Jesus’ world was filled with a variety of religious perspectives.  There were Zealots, Scribes, Sadducees, Pharisees, and Essenes.

Large crowds began to follow Jesus because of his healing ministry.  So Jesus transitions to his teaching ministry.

Jesus overcame the temptations of Satan about what kind of mission he should pursue.  Now he must model a God-centered mission that will reach humanity.

The only way to develop Christ-like character is through the suffering that comes through temptation

There are three potential sources for determining what is right and wrong in human life. There is individual conscience, community standards, and the revealed will of God.

There’s a tendency to become focused on the cost of caring for someone.

Repentance requires a radical change in attitude that results in a change of life.

Many people envision God as a distant supernatural being who has left us alone to find our way in this world.  The Jesus story contradicts this view of God.

Many people envision God as a distant supernatural being who has left us alone to find our way in this world.  The Jesus story contradicts this view of God.

We have been discussing the power of our words to bring life or death into our lives and the lives of others. Now let us look at the power of The Word!

We were created by God to live in covenant with him. Because of who God is and what he has done for us, we are compelled to have lips full of his praise.

Our hearts and mouths were designed to be full of thanksgiving.

Jesus is the embodiment of the Word of God and our model for how to communicate.

To control our tongues we must exercise wisdom in how we choose to live our lives.

We have the ability with God's help to control our communication so that we bless rather than curse ourselves and others.

In our society we believe our speech is for sharing how we feel and what we think.

Our words have the power of life and death. Our verbal response to the work of God through the Spirit in Jesus is critical to our salvation.

We are speaking life or death into our lives and others with what we choose to say. That is why we mediate on God’s Word for the words of life.

We live in a society saturated by careless words. We must reconsider the importance and power of words.

We are official representatives of the Kingdom of God. Our responsibility is to offer a peace treaty to alienated human beings, who need to be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ.