Highohfaith

Q2. (1 Samuel 16:3-12) How does this story teach us the importance of listening carefully to God’s voice? We must listen carefully, if we don't we are liable to put our own thoughts and will before God's and misinterpret what God's will is. When we do this, we will suffer the consequences as Saul did. Or we may do as Samuel did, which is think that he already knew who God would choose as Kingly material by looking at outward appearance or statue,not looking at the heart. If we allow ourselves to get ahead of God's will we are allowing our own will to take control.God demands patience and faith. If Samuel had not listened carefully he would have missed acting on God's will, which was to choose David ,a son who had not even been brought yet to him. He was still in the field, shepherding his sheep for his father. Jesse did not even see David as important enough to bring in front of Samuel. But, God knew David's heart. What is our instinctive way of discerning? Looking at outward appearance, or judging one by his demeanor, actions, or wealth etc. Not looking inwardly, and examine a persons heart. How is God teaching us to discern? Most importantly through God's word."Discernment is a wonderful gift and operates in grace and faith. Discernment enables us to flow in agreement with God's authority and counsel. How do we learn to listen to the Spirit? By true communication with God through prayer and meditation. By having a personal relationship with God. We cannot do all the talking we must be still and listen also for these are the times in which God clearly makes his will known to us, through the Holy Spirit. We must listen carefully.

Q1. (1 Samuel 15:22-23). What is rebellion? Rebellion,simply put, is doing things of our own will,or the will of the devil, or others teaching religious philosophies which are not consistent with GOD'S will. Rebellion is choosing to obey something, or someone other than our Sovereign King. We must never run from God, but must run too Him, OBEY Him, and TRUST in Him in all that we do! In what way is rebellion as bad as witchcraft or occult practices? Rebellion from God is putting something else, or someone BEFORE or IN FRONT OF God ( choosing to believe them, instead of GOD)..when one does this they are not trusting in God's word. In this way it is like witchcraft and idolatry. You are idolizing and trusting either others or yourself, not God. What does rebellion have to do with arrogance? What can we do when we find rebellion against God in our hearts? Rebellion and arrogance say: I will do it MY own way. Not yours, God. Arrogance says I know better than you GOD. Here, I am reminded of a song the late Frank Sinatra used to sing, and my parents listened to when I was a kid. The name of the song and message was :" I Did It My Way." I don't like the song because in essence it says as long as you stay "true" to yourself everything may not be great but at least YOU did it your OWN way, same with the saying "to thine own self be true"( Hamlet-W.Shakespeare). I do not believe this. First and always we must stay true to GOD and TRUST in His word! If we find ourselves faltering we must seek God's guidance through prayer. What happens if we do nothing? First we need to really examine our heart. We must pray for discernment with the guidance of the Holy Spirit so we can understand and discern what God's will is for us. We must pay particular attention to our heart, our actions and what comes out of our mouths ( for what comes out of our mouths can corrupt our hearts)! Repent and pray continually without ceasing for God's will to be done in your life..not you own..but GOD'S. We must surrender to His power. If we do not we are doomed, our faith is dead, we must repent. "Faith without deeds is dead". We must always seek discernment and seek to know, and apply God's will to our lives. We may not always succeed, because man is born to sin. As Christians, God's will must prevail in our lives and we must keep trying to do His will. "Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled"! A very wise God, OUR SOVEREIGN GOD. told us this through his Son, on a distant hill in a distant land and He spoke to ALL of mankind for ALL of time! Don't ever give up-seek to do God's will always! Seek to live righteously through God.

Q3. (Romans 5:15-19) By what right does Adam represent all humankind? By what right does Christ become head of all who become his disciples? If Christ is not our "representative" or "head," how can his death for sins be effective for us? By what right does Adam represent all humankind? He was the first man which God created and God created him with freedom of choice. Since Adam chose to invite sin into the world, his descendants which were all of mankind, all who came after him also suffered sin and it's consequences. By what right does Christ become head of all who become his disciples? If mankind suffered so becasue of one mans brokenness ( Adam's), then how much more shall mankind be made righteous through the chosen One,our Savior, whose blood was shed to redeem us? If Christ is not our "representative" or "head," how can his death for sins be effective for us? Simply and profoundly put: it cannot. We must recognize Christ as our Savior, The chosen one, or be doomed to certain death by our sin. The only way to God, justification and salvation,and eternal life is through Jesus Christ..

Q2. (Romans 5:13, 20) What is Paul saying in these verses? Can there be sin without law? In what sense does the "trespass increase" (5:20) when the law is present? God did not make us robots, He gave us freedom to chose right from wrong. Since Adam was the very first man that God created, his actions affected all of mankind, he was a representative of all who came after him. All suffered death because of Adams' propensity to sin, all mankind became sinners because Adam WAS all of mankind! Paul wants his audience to know sin has, and will be present in mankind always, despite the law. Adam invited sin into the world God created thus UNITING all of mankind to him through that sin. All of mankind was held responsible for one mans sin, Adam's! Jesus unites us all together through salvation. One man, Jesus represent all of us who accept him, unites us all through His blood. As Adam damned all of mankind to sin , all are made righteous by Jesus.. In what sense does the "trespass increase" (5:20) when the law is present? The law "spotlights" our sin. It makes it "stick out", become more apparent by putting an emphasis on how we should do things according to mosaic law which God gave to Moses.He gave the law not to save us, but to lay down a sort of guideline, not an absolute, as God knew we could not adhere to law, we had already been made sinners by Adam. The law was put in place to guide us along the way until our Savior came.The law put much more of an emphasis on how much mankind could not adhere to the law and how deep and how strong our human propensity to sin is, and how much we needed salvation! Jesus did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. Matthew 5:17( NLT) "Don't misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. Matthew 5:17 NLT Matthew 7:12 ( NIV) So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Romans 3:31 (NIV) Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law.

Q1. What kinds of circumstances in modern life can you think of where a single person acts for an entire group? In what ways are members of the group tied to this person? Jesus is the first person who comes to mind, He is our King and Leader, all Christians are grouped together by the common bond of Love for our Lord.Christian leaders acts for an entire group (Christians). Individual church denominations act as leader e.g. Catholics, Baptist, Methodist, etc. Other groups which are not Christian such a Wicca acts as leaders of a group. A Political party acts for an entire group. Union leaders act for the whole group.. there are to many examples that come to mind.In a family the parents represent their children. ALL are tied to the leader (s) by a common bond which they share.

Q4. (Romans 5:9-11) What does "reconciliation" mean? Why is reconciliation with God necessary? We understand our having been saved by Jesus' death (5:10a, past tense). In what sense are we being saved (5:10b, present tense) by his life? What is Jesus doing for us in the present? Reconciliation means to bring into harmony that which was once in discord. While once man thought God to be against him, Jesus' death and blood brought us to love and inner peace and reconciled us to God. God's sacrifice of His only son showed mankind what love is, and proved to man once an for all that He was not an enemy of man, but man's creator. He loved us so much that He was willing to walk among us, die a horrible death, so we could know Him, be reconciled to Him through His ultimate sacrifice. Reconciliation is the only way we can know God is for us and not against us, we cannot have discord, or doubt in order to be Christians, a reconciliation MUST take place. In order to know Jesus ( be a Christian) We must be reconciled to God. Jesus is both Son of God and GOD. Jesus walks among us NOW. The Kingdom of God is not only in heaven, it is here on earth as well. For me personally Jesus does everything. He gives me life, He is the air that I breath. For the world and mankind He gives love and hope, He is here with us.His GREAT commission is this.: Matthew 28:18-20 - But Jesus (after he met the eleven in Galilee) came and spoke these words to them, "All power in Heaven and on earth has been given to me. You, then, are to go and make disciples of all the nations and baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to observe all that I have commanded you and, remember, I am with you always, even to the end of the world." That say it ALL. He is with us now, and will always be with us!

Q3. (Romans 5:6, 8) Why is it so important to embrace the truth that "Christ died for the ungodly" (5:6), that "Christ died for sinners" (5:8)? According to 5:8, did Christ die for us at our best or at our worst? How does this give us assurance against the devil's lies about us being too bad to forgive? Christ died for us when we were at our very worst. We must embrace this truth, otherwise we can never move past our sin towards repentance and forgiveness. Also we must embrace how long and how wide ( infinite )God's love is for us, that He sacrificed His only Son. We learn to love. We love because He first loved us. We must recognize that ALL are sinner and all fall short of the glory of God. yet, despite our sin we are loved by God and forgiven. Part of becoming a Christian is this admission, we must humble ourselves before our Lord and Savior. We must admit to God and OURSELVES, we are retched sinners saved only by the grace of God. ALL have sinned, God saved us by sending his son to die a horrible death when we were at our very worst..how AMAZING! Bittersweet, that our Lord should suffer in such a horrible way for our sins, in doing so, we have been reconciled with God through the blood of Jesus. When we ask the Lord earnestly for forgiveness, this sin of ours is thrown to the bottom of the ocean floor, it is not forgotten but it IS Stamped "FORGIVEN" . Through Jesus' horrendous death our sins have been washed away.The devil has no power to forgive, he has no power at all. *** Let every soul be subject unto higher powers. For there is NO power but of God: the powers THAT BE are ordained of God. (- 1769 Oxford King James Bible "Authorized Version") The devil has NO POWER! God's power is sovereign and all encompassing.

Q2. (Romans 5:2-5) According to this passage why should we rejoice in our sufferings and tribulations? One by one, what is the importance to our lives of: perseverance, tried character, and hope? In my own walk with God,I have found that it is during difficult times,which I have had many, divorce, illness, financial, etc. that I grow the most in my relationship with God. I never "blame" God nor run away from Him in trouble. I always run towards Him. AND HE is ALWAYS there! I find that these difficult times help to build character and grow God's Holy Spirit living in and through me. These difficult times help me to break down the walls that stand in the way of the Holy Spirit working in me, the full Glory of God. If one perseveres, one will have a different perspective on life and the wonderful gift God has given. Through hard times, I have realized what GOOD times really are and I have realized God awesome POWER over everything in HIS CREATION, even our troubles, especially our troubles. and have set my priorities to be quite different . Through perseverance, we grow in character and through character we grow in faith. Tried character is perseverance, coupled with faith and hope in our Lord and Savior. We don't give up, or throw in the towel in times of trouble, or 'curse' God. What we do is remember Jesus, the Ultimate Sacrificial Lamb. and also the apostles and many others who have been tortured for Christ. We remember their, sacrifice, suffering, perseverance, and HOPE in the present and hope in the future, we realize ALL the Glory of God only when we suffer and grow in character. .

Q1. (Romans 5:1-2) According to verses 1-2, faith is a key to salvation. For Abraham (4:3), what was the relationship between faith and justification? For us (5:1-2), what is the relationship between faith and justification? In your own words, just what does it mean to be justified? Because Abraham trusted and believed God with all his heart , he was given favor by God. Not by his works but by his faith! For us the relationship is the same. We are justified through our faith, We are loved and forgiven by our faith in Jesus Christ we are not longer separated from God by our sin. It is by grace we are forgiven and made righteous. Not by our works. It means I can live life secure knowing I am loved by God and nothing can ever separate me from the love of God!

Q4. (Matthew 7:24-27) Does Jesus require obedience of his disciples? (John 15:14). Is there a kind of true Christian who believes, but does not obey? How do you justify Jesus' requirement of obedience with Paul's teaching that salvation is a gift, not because of works, lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:8-10)? Yes, Jesus requires obedience. When we become Christians, we must seek to obey the Lord, this is part of our commitment to God. To submit or conform to His authority. As I said in an earlier post, we don't always get it right, that's impossible, because we humans are sinful by nature.That doe not EXCUSE us!!! We must never stop listening to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. We MUST trust Jesus' word in all that we do. It isn't easy to change and we CAN'T change ourselves. Only through submission to the teaching of the Holy Spirit will we continue to grow in the word, be sanctified, become righteous. As Christians we must seek the word always, and seek to obey Jesus. We must have deep roots. God never promised everything would be easy.His promise is He will always be with us and He is! He is a sovereign, faithful, loving Father, we must respect, honor and OBEY Him. As a child growing us my earthly father would reprimand us if we were not respectful, one thing he was very adamant about was not "talking back" . I realize now, that he didn't want us talking back to him because No1.) it was an act of rebellion against the lesson he was trying to teach us, and most importantly, No 2.) if we were talking back we weren't HEARING what he was saying. Thus we were not learning the lesson very well. It is more so with our Father in heaven. Do not "talk back" disagree with his word because His word is our TRUTH always. We must heed the Word."Those that have ears, let them hear' . Yes, sometimes we can hear and not listen! Any of us whom are married or are in, or have been in, a long term relationship know oftentimes when we're speaking with our partner, we know in our hearts he/she, hears us, but he/she is not going to listen. Same with our children. It is like saying something to someone when they have their back to you and are walking away. You know they really have no interest in what you are saying. They are hearing you, but they are not listening to you.It is very important that we follow God's word.That we HEAR and RESPECT,TRUST what He instructs. He will never instruct us to do anything which is not good for us. He is faithful and loves us, put all your stock in HIS WORD. His words is our instruction for living life on earth abundantly (I don't mean material wealth here). An abundance of Faith and Love for the Father who created us. Once your heart is filled, it will never again be the same. You will WANT to hear what our Father has to say. You will want to hear Him and obey Him , it will be your lifelong goal to achieve righteousness according to the will of God. To please Him! Salvation is a gift of grace from God, we can not earn it. It is the ultimate gift of LOVE! The "works" Paul is speaking of are the work of the "mosaic law". He is not talking about inward expression, our heart. He is talking about outward expressions of obedience (through mosaic law), which have been distorted throughout the centuries by man. These are approximately 613 Mosaic laws, although this number is widely contested. The mosaic law been expounded upon throughout the centuries by man. Distorted and have become 'man's' laws. God talks to our hears, our obedience to Him must come from our hearts, a deep love, commitment to Him, not from a book of man made rules.

Q3. (Matthew 7:21-23) How is it possible to deceive yourself, so that you presume that you are "doing" when you are only "hearing"? (see James 1:22-25). How might it be possible to prophesy, drive out demons, and perform miracles in Jesus' name and not enter the Kingdom of heaven? It's very possible to deceive ourselves by not looking at our inner character. Take an honest evaluation of what type of character we have, admit to ourselves and God that we are in no way perfect. Ask God to forgive our sins and indwell in us the gift of the Holy Spirit. Only when we open our hearts to the teaching of the Holy Spirit do we begin to experience good works in our character. We are not changing ourselves, God is doing all the work and will continue until the day of it's completion. Good works are not 'good law' they are achieved through humility and submission to The Holy Spirit. Jesus is not talking about outward show of faith here, no He cuts straight to the bone here, He is talking about our HEART and what truly motivates our actions. He is talking about our faith, trust, humility and submission, and a deep desire to be obedient, to be made righteous through His Holy Spirit. False prophet have distorted the truth, since the beginning of God's creation. Many have 'claimed' to do miracles and drive out demons. people who claim to be prophets in God's name but they are in truth charlatan's who use God's name to acquire a following. Then they exploit the people who 'accept' their lies.

Q2. (Matthew 7:15-20) Jesus says that one's inner self will eventually become apparent (Matthew 12:34). What kinds of "fruit" might be clues to a false prophet? Clues may be apparent in a person's whose faith has become distorted by teachings outside Christianity. It may become apparent through character traits such as hate, resentments, failure to forgive, not being able to give of oneself, having no compassion. There are way to many bad character traits to mention here .That being said, it is very important for us, as Christians to be able discern bad character traits "bad fruits" in ourselves and others.The only way you can do this, is by relying on the teaching and promptings of The Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit we will learn to evaluate ones' "bad fruits" and "good fruits"by looking at character, plus behavior traits such as not obeying or heeding God's command, killing, stealing, drinking and carousing, sexual immorality and so forth. We must look for all these traits, not only in others, we must often take a look at our own character, so that we will continue to do God's will. I call it 'taking stock'. It is another way of saying, look, and take responsibility, be accountable for what you see, and then let God do His will. If you see "bad fruit" in another person, trust in God to give you the gift of discernment. If there is a possibility that this person will pull you 'down', or if you, through teaching and discipleship can help this person. Always pray for a person who has fallen off the path of righteousness and do not condemn. But, be aware of their actions, and put on the full armor of God to protect you from evildoers. One verse that I say everyday to remind myself, to keep a better perspective of how easily we can become distracted by worldly "values" is Romans 12:2(NIV) 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will. I believe we must continually renew our minds so that we can see ourselves and other's in full light. Evaluate our character as well as the character of others according to the will of God.

Q1. (Matthew 7:13-14) If Jesus' teaching about the narrow gate and the narrow road to life is to be believed, what change would this make in how you conduct your life? What difference would it make to how you witness to your neighbors? How might it affect your acceptance of Universalism? I pray always that I conduct my life through word and deed. I know there are areas, and always will be that I must work on in my life here on earth. No one is perfect, as Christians we are all in the process of being perfected. It is a work that will continue until the day of completion when Jesus returns. The key is, never stop striving to come to Jesus. Life is not always pleasant. There are oftentimes when we must endure hardship. Jesus never promised life would be easy, His promise is that He will always be with us. We must get to know Jesus, and spend time with Him daily, get to know Him on a personal basis. He is our Father. Then, and only then do we begin to experience righteousness. I have met many Christians who think their faith should be the answer to all their wordy problems. When God doesn't answer them immediately, they seem to drift over to the 'wide' side and their faith falters.As Christians we must never question our Father, faith is deep believe, unseen, that all He does and is, is for us, His beloved Children! Even though we don't see or understand it at the time, we will. 1 Corinthians 13:12 (NLT) Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. We, as Christians must remain steadfastly involved in the life of Jesus. We must trust Him in everything. Study HIS WORD, this is the only way we can know what He expects of His children and strive to do it. Open our hearts to The Holy Spirit living in us, listen to His prompting. We can't always get it right, but those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled. As heirs to The Kingdom of heaven, it is our responsibility to teach others, fellowship with others about Jesus. This is something I personally struggle with a lot. I give it always to Jesus, and ask Him to help me be a better disciple. It isn't that my faith is weak. I love my Lord, Jesus! I am basically a loner ( in need of being perfected) - this goes against what Jesus is all about. I love people, I will give all my love and compassion, but I'm basically very shy. I have a problem articulating myself when speaking or coming face to face with others.Through God I'm learning to reach out and becoming "fearless" as He commands. I RESPECT and DESIRE to obey my Father. I must do as He ask. It has not been easy for me, but I do not give up.I continue to seek the gift of fellowship and the gift to spread the gospel to others. I do my part online, through social networking to spread the word, I always feel it is not enough. I feel the Lord is pushing, Our Faithful Lord is perusing me ,if you will, to be a stronger disciple. I want to do more and more for my Father. I thirst, and I want to overcome through His Holy Spirit anything that stands in the way of me entering the "narrow " gate. I want to be a dutiful servant. Because I love Him so much.I will strive my whole live long. This is my commitment to my Father in heaven,my Creator! The One who gave me this wonderful gift of life. I will never give up, He is my Faithful Father and I am His (not perfect, being perfected) child. I still struggle with one on one, or in a group encounters but making strides, taking infant steps in the right direction. God has destined me to do great things for Him, He has chosen me as His child I cannot take this gift lightly. I'm praying and seeking Jesus' will in all areas of my life. I will continue to strive to get through the narrow gate always. I do not accept universalism..simply put ONE WAY,JESUS! Jesus is the only way to be reconciled with God.Picking and choosing what you want your faith to consist of does not correlate with Christianity. Christianity is a deep belief and faith that our Father, JESUS, is SOVEREIGN, only He knows what is best for us always, and putting into word and deed all of his commands. It is loving and trusting our Father with ALL our hearts! It is a desire, a deep thirst to please Him.We do not get to 'pick and choose" according to what is CONVENIENT for us.

Q4. (Matthew 7:12) In what way does the "Golden Rule" capsulize the message of the law and the prophets? This seems like a different "summary" of the law and the prophets than Jesus indicated in Matthew 22:37-39. How are they the same? How are they different? The golden rule is about love, and respect for others as well as ourselves.We must put ourselves in the shoes of another and imagine how it would feel to be ridiculed or condemned and also how great it feels to be treated with dignity,love and forgiveness. Jesus is all about love, forgiveness, and respect. We must seek to emulate all HIS virtues. Otherwise He will have died in vein, the golden rule capsulizes all that Jesus embodied..

Q3. (Matthew 7:9-11). What do these verses teach us about God's relationship to us? What do they teach about God's characteristic response toward us? How does this differ from a cynical view of God? Why is a positive understanding of God important to be able to pray with faith? God is our Supreme Father, He would never do anything to hurt us. If our parents on earth will care for us, how much more will God the Father of all creation, care for His Children?? We must trust Him with wild abandonment, come to Him as little children, anticipating always that He will take care of us. A person with great faith has God living in them. His Holy Spirit is always present. Our faith is the only thing which can never, ever be taken from us. Since God is for us, who can be against us?? This a called FAITH! P.U.S.H P-Pray U. Until S. Something H. Happens

Q2. (Matthew 7:7-8) Which lesson is taught in both the Parables of the Friend at Midnight (Luke 11:5-10) and the Widow and the Unjust Judge (Luke 18:1-6)? How do these relate to the commands in Matthew 7:7-8? The lesson is that we must never, ever give up. God is always listening and will grant our petitions according to HIS will. Our prayers must be persistent petitions, filled with hope, anticipation that God will hear us and care for us, do what is best for us. Even if it isn't what we expect. Our prayers will be answered, but only according to His will and only in His time. We must have persistent patience. The two Parable have one thing in common. Both the neighbor and the widow were persistent, they would not give up. Each time the neighbor knocked he knocked harder and louder. Each time the widow went to see the judge she was more and more adamant about her case until finally both the neighbor and the widow were granted their request. We must keep up with the same kind of resilience, keep asking, keep seeking and knocking and never, ever give up on God. He is our sole provider. Our Father and He will care for us. This is love, this is faith..

Q1. (Matthew 7:1-2) What do the words "ask," "seek," and "knock" have in common? What distinguishes them from each other? Does one word convey more intensity than another? What is the significance of the present, continuous, imperative tense of these verbs? They are all verbs which require our action. We must ask to receive, knock to receive, and seek to receive gifts from our Father in heaven.I think knock is the most important, because it indicates we must keep knocking, for the door to the Fathers Kingdom to open to us. We must know God first before we can seek God's righteousness with all our hearts.Then we can ask with confidence, and it will be given to us according to God's will.. The imperative tense of these verbs denote that we must continually do these three things so God will hear our prayers. Never give up. Petition the Lord with all our heart, always.

Q4. (Matthew 7:6) In Jesus' day, what did dogs and pigs have in common? What would holy food and pearls have in common? Read Matthew 10:14; Acts 13:44-51; 18:5-6; and 28:17-28. In what kinds of circumstances did believers turn away from a continued sharing of the gospel? To what kinds of people did they continue their witness? Pigs were considered unclean animals in Hebrew culture. Jews were not permitted to eat pigs. Pigs were raised and eaten by heathens, the Gentiles. Dog were considered scavengers to the Jews, dogs hunted and ate unclean flesh. Both animals were looked upon as being very offensive, and distasteful - much like the Jews opinion of the Gentiles. Jews, often referred to Gentiles as 'dogs' of society. Pearls were consider very precious by the Jews because of their material worth and their brilliant beauty. They were considered rare jewels and often equated with the wisdom of God. The holy food which they ate was also of great importance, what they ate and drank was governed by all sorts of Mosaic law. The food they ate was considered sacred by the Jews.. Both, food and pearls were consider of great value to the Jews. If the Gospel fell on ears that did not hear, eyes that did not see, and hearts that would not accept the gospel then it was time to "shake the dust from your feet" and move on. The Jews did not want to hear that Jesus was their God, the Messiah they had waited for, the Gentiles were more receptive and they listened and they did not reject the Lord in the same manner that the Jews did. They continued to witness to people who accepted what they had to say, who listened, saw, and believed!! The gospel is for those who listen and believe. It is for everyone, Jew and Gentile, all of God's creation. However, if it is rejected completely , and one is not open to receiving Christ then move on..shake the dust off your feet, off your clothes ( as Paul did) and take the gospel to those who will hear and respond with great faith. Don't waste precious time on those who will not HEAR!

Q3. (Matthew 7:3-5) What about this parable is humorous? Why do you think Jesus compares a speck of sawdust with a plank or beam? What does the speck represent? What does the plank represent? According to this parable, when is it okay to remove a speck? When is it not okay? I'm a very serious person and don't find humor in this parable. I think Jesus wants us to realize that each sin is the same. We are all sinners, a speck of sawdust or a plank, a sin is a sin!! Jesus is asking us to consider "what's the difference?" We all fall short of the glory of God. Jesus is reminding us that we are ALL SINNERS! God looks at all sin the same. John 8:7 (NIV) When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her."

Q2. (Matthew 7:1-2) Read a similar passage in Luke 6:37-38. According to Matthew's account, what is our fate if we measure out big heaps of judgment with a critical spirit? 1.)God will judge us in the same way as we judge others. God is sovereign. Only He can judge. We belong to God, we are His creation!! We should not take it upon ourselves to dish out judgement or we will reap the wrath of God's judgement on us as well. 2.) According to Luke's account, how can measuring be both positive and negative? As God's children we must be able to discern right from wrong and be cautious not to let our brother or sister drag us into the pit of sin. Descending right from wrong is different than judging. Judgement is a way of saying "I condemn you for your sin. I place myself above you, as I would never sin in such a way." Of course we all know this is not true, as Christians we must be constantly on guard and keep watch for satin. Clothe ourselves in the full Armour of God. We all are sinners and all fall short of the GLORY of God. If one is discerning instead of judgmental he knows that he too is a sinner and must not judge another. Our sole Christian duty is to LOVE first, and tenderly counsel without indictment our Christian brother/sisters. God's tender mercies should always be shown. As Christians we must not judge, only GOD will judge us, good and bad according to that which we do to others.. 3.)What should we measure out instead of judgmentalism? We must always treat our Christian brothers and sisters with love first, as God first loved us., with all our broken pieces, and in spite of all our faults. Followed by cautious understanding, and counsel, forgiveness and acceptance. Love is the primary gift of the Holy Spirit, if we do not show love, understanding and forgiveness to one another we are not honoring Christ's brutal sacrifice on the cross. Love is God's most important command and as Christian we must obey. supporting verses: 1 Corinthians 13:13 (ESV) But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love. John 8:7 (ESV) And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” Galatians 6-1 (ESV) Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 1 John 3:16 ESV By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. Matthew 5:22 ESV But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

Q1. (Matthew 7:1) Have you ever caught yourself severely criticizing others Christians behind their backs -- or to their faces? Yes, oftentimes I have been guilty of this, to be totally truthful in my heart I can still be judgmental of others at times.That being said, I believe God is perfecting me, His Holy Spirit is directing me more toward love and understanding than judgement. In my Christian walk I have become more and more aware of how wrong and destructive judging others is. God is showing me in many ways that harsh judgements can really be hurtful and very destructive to others and to myself as well. It is a sin. I must TRULY look at myself, examine myself( look at the woman in the mirror, truly and deeply search my own soul) first before being able to discern (discernment is different than judgement) good and bad in another person. What is the attitude that underlies censoriousness? It is a judgement against others for no valid reason, someone who is constantly picking others apart without realizing their own faults. Oftentimes it is an inward expression of hate or judgement toward oneself which cause them to be judgmental of others. How can the psychological concept of "projection" motivate harsh judgment? When we are projecting we are actually condemning others for that which we ourselves are guilty. It is an outward expression of judgement towards other, but in actuality we are judging our own behaviors. Why should Christians show love in the face of a brother's or sister's failing? First,and most importantly, love and forgiveness are two very important Christian attributes ( gifts of the Holy Spirit) which makes us brothers and sister, we are to love one another. WE ARE FAMILY! We cannot look at others behavior without looking at our own behavior first. It is possible to be discerning. But, never judgmental, we are to always help our Christian brothers and sisters without judgement. We all have our faults and we can all make mistakes. We are all sinners. God is the only perfect one, and the only one who can make the final judgement. Do not place ourselves above the Lord. God is the judge of all mankind.

Q5. (Matthew 6:34) Is there humor intended in verse 34? What is the point of Jesus' joke here? What is the command in this verse? I didn't find the verse to be humorous at all. I think Jesus is teaching us that while here on this earth we will experience trouble, it's a given, Adam saw to that when he invited sin into the world. But that we should NOT WORRY about worldly trouble, though always present and each of us will experience our own hardships here on earth it is temporal, but His promise is eternal.

Q4. (Matthew 6:33) What is the command in this verse? How must our seeking God differ from our seeking of food and clothing, according to this verse? What is the promise found in this verse? What is the command in this verse? To seek God and His righousness first always. How must our seeking God differ from our seeking of food and clothing, according to this verse? God is supreme, He is our Deliver. Our only provider of life,through Jesus we become heirs to His Kingdom and eternal life with Him.. Food and Clothes are merely things which sustain our earthly life. But our spiritual being can only receive God's graces through faith.What is the promise found in this verse? He will always sustain but we must put Him first in all that we do! He will be with us for eternity. He will never leave us.

I believe Jesus is using gentile or/pagans as a example of people who chase after other gods, as that's the way it was in the time in which He was speaking.The gentiles were considered heathen, godless people by the Jews. They put their trust and faith into materialistic, earthy things.They worshiped many other gods. The gentiles were shiftless. They had no God to provide for them. He makes this comparison in an attempt for us as Christians to realize how important our faith is to the sovereign God of the universe , and how easily we can become derailed spiritually by wordy 'treasures'. I believe He is also addressing the Gentiles who are in His 'audience' during His sermon in an attempt to bring them into His presence and into His trust. What emotional and faith effect does the phrase, "your heavenly Father knows that you need them,"have in your life? I have experienced and do experience His provisions everyday in every morning that I open my eyes, get out of bed, eat, breath. Without God there is no life. The effect it has on me is a deepening faith that Our Provider is all in all, He provides the very air that we breath. He is the creator of everything, and He sustains everything. He is a faithful, sovereign God. Everything that happens here on earth is all within the plan He has for us, His creation. I rely on him and I do not question anything He sends my way, whether bad or good, I know there is a reason and only He knows the plan. It is not for me to question our Father. I am completely reliant on Him. He has given me strength and sustained me through things I believe no mortal human could survive. Because I love Him and trust Him, He has saved me, I will live in eternity with Him, there is nothing to fear! I believe that God does not let people starve to death as some posters have wondered. God said He would provide enough food for His creation and He has. God does not let people starve, people do. There is enough food in this world to feed all the starving masses. In the U.S alone the amount of food, we throw out, even such things as potato peelings is enough to sustain life for those starving to death. It is a people issue. God has provided the food, what we do with it ( myself included) is not share it, or find a way in which we could share it and feed all of God's children. The issue is not that the provision has not been made. God has provided. People have abused this provision and many others.It is an earthly, societal issue, and I myself am also guilty. I do my best to be charitable but I alone, cannot feed the world. I truly feel bad when I throw away leftovers or peel potatoes or even scrape the dishes. I know the food I throw away could mean life for another one of God's children somewhere else in the world. I even think about the food we feed our pets, how it could save lives for the starving, God doesn't let people starve to death, people do. I hope i have not offended anyone. That's not my intention.

Q2. (Matthew 6:25-34) How many times in this passage does the phrase "do not worry," "do not be anxious," or "take no thought" occur? In what way does excessive worry border on sin? Are worry and trust exact opposites? These phrases are stated many times. The point of repetition in this sermon, is to help us understand how important it is not to worry. Yes, worry is in opposition to faith. God is our provider!