Cornerstone West Los Angeles » Sermons

Jesus is invited to a Pharisee's home for a meal and doesn't follow all of the rituals they follow. He uses this as an opportunity to outline the difference between external religion and internal heart transformation. The hope of the gospel runs deeper into our souls than any behavior modification ever can. Application Questions:  1. What are ways that your walk with Christ is too shallow, aiming...

Many are looking for a sign, argument, or circumstances that will settle the issue about Jesus once and for all. If only we had more illumination than we do now, we could come to a deeper faith and move forward fully convinced. In a challenging set of teachings, Jesus confronts us with the reality that the issue is not a lack of light, but a lack of sight. Jesus's teaching and ministry are more th...

 In a passage full of references to demons and Satan, we get a surprisingly practical lesson on our own struggles and how we can be delivered from them. The Bible paints a realistic, complex picture of the forces that work against us in the world and in our own hearts. When we experience those forces, we turn to a variety of places for deliverance, yet the changes we experience are short-lived, su...

It can be easy to think of God like a genie or a butler when it comes to prayer. But the Lord's Prayer shows us the true purpose and power of approaching the throne: getting more of God.  Application Questions:  1. In what ways might your prayer life be disordered? How can the Lord's Prayer reorient your approach?  2. Are you worried about bothering God with your prayers?  3. How does the promise...

Sisters Martha and Mary invite Jesus into their home- Mary sits at the feet of Jesus to listen and learn, while Martha is serving and handling logistics. In the midst of her serving Martha's heart is off- and Jesus gently corrects her, reminding her that He must be the first priority of her life. Application Questions:  1. Why is Jesus so concerned with our inner life? 2. What are areas of distrac...

In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus provides a picture of what the Christian ethic looks like in practice. It is rooted in love that is compassionate, risky, and sacrificial. Exactly like the love he has shown us. Application Questions:  1. In what ways have you found yourself trying to justify your life and your choices the way the lawyer did? 2. How does the way Jesus has loved you echo...

The 72 disciples return from their mission full of joy at the success they experienced. But Jesus cautions them: their joy needs a deeper foundation than success. Instead, Jesus urges the disciples to ground their joy in the reality that their names are written in heaven. Here we find the secret to lasting joy that can carry us through a life full of victories and setbacks. When Jesus himself rejo...

Jesus sends out 72 of His followers to heal and teach people about the Kingdom of God. The harvest is plentiful, Jesus tells us, and the laborers are few—so pray and ask the Lord to raise up more laborers, and be diligent in the work.  Application Questions:  1. How does the "mission of God" intersect with your daily life?  2. What would be different if your life was lived first and foremost for t...

Jesus was singularly focused on his mission to redeem his people. He was unwilling to be distracted or deterred, even when those around him didn't understand what he was doing. Following him means being singularly focused on his mission too. And this means being willing to follow him without excuse and without delay. Application Questions:  1. In what ways might you be able to relate to James and...

When Jesus comes off the mountain, he finds a world in disarray. When he brings his majesty to bear by healing a young boy, people marvel—but then he says this majesty will take him to a cross. Throughout the passage, we see ourselves in the disciples as they struggle to following Jesus. The message they need—the gospel that moves toward suffering to bring healing—is the same message we need to fo...

Three disciples follow Jesus up a mountain, and it seems like heaven comes down to earth. Jesus' true glory is unveiled, and we are again pressed with the question: who is this? This event, the transfiguration, reveals to us Jesus' identity, his mission, and the way we access it in our own lives.  Application Questions:  1. Are there ways you have Jesus playing a supporting role in your life? What...

We enter back into the Gospel of Luke with Jesus asking his disciples who they say he is. In asking them, he poses the same question to every one of us. It's the most important question every person ever has to answer: Who do you say Jesus is? Application Questions:  1. Where are you in your response to Jesus? Rejection, Curiosity, Confusion, or Recognition? 2. What is your next step in considerin...

At the heart of Christianity is the idea that God himself took on flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. While other religions suggest that God has made appearances on earth, in Jesus the true God dwelt among us as a full human being. This gives us remarkable hope in difficult times, support in our suffering, and a sense of purpose and meaning to our existence. Most of all it shows us the lengths to...

John's gospel opens with a stunning prologue, bringing us all the way back to before time began. This is where the story of Jesus begins, and John forces us to reckon with the fact that Jesus of Nazareth, fully human, was also fully God. This is the miracle of miracles, and means Jesus can show us what God is like, be the authority over our lives that we need, and rescue us that we might live fore...

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas we consider what the mystery of the incarnation: that the God of the universe became a human. How do we respond to such a glorious reality? And how does that response shape our Christmas celebrations? Application Questions:  1. What is one way you can spend time meditating on the reality of the incarnation this week? 2. What false Gods do you need to let go of...

As we finish our series on the attributes of God, we come to a central truth: the one God exists eternally in three persons, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Trinity challenges our minds but it can also bring awe and joy to our hearts. Because he is triune, God is overflowing with love, life, and goodness. This means reality is about love, not power, and that Christianity is u...

God's faithfulness is directly related to His promise-making and promise-keeping. He voluntarily limits Himself by making covenants with His people. These covenants define the relationship His people have with Him, and they show that He is a God who makes glorious promises, and keeps those promises. We can have confidence that He will keep His promises because of the blood of Jesus. Application Qu...

Just as God is holy, good, and loving, God is just. His righteous character means he brooks no evil, shows no partiality, and overlooks no injustice. Peter tells us that one day God's justice will come to cleanse the earth and expose our deeds. And yet he says that judgment day can be a day to look forward to! We all long for justice, and yet can't face it ourselves without being consumed. But in...

"Good" is such a mediocre word, we can often misunderstand what it means that God is good. But when we open our Bibles and consider God's goodness we see that all the beautiful aspects of his character flow from it. It's not just that God is good. Our greatest joy and only hope are in the fact that is perfect goodness. Application Questions:  1. How do you tend to define "goodness"? Is it rooted i...

If you had to pick one word to describe God, the Bible would tell you to use the word "holy." God's holiness is a way of talking about the all the things that set him apart. God's holiness means his power, goodness, and love, are a purer, richer, and deeper than any other. Isaiah encounters God's holiness and finds himself transformed. By looking at Isaiah's experience, we learn what it means to e...

God speaks and the universe is created. His Word is a manifestation of His power- it accomplishes His will, and there is no insecurity or uncertainty. God's power is infinite and gracious, and He chooses to use His power for our good. Application Questions:  1. What are some ways you see your own heart drawn towards earthly power? 2. What insecurities do you see in your own heart and life regardin...

Thinking about the nature of God can make him feel distant. When we realize that he is transcendent, sufficient, and eternal it's hard to think of him as close. But, the eternal God is not far away, but is always fully present with us. And recognizing his presence changes everything. Application Questions:  1. Do you constantly recognize that God is with you, or do you often slip into a functional...

One of the most comforting attributes of God is that he is unchanging. Unlike everything else in creation, God is perfectly stable, never wavering, never shifting, a rock that will never fail. James finds this truth very practical for dealing with the realities of life. In suffering and struggle, it's God's unchanging goodness that anchors us in the storm. Application Questions:  1. How does the i...

We are working through the attributes of God, and this week we come to God's eternity. God is "from everlasting to everlasting." He stands above time, with no beginning and no end. Compared to God's eternity, we realize how temporary we are, and how all the things we put our hopes in will fade. When we understand that God is eternal, we will treat the past, the present, and the future differently,...

Exodus 3 is the place where someone first asks God for his name. What do we learn about from this encounter? First, we learn that God is knowable—he is not an impersonal force, but a God with a name. Second, we find he is all sufficient. Everything in existence depends on God, but he depends on nothing; we can offer him nothing, he gives us everything. Finally, we find a radical love. When the all...