Cornerstone Community Church

Romans 12:16-20

To Be of the same mind toward one anotherTo be humbleTo not claim to be wiseTo follow PEACE.

This is the Christian way!

Romans 12:13-18

To Pursue HospitalityTo Bless those who curse youTo Rejoice with the joyfulTo Weep with those who weepTo be humble and to prefer the company of the lowlyTo commit to life-long learningTo never seek revengeTo respect the general consensus as much as possible, for the sake of peace.

Romans 12:9-18

To Love without ulterior motive.To hate what is evil. To Love what is good.To be kind to one another.To prefer one another.Vigilant in business.Passionate in service to God.Hopeful – Patient – PrayerfulTo be generous and hospitable.

This is the Christian Way!

Romans 12:3-8

The spiritual gift(s) God has given to each of us is to be employed in service of one another, not in service to our ego.

The person who measures his/her value by his/her giftedness may be lifted up with pride, Seeing himself as different (read superior), this person may become abusive and condescending to others within the Body, improperly using God’s gifts to gain power and influence over others.

We each may have different functions, but the source of every spiritual gift is the grace of God.

Because of our differing gifts we may view things differently, approach life differently, even worship differently, but we hold the grace of God in common. When we daily stand beneath this common grace we find reconciliation, power, and help in our times of need.

Romans 12:1-2

Even though sin dwells in our bodies, in this text, Paul instructs us to present our bodies to God as though it is holy and acceptable. This is an act of faith. We trust that because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on our behalf, the Father will have mercy.

Yet we are to present our bodies as a sacrifice. To give ourselves over to be crucified. This is our spiritual service to God.

And our willing crucifixion accomplishes two things: 1) It sanctifies us so that we are no longer conformed to this world 2) It transforms us into newness of life in Jesus Christ.

And so we begin upon our journey toward perfection, which is to be like the One who voluntarily laid down His life for us. It is only because of the mercies of God that we are being made complete.

Pastor Calvin Robinson shares a message about the depths of the wisdom of God from Romans 11:33-36.

Romans 10:6-9

Confess Jesus as LordBelieve that God raised Jesus from the deadEveryone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved!

Romans 9:30-33

Only a small remnant of humanity will be saved. Only a few will inherit eternal life, though the majority are convinced they will make it in.

A great majority believe that their faith will save them. While the other half believe they will be saved because of their works.

Somewhere between faith and works there is a Rock. And while men run to and fro between faith and works, they ignore it. But that jagged and obtrusive Rock is the only way to salvation.

No matter what moral position you take or how you claim to believe, that Rock will offend you. That Rock will challenge you, no matter how good or how evil you may be.

You will never believe strongly enough. You will never do good enough. But if you can believe that Christ is enough, abandon your quest for immortality, and rest on Him, you may be one of the few.

The rest of humanity will continue to stumble over that Rock, taking offense to its presence. But you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.

Romans 9:14-16

God – The Supreme and Almighty One.

We agree with this term, but do we truly understand what it means to be God?

To be God is to be just in all that He does. To be God is to enjoy every conceivable right to do all that He desires to do, without constraint.

God is unrestrained. He has no counselor. He knows no authority superior to His own. There is no check on His power or might. Yet God is constrained by His own mercy which He shares with us through our Mediator, Jesus Christ.

God is Just. Whether He shows mercy, or whether He withholds it. He is just to do with His own as He pleases.

This is a humbling truth and though it challenges the conscience, it also evokes reverence within those who fear His name.

Romans 9:6-13

Paul had difficulty reconciling the promise God made to Abraham, with the then present reality of Abraham’s descendants. He felt a closeness to the Jews because he himself was a Jew.

Paul had a few theological options he could have employed to explain away God’s decision, or to dilute its meaning. But Paul knew it would have done no good. Therefore he accepted what God had done to and toward his kinsmen, and he called God’s determination just.

God is just. Whatever He does or has done, He is right.

Just like Paul, we are living in a day where the “rightness” of God’s actions and decisions, as described in the Bible, are being called into question. We must not employ clever theological tricks, or doctrinal schemes in order to cause God to align with our own sense of morality. Our morality is immoral to God.

God is just. We must choose to accept His determinations about His world, no matter how we may feel about them. God is just. The way His apostles and prophets reveal Him to us is accurate. And when we find ourselves rejecting their plain revelation concerning Him, we should simply repent and embrace the truth as it is presented in scripture. We must choose the apostle’s inspired interpretations of the acts of God, over our preferred renditions.