In Matthew 5:37, Jesus says – “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” (ESV) What does that look like in our daily lives? What value do our words have, and why it matters? Listen to the sermon to learn more on this.
Christians can never be hopeless or in despair because they always have God on their side for help. But in reality, most Christians have a tendency to doubt God’s presence and His goodness in their life, which leads them to be in despair. In this passage, we see how God’s providence brings Christians out of difficult and desperate situations.
What do you do when there ‘seems’ to be no answer from the Lord in your current situation? Would you still remain committed to God? Would you still have a level of trust in the Lord without any bitterness against Him? In this passage, we see three characters from the book of Ruth, who respond very differently to God’s providence in their lives. Their responses teach us what genuine commitment to God looks like.
Christianity’s message about the gospel of hope, forgiveness and eternal life is also effective when Christians maintain their integrity and uprightness. The gospel witness and our testimony is at stake when we are double-minded people who don’t live as per our profession of faith in Christ. In this passage, we learn the ways in which we can maintain our integrity so that the world would see Christ in us and glorify Him.
There are many practical aspects of church ministry like finances, hospitality, venue set up, event organisation, church retreats etc. Teaching elders and ruling elders may not have the bandwidth to look into these matters as they’re primarily called to disciple people, to counsel, to encourage and pray with the congregation at every stage of life. So this is where the bible brings deacons into the picture to handle administrative tasks in order to make the elders’ work easier. In this passage we learn about deacons and what character qualities they ought to have.