Flipside Christian Church

Good morning church.

How's everyone doing?

Good.

Happy Sunday.

If we have not met yet,
my name is Michael.

I'm on the team here at flipside.

I serve our kids and youth.

And it's actually.

I've been here a year in July,
which has been pretty cool.

And so

the first event I went to was a food bank
service day, which we are doing tomorrow.

And so crazy how time flies.

Already been a year.

But Pastor Carl is out of town.

He is visiting grandkids.

And so I said this the first year.

I'm going to say it every time I'm up here
is just my little bit of immaturity.

Send him a text
if you have his number right now.

I would love for him
to get 30 texts this morning.

And so just to kind of bother him
and annoy him,

but let him know you're thinking
about him. You care for him?

This morning,
though, we're going to take a brief pause

from our current series, and we're going
to jump into the Gospel of Matthew.

So if you have your Bibles or
your smartphones, open up to Matthew five,

Matthew chapter five, we're going to
we're going to sit in this morning

the sermon on the Mount.

At least we're going to introduce it.

We're going to talk about three things.

The Beatitudes
or these blessings that Jesus talks about.

And we're going to talk about salt,
and we're going to talk about light.

And really,

what kind of prompted this doing this
one off, although I hope it continues.

Right.

My challenge
is that we don't just sit in this morning,

but you will continue in
Matthew in the coming weeks.

Is the you and I my oldest?

We I usually put him to bed

and we'll do some
kind of Debo will read from his Bible.

We'll open up
one of the devotionals he has,

or we'll just read the verse today.

And a couple weeks ago.

And when Pascale hit me up about teaching,

every day was Matthew,
it was Matthew, Matthew, Matthew, Matthew.

And so our high schoolers
and I, we went through the sermon

on the Mount last fall,
and we sat in it for three months.

It was awesome, right?

Just these red letter texts

that Jesus has words
on, on what it means to follow him.

And I thought it was so impactful
and such a challenge.

And so this morning, that's my my heart.

There are two things
I hope we could walk away with.

The first is
that we'd have a value of Scripture.

We have a heart for it.

And the second is that we would understand
what it means to follow Jesus.

Right?

That Jesus is challenging us in this text
and saying, hey, it's not a mystery.

And what I what I expect of you, what I,
what I ask of you, it's right here.

Right.

And so we're going to say it in
Matthew five this morning.

Eight Beatitudes and then salt and light.

But here's the question
that has been thrown in my head.

Really for like 20 years.

And it's why I want to start this morning.

As I became a believer in high school.

But, you know,
there's not a ton of depth there.

But but that's kind of
when this faith journey started for me

and this question
all the way again, is elementary.

It's kind of morphed and changed how
I interact with it throughout the years.

And I'll put it on the screen
for you to look at.

It's this. And what does it look like?

What does it feel like and
what does it sound like to follow Jesus?

Again, kind of elementary,
but I'm talking about like

all in chips in the middle,
like win or bust.

Go home.

What does it look like?
Or does it feel like?

And what does it sound like to follow
Jesus with everything,

every single second of every single day?

There's a dependance on him
for for the thoughts you have

and the actions you take.
And just whatever you're doing in life.

And so blessings salt and light.

But kind of to

position us well or posture us well.

There's a couple of things I want to throw
on the screen for you to think about.

So, Pastor Carl and I,
we're processing this week is this idea

that Matthew five through seven there
Kingdom values.

But you might hear that phrase
a lot at Flipside Kingdom

that it doesn't mean
to be a part of this kingdom

when we're in the world,
but not of this world.

So five, six and seven are kingdom values,
not cultural virtues, right?

What culture says on what the kingdom
and the values are, and what

Scripture shares are very different.

And the sermon on
the Mount is not about chasing blessings,

although that's where Jesus starts
these beatitudes,

but becoming the kind of person
that God blesses, right?

That we look more like Jesus every day.

And in that way we live a fulfilled life,
not a perfect life or always happy life,

but a fulfilled life.
I would say a blessed life.

But as we go through these eight,
you're going to

you're going to realize
that they're not what the world says.

It's not,

oh, you're so blessed
with the house in the car and the kids

and the health and the vacations
and the whatever.

Those things are amazing, right?
They're such a blessing.

But Jesus is talking about

what it means to be blessed
and live a blessed lifestyle.

And so that's we're going
to talk about, this morning.

And before we do, though, again,
I want to kind of set this up, God,

to be kind of stirring in my heart.

This idea about our primary call in life.

I think for a long time
I've always struggled with what's my

what's God's will for me.

Right. We pray, father, your kingdom come.

Your will be done on earth or in my life
as it is in heaven, right?

And so I try to give my career
to the Lord.

And I think I've stumbled a lot with

like, what is God's call for me
professionally?

And that's when I'm living in God's will
is when I'm in that role

or I have that status,
or I have a check that box or achieve this

something in life.

And I realized that I was missing it,
I think, the whole time,

and this is our primary call,
this is the Lord's will for our lives.

It's it's our primary call
for intimacy with the father,

a closeness to him
and a dependance on him.

That's our primary call in life, not our
ministry role, not the job that we have.

Although we may still be living in
God's will for us professionally.

I hope you are.

But don't get stuck that
when I get to that job or that promotion

or I can check that box,
then I'm living in God's will.

Know.

Don't miss the life
that's happening all along, right?

Living in
God's will means a dependance on him and

and a knowledge
that His Word is beneficial to you.

And I think one way
in which we have that intimacy with God,

one way in which we we draw
near, is through God's word.

Right? We need to know what God says.

We didn't know how he interact

with his creation,
how he talked about us, how he views us.

We need to know God's voice.

My father in law, he's
sitting in the back, right?

He used to ask a really funny question
when we were in high school.

We had a Tuesday night Bible study

and he would he would ask, What's God's
favorite flavor of ice cream?

It was a silly question,
the dumb question.

But it gets to the heart of,
do you know God's voice?

Do you know God's character?

Do you know him intimately enough
where you would know his favorite flavor

of ice cream? Right? As silly as that is.

And that's the kind of intimacy
we need with God.

A very close nearness where we can say,
yeah, I know, I know what he likes.

I know how he speaks.

I know what he says.

I know his posture towards me, what he
wants of me, what he does not want for me.

I know these things because I meditate
on his word day and night.

And so that's my hope that we walk away
this morning with a value of Scripture,

a view of Scripture
that is beneficial to you.

And then also when it kind of
looks like to live

this very challenging walk as a believer,
because the sermon on

the Mount is not easy,
it is challenging for sure.

So eight blessings, eight beatitudes here.

This is the sermon on the Mount is the
longest recorded sermon that Jesus gave

it. And what I love is he's
talking to his disciples, right?

But it's not just the disciples.

2000 years ago, anyone in the room?

This is Jesus, the Lord and Savior.

He is my Redeemer, right?

He has made me new.

You are his disciple.

And so in that way
he is speaking directly to you.

I believe in Matthew five six and seven
and I thought, we have to know this text.

We have to have to have to.

And if I can humbly say this right,
and if I could speak for Jesus, it's

I think he's saying this.

You say, Michael, if you want to follow
me, this is the standard.

This is the standard.

Matthew five, Matthew six, Matthew seven.

This is the standard for following me
and living a fulfilled life.

Right?

Because if you just look at the
just the tops of these text, right.

Salt and light talks about murder,
adultery, divorce,

oaths, eye for an eye, loving your enemy,
prayer, fasting, worrying.

Judging.

True and false
prophets, true and false disciples.

He taught touches on the wise
and the foolish builders.

He touches on everything that we're going
to interact with in this world.

Right?

All the things we're going
to rub up against, not the process.

As believers.

And so it is the standard
at which you're called to live.

If you're a follower of Jesus right here.

So don't miss this text.

I think we should come back to this
every single year at minimum annually,

every July. Just make it
put on your calendar.

Sermon on the Mount.

Sermon on the Mount, sermon on the Mount.

Come back to it.

Because here's what Pastor God told me
this week I've been processing it.

Is that the sermon on the Mount?

It's a radical redefinition
of what it means to be blessed.

Right? Radical redefinition
of what it means to be blessed.

Again,
we think of like these external things

that we can acquire,
and that's not a blessing.

Those are just fun parts of life.

Right?

But these these blessed statements,
they're not positions we earn.

We don't earn them from God.

They're just postures that we embrace.

We try to live out every day
and we're walking and doing and,

you know, taking on, you know, with joy
the responsibilities God's given us.

And so eight, eight Beatitudes,
eight characteristics.

It's a package deal, though.

You can't all look at this one three,
five all or nothing.

Right. This is what it means to live
a blessed life.

What it means to live a fulfilled life.

And so let's jump in.

The first one
Jesus highlights is Matthew five three

says, blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

I think Jesus starts here
so wisely and intentionally.

Blessed are the poor in spirit
I mean sync with me.

I think Jesus wants us to start with this.

This view and understanding
of how desperately we need him.

There's a desperate dependance on Jesus
because think for a second, right?

How how Jesus has made
you new. He's transformed you.

He's changed your outlook on life
and who you become.

And you just what you do in life.

Now remove that spirit.

We would be the poorest of the poor.

There is nothing good
I can do in this world apart from Jesus

and the Holy Spirit working through me.

Nothing, nothing, nothing.

If I would be fully empty
and without hope, right?

And so in that it is blessed
to acknowledge my huge and overwhelming

dependance and need for Jesus
and need for the Holy Spirit.

And so we need to just say yes,
it is a blessing to be poor in spirit

because I need to acknowledge
and live in the reality

of how much I need
Jesus every second of every day.

That we need to embrace the idea.

That's all you and none of me.

All the good I do
is you and all the bad I do with me.

All the selfish
I do is me. We are poor in spirit

and it just highlights this desperate need

for Jesus, this desperate need
for the Holy Spirit, his guidance

and in his encouragement.

So I love that Jesus starts here.

So you hate me, me, me, me.

It's all about me.

You need me to live this life well,

second beatitude

again, these are blessings
that are not always part of what we view.

But it says, blessed are those
who mourn, for they will be comforted.

We all mourn.

You may be even in a season of mourning.

Now mourning just angel transition
or loss of a loved one or something

that is just different in life.

And what's interesting here, I think, is

it's how we respond
when we're mourning, right?

As believers,
we're called to mourn with hope, right?

Because we have salvation,
we have eternity.

We have a future apart from this world.

And so we mourn with hope.

We certainly have to get the tears out.
We have the process.

We don't want our mourning to Lord over us
and control us in that way.

We have to give it to God

and allow him to transform
whatever we're going through.

And I think as I process
mourning really well biblically,

I think of of just believing two things.

First is that God is good because if he is
good, then I can mourn with hope.

And the second is believing
that God is always working right.

Scripture talks of the invisible hand of
God where we see him working in real time.

We feel the spirit.

We feel God's encouragement.

We can see him bring people into our lives

and the church, the sermon, the teaching,
whatever it is. Right?

But then we often look back,

right 2020 vision when we see like,

oh God, was just working
things out the whole time.

But if you believe that
he was working there

and we can look back and see, then he was
working the whole time, we missed it.

And so we can believe
that God is good always.

And if we can believe
that he's always working things out,

then we can mourn with hope,

because there's never a season

or a second
that God is not still working things out.

I heard one pastor
say, God can take a crooked stick

and continue with his straight
path, right?

Our sinful desires, our sinful world,
he takes the brokenness, but his path

and what he wants
is still going to be accomplished.

And so we can mourn with hope because
God is good and he's working things out.

We can mourn with hope.

The third beatitude,

this blessing that Jesus highlights is
is blessed are the meek.

Pascal.

I had a pretty good conversation
about this one.

Blessed are the meek, for
they won't hurt the earth, right? Meek.

Biblically it is strength under control,

strength under control.

And so we don't have to be weak.

It's not meek and weak, it's
we have strength,

but we're going to be mindful
of how we use that strength.

It's not wielding power against others,

although sometimes we might want to.

Right?

It's fun to have power, authority,
and to be in control,

but it's strength under control.

So as believers, we should be strong.

We should be confident.

We shouldn't be shy or bashful or weak.

Not at all.

Like we have the
the God of the universe who speaks.

And this whole thing gets going
living in us.

We should be biblically strong.

Pastor Carl said,
when the when culture crowns

the strong, Jesus blesses the surrendered.

So even though we have that strength,

we still surrendered to
God's will in our lives.

And we surrender to Scripture
and what it says of us.

I heard one pastor say,

if we have a complaint with Scripture,
we have a frustration.

We don't agree with it.

Then change your mind right?

Change your mind because you're wrong.

And so biblically, we're

called to be meek, strong,
but have self-control.

Our fourth blessing
that Jesus shares is five six.

It says, blessed are the.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst
for righteousness, for they will be filled

is an interesting question

I ask myself last couple of weeks is
what do I hunger and thirst for?

What are you constantly craving in life,
or pursuing or viewing or wanting

or just what are you?

What do you hunger and thirst for
in this world? Right?

What has your attraction?
What has your eye?

What has your your your gaze like?

What is it?

Not just bad things.

Good is what is it
across the board, right.

The religious leaders, they back in
Jesus's day, it was all me, me, me.

Look at me.
I'm doing it, I'm doing it, I'm doing it.

Let us self righteousness,
not righteousness.

But Jesus says, blessed
are those who hunger and thirst,

and he is righteousness, right?

So those who hunger and thirst for Jesus
have this unquenchable thirst for Jesus.

That's
what what's what Jesus is saying here.

I think that we want more of us
and less of me.

I want to hunger and thirst
for you this unquenchable way

where
I need to wake up and spend time with you.

I need to have lunch with and I need to go
to bed and spend time with you.

I just I need to hunger and thirst
for the God of the universe

who is good and always working things out

right.

Not a self righteous,
but there's a righteousness.

We just seek and desire and demand
more of Jesus and less of me.

Our fifth, fifth beatitude this morning
is, five seven.

Blessed are those

who are, or blessed are the merciful, for
they will be shown mercy.

This one I think, is challenging as well,
but I think it starts

with this acknowledgment
and this reality of

of just a self-assessment
of how much mercy I've been shown.

We know the depth of our sin.

We know the depth of our hurt
and our frustration.

We know
the depth of our wickedness at times.

And when we can sit and reflect and acknowledge how much mercy we've been shown,

right.

Even though it's difficult at times to to
to give it out,

we can't not just extend that out,

right.

We don't get to receive mercy
and then not, not give it out.

And so that's the challenge here

because we are always quick to receive
and not always quick to give,

right? When it comes to mercy and grace

and forgiveness, it's
just not always our default.

So we have to acknowledge
how much mercy we've been shown,

and let that just be an important reality
for you so that you can extend it out

to your wife, to your kids, to your
your coworkers, your friend,

your family, your neighbors. Right?

Show that mercy.

Extend that mercy.

Right.

The sixth this morning
beatitude is Matthew five eight.

It says, blessed are the pure in heart.

Blessed are the pure in heart.

For they will see God.

I don't
know about you, but I want to see God.

A time

and in as we process Pharisees
and this lack of internal

transformation, I think pure heart is all
about the internal why do I do what I do?

Why do I say what I say?

Why do I think what I think,
what I pursue, what I pursue,

like, is just getting down to this base
level

of what is my motivation
for all the things me.

And if it's not Jesus and it's
not for others, and it needs some tweaking

and needs some adjusting,
it needs, you know, a reconfiguration,

inward transformation.

I want to look more like Jesus
and less like myself.

I have to believe and actually like walk
confidently in this reality

that I am a new creation
and you are all in Christ, a new creation.

Scripture says the old has gone,
the new has come.

You're not even the same Michael anymore.

You're not the same person anymore.

And so live confidently in that reality

and have a pure heart, right?

And that's where it comes down to,
I got to believe this,

and I'll be confident
because I have to walk in purity.

The world's going to say,
that would be fun and that would be cool.

And you might really enjoy that,

but it's not going to be a part
of that fulfilled life.

That's a roadmap of what it means
to experience a blessed life

according to the scriptures.

So pure in heart.

It's a challenge for us.

Our seventh beatitude, our blessing
this morning is is five nine.

It says, blessed are the peacemakers.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for
they will be called children of God.

I want that title a Child of God.

Embrace that role in life.

And so I think the challenge here, right?

I was talking with John B, he helped serve
our junior highers on Sunday morning.

He shared last week.

He can't wait to hear the words,
well done, my good and faithful servant.

Right?

What an embrace to hear that
from the God of the universe who can speak

and change and do insert himself
in the humanity and died for us, like

to hear that from him.

There's nothing better you can experience.

And so we have to look to him
and say he is the ultimate peacemaker.

He took the sting of death

and the sting of sin away
by going to the cross and dying for us.

Jesus is the ultimate peacemaker.

And so I think he's challenging us
then to be peace, peaceable people.

I mean, walk into our homes.
Do we bring peace?

Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't.

Right.

And my sense of

peace this morning, a sense of peace
with our junior high students, my kids

do I bring a sense of peace in the rooms
that I'm in?

That's a really challenging question,
because if not, why not?

What do we need to work on?

What do we need to submit?

What do we need to do differently,

or call to facilitate peace
and be peacemakers in this world?

Again, in a world
where we sometimes feel like you deserve

what you got, why you made your bed,
we're still called

to forgive and extend mercy and grace
and provide some level of peace.

It's grace and truth.

There's a there's there's a balance there.

And then the last one wouldn't
we wouldn't call this a blessing.

But Jesus says, blessed are those who are
persecuted because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,

right?

Fortunately, we live in a country
where we don't face a lot of persecution

for our faith. Right?

We might get like a comment or a side eye
or something here and there, but

for the most part, we're not persecuted,
and that's a blessing.

But Jesus is saying,
if you are persecuted, it's a blessing.

And so I want more blessings.

So if I have to be persecuted,
I mean, I want to stand on and be next

to that name of Jesus as much as I can,

because again,
it's going to make me a better

me and I'm
going to live a more fulfilled life.

So if it's persecution, it's persecution.

So maybe we should be ready
for a little persecution in this life.

As much as we don't
want to experience pain,

right?

Jesus name, blessed are you because of
righteous, because of me.

Jesus saying because of mine.

If you are attached to my name and you are
persecuted, that is a blessing.

Embrace it.

Give it to me.

And so as we think about blessings,
as we think about persecution,

if you think about what it means to walk

this faith out this morning,
I think I want,

I want to I don't think we're going to sit
in this idea of salt and light,

salt and light.

And it's interesting that
Jesus calls us salt and he calls us light.

We're going to read Matthew

five verses 13 through 16.

I'm on the screen for us.

But this is the only time that Jesus uses
this metaphor to describe us.

He says, Michael or anyone else,
you are the salt of the earth

and you're the light of the world.

And so here's what the text says.

It says

you are the salt of the earth.

But if the salt loses its saltiness,
how can it be made salty again?

It is no longer good for anything
except to be thrown out

and trampled underfoot.

Verse 14 says,
you are the light of the world.

A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

Neither do people light a lamp
and put it under a bowl.

Instead, they put it on its stand, and
it gives light to everyone in the house.

16 wraps up in the same way.

Let your light shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds

and glorify your father in heaven.

Is. This is interesting.

I think our call as believers

is to influence
and impact the world around us

in the name of Jesus. That's our call.

And I would even be bold enough
to say that this is a mandate.

It's not an option.

He didn't say, Michael, will you think
and pray about being light and being salt?

He didn't say that, right?

He said very specifically, you are salt,
you are light.

So the really honest, sobering question
this morning

is am
I effective salt in my effective light.

Right. That's the challenging piece.

It's not a
am I doing it? Am I not doing it?

Should I do it should I not?
You already are salt.

You already are light.

It's are you effective in those phases?

Are you salty? Are you helpful?

I'm going to unpack salt and light.

But but it's it's a mandate.

But here's why. It's not burdensome.
Right?

Jesus has people in Africa.

He has some people in Asia,
some people in Europe.

Like he's saying, Michael, right here,
where you live, where you sleep,

where you work, where you go to school,
where you go to the gym, where you coach.

Whatever you do, be salt and be light.

So it's not a burden.

It's it's just a blessing
and a responsibility

to walk in the ways of Jesus
and to influence this world in his name.

Right?

To say yes to the call

and yes to step up to the plate and say,
all right, Jesus up.

I'm good. Let's go.

I'm not embarrassed. I'm not scared.

I'm not.

I'm not burdened by this.

It's a responsibility.

So think this morning,

how can you impact the name of Jesus
right here where you live?

What does that look like?

Tangibly feed it for you to.

What does that look like?

Like what are some action steps
you can do? What can you what can you do?

Who can you bless? Who can you pray for?
What can you?

What does that look like for you?

Right here in the Ranchos,
wherever you wherever you live.

And so salt
want to talk about salt for a second.

So back in Jesus's day, right?

Couple thousand years ago, salt was rare.

It was precious.

It was a commodity.

Soldiers, Roman soldiers were often
at times paid with salt.

Right. So it had value.

So think about that
now for you and your faith.

You're called to be rare, called
be precious.

You're called to be a commodity.

You're called to add value to this world.

In Jesus's name.

Are you doing that?

Are you a rare, precious commodity
that adds value to this world?

If you think about salt as well, salt
it can.

It can preserve, right?

Are you preserving life?

Are you preserving life? Right?

In the name of Jesus, salt can also limit
the decay that happens.

This world is decaying.
It is. It is broken.

It is filled with sin and hurt
and brokenness.

Are you slowing the decay in the name of
Jesus

is a challenging
idea, is to be salt and to be effective.

Salt.

Right.

Think about that.

You're grilling thrown
steak on the grill or whatever, right?

You eat it without a flavored
blend is still pretty good,

but you put a good salt blend.

It's very good. Right?

So you your call to add flavor
or to enhance the world around you

in the name of Jesus.

Rare. Precious. Helpful.

Sacrifice.

Sacrificial. Slow the decay, add value.

Flavor.

Enhance in the name of Jesus.

But then Jesus also has a warning to us.

He says,
but if salt loses its saltiness, it's

not good for anything but to be thrown out
and trampled underfoot.

Right?

So we're processing that a little bit
this week.

And I was processing the idea

that I think salt loses its saltiness
when it's diluted.

When we are a believer,
we are walking with him.

But maybe we allow culture to influence us

to just as much as Scripture,
just as much as Jesus, where

we're diluting ourselves.

We're watering down our morals,
our values, who we are as believers.

This new creation might get called,
pulled back.

That old creation right when we get
watered down where the saltiness is gone.

So don't let culture and the world
and the virtues and the values

influence who you are, right?

We're in the world, but not of the world.

That's the challenge for you and me.

If you want to be effective,
salt is to not lose sight of

of of kind of our compass.

And who gives us what we need

the strength, the wisdom,
the discernment as we live our lives.

So be salt that then Jesus says, what?

You're the light of the world.

Light is mentioned.

I did some research over
250 times in Scripture

Genesis let there be light, right?

First book of the Bible.

Revelation talks about God,
how God gives light.

So kind of book in Scripture.

First on God's God is light.

It says Jesus.

In John
it says, I am the light of the world.

I mean God in light, God and light. Right?

We need you to lean into that a little bit
because what is light?

Do light exposes darkness?

A lot of darkness in our world,
and we're called in Jesus name

to get rid of as much darkness as we can.

Right.

And that can be overwhelming
and that can be difficult

and that can be messy.

But you are the light of the world.

So our call in life,

I'd also illuminate our path, our steps.

Scripture talks about this, right?

That we would not stumble
and we would not lose focus.

We would not.
We would not veer off left and right.

We would.

It would illuminate our path,
but also the path of those around us.

Let it help those who are walking
shoulder to shoulder with us, right?

Our spouse, our extended family,
our friends, our neighbors, students,

whoever.

I love this idea.

To that light can't be hidden by darkness.

Light.

Darkness cannot overcome light.

It just can't. It physically can't.

I had a flashlight here,
but you can't cover it with darkness.

So in that way we should be confident.

As believers, we're light of the world.

Then go into these dark spaces
and live for Jesus and proclaim his name.

Because darkness cannot overcome

the light.

Pascale shared this cool quote,
and if it is or we found it.

But this idea that light doesn't apologize
for being bright,

light does not apologize for being bright.

So lean in and embrace this call

of being a light in this world.

So start where you sleep.

Sorry.

We go to school and where you work again.

I already asked that,
already said this morning. But.

But how can you be salt
and light in these places?

Just start here.

You know, I heard one friend

talking about man that, you know,
you hear this conversation a lot.

There's so much darkness
and evil in this world.

How can a good God be in control?

And, you know,
you hear this, this rhetoric a lot.

And why is our brokenness
and why is our pain

and why is there suffering?
I think the reality is,

even as believers,
we can fall into the trap of God.

Where are you at?

Where are you at?

Look at what's happening.
Where are you at?

And here's our challenge.
Here's our posture.

It should be at least I think God saying,
well, like I said, I'm sending you.

I given you my spirit. Go. Right.

Why are you asking me to do it?
I already died for you.

I went to the cross.
I answer to myself in humanity.

And then I'm giving you my spirit.

Go, go.

Alleviate the hurt,
the pain, the suffering, the brokenness

you have my spirit,
your soul and your light.

Go and do stop looking at me.

Right?
All right. God is saying, go, go, go.

You have the power of
of of the resurrection living in you.

You're meek.

Your strength with control.

You're a precious commodity.

Add value to this world
in the name of Jesus.

And as I was processing this week,
it was interesting

as we're leaning into who we are as
believers and what we're supposed to do.

I think we also have to acknowledge

what we're in, what what's not true, right
where Scripture speaks

that the Holy Spirit is a deposit
guaranteeing our inheritance, guaranteeing

like the forever,
the amazingness of of eternity with God.

But we can't stop there.

It can't only be a deposit
guaranteeing our inheritance.

The Holy Spirit is saying like,
I want to use you here

and I want to use you now.

And here's kind of the reality
I had this week

is that both salt and light,
they don't go unnoticed.

You can taste it.

You can see the light.
They don't go unnoticed.

And so as believers,
we're not supposed to be silent.

I'm not supposed to be passive.

We're not supposed to be embarrassed
for our faith or

or unsure of how to share it.

Let God go and speak and do.

A lot of the battle is just
just the front and saying yes.

And then God
working it out on the back end.

Believers who are salt and light,
we and you have to engage the culture,

speak truth, share Jesus,

serve those around you well, right
this grace and truth lifestyle.

Because here's the reality, right?

I think this is why I just use these
metaphors, is that both salt and light

sustain life.

And I like asking a lot of questions
when I teach.

And and so one that I just kept coming
to my mind all week was,

am I sustaining life around me
and start with my spouse.

Start with my kids, my neighbors, cousins,
whoever

is like the close in laws,
my mom, my brother, right?

How am I sustaining life around me?

How am I leading?

Because both salt and light
result in change, right?

As we've talked about, darkness is gone.

Meat is flavored right?

So how are you changing

the environment around you?

How are you living for others?

How are you saying yes to what?

Are you saying yes to

when it comes to sacrificing for our Lord?

I mean, our charge is to not be apathetic
in our faith.

Scripture
says, don't lose your first love.

Don't live for yourself.

Five, six, and seven in Matthew.

It is a roadmap to a fulfilled life
and it's right here in front of us.

It's not a mystery how are

supposed to live our lives.

Who can
you share the gospel with this week?

Who can you pray for? Who can you serve?

Who can you forgive?

Who can you extend mercy to?

I think Paul,

as you know, right, God,
use him in a mighty way.

Ton of the New Testament
and just his testimony alone,

and how he lived for God
in such a radical way.

I think he was he was on to something
because Paul recognized

this reality that sin still lives in us.

There's this warning
we still have a sin nature.

It's still there.

We also have the spirit. Right?

And so they're at war as they should be.

And so Paul recognizes
that sin still dwells and where it lives.

Sometimes it bubbles up and it comes out.

And we live in a very selfish way.

And that's why

Paul, I think in his from his perspective,
he's going to be salt and light.

He said, I got to die to self daily.

I have to die to self daily.

I have to crucify my flesh daily.

When he wakes up, it's

more of you, Jesus and less of me
that we have to start there.

Otherwise
we won't do it on our own accord,

our own strength, our own understanding.

We got to die daily.

Our prayer should be God, make me just
as alive today as you made me yesterday.

Show me where I can be salt.

Show me where I can be light.

Show me where I can I can speak truth.

Where I can blot out the darkness.

So process that for your life.

What does

it mean to die daily to self for you?

It's going to be different for all of us.

We all have different,

different responsibilities, different,
different burdens in life, if you will.

Different challenges from, you know,
a junior high or a high school student

to grandparents and aunts and uncles
or parents in the thick of it, like,

what does it mean to die daily for you?

And here's just where it really hits
me, is

your kids
need to see you being salt and light.

Your kids need to see that.

Your kids need to see parents sacrificing.

Your kids need to see aunts and uncles
sacrificing.

Your kids need to see grandparents
sacrificing.

And it's not always fair.

It's not always easy.

Needle on the cross right?

And so die to self.

Daily process what it means
for more of Jesus and less of you.

I love what Psalm 1123 says.

It says this.

It says, blessed is the one

who does not walk in this
in step with the wicked, or stand

in the way that sinners
take or sit in the company of mockers,

but whose delight
is in the law of the Lord,

and who meditate on his law day and night.

That person is like a tree planted
by streams of water

which yielded fruit in season,
and whose leaf does not wither.

Whatever they do prospers.

We are called to meditate on God's
Word day and night.

Know his voice,
know the flavor of ice cream

that he likes to know how he views.

You know what he's done for you.

And know that

not only is God saying we should do it,
but it will.

It will make you a better person.

It will make you more patient
and more graceful than we understand him.

The more we realize the depths
at which God has.

He went to save me.

He went to save you.

It just gives us this greater appreciation
for God, his heart, his desires,

his motivation for, for, for seeking us,

for saving us, for pursuing us.

We are to meditate on God's Word.

We're going to die to self daily,
because if we don't,

we're not going to be effective.

Saul. We're not going to be effective
light.

Here's my hope for for my life,
for my wife,

for my kids, for you and
and your families is three things, right?

That you would have a heart for a God,

right?

And just
like a God, what do you have for me?

A heart for who God is.

Two the
you would have a submission to his word

and know that this is priority one

and three that you would blame
blameless and testimony.

Right?

Because so often, I mean, you'd hate
this to be the reality, right?

Where you're sharing the good news,
sharing the gospel.

God's really working
through someone's heart.

But then like, but Michael,
you talk like that, or Michael,

you act like automatically
you pursue those things, right?

You're not blameless in testimony.

You almost like getting
in the way of the gospel.

And that's really challenging, right?

And how am I walking the walk?

How am I walking in purity

when friend want to go do this
or they want to go indulge in that?

That's the challenge.

Heart for God, submission
to His word and blameless in testimony.

And then I think just this umbrella over
this whole conversation is

and have grace for yourself and seek

God's face when you do mess up and repent,

because you're going to mess up
and you're going to need to repent.

That's a huge part of this.

I said my hopes were two,
you'd value Scripture

and you'd know kind of the start
of this roadmap for what it means

to live a fulfilled life,
to walk in the ways of Jesus.

So my challenge to you
is a couple things one.

Read chapter five this week

said in Matthew five.

The rest of this week
process it a couple of times two.

Read chapter six next week and three read
chapter seven the following week.

Just just sit in Matthew five,
sit in Matthew six, sit in Matthew

seven
and come back to this at minimum annually.

Every you like, put on your calendar.

I'm going to read the sermon on the Mount
because here's the reality, right?

We Scripture says this that God's Word
is good

in all situations, in all occasions,
for teaching and rebuking and correcting.

And just because you've read it
once doesn't

mean God's done
using that in your life, right?

How many times we read something at 20
and it hits different at 25 or 28

or 30 or 35, because now
you're not the same person you were.

You're married with kids as opposed to
when you were a young man on your own.

And so
come back to this every single July.

Make this a priority, this red letter
text of what it means to live a fulfilled.

And I think blessed life

sound good.

Sweet. Here, I'm going to pray for us.

We're going to sing one more song together
this morning.

Father, I thank you for your grace
and your mercy and your love.

The truth of your word
for Matthew chapter five.

For what it means to be blessed.

I am grateful that you pursue us
and that you

forgive us.

I'm grateful that you challenge us
to be salt and light.

Lord,

father, please convict our hearts

and show us the ways
in which we can serve this world.

Show us the ways
in which we can sacrifice for this world.

I pray for a deep conviction

that we die to self daily
and that we live for you. Lord

God, I do pray for everyone in this room.

That and we could support each other well

and that we could

honor the commitment
to sacrifice for each other

and to pick each other up,
and to forgive each other

and to have grace
and to serve this community well.

Lord,

please help us to take the steps
we need to take

to live for you.

Got to be an effective, salt
and effective light.

We thank you Jesus.

We pray this all in your name. Amen.