God's Firm Foundation

 

What Jesus said - The Sermon on the Mount

You are able to live in strength and confidence only as much as you know God and abide in his presence.  To develop in discernment and the wisdom of God, you must take God and his ways seriously.  When you don’t, you are left as vulnerable as a house built upon sand in a storm.

Matthew 7:24-27 (TLB) 24 “All who listen to my instructions and follow them are wise, like a man who builds his house on solid rock. 25 Though the rain comes in torrents, and the floods rise and the storm winds beat against his house, it won’t collapse, for it is built on rock. 26 “But those who hear my instructions and ignore them are foolish, like a man who builds his house on sand. 27 For when the rains and floods come, and storm winds beat against his house, it will fall with a mighty crash.”

3/29/2026

A Transformed Heart

What Jesus Said - The Sermon on the Mount

The evidence you trust God is your transformed heart. When you experience his profound love and the teachings of his son, you want to know everything about his will and his ways. You want to know and do his will day-to-day. If you don’t, you may not be right with God yet.  

Matthew 7:21-23 (TLB) 21 “Not all who sound religious are really godly people. They may refer to me as ‘Lord,’ but still won’t get to heaven. For the decisive question is whether they obey my Father in heaven. 22 At the Judgment many will tell me, ‘Lord, Lord, we told others about you and used your name to cast out demons and to do many other great miracles.’ 23 But I will reply, ‘You have never been mine. Go away, for your deeds are evil.’

3/22/2026

Beware

 

What Jesus Said - The Sermon on the Mount

Not everyone teaching about God is submitted to him.  Charisma or a compelling personality is not the test of a true teacher. God's character must be in them. A true teacher of God is not a perfect human being, but reflects God's ways in what they say and do.

Matthew 7:15-20 (TLB) 15 “Beware of false teachers who come disguised as harmless sheep, but are wolves and will tear you apart. 16 You can detect them by the way they act, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit. You need never confuse grapevines with thorn bushes or figs with thistles. 17 Different kinds of fruit trees can quickly be identified by examining their fruit. 18 A variety that produces delicious fruit never produces an inedible kind. And a tree producing an inedible kind can’t produce what is good. 19 So the trees having the inedible fruit are chopped down and thrown on the fire. 20 Yes, the way to identify a tree or a person is by the kind of fruit produced

3/15/2026

The Narrow Gate

What Jesus Said - The Sermon on the Mount

If you enter and live life via the wide gate, you eventually dead-end. You will see the damage you have caused, including to yourself.  Then (not before), you will become curious about the narrow gate. This means you are ready to see things God’s way, not your way.  

Matthew 7:13-14 (TLB) 13 “Heaven can be entered only through the narrow gate! The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide enough for all the multitudes who choose its easy way. 14 But the Gateway to Life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it.

3/8/2026