Cornerstone Reformed Baptist Church

We consider the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Christian, who dwells in the Christian, and leads the Christian in putting to death the sinful deeds of the flesh for the glory of Christ.

Union with Christ means believers are delivered from condemnation. We consider the meaning of condemnation and how this is manifested in the Christian life. Though Christians continue to battle sin and experience guilt and shame in this life, we can look to Christ and be assured of the reality that we are not condemned, or (stated positively) are justified and have peace with God: by grace alone,...

In Romans 7, Paul writes that "we are released from the law" and therefore "serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code." The Christian life involves both faith and obedience, but there is a vast difference between obeying the Lord in the Spirit and mere external obedience in the flesh. If you seek to obey the Lord, why do you obey?

We consider Enoch's prophecy of the coming of the Lord in judgement, as cited by Jude in verses 14-15. We first address questions about Jude's source for this prophecy. Is he citing the apocryphal "Book of Enoch"? Then, looking at the prophecy itself, we find it teaches us about the certainty of the coming judgement. The judgement is certain to happen and certain to happen to you. Only those whose...

We who have died to sin cannot still live in it. Sanctification is the process by which a genuine child of God becomes more like the Lord Jesus, by the grace of God.

A Biblical church is a church committed to testing the spirits, distinguishing the truth of God from the deceptive doctrine of false teachers, as the Apostle John exhorts in 1st John 4:1-6. False teachers come from within the church, but teach a false Christ.

James writes that "a person is justified by works and not by faith alone." We consider the role of faith and works in the life of the Christian, and find that a Biblical church must be one that is committed to good works.

Continued consideration of Biblical church discipline.

A Biblical church is a church committed to church discipline. Church discipline is an extension of the fatherly discipline of God toward his church (Hebrews 12), when the church faithfully applies the Word of God in the case of a member falling into unrepentant sin.

Looking at the Great Commission, we consider how a Biblical church is one that is committed to discipleship.

A biblical church is one that is committed to biblical fellowship. This is a fellowship that goes beyond merely spending time with one another, but is a deep spiritual union based on a common fellowship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. ** We experienced technical difficulties with this week's recording, which resulted in poor audio quality for the first 15 minutes and loss of video. Our apolo...

A biblical church is one that is committed to prayer, as Paul outlines in Ephesians 6:18. He tells us we must pray at all times, in the Spirit, with all kinds of prayers, with urgency, and for all the saints. We address what biblical prayer is and then how biblical prayer is done.

A Biblical church is defined by a commitment to the Word of God. We consider Paul's exhortations to Timothy to preach the word and abide in the word. Commitment to Christ is reflected in a commitment to his word.

What is the church? In Ephesians 1:22-23, we find church is the body of Christ, who is her head. This means the church is united to Christ, submitted to Christ, complements Christ, and shares in the victory of Christ.

Genuine, Biblical salvation means the flesh with its passions and desires, is put to death. We explore the presence of sin in the believer, the inner war between the flesh and the spirit, and what it means to put the flesh to death.

From 1 Peter chapter 4, we find that "each" member of the church is gifted by God, and that we ought be good stewards of these gifts by serving one another.

Where there is genuine, Biblical salvation the Holy Spirit will also be working to produce Biblical obedience.

Biblical salvation is a salvation secured by the sufficiency of the work of Christ. Peter describes the inheritance of those who are born again: it is imperishable, undefiled, unfading and kept in heaven. Those who are saved are guarded by God's power.

From Ephesians 2:1-4, we find that true, Biblical salvation necessarily involves a changed life. Since Adam's fall, all mankind come into the world dead in trespasses and sins and are, by nature, children of wrath. But salvation involves resurrection: being made alive together with Christ.

We continue to explore Jude's description of "false brethren" who outwardly belong to the church, while inwardly denying the Lord. We might think such people would be obvious. So, how do they creep into the church unnoticed? From Jude verses 12 and 13, we consider how appearances can be deceiving.

In Romans 6:19-23, the Apostle Paul speaks about sanctification, being the result of presenting "your members as slaves to righteousness" (v. 19). What does sanctification mean, according to Scripture?

What does it mean to have true freedom? Is it complete licence to do anything, including sin? In Romans 6:15-18, the Apostle Paul describes how believers, who were once slaves to sin, are set free from sin.

Believers are declared righteous by grace alone and through faith alone. Our works play no part in our justification before God. Does grace, then, give us permission to sin? The Apostle Paul says: "By no means!"