Follow: Grow - Week 1

Jun 9, 2024    Michael Nave

Check out these resources gathered by our Resource Team!


RECOMMENDED BOOKS:


The Pursuit of God: The Human Thirst for the Divine by A.W. Tozer

“Tozer brings the mystics to bear on modern spirituality, grieving the hustle and bustle and calling for a slow, steady gaze upon God. With prophetic vigor and flowing prose, he urges us to replace low thoughts of God with lofty ones, to quiet our lives so we can know God's presence. He reminds us that life apart from God is really no life at all.” This is an excellent book for this whole month of Follow as we seek to grow in Christ!


RECOMMENDED ARTICLES:


Ligonier Ministries - 3 Things You Should Know about Ephesians

“Paul’s letter to the Ephesians stands alongside Romans as a classic example of his thought. Ephesians is heavenly in its content and expansive in the truths it proclaims, while remaining approachable and pragmatic in its instructions. Here are three things you should know when you read Paul’s letter to the Ephesians…”


Desiring God - Speaking Truth in Love 

“... our natural temptation is to say what we should not say, or to not say what we should say. One is cruel arrogance, the other cruel cowardice, and neither is love. Rather, we seek to speak the truth of Jesus Christ in love to one another. Such a work — such a balance — requires nothing less than the power and wisdom of ascended King Jesus.”


Gospel Coalition - The First Implication of the Gospel

“Through his redemptive work, Jesus has created a new humanity in which the old divisions disappear. The church must reflect his act of reconciliation, and real-life traits like humility, gentleness, and patience. If our actions don’t reflect these characteristics, it’s not clear that we understand what Jesus came to do.”


Ligonier Ministries - The Necessity of Sound Doctrine

“Maturity is essential in achieving the purpose and call of the church. How do we produce mature believers? Sound doctrine. In an age when doctrine is marginalized and disdained, Paul reminds us that biblical, sound doctrine is the golden chain linked to all the characteristics listed in Ephesians 4.”


RECOMMENDED VIDEOS:


Look at The Book - All Christians Speak Truth to Grow the Body: (Ephesians 4:15–16, Part 1)

“Look at the Book is John Piper's ongoing series of 8-12 minute videos to help you learn to read the Bible for yourself. You look at a Bible text on the screen. You listen to John Piper. You watch his pen “draw out” meaning. You see for yourself whether the meaning is really there. And (we pray!) all that God is for you in Christ explodes with faith, joy, and love.”


Look at the Book - The Body Makes the Body Grow: (Ephesians 4:15–16, Part 2)

“Look at the Book is John Piper's ongoing series of 8-12 minute videos to help you learn to read the Bible for yourself. You look at a Bible text on the screen. You listen to John Piper. You watch his pen “draw out” meaning. You see for yourself whether the meaning is really there. And (we pray!) all that God is for you in Christ explodes with faith, joy, and love.”


Our Daily Bread - Out With the Old: (Ephesians 4:22–24) 

“One of the things that connects followers of Jesus to one another is the fact that we all have a past. Our past is full of decisions we’ve made when we were the lord of our own life. Paul says that when we choose Jesus as Lord, we are made new in Christ! Learn to let go of your old self and embrace a new life in Christ.”


Bible Project - Book of Ephesians  

“Watch our overview video on the book of Ephesians, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. In Ephesians, Paul shows how the good news should create ethnically diverse communities that are unified by devotion to Jesus and to each other.” 


RECOMMENDED SERMONS:


Alistair Begg - In Christ Alone (Ephesians 4:20-24) 

“Becoming a Christian involves a radical transformation: the ties that bind us to the sin of Adam are broken, and we are made alive in Christ Jesus. Alistair Begg explains that it is incongruous for those who have embraced Christ in His glory to live as though they do not know Him. As we war against the world, the flesh, and the devil, we need a constant reminder that God has united us with Christ and is renewing us day by day.”


Sinclair Ferguson - Faith Matters: I Believe In the Communion of Saints

“In Ephesians 4, Paul answers the question: ‘How are we to live the Christian life together?’ We are to live in a manner worthy to which we have been called with all humility.” 


Tim Keller - The New Self (Ephesians 4:17-24)

“Jesus Christ was born into this world. Why? So we could feel peace, love, and warm vibes at the end of December? Not quite. This sermon deals with Jesus’ birth into this world in order to give people a second birth. Jesus Christ, the spiritual Son of God, underwent a human birth so we, human beings, could undergo a spiritual birth and have a new self.”


RECOMMENDED PODCASTS:


Warehouse Podcast 

Welcome to The Warehouse! Has a Sunday sermon ever left you running to Google with new theological questions? Have you ever wished that you could peer behind the curtain to see how the message comes together? That’s where we come in! Here at Cornerstone Church, we spend hours every week talking about the Bible. This is the place to learn about Scripture, dive into its context, and study the Bible’s cultural background. Come to the Warehouse–where we’ll extend the stuff you learn from the stage. 


Bible Project - Ephesians: Exploring My Strange Bible

“This is a 5-part podcast series exploring Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Episode 3 specifically focuses on Chapter 4. Paul wanted these new followers of Jesus to live and become what they really are, adopting new identities.” 


Dad Tired Podcast - Living Crucified: A Call to Present and Sacrificial Fatherhood

“In today's episode of the Dad Tired podcast, Pastor Kaleb Allen shares a powerful personal story about a challenging day as a father of six children. He reflects on the importance of being a present and crucified father, embracing a life of self-sacrifice and surrender to Christ. This connects to Ephesians 4 because living a “crucified life” is the same as “putting off the old self” and putting on Christ through the process of sanctification!” 


With the Perrys - Practicing Humility

“Part of “living in a manner worthy of our calling” and “speaking the truth in love” is staying humble. Pride is an illusion wrapped in a lie, and it's in each of us. It’s our desire for total independence from our Creator, and it makes us feel good because we feel secure and capable. But it never satisfies in the way we think it will. In this episode, Preston and Jackie discuss how keeping God as our reference point is the only way to embrace true humility.” 


She Reads Truth - Ephesians Week 2

“In this second week of our Ephesians series, Raechel and Amanda talk with friend, sister, and She Reads Truth writer, Rebecca Faires. Together they talk honestly about the power of confession, the beauty of God’s covenant family, and the unified calling of the Church by breaking down Ephesians 3 and 4.”