April 27th, 2026

St. James Presbyterian Church, Harlem
Bible Study Companion Guide
131st Anniversary Sunday — April 26, 2026
Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year A)
 
Opening Frame
This week’s texts do not ask us simply what we believe about resurrection. They ask something deeper: What kind of life does resurrection create? Across Acts of the Apostles, Psalms, First Epistle of Peter, and Gospel of John, we are given a portrait not of an idea, but of a people—formed by trust, guided by presence, sustained through struggle, and gathered into abundant life. On this 131st Anniversary Sunday, we are invited to consider not only what this church has been, but what life God has been shaping here—and what is still unfolding among us.
 
First Reading: Acts 2:42–47 — The Shape of a Living Community
This passage offers one of the most beloved images of the early church, yet it is not a romantic ideal—it is a response to resurrection. “They devoted themselves” signals intention, not convenience. Teaching, fellowship, breaking bread, and prayer become the rhythms of a people reshaped by new life. What follows is not forced sameness but a transformed relationship to ownership, need, and belonging. Resurrection has reordered their priorities, and the result is a community where care is shared and life is held in common. Resurrection does not create isolated believers; it forms interdependent people. For St. James, 131 years is not simply longevity—it is sustained devotion across changing times, conditions, and needs.
 
Psalm 23:1–6 — The Presence That Sustains
“The Lord is my shepherd” is not passive comfort but active guidance. The psalm moves through green pastures, still waters, right pathways, and even the valley of deep shadow, yet the constant is presence. The text does not deny hardship; it insists that we are not alone within it. “You are with me” becomes the center of the psalm’s witness. Faith here is not the absence of danger but the refusal to believe that danger has the final word. For St. James, this is a lived testimony. Valleys have come—financial strain, cultural shifts, institutional pressures—and yet the community remains, not because the valley disappeared, but because presence endured.
 
Second Reading: 1 Peter 2:19–25 — The Cost of Faithfulness
This is a difficult text that must be held with care. The writer of First Epistle of Peter speaks to communities under pressure, navigating systems that do not honor their full humanity. This is not a call to accept harm, but an acknowledgment that faithfulness in an unjust world carries cost. Yet the passage does not end in suffering; it turns toward return and restoration: “You were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd.” Faithfulness here is not passive endurance but active alignment with a different way of being. For St. James, and for the Black Church more broadly, this tension is deeply familiar—holding faith in the face of resistance, and continuing, nonetheless.
 
Gospel: John 10:1–10 — The Voice That Calls Us to Life
In Gospel of John, Jesus does not simply instruct—he reveals relationship. “I am the gate,” he says, and “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” The sheep know the shepherd’s voice not through force or fear, but through familiarity and trust. This is a relationship built over time, where recognition becomes the pathway to life. Abundant life here is not about survival or scarcity, but fullness—life shaped by connection, trust, and ongoing guidance. For St. James, the question becomes: what does it mean, after 131 years, to still hear that voice and follow it into new expressions of life?
 
 
Bringing It Together
Across these texts, a single movement emerges: a community formed, a presence that guides, a faith that endures, and a voice that leads to life. What we witness is not abstract belief, but lived reality—something that takes shape over time, through people, through practice, and through persistence. What we celebrate is not only what has been, but what has been formed among us and what continues to unfold.
 
Three Practices for the Week
1. Practice Devotion (Acts 2)
Choose one spiritual rhythm this week—prayer, study, or shared meal—and commit to it intentionally.
2. Practice Awareness of Presence (Psalm 23)
In moments of stress or uncertainty, pause and ask: Where is presence with me right now?
3. Practice Listening (John 10)
Pay attention to what is calling you—what leads to life, and what diminishes it.
 
Reflection Questions
Where have you experienced community that sustains you?
What does “the valley” look like in your life right now—and where do you sense presence within it?
What voices are shaping your decisions—and how do you discern which one leads to life?
What might “abundant life” look like—not in theory, but in your daily living?
 
Closing Prayer
Gracious Creator, we thank you for the life you have built among us—for every year, every hand, every voice that has carried this community forward. Continue to guide us by your presence, shape us by your love, and lead us into the abundant life you promise. Amen.
 
Prepared by Rev. Derrick McQueen Ph. D. ©2026
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