Pastoral Notes for Sunday, March 3, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Greetings and blessings to you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

What a sweet and meaningful time we’ve shared together on Wednesday evenings during Lent. The table fellowship, Kid’s Club, Vespers, Youth Group, children and adult Choirs—it’s all been so rich.

I’ve particularly enjoyed seeing new faces on Wednesday nights. The midweek gathering is a great way to get know folks at Cornerstone, and, if you have kids, for them to begin to build relationships with other children or youth in the church. It’s not too late to join! Jump in this week with us. We’d love to have you.

During our evening Vespers service, we’re working our way through a sampling of the “One Another Commands.” We started with “Have this Mind with One Another” leaning on Philippians 2. The next week we discussed “Welcome One Another” focusing on Romans 15. This last week we considered, “Speak the Word with One Another” from 1 Thessalonians 5 and Hebrews 3:13. Over the next three weeks, we’ll consider fellowshipping with one another, serving one another, and giving grace to one another.

If you are unable to participate in Vespers, please consider listening to the talks by going to our website. Hover your mouse over the Media tab and then click on “audio resources.” The first three talks are uploaded and available for your listening pleasure.

Now, as hard as it is to believe, three weeks from today we’ll be celebrating Palm Sunday and beginning our annual walk through the final week of Jesus Christ’s life. As in previous years, we will gather on Maundy Thursday at 6:30 p.m. for a special communion service. The very next evening we will ponder the significance of the crucifixion during our Good Friday service at 6:30 p.m. Two days later, on Easter morning, we will gather three times—7:30 a.m., 9:00 a.m., and 10:45 a.m.— to rejoice in Christ’s victory over sin and death in the resurrection.

Please make plans to fully participate on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday this year. By committing to partake in all three services during Holy Week—Thursday, Friday, and Sunday—you have a special opportunity to be immersed into power of the redemptive drama. Coursing through the narratives of the Last Supper and the crucifixion on the way to the empty tomb provides a soul-enriching opportunity to be renewed in the power of the gospel. Take time now to clear your calendar and make the commitment to share in this special season with your brothers and sisters at Cornerstone.

Finally, let me ask you—who will you invite to join you for Easter this year at Cornerstone? Easter is a perfect time to invite unbelieving neighbors, friends, coworkers, and family to church. I am preparing to preach a simple gospel message in prayerful hope that the Spirit of God might use it to draw lost men and women, boys and girls, into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ. Please join me in that prayer and do your part by extending to them an invitation to worship with you at Cornerstone this Easter.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, February 25, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

I can’t begin to express what a joy it was last Sunday in our Cornerstone Family Meeting to announce the payoff of the chapel. Through your generous giving over the last three months, in response to our earnest call to reduce our debt load as a congregation, the final $655,000 dollars on the chapel was eliminated. No need to renegotiate the balloon note in March! Praise the Lord for his provision.

In addition to the good news of the chapel pay off, we heard an encouraging renovation report from Mr. Jim Smith. The Corner House updates and renovations continue and remain in budget, and the first-floor renovation of the chapel is making good headway. Sheetrock started going up this week! Barring any more significant setbacks, we will be in the new room sometime after Easter in April.

As we noted back in November, we are on the very front end of a search for another Assistant Pastor. With the job description now in place, and the Personnel Committee leading the search, we are beginning to make initial contacts with a few candidates. Please be praying for the search, for patience and wisdom, and for the Lord to lead us to the right man.

Finally, in September of last year, we opened up a nominating, training, and election cycle for new officers. After a record-setting number of nominations were received, twelve men accepted the call to begin training. As the end of phase two of training nears, we have ten men remaining in training. Please remember these brothers and their families in prayer: Mr. Jeff Alldredge, Mr. Kerry Hart, Mr. Sean Kelley, Mr. Mike Kretsinger, Mr. Tim McCoy, Mr. Matt Michaud, Mr. Matthew O’Roark, Mr. Taylor Thompson, Mr. William Tice, and Mr. Carl Ware.

As always, if you have any questions about any of these matters, do not hesitate to reach out to the church office. We will do our best to answer your questions or serve you in any way we can.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, February 18, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

Of all the Old Testament prophets, it’s likely the prophet you know best is Isaiah. For every Christmas, we return to prophesies like...

“Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and his name shall be called Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14)

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)

Then, a few months later on Good Friday, we return to Isaiah and read...

“Surely he has born our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5)

Though ministering roughly 700 years before the incarnation, Isaiah writes with tremendous clarity and specificity about Jesus Christ. So much so, that some of the early church fathers refer to his prophesy as the fifth gospel. Meaning, if we did not have Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, we would know a fair amount about Jesus Christ simply by reading the prophecy of Isaiah.

It’s true—just ask the Ethiopian eunuch. In Acts 8, Philip is instructed by an angel to go to Gaza. When he arrives, he meets an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians. Having worshipped in Jerusalem, the eunuch is making his way home. But as Philip finds him, he’s stopped on the side of the road seated in his chariot reading the Scriptures. Led by the Spirit, Philip approached him, “Do you understand what you’re reading?” Humbly, the Eunuch responded, “How can I, unless someone guides me.” At the invitation of the eunuch, Philip climbed into the chariot and looked over the text he was reading...

“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth...” (Isaiah 53:7-8)

Puzzled, the Eunuch asked, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Taking a page out of Jesus’s own approach to interpreting the Scripture (see Luke 24:27), Philip unfolded the Scripture and explained from Isaiah 53 the good news about Jesus Christ.

As we begin a five-week series in Isaiah’s prophecy, focusing our attention of the four servant songs (Isaiah 42:1-9, 49:1-7, 50:4-9, 52:13-53:12), join me in praying that together we might be struck afresh with the good news about Jesus Christ and worship him accordingly.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, February 11, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

As we wrap up our series in Titus today, we turn next week to the Old Testament prophet Isaiah. For the five Sundays leading up to Palm Sunday and Holy Week, we will spend time in the four servant songs of Isaiah. These four songs provide a vivid glimpse into the ministry, character, and exaltation of the Messiah, the Servant of the Lord. By God’s grace, this brief series will prepare us for the heart-rending and mending climax of the Christian year—the crucifixion and resurrection of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Servant Songs of Isaiah

February 18 – The Gospel According to Isaiah (Isaiah 6:1-13)

February 25 – The Servant of the Lord: Chosen by God and Filled with the Spirit (Isaiah 42:1-9)

March 3 – The Servant of the Lord: Redeemer and the Hope of the Nations (Isa 49:1-7)

March 10 – The Servant of the Lord: Obedient and Faithful to the End (Isa 50:4-11)

March 17 – The Servant of the Lord: Atoning Sacrifice and Peace Maker (Isaiah 52:13-53:12)

March 24 – The Servant of the Lord: The Humble King Fulfilling His Mission (Matthew 21:1-11)

March 31 – Easter Sunday

Speaking of the Christian year, the church refers to the forty days leading up to Easter as Lent. The word “lent” comes from the Anglo-Saxon term for length. Traditionally, the term denoted springtime—the time of year when the days begin to lengthen. At the beginning of the Lenten season (Ash Wednesday, February 14th), the days are shorter and colder. But by the end of Lent, the days are longer and warmer. At the beginning of Lent, everything is brown and dead. But by the end of Lent, the daffodils are poking through the ground and the bright greens of early spring are everywhere.

The change from winter to spring is the whole story of Lent. For Lent is the story of the world’s long winter giving way to the springtime of a new world. Lent points to the fundamental change that the gospel brings—away from a world where death reigns into a new world where life never ends.

There’s a curious story Luke tells about Jesus that starts like this, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to Jerusalem...” (Luke 9:51). You can hear the resolution: Jesus set his face. Jesus knows that if he goes to Jerusalem, he won’t get out alive. Well, at least not without dying first. But in setting his face toward Jerusalem, Jesus focuses his attention on the purpose for which he was sent—to atone for sin and defeat the final enemy, death. In a word, Jesus set his gaze toward the dark winter of the cross because he knew the bright spring of the empty tomb was on the other side (see Hebrews 12:1-2).

In this Isaiah series, it’s my prayer that we will set our face toward Jerusalem. That by entering afresh into the fulfillment of Christ’s mission, we might be readied for participating in Christ’s sufferings, and, in so doing, might attain the resurrection of the dead (Philippians 3:10-11).

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, February 4, 2024

Dear Cornerstone Family,

If you’ve been with us for a bit, you’ve seen the ministry of Cornerstone grow significantly. In the past three years, we’ve almost doubled in size. Though this sharp increase in growth was unexpected, we rejoice at the tremendous opportunity to serve more of God’s people with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

At the same time, with increasing growth comes increasing ministry needs––more staff, leaders, volunteers, ministries, and space. And with increasing ministry needs comes increases in need for financial resources. Praise the Lord, the needs of Cornerstone through this season of growth have been met through your commitment to give generously to the work of ministry. In fact, every year of our twelve-year history we’ve seen an increase in giving, which means every year we’ve been able to invest more resources in kingdom work. Praise the Lord!

Knowing the legacy of generosity at Cornerstone, I asked you in December to please remember the church in your end of the year giving. I mentioned our great desire to continue to maintain a healthy financial position as a church through the purchase and update of The Corner House and the complete renovation of the bottom floor of the Chapel—two significant expenditures. I further mentioned our earnest desire to pay off, or, at the very least, greatly reduce the $600,000 we owe on the Chapel before our balloon note comes due (or is renegotiated) in March of 2024.

For those of you who are able, I asked you to prayerfully consider increasing your giving to Cornerstone by 25- 50% from December to March. Many of you heard that challenge and responded. Through your cheerful and sacrificial giving, we see the Lord answering our prayers!

Our next Cornerstone Family Meeting will be during Sunday School on February 18th. At that meeting, we will give several updates on the life and ministry of the church—including an important financial report regarding year-end-giving, renovations, and debt retirement. This meeting will be an opportunity for our church family to remember God’s goodness, rejoice in God’s provision, and renew our commitment to God’s call in and through the church.

As we prepare for the February 18th meeting, please continue to support the ministry of Cornerstone to the best of your ability as together we deploy our earthly treasure for eternal investment (Revelation 21:9-27).

Your servant,