Cornerstone West Los Angeles » Sermons

The book of Galatians insists that Christians are free in Christ. But what does that freedom look like in your daily life? Paul explains that the life of the Christian is marked by a conflict of desires: old selfish desires combat new selfless desires inspired by the Holy Spirit. When we understand this conflict, we understand ourselves better, and we find hope for growth. Application Questions: 1...

Paul's explanation of the ramifications of the gospel in our lives continues: the gospel sets us free from sin, guilt, shame, and the Law, and this freedom is an opportunity to serve others, as well as an opportunity to walk in the Spirit. Application Questions: Confession: What are some ways you use your freedom in Christ to serve yourself rather than others? Transformation: How can you use your...

In this passage, Paul expresses his pastoral heart for the Galatians—he longs for them to hold fast to the gospel and its truth, reject the lies of the circumcision party, and use their freedom in Christ to serve one another. Application Questions 1. What does gospel freedom look like in your life? How do you cling to gospel truth day in and day out? 2. Why does Paul use such aggressive language t...

Paul wants the Galatians to live in the freedom of the gospel, and he uses an Old Testament story to show them. We can live trying to control our own future, or trust God to take care of us by his own power. One leads to slavery, the other to freedom. For Christians, life is lived secure in the promise of God. Application Questions: 1. What are some reasons you might be tempted to live “under the...

Paul gives us a profound analysis of human beings, from our motivations to our decisions. Just like the Galatians, we are all tempted by idolatry: replacing God with something else we look to for stability and hope. It is so ingrained in us that we don’t see it, and it enslaves us. The solution, Paul says, is the knowledge of God—both our knowledge of him and, more importantly, his knowledge of us...

Our fractured, divided, and imperfect world keeps us from knowing and relating to ourselves and others as we should. But our union with Christ makes us all sons of God and heirs according to promise. Through Christ we have our identity shaped and established, our way settled, and our relationship with God secured, as we enjoy a sonship, through any and every circumstance, both in part now and one...

Paul finishes explaining God’s law with the image of a guardian or tutor in ancient Roman society. Like tutors, life under the law was a time of preparation, not a final destination. The law is meant to drive us to the promise of God’s grace in Christ, which gives us a new identity and forms a new community. Application Questions: 1. Why does Paul think it's so important that we are no longer unde...

What do we do with the Old Testament? Paul shows us that we don’t need to ignore it or downplay it. The whole Old Testament points to the promise of God, fulfilled in Jesus Christ.  Application Questions: 1. Why should we read the Bible as a cohesive story and not a big collection of truths?  2. Why is it important that Christianity is based on promise not law?  3. How would your life be different...

We all want the blessing of the Spirit, even if we don’t usually think about it in terms of Abraham and the Old Testament law. When we connect our daily lives to this search for the blessing, we find a powerful lesson about faith in Christ who took our curse so we could share in his blessing. Application Questions 1. How do you see a desire for the blessing of God in your own life?  2. Can you rel...

How do we change and grow? We're all in the process of striving to change, mature, or grow in one way or another. We want to grow in our career, as parents, as friends, simply as humans.  But how does real, lasting change actually happen? Self-help books and life-hack blogs promise they hold the keys to success. But what does God say? Surprisingly, the answer is a lot simpler than we could ever im...

This passage is at the heart of Galatians, and it deals with the doctrine of justification by faith. Paul is extremely clear: we are justified by what God does, not by what we do. When we go to Christ with nothing, we get everything. Application Questions: 1. How do you see a need for justification at work in your own life? 2. Why isn’t faith a “work”? How does that help you understand what it mea...

Being a Christian means first, believing the gospel, and second, letting your belief in the gospel take such a deep root that everything in your life is then shaped by the gospel. Paul here confronts Peter, because Peter was not walking "in step with the truth of the gospel," and invites us to a life of consistency in which everything in our lives flows from and is shaped by the gospel. Applicatio...

This passage doesn’t stand out to us, but it’s pivotal, because in it Paul is fighting for the future of the church. When we see how Paul and the apostles preserve the gospel, we’ll know how to preserve it ourselves so that we keep the freedom and the fellowship that Christ gives us by grace. Application Questions: 1. What are ways you’ve seen people try to reconstruct the gospel? Why is that some...

The life of Paul can often seem like one that is unassailable, out of reach for the average Christian.  But Paul's own words remind us of the transforming power of the gospel that is available and at work in every believer, for the glory of God and the Christian's eternal joy and good. Application Questions: 1. Does the initiating revelation of the gospel by God humble you? Why or why not? 2. Do y...

Paul normally starts his letters with thanksgiving and encouragement, but in Galatians he begins with admonishment. Paul is deadly serious about any adjustments people make to the gospel of grace in Christ, and in this short passage he shows us how to tell the difference between the true gospel and its counterfeits. Application Questions 1. Why can’t you make any adjustment to the gospel without r...

Galatians is a powerful book that has contributed to revivals in history and can do so today. In Paul’s introduction, we get major themes from the rest of the book on the importance of doctrine, the heart of the gospel, and the way we can put doctrine to work in our own lives. Application Questions 1. What are some ways you’ve seen doctrine affect your life?  2. What about the gospel seems most re...

Paul prays that we would know the message of Easter not just with our minds but in our bones. How? By seeing that Jesus’ resurrection can be our resurrection. God in Christ meets us in our sin and raises us to life, with more life to come for eternity. Application Questions: 1. How does the resurrection show us the power of God? What does that mean for our spiritual life? 2. Why does Paul want us...

Missional hospitality is built to fit into a life of self-giving love. When we live as those who daily take up their cross, losing our lives to find it in Jesus, missional hospitality will fit naturally. Application Questions: 1. Why do you think Jesus wants us to take up a cross to follow him?  2. How does losing your life for Jesus’ sake lead to saving it? What does that kind of life look like d...

As we continue to explore how God is calling each of us to extend his welcome to our city, we look at a third practical question that often hinders us. "What exactly am I supposed to say?" Over the years you may have learned all sorts of different gospel presentations, but they inevitably all feel awkward or strange to deliver. How do we convey the message of the gospel in a way that is compelling...

Missional hospitality can seem daunting, but the example set for us by Jesus and Paul is one where people are invited into the rhythms of their lives. The same is true for us. We let our light shine before men by inviting them into the things in life that we already do: Work, Rest, Celebrate, and Eat. These are the contexts for welcoming in others around us, and these are the places where we will...

As we seek to understand how God is calling each of us to extend his welcome to our city, a number of practical questions arise. The first question we're going to examine is: Who, specifically, is God calling me to welcome?  In a city of millions of people, where do we start? Application Questions: 1. When deciding who to spend time with, what usually determines your choice? 2. How does the exampl...

When God’s family gathers in Sunday services or community groups, it’s like family dinner: our values, the way we treat each other, and the way we treat our guests are on full display. This sermon explores how God’s welcome extends through the church community to newcomers when we gather together. Application Questions: 1. When was the last time you were new at church? What was that experience lik...

Jesus changed the world and impacts lives every day in a surprising way: zoomed in, one person at a time. He not only sees individuals and their specific needs, but he saves and celebrates, with a singular focus, each person adopted into his family. Application Question: 1. Is there someone in your life who needs to seen by you the way Jesus sees you? Pray and ask God to show you who you need to s...

Multiplication has always been part of God's plan since He formed humanity in His Image. We should desire multiplication because we want those around us to hear the gospel's Good News. God does not want us to hoard the fruit of Spirit, but by our fruit, those around us should know we are His and desire Him. Multiplication is bittersweet because there is a cost to welcome others into God's family a...

How did Christianity go from a local, Galilean, Jewish religion to a worldwide faith where we are worshipping Jesus 2,000 years later and 8,000 miles away? After the Resurrection, Jesus gives His disciples the command to go and make disciples of all nations, inviting all peoples to come to know and love God. The welcome that we have received from God we now turn and offer to others. Application Qu...