Pastoral Notes for Sunday, October 26, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

On June 15, 1520, Pope Leo X issued a papal bull of which the Augustinian monk, Martin Luther, was the subject. Citing Luther with 41 instances of doctrinal deviation, Luther was given sixty days to recant or further action would be taken. Luther wasted no time publishing his answer. He promptly lit a match and burned the papal bull.

Surprise, surprise Luther’s in-your-face rejection of the papal bull wasn’t received kindly. In January of 1521, Pope Leo responded to Luther with an edict of excommunication. And just like that, Luther was no longer a member of the Roman Catholic Church.

It’s difficult for modern Christians to grasp the gravity of this action. In the 16th century, the Roman Catholic Church wasn’t just a church among churches. It was the church. There were no other branches of the church for Luther to join. To be cut off from the Roman Catholic Church was to be cut off from the church. Period. End of story.

Or was it?

Luther responded to the Pope’s excommunication with an excommunication of his own. Luther argued that Rome’s rejection of justification by faith alone—“the article by which the church stands or falls”—was proof enough that Rome could no longer be regarded as a true church. To support this claim, Luther returned to the Bible’s doctrine of the church. Luther argued that the true church does not consist in its history or in its institutional structures. Rather, the true church is found wherever the true gospel is preached. “The sure mark by which the Christian congregation can be recognized is that the pure gospel is preached there. For just as the banner of an army is the sure sign by which one can know what kind of lord and army has taken the field, so too the gospel is the sure sign by which one knows where Christ and his army are encamped” (Luther’s Works, 41:231-232).

Summarizing the Protestant Reformation’s teaching on the church, Michael Reeves and Tim Chester write, “It was not the Reformers who had departed from the true church. It was Rome that had departed from the true gospel…The church is the universal body of people on earth and in heaven who have been formed by the gospel. You are not saved by being a part of the church. You are a part of the church by being saved.” (Why the Reformation Still Matters, p. 164-165).

In worship today, we join with thousands of churches across the world remembering and giving thanks for the truth of the gospel recovered during the Protestant Reformation. At the same time, we recognize the work of reformation is not done, for even the purest churches today are “subject to mixture and error” (Westminster Confession of Faith, 25.5). Therefore, in humility, we labor in hope for the continued reformation—for the peace, purity, and progress—of the church. Until Christ returns and a yet more glorious day dawns (Philippians 1:6).

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, October 19, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

As the first quarter of our fiscal year has drawn to a close and we receive a report on the first quarter below, it’s appropriate for each of us to reflect on our commitment to support the worship and the work of the church to the best of our ability. Toward that end, I want to ask you to reflect on three key aspects of the Bible’s teaching on giving.

1. Giving is a spiritual discipline that requires forethought and planning. At the end of 1 Corinthians, Paul speaks of the collection for the saints, and he says, “On the first day of the week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come” (1 Cor. 16:2). Paul teaches the Corinthians to set aside a portion of their resources each Sunday for giving to the work of the Lord and meeting the needs of the poor. Paul knows that if we’re not intentionally setting aside resources and making preparations to give, we will fall into the trap of using that money for other things. Setting aside your giving on the front end helps ensure that the Lord has first place in your budget.

2. Giving is to be commensurate with your income. In the passage I quoted above, Paul says to set “something aside” in keeping with how “he may prosper” you. He teaches the same principle in 2 Corinthians 8:12 when he says, “For if the readiness [to give] is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.” Paul recognizes that resources rise and fall, and that our giving will rise and fall, too. He instructs us to give proportionally and to not be slavishly bound to a certain number, dollar figure, or percentage. Instead, let your giving track with the normal ups and downs of income.

 3. Give generously, cheerfully, and sacrificially. In Luke 21:1-4, the rich were placing large sums in the offering box, but a poor widow placed just two small copper coins in the coffer. Jesus says of her, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” On the surface, this principle appears to undermine principle #2 above, but that’s not the case. Instead, the Bible is placing us in good biblical tension. We’re being called to look at what we have and consider our basic needs, and then sacrificially invest in work of the church. We’re not sacrificing if it doesn’t cut into our lives. We know we’re beginning to practice biblical giving if we’re restraining our spending in order to support the work of ministry (see Acts 2:42-47). By placing these two principles beside each other, the Bible’s inviting us into the wisdom of a giving pattern that’s discerning, generous, and sacrificial (2 Cor. 9:6-15). Let’s continue to joyfully prove our earnest love for Jesus Christ by giving to the church in a manner that reflects, even faintly, the generosity of the gospel.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, October 12, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

Today, two new six-week adult Sunday School class offerings get off the dime. Please take a moment now to read the descriptions below and make plans to explore one of these important topics.

Aging in Grace: Guidance for Engaging with our Aging (Fellowship Hall)
The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God.
They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green. – Psalm 92:12-14

With those words, David urges us to consider how we can be increasingly useful in old age. What would it look like to be Psalm 92 men and women? What does it take to flourish and bear fruit in old age?

But along with aging comes all sorts of new questions and challenges. How do we think about retirement? How do we navigate the years when physical and mental strength begin to fade? Who will help us then? What can we do now in preparation for those days?

In this brief six-week series we will address both the flourishing of Psalm 92 and the difficulties that often accompany this stage of life—whether they are yours or those of loved ones you will need to care for in the years to come. You will hear from a variety of presenters from our church family and a member of the faculty of the Belmont University College of Medicine. We will discuss such matters as biblical principles for finishing well, financial planning, estates and wills, palliative care, hospice care, comfort care, and a biblical theology of death and dying. This series is designed not only for senior adults but for those who are (or will be) caring for aging parents.

Holy Spirit — Forgotten God? (Chapel)
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. – John 14:16-17

Every week at Cornerstone we confess that we believe in the Holy Spirit, but what is it we believe about him? Scripture speaks of him as one who listens and speaks, one who teaches and who prays, one who is not merely a force but a person, one who is God equal in power and glory, one who unites the church. Yet the Holy Spirit is often either overlooked or misunderstood, leading to division and disagreement about his work in the past or in the present.

In this class, we will explore the Spirit’s work in history: in creation, in the Old Testament, and in the ministry of Jesus. We’ll examine his work in the life of Christians—the new birth, sanctification, and the gifts that he gives. Finally, we will consider what it means to live a Spirit-filled life—seeing his role in prayer, community, the sacraments, and the in-breaking of the New Creation.

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, October 5, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

When I look back on my life up till now, I’d have to say the years between 18 and 22 years old were among the most formative. I was away from home for the first time, having to do my own laundry and wash my own dishes. I was making my own decisions about the use of my time, money, and energy. Through ups and downs, I was learning (slowly) what it meant to be an adult and take responsibility for myself and others.

Beyond adulting, I was also learning at a deeper level what it meant to be a devoted follower of Jesus Christ. One of the primary channels God used during my college years to grow me up spiritually was a campus ministry and a college pastor. I still have notes and journals from those years. I can still hear the voice of my campus minister instructing me from God’s Word. I can’t help but look back on those years with profound gratitude.

Though it’s far from everyone’s story, the college years are often a time for Christian growth and development. It’s part of the reason why Cornerstone has actively supported our denomination’s campus ministry, Reformed University Fellowship (RUF), from our earliest days.

Today in worship, we’re taking time to focus on the vital ministry of RUF. To help us all be encouraged in the work of the gospel through RUF, we have Rev. Chris Reed with us. Rev. Reed is one our newest campus ministers in the Nashville Presbytery, and he is serving at our newest RUF chapter at Tennessee State University (TSU). Chris hails from Chicago, IL, and is a graduate of Lewis University. After completing his undergraduate studies, Chris earned his M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He relocated to Washington, D.C., where he worked for two years with RUF at Howard University. In 2024, Chris answered the call to move to Nashville and become the very first RUF Campus Minister at TSU.

For well over a decade, we have prayed the Lord would bring an opportunity to plan an RUF on the campus of Tennessee State University. Rev. Reed is God’s answer to that prayer! Please pay close attention to the good word the Lord has laid on his heart for us today. In addition, take time to meet and encourage Chris in his ministry at TSU. If you get the chance, ask him to tell you how you can support his ministry with prayer and financial gifts.

We are blessed to have Rev. Reed serving up the gospel at TSU!

Your servant,

 

Pastoral Notes for Sunday, September 28, 2025

Dear Cornerstone Family, 

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

I remember when the news broke. Dylann Roof, a twenty-one-year-old white man motivated by racial animus, opened fire at a Bible study at Mother Emmanuel Church in Charleston, SC, in 2015. Roof attended the Bible study before the shooting, interacting and disagreeing with various comments being shared by the participants. Then, during the concluding prayer, he opened fire, killing nine black members—including the pastor.

In a surprising twist, the families of the nine victims responded not with hate but with grace and forgiveness. During Roof’s bond hearing, one of the families looked at Roof and remarked, “I forgive you, and my family forgives you, but you need to confess to God and repent.” You could hear a pin drop in the courtroom. It was a powerful expression of the gospel.

At the memorial service of public figure Charlie Kirk, a similar moment happened. Near the end of the service, which was filled with gospel presentations, Erika Kirk, Charlie’s widow, approached the microphone. In the throes of grief, she spoke of her husband’s commitment to Jesus Christ. After pausing to collect herself, she continued, “On the cross, our Savior said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.’ That man, that young man,” speaking of Charlie’s killer, “I forgive him.” At those words, Erika wept as the stadium erupted in applause. It was a moving display of gospel hope.

Erika wasn’t quite done though. She wanted us to know how and why she can forgive Charlie’s killer. She continued, “I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it was what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love. Love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”

No matter where one lands on the political spectrum, Christians have a unique opportunity in moments of tragedy and death to look neither left or right but up to God. To release the lesser concerns of men and nations and take up the eternal concerns of the Kingdom of God. In the case of the families of Mother Emmanuel and Erika Kirk, all we must do is rejoice—that for one precious moment a clear and powerful gospel witness was heard in the public square.

Now, in saying that, I know there are a half-dozen or more other questions that come to mind, which I obviously can’t address right now. I will, however, take time on the Life at the Corner podcast in the coming weeks to reflect biblically on how to respond in situations like these. I hope you’ll join me.  

Until then, let’s refuse to let our political convictions eclipse our gospel witness. Instead, let’s be kingdom-first people. Holding fast to the truth of the gospel and illustrating its beauty by loving all our neighbors—black and white, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, Christians and those who hate Christians. For this is the way we have been loved.

“For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” –Romans 5:7-8  

Your servant,