DavidCortner.org

I have been preaching through the book of Luke for over two years now.  There have been periodic breaks for special events, the need to address different topics, holidays, etc., but basically we have been studying the life of Jesus Christ.  As we get to the end of Luke, the layout of the study of the rest of the book coincides with the calendar.  Recently we have been looking at the prelude of the cross…Judas, the Gethsemane prayer, and last week at the life of Peter and his denials.  This week we look at the reality of the cross.

After the message notes were done on paper, I decided to watch once again the DVD of “The Passion of the Christ”.  The movie still has the power to grip your heart…just as much now as the first time I saw it in 2004 in Lafayette, Indiana.  I remember seeing it with a group of pastors the first time…then going back a couple of days later and watching it with my wife.  When it was done, we all left the theater in silence…nobody was saying anything.  It was sobering…not the normal atmosphere in a theater. 

There’s a reason for that…the cross is sobering.  There are some who feel that the movie is has “too much gore and violence” and that it is “too graphically violent”.  Unfortunately, the cross was “graphically violent”!  If you don’t want to see the movie just research it on the internet. 

The old hymn, ”The Old Rugged Cross” states, “In the Old Rugged Cross, stained with blood so divine, a wondrous beauty I see.”  At the risk of being cynical…I respectfully have to say that is not true.  The prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 52 that people would be appalled at his appearance when he suffered…not see beauty.  If you understand crucifixion and then add to it the flogging and everything else that preceded the crucifixion itself…there is no beauty in it…it is “graphically violent”.  There are times in the movie I found myself wanting to turn my head…I am convinced that took place 2000 years ago at the cross of Jesus Christ as well.

“The humble King, they named a fraud, and SACRIFICED the Lamb of God”.

Lesson from Peter - Luke 22 - Podcast

Message from 3/14/10

Remaining faithful and staying strong spiritually is a daily battle for most of us as believers.  The discipline of being in the Word and in prayer is essential, but sometimes difficult to maintain.  The media continually is at war with our personal purity of heart and mind. 

But…it’s not just today.  Interestingly, it was like that almost 300 years ago as well.  Robert Robinson wrote “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”, a hymn known and sung by many.  Robinson included in that hymn the familiar, yet potent words…”Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it…Prone to leave the God I love”.  And sadly, he did just that.  Although a pastor, theologian, and hymn writer, later in his life, he got involved in doctrinal error, lapsed into personal sin and spiritual apathy. 

If it can happen to him, it can happen to me…and you!  If it could happen in the 1700’s, it can certainly happen today! 

“God keep me strong, keep me pure, keep me close to you.”

The Gethsemane Experience - Luke 22:39-46 - Podcast

Message from 3/7/10

Fake It Till You Make It - Luke 22 - Podcast

Message from 2/28/10

The Peril of Losing Heart - 2 Corinthians 4 - Podcast

Message from 2/21/10

A Call to Commitment - Matthew 16:24-26 - Podcast

Message from 2/14/10

In preparation for our ABF class I was challenged by Acts 2 - the passage that describes Pentecost.  We read it as history.  Have you ever thought about what that was actually like…NOT from the point of history…actually experiencing it…NOT knowing what we know now from having read and studied the Scriptures as we have them now.  I think it’s very difficult, if not impossible for us to comprehend the awe that must have filled the room as the Holy Spirit “filled the whole house” with the sound of a “blowing of a violent wind.” 

Today we pray lamely for the power of the Holy Spirit in comparison to what they experienced then…and frankly, that’s probably why a lot of us experience a lame Christian life and have lame Christian church experiences compared to them. 

When it was all said and done that day, some actually made fun of them saying that they were drunk because of what they had observed (Acts 2: 13).  I am not sure I hear Christians being accused of that today.  Oh, I hear accusations, but not that type of accusations.   Maybe that’s why a lot of the unchurched people around our communities are not attracted to us…not much they see in us is that desirable!  (Ouch…that hurts - it hurts me…but I am afraid it’s true).

 A lot to think about, right?

Choosing to be Thankful - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 - Podcast

Message from 1/31/10

Sometimes I wonder if the power of the Holy Spirit is tragically missing in our personal lives and in our ministries.  My mind and heart are being stirred right now by a book I have read and am using as a key resource in our ABF.  Francis Chan makes some bold statements that have pricked my heart and made me stop in my spiritual tracks. 

He says, “So much of the church today is human effort, gifted people pushing it along.”  He further states that the entertainment model of the church developed in the 1980’s and 1990’s has created “self-focused consumers” as church attendees.  The result is that we even often judge the success or failure of a church or church service on how pleased people are with “what happened at church”.  Where does the Holy Spirit’s power fit in here?

“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power.” (1 Corinthians 2: 4, 5)  I have to ask myself if that is true with me…my preaching…my teaching…my ministry…my personal life. 

Or…is the power of the Holy Spirit tragically missing today?