Living Truths for Life

We often overlook introductory verses, but we must remember that there is nothing in the Bible that is there without a purpose. Today, we take a closer look at the context and approach of the famous ‘Sermon on the Mount’ found in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7. While this is an important foundational teaching for us as we live our Christian lives, who is it really for, and what is the perspective with which we should receive this teaching?

We may not see immediate results when we sow into ministry and the harvest fields of the Lord. This could look like sowing our lives, our hearts, our time, our resources, the words we speak, our actions and responses. God desires to use everything we offer up to Him, that our lives may be as living vessels, and that everything we pour out will flow to and impact our surrounding.What do our lives produce in the lives of those around us in the long-term?

Modern-day progress has made many things easier, and even quicker, for us. However, there are no shortcuts with our Christian life, and we are not in competition with each other. We all run a race with our own paths that are uniquely ours, carrying the same message of hope and the testimony of the gospel.Are we signed up and fully committed to being focused and undistracted, uncompromised towards the prize of eternity?

Consistency speaks volumes of one’s character. Being ‘only human’, our consistency is sometimes affected by what we feel. In our Christian lives, our consistency is one of the reflections of our faithfulness in all that God has called us to. Throughout the pages of Scripture, we read of many situations that resulted in setbacks or downfalls of different individuals, even whole nations. We also read of those who remained true to their purpose.What is the secret of those who have been found faithful to the end?

There are many expressions used to describe fear, among them are the adjectives ‘paralysing’, ‘crippling’, and the list goes on. We would sometimes even say that our actions or reactions are ‘governed by fear’. Fear is a stronghold that stops us from reaching our full potential in the purposes of God – but it can be broken! 2 Timothy 1:7 says that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love and of a sound mind.How do we feed our spirit that we can rise up in faith, face fear head-on, and emerge as overcomers?