Sermon On The Mount / Part 2

Greetings in the name of Jesus! This is Rob Haymes. This is 15 Minutes With Jesus. Wherever two or three are gathered together in My name, Jesus said, there am I in the midst of them. To those of you who love Him in truth: mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied. (Jude 1:2)

Thank you Father, in Jesus’ name, we thank you for this program, Father, the Sermon on the Mount series / Part 2. I pray that you would open all of our ears and our hearts to receive the truth of Your Word this day. Thank you Father.

Let’s turn to Mat 6:1-34, Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in Heaven. Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly. 

And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. 

Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on Earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 

No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 

Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. 

Verse 1, Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in Heaven. You don’t need the honor of men; it is vain. Seek to honor God in all that you do, and He will honor you. Jesus spoke here about doing different things: praying, giving; fasting, to be seen of men, and that is vain. You already have your reward. If men honor you, it means nothing; if God honors you, it means everything. So start by honoring Him in all that you do. Seek to honor God.

Jesus gave us a pattern for prayer, and He said to pray it in secret. We call it The Lord’s Prayer. He said, And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. He said, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Then, He spoke The Lord’s Prayer:  First: honor your Father in Heaven, Hallowed be your name. Second: Ask for His Kingdom to come on Earth; ask for His will to be done here as it is in Heaven. That is how things will truly go well on the Earth and in our lives. Third: Ask for our daily bread. He promised in chapter 6, verse 33, that if we would seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, that all the things we need will be added to us. It doesn’t hurt to give Him thanks in advance. Fourth: Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. If you want to be forgiven, you must forgive those who have sinned against you. If you feel like you can’t forgive someone, that’s the person you really need to seek God to help you to forgive them. Ask Him for His grace in your time of need, because you are definitely in need. If you don’t forgive that person, God will not forgive you. He promised right there in verse 15, that He is not a respecter of persons. If you are not forgiven, you will not be going to Heaven. Remember how Jesus suffered for you upon the Cross, that you might be forgiven: the just for the unjust. You can ask Him to give you love for that person. He loved you when you did not love Him, and He washed you from your sins in His own Blood. 

When you’re not able to forgive someone; you know you need to forgive them, don’t run from it. Ask God to help you to forgive that person; He will do it. He knows if you are willing and He will help you. Ask for grace, when you’re being tempted, ask for grace, when you’re being tempted not to forgive someone, ask for grace to forgive them; ask for grace to help in the time of need, and God will help you. I have experienced this; this is the truth of God’s Word. So the question is, do you love God? Do you love other people; are you willing to walk in love? Or will you harden your heart because you feel like you have a just reason to not forgive someone or to hate them. So, what do you do in your situation? Remember God’s Word; remember He told you to love your enemies; He told you to forgive if you have anything against anyone, that you yourself might be forgiven. So when you get in that situation, ask the Lord, and He will help you, and you will be able, by the grace of God and by the power of the Holy Spirit, to do the Sermon on the Mount; to forgive if you have anything against anyone.

Ok, let’s go to verse 19, Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on Earth, …but lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven…When the rich young ruler came to Jesus he told Him that he had kept all the law, and he asked Him, what more do I need to do? And Jesus told him, Go sell all that you have and give to the poor and you shall have treasure in Heaven. So that’s how you build up treasure in Heaven: by giving to the poor; giving to those in need. The scripture says it is acceptable according to what you have, not according to what you don’t have. Always, if you have any question about giving, always ask the Lord; He will help you; He will show you. Don’t let someone con you out of what you don’t even have. If you give or pray or fast or do anything else to be seen of men, you have your reward; you have no reward of your Father in Heaven. But if you do it in secret unto Him, not seeking man’s honor, but His only, He will reward you openly. The honor of men is a vain, empty, pursuit. The honor of God has promise, for this life, and for the life to come. So seek to honor Him in all that you do.

Verse 21, For where your treasure is, there will your heart will be also. You don’t want your heart to be on this world and the things of this world. The scripture says, Set your affection on things above, not on things on the Earth. The things above are revealed in the scriptures. Verse 22, The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. If your eyes are on that which is good: on the Word of God and His works, you will be full of His light; it will shine through your life. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If your eyes are continually on that which is evil, you will be full of darkness, and that darkness will blind your eyes, and you will not know where you are going. Verse 24, You cannot serve two masters: God and money. If you will serve God with all your heart and seek His Kingdom and His righteousness in your life, He promises here in these verses that He will take care of all your needs. You don’t even need to think about them. 

I’m here to tell you that you can do the Sermon on the Mount. It starts with a revelation of what the Father has done for you; what Jesus has done for you upon the Cross, and His resurrection from the dead: a revelation of their great love for you: that they would do that for you, even when you were dead in your sins. Once you receive the love that God has for you; once you realize what He has done for you, if you have a heart, you cannot help but love Him, and that love will enable you, by the grace of God revealed in the Gospel to do the Sermon on the Mount, as the Holy Spirit leads you, and in so doing, you will be doing the Father’s will, and your house will be established upon the Rock, and you will be able to stand in the evil day that is coming upon the Earth. I’m going to remind us again of what Jesus said at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, He said, Not everyone who says, Lord, Lord, is going into the Kingdom of Heaven, but they that do the will of My Father in Heaven.

Thank you for reading this message from 15 Minutes With Jesus at roberthaymes.com . May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you who love Him in truth, Amen. (2 Cor 13:14)

 The Apostles’ Doctrine

Greetings in the name of Jesus! This is Rob Haymes. This is 15 Minutes With Jesus. Wherever two or three are gathered together in My name, Jesus said, there am I in the midst of them. To those of you who love Him in truth: mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied. (Jude 1:2)

Thank you Lord. We thank you for this program; Father, we thank you. I pray now, Father, in Jesus’ name, that you would open our ears to hear what you are saying; that you would open our understanding, as we speak about The Apostles’ Doctrine. In Acts 2:42 & 43 it is written, concerning the early disciples, And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. They continued steadfastly: the word means, earnest towards, to persevere, to be constantly diligent, to adhere closely to, or to attend continually upon; that’s what we need to do with the apostles’ doctrine. 

I’m going to be speaking a lot from the Epistle to the Ephesians, so if you would like to turn to Ephesians, chapter 1,  Eph 1:1-23, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 

He has made us accepted in Jesus by His grace. 

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in Heaven and which are on Earth—in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. 

The Holy Spirit is given to us as a down payment on our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession. That is the first resurrection, when Jesus returns in the clouds: the hope of glory, when all the dead in Christ will be raised from the dead, incorruptible, and we will be joined together with the Lord, and thus we shall ever be with the Lord.

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 

That’s what we need. We need a Spirit of wisdom and revelation, by the Holy Spirit, in the knowledge of Jesus. 

the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. 

Because He humbled Himself, Jesus, to the death of the Cross, the Father has given Him a name above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, in Heaven, on the Earth, and under the Earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Glory! 

Chapter 2, verses 1-10, And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 

in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

That’s where we were: dead in trespasses and sins.

But God, who is rich in mercy, Hallelujah!, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

and remember what we just read, far above all principality, power, might and dominion, and every name that is named ! Hallelujah! 

that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. 

We are not saved by our good works, but, once we are saved, God will give us good works by His Spirit; He will lead us by His Spirit in doing good, especially to those who are of the household of faith, and to the poor. 

Verses 19-22, Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. 

That is the Church: a holy temple in the Lord; a dwelling place of God. 

Chapter 3, verses 14-21, For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in Heaven and Earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 

and this is the only way that this is going to work, you have to be rooted and grounded in love,

may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. 

Chapter 4, verses 11-16, And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 

They’re out there: many false prophets. Jesus said, Take heed that you be not deceived.

but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. 

Chapter 5, verses 1-11, Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. Verses 15-21, See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. 

This is the apostles’ doctrine. If we are going to receive our inheritance, our glorious inheritance in Jesus Christ, we must continue in it steadfastly. These words in the epistles of Paul and Peter and John, and the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke, James and Jude, are God’s Words, which He gave by His Holy Spirit. Holy men of God wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. They are God’s Words. It is His doctrine, which He has graciously preserved for us who are called in Him, that we might read it and understand it, with the help and instruction of the Holy Spirit, and give ourselves wholly and diligently to it, that we might be partakers of His grace through the Gospel, and receive our inheritance in His glorious Kingdom: the riches of of the glory of His inheritance in the saints: Christ in you, the hope of glory. Let no man deceive you with empty words, as Paul said, the wrath of God is coming upon all the children of disobedience. In Romans 2, he said,  who will render to every man according to his works. 

2 Cor 5:15, and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fullness of God.

Thank you for reading this message from 15 Minutes With Jesus at roberthaymes.com .

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you who love Him in truth, Amen. (2 Cor 13:14)

 Sermon On The Mount Series / Part 1

Greetings in the name of Jesus! This is Rob Haymes. This is 15 Minutes With Jesus. Wherever two or three are gathered together in My name, Jesus said, there am I in the midst of them. To those of you who love Him in truth: mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied. (Jude 1:2)

Father, in Jesus’ name, we thank you for this day; we thank you for this program. I pray that you would open our eyes; open our ears; open our understanding; open our hearts, Father, to see what is written in your Word: that you would reveal your Word to us. 

Today’s message is The Sermon On The Mount Series / Part 1. Starting in chapter 5 of Matthew, verse 1,  And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in Heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 

Mat 5:13  You are the salt of the Earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven. 

Mat 5:17  Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till Heaven and Earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Mat 5:21  You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, Raca! shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, You fool! shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny. 

Mat 5:27  You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not commit adultery,  but I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 

Mat 5:31  Furthermore it has been said, Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery. 

Mat 5:33  Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord. But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by Heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the Earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. But let your Yes be Yes, and your No, No. For whatever is more than these is from the evil one. 

Mat 5:38  You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. 

Mat 5:43  You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in Heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 

Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect. 

In verse 19, Jesus said, Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. This is how a person may become great in the Kingdom of God: by doing Jesus’ commandments; by doing the Sermon on the Mount.

When I was a baby Christian, I was at a prayer meeting, and a woman spoke up and said, “Well everyone knows that you can’t keep the Sermon on the Mount.” Unfortunately, I don’t remember the leader of that meeting correcting her. And it has taken me years to overcome that lie. Jesus said, right after verse 19, in verse 20, For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The righteousness of the Sermon on the Mount exceeds the righteousness of the Law.

In verse 23 and 24, Jesus said, Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Before you come to worship God, if your brother or sister has something against you, go to them and make it right, then you can offer true worship to God, and undefiled prayers.

In verses 27-31, Jesus deals squarely with lust and adultery. In verse 28 He said, If you even look at a woman to lust after her, you have already committed adultery with her; you’ve already sinned.  Then He said, in verse 29, …for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. Why did He say that? Is He saying that we should pluck out our eyes if we lust after a woman? No. He is showing us how important it is that we deal with the cause: what is causing us to lust after a woman?, or a woman to lust after a man?, and that, if we don’t deal with it, we could end up in Hell.  How do you deal with the lust of the eyes? How do you deal with adultery? The first thing you do is acknowledge it to yourself and to God. “I have sinned; Lord, I confess my sin to you. Please forgive me of this sin and cleanse me of it.” In 1 John 1:9, the Apostle John said, If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The Lord will uphold His Word; He will perform His Word in your life, if you are sincere about it. 

Remember, He said in verse 6, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. He also said, in John chapter 8, If you continue in My Word, you will be My disciples indeed, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. He also said, Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 

Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. This is serious ! Very serious!  If you don’t take these Words seriously, as serious as losing a part of your body, you will not overcome sin in your life, and you may end up in Hell. Don’t pluck out your eye, turn it away. Confess your sin to God and turn away from it. When you are tempted, ask Him for grace, and He will help you.  If you want this; if you want righteousness, then seek for it with all your heart. Through the love of God and the gift of the Holy Spirit; through faith in the  sacrifice of Jesus, and His resurrection from the dead; through the grace of God, if you will love Him, you can do His Words. This is the love of God: that we keep His commandments, and His commandments are not grievous. 

Back in Mat 5:43, Jesus said, You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you. The Holy Spirit will lead you in situations with people to do His Word, like: love your enemies. He will bring an enemy: someone whom you consider to be your enemy, across your path, and then you have an opportunity to do His Word and overcome and be set free, or, harden your heart and stay in darkness. 

It is a lie of the devil, that you cannot do the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus would have been unjust then in what He required; when He said, If you do these Words, it’s like building your house upon a rock. If you will love God, and seek Him with all your heart, He will give you grace to do it. If you love the world, you will not be able to do it. People who love the world; who love their evil deeds, will not be able to do it. Mat 7:21,  Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven. 

Thank you for reading this message from 15 Minutes With Jesus at roberthaymes.com .

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you who love Him in truth, Amen. (2 Cor 13:14)