There is a new star in the constellation of churches in San Francisco. Our English ministry with the Korean First Baptist Church of San Francisco has been re-christened Liber†y. We stand on the words of Jesus when He says “if the Son therefore shall set you free, you shall be free indeed (John 7:24). ” We thirst after this liberty that can only be found through a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.

If you are looking for a place to worship, serve, and study with fellow believers, then give us a look. We are committed to living out the Gospel on a daily basis. We need your help to bring salt and light into the city of San Francisco.

Why the name Liberty?

Everyone wants liberty. Every day people die for the chance to be free. Many seek liberty through political action, academics, spiritual enlightenment, or even drug euphoria. Human beings strive after liberty because we were designed to be free. It’s in our blood.

In fact, liberty is at the pinnacle of what God wants for our lives. When God created Adam and Eve He gifted them with a free will. His intent from the very beginning was that we human beings enjoy complete liberty and communion with Him. We are each made in the image of God and God did not want us to be robots. From the dust of the earth He created free souls who could love Him freely. When our first parents chose to disobey God, they came under the bondage of sin and sorrow. As the descendents of Adam and Eve, we continue to be under this bondage of sin.

Jesus Christ came to save us from the bondage of sin. He came into this world as the "new Adam" to restore our lost liberty. He is our savior and liberator.

"It was for freedom's sake that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of bondage." (Galatians 5:1)

Consider His words in the Gospel of John:

"As Jesus spoke these things, many came to believe in Him. Jesus therefore said to those who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, then you are my disciples indeed; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'" (John 8:30-32)

Freedom is not the starting point, but the ending point! Freedom is the final step in a spiritual process that begins with hearing Jesus, moves on to belief, then to abiding in his word, next through discipleship and then on to truth.

At Liberty we believe that "the truth will set you free". We also embrace the unequivocal words of Jesus when He said "I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6)". Placing these statements side by side we see it is Jesus (the truth) that sets us free. “Liberty” is our hope and has become our name.

Help us to celebrate

For many years, the Korean First Baptist Church of San Francisco has maintained an English ministry (EM). On October 19th, 2003, the EM celebrated an inaugural service. We are autonomous yet interconnected to the Korean Church through ties of history, family, and friendship. Many of us serve as Sunday School teachers and Youth Group leaders in the Korean Church. This next Sunday, February 22nd, we are taking another step forward. To distinguish ourselves further from our Korean-speaking brothers and sisters, we have adopted a new name: Liberty Christian Fellowship. We will celebrate this new name next Sunday. The message will address the liberty that can only be found in Christ. Please join us.

Forty Days of Purpose

We have just completed a six week journey through The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. We learned about worshipping God in spirit and in truth, fellowshipping in the unity of the Spirit, following Jesus as true disciples, ministering to God by serving others, and evangelizing the world with the Gospel of Christ. Many of us are fortified and energized to better live out these five purposes. We still have a few copies of The Purpose Driven Life. If you have not read the book and are interested in discovering life’s purpose, drop by the pastor’s office and pick one up.

Preparing our hearts for Easter

We are now entering the Easter season. We will begin our focus on Easter by viewing the movie The Passion of the Christ as a group after our Church service on February 29. This new and controversial film provides a vivid account of the final day in the life of Christ. Then, beginning on March 14 and continuing to Easter Sunday (April 11), we will study the passion of the Christ as recorded in the Gospel of John.
“Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13)”