Mat 5:14
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is
set on an hill cannot be hid.
If there is any desire that I have, as a pastor, it is that
the true light would shine in this earthen vessel. The next desire is that we as a church would
realize that we are the light of the world.
Every time you or I are seen we represent this message.
We are taught to not put the bushel over the
candlestick. We all must have times that
we have to put ourselves into subjection or we will have a thought pattern that
will, or someone else will have an agenda that will, or something else will put
a bushel over us so that we don’t shine for God.
Mat 5:1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a
mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
Mat 5:2
And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
Mat 5:3
Blessed are
the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
If we are going to be the light of the world then we must
realize how much we need God. The Laodicean
spirit in this time age will hinder us from realizing our need of God. It is wonderful to be still shaking and
trembling before God. It is wonderful to realize that “I still need God.”
How we need to pray and value prayer! If not we will not be a light when sinners
come in to church. We appreciate that we
have a building and those that decorate, keep the lawn, or work to maintain the
building, but the building itself is not a light. It must be filed with men and women loving
God and sold out to the message.
I think of the song, “Oh sweet will of God.” Your will being in the will of God is the
most wonderful thing in the world.
The poor in spirit realize the value of meditation. It is a challenge in 2016 there are many
things available 24/7 that would curb meditation.
E.M. Bounds wrote the book, “The preacher and prayer.” Brother Hines and Brother Maconahae entrusted
a copy to me. It says that meditation
comes before supplication.
There is a value of communicating with God. We need lessons in knowing how to commune
with God when there are so many things that try to break our thought patterns
from communing with God.
To be alone with God, to have God visit us, to have God
correct us; to have God visit us and say, “Son humble yourself under the mighty
hand of God. Prepare to speak to your
grandchildren, your sons, your daughters and your sons and daughters in
law.
Teachers, never teach without communing with God. Have it checked with: “God, am I presenting
this in a way that will show a city set on a hill?”
We will be the same as Babylon if we are not a city set on a
hill. We have the right name but the
right name doesn’t bring the right spirit.
It comes by us realizing how desperately we need God.
There is the kingdom of heaven. I think of all that is ours in humbling ourselves
before God and realizing what the kingdom of God is: Righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy
Ghost.
Mat 5:4
Blessed are
they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are those that know the grief of God. God is not grieved with the righteous. He is not grieved with the saved and the
sanctified that are seeking and finding the will of God. He is grieved with the souls that have
allowed the times to take them away from God and knowing His fullness.
God is so grieved when a soul is wounded. I think of how loosely people take the sword
and destroy someone. How loosely they
will just give you a dagger. They are so
calloused. They justify it, “I didn’t
like what they did so I just…”
I was studying about the Good Samaritan. He went to the man that was wounded. Oh that you and I would be anointed of God
that we would have the oil and the wine!
That we would be willing to make the sacrifice, “Whatever I can do to
get you to the inn, the church, and see that need met.” That was the way that the Good Samaritan
was.
Blessed are they that are grieved to see wasted
talents. They are all to be used to the
glory and honor of God. Whatever we have
is what God has given us.
God wants you young minds that are so quick to learn and to
grasp, to grasp God. If you can grasp that
nothing is impossible with God.
A man 21 years old went to Africa weeping for souls. He gave his entire life working for the
mission. He would come and say, “The
reward is so great to see souls changed and lives changed.” There is a field in America and everywhere.
It takes the gospel, all the gospel truth, to cause men to
be godly men and good husbands. There is
something about truth. For that precious
lady to know the value of being a good mother!
We have such a treasure. Children
are only children once. We have this
moment.
Blessed are those that mourn.
Pro 6:16
These six things doth the LORD
hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto
him:
Pro 6:17
A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
Pro 6:18
An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running
to mischief,
Pro 6:19
A false witness that speaketh
lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
There are six things that really grieve God and the seventh
is an abomination. There are several
things that I never want to be guilty of, one of them is bringing trouble into
our home. I don’t want to be guilty of
over talking, over buying, over spending, etc.
I am a man, I need balance.
Don’t bring trouble to your house by buying something that you cannot
afford. Don’t bring trouble to your
house by overloading your husband or your wife.
Our first job is to serve God. There are six things that God hates and the
seventh is an abomination. I never want
to bring discord to my home, to my wife or our children. I labor to be a good husband. I labor to keep peace in our home.
I never want to bring discord into the church of God. I don’t always agree with everything that
goes on in every place. I don’t even
tell my wife. I never want to bring
discord. The guys from the east that wow-wow
about, “I know somethings.” I say, who
doesn’t. Discord is an abomination.
Those that mourn shall be comforted. Drawn by God to be wrapped in His loving arms. Invited.
When you are mourning, this is more than a funeral message. Those that really mourn, weep. There are good saints that are weeping over
conditions distanced from here. They
will be comforted, drawn, wrapped.
Every once in a while you get hugged. This is wrapped. It is the love of God going around, around,
and around. Having the love, the Word,
the oil of the Spirit poured into the soul.
In a greater way than ever before, Sunday morning we will
gather, we want to be a city set on a hill.
We don’t want it for a show, we want to be a city set upon a hill. The light of the gospel of Jesus Christ, from
our first song until the last.
We can be a city set upon a hill but there is a price to
pay. If you are going to be busy, have
your priorities right. Meditate, set
time aside, commune and pray. We want to
be a city set upon a hill.
When people walk through the door, I want them to see
something unique. I want to be in my
relationship, my love to God, my love to one another, my curtesy, my love to
the saints, a city set upon a hill.
Blessed are the meek.
That is part of what causes the city to be set on the hill.
