INSPIRE NEWSCAST

This morning at Maida Vale Baptist Church I am starting a new series called Next Steps, based on the Sermon on the Mount recorded for us in Matthew’s Gospel of the Bible. Matthew tells us that there was a big crowd of people around Jesus so he called them together, and he sat on the hillside to speak to them.

There were no microphones, sound systems or fancy powerpoint presentations. Just a bloke on a hillside, speaking clearly and making use of the natural acoustics.

Matthew says the purpose of Jesus’ sermon was to teach his disciples, but he was surrounded by this great crowd of people. It struck me that Jesus was able to achieve two things at once. He wanted his disciples to learn some things so that they could go on and teach other people in the future. But there were no secrets, no special messages for the faithful that others weren’t allowed to hear.

His message was open to all, and the different listeners were able to take what they heard and take the next step they needed to take on the basis of what they heard. When we hear the words of Jesus, we can’t just listen and walk away … we need to think about the next step we need to take in response to his words.

Check out this blog each week – I’ll probably update it each Sunday afternoon and let’s consider our next steps.