Sermons (Page 21)

Sermons (Page 21)

We Gather to Scatter | Hebrews 10:24-25

Now you might have noticed when you walked in today the camera crew taking some footage. That’s because earlier Doreen and I filmed our interviews with Chris Lake from the Vere Institute. You know Chris from when he preached on frontline ministry here at Cornerstone last November. The session we are helping Chris film is about sustaining a whole-life vision in a church over the long haul. In other words, how can we encourage and equip each other to honor…

Aging | Ecclesiastes 12:1-8

Today I’m continuing to reflect on what I’m learning at the Gordon-Conwell Ockenga Fellows retreats. Last time I talked about death and dying, but today I want to talk about aging, about growing old. Now obviously I have more years than some of you and less than others. So I’ll do the best I can to teach what the Bible has to say about aging. I’m also going to share some of what others who know better than I have…

Four Responses to the Resurrection | Luke 24:36-53

In 2009 the retired minister of the First Unitarian Church of Portland Oregon, Marilyn Sewell, interviewed one of the most famous atheists of her day, Christopher Hitchens. Unitarians do not believe in the Trinity or that anyone goes to hell but that God is love and all go to heaven. They are considered theologically liberal while a church like Cornerstone is much more theologically conservative. We believe in the Trinity and that you must trust in Christ Jesus in order…

The Road to Emmaus: When You Can’t See Jesus | Luke 24:13-35

Have you ever had that experience when you can’t see something and it’s right in front of you? This week I needed to give Elijah his milk and I knew Monica had put some in the fridge but I couldn’t find it. When I opened the fridge it wasn’t there and when I moved some of the food and other items it wasn’t there either. So I called Monica and I asked her if she had put the milk in…

The Great Exchange | Luke 22:63-23:25

We live in a culture based on exchange and trade. We all do it from a young age till we’re elderly. You learn this system when you’re just starting out.  As an infant your parents reward good behavior with a smile or maybe a treat or your favorite toy. A few years in you learn that you can trade your toys for other kids toys. Like I’ll give you this cool-shaped rock if you’ll give me your Nintendo. Sometimes it…

The Perils of Denying Jesus | Luke 22:47-62; John 21:15-19

Jesus can turn the worst of deniers into the best of disciples. Let’s think about denial for a moment. Denial means “to declare that something is untrue.” We tend to think of denial as a bad thing. I recently watched the Netflix Documentary Behind The Curve. There is a growing movement of people who believe the earth is flat. They believe the earth is not a round globe but a flat disk surrounded by a barrier of ice. Some believe…

A Good and Faithful Death | Psalm 90

Tonight we are going to talk about death. At the Ockenga Fellows Retreat last week we discussed “Science, Technology, and Healthcare.” I’m going to cover technology in May but tonight I want to discuss how to die well. By show of hands, who here thought about death this week, either your death or that of a loved one, family member, or friend? A lot of us thought about death this week. Our culture doesn’t like to talk about death but…

Meditations on Gethsemane | Luke 22:39-46

Meditation #1 – Prayer defeats temptation by connecting us with Christ and each other. (Luke 22:39-41, 45-46) Tonight I have three meditations on Jesus’ time in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before his crucifixion (Matt 26:36; Mark 14:32). After each meditation you will have a chance to pray and reflect and respond in song. We’re doing this with the hopes that this passage will sink in deeper and be more life-changing. We don’t want to come to church and…

The Easter Parade | Luke 19:28-44 (Palm Sunday Sermon)

You may remember our sermon series “The Certain Gospel” in Luke that we started last year. We’re going to go back to Luke and slow down for the closing chapters. We won’t be able to hit everything, but we will focus more time on his entry today, the night of his betrayal, his crucifixion, resurrection, and the closing chapters of Luke. Lord willing that will set us up for Acts in the fall. This will line us up more closely…

Prayer & Fasting | Matthew 6:16-18

I tried fasting for the first time when I worked at the Farm Credit Administration in McLean Virginia. I tried it because my pastor preached a sermon on it. In his sermon he turned to our passage tonight, Matthew 6:16-18, and pointed out something that really convicted me. In Matthew 6 Jesus teaches on prayer and fasting and when he does this he says, “when you fast” not “if you fast…” He says it twice (c.f., Matt 9:15).  Have you…