|
The world has a common saying: “I’ll believe it when I see it.” But is this always the best way to see? Must we always insist on seeing something before we’re willing to believe it has happened? Or is there a better way?
In His conversation with Thomas after His resurrection, Jesus says there is a special blessing for those who have not seen and yet still believe (John 20:29). This is just as true today as it was for the first-century church. This past Sunday, we met a man of faith who believed without needing to see. This man exemplified faith, love, and trust. He understood authority and the power of God. But he wasn’t a religious professional—he was a gentile, a Roman Centurion who caused Jesus to marvel. Watch our study of Matthew 8:5-13 as we consider the blessing of believing, then seeing.
As Jesus descended from the mountain where He delivered His sermon, He interacted with a leper. In the parallel passage in Luke 5, we read of another interaction Jesus had with a different man named Peter.
While the leper struggled with his external condition, Peter struggled with his internal condition. However, there are similarities in their struggle—and there are similarities in the answer to their struggle. His name is Jesus. Watch our study from this past Sunday in Matthew 8:1-4 and Luke 5:1-14 as we consider how able and willing Jesus is to heal and to cleanse.
When Jesus finished His Sermon on the Mount, Matthew writes that the people were astonished at His teaching, “for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” (Matthew 7:29)
Jesus wasn’t just a self-help guru sharing practical advice on how to get through life. Those who heard Jesus sensed the Holy Spirit stirring up their spirits as the ministry of the word happened. Something significant and important occurs when the Spirit of God works through the Word of God in the hearts of the People of God. On Sunday, we looked at another example in scripture where this occurred—Nehemiah 8. Watch our study as we consider the importance of the ministry of the Word and share the same request— “Bring the Book!”
Jesus ended His Sermon on the Mount with three warnings. This past Sunday, we considered Jesus’ third warning about faulty foundations. It’s a warning about merely listening to His words without actually doing what He said.
Listening to Jesus can’t save you. Hearing sermons (in a building or on a mountain) can’t save you. You have to do what Jesus says. You have to put down your excuses and take the leap of faith. Jesus gives us a warning because He knows a storm is coming. The only way to survive that storm is to be genuinely His—in a real relationship with Him by believing, receiving, and trusting Him. Watch our study in Matthew 7:24-27 as we carefully consider the importance of the foundation upon which we live our lives.
You can’t just declare yourself a Christian. You must be born again. If you have been truly born again, there will be a transformation—you will become a new creation. There will be evidence of a genuine conversion that Jesus calls ‘fruit.’
In last week’s study, we considered Simon in Acts 8. Whether Simon was a genuine believer has been debated for centuries. Some see Simon as a new believer struggling with sin. Others view him as a false prophet who made a false profession of faith. And yet, it’s an opportunity for us to reflect on. Do you really want the genuine of your conversion to be debatable? Jesus tells us that many will profess to be genuine believers who have never actually been born again. Watch our second study in Matthew 7:21-23 as we heed the warning of our Savior not to be one of the ‘many.’
Near the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives His disciples three dire warnings concerning false prophets, false professions, and faulty foundations. In our last study, we thoughtfully considered those who present themselves as sheep but are inwardly ravenous wolves.
This past Sunday, we turned our attention to Jesus’ second warning about false professions. How could someone say and do all the right things and not be a born-again believer and be saved? We see an example of a false prophet and a false profession in the same person in Acts 8 as we consider the careful warning of Jesus we read in Matthew 7:21-23.
“Beware…”
Jesus had to warn His disciples about false prophets who would look like them but were not His. They are not sheep but ravenous wolves. Jesus wasn’t using poetic language to make a point. There are some who look like Christians, talk like Christians, and walk like Christians, but are not Christians and intentionally prey upon Christians. So how do we know who these ravenous wolves are? Thankfully Jesus tells us—“by their fruits you will know them.” Watch our study in Matthew 7:15-20 as we meditate on the warning Jesus gives us about false prophets.
Being a dedicated disciple of Jesus is not easy. That’s why we call it the beautiful worthy difficulty of ministry. In fact, being a dedicated disciple of Jesus is impossible in our strength and with our resources. Even with all of the effort and human willpower we can muster, we will find ourselves lacking what’s required to do what God calls us to do.
That’s why we need to cry out to God for His help continually. We must continually ask. We must continually seek. And we must continually knock, knowing that He is a good Father who knows how to give good gifts. Watch our study in Matthew 7:7-14 as we continue our study in the Sermon on the Mount and learn why asking, seeking, and knocking are essential to entering by the narrow gate.
Before sending us to minister in His name, Jesus addresses the issues of hoarding, coveting, and worrying as He expresses certain concerns about our hearts, minds, and physical bodies.
Our way of handling worry leads to hoarding, coveting, and even more worrying. When we try to manage worry in our own way, it ultimately leads to life-taking bondage. But God has a better way—one that gives life. God’s way is the antidote to our way. And in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus provides us with the antidote to reestablish the right order of things in our hearts. This past Sunday, we considered what it means to seek God’s kingdom above all else. Watch our study of Matthew 6:19-34 as we meditate on God’s way of living by faith.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addresses the proper motivations for everyday activities. As He teaches about the right motivations for prayer, He provides a primer on prayer—an elementary introduction to the construction of our communication with God.
In what’s commonly referred to as “The Lord’s Prayer”, Jesus provides topics of conversation for His disciples as they constantly converse with their Heavenly Father. These conversations aren’t just vain repetitions, but real and honest that further our fellowship with God. Watch our study in Matthew 6:7-15 as we ask the Lord to teach us to pray.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us that our motivation for ministry in everyday activities is important. In Matthew 6:1-18, Jesus addresses the motivations in three specific ministry activities (giving, prayer, and fasting) and He helps us understand the right motivation for doing these things.
If we’re motivated by what we get from these activities, then what we get is all we’ll get. There will be no eternal reward if getting is our motivation. But even more important than the motivation for eternal rewards is fellowship with God. There is nothing greater or more valuable than fellowship with our Heavenly Father. Watch or listen to our study in Matthew 6:1-18 as we meditate on the right motivation for ministry in everyday activities. Read ahead for this Sunday! We jumped over verses 7-15 of Matthew 6 this week, but we will consider these verses on Sunday. Hope to see you then!
As we work through the Sermon on the Mount, we discover the attitudes, actions, and attributes we must have to continue to be Jesus’ disciples.
These are not unattainable ideals but the basic expectations for the disciples of Jesus. Jesus expects His followers to be honest, to have grit, and to be more than conquerors. But what if these attitudes, actions, and attributes aren’t in us? What if we fail and fall short? It’s what we consider as we meditate on the attributes Jesus expects from us. Watch or listen to our study of Matthew 5:33-48 as we continue through the Sermon on the Mount.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows how sin starts in the heart. It’s there that Jesus tells us we are just as guilty as if we committed the outward act. The second example Jesus speaks about deals with lust and adultery.
Not only does Jesus want us to steer clear of adultery, but also of where adultery begins—with one lustful look. Just like contemptuous anger and murder, lust and adultery have serious consequences. We must deal decisively with sin, and yet gouging out our eyes and cutting off our hands isn’t enough. What are we to do? Thankfully Jesus gets to the heart of the issue, which is the issue of the heart. Watch or listen to our study of Matthew 5:27-32 as we meditate on the importance of dealing decisively with sin.
Forgiveness and reconciliation are two different things. Forgiveness can happen in a moment. Reconciliation is often a process. Forgiveness releases someone else from your “right” to retaliate. Reconciliation is restoring the relationship to the intimacy that was once present.
There is no way to reconcile a relationship without genuine humility and repentance. Jesus clarifies this in the Sermon on the Mount as He addresses contemptuous anger. Watch our study of Matthew 5:23-26 as we listen to Jesus instruct His disciples on what to do when sin affects our relationships.
Sin starts in the heart before it ever becomes an outward act. Jesus highlights this truth not once but six times in the Sermon on the Mount. We are just as culpable, accountable, and guilty when sin starts within us as if we actually went forward with the outward act.
So, what hope do we have? Can anyone be righteous or even perfect, as Jesus commands in Matthew 5:48? To answer that, we must consider these hard truths that Jesus taught. If we are to continue to be His disciples, we must understand the necessity of the Holy Spirit in transforming us deep within so that sin doesn’t even have a chance to begin. Watch our study in Matthew 5:21-22 as we consider the devastating influence of contemptuous anger and how to prevent sin from starting in our hearts.
Most people think the way to attain eternal life is by being good. This line of thinking evaluates righteousness as a point system, concluding that someone will get into heaven if their good works outnumber their bad deeds.
But this is nonsense! The law was never intended to be a means to earn righteousness. It was given to guard us, to bless us, and to show us our unrighteousness so that we would be led to Jesus, who will provide us with His righteousness. Jesus confronts this current understanding repeatedly in the Sermon on the Mount with this simple statement: “You have heard that it was said to those of old…but I say to you…” Watch our study of Matthew 5:21-48 as we listen to the words of Jesus and re-evaluate the current understanding of righteousness.
The people listening to Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount weren’t “religious professionals”. They were common, everyday, ordinary people—all of them sinners. And yet, Jesus called them the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
But He was just getting started. Soon after, He told them, “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Just how were these ordinary people supposed to exceed the righteous “religious professionals” who centered their entire lives around following the law—especially if Jesus wasn’t going to abolish the law? There must be another way! Watch our study of Matthew 5:17-20 as we consider Jesus’ words in light of His fulfillment of the Laws and Prophets.
Light and salt were two sermon illustrations Jesus used in the Sermon on the Mount. But He didn’t use them at random. He chose these because they illustrate the Beatitudes and help us see what our attitudes must be if we continue in this beautiful, worthy difficulty called ‘ministry’ and what kind of influence these attitudes have on those around us.
That influence may come in one of two ways: first, we may slow down the sinful deterioration of others or society, and second, we may be used to see God transform a person or society to drive out the darkness. Watch our study of Matthew 5:13-16 as we consider what could happen if we intentionally lived out what we learned at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount.
We were once enemies of God, but Jesus took the penalty for our sins and our rebellion. Now that we have peace with God, we want others to know Jesus so they can have peace with God also.
We receive this ministry of reconciliation to bring the message of reconciliation to as many as possible. As we continue to work through the Sermon on the Mount, we consider what it means to be a maker of peace in our study of Matthew 5:9.
God purifies us as we follow Him. He works in our lives to remove the things that contaminate us and then refines us with what He gives us. Through His refining work in our lives, we start to see Him—just as Jesus said: “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8). Watch our study as we continue to work through the Sermon on the Mount.
Sometimes, in the beautiful worthy difficulty of ministry, you will make enemies. Even as a broken, humble, and others-centered servant endeavoring to do the right thing, others will actively oppose you with hostility.
Which is why mercy is a core component of ministry. Being kind, even and especially to your enemies, is essential. Jesus gives us a whole new way to be merciful to enemies who would mistreat us. “Blessed are the merciful,” Jesus said, “for they shall obtain mercy.” Watch our study of Matthew 5:7 as we consider the importance of mercy in ministry.
From the mountain, Jesus delivered a sermon to His disciples. He taught them what their attitudes must be like if they were to continue to be His disciples. He wanted to give them (and us) as much disclosure as possible to know what ministry would be like.
Through this sermon, Jesus desired to communicate the beautiful and worthy difficulty of bringing glory to God through the selfless service of others. However, the attitudes necessary for such a service cannot come from our strength. It is only a work of the Holy Spirit, and not of the human will. And this is true with the fourth beatitude, as the Holy Spirit draws those who continue to follow Jesus into an even deeper level of humility. Watch our study of Matthew 5:6 as we consider what it means to hunger and thirst for righteousness.
As we continue our way through the Sermon on the Mount, we read of the qualities God is forming in His disciples. We must see our spiritual poverty to survive and thrive in ministry. We must recognize the depth and depravity of our sin to realize it’s only by God’s mercy that we have an opportunity to minister.
We will not survive long if we think we are capable of what God has called us to because of our resume or spiritual skill set. It is only by His mercy that any of us are in ministry. This is especially important to be aware of as we consider the third beatitude—“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5). What does it mean to be meek and why is this an attitude important to have if we are to survive and thrive in ministry? Watch our study of Matthew 5:5 as we consider this important, but often misunderstood quality of a disciple of Jesus.
Jesus didn’t make ministry sound attractive, appealing, or even remotely easy. Because ministry is none of those things. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus endeavored to give His disciples full disclosure of what would be necessary if they continued to follow Him in ministry.
As we recognize our own spiritual poverty (Matthew 5:3), we become increasingly aware of our own sin—and mourn over it as we realize just how unworthy we really are. And once we recognize that, we see that it is only by His mercy that we have any ministry at all. This past Sunday, we worked through one more verse in Matthew: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4). Watch our study from Sunday as we consider the comfort that only God can provide as we mourn over our own sin.
In Matthew 5, we read the message Jesus spoke to His disciples on a mountain in Galilee. This sermon begins with the beatitudes—the attitudes of the citizens of His kingdom. Jesus is not just another earthly ruler. He is the king of the kingdom of heaven. And so, these attitudes run counter to the culture and kingdoms of men. Like the first beatitude—recognizing your spiritual poverty. What does this look like in the life of a disciple of Jesus? We considered being poor in spirit in our time together on Sunday as we worked our way through just one verse—Matthew 5:3.
|
From Pastor Dom...When I first gave my life to Jesus, there were friends in my life who helped me to grow in my understanding of God, through His word, and for those friends Archives
August 2024
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed