NMC Audio Podcast

Regardless of your faith (or lack of faith) in Jesus, we experience pressure, strain, loss, and struggle. We face "trials of every kind." The invitation from James is to welcome wisdom. But what kind of wisdom? The result of that choice will make all the difference in our world, our communities, and our closest relationships.

Jesus was abundantly clear with His followers when He said, “In this world, you will have trouble.” Jesus is telling His followers to brace themselves, there will be resistance to those who align themselves with Christ and His kingdom. Here, James offers significant insight into how followers of Jesus are to understand and face trials of many kinds.

Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave clear instruction on living as a citizen of the kingdom. He ends with a strong warning to those who believe they are following Jesus. Many will miss it. As the rain falls on the just and the unjust, the foundations will be exposed and what is in our hearts will be revealed. Listen to the words of Jesus and put them into practice.

When one kingdom rises, others will react. Jesus brings His kingdom toward the kingdoms of our world and our personal lives. He knows there will be resistance – but resistance can become the very thing Jesus uses to bring God’s kingdom to come and His will to be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Jesus, the revolutionary, is advocating for a profound and transformative love! Through Jesus, we find a compelling example of embracing love for our enemies as the most compassionate way to live. In Matthew 5:43-48, Jesus had something to say to the Pharisees of His days about this problem, and His words are specifically relevant to us today when God’s people have once again developed a reputation for hating other people.

Living in two worlds is challenging. Swimming upstream is difficult. Riding against the wind can be brutal. Jesus, in the Greatest Sermon Ever Preached, challenges His followers to do exactly that. In what’s known as The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus lays out the tension between living in the world yet walking in His ways. It’s all about “Kingdoms In Conflict!” Which one will you choose?

It would be an understatement to say that Jesus radically shifted the way people think, not just in His time, but in every generation since. Do we have the right thinking when it comes to who God is, who we are, and what life is? On the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus challenges people to change their minds, to think differently and rightly. Will you change your mind?

The Apostle Paul, kneeling before the Father, prays a prayer for the church, a prayer for all generations. May our prayer be the same for our brothers and sisters. May we be able to experience the surpassing love of Christ in such a dramatic way that it changes our lives and the way that we pray. 

Jesus shares this profound parable in response to a teacher of the law’s two questions. Jesus flips the script, and instead of being challenged by the teacher of the Law, He becomes the one who does the challenging. Jesus offers us insight into what the Kingdom of God is like and how we can experience His Kingdom.

Nearly all of us would agree that a marker of faithfulness to God is obedience to His Word. After all, James tells us that we should not merely listen to the Word, but we should do what it says. However, many of us are not quick to consider the attitude with which we “do” it. In Psalm 119, we are challenged to move beyond begrudging compliance to a joyful engagement. Today we’re challenged to think about what kind of obedience marks our lives.