Crosstown Podcast

Living at the End: Life in the Christian Community in These Last Days

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 21 May 2012 05:00:00 +0000

“The end of the world is at hand!” That’s what the Apostle Peter said almost 2000 years ago. And yet he was not mistaken. He was simply pointing out that with the coming of Jesus, the final chapter of redemptive history was completed. And so Peter wants all followers of Jesus to wake up and live in the reality of God’s redemptive Story. In this passage, we find four specific ways in which we are to do that.

Preparations for the Pilgrim Pathway

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 14 May 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Successfully finishing the Christian life requires taking it seriously, knowing that there are many dangers that threaten to destroy faith. The Apostle Peter exhorts his readers to arm themselves with a Christ-like resolve in order to remain faithful to the end. The Christian must oppose the idols of his culture, devoting himself to the worship of the one true God. Only the power of the gospel makes it possible for one to resist the appeal of these sinful desires.

Saved by Baptism: No! Ah!

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 07 May 2012 05:00:00 +0000

The suffering of Christ on our behalf not only saves us, it also sustains us in our sufferings. To demonstrate that point, the Apostle Peter appeals to the story of Noah and God’s deliverance of him through the flood. Christian baptism relates to that historical event, demonstrating the certainty of our salvation through the flood of righteous suffering.

The Blessing of Living Honorably

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Peter concludes his lengthy discussion on the importance of honorable living by motivating his readers with the promise of the blessing of God. The blessing of a fulfilled life in deep fellowship with God is a far greater reward than any material prosperity, but is only available to us when our hope is set on Jesus. When we do place our hope on him, the world will take notice, and their objections to the faith will be silenced by the humble testimony of believers.

Living Honorably: Showing Honor to Your Wife

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Peter provides specific instruction to husbands regarding how they are to live honorably within the home. He calls them to understand and honor their wives, holding up the value and dignity of women. In this message, we discuss specific ways that husbands can understand and honor their wives.

Living Honorably: The Submission of Wives to Their Husbands

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

The Apostle Peter continues to encourage Christians to live honorably, this time exhorting Christian wives to be submissive to their own husbands. This submission is an important part of a godly wife’s attractiveness, which God intends to use to draw even unbelieving husbands to faith in the gospel. And though practicing submission often puts a wife at risk, proper submission is not an expression of weakness or inferiority but rather a bold confidence in the sovereignty of God.

Livng Honorably by Suffering Unjustly

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Another way that Christians are to live honorably in the world is by submitting to their earthly “masters,” even if they are unjust. This will often require the Christian to suffer unjustly, but Peter reminds them that there is a divine reward of grace given to those who do not retaliate when they suffer for doing good. Still this is not an easy thing to do. The gospel gives us not only an example to follow but also the power to endure suffering in a similar way that Jesus did.

Living Honorably: Submitting to Civil Authority

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 05:00:00 +0000

The body of Peter’s first letter begins with a command to abstain from sinful passions which wage war against our souls. This is not a call to a mere private morality, however, for Peter’s greater concern is that his readers live honorable lives in the world and thereby bring glory to God. One way that Christians are to live honorably is through submission to governmental authorities and other human institutions. Such submission is not an evidence of weakness but rather a demonstration that the gospel has set us free to live as humble servants of God.

The House of God and How It Is Built

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 05:00:00 +0000

In last week’s sermon we learned that Christians are exhorted to grow into salvation by longing for “pure spiritual milk,” as if they were newborn babies. Now Peter employs a different analogy, describing spiritual growth as one massive building project. Here we are told about God’s purposes for the church, the “spiritual house” that God is building out of Christian disciples. With Jesus as the Cornerstone, God intends for the church to be both a place where he meets with his people to bless them as well as a people who are a testimony to the world of God’s excellencies.

Loving, Craving, Growing

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 05:00:00 +0000

Christians are commanded to love one another earnestly and from a pure heart in light of two gospel realities that make it possible for them to do so. Because they have been dedicated to God and designed by God for his purposes, this passage shows us how the command to love one another is central to spiritual growth. Though sin continues to make such obedience difficult, the power to prevail is given to us in the goodness of God that every Christian has experienced through the gospel.

Our Response to God's Great Gift

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 05:00:00 +0000

How would you respond if someone gave you an invaluable gift at great personal cost? Peter instructs us as to what our response to God’s great gift of salvation should look like. We are to set our hope fully on Christ and be holy like our Father. This covers both how we think and how we act.

Reflections on Our Most Precious Possession

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 06:00:00 +0000

A pilgrim takes with him on his journey only the most valuable of his possessions, those things which will be most significant to him as he travels through life. Peter reminds us that though we are living as God’s elect exiles, we carry with us the most precious of all possessions. The salvation we have been given by God’s mercy gives us reason to worship God, to rejoice at all times, and to be deeply satisfied.

Elect Exiles on the Pilgrim Pathway

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 06:00:00 +0000

We begin our study of the book of 1 Peter by considering three important questions we need to answer about this work: who wrote it, to whom it was written, and why it was written. In answering these questions we find that the Apostle Peter wrote this letter, evidently to Christians who were scattered across Asia Minor as outcasts of the Roman Empire. They were also not well received by the natives of the places in which they now resided. Living as exiles and foreigners, the Apostle writes to encourage them to continue on in the faith, confident that their situation is in accordance with the divine plan for their lives.

The Cross of Jesus--Our Only Boast

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 06:00:00 +0000

These last 8 verses of Galatians, written directly from the pen of the Apostle Paul, summarize the central message of the book. Here we find what motivates our propensity to affirm legalism, the desire to avoid the scandel of the cross as well as the desire to avoid the guilt of our own sinfulness. Legalists find confidence in what they achieve, but the gospel calls us to boast only in the cross where God’s power is most visibly seen over against the weaknesses of our own sinfulness.

The Enemy Unmasked

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 06:00:00 +0000

Paul cuts through the deception to reveal the true nature of the Galatians—and our—sinfulness. At the same time, he reveals the true freedom from sin and the law only Christ can bring.

The Fight for Faith and Freedom

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 06:00:00 +0000

Real freedom is found only in the gospel of Jesus Christ. But even for those who embrace the gospel, it is not easy to live in light of this freedom. The Christian will find himself lured back toward the bondage of legalism often, yet he must not give in. God calls us to fight for faith with confidence that the gospel will deliver on its promise, both for those who believe it as well as for those who do not.

Who's Your Mother?

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 06:00:00 +0000

For the Apostle Paul, the history of salvation boils down to one major issue. Are you the offspring of the slave woman, Hagar, or of the free woman, Sarah? Paul reminds the Galatian believers of how God’s promise to Abraham was fulfilled not through the law, but through Jesus as the descendant of Isaac. We should not to try to fulfill God’s promise by human effort, but instead wait on God.

No Longer Slaves, But Sons

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 18:33:41 +0000

The Apostle Paul continues to address the question asked in Galatians 3:19 concerning the purpose of God’s law in light of justification by grace alone. He explains that the law acts as our jailer in order to hold us in protective custody so that we might be safely set free by Christ rather than attempt our own self-salvation project. The law serves a temporary purpose, designed to no longer have dominion over us once we are set free by Christ our Redeemer. And once we are free, our identity is now wrapped up in Christ and his people through baptism. This new freedom in Christ is a radical transformation and becomes our motivator for holy living.

Law and Gospel: God's Demands and God's Promises

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 05:00:00 +0000

If we are justified before God apart from the law, then what purpose does the law serve in our salvation? The answer to this question is seen as we understand God’s intentions to grant his inheritance by promise rather than through performance. That’s not to say that God does not care about his law or that the law contradicts his promise. Rather, he himself meets every condition of the law on our behalf through Abraham’s promised offspring, making the promise of justification unconditional for his heirs.

Dear Idiots

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 05:00:00 +0000

In Galatians 3, Paul picks back up where he left off at the beginning of chapter 1. He wants to know why the Galatian believers have turned away from the gospel. He uses their personal spiritual experiences as well as evidence from the Old Testament to prove that justification doesn’t come from works of the law but by faith alone, in Christ alone.

Justified in Christ—Now Act Like It!

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 05:00:00 +0000

Paul’s public confrontation of Peter at the church in Antioch demonstrates the seriousness of straying from the gospel of liberty, and also warns us of how easy it is to do so. This is because we innately gravitate toward a different gospel, one in which we attempt self-justification by nullifying the grace of God. But all such attempts only lead us to perpetual slavery. Only when we embrace the righteousness of Christ are we truly free.

Bubbles, Community, Covenants, and Blessing

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 05:00:00 +0000

Paul has become aware of the Judaizers’ attempt to spy out the freedom the Gentile believers have. The gospel is on the line, and Paul is ready to fight for it. So he travels to Jerusalem, bringing with him visual evidence along with personal testimony in defense of the gospel of liberty that he preaches. From his encounter with the leaders of the Jerusalem church, we observe how the gospel is cross-cultural, and we note that it also includes the poor.

Not Man's Gospel

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 05:00:00 +0000

Some Jewish converts to Christianity in Galatia accused the apostle Paul of softening his stance on the gospel in order to attract people to his message. Paul addamently denies this. He gives a brief summary of his own conversion story in order to demonstrate that the message he preached was the “official” gospel that God had revealed. And while it is good missionary work to find ways to befriend those who do not yet believe, the goal of the gospel is to bring glory to God who empowers it.

The Two "Gospels" of Galatians

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 05:00:00 +0000

We begin our study of Galatians by considering the purpose for which Paul wrote this letter to the churches of Galatia. He was troubled and surprised by the fact that these churches, which he himself had founded, had already begun to drift away from the gospel he had preached to them. There was a competing “gospel” that had been introduced to these churches, one which had been easier for them to believe. Paul sets out to demonstrate the foolishness of turning from the gospel of liberty to any alternate gospel, and in so doing he alerts us to the same danger that tempts our churches today.

The Day of the Lord: Terror or Triumph?

info@crosstownokc.org — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 05:00:00 +0000

The book of Malachi comes to a close with a discussion of the coming “day of the Lord,” a time of final judgment where the ultimate distinction between the righteous and the wicked will become evident to all. On that day the wicked will be consumed while the righteous will be healed. The wicked will perish while the righteous will leap like calves released from their stalls. The day of the Lord will be terror to the wicked but triumph for the righteous. And God promises to show us the path to righteousness by sending “Elijah” before the day of the Lord comes.