By The Spirit We Die, By The Spirit We Live

White Stone Church

By The Spirit We Die, By The Spirit We Live

January 21, 2024- Full Video

January 22, 2024 • Cody Zimmerman • Galatians 2:20, Romans 8:5–14

There is a lie in the church that many of us have come to accept as truth: Jesus is one of many different things that can bring us lasting satisfaction, peace, and fulfillment.

The truth is, while there are all kinds of good things in the world that can bring us pleasure, the things that are appealing to our human nature don't bring lasting joy. Ultimately, God has a better definition of what it means to be human than we do.

Paul talks a lot about this in Romans 8, and he tells us that it is by the power of the Spirit that we can step out of the corrupt side of our humanity, and into the glorious purpose and life that He has for us. And again, this is only by the Spirit. Many people have tried to do it on their own strength, and that always ends badly.

In this message, Cody explores the early verses of Romans 8 which tell us that it's by the Spirit we die to ourselves, and it's by the Spirit we live in our new role as renewed humans in a world that is on its way to being redeemed.

The Breath of Life

March 25, 2024 • Colby Dorcely • Ezekiel 37:1–14

Holy week seems to always come around when there are all sorts of painful things happening. The image of Jesus riding into Jerusalem challenges our hopelessness, our belief that God has forgotten us and has left us in our despair. In Ezekiel's incredible vision of the valley of dry bones, God asks him an almost ridiculous question: "Can these bones live?" Can God bring resurrection when these bodies have been dead for so long? Is resurrection even possible in this circumstance? Or is the situation too far gone? In this Sermon given on Palm Sunday, Colby finishes up our series on the Holy Spirit by showing us the Holy Spirit's role in resurrection— how God restores the muscles and skin of the dry bones while Ezekiel prophesies, but they aren't truly alive until the breath of the Spirit fills them—the Breath of Life.

The Witness

March 18, 2024 • Brock Tharpe • Acts 5:17–32, Romans 8:12–17, Hebrews 10:15–17

Imagine that you are a defendant in a courtroom, and you are called to the stand to give your side of the story. No matter who you are or how well spoken you are, it would be foolish for the jury to just take you at your word without anyone else corroborating your story. That is why witnesses are so important in a courtroom. In Acts 5, Peter invokes the Holy Spirit himself as a third witness to all that Jesus had done. In that text, as well as several others, the Holy Spirit is described as a "witness." And as we find out by digging into the scriptures, the Holy Spirit's role as a perfect witness to the gospel and to what is true is extremely vital to us and our faith, especially considering how untrustworthy our own emotions and thoughts can be.

Fruit, Not Fruits

March 11, 2024 • Cody Zimmerman • Galatians 5:16–24

We are all living in the middle of a great battle—a battle that rages inside each and every one of us; the battle between the Holy Spirit and our flesh—the natural desires that are in all of our hearts, running counter to God's will for our lives and for human flourishing. And it is into that battle that Paul gives the command to the church, "Walk in step with the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." As it turns out, walking in step with the Spirit is not about modifying our own behavior from our own strength, but instead comes from our identity, and where we are planted. And it is after he gives that command that Paul gives his famous contrast between the "works of the flesh" and the "fruit of the spirit." But instead of contrasting all of the behaviors in those lists, what can we learn by contrasting the names of the lists themselves? What is the difference between "works" and "fruit?"