Cornerstone Christian Center
Cornerstone Christian Center
To Live is Christ | Philippians
Embark on a profound journey to the breathtaking heights of Nepal in our latest episode, where we explore the intersections of faith, beauty, and life's profound purpose. From the majestic Himalayas to the bustling streets of Kathmandu, we recount stories of spiritual hunger that parallel our own pursuits in the complexities of modern life. Amidst the chaos and vibrant culture, we witness how many chase after false hopes and counterfeit gods while God beckons us toward authentic significance.
This episode unveils not just a travelogue, but a tapestry of life lessons learned in a land rich with faith yet challenged by adversity. From encountering courageous pastors facing persecution to hearing how love abounds within a community despite their struggles, we are reminded of our collective calling to live out our faith boldly every day.
At the core of our exploration, we reflect on how the teachings of Paul in Philippians encourage us to actively engage in the refinement of our character as we embrace God’s transformative love. These moving testimonies spark spirited conversations about our spiritual awakenings and the vitality of our friendships, as we foster relationships built on faith, hope, and community.
Join us as we unravel the beauty of this journey and challenge ourselves to deepen our commitment to living out our faith. We're all called to an incredible life filled with purpose, courage, and unyielding love! Don’t miss out—connect with us and share your thoughts. Remember to subscribe, review, and invite others to experience the love of Christ with us!
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To live is Christ, to die is gain. You know, I got in last night from being in Nepal and it's the foothills that go all the way up to the Himalayas and so many people will trek to places like Nepal in looking to scale the mountains and we know so many that have done that in the famous peaks that are there that so many people take and they scale those things, and so they'll go to this country with this anticipation to do something great and it's a milestone for them and many people are seeking to have that kind of understanding and the culmination in their life as some kind of mile marker, and others will go there and looking for some kind of spiritual awakening and to search out some kind of thing. So it's a very interesting setting because you have all these people from across the world coming to a place like this in search of some kind of significance, and then it's people themselves are there in this tension of trying to figure these things out as well, and so it makes it a very charged place spiritually, as people are seeking out all of these different things. Also, physically it's a beautiful place because you have the peaks and the Alps in the distance and then there, on the, on the, the grounds, kind of going up towards the mountains, you have these beautiful rolling hills that they've teared down and they're made into making food and growing rice and other things, and so it's absolutely beautiful and it's stunning in that way. But it's also a little bit perilous because all the roads are right up next to the edge of the place. And so I'm in the back of the van just praying to the Lord, thinking, oh, I'm gonna go see Jesus today. I'm seeing Jesus today. As the van goes closer and closer and closer to the edge Anybody know what I'm talking about. And so, as you're going next to the edges about, and so as we're going next to the edges, I was just like taking it in. I was like, oh, that's very beautiful, I'm going to go see Jesus. Oh, that's very beautiful. And I was just praying Lord be with me. You know what I mean. But it was awesome because we got a chance to really take it in and get a chance to connect with some people, and being there with the people was amazing.
Speaker 1:But Kathmandu is a busy, very crowded city and, as you might see, it has all these vertical buildings and it's kind of built up where there are people everywhere and it's it's a mash of all these different cultures come together with its own people having such a history and a pride and a courage to themselves. In fact, some of their warriors were known as some of the most fierce back in the day, where even during the great days of the British empire, the British never took over Nepal because of their fierce warriors that actually kept them at bay. And it was those same warriors that later the British army actually had come in and teach them and have their own piece of the military because of how fierce they were at these Nepalese warriors that kind of had that the vanguard of running into a battle and the strength of the heat of the battle. So it's an interesting people because they're people of courage and a people that are searching out spirituality and all of these different moments kind of come together as one. But as you look over the top of the city you see that the highlight for them is actually many times is praying to all of these different spirits, and they do that at some of these temples that they're there and so the high points of their city, many of them are spiritually charged and so people would be going about their business, looking to go into worship in these different places, praying to all these different spirits so that somehow those spirits can help them to take a step up to this next place.
Speaker 1:And so, as a Christ follower, going and seeing this, we saw where a person after person after person were seeking out something, but what they were seeking was a counterfeit for the real God. And so they're seeking out to worship a small spirit, some small little entity, or maybe even engraving of something that's representative there, and, as a result, they're not. They're actually being blocked from actually having a real relationship with the living God, and so it becomes a kind of a heartbreak for us, because the people are beautiful people, but their eyes are closed spiritually by worshiping all these different idols and being in the city. It's a busy place. It reminded me of our time living in Cairo or traveling to India or the places like this, even parts of Asia. People everywhere and going about their life and we took this on our phone just standing there in the middle of the street and thinking about all these different people, and what's interesting about them is that they have the busy side of life, where they can get so preoccupied in the busyness or in the other spirituality, that both of those things keep them from actually connecting to God.
Speaker 1:And so, friends, we have to watch that that we ourselves don't fall into that exact same trap, that we don't get so busy in our lives, in the city of life, that we get drawn away from God this way, and that we don't go chasing after these other false gods, that we ourselves get separated from the very one that we're trying to reach. The real significance that lasts for eternity. That's not just a mountaintop moment, that's not just some spiritual high for a second, but is instead a lasting connection with the living God. Friends, that's what we're looking after, and it was a powerful thing because we got to go and be an encouragement to a number of pastors there. We had this pastors meeting that was for all the different pastors that were there in the city, and we got to go and to help them and to challenge them and to encourage them. And it was a powerful thing for us and I wanna say thank you for giving to Kingdom Builders. We were enabled to help hundreds of pastors come and participate in the meetings and I'll tell you, it was powerful because they're coming in from some of them four hours away by motorbike to come down the mountains and to be a part of the meeting, and many of them don't have the means to really do anything, so they're staying there in the building and they're having the food that's prepared and they're living right there, and so we were able to help, sponsor them to go and participate in those meetings. So I wanna say thank you for your sacrifice, thank you for investing so that other people can be encouraged to live for God in a very difficult place.
Speaker 1:See, for them it's illegal to become a Christian. For them, the government is against them. It's one of those things where proselytizing is against the law, and so, for them, even being a pastor every week is an illegal thing. For them, to proclaim the message of God is an illegal thing. And as people come to Christ and I'll tell you this, in the middle of persecution, the church is exploding because people are finding Jesus Christ, they're finding the hope that they're looking for, they're finding the true answer that's not in a false idol, that's not in some kind of obscure little spirit, but is a real power which is in Christ alone. And so, for them, they're coming and finding this experience, and it's a powerful thing, and we saw such an amazing experience from the pastors coming and having that breakthrough moment where they themselves are being poured into by the Holy Spirit and then going back out into their cities and this week, on this weekend, going and sharing the love of Christ with people in their community. We're seeing more and more people come to know the love of Christ.
Speaker 1:I had an opportunity to share there, as well as in Bangkok, and get to speak with our sister church there at ICA, and so getting a chance to challenge them was amazing. I'll tell you, my Nepalese is not that great, so I had an amazing interpreter and he was preaching a better sermon than me. How many people know what I'm saying? So I'm saying something and then he's getting a very good response. I was like this is a good sermon. I don't know what he's saying, but it's very good, and so I was encouraged and the people were blessed.
Speaker 1:But it's it's a different setting, though. What we have you can see in this next image where everyone's sitting on the ground. You know it's it's separated the men from the women. It's very cultural for their, for their experience. But I'll say this they are serious about their love for Christ. They are serious about living the love of Christ out to their neighbors. They know what it means to be persecuted. They know what it means to experience the government coming in and taking their stuff away from them because of their relationship with Jesus. See, for them, they're not playing around, they're not playing games, they're living this thing for real.
Speaker 1:So, for them, to live is Christ and to die is gain, and what that means is that they have weighed the cost of following Jesus and they've said it's worth it. I'm going to live for Jesus, no matter what comes my direction. And so for them, they've already had it be resolved that, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord, and they're saying that every day, putting their life on the line and understanding that this thing may come against them. But guess what? He is greater than my circumstances, and the end of this thing, even if I go through difficulty, is greater than what I'm experiencing right now. So greater is he that is in me than he that is in the world, and so we will be overcomers. We are more than a conqueror through him who is in us than the world, and so, because of that, they live it out every day.
Speaker 1:It reminded me whenever Celeste and I came back from living in the Middle East and we came to the American church and it felt like the American church was playing games, felt like they came and they worshiped together when it felt convenient. They came and they were a part of stuff, as they wanted to be. And meanwhile we're in the Middle East and the Christians were being attacked and bombed and we didn't stay back from going to church the next weekend because they're not gonna scare us into not believing in our faith. We stood for Christ and we came and worshiped the very same week because we're not gonna stand down to anybody that's doing that to us, because greater is he than he who's in the world. Friends, whenever we make a decision to live our life for real, to live as Christ, to die as gain, because whenever we go through that doorway called death, we're not afraid, because we know who we belong to, we know where we're going and because of that, then no one can scare us by taking our life here, because our eternal reward is greater than our present darkness. Be encouraged. Be encouraged because that's what it means for all of us that live this thing out to the very end. Well done, good and faithful servant.
Speaker 1:Today we continue. We start a new series called In Philippians and where we can take a look at the book of Philippians. It's written to us from Paul and it's an exciting thing as we take a look there, because Paul is writing to the church. He's encouraging us to be those that live it out for real and that live a character of Christ. He's writing to a church that he started during his second missionary journey and so, as he's writing, many Bible theologians believe that he's doing so writing from prison in Rome back to the church at Philippi.
Speaker 1:You know that city was started by Alexander the Great's father, philip, and so that it's in Macedonia modern day Macedonia today and it was a place of notoriety. It was one tied back to their family homelands, and so this is kind of the birthplace of Alexander the Great. Actually, celeste and I have had an opportunity to be in Philip's home in Macedonia and the place that is actually where the city was founded. It's a pretty amazing thing to think about how that church it was standing up against the culture of its day, which was just like we were seeing in Nepal was worshiping all sorts of idols. The church was standing for Jesus and they'd had a real life change, and so they're encouraging others in the same way. They had so enveloped in their character of Christ that it wasn't just about them, but they were actually sending support to Paul and to others in a missionary effort so other people could hear about the gospel. So even back there in their day, they were showing us a model of what it means to be kingdom builders and to be sacrificing so other people can know the love of God.
Speaker 1:And so this is where we hear this letter written back from Paul to the church at Philippi. Is that it's an encouraging letter, unlike some of the other ones where when you open the letter, it feels like it's slapping you in the face. This one is more of an encouragement saying hey, continue in the path of what God is already doing in your life. Let it be a blessing as we live this life after Jesus. See, that's how we see ourselves here at Cornerstone is that we are people that are following after him, and so we use this imagery of walking with Christ because that's how we see ourselves. None of us have arrived. All of us are still following Jesus where he's leading us to go, and that means that every single one of us is imperfect and all of us need a savior, and so we're following Jesus because we want to be more like Jesus and friends.
Speaker 1:Let me encourage you that you would join in that effort, that you yourself would take that challenge and say yes to Christ and invite him into your heart and life. He is the answer that you're looking for, that we would be more like him Collectively. We love God, we make disciples, we reach the world. That's why we live the way we do. We want to empower others to experience the love of Christ in this way. And it's beyond our gatherings here of our faith community. It's throughout the week, throughout the city. That's why we meet in life groups, so that we can dialogue and we can build relationship. And so let me encourage you that you would be intentional, because a lot of people were in life groups this past week and it was a great week for them because they were part of a life group that was building community together. Let me encourage you to connect and grow and serve the Lord, amen.
Speaker 1:So we're going into Philippians and we're talking about this letter and looking at it for a few weeks here and the challenge of what it is to us. So if you have your Bible, your tablet, your phone, we're picking up here and starting looking at Philippians 1 in verse 6. It says, and I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Will you say amen to that? Amen? You know, as we look about this process, we see how it's talking about completion and how he's working in us. Now we know that Christ, whenever he paid the price for us upon the cross, that he did it once and for all for all people. So our perspective of the sin that's been paid for is done by Jesus Christ. He said upon the cross it is finished. Can we say amen to that? And because of that reason that what it means is all those things, they're already done and gone.
Speaker 1:But as we embrace Christ, then it's the development of our character of saying yes to him that it's being refined in us as we become more like Jesus. So that means it's a process of us saying yes to God so we're forgiven of all that sin and made in right standing with him. But it's also our character as we say yes to him every day. That's why it says that we would have our daily bread. It means our source, coming from God, that give us today our daily bread right, give us our direction, our guidance, our understanding, the mind of Christ, all those things for today, that Lord, we would be in step with what you want to do Now. As we talk about this too, we also know that it's a process, so that means that sometimes the character that we have in us needs to be taken off so we can become more like Jesus.
Speaker 1:You know, as I was in Nepal, I was looking at how they had all these amazing statues and different pieces. All of them are idols or representative of spiritual things, but they're all beautiful, they've all been done by hand and you can take a think about the time that was put into it and the painting and all this other stuff. And you know, you see something like this. It'd kind of be their version of a gargoyle. It's a representative of a spirit that they worship and it's supposed to give them protection against other bad spirits. So they're praying to an evil spirit to protect it from evil spirits.
Speaker 1:Do you see the problem that's here, and not just that, but you see the other things that are behind them. It's prayer wheels, and each wheel is a prayer to a specific spirit that's supposed to be doing something for them. And so, as they spin these wheels and the prayers are supposed to be going forward towards that spirit to do things that the people want it to do. And so the problem is, just like it's talked about in Christ's day, when Jesus cast out the demons, the evil demons, from others, they're like oh, he's doing it by the work of the devil and he says does the devil cast out the devil? No, instead, what we see here is the problem is that they're beginning to try to use spirits against spirits, when all of those things are a counterfeit for the living God. And here's the thing those things are prayed for and they're anointed towards that spirit's focus.
Speaker 1:So let me encourage you in this that whenever we, from a Western perspective, see something like this, we think of it as decoration. We think like, oh, that looks cool, that'd be a cool vibe in my house, and other things like this. But let me tell you this that the people who made that thing have a different intentionality for it than you do as decor in your home, and though they might be a beautiful item or thing. I mean encourage you that you would get those things out of your house and out of your sphere of influence, out of your home, out of your family, because those things do have a spiritual intonation and inclination that's different than the heart that Christ has in you, and so there'll be a conflict between the spirit of those things you're trying to welcome and the one that you have inside of you. So let me encourage you that you get those things out of your heart in life, even especially because you've done so in ignorance, where you're not trying to bring that stuff in, but instead just remove that stuff out of your life, so you have no conflict with what Christ wants to do through your life. Amen.
Speaker 1:Now, think about this. Now. I think the beauty of it is amazing and you think of the skill and the craftsmanship. This is a panel from one of the opening doors we had at a place we were staying and I was thinking about all of the time and the effort that it took to do something like this, and it's absolutely beautiful. Now it's meant to be a guardian against something, a spirit against a spirit. So the focus of what it is is not our heart, but you can think about the process by which someone had to learn this skill and it's absolutely amazing. I was thinking about just the time it would take to do one little corner, one little bit of the flower. And I'm somebody who uses the correct key all the time on my laptop. Anybody else Undo? You guys do undo at all. I'm like no undo, I'm thinking about. These guys are like and that's a whole other panel, let's start it again. You know what I'm saying? That would be crazy, but it's amazing how the artist can see something that's not there and then make it come alive out of it.
Speaker 1:Now, for us, it says right there in the top 10 of those things commandments given to us. Right, the 10 commandments do not have a graven image, do not be worshiping other gods. So the idea to go and to make something to worship is against the very heart of what we have, because we're worshiping the living God and it talks about how he, instead as the master, is against the very heart of what we have, because we're worshiping the living God and it talks about how he, instead as the master, is actually the one that's using us in his hands as a tool for what he wants us to do the purpose and the plan he has for our lives, and so very much it's actually the other way around, where he is the one that is doing the work in our lives and taking off what shouldn't be there, so we can be representative of what he wants us to be. And that's a hard thing because, in a character we know, whenever he starts to work on our character and starts to chisel against us because it's not so fun, it's not so fun. I'm gonna try over here where people are gonna smile at me, hi, hi, you guys more receptive to what I'm saying, right, because the thing is we know whenever Holy Spirit starts to talk to us about things in our life that we need to get challenged on, like whenever he's talking to us about forgiving somebody and we don't want to, and one of those things where it's like he's challenged us on our attitude and how we're example of Christ and other people know that and then we're being a terrible witness at a workplace or we're using choice words that we shouldn't be using Rats up, rats up, rats up, up, up.
Speaker 1:And here's the thing we could be someone, someone, especially those of us with you know letters and things on our names that make us very spiritual. We especially need to be listening to this, because he's like hey, we're like god, I already forgave all these people. He's like cool, very cool. Remember how you got offended again and picked up your old offense? Remember that. Remember how you need to forgive them again, because I forgave you much. You need to also forgive. Here. I'm like right, right. He's like remember the bad attitude you had?
Speaker 1:Was that really being the love of Christ to people? I'm like God. I was traveling for 30 hours to get home. You know the people were on these planes, do you know? He's like yeah, I know You're one of them. I know how are you going to be, how are you going to be the love of Christ to them? How are you going to reflect the love of God? See, he's working on all of us. None of us are finished All of us until we see Jesus face to face. He's not done with you yet, and friends, be happy about that, because in your circumstances, he's not done with you yet, and so, whenever you're facing something difficult, he's not done with you yet. He's still working on all of us so we can be more like him. See, we have to accept this by faith, because it's by faith that's the currency of the kingdom of God. We have to say yes, lord, I believe you are who you say you are, that you keep your promises and that your promises are good, and so that's what we have to do is, by faith, say yes to God and keep on saying yes.
Speaker 1:When we come to those character issues, it is very much that it's that piece where he's trying to work in us so that we reflect him more. So whenever someone talks about your character, are they talking about the characteristics of God or are they talking about characteristics of other things? See, because character it talks about who you are and what you represent. But what I love is that he will not stop with us. He wants to see us be completed towards the purposes he has for us and the life that he's given us, with the plan that he has for us. And if we say yes to him, he'll keep on working on us so that we can live in a different way that's greater than our own plans for ourselves, the thing that's in us that will break off the curse that's from before. So the generations in front of us don't live underneath that, but they live underneath the blessing of God and the direction of God and the guidance of the Lord, that the curses from before and mistakes from before are gone. In the name of Jesus Christ, they stop with me and with mine so that we can go forward in Christ. Friends, that's what we're talking about, because he will complete the good work that started in you.
Speaker 1:Continues here in the scripture. He picks up here in verse nine. It says and it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, and knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent. So be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and the praise of God, amen. What does it say here? It says that your love may abound more and more. Think about this. In all of these pieces of the scripture, though, it's talking about discernment and wisdom. It's talking about our character and the fruit of the spirit of God in our lives. Right, the fruit of the spirit love, joys, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control.
Speaker 1:You see all these different elements that we want to be said about us, but it all starts with love. It starts with the love of God. Why? Because the love of God is the first thing, the first motivating factor of how he reached us where we are. We experienced his love first, and when other people experience us, that they would experience the love of God as well, that we would respond with the love of God. We know the difference between someone who knows about God and someone who's experienced God, because someone who knows about God, knows books about God, they know the analytical things, dates and times and blah, blah, blah. Those are good things to know, but to know the presence and the character of God is so much more, because that's the transformation, is the one from the heart. So, friends, that's why we draw near to him, face to face, so that we too can experience the love of God, and it's from being in his presence that his love will flow out to others. So whenever we draw near to him, then we get it for ourselves, but not just for ourselves, we get it for others too, because whatever the abundance of the heart has is what comes out of us. So let that be the love of Christ.
Speaker 1:We've been talking about battle for the family, and so we talked about how valuable kids are to God and how children are something that's valuable to the Lord. When we were in Nepal, we saw these amazing Nepalese kids are so awesome and many of them are coming out of poverty. They don't have anything, but God's value is for them and he has a purpose and a plan for their life and he's made provision for many of them. And we heard stories of miracles and how God had saved so many out of lives that were meant for abuse or for trafficking and for other things, and how God had redeemed them and he established a new future for them, and we saw something powerful with that moment. In fact, one of those that we were serving with she served for 50 years in the country and over those 50 years she's had over 70 children that she saved from that type of life. And now those children, now that she's in her older years, those children themselves have families and they have broken off the curse of their past and their family is living in a different way. They have gone on to become pastors and go into the West and have these amazing places of seniority and influence, all living under the power of Christ, because something that was modeled to them is that they had value, though they came from nothing and no one wanted them. She loved them, with the love of Christ, because God values them, and so she scooped them up and cared for them the way that Christ had cared for her, and it changed everything because she said yes to God, because she loved them.
Speaker 1:I think about our own kids. They just got back from KidCon and they had an amazing time worshiping the Lord, and what's awesome about that is that our kids too, even in our own context, even in our own spheres, they had a heart to go into worship God and all their voices are lifting up to God and focusing on him, because our kids are not going to be the church. Our children are the church. They have their relationship with God and their prayers are heard before the Lord, and so that's the same value that we have that each one of us, from the time we're first in our first infancy of our relationship with God, would understand that we have a purpose and a plan, that our voice is heard by our father in heaven and that we can communicate with him. It continues here in verse 12 and says this I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance. It continues here in verse 12 and says this Now, this was a question for the church in Philippi.
Speaker 1:They were trying to understand, while their leader, the guy who started their church, their pastor, why God had saved him from so many other circumstances, why he had been saved from shipwreck and snake bite and he had been brought back from being stoned to death for his faith in Christ and he'd been led out of other places and given freedom from prison. And now he's in prison in Rome and he's been kept there and they're trying to say well, what's going on? Is something the matter with Paul, like what's happening here and what Paul is saying is no, actually, my imprisonment for my faith has been made known to all these people and now it's a witness to them of why we're being imprisoned and they're looking to understand of who we are and why we are different. You know, this gives us a good encouragement that our testimony is so powerful, because when we use our testimony for God, he can use it to challenge those who are watching us, who don't have a relationship with God yet. I wonder how many times he will allow us to go through something that will refine our character. It will take off those edges as we've been talking about, but it's also as a testimony to others that are watching you in the middle of difficult circumstances. Are you going to go and act like them and act like the rest of the world, or are you going to turn to God, who is your source, and walk in the peace of God?
Speaker 1:The understanding of God Does it make it easy? No, it does not. Does it mean it's difficult? Yes, it is, but the difference is that he will not leave us. He will not forsake us. He is for us, even in the middle of the death, even in the middle of all that we go through, the suffering that we might have to walk through. He does not leave us alone, suffering that we might have to walk through. He does not leave us alone. He is for us, he is with us and our future in him is greater than our current reality. So, friends, your testimony and what you say and what you show in your character becomes an encouragement to others that say, wow, I watched this sister walk through something difficult, but she kept her faith in God and in the end her outcome was greater than what she went through. Or I saw this brother and he stayed faithful to God and yeah, it wasn't easy and he had to really walk it out. But guess what? Because of it, it was an encouragement to me Let me find out what these people have that I don't have, and that's why it's an encouragement to us to use our testimony for God that he won't leave us in the middle of what we're walking through In the valley of the shadow of death. He's for you, he's with you, he'll guide and protect you and walk you right out of that season into green pastures.
Speaker 1:Philippians continues forward here, and it says this in verse 18. It says what then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed. In that I rejoice, yes, I will rejoice. Think about this perspective that Paul, though he's in prison, though he's in chains, though he's in a place he can't get out of, he doesn't take it as woe is me and oh, I'm so suffering. No, instead, he says no, I'm gonna rejoice in the Lord in the middle of my circumstances. That's a strong perspective. That's realizing that your character and your value comes not from you and what you've done, but in he who values you as the child of God and you're saying listen, I belong to him and it is worthwhile serving him, even though I'm going through something difficult.
Speaker 1:We think about our friends, our brothers and sisters in faith that today they themselves are in prison for their faith in Jesus. They're being persecuted in their faith in Jesus. Let's just offer a prayer up to the Lord for them right now, lord. We just ask, lord, for our brothers and sisters right now, lord, that are in prison for their faith, are going through hardship or difficulty, persecution in their family, in their community, by their government. Lord, we ask and pray the prayer of faith, lord, that you would minister to them right now. They would know the presence of the Almighty God. Lord, that they would know your presence, they would know the peace that passes all understanding and, lord, the joy of the Lord would be their strength. Lord, we ask so that you would liberate them from them circumstances, if at all possible, but, lord, in the midst of their difficulty, that they would continue to shine, lord, and be a representative of who you are and Lord, those around them, lord, even those that are persecuting them. Lord would be them. Lord, even those that are persecuting them, lord would be churned in heart towards you, lord, of the witness that these people have made for you, lord, that you would be glorified in the midst of it. We thank you for these things. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Speaker 1:What we know is that you know our joy of the Lord. It comes from inside of us. It comes from being in the presence of the Lord. It comes from inside of us. It comes from being in the presence of the Lord. It's not happiness with our circumstances, because many circumstances we go through we don't want to go through Anybody, in fact we don't wish them on people we don't even like, because we don't want to go through it at all. But here's the thing that in the midst of difficult circumstances, that we can still have the joy of the Lord because that comes from being with him and that comes from inside of us. And that's why, in the middle of difficult things, like Paul being in prison, that he can still say I have the joy of the Lord and I rejoice, even in the circumstance I'm in, because he is greater than my circumstance.
Speaker 1:Friends, whenever we continue this out, then that's where you get to that last point, that last piece that says for me, to live is Christ, to die is gain. We can never get to this place unless we understand who we are in God. We would never get to this place unless we understand that we belong to him and that we're being refined in our character, that the love of God is abounding in us and that we're shining the light of Christ, no matter where we are. Whenever we get to that place, then we start to understand that, listen, I'm living this life as unto Christ. So for me, my life is towards Christ. And if I die for my life in Christ, then guess what I win either way, because this door called death, I go into the presence of God for eternity. So we don't live with fear, we don't live with any of those things. Our gain is eternal. Our gain is the presence of him forever. So we walk in the strength and the understanding that our gain is more of Christ and that we get to live in the love and the peace of God for eternity. So, friends, let us be that reflection of who he is to us, that we would live with love abounding in the character of God. Today we have this opportunity to respond to him, as we want to be more like Jesus.
Speaker 1:We have that question that each one of us has to answer in saying have you embraced Jesus? Maybe you're here and you've never said yes to following Jesus. Today is your opportunity to do so. It's your opportunity to invite him into your heart and life, to start a new relationship with him. Or maybe you have made a decision in the past but you've walked away from living actively after him. Today, friends, would be an opportunity to recommit your heart back to him. Say, lord, I believe you are who you say you are. I invite you into my heart and life. That, lord, you would save me from all these things. Forgive me of my sin. I wanna have a life with you, friends. That's what it means to say yes to Jesus. For us.
Speaker 1:We see the symbol of the cross as one of freedom, one of forgiveness, because Jesus took all of the sin, all of my sin, all of yours. He took it all upon himself and he paid for it upon the cross, and with his death, with his sacrifice, it made us in right standing with the father. He became the holy sacrifice that we could never be. We can't earn our way into the presence of a holy God. We can't do enough good things, we can't give enough gifts, we can't do any of those things. So instead, by faith, we embrace what Christ has done for us. That's why he came, that's why his mission was for us that we would be redeemed and restored back into that reconciliation of a relationship with God. Apostle Paul he writes to the church at Rome. He says this because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified. With the mouth one confesses and is saved.
Speaker 1:Friends, today is your day. It's your day of salvation, your opportunity to say yes to Christ. I'm gonna ask, if you're here in the room, if you just stand right to your feet, right where you're at, bow your head, be prepared to respond to what God wants to do. If you're online, wherever you're at, prepare your heart to say yes to God as heads are bowed here in the room. Friends, if that's you, if you wanna make a decision to follow Jesus today, if you just raise your hand right where you're at, say, pastor, remember me in this prayer. Today I want to make a decision to follow Christ. I want to invite him into my heart and life. See the hands here, hands there. Thank you, lord, people making commitments, another hand that's there, people making recommitments to the Lord. Thank you, jesus. Friends online, wherever you are across the world, you see those hands that are raised from him.
Speaker 1:I'm gonna ask if everyone would repeat this prayer after me out loud. Lord, thank you for loving me. Thank you for sending Jesus. I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins. I believe he rose again. Forgive me of my sins. I surrender my life to you In Christ's name. I pray Amen, amen. Friends, we rejoice with you making a decision to follow Jesus today. Praise the Lord. If that was you, let me encourage you that you would connect with us in the back. We want to put some materials into your hands so that you're successful in living this life with Christ. If you're online, message us. We want to connect with you so you're not doing this life alone.
Speaker 1:Friends, all of us are challenged with what it means to say yes to Christ, to embrace his work inside of us, to live that love abounding towards others. As we come to this altar, we do so preparing our hearts, because we're gonna come and have communion together as an exit today. So let's come to this altar asking the Lord to remove anything that would be between him and us, and asking the Lord to have all of who we are. Lord, we thank you so much for your word. We thank you, lord, for Paul's example to us, lord, and his challenge to us, and what it means to live with the joy of the Lord as our strength, even in the midst of difficult circumstances. Lord, we're not playing games.
Speaker 1:Lord. That we belong to you and because we belong to you, lord, that we ask that you would help us in our character, lord. Help refine us, lord, that we would have more of your love abounding, more of who you are, lord, the forgiveness and the joy that we would experience, lord, that it would be reflected towards others, that they would see a good testimony of what it means to follow after Jesus. Lord, we come to you today and to your table, lord, to remember the great sacrifice you had for us, lord, your body and your blood, which was shed for us and broken for us. Lord, that you, because of your sacrifice, made it so we could be made whole. So we come to this altar today, lord, asking you, lord, to cleanse us of any unrighteousness. Lord, help us in any area where we need help and your assistance. We ask for you to pour out your spirit upon us. We pray this in the powerful name of Jesus Christ.
Speaker 2:Amen. We are so grateful that you joined us. Isn't God good? You come and you receive, and he just keeps giving. Well, I want to let you know. In just a couple of weeks you've seen advertisement on it we're going to have a spring family day and I'm excited. We're going to have a petting zoo and all of that again. So we need you. We need you to invite people neighbors, friends, family, colleagues. Bring them, and not only that, but we need people just to jump in and help. It's going to be an amazing day. You'll find a sign up on the app or on the website. You'll also see some paper where you can sign up out there in the lobby as you head out. But don't miss it. It's three Sundays away and it's just going to be a great day.
Speaker 1:Amen. Before we go, I'm going to pray this blessing over us. Lord, bless you and keep you. Lord, make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. Lord, lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Lord, I pray a blessing upon your church, your people. Lord, you empower us by your spirit to live your love out to those around us. We pray all this in the powerful name that is Jesus Christ. Amen, Amen, know this. We love you very much here at Cornerstone. God bless you and have a great week.