Crossgate Church Podcasts

"F.A.Q. (Frequently Avoided Questions): Is It Right to Judge? Matthew 7:1-5; Luke 6:37-42   What Does Scripture Say . . .?   Self-righteous judgment Self-righteous judgment is when I look beyond my faults and flaws to expose and criticize your faults and flaws. (Matthew 7:1-4; Luke 18:9-14; John 8:1-11) Harsh Destructive Exaggerated Self-righteous judgment is often an attempt to divert attention f...

"Not Home Yet:  Grace to the Humble" 1 Peter 5:1-14   Humility in Leadership . . . Strong leadership is always clothed in humility.  Leaders within the church should lead willingly without selfish Leaders within the church should lead eagerly with an intense desire. Leaders within the church should lead in a way that exemplifies   Humility in Following . . . Submitting to leaders within the church...

"Not Home Yet:  Suffering Well" 1 Peter 4:12-19     4 Truths About Suffering As a Christ-follower . . . Suffering should never be surprising but expected. (v.12; 1 Peter 1:6-7)   Suffering happens because you are identified with Christ. (v.13) "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute yo...

1 Peter 2:18-25    For the sake of the Kingdom.   In light of the Cross.   Overflowing with Grace.   Works Cited/For Further Study Faithmapping by Daniel Montgomery & Mike Cosper The ESV Study Bible The NIV Application Commentary: 1 Peter by Scot McKnight "How to Deal with a Bad Boss" by Dan Doriani "Mindful of God While Suffering Unjustly" by Sam Storms   Discussion Questions Why is this text in...

“Beyond the Grave:  The Truth About Heaven” 2 Corinthians 4:7-5:10 Romans 8:18-25 2 Peter 3:1-14 Revelation 21:9-22:7   Longing for Something More . . . We do not lose confident hope in what’s to come because God is faithful to His promise. “He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.” 2 Corinthians 5:5   “And this is the promise that He made to u...

  Defining “Heaven” . . . The apostle Paul makes mention of 3 levels of heaven: (2 Corinthians 12:1-4) The first heaven was considered to be the sky or firmament. (Gen. 1:6-8) The second heaven was the place of the stars, planets, and celestial (Genesis 1:14-18) The third heaven was a place Paul referred to as “paradise,” and heard things which wasbeyond what he could say or fully comprehend. (2 C...

“Beyond the Grave:  The Destiny of Hell” 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10   Defining “Hell” . . . Sheol/Hades “Sheol” and “Hades” are the Hebrew and Greek words, respectively, that refer to the realm of the dead or departed soul/spirit. (Gen. 37:35; Job 14:13; Ps. 6:5; Ps. 16:10; Ps. 88:3; Isaiah 38:10; Ps. 9:7; Ps. 31:17; Ps. 49:14)   Tartarus —Greek word that refers to the place reserved for fallen angels...

“Beyond the Grave:  The Afterlife”   Three Truths About the Afterlife . . .   Although it is destined for all to die physically, it is by God’s design that all will live forever “The tree of life was in the midst of the garden (Eden), and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”  Genesis 2:9   “He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden He placed the cherubim and a flaming swo...

“Beyond the Grave” Acts 2:22-36   Hope Beyond the Grave . . .   Jesus has defeated the enemy you could never defeat. Death is a reality that we would like to ignore, but we cannot escape. “ . . . and so death spread to all men because all sinned . . .” Romans 5:12   You cannot defeat death, but you can surrender to the One who has. “But God released Him (Jesus) from the horrors of death and raised...

Pilate asked the all-important question, "Why?" 1st Group: Caiaphas Group (John 11:45-53) Fear: If I surrender/abandon my life to Jesus, I will lose control.   2nd Group: Judas Group (Mark 14:10-11) Fear: Jesus may not follow MY Plans   Pilate have asked Jesus, "Why? Why should I crucify you?" (John 10:18) Reason #1: The Purpose Reason #2: The Plan Reason #3: The Promise

“Uncommon—Surrendering To and Pursuing An Uncommon Savior” Colossians 3; 1 Peter 2:21-25 If you are going to have an uncommon marriage it will take an uncommon man and an uncommon woman surrendering to and pursuing an uncommon Savior.    Surrendering . . . Your journey to becoming an uncommon man and an uncommon woman begins with surrendering to an uncommon Savior.   Pursuing . . . By grace, God h...

Uncommon—An Uncommon Man” 1 Peter 3:7; Ephesians 5:25-33   An Uncommon Man . . .   An uncommon man is a man who seeks to understand his wife. “Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way . . .” 1 Peter 3:7 Know your wife.   An uncommon man is a man who honors his wife as priceless and highly valued. “ . . . showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel . . .” 1 Peter 3:7 “Ou...

“Uncommon:  An Uncommon Woman” 1 Peter 3:1-6   If you are going to have an uncommon marriage it will take an uncommon man and an uncommon woman surrendering to and pursuing an uncommon Savior.    Living As A Sojourner . . . Regardless if your sojourning is enjoyable or difficult, in all things it is to be purposeful in pointing people to Christ.   Even in marriage we find ourselves as exiles and s...

"Uncommon” Genesis 2:4-3:16; 1 Peter 3:1-7   “There has never been a generation whose general view of marriage is high enough.  The chasm between the biblical vision of marriage and the common human vision is now, and has always been, gargantuan . . . Some cultures . . . like our own, have such low, casual, take-it-or-leave-it attitudes toward marriage as to make the biblical vision seem ludicrous...

“Not Home Yet:  Living Under Authority” 1 Peter 2:13-17   Doing Good and Glorifying God . . .   Submit to those in authority. (v. 13-14) It is by God’s sovereign To resist is to resist what God has appointed. (Romans 13:1-7) It is for God’s ultimate glory. (v.12, 13)   The Exception . . . When the demands of men contradict the commands of God. 3 Biblical examples: Daniel 3 (Shadrah, Meshach, Abedn...

“Not Home Yet:  Sojourners and A Sovereign God” 1 Peter 2:4-12   As You Come to Him . . . When you taste the goodness of God by drinking deeply from His word, He is transforming you by His power to be a temple of His presence. (v.4-5) The Spirit of God is doing the work in you so that you might offer to God spiritual sacrifices that are pleasing to Him through Christ. Instead of malice, you offer...

“Not Home Yet:  Tasting God’s Goodness” 1 Peter 2:1-3   “So” What? Because you have been born again, love one another continually from a pure heart. Just as God demonstrated His love for us while we were sinners, as followers of Christ, we are to love others.   Take Out The Trash . . . Because you have been born again, live differently than the world. (Colossians 3:1-11) Put away all malice. Put a...

“Not Home Yet:  Pursuing Holiness” 1 Peter 1:13-25   Setting Your Hope Fully On His Grace . . . Guard your mind with the truth aggressively. Don’t align yourself with the pattern of the world’s thinking. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”  Romans 12:2...

“Not Home Yet:  Living Hope” 1 Peter 1:3-12   Biblical Truths that Should Shape Our Present Reality . . .   I am chosen by God. By the sovereign grace and mercy of God I have been chosen by God to be one who is set apart by His Spirit , to live in obedience to Christ displaying a life that has been rescued by God’s great salvation. God initiates a relationship because of His mercy. (v. 3) “ . . ....

Join us as Pastor Shawn begins a new series on 1st Peter, "Not Home Yet". 

“This Is Christmas:  It’s About the Gospel” Matthew 1:1-25   Family Tree, Broken Limbs . . . Matthew wants his audience, including you, to understand the hopeful message of the gospel is the reason why Jesus came. The reality of humanity is that sin separates us from the one true holy God, but the hope of the gospel is that Jesus has put on the flesh of humanity to reconcile us to holy God. “And y...

“This Is Christmas” Mark 7:1-9; Luke 2   The Good About Traditions . . . They can bring families together. They are memorable. They can be fun. They can pass down family values and leave a legacy.   Testing the Traditions . . . Do our traditions deviate from Jesus? When how we celebrate overshadows whom we celebrate, we’ve missed the point of the celebration.    Do our traditions elevate Jesus? Wh...