Cornerstone Bible Church | Sermon Audio: Recent Episodes
Cornerstone Bible Church || Virginia
Weekly teaching from Cornerstone Bible Church in Virginia Beach, VA. For more info, visit www.cbcvirginia.com.
Pursue God's word, God's ear, and God's family, because we do not have what it takes to fulfill the Great Commission on our own.
God not only saves individual Christians, but his work of salvation results in the miraculous formation of one new man, the church. God gives himself to his people in the fellowship of the saints as they trustingly, joyously obey God’s call to...
Since the God who speaks also listens, we must pray. Since the one who loves to reveal himself to his people is pleased to have them respond in worshiping dependence, we ought to pray joyfully.
Trustingly taking in the Bible is the main channel of grace wherein you come to know Jesus Christ; therefore, it is a primary way in which we glorify God and enjoy him forever.
Rejoice in God by watching out for false religion and by pursuing Jesus Christ as ultimate gain.
Qohelet calls us to enjoy life before our Creator because one day we will grow old, die, and face eternity.
As we consider the sanctity of human life, we consider our being made in the image of Jesus for good works to one another and to the world.
Because God is the only One truly in control, we should invest all that he has given us freely, consistently, and in diverse ways, never looking to gain under the sun.
Although the superiority of wisdom is often thwarted by folly and sin, wisdom is still the best way to navigate this life under the sun.
The Preacher of Ecclesiastes tells us that since death is inevitable and there is no way to know when our how life will end, we are to trust God and embrace a God-given, vigorous, joyful life.
Our culture is focused on well-being, but it’s often myopic and built on a faulty foundation. Scripture calls us to be fit in every way; to have our entire beings transformed by the renewing power of the Spirit and the Word.
Christmas reminds us that God truly, historically, wonderfully answered our hopes and fears in the incarnation; and because he has done so, we are called to trust him to be God, whether he answers our questions or not.
As those who fear God, we can confidently live in this world as submissive pilgrims, no matter how unjust things might seem.
If one thinks they can predict and control their destiny by following the rules of wisdom and righteousness, they have become an idolater. We must recognize the limitations of our humanness and fear God.
Can it be that the longings of humanity were realized in a nondescript town one evening long ago?
Scripture calls ingratitude a sin of unbelief, and one of the two sins that characterize those who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. The solution to this problem is the act of thanksgiving - acknowledgement of God and the works of grace he has...
God is the Designer, Creator, Sustainer, Judge, and Sovereign Lord over all of time, and nothing is outside of his control--not adversity, sorrow or even death. So do not try to straighten out what God has made crooked; do not run from difficulty, but...
Joy and satisfaction encapsulate the meaning of life. But seeking gain through wealth is oppressive. The best joy is the enjoyment of one's God-given lot.
Our job as followers of the resurrected, conquering Christ is to “live as resurrection people in between Easter and the final day, with our Christian life, corporate and individual, in both worship and mission, as a sign of the first and a foretaste...
Religious lip-service and attending to the rhythms of liturgy alone does not impress the God of the universe. Instead, it exposes our foolish nature. We are called to worship God with real awe and reverence.
In the context of evil, oppression, envy, dissatisfaction, loneliness, and fading significance, there is only one wise way to live: love your neighbor. Those who have been freed to obey the first and greatest commandment - to love the Lord wholly -...
Life in a fallen, broken world means there will be oppression, wickedness, and death. With the confidence that God will judge in his time, we have nothing better to do than rejoice in all the work and activity that makes up our earthly existence.
If God really does make everything right in its time; if He really does give true meaning to life; if He alone can give us joy and knowledge and wisdom, we must fear Him.
The Preacher, personifying Solomon, applies himself to a search for gain under the sun, but determines it is a futile striving after the wind. Can there be any meaning and joy to life?
What part does wisdom literature play in Scripture? What is the background information of Ecclesiastes that helps us read it well?
The miracles of Jesus serve as signs of redemption, showing in symbolic form what Jesus is doing spiritually through his life, death, and resurrection. This week, we see Jesus emphasize his divinity and point to true faith that casts out fear.
The miracles of Jesus serve as signs of redemption, showing in symbolic form what Jesus is doing spiritually through his life, death, and resurrection. This week, we see Jesus identify with sin and have the power and authority to make the unclean...
The miracles of Jesus serve as signs of redemption, showing in symbolic form what Jesus is doing spiritually through his life, death, and resurrection. This week, we see deliverance from hopelessness and death through Jesus restoring life and raising...
The miracles of Jesus serve as signs of redemption, showing in symbolic form what Jesus is doing spiritually through his life, death, and resurrection. This week, we see deliverance from sin and death through Jesus calming the storm.
In the opening lines of the High Priestly Prayer, we see the aim of all humanity fulfilled in Jesus himself - to glorify the Father and enjoy him forever.
How do Christians express their homesickness for God while the bridegroom is away, while living into new covenant realities of Christ fulfilling the law?
How do we receive the grace and blessing of God to grow up into Christ? Through the means of grace of spiritual disciplines.
We wrap up Obadiah with a view of the main themes of the prophecy as well as consider its meaning in light of the history of redemption.
There are plenty of good tips on being a good dad. But what is the goal of Christian fatherhood?
God is just and righteous in salvation and in judgment. Jesus drank the cup of God's wrath on sin to save sinners!
Edom was judged for stabbing their brother, Judah, in the back. We are all Edomites were it not for Jesus Christ.
We may put our trust in relationships, governments, principles, and tactics, but only God and His purposes reign supreme.
Do you consider Jesus' ascension crucial to the Christian story, or just the strange but necessary way for him to get back to heaven? This week we look at the ascension's place in the work of redemption, and highlight a few reasons for why...
Mothering is all about nurture and sacrifice. But what is a truly Christian motive for motherhood?
God, in His divine justice, will ultimately deal with pride - within history or at the end of time, through either judgment or salvation.
An introduction to Obadiah's prophecy, dealing with pertinent background information, themes, and how the prophets speak to 21st century Christians.
Before we get into the text of Obadiah, we want to understand the place and purposes of the Old Testament prophets as a whole.
The event in the midst of Jesus' dinner with Simon the Pharisee calls us to consider our love for God in light of His lavish forgiveness.
The gospel is news that took place within history and was testified to by eyewitnesses so that we also could hear, believe, and have life in Jesus' name.
We become what we love, and we oftentimes do not love what we think or say we do. How do we set our eyes on lasting treasure rather than on the temporary idols we make?
We bring our study through Ephesians to a close with a final look at the book and its theme of cosmic reconciliation and reunification.
Paul signs off on his letter to the Ephesians with a benedictory prayer for the church to walk in light of God's cosmic plan of redemption and reunification in Christ.
Elijah's showdown with the prophets of Baal points to several aspects of God's character and gives us insight into what's at stake in our redemption.
How are believers to stand firm? By appropriating the armor of God and by persevering in prayer.
How are we to appropriate and utilize the spiritual armor we've been clothed in by Christ?
How are we to appropriate and utilize the spiritual armor we've been clothed in by Christ?
Having the armor of God is a reality the church already lives in, and they are called to appropriate it by faith so as to stand firm.
What is the source of the believer's strength to persevere in the face of cosmic powers that are all around us?
What does Spirit-filled parenting, which considers the cosmic realities of reconciliation and reunification, look like?
How does a Christian walk their journey of faith with a thoughtful, confident, contented hope? A few tracks from Israel's road songs provide real-life wisdom.
Luke's narrative of God's angel army announcing peace to the lowly shepherds has much to say about God and His plan for redemption.
The second of a two-part study of Paul's "household code" for marriages - the what and the why of husbands' and wives' roles in the flourishing of the family and the revealing of the mystery of the Lamb and his bride.
The first of a two-part study of Paul's "household code" for marriages - the what and the why of husbands' and wives' roles in the flourishing of the family and the revealing of the mystery of the Lamb and his bride.
Paul summarizes his admonition to live in light of the gospel with a call to walk in wisdom and to pursue Spirit-enabled Christian maturity.
Paul admonishes believers to not be partners with darkness, but to walk as the children of light we are. Our lives are to be signs of God's rule and reign so that Christ might shine forth.
The recognition of God's generosity, characterized by thanksgiving, is the antidote to the self-centered expressions of impure sexuality and covetousness.
Rahab's active faith highlights God's wonderful grace and His plan to redeem the nations through His seed.
Walking in Christlike love - as spiritual worship to the Father through the power of the Spirit - is what we were saved for.
The Servant Song of Isaiah 50 shows us that the sovereign power of God takes the form of a servant to accomplish all His good plans.
May we rejoice in the truth that we are God's people and He has blotted out our sins in Jesus.
The false gods we make to assuage fear and evoke a sense of security ultimately heap burdens on us. But our sovereign, unchanging God promises to bear us up.
The Creator of heaven and earth has determined to redeem a people for His glory. Thus, He speaks warnings of judgment against sin and idolatry and speaks promises of salvation and hope through His servant.
An introduction to The Book of the Conquering Servant (Isaiah 40-66) for our 5-week exploration of the glimpses for redemption and restoration in the latter part of the most theologically significant book of the Old Testament.
Paul admonishes us to walk out in our ethics what God has already done in Christ to make us a new humanity.
Paul's second prayer for the Ephesians again teaches us how to pray for one another, and admonishes us towards Christian maturity because of our union with Christ.
Ours is a salvation of living hope, with an inheritance being kept for us while we experience trials that lead to glory. So we put our hands to the plow with the promise of grace that will accompany Christ's return.
Paul succinctly summarizes the gospel in this well-known passage to Titus, and insists that salvation must result in changed lives devoted to good works.
Paul preaches the unsearchable riches of Christ for a new humanity, the church, made up of Jews and Gentiles. This reality, through the abundant wisdom of God, is on display even to the the unseen realm.
Paul rejoices in the mystery of Christ now revealed to him and spread through his ministry by God's grace and power.
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, God, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Give us a heart of wisdom.
Israel's syncretism and trust in worldly wisdom during the years of the judges allows us to see the need for a greater Hope and greater Leader to conquer our true problem.
Those once separated from God and without hope have now been brought near as one new humanity and are being built into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
The promised Messiah had to face the curses of the broken covenant of works in order to redeem humanity. Jesus obeyed completely and suffered the just wrath of God on sin in our place, thereby nullifying the law and becoming our peace - peace with God...
We were once separated from God, but He has brought us near to him through the Christ's atoning work and our union with him.
Salvation is entirely by the grace of God, and now salvation's fruit - good works - fulfill His eternal purposes for us in Christ.
The rich mercy of God has made us alive with Christ, raised us up with Christ, and seated us with Christ.
The harsh reality of our natural identity is that we are dead in sin, enslaved to the elementary principles of the world, and recipients of God's just wrath on mankind's rebellion. But God...
Paul's prayer for the Ephesians reminds us of the realities of spiritual darkness as well as the power of the resurrected and enthroned Christ.
Paul's prayer for the Ephesians is not a lofty, apostolic prayer, but an example of how Christians should pray in faith and thanksgiving for one another.
The end of Paul's opening eulogy praises God for his work in history to choose a people, entrust them with his promises, and use them to make for himself an inheritance of nations.
Christ's substitutionary atonement to redeem us is more than just something to appreciate theologically. It is the riches of God's grace lavished upon us, making Jesus not just an important part of our lives, but making him our life!
God's unconditional election of a people is bound up in His free, proactive delight to pour out undeserved blessing in and through Jesus Christ.
We praise God because we've been abundantly blessed. This praise is fuel for obedience!
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
Is God's justice a good thing for our broken world? Can God be just now, even in the midst of sin and rebellion?
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
Paul's mission to see disciples made whole in Christ flows out of the reconciling mission of God. It is our mission too, as wholeness is the goal of our personhood.
The full story of the incarnation breaks through trite attempts at merriment to bring true joy.
A practical warning of five "lesser glories" that can easily distract and disappoint during the advent season.
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
Matthew uses an ancient prophecy of Isaiah, given in very different circumstances, to announce the birth of Jesus, our Immanuel. How can this be, and how does this promise bring us hope?
In the midst of our cries and groanings, we find joy and rejoicing in the steadfast love of God and the refuge that is Christ Jesus.
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus - how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
This series works through the heart of the gospel within the overall story of God, and then deals with several outcomes of this good news in Jesus: how he creates a new people for God by his Spirit, defines and upholds their identity through baptism...
We are full of anxieties that present themselves in worry and anger. What is the remedy for a child of God? Humility and a kingdom mindset. God cares for us!
Remember who you are in Christ. Let that guide your heart and soul and mind into a dedicated, Godly striving after all He has called us to be and to do. Call one another to the same, and to do it all for our joy and for His glory.
If we rely on circumstances to bolster our faith in exchange for knowing the Giver of faith, we will live in doubt of the goodness of God.
As we bring our study of Joshua to a close, we see several ways God has kept His promises and how those promises continue a trajectory to the better Joshua - Jesus - and to the true peace and rest of new creation.
The burial notice of Joshua speaks to God's faithfulness to His people and reminds us of the One who would come and not just die, but would give His life as a ransom for many and rise again to bring life to His people.
God's steadfast love and faithfulness shown to His people elicits a response of repentance, faith and obedience from His people.
As Israel settles into the land God promised them, an event with potentially devastating consequences actually demonstrates joyful obedience and the desire to be faithful to the covenant-keeping LORD. The narrative serves as a great exhortation to...
The death and resurrection of Jesus inaugurated his cosmic authority over all earthly powers, and he vests it in his kingdom people to announce and demonstrate God's reign to all the nations so that evil and chaos might be done away with.
Jesus is the long-awaited Son of David who fulfills the promise of a King that would reign mercifully and would provide true rest and peace.
In liberating men from demonic oppression, Jesus demonstrates his authority over spiritual darkness and hints at the ultimate destiny of all principalities and powers that rebel against his reign.
We've been given everything we need for a life lived in obedience to our gracious Savior King.
Proper obedience to God's covenant faithfulness isn't just that we obey, but how we obey. Are we following with a trust in God's promises and relying on His steadfast love to give us an unfading inheritance?
Do we too easily put our trust in good things, turning them into idols, rather than trusting in the sure promises of God?
In the face of suffering and tragedy, how are Christians to respond? We are to pray in our pain so that our hearts are re-anchored to what we know to be true. We are to lament.
God works the miraculous to be faithful to His covenant, and He is gracious to give signs to His people along the way that He will complete what He said He would do. This is why we rehearse the gospel and partake of the signs Christ gave us when we...
In the midst of Israel's seeming oversight and the trickery of some Canaanites, we see God's covenant love poured out on Gentiles who rightly feared him and responded in faith.
God's people took time to worship and remember God's covenant faithfulness in the midst of conquest, just as Moses had commanded before entering the land - not to earn salvation, but in light of the redemption they'd already received.
God comforts His people, calls them to trust He will fulfill His covenant promises for them, and sovereignly uses human agency to accomplish the defeat of Ai as Israel continues to enter the Promised Land.
In the midst of the horrible story of Achan, his sin, and his judgment, lie patterns of God's working to overcome sin and restore His creation. Could it be that Achan gives us a glimpse of both the first and the Second Adam? For as by one...
Achan's sin shows him to be an unbelieving Canaanite rather than a true part of God's people. Covenant unfaithfulness - lack of love for, and faith in, God - is what causes the sudden turn of events in this narrative. This story makes sense...
Cornerstone's pastors share their thoughts and exhortations from their recent time together at the TGC conference.
We wrestle with God's ordering of Israel to destroy Canaan as a sacrifice to Him, as we've seen in Joshua 6. Is God a moral monster, or is He just to call for such destruction? How does our own sin, individually and culturally, impact our...
The account of the "battle" of Jericho is really an account of God's sovereignty and His people's obedience to ceremonially offer the entire city over to the Lord of perfect justice and grace. It calls believers to wholehearted...
Joshua's interaction with God personified as mighty warrior teaches us that humanity must always bow to the One who is right in all things. It is not about getting God on our side; reconciliation is about finding ourselves on God's side.
God again shows His loving initiative to protect and provide for His people while the covenant is renewed through circumcision.
It is good to be reminded of the ways in which God shows Himself to be faithful to His promises. Christ has called his church to remember his sacrifice through a tangible memorial as a catalyst to active obedience and wholeness.
God keeps His covenant with His people through wonderful deeds, and He serves them by going before them into the things to which He calls them.
The redemptive faith of a Gentile prostitute shows God's extravagant mercy perfectly in tune with His justice and reminds us that we too were children of wrath were it not for the "but God" of His raising us to spiritual life in Christ.
Human authorities are a God-given grace, calling us to joyfully obey the command to love God and love others. Jesus - the better Joshua - obeyed perfectly in our place, securing the promise of inheriting the earth.
Israel's biggest enemy was not the Canaanites, but themselves. Like them, we are called to know and obey God through His Word; this alone brings true success and prosperity.
Israel's great leader, Moses, is dead, and Joshua and the people find themselves dependent on the promise of God as they prepare to enter the land. God's promise to believers, when faced with trials on every side, continues to be that He...
We begin this series on Joshua by getting familiar with the book as a whole, dealing specifically with its purpose and themes in this sermon. This is a book about God keeping His promises to Israel, yet pointing to a greater peace and rest in Jesus...
We begin this series on Joshua by getting familiar with the book as a whole: its genre and literary distinctions, its people and time period. Just as Joshua is much about the military conquest of God's people in Canaan, we as God's people -...
Studying and preaching all of scripture is a necessary means to loving God with our whole being.
David uses his own afflictions to call us not to forget in the dark what we know in the light.
Paul says to think this way about Christ's birth: He came as a servant, with others' interests more significant than his own.
We conclude our time in James with a reading of the text and exhortations from key themes learned along the way.
God's people are called to lovingly rescue one another when we're prone to wander from patient endurance.
A life towards wholeness trusts in the One who works faith and steadfastness in the midst of trials and suffering, asking for His will to be done whatever the cost.
Believers are called to steadfastness in light of the sure hope of Christ's return to mete out justice and make all things right.
Spiritual wholeness calls for an eternal perspective of wealth and power, with Jesus as our ultimate treasure.
Spiritual wholeness presupposes an all-of-life reliance on the will and work of the Lord Jesus.
What does James mean when he calls us to not speak evil against one another, and asks who we think we are to judge our neighbor? Does James agree with modern culture, that any suggestion of truth or falsehood, right or wrong, is necessarily...
James shows that slander is rooted in a pride that thinks it okay to judge others, thereby making us judges of the law (rather than doers of it) and usurpers of God's authority. Our self-righteous judgment ignores the truth that God in Christ...
A summons to spiritual wholeness over against a double-minded friendship with the world characterized by discrimination, negative speech, selfish ambition and destructive hedonism.
What community life becomes - and what it's rooted in - when personal passions, rather than godly wisdom, reign.
Wisdom from God expresses itself not in knowledge, but in humble action; such wisdom results in peace.
Whole speech is not hypocritical; it doesn't bless God and curse others. Yet no human is able to fully tame the tongue. Thankfully, the Word, Jesus Christ, is our answer.
How should we understand James' view of a dead and useless faith in light of "faith alone"? Here we get to the heart of true faith and its fruit.
How should we understand James' view of a dead and useless faith in light of "faith alone"? Here we get to the heart of true faith and its fruit.
Favoritism has no part in a life holding faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; our union with Christ, who perfectly fulfilled the law, frees us to live out the 'royal law' and love others as Christ has loved us.
James provides three "key performance indicators" that typify a whole life that hears and does the word of God.
The one who perseveres in looking into the teachings of Christ - looking in such a way that they're believed as vital to all of life - is the one who truly flourishes in the midst of God's program of redemption.
How to shed the actions of our lives apart from Christ and instead live as the new creations we are, where our hearts and our hands are to be characterized by integrality.
Our good Father brings trials for our growth into wholeness, but our desires lure and entice us to rebel against that intent and to sin.
Those who endure through trials are those that truly flourish, and God has promised true, lasting life to those who love Him.
We’re called to see ourselves as God sees us (whether we’re rich or poor or anything else), and warned not to exhibit double-mindedness when lured by threats to a steadfast faith.
Our desire for a godly perspective on life flows from a love for God, not from a doubting heart that lacks spiritual integrity. This is a part of being made whole in Christ.
James' greeting is packed full of sovereign grace and theology exulting the Lord Jesus.
The book of James is a sermon meant to be read in totality; as we begin our study, we do just that.
Pursuing the second great commandment divorced from the first--loving the Lord our God with our whole being--runs counterintuitive to God's plan and promises and can be spiritual suicide. Through Christ's giving of himself for our sins and...
God has, and always will, choose to use the foolish and weak things (by the world's standards) to accomplish his purposes.
Christ has given his church the gift of pastor-teachers for building up so that we all are made whole in Christ.
A practical three-part sermon on living out a biblical perspective on God's will and decision-making.
A practical three-part sermon on living out a biblical perspective on God's will and decision-making.
A practical three-part sermon on living out a biblical perspective on God's will and decision-making.
The introduction to Isaiah shows us that God preserves a people for himself, God makes his people new and pure, and God redeems his people while upholding his righteousness.
To sum up our journey through Galatians, we look back at themes presented at the outset of the series to see what the Spirit has taught us through Paul's epistle.
What is the rule Paul blesses, who is the Israel of God, and how is faith in Christ's work alone lived out?
The scandal of Christ's crucifixion is what takes us from the old age and makes us new creations, ambassadors of God's reconciling love.
Too often the final thoughts of Paul's letters become neglected endings, but the closing verses of Galatians cannot be ignored.
Too often the final thoughts of Paul's letters become neglected endings, but the closing verses of Galatians cannot be ignored.
Paul's thoughts on caring for teachers, embracing diving appointments, and doing good to one another - all out-workings of keeping in step with the Spirit because of resurrection life in the now and not-yet.
When we bear one another's burdens, the impetus and ultimate example comes from Jesus' humble bearing of our sins in the atonement.
We must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Jesus, so that sin may not reign.
The one who has defeated your flesh and sin is the one who now lives within you through his Spirit.
Jesus has gone before us and lived a blameless life so that we can fight the good fight of faith, pursue lives of integrity and wholeness, and be held secure by God.
The believer lives in an already/not-yet battle between flesh and Spirit. What is God's plan for the struggle?
Walking by the Spirit is not just necessary for the spiritual highs of life, but for the consistent ordinary moments of life in the ongoing battle with the flesh.
We organize our presuppositions of the Spirit's work as we prepare to jump into Paul's message of life in the Spirit.
The antidote to using one's freedom for natural desires is not the Law or any other law, but the mark of new covenant life: love.
The gospel is about freedom: freedom from living to earn God's favor, and freedom to rest in the sufficiency of Jesus. He is everything and the only think you'll ever need for salvation.
The gospel calls for, and will produce, forgiveness and reconciliation among the body of Christ.
The gospel calls for, and will produce, forgiveness and reconciliation among the body of Christ.
We struggle to believe and live out our freedom in Christ when we don't understand God's purposeful work to accomplish His plans through process and progress.
A Christian is now free to obey God in a radical fashion by serving his fellow human beings in selfless love.
Freedom means no condemnation and guilt because our lives are hidden with Christ in God.
Are we living in the freedom Christ has purchased for us, or are we abusing that freedom and trying to rebuild a righteousness of our own?
Jesus has accomplished redemption and is growing God's family, making one new man out of two, just as God promised His people He would be faithful to do in the Old Testament.
We've all been redeemed from bondage to sin and been freed to live as ministers. Do we have the same understanding, motivation and heart for ministry as Paul?
Jesus: the firstborn of creation and the firstborn of the dead, reconciling all things to himself.
If you search for wisdom like searching for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
The Law is good: it shows how people should live, but the problem is that it gave no power to do so. The ability to be right before God and to live righteously before God comes by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
The book of Job helps us understand God's purpose and working within our circumstances.
The Apostle Paul helps us read the Old Testament through the lens of Abraham and Christ, not Moses and the law.
Christ became a curse for us so that all who have faith like Abraham get the blessing of having the God of the universe be their God, and they his people.
Our status as the people of God is based on the fact that Christ has made us one with himself.
Abraham’s being considered “in the right” by God through faith is the example of how the Galatians (and us) are able to be “declared right” through faith in Christ.
Paul argues against the bewitching message of the Judaizers with a reminder of the Galatians' own experience with the gospel of Christ.
Paul argues against the bewitching message of the Judaizers with a reminder of the Galatians' own experience with the gospel of Christ.
The old self, enslaved to sin, has been done away with, replaced by a new self whose existence is determined by the indwelling Christ.
The sanctity of human life calls believers to seek justice and rescue those headed to suffering and death. A guest sermon from Toby DeBause of Crisis Pregnancy Center of Tidewater.
What kind of faith saves us? What does the word faith even truly mean? This is no small question.
What kind of faith saves us? What does the word faith even truly mean? This is no small question.
The Judge of Creation has declared us righteous in Christ, and now nothing can separate us from His love!
What does it mean for God to declare us righteous, and how can He do it to sinners that have rebelled against His will?
Whether one is born into spiritual privilege or spiritual disadvantage, neither is without hope. God welcomes and sustains all through the person and work of Jesus.
God in His grace did not leave us in our hopeless state, but waited for us, sent heralds of righteousness to us, and through the Messiah has grafted us in as His people.
We often say that the gospel is for all of life. But are our actions in line with the truth of the gospel?
We were created to love God with our whole being. Yet we’re prone to wander and trust in ourselves and the gifts rather than the Giver. So we’re called to regularly remind ourselves of the love of our Father through Christ as the Spirit works in us...
We do not face suffering as if God is dead or is unable to handle the evil and brokenness of the world. We face it with the joy that comes from knowing it serves a divinely-ordained and renewing purpose.
During this election season we acknowledge the ramifications of being dual citizens: praying, working, voting, serving, and leading for the common good of our earthly citizenship, while banking our hope and assurance in our having been made citizens...
Examining Paul's authority, his gospel, and his defense of God's missional call on his life in the greater story of the early church.
Examining Paul's authority, his gospel, and his defense of God's missional call on his life in the greater story of the early church.
Examining Paul's authority, his gospel, and his defense of God's missional call on his life in the greater story of the early church.
As we begin our series in Galatians, we look at the genre of the letter, when it was written, and the reason why Paul wrote it.
As we begin our series in Galatians, we look at who's writing the letter, to whom it's being written, and why that matters.
With Cornerstone at fifteen, we remember God’s past grace to rest in His promise of future grace - whatever the future may bring.
The Book of Ruth, Chapter 4. God's glorious providence reminds us that our lives contribute to something bigger than ourselves. God orders life's difficulties for the eventual and ultimate good of His people.
The Book of Ruth, Chapter 3. God works despite our disobedience and works through our obedience.
What were the thoughts Paul deemed most important to leave with the Ephesians before he left for Jerusalem and ultimately Rome?
How do we, as sojourners, both assimilate to cultural norms and live as distinctly transformed people in a society? We learn from Paul and from a man in the modern missions movement.
Each of us, in our particular contexts, should be on mission - attempting great things for God and expecting great things from God.
An eighteenth-century theological controversy in the Church of Scotland sheds light on perennial questions regarding the relationship between God's grace and our works, helping our understanding of evangelism, discipleship, and even God himself.
Charles Finney may not be as well-known to us as others in church history, yet his beliefs and methods have had a profound impact on American religiosity.
We see the doctrine of justification by faith alone with fresh eyes when we see it through the life and thought of Martin Luther.
In this introduction to our Church History sermon series, we look back at a second century man deemed a heretic by the early church and ask, is there a little Montanus in all of us?
We as disciples often under-realize or over-realize the present realities of the Kingdom as we proclaim and demonstrate the rule and reign of Christ.
The Spirit helps us in our weakness and unbelief, generating faith in the sufficiency of Christ's work and producing love and good works.
Three years ago we talked about the foundations and future of Cornerstone. We believe it's time to intentionally position ourselves for the future.
As we look toward what our purpose might mean for us in the coming months, we declare our dependency on Jesus and call one another to look to Him.
Mark's story doesn't have an ending because it isn't the main story, and the main story isn't done yet.
As we bring our study of Mark's gospel to a close, we look back at the stories that remind us that Jesus is no ordinary man, and his kingdom is not what we expected.
The traditional ending of Mark's gospel is not really part of Mark's gospel, but it shouldn't bother us.
Our time around the Table calls us to taste again the forgiveness of the Father in Christ, and to allow His grace to saturate our relationships and responses to wrongdoing.
The birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is the central point of human history and of God's revelation to man.
Mark paints a story within a story in the crucifixion narrative. There is the story of the real events of that day, and there is also the story of the spiritual significance of that day. As Jesus is suffering and dying on the cross, a transaction...
Our walk through the crucifixion account helps us see Christ's admonition to take up our cross and follow him in a new light.
As one looks through the New Testament, there is a clear theology of Christian suffering that is built on the suffering of Jesus. But we tend to believe one or more myths about suffering in our lives.
A day is coming when everyone will see Jesus for who he truly is, and then true justice will be administered once and for all.
In the garden, Jesus falls to the ground in horror of God's wrath against sin about to be poured out on him. But we also learn and benefit from his response.
Seeing the Lord's Supper through the lenses of customs, covenant, grace, remembrance, and promise.
Through the inauguration of the Lord's Supper, Jesus is doing away with the old and replacing it with something new and far, far better.
Jesus wasn't walking into his death blindly. Jesus knew what he was doing, and for whom he was doing it. And that is cause for rejoicing.
When we understand the original situation surrounding Isaiah's well-known prophecy of the coming Messiah, we get a beautiful view of all that Emmanuel means.
The nation's rulers may plot to end the Messiah's life, yet in their attempt to overthrow God's plans, they're actually fulfilling them.
It was no coincidence that Jesus' death, burial and resurrection occurred during Passover. What the Messiah was about to do would fulfill all of which the Passover was only a shadow.
The Blessed Man, Jesus, has fully pleased God and fulfilled Psalm 1 so that we can delight in His word and resist the path of the wicked.
The New Testament response to those that abandon the faith is to call those that haven't to persevere.
We're not called to predict the future; we're called to faithful discipleship in the present while we await the glorious appearing of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.
Jesus's words about what will happen when the temple and Jerusalem fall should not have us looking to the sky for a blood moon or stars falling from heaven. They instead point to a regime change of cosmic proportions, where Jesus sits enthroned...
Jesus informs his disciples that the temple and its practices would be laid desolate - not because God was done working but because the pictures and symbols of the temple system were being fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah. He is truly the stone that the...
How are we to understand Christ's answer to his disciples regarding the temple's destruction and the end of the age? What parts of Mark 13 speak to each aspect of their question? This week we seek to understand the ramifications of how one...
Christ's disciples are not to spend their days trying to interpret how world events herald the fulfillment of prophecy. Rather, they are to be actively engaged in proclaiming and demonstrating the good news of who Christ is and of what his coming...
As we introduce Mark 13, a chapter with a history of mixed interpretations, we outline six things to think through and work on as we walk through the passage in the coming weeks.
Jesus teaches again that kingdom values stand in stark contrast to the values of sinful humanity.
We don't need Jesus to change or help us. We need him to replace us. We don't need Jesus to make us live better or differently. We need to die to self and need him to live through us.
In a series of responses to religious leaders, Jesus communicates unequivocally that God doesn't want our money, our time, our prayers or our service. He wants our hearts. Jesus's atonement makes that a reality.
Jesus pronounces judgment on the leaders of Israel's temple system because they have used God's grace to love the world rather than to love the Father. Does our view of the Christian faith syncretize pithy morals with the worldly pursuit of...
Jesus proclaims the failure of God's people to approach, worship, and know God as He desired, and thus announces the end of the old system even as he walks toward the inauguration of the new.
Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem makes an unquestionable statement about his messiahship.
Blind Bartimaeus reminds us again of true discipleship and of the true nature of God's kingdom.
A court ruling can't put Jesus back in the grave, which means he's still King over all.
The cross is not only the means by which our sins are forgiven, but it becomes the template for all subsequent Christian living.
Mark reiterates Jesus's teaching that in God's kingdom, greatness comes by adopting an attitude of littleness and by being a servant of all.
Having understood Mark's purpose for the narrative (it's not ultimately about divorce), we seek to understand Jesus and the Scripture's greater teaching on divorce and remarriage with five governing principles.
Jesus's answer to a hostile question isn't ultimately about divorce, but to show again that he is the Christ; and in Christ's kingdom, he sides with the unloved, the outcast and the voiceless.
As we begin Mark 10 and find Christ's teaching on divorce, we seek to understand the bigger reason for Mark including this narrative by returning to Genesis to see God's plan and purpose in marriage "from the beginning of creation."
Remember who the real enemy is: Satan, sin and death, not our Christian brothers and sisters.
Do we view greatness with kingdom eyes, or does our understanding and pursuit of greatness look more like what this present age values?
Because of Christ's life, death and resurrection, our creator God is also our loving Father.
We want the benefits and blessings of being with Christ, but are we prepared for the pain and suffering that comes with following Him and His kingdom?
It's easy for us to name the name of Christ. It's far less easy to follow him along the narrow way of discipleship.
When Peter declares him to be the Christ, Jesus begins to teach plainly of the Messiah's road to Jerusalem to atone for sin on the cross and then rise again.
Peter may have gotten Jesus' title right, but he had yet to understand the Christ's mission and plan.
Mark uses the story of the blind man's healing to show Christ's work to cure the disciple's deafness and blindness to his message and plan.
Jesus is the fulfillment of new covenant promises and the source of our hope in reaching final rest in a better country.
Jesus is the priest who provides complete, lasting atonement through the sacrifice of himself, and intercedes for his people before the Father.
Jesus is the priest who provides complete, lasting atonement through the sacrifice of himself, and intercedes for his people before the Father.
It's always dangerous to purposefully deny what's right in front of you, especially when it's the Messiah.
Is the author of Hebrews saying we shouldn't be 'gospel centered' and that the good news of Jesus' work isn't for all of life?
Celebrating our union with Christ through "expectant remembrance" at the table of the Lord.
We should give real, careful thought to how we live out God's commands in everyday life, also taking heed to not allow our applications to become the basis of judging others.
Through Mark's storytelling we find a call to be ready to forsake all to follow Jesus, and a promise that nothing will stand in the way of God's kingdom advancement.
The death of John the Baptist highlights a storyline that will begin to play out in the life and death of Jesus the Christ.
A seemingly insignificant phrase in Mark 6 pulls us into the account of Christ's final weeks, culminating in his atoning death and victorious resurrection.
A Core Seminar covering a biblical theological survey of the dwelling place of God, along with its ramifications for the church's present mission and future hope.
The ordinariness of Jesus is folly to those who are perishing, but to those who are called it is the wisdom and power of God. Our only boast is in the Lord.
Behind every moment of worry is a battle of the heart. Will it be ruled by the kingdom of God or the kingdom of self?
Jesus demonstrates that he is the one promised to come and swallow up death forever, to wipe away tears from all faces, and provide salvation for his creation.
We have on our side the one who has conquered Satan forevermore, and who has both declared himself - and been declared of by God the Father - to be King over Evil.
A Core Seminar on some of the pertinent history of Virginia Beach and why it matters to missional living in our city today.
The kingdom of God has come in Jesus and will one day extend utterly into every sphere and realm of creation. While we can't always see it, and while we don't always understand how it works, we can rest assured that the King and His kingdom...
We focus in on Christ's prayer for the spiritual union and personal fellowship he wants for his church while it builds for the kingdom on earth.
Following the parables of the Kingdom, Mark shows us through a series of over-the-top events that Jesus is who He says He is: the promise-fulfilling, Spirit-bringing, sin-and-death defeating Son of God.
The messianic rule of God has come in ways we wouldn't expect, and its fruit grows without human effort.
The parable of the sower reminds us that God's sovereign reign is going forth to every tribe, tongue and nation.
How should we understand and interpret parables, and what was Christ's purpose for speaking in such a way?
Consider the love of our perfect Father, which drives us to a life of humble, passionate obedience.
A call to hold fast to the confession of our hope, because he who has promised is faithful.
A Core Seminar on preaching the gospel to yourself and gosling one another in community.
A reminder to not rely on our "perfect parenting" but on the Perfect One and His perfect sacrifice - for us and for our children.
What do the lives of the twelve disciples tell us about God, ourselves, and the gospel?
When God’s people align themselves with his cause, trusting in his power alone, they find him faithful to keep his word.
Our April 2014 Core Seminar. A representative from Bethany Christian Services presents domestic adoption needs in Virginia. Wes Kouba speaks to a theology of adoption and how the gospel should impact the church family's response to these needs...
We pause to remember that Jesus is our most treasured possession, and are challenged to live as the people of God because of our standing in Christ.
We have to respond to Jesus. We cannot remain neutral, and we cannot remake him into something we want him to be. He's Lord, or he's not. His words are true, or they're not. There is no middle ground.
How are we to understand our culture's view of Sundays? And how are we to live in light of Christ's inaugurated rest, even as we await the final rest to which the Sabbath pointed? We answer these questions and others - historically...
In this fourth controversy between Jesus and those around him, we see Jesus poignantly expose the culture's wrong view of God Himself via their wrong view of God's commands.
In this fourth controversy between Jesus and those around him, we take time to understand the Sabbath from a first century Jewish perspective, and see how easy it is to add things to God's purposes that turn heart-things to empty externals.
We examine two lessons from Mark 1 - that Jesus loves to come to us and to fellowship with us - to bring us to worship and celebrate at the Lord's Table.
In this third controversy between Jesus and those around him, we see that people have a wrong understanding of the nature and purpose of Jesus' coming. He came not to reiterate an established way of thinking, but to fulfill the established and...
In this second controversy between Jesus and those around him, we see that Pharisees have a wrong understanding of the lifestyle of Jesus. Jesus pursues both personal purity and the fellowship of mercy.
In this first controversy between Jesus and those around him, we see the scribes have a wrong view of the divinity of Jesus. As the Son of Man, he has authority over the physical and spiritual realms.
Stacy reviews Mark's presentation of Jesus in Mark 1, and gives an overview of the four biases we'll see Jesus deal with in Mark 2.
Stacy looks at informal and informal aspects of discipleship and spiritual instruction in the first two chapters of Titus.
Wes Kouba walks us through the book of 1 Peter, showing that our life in Christ is grounded in salvation, tempered in suffering, and elevated in eschatological hope.
Paul charges the church to have the mind of Christ in the practical aspects of life and ministry.
Jesus came preaching that the Kingdom of God was near, and showed it in his authority and power over religious, physical, and spiritual realms.
Jesus didn't come to rubber-stamp the religious views of his day. He came to correct those views.
Jesus didn't come to rubber-stamp the religious views of his day. He came to correct those views.
Jesus didn't come to rubber-stamp the religious views of his day. He came to correct those views.
Jesus is the second Adam and true Israel, come to conquer sin and death and provide reconciliation to the Father.
Jesus' baptism shows that he is the one who will bring God's Spirit here at the beginning of the Day of the Lord - something that will forever change the way in which we can relate to God.
A transition from our Genesis study into what we'll be seeing in Mark's gospel as we begin a new series.
As we close out the Foundations and Future of Cornerstone series, we hear from the elders and various members of the body regarding our purpose, our mission, and our great Savior Jesus.
In this final message of the series, Stacy Potts defines six practical items to pursue as we begin to intentionally live in light of our identity and purpose.
This week we paint a picture of what the city parish church looks like when it grows from the bottom up, as the church is being the church.
Stacy Potts discusses the primacy of gospel growth over numerical growth and introduces the city parish model as the mechanism for Cornerstone fulfilling its commission.
As we dig into four weeks on the future of Cornerstone, Stacy Potts speaks to six internal and external features of the place we call home that impacts how we pursue mission.
In this fourth message in the Foundation and Future of Cornerstone series, Stacy Potts discusses what our purpose (being disciple-making disciples that are made more into the image of Jesus) looks like in the everyday, and so highlights our values of...
In this third message in our Foundations and Future of Cornerstone series, Stacy Potts walks us through our purpose statement, which can be boiled down to being disciples that make disciples.
In this second message in the Foundation and Future of Cornerstone series, Chris Lownes exposes our culture's view of church and seeks to lay down a more biblical understanding of who and what the church is.
In this introductory message to the Foundations and Future series, Stacy Potts tells what the series is all about and why it's so important.
We continue to discuss the motif of worship throughout the biblical story as we seek to be a church family that worships our Maker in all of life.
In this second sermon of the Resolutions series, we look at being a praying church with a desire to know and commune with our Creator. We do this by examining several things that prayer isn't.
In this first sermon of the Resolutions series, we look at being a church with a passion to know, love and obey God through the Scriptures. We do this through stating 6 things we shouldn't do when resolving to be in God's word more...
In our final passage of our Genesis sermon series, we see Moses' theological purpose for the genealogy that leads us to Abraham.
Moses wrote this passage to give Israel a proper worldview. Many years later, it offers reminders and correctives to our worldview as well.
The post-flood narrative shows us that God's judgment has not eradicated evil, yet God continues to pursue mankind and create a people for His own possession.
Wes walks us through the book of Exodus, showing us themes that parallel what we're seeing in Genesis and unveiling a holy, righteous, immensely gracious God.
The flood narrative reveals several aspects of God's character and His plan. This week we see His faithfulness to carry through on His promises.
The flood narrative reveals several aspects of God's character. This week we see His power to save.
Dan Davey, pastor of Colonial Baptist in Virginia Beach, walks us through the book of Hebrews to show us the supremacy of Christ in all things.
The flood narrative reveals several aspects of God's character. This week we see His care, provision and desire to save.
The flood narrative reveals several aspects of God's character. This week we see His holiness and righteous wrath.
In our third and final week of looking at issues surrounding the flood narrative, we examine the story's similarities to the creation account and also see how Jesus and the New Testament authors use the story.
Moses' prologue to the flood account illustrates the full potential of sin's consequences on creation, yet gives hope of God's victory over evil.
Scripture's first genealogy reminds us that sin has consequences and that we live by grace.
A rehearsal of the gospel, since it's needed for both our justification and our sanctification.
Genesis is arranged into ten stories ("toledoths"). We review our journey through the first story (chapters 1-4) and remind ourselves of God's plan in Jesus Christ since the foundation of the world.
The last part of Genesis 4 shows that in the post-fall world, two types of people exist: people that reject God, and people that walk with God. We also see the beginnings of a truth that spans Scriptures: that God has always had a people, and He is...
In the Cain and Abel narrative we see that Cain's initial unbelief results in his outright rejection of God. We've all followed in Cain's footsteps, but thanks be to God that Jesus's blood speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
As we begin our study of Genesis 4, we learn of the new post-fall reality of two kinds of people and two kinds of peoples.
We bring our study of Genesis 3 to a close by taking a look at the problem of evil and our responsibility for sin before a righteous God.
We sum up the Retribution and Redemption series with an examination of true death and the Maker's plan to restore life to His creation.
In the second part of our Retribution and Redemption series we look at the natural ramifications of Adam and Eve's cosmic treason.
What is the curse? And does Moses really mention Jesus for the first time in Genesis 3? We seek to answer these questions in the first part of Retribution and Redemption.
As we continue in Genesis 3, we must acknowledge we are all guilty of the same acts of rebellion as Adam and Eve. We are great sinners, yet the text gives us hope in a greater Savior.
As we being Genesis 3, we look at the text to establish a framework for understanding how our Enemy seeks to deceive us.
In this introduction to Genesis 3, Stacy prepares us for the journey ahead and reminds us of the inseparable tie between retribution and redemption in the gospel.
In this third and final look at marriage in Genesis 2, we examine the ways in which marriage is a tangible display of the gospel.
In this second look at marriage in Genesis 2, we take a look at God's institution of the marriage covenant.
In this first look at marriage in Genesis 2, we take a look at God's creation of woman.
What does it mean to be made in God's image? Has that image been lost due to sin? What impact does Christ's work have on one's imaging God? We look to Scripture for answers to these questions and more in this week's message.
As we begin our study of Genesis 2, we take a broad look at mankind within the plan of God.
In this second of two messages, we look at a biblical perspective on the subject of alcohol.
In this first of two messages, we look at a biblical perspective on the subject of alcohol.
The final message in a four-part series on Christian mission, we see the need for approaching all of life with biblical wisdom and are reminded of the need to take advantage of opportunities to speak the mystery of Christ in interesting, attractive ways.
The third in a four-part series on Christian mission, we look at the purpose of the mission - to declare the mystery of Christ, from Colossians 4.3-4.
The first in a four-part series on Christian mission, we look at prayer as the power behind the mission, from Colossians 4.2.
In this message we conclude our series on normal Christian relationships. We see how Paul's words to masters and slaves help us understand the doctrine of vocation and our relationships within societal structures.
Slavery in the first century was quite a bit different than the slavery we Americans envision when we hear the term. In this message, we attempt to understand the New Testament culture more clearly while having our minds cleansed from the deep-seeded...