Relationships are one of the most fulfilling things in life, but they can also be the most challenging. As we take a short break from the Sermon on the Mount, Mother’s Day reminds us of the influence that family has in our lives. Sometimes that is for better and sometimes for worse, but it is always significant.

Worry is a powerful thing and can quickly debilitate us. Jesus knows that if His listeners take this message to heart, they will have hardships on the road ahead. We must not allow anxiety to drive us to the ground when facing these difficulties. This study will talk about where this worry comes from and how to replace it with trust and confidence.

The course of our life is largely determined by what we value. We chase after the things that we treasure. Jesus tells us that some things are worth pursuing and some things are not. In this message, we will examine which is which.

This is a day to focus on the most important thing. With so many distractions within Christianity, there is one thing that unites us above all. On this day, we all turn our attention to what our hope is really in.

Prayer can be intimidating for many of us. What should we pray for? What should we not pray for? Should we leave that to the “professionals”? In this message, we will talk about what prayer should look like and gain the confidence to pray in a way that honors God.

Last week closed us out on chapter 5 of our solid ground series. This week Jesus shifts gears from telling whom we out to be to how to become that person. We learn some very important Spiritual disciplines that test our motivation and move us closer to God.

After raising the bar on murder, adultery, marriage, and oaths, Jesus finishes this section with arguably the two most challenging concepts. However, the promise is that taking these seriously brings us closer to who God wants us to be. We will finish Chapter 5 of Matthew this week and continue building our house on solid ground.

It seems like everybody looks for the loophole. When we make a commitment and things get difficult, our first reaction is to find a way out. This should not be the mentality of a Christian. In our passage this week, Jesus talks about the right way to think about our commitments.

It’s easy to judge others and ourselves by what we see on the outside, but that’s not how God looks at us. Our ongoing relationship with Him rises and falls based on our hearts more than our actions. In this week’s passage from the Sermon on the Mount, we will hear Jesus give two powerful examples of this and discuss what He wants us to learn.

Now that Jesus has introduced new understandings for a new Kingdom, the question is, “What about the old rules?” Jesus explains the role of the Law to them then and it will help us understand how to live faithfully today.