The Beatitudes: Three Observations

The introduction to Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount is no doubt the most familiar section of His message (Matthew 5:1–12). Commonly called “The Beatitudes,” this section is the most descriptive word-portrait of a servant ever recorded. Let’s reread these immortal words slowly . . .

Jesus’ Command: “Be Different!”

The scriptural account of His “Sermon on the Mount” is found in Matthew 5, 6, and 7. If I were asked to suggest an overall theme of this grand sermon, it would be “Be different!” Time and again, Jesus states the way things were among the religious types of their day, and then He instructs them to be different.

When You Grow Up

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” That’s a favorite question we enjoy asking children. And the answers we get usually are “a police officer” or “a nurse” or maybe “a fire fighter.” Some kids are visionary. They answer “a movie star” or “a singer” or “a doctor” or “a professional ball player.” One recently told me he wanted to be either a car mechanic or a garbage collector. When I asked why, he gave the classic answer for a nine-year-old: “So I can get dirty!” I smiled as I had a flashback to my own childhood. And I understood.

Servanthood Starts in the Mind

Wouldn’t you love to live courageously in spite of the odds? Doesn’t it sound exciting to be divinely powerful in day-to-day living? Aren’t you eager to become independently authentic in a day of copycat styles and horrendous peer pressure? Of course!

Supernatural Ability of the “Renewed Mind,” Part 2

As we allow God’s truth to pierce the tough, hardened barriers we have erected in our minds, we receive surprising benefits. We saw yesterday that God gives us His divine power (2 Corinthians 10:4). He also grants us what I call authentic independence.

Supernatural Ability of the “Renewed Mind,” Part 1

As the truth of God’s Word penetrates our hearts, it displaces those secular mental barriers we have erected over the years. In fact, we receive several very exciting benefits. Paul names two of them in 2 Corinthians 10—divine power (10:4) and authentic independence (10:11–12).

Mental Barriers to God’s Voice, Part 3

Along with the mental wall of habitual resistance, the humanistic reasonings that give it strength, and the proud, lofty reactions that keep the truths of Scripture at arm’s length, there are actual thoughts, techniques, and devices we employ that push away God’s Word and His promptings. Let me be specific.

Mental Barriers to God’s Voice, Part 2

As the Spirit of God attempts to communicate His truth to us, He runs up against the “wall” of our overall mental attitude, our natural mind-set. Along with the wall-like fortresses, we have natural, humanistic reasonings that give the wall additional strength.

Mental Barriers to God’s Voice, Part 1

As the Spirit of God attempts to communicate His truth to us (biblical information on servanthood, for example), He runs up against our “wall,” our overall mental attitude, our natural mind-set. For some, it’s prejudice. With others, it’s limited thinking or a negative mentality.

Natural Thinking in Today’s World

Let’s talk about some positive input on the correct mentality of a servant. Is it possible to think so much like Christ that our minds operate on a different plane than others around us? Not only is it possible—it’s essential! The familiar words of Paul in Romans 12:1–2 need to be reviewed.