Matthew 6:25-26

Do you worry about your future? Do you worry about your health and your fulfillment in life? To calm these concerns over the uncertainty and unpredictability of the future, we may make efforts to hoard money to feel more secure or to have more possessions or experiences to feel more satisfied.

Matthew 6:16-18

What is fasting? Fasting is to refrain from something (usually food) that is usually a priority in your day for a set period of time. People fast in order to better focus on God, in order to have more focused prayer, or to bring our heart's appetites more under control. All these goals are commendable and good for Christian growth.

Matthew 6:9-10

To grow as a mature Christian means to take increasing joy in making God number one in every area of your life. This means that we want to see God glorified in our lives and all over the world. Our prayer should reflect this heart. So Jesus teaches us to pray for God's glory. This is reflected in three ways in these two verses.

Matthew 5:43-48

It's not easy being a Christian. There are unimaginable blessings that Christ has poured out on you and will continue to do so. There is also a calling to grow to be more and more like Jesus in heart and action. Just as God loved us while we were still His enemies, Jesus calls us to love our enemies and pray for them.

Matthew 5:38-42

In the Old Testament, God commands that for justice to be done, the punishment would be "an eye for an eye" and "a tooth for a tooth". This was God's way of ensuring that justice is done, but also that the punishment fits the crime. In a sense, this was his way of protecting the guilty. There were times when people would want to take vengeance on someone for a crime, which was way more than is called for. Or sometimes, that the guilty person's family would be punished, too. So the Old Testament guideline called for a guilty person to be appropriately punished and that only the guilty would be punished.

Matthew 5:33-37

How much weight do your words hold? When you make a promise to someone, do people see you as reliable? When you tell someone something, do people believe you? As a disciple of Jesus, we are to take our words seriously, for they reflect our attitude towards God and towards people.

Matthew 5:29-30

Verses 29-30 teach that if we find something in our lives that is tempting our hearts and causing us to sin, we should treat it seriously. This passage is not saying that we should cause physical harm to ourselves if we sin. Rather, it's an illustration that no matter how valuable something may seem to us, if it's causing us to wander from God or to rebel against Him, we should be willing to separate it from our lives.

Matthew 5:27-28

For God, the Christian life is not about engaging in good behavior and avoiding bad behavior. Rather it's about having the heart that God wants us to have towards God and others, then putting these things to action. Jesus applies this principle to one matter of community life: marriage.

Matthes 5:23-26

Do you know of anyone who has a complaint against you because you have wronged them? This may include hurtful words spoken or unfair treatment given. When the passage says "[if] your brother having something against you", this is referring to anything that you may owe someone. This may be a debt or payment owed, an obligation that you have not fulfilled, or even an apology given for an offense.

Matthew 5:17-20

The term "Law and Prophets" was used to describe the Bible to ancient Christians. It is the Old Testament that we have today. Jesus wanted them to take all the commandments of God seriously, and to make sure that they were interpreting and applying God's Word correctly.

Matthew 5:13-16

What impact are you making in the lives of others? Some of us may impact many people, and some of us may impact the lives of one or two people. The important thing is that we be faithful to this calling, that God may use us according to HIS desires and design. Let me share the story of two people.