LISTEN TO JESUS! “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” —Matthew 17:5 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. —John 1:1-3 The heavens are yours; the earth also is yours; the world and all that is in it, you have founded them. —Psalm 89:11 The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the…

THE HEART OF A PERSON DEFINES WHO AND WHOSE THEY ARE! It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person. —Matthew 15:11 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” —Matthew 15:17-20 What a person eats does not defile or define that…

LOOK TO JESUS AND NOT THE CIRCUMSTANCES! But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.” And he said, “Bring them here to me.” —Matthew 14:16-18 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save…

LISTEN… AND WALK IN HIS TRUTH! Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” —Matthew 11:28-30 Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name. —Psalm 86:11             Where do we turn when we have a burden?  How do we seek to find rest?  Jesus invites us to come to Him.  He will give us “rest.”  How does…

PRAY FOR LABORERS IN THE HARVEST AND BE ONE! Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” —Matthew 9:37-38             According to this passage “the harvest,” Jesus said, “is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”  So then, the problem is not that there isn’t a plentiful harvest, but there are too few people working in the harvest.  What is the solution?  It is to “therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”  Whatever you are doing, will you not stop…

DO GOD’S WILL  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’  “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came,…

TREASURE FOCUS IS HEART FOCUS For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. —Matthew 6:21             What do you treasure?  Who do you treasure?  Where is your heart?  Your heart is where your treasure is!  How do we know what we treasure?  Is it—- “Like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” —Matthew 13:44-46            …

FOUNDATIONS OF THE WORLD ARE SHAKEN, BUT OUR FOUNDATION IS NOT! But he answered, It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ —Matthew 4:4 Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” They have neither knowledge nor understanding, they walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. —Psalm 82:3-5 When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? —Psalm 11:3             The foundations of the world may be shaken, but…

THE CONSEQUENCE OF STUBBORNNESS But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels. —Psalm 81:11-12 God’s ways are best and when people do not want to listen to Him, do not want to submit to His desires, then it will not go well.  Why?  Because God will give “them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels.”  Then we get the results, the fruit of our counsel.  What does that look like?  Let’s look at Romans 1:18-32 and see if this sounds like our culture… They suppress the truth…

OUR LORD GOD ALMIGHTY’S PERSISTENCE AND PATIENCE The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against his people, until there was no remedy. —II Chronicles 36:15-16 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcmqSfr1ENY             Our Lord is so patient with us— “not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (II Peter 3:9).  He is patient with His church to be witnesses and disciple-makers.  He is also patient with those “mocking the messengers of…