Church at the Cross : Sunday Messages

Welcome to the weekly podcast of Church at the Cross in Grapevine, TX, led by Pastor JR Vassar. Our mission is to help people and places encounter Jesus. Wherever you are today, our hope is that you would be encouraged, challenged, and inspired to take the next step in your relationship with Jesus. For more info, visit churchatthecross.com!

Discipline Not Drift | 1 Corinthians 9:23-27 11/17/2024

Discipline Not Drift | 1 Corinthians 9:23-27 Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:23-27 Key Takeaways: “It was in 1980, that the legendary boxing trainer Cus D’amato discovered the young juvenile delinquent, Mike Tyson. 6 years later as a 20 year old kid, Tyson would destroy Trevor Berbick in 6 minutes to take the crown to initiate the start of his heavyweight reign. For those 6 years, Mike Tyson's daily workout involved getting up at 4am for a 5-mile jog, sparring for 3 hours, doing 2000 sit-ups, 500 pushups, 500 dips, 500 shrugs and about 30 minutes of neck bridges. He repeated this regiment 6 days a week. In short, despite training for ‘only’ six years, the quality and consistency of the work he was doing was enough to match the quantity of work that other fighters do.” ― Reemus Boxing + The Purpose of Discipline “Every action you take is a vote for the person you want to become.” - James Clear, Atomic Habits 1 Corinthians 9:23 + The Pain of Discipline Hebrews 12:11 1 Timothy 4:7-10 “People do not drift toward Holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.” ― D.A. Carson + The Prize of Discipline James 1:12 Romans 6:22 1 Corinthians 1:8-9 + Set your highest joy on Jesus. + Set your heart to honor Jesus. + Train your mind, body, and soul with grace-driven effort as you wait for Jesus. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33960387

Peace Not Panic | John 14:25-31 11/11/2024

Peace Not Panic | John 14:25-31 Scripture: John 14:25-31 Key Takeaways: John 16:33 [Got Milk Slides] + Not the Peace the World Gives Control Circumstances + His peace + The only way you can have the peace of God is to be at peace with God Romans 5:1 John 16:33 Refuse to fear Refuse counterfeit saviors Seek the Felt Experience of the Holy Spirit /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33880167

Unity Not Division | Ephesians 4:1-6 11/04/2024

Unity Not Division | Ephesians 4:1-6 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + God cares more about The Church than this nation, so order your loves. + Order our loves according to spiritual principles and spatial proximity. + Our Theology is our relational Glue, so don’t seek unity around anything else. Graphic of Three Circles Graphic of Three Circles expanded. + The Character we display matters more than the vote we cast, so be like Jesus. + Jesus is Lord, so don’t freak out whatever happens Tuesday. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33775207

Spirit Not Flesh | Galatians 5:13-26 10/28/2024

Spirit Not Flesh | Galatians 5:13-26 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Holy Intention “Repentance means turning from as much as you know of your sin to give as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of God.” – J.I. Packer, Keeping in Step with the Spirit. “Lord, make me as holy as it is possible for a saved sinner to be.” – Robert Murray McCheyne + Holy Conflict + Holy Habits - Treat your flesh like the enemy it is. - Don’t give the flesh an opportunity. - Give the Spirit every opportunity. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33641862

God. Not NOT God | Jeremiah 2:1-13 10/20/2024

God. Not NOT God | Jeremiah 2:1-13 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + The Essence of Idolatry + The Shock of Idolatry Sin against Love Sin against Logic + The Cost of Idolatry + The Cure for Idolatry /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33535977

Now to Him Who is Able | Romans 16:25-27 10/15/2024

Now to Him Who is Able | Romans 16:25-27 Scripture: Key Takeaways: “This epistle is really the chief part of the New Testament and is truly the purest gospel. It is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but also that he should occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. We can never read it or ponder over it too much; for the more we deal with it, the more precious it becomes and the better it tastes.” Martin Luther. + Live for the glory of God. + Find your strength in the Gospel. Justification Propitiation Union with Christ Adoption + Help take this Gospel to the world. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33467947

Appeal for Unity | Romans 16:17-23 10/07/2024

Appeal for Unity | Romans 16:17-23 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Unity in the church is worth defending + Obedience strengthens our Unity + Love for the Church and its mission strengthens our unity + Gospel unity results in victory /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33363577

Learning from the Church in Rome | Romans 16:1–16 09/30/2024

Learning from the Church in Rome | Romans 16:1–16 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + The Church was an intimate family in Jesus. + The Church included and dignified women. “Amidst contemporary denunciations of Christianity as patriarchal and sexist, it is easily forgotten that the early church was especially attractive to women… Christianity was unusually appealing because within the Christian subculture women enjoyed far higher status than did the women in the Greco-Roman world at large.” – Rodney Stark “…we see an early example of women serving as deacons in the correspondence between Pliny the younger and the emperor Trajan (AD 98–117). In a fascinating conversation, Pliny asks Trajan for advice about what he should do as the legate to the province in Bithynia with Christians. We want to think about one small piece of the conversation. Pliny refers to two Christian women, who were called ministrae in Latin. In English we can translate this word as “ministers,” and that is a good translation into Latin of the Greek word diakonos, which means “servant” or “minister.” We thus have an early example—in the second decade of the second century—of women serving as deacons. Obviously, such an example doesn’t prove women should serve as deacons, but it suggests women functioned as deacons in the early church.” – Thomas Schreiner + Whatever we see women doing in the Bible, we want to see them doing it in our Church. + Fully Engage in the Church /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33262982

Prayer and the Mission of God | Romans 15:30–33 09/22/2024

Prayer and the Mission of God | Romans 15:30–33 Key Takeaways: + Prayer is the Direct Communication with God. + Prayer Shapes Outcomes. “In essence, prayer is rebellion – rebellion against the status quo, the state of the world in its sin and fallenness. It is the absolute and undying refusal to accept as normal what is completely abnormal. It is the rejection of every agenda, every scheme, every opinion that clashes with the norms that God originally established.” – David Wells. + Prayer is Contending for the Purposes of God. "The secret of prevailing prayer is not our eloquence, but our faith; not our fluency, but our fervency." - George Muller "Prevailing prayer is the most powerful force in the universe. It can move mountains, heal the sick, and change the world." - Charles Spurgeon "The number one reason why prayer malfunctions in the hands of a believers is that they try to turn a wartime walkie-talkie into a domestic intercom. Until you believe that life is war, you cannot know what prayer is for. Prayer is for the accomplishment of a wartime mission… But what have millions of Christians done? They have stopped believing that we are in a war. No urgency, no watching, no vigilance, no strategic planning. Just easy peacetime and prosperity. And what did they do with the walkie-talkie? They tried to rig it up as an intercom in their cushy houses and cabins and boats and cars - not to call in fire power for conflict with a mortal enemy, but to ask the maid to bring another pillow to the den." – Piper, Prayer the work of Missions + What status quo in your life do you need to rebel against? + Will you give yourself to intercessory prayer for the mission of God? /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33158097

Reaching the Unreached | Romans 15:14–29 09/16/2024

Reaching the Unreached | Romans 15:14–29 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Ministry to the Church + Ministry to the Needy + Ministry to the Unreached + The Unreached will be reached + It will take missionaries with ambition who are willing to go + It will take the preaching of the Word and the power of the Holy Spirit. + It will happen through Church Planting + It will happen through sacrificial Christians who see their role in God’s great mission as senders and pray-ers. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/33074927

What Jesus Shows Us About God | Romans 15:8–13 09/08/2024

What Jesus Shows Us About God | Romans 15:8–13 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + God is a Trustworthy God. + God is a Merciful God. + God is a Missionary God. Illus: ee-taow. Image of Missionary being carried. + God is a Hope-Giving God. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32961102

Personal Conscience and Christian Community | Romans 14:19—15:1-7 09/03/2024

Personal Conscience and Christian Community | Romans 14:19—15:1-7 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Every person has a God-given Conscience. + Our conscience needs to be obeyed. + Christians disagree on matters of conscience. + Nobody has an inerrant conscience. + We must prioritize Christian Unity over our personal freedoms. + “When do you have the freedom to do something?” 1. Does this violate a biblical command or principle? 2. Is there a latent danger to me in doing this? 3. Am I fully persuaded this is OK for me to do? 4. Will this be a barrier to the people I’m trying to reach. 5. Will a weaker brother or sister that I am with in this moment be encouraged to follow my example and violate their conscience. 6. Does doing this in this moment introduce a barrier to Christian fellowship? 7. Does this negatively impact my thought life? 8. What is my motive for doing this? /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32876902

Love and Christian Freedom | Romans 14:13-23 08/28/2024

Love and Christian Freedom | Romans 14:13-23 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Not everything in the Christian Life is Black and White + The Temptation to make gray what is black and white + The Temptation to make black and white what is gray + Love Requires that we Limit our Freedom + Experiencing the Holy Spirit is more critical than experiencing my freedom and more effective than increasing my restrictions. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32775552

Jesus Our Judge | Romans 14:10-12 08/18/2024

Jesus Our Judge | Romans 14:10-12 Scripture: Key Takeaways: “On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures;he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.” ― Nicene Creed, 325 AD + Make sure you’re ready to stand before Jesus. + Make every effort to help people confidently stand before Jesus. Oh, my brothers and sisters in Christ, if sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies; and if they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay, and not madly to destroy themselves. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for. ― Charles Spurgeon + Our Vison: Helping People & Places Encounter Jesus “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations - these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors. This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously - no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.” ― C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory + Make honoring Jesus the highest aim of your life. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32625777

Grace in the Gray Space | Romans 14:1-9 08/11/2024

Grace in the Gray Space | Romans 14:1-9 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + There are gray areas that each Christian must decide upon for themselves + A growing confidence in the gospel leads to a growing freedom in the gray spaces. + We are to give grace to one another in the gray spaces. + Whatever you do in the gray space, do it all for the glory of God. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32535287

Wake up, Get Dressed | Romans 13:11-14 08/04/2024

Wake up, Get Dressed | Romans 13:11-14 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Wake Up + Get Dressed /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32429467

The Ongoing Debt of Love | Romans 13:8-10 07/29/2024

The Ongoing Debt of Love | Romans 13:8-10 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Love is our greatest and ongoing debt + Love is the measure of our maturity Maturity is not marked by how much of the bible you know, your church attendance, your impeccable morality, your spiritual experiences, your giftedness, even your service, or commitment to God. All those things are good, but they are nothing without love. “The rule of love is that one should wish his friend to have all the good things he wants to have himself and should not wish the evils to befall his friend which he wishes to avoid himself. He shows this benevolence to all men. No evil must be done to any. Love of one’s neighbor works no evil. Let us then love even our enemies as we are commanded, if we wish to be truly unconquered.” St. Augustine, “Of True Religion.” + Start in your home + Make this house a house of love + Care more about being righteous than being right + Be Specific /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32332807

The Christian and the Government | Romans 13:1-7 07/22/2024

The Christian and the Government | Romans 13:1-7 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Christians inhabit 2 kingdoms + All human government is ordained by God and Christians are to submit to it. To resist the government is to resist God. To submit to the government is a way to live free of fear. Governing authority is for the good of an ordered and just society. + Christians should never violate their conscience through disobedience to the government or by obedience to the government. “For men’s religion to God is between God and themselves. The king shall not answer for it. Neither may the king be judge between God and man. Let them be heretics, Turks, Jews or whatsoever it appertains not to the earthly power to punish them in the least measure. This is made evident by our lord the king by the scriptures.” - Thomas Helwyss, “A Short Declaration of the Mystery of Iniquity” (1612). + Christians should be exemplar citizens that seek the good of their communities. Pay taxes Honor leaders Steward influence /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32243837

Triumph of Goodness | Romans 12:14-21 07/14/2024

Triumph of Goodness | Romans 12:14-21 Scripture: Key Takeaways: + Bless + Live in Harmony Harmony Requires Humility Pride is the Enemy of Harmony + Do Not Do Evil + Our vengeance is evil + Only God’s wrath can offer full vengeance + Vengeance is not for us, but for the glory of God /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32128107

Living Great Things | Romans 12:9-13 07/08/2024

Living Great Things | Romans 12:9-13 Scripture: Key Takeaways: “Beloved Brethren, we are philosophers not in word but in deeds; we exhibit our wisdom not by our dress, but by truth; we know virtues by their practice rather than through boasting of them; we do not speak great things, but we live them.” Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, 256. + Genuine Love Genuine Discerning Affectionate Honoring + Zealous Service + Patient Joy + Generous Hospitality /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/32051682

Renewed Community | Romans 12:3-8 06/30/2024

Renewed Community | Romans 12:3-8 Scripture: Key Takeaways: New Identity New Assignment New Power /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31949307

How We Change | Romans 12:2 06/23/2024

How We Change | Romans 12:2 Scripture: Key Takeaways: Resist the Formation of the World “We can present our bodies to the Lord as genuinely holy and acceptable sacrifices only if we “do not conform to this world” but “are transformed by the renewing of the mind. - Douglas Moo Renew your Mind by the Gospel “MY DEAR WORMWOOD, I note with grave displeasure that your patient has become a Christian. Do not indulge the hope that you will escape the usual penalties; indeed, in your better moments, I trust you would hardly even wish to do so. In the meantime we must make the best of the situation. There is no need to despair; hundreds of these adult converts have been reclaimed after a brief sojourn in the Enemy's camp and are now with us. All the habits of the patient, both mental and bodily, are still in our favour.” - Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis Restore your Dignity by the Spirit’s Help /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31854912

True Worship | Romans 12:1 06/17/2024

True Worship | Romans 12:1 Scripture: Key Takeaways: “The Christian and the Materialist hold different beliefs about the universe. They can’t both be right. The one who is wrong will act in a way which simply doesn’t fit the real universe. Consequently, with the best will in the world, he will be helping his fellow creatures to their destruction.” - C.S. Lewis Offer Your Body to God Display the Worth & Beauty of Christ in Your Body. “It has been said that in the New Testament doctrine is grace; and ethics is gratitude; and something is wrong with any form of Christianity in which, experimentally and practically, this saying is not being verified. Those who suppose that the doctrine of God's grace tends to encourage moral laxity are simply showing that, in the most literal sense, they do not know what they are talking about. For love awakens love in return; and love, once awakened, desires to give pleasure.” - J.I. Packer, Knowing God /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31776837

Theology is for Doxology | Romans 11:33–36 06/11/2024

Theology is for Doxology | Romans 11:33–36 This sermon explores Romans 11:25-32, emphasizing that theology should lead us to doxology (praise) and devotion (godliness). It underscores the wonder and worth of God, the wisdom and ways of God, and the wealth and works of God, acknowledging that while God can be truly known, He cannot be fully comprehended. Scripture: Key Takeaways: “As I often tell my students, theology is for doxology and devotion—that is, the praise of God and the practice of godliness...Theology is at its healthiest when it is consciously under the eye of the God of whom it speaks, and when it is singing to his glory.” - J. I. Packer, Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs. + Theology is for Doxology and devotion. + The Wonder and Worth of God. + The Wisdom and Ways of God - God can be truly known but not fully known. + The Wealth and Works of God. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31697772

Humility Before the Mercy of God | Romans 11:25-32 06/02/2024

Humility Before the Mercy of God | Romans 11:25-32 Scripture: Key Takeaways: God has a heart for the Jewish people and so should we. Salvation is of God so be humble. God lets us fall into and feel our sin so we might marvel at His mercy. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31566902

God's Family Tree | Romans 11:11-24 05/28/2024

God's Family Tree | Romans 11:11-24 Scripture: Key Takeaways: Main Idea: "God has always wanted a people to reveal his glory to and display his glory through. Three Parts of God's Plan “The restoration of Israel is an easier process than the call of the gentiles” - John Stott Two Ways to Respond One Hope for us All “One cannot help but wonder what the remarkable result would be if this mass of lay people could be spiritually released from their servitude in the American success system and reoriented to channel their major energies toward building the Kingdom of God” - Richard Lovelace, Dynamics of Spiritual Life 1. Continue in God’s Kindness 2. Fear the Lord 3. Be Stubbornly Hopeful /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31497377

God is Winning | Romans 10:13-11:11 05/19/2024

God is Winning | Romans 10:13-11:11 Scripture: Key Takeaways: Even when it looks like unbelief is winning the day, God is at work saving a people for himself. “At the turn of the 20th century, Africa was home to less than 10 million Christians, fewer than any other region except Oceania. By 2000, the Christian population in Africa had exploded to more than 383 million. In 2020, more Christians lived in Africa than any other region of the world. By 2050, with a Christian population of more than 1.28 billion, more Christians will call Africa home than the next two most populous regions—Asia and Latin America—combined.” - Aaron Earls, Lifeway Research. God has a purpose in every tragedy, even the tragedy of unbelief. The Gospel has the power to give you an enviable life. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31371387

The Missionary God and the Missionary Church | Romans 10:5–17 05/13/2024

The Missionary God and the Missionary Church | Romans 10:5–17 Scripture: Key Takeaways: A Person is saved solely by faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus, apart from works. Apart from personal, conscious, saving faith in Jesus people will experience eternal judgment. Universalism “Hell is a dreadful reality. To speak of it lightly proves we do not grasp its horror. I know of no one who has overstated the terrors of hell. We can scarcely surpass the horrid images Jesus used. We are meant to shudder. Why? Because the infinite horrors of hell are intended by God to be a vivid demonstration of the infinite value of his glory which sinners have belittled…When people repeat the centuries old objection that an eternal punishment is disproportionate to a finite life of sinning, they disregard the essential thing…The essential thing is that degrees of blameworthiness come not from how long you offend dignity, but from how high the dignity is that you offend.” John Piper, Let the Nations be Glad. Inclusivism The task of every Christian is to get the Gospel to all peoples who have yet to hear it. The Spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions, and the nearer we get to Him the more intensely missionary we must become. - Henry Martyn If there be any one point in which the Christian church ought to keep its fervor at a white heat, it is concerning missions. If there be anything about which we cannot tolerate lukewarmness, it is in the matter of sending the gospel to a dying world. - Charles Spurgeon /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31262107

The Shock of the Gospel and Human Responsibility | Romans 9:30—10:14 05/05/2024

The Shock of the Gospel and Human Responsibility | Romans 9:30—10:14 Scripture: Key Takeaways: God did not promise salvation to every ethnic Israelite, but only to those he sovereignly chose to be recipients of his saving love (). Israel did not respond to Jesus in faith (). Because the Gospel is so shocking, many people are offended by it and stumble over it. Because the Gospel is so shocking, it takes a work of God to believe it. To make intercession for men is the most powerful and practical way in which we can express our love for them. — John Calvin /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31130978

God's Glory in Election | Romans 9:14-29 04/29/2024

God's Glory in Election | Romans 9:14-29 Scripture: Key Takeaways: God’s ultimate aim in all that he does is the manifestation of and magnification of his glory. In Election, God Displays his perfections in the manifestation of his Mercy (9:15). “The stunning thing for Paul is not that God rejected Ishmael and Esau but that he chose Isaac and Jacob, for they did not deserve to be included in his merciful and gracious purposes. Human beings are apt to criticize God for excluding anyone, but this betrays a theology that views salvation as something God “ought” to bestow on all equally.” Thomas Schreiner. In Election, God Displays his perfections in the manifestation of his Justice (9:20-23). Before you raise your questions and objections lower your posture. Don’t eliminate other truths because of this one. Don’t fixate on this doctrine right now if it disturbs you. /episode/index/show/churchatthecross/id/31032098

Church at the Cross : Sunday Messages

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