Podcast
HPUMC - Cornerstone Sermons (Contemporary Worship)
Hosted by Highland Park United Methodist Church - Dallas, Texas · EN
Join us each week for contemporary worship with a vibrant community of Christian believers. With a modern voice, Cornerstone links Bible-based preaching with relevant life application.
14episodes
Episodes
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Interview With Rev. Paul Rasmussen
2w ago00:39:01Tap to summarizeHannah Buchanan & Rev. Paul Rasmussen
Transcribe →Family Vacation: Baggage
2w ago00:31:35Tap to summarizeHannah Buchanan | In this week’s sermon, we examine the baggage that we all carry. Just as travelers bring suitcases on a journey, we bring beliefs, habits, expectations, wounds, and experiences into every relationship. Some of what we carry is helpful, some is unhelpful, and some can be harmful. Looking at the family of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, we discover that even the family God chose to bless the world was far from perfect. Across generations, they passed down both gifts and struggles. They inherited faith, trust in God, and a sense of God's calling, but they also passed down favoritism, rivalry, division, and dysfunction. Their story reminds us that every family hands something down. The same is true for us. We all inherit patterns, messages, and ways of relating to others. Some help us love God and love others well. Others hinder healthy relationships. Still others can cause real harm if left unexamined. The good news is that through Christ, we are adopted into the family of God. We are not defined by our family history, our failures, or the baggage we carry. As God's beloved children, we are invited to bring our whole lives before our Heavenly Father and allow Him to repack our suitcases. Through the Holy Spirit, God helps us hold onto what is good, let go of what is harmful, and learn to live as His sons and daughters. The truest thing about us is not our brokenness or our baggage. The truest thing about us is that we are loved by God and welcomed into His family.
Transcribe →Family Vacation: Boundaries
3w ago00:33:34Tap to summarizeHannah Buchanan | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. When we hear the word "boundaries," many of us think of limits, restrictions, or even selfishness. Yet throughout Scripture, boundaries are not obstacles to love but conditions for love to flourish. From the beginning, God brings order out of chaos by establishing boundaries, separating light from darkness, land from sea, and sky from water. In the same way, healthy boundaries provide protection, clarity, and responsibility in our relationships. A boundary marks where one person ends and another begins. It helps us recognize what we are responsible for and what we are not. When we try to manage someone else's thoughts, feelings, or choices, conflict and resentment often follow. As we read and study Scripture, we find that God establishes boundaries not as punishment but as an invitation into a healthy relationship. At the same time, humanity repeatedly crosses those boundaries, resulting in brokenness and separation. The good news of the Gospel is that through Jesus' death and resurrection, the barrier between God and humanity has been removed, making reconciliation possible. Healthy boundaries are not walls that keep people out. They are guardrails that protect what God has entrusted to us and create space for love, respect, and connection to grow.
Transcribe →Hot and Cold: Lessons from Laodicea
4w ago00:30:34Tap to summarizeAlex Johnston | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. In Revelation 3:14-22, Jesus gives a challenging warning to the church in Laodicea that is often misunderstood. Many interpret his words about being "lukewarm" as a call to greater spiritual passion, but the historical and geographical context reveals a different message. Laodicea sat between two neighboring cities. Hierapolis was famous for its hot mineral springs that brought healing and restoration, while Colossae was known for its cold, refreshing mountain water. Laodicea's water, by contrast, was lukewarm and unpleasant. Using this familiar imagery, Jesus challenges the church not for a lack of enthusiasm, but for losing its purpose and becoming ineffective. The Laodiceans had grown self-sufficient, trusting in their wealth, status, and resources rather than in God. They found their identity in what they possessed instead of who they belonged to. As a result, they no longer stood apart as a people who reflected God's character to the world. Jesus calls them to repent and rediscover their purpose. God's people are blessed to be a blessing, bringing healing and restoration like the hot waters of Hierapolis and refreshment and life like the cold waters of Colossae. Rather than relying on ourselves, Jesus invites us to open the door, welcome him in, and allow him to work through us for the sake of others.
Transcribe →Living Into Pentecost
May 3100:30:46Tap to summarizeRev. Billy Rainey | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. Pentecost is more than a moment in church history; it is an invitation to a way of life. After the dramatic arrival of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2, the early believers responded not only through miraculous signs and radical generosity but also through simple, intentional practices. They devoted themselves to Scripture, prayer, fellowship, and breaking bread together. The power of Pentecost was expressed through everyday faithfulness. Acts 2:42-47 paints a picture of a community transformed by the Holy Spirit. The early church experienced God's power, practiced radical generosity, and built deep relationships through fellowship and shared meals. While the miracles inspire us, the passage reminds us that life in the Spirit is often shaped through simple, faithful practices. One of the clearest examples of this is table fellowship. Throughout Luke and Acts, God works powerfully around tables as people gather to pray, share their lives, and encounter Christ. These ordinary moments became places where the Holy Spirit transformed lives and built authentic community. Living into Pentecost means recognizing that the Holy Spirit is still active today. The Spirit continues to heal, restore, guide, and transform people through the ordinary rhythms of Christian life. As we make room for prayer, fellowship, and meaningful relationships, we open ourselves to experience God's presence and become a witness to His love in the world.
Transcribe →Endurance Athlete
May 2400:26:47Tap to summarizeRev. Chelsea Peddecord | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. In James 1:2-4, James writes to believers facing persecution, division, and hardship and tells them to “consider it joy” when they face trials. He is not saying suffering is enjoyable, but that God can use trials to build endurance and deepen our faith. Just like an athlete develops strength through training, spiritual endurance is formed when we continue trusting God through difficult seasons. The Christian life is a journey of endurance through both joy and suffering. Scripture reminds us that God is faithful in every season, even when life feels painful, uncertain, or overwhelming. Job endured by continuing to bring his honest prayers to God, and Joseph endured long seasons of hardship before seeing God bring redemption from it. The good news of the Gospel is that suffering is never the end of the story. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and the support of the church, God gives us strength to keep taking the next step of faith. Endurance leads to resurrection. To build endurance, we must keep trusting, keep praying, and keep moving forward, knowing that God is still at work bringing hope, healing, and new life.
Transcribe →Thy Kingdom Come: A Final Image
May 1700:20:05Tap to summarizeRev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. In 2 Timothy 1:1-7, Paul reflects on the sincere and genuine faith that shaped Timothy’s life, which was first seen in his grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice. Their faith was not merely talked about; it was consistently lived out in everyday life. This week’s message reminds us that our faith is often formed by the people who surround us and the generations that come before us. The faith modeled for us frequently becomes the faith we embrace ourselves. Paul points to the influence of Scripture and the example of faithful family members in helping Timothy develop a real and lasting faith. But he also challenges Timothy to take ownership of that faith by “fanning into flame” the gift God placed within him. Faith cannot remain borrowed from someone else. It must be nurtured personally and continually renewed. The passage closes with a reminder that God does not lead His people through fear but through power, love, and self-discipline. As we grow in authentic faith, we are called not only to receive the gift of faith from others but also to live in a way that passes it on to the next generation.
Transcribe →The Motherhood Collective
May 1000:23:00Tap to summarizeHannah Buchanan
Transcribe →An Unfeigned Faith
May 1000:15:49Tap to summarizeRev. Matt Tuggle | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide In 2 Timothy 1:1-7, Paul reflects on the sincere and genuine faith that shaped Timothy’s life, which was first seen in his grandmother, Lois, and his mother, Eunice. Their faith was not merely talked about; it was consistently lived out in everyday life. This week’s message reminds us that our faith is often formed by the people who surround us and the generations that come before us. The faith modeled for us frequently becomes the faith we embrace ourselves. Paul points to the influence of Scripture and the example of faithful family members in helping Timothy develop a real and lasting faith. But he also challenges Timothy to take ownership of that faith by “fanning into flame” the gift God placed within him. Faith cannot remain borrowed from someone else. It must be nurtured personally and continually renewed. The passage closes with a reminder that God does not lead His people through fear but through power, love, and self-discipline. As we grow in authentic faith, we are called not only to receive the gift of faith from others but also to live in a way that passes it on to the next generation.
Transcribe →Practically Speaking
May 300:23:38Tap to summarizeHannah Buchanan | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. This week’s message from Colossians reminds us that the gospel is not just a set of beliefs but a way of life that transforms our everyday relationships. After describing how God has rescued us and brought us into a new kingdom through Jesus (Colossians 3:1-17), Paul shows what that reality looks like in the most ordinary and intimate areas of life: marriage, family, and work. While parts of the text may feel uncomfortable, especially around themes of submission and authority, the deeper message reveals a radical redefinition of power. Those with influence are called not to use it for control or self-gain but to lay it down for the good of others, reflecting the self-giving love of Jesus. This teaching plants the seeds for a more just, compassionate, and dignified way of relating to others, offering a vision for the kind of relational healing our world longs for. Practically speaking, following Jesus means allowing His love to reshape how we treat others by choosing humility, kindness, and sacrificial love in the places that matter most.
Transcribe →