This is Part 1 of a series. Read Part 2. So much of my ministry is based on my belief that the average Christian walks around confused most of the time. They're not confused because they're dumb. They're confused because following Jesus seems so complicated. It's not that they're not trying to follow Jesus. They… Continue reading Why are so many Christians confused about following Jesus? (Pt.1)
Yesterday, I preached from John 10:11-21 on Jesus' fourth "I am" statement in the Gospel of John: "I am the good shepherd." I found crafting that sermon to be a challenge. Not because the text is obscure or difficult to comprehend, but because Jesus so clearly and directly makes his point in the first 5… Continue reading Why Sheep Need a Shepherd
Yesterday in my sermon on Jesus' third "I am" statement in the Gospel of John, I took a brief detour to remind our congregation of an indispensable practice for reading the Bible well. For years, I've been taught the maxim: "Context is king." It's a sticky phrase I've memorized to help me remember that the… Continue reading The First Rule of Bible Reading
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to worship alongside my church family and sit under the teaching of the Word. Pastor Dennis, the Executive Pastor at Cornerstone, preached from John 8 on the second of Jesus’ seven “I am” statements in the Gospel of John. In his sermon, Pastor Dennis included a quote from C.S. Lewis—one… Continue reading Seeing by the Light of Christ
Back in August (2024), I shared this brief prayer with our church family: My prayer for Cornerstone is that we will rediscover our passion for Jesus, so that we can't help but live our lives to know him and make him known. That's a lofty goal. To know Jesus and make him known has been… Continue reading My Prayer for Our Church
struggling and striving to follow Jesus
Joshua Wester 