter today is, in a sense, a representative of God.
 
Today’s passage says, “From now on you do know Him and have seen Him… Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father” (vv. 7, 9).  Yet in the minds of the disciples, God was understood as holy, spiritual, and invisible.  However, Jesus declares that to see Him is to see God. In other words, through the people we encounter, we are meeting God every day—because every person is made in the image of God.
 
What is important here is that God’s character and attributes must be revealed through our lives.  Jesus says, “Believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves” (v. 11).  This means that our words and actions lead others to consider whether God truly exists. Through what we say and do, others come to realize that God is living and actively at work even now.
 
Beloved brothers and sisters, we meet God every day.  Each person around us—including ourselves—is made in the image of God, and through one another, we encounter Him daily.
 
Do not forget this:  whatever we do to others, we are doing as unto God.  When you meet people, meet them with the character and attributes of God.  When you do so, others will see your life and come to encounter God more deeply, entering into His presence.
 
Remember this:  we are all created in the image of God, and we see His face every day. May your life reveal God’s character and attributes each day, bringing glory to Him.  I bless you in the name of the Lord.  Amen.

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service April 26 2026
Sermon Title–The Sheep Listen to His Voice
Text – John 10:1-10
Rev. Key Min Lee

​People listen or do not listen to someone depending on who holds a place in their heart.  In other words, according to the kind of relationship I have with others, I either become someone who influences others or someone who is influenced by others.
John 15:7 says, “If you remain in Me and My words remain in you…”  This means that we obey His words.  What is important here is that listening to His word is based on loving Jesus, as seen in John 14:21, 23–24.  To put it differently, just as Jesus listens to and remembers our prayers because He loves us, we also listen to His word because we love Him.
 
Then whose voice are we listening to?  In today’s passage (John 10:4–5), it says that the sheep recognize only the voice of the gatekeeper.  This means that the gatekeeper and the sheep are in a loving relationship.  In other words, as in Matthew 7, the sheep can be understood as those who bear fruit like the gatekeeper—this fruit being the nine fruits of the Spirit (the character of Jesus).  Matthew 7:20 also says, “By their fruit you will recognize them.”  God looks to see whether we bear the character-like fruit of Jesus.  And as in Matthew 7:24, the wise person is the one who hears these words and acts on them, building their house on the rock.  Are we wise people, or are we foolish?
 
However, even those who once bore good fruit may suddenly stop bearing fruit.  This happens when they begin to look at their circumstances and situations.  This is the most important point that today’s passage is making.  Looking at circumstances means that they have started listening to another voice.  In other words, it means they have begun to focus on something other than the Word.  We only need to focus daily on the nine fruits of the Spirit.  That is what shifts our eyes from circumstances to the Lord.  When that happens, as verse 10 says, life overflows with thanksgiving and joy.
 
Beloved brothers and sisters, Jesus came to give us life and to make our lives overflow with thanksgiving and joy.  The way for thanksgiving and praise not to depart from our lips, and for us to continually bear the same fruit each day, is to remain in thanksgiving in every situation and circumstance.  Through that thanksgiving, our house will be built on the rock, and through us, broken relationships and worship will be restored.  May such grace be upon you; I bless you in the name of the Lord. Amen.

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service April 19 2026
Sermon Title–Let Not Despair Defeat You
Text – John 20:24-29
Rev. Key Min Lee

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service April 12 2026
Sermon Title–When He Opens our Hearts
Text – Luke 24:13:35
Rev. Key Min Lee

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood                          
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes Sunday Service April 5 2026
Sermon Title–The Insoluble Problem
Text – Mark 16:1-8
Rev. Scott Morschauser