Perspective, Pursuit and Prayer
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6 “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Story of a Catholic boy named Johnny
The Sermon on the Mount - The Greatest Sermon ever Preached by the Greatest Preacher/Teacher of all time
It seemed like the Lord was jumping from one topic to another from blessedness, to being salt and light, murder and adultery of the heart, prayer, not worrying and not judging
One Cohesive Message
Not like a shotgun
Chapter 6 we heard Jesus preach about not laying for ourselves treasures on earth, but laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven..
Then He talked about Not Worrying
Our Vertical Relationship affects our Horizontal Relationships - Do not Judge, help yourself to help others
There is a progression in how the Lord teaches about how to live.
Discipleship - A disciple is someone who follows Jesus, but a disciple is one who also learns and gets equipped to do the work of making disciples.
That is why we have iTIM and TUMI:
Here at Crosswind, we want everyone of you to be equipped, we have a curriculum that has several tracks, as you progress..
Crosswind Learning Tracks:
Discipleship
Ministry
Teaching
Pastoral
Leadership
The point is we are to progress, we are not to remain in one place, and grow stale or become stagnant..
This is what the Lord wants for us, and we can see that in the sermon on the mount, it is progressive, one principle leads to another —
Head, Heart and Hands Principle
Living according to Jesus is about having a: (5 Ps)
Right Perspective
which leads to a
Right Priority
which leads to the
Right Pursuit
which in turn leads to knowing the
Right Person
who will lead us to the
Right Principle
Living according to Jesus is about a
Right Perspective
The Lord Jesus talked about not laying up for ourselves treasures on earth, but lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven.
Do not be caught up in the cares and worries of this present life.
His teaching culminated in having the right perspective.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
Let us start with Jesus as King
We are about what is eternal, heavenly, godly, and holy.. and you will find yourself being different and even against most people because they have a different perspective.
6 “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
With the right perspective comes spiritual discernment—we begin to recognize what is truly valuable (eternal truth) and to share it wisely.
Our faith, the gospel, and our relationship with Christ are precious pearls. Not everyone will appreciate or value them. Some may reject them outright, mock them, or even become hostile.
This doesn’t mean we stop sharing the gospel, but rather that we use wisdom—investing our time, energy, and resources where hearts are open.
Just as a jeweler wouldn’t give pearls to pigs who cannot recognize their value, we should prioritize eternal things and be good stewards of God's truth.
The right perspective leads to the…
2. Right Priority
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
This is not only a lesson on prayer but rather of setting our priorities right.
There will be an intentionality in praying for the right things and also a persistence in prayer.
There is a progression in the intensity.
You ask but then you do not give up —
you seek - you try to find reasons why you did not get what you ask for, maybe it is asked with the wrong motives.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
3. Right Pursuit
8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.
This is a promise.
If Jesus had given this promise, then that prayer is worth pursuing. Notice: When you receive, it means there has to be a giver. When you find, it is because someone showed you or led you. When the door is open, it means someone opened that door for you!
God’s greatest desire when His children pray is not merely to grant requests, but to draw them into deeper intimacy with Him—to shape their hearts to reflect His own.
When you pray, are you only seeking God's hand, or are you truly seeking His heart? The greatest gift of prayer is not the answer—it is God Himself.
God desires relationship over requests
13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
God longs for us to align our desires with His
4 Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
God wants us to trust Him to do what only He can do
(Ephesians 3:20 – "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine...").
A.W. Tozer beautifully expresses this truth:
"God is looking for people through whom He can do the impossible—what a pity that we plan only the things we can do by ourselves." (A.W. Tozer)
This quote reminds us that prayer is not about asking for what we think is possible, but about seeking God's heart and surrendering to His will, power, and presence.
4. The Right Person
9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone?
10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
Luke actually adds a third one:
12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion?
if your son asks for an egg, will you give him a scorpion? (Price of eggs, maybe a scorpion is cheaper)
11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
Our life is not about us.
You see, it is not saying that God will just give us what we want.. if I ask for a car, would He give me a bicycle, no, it does not work like that.
The Lord Jesus is using the teaching tool of contrast.. if you imperfect human beings as you are, will try to give your children what they ask, how much more a perfect God, Who knows everything — He knows what is best for us — give His children the best gift!
Understand God as a loving Father. We will draw more to Him.
Prayer is not about what we want, but about what is God’s best for us.
5. Right Principle.
12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
The Golden Rule.
Confucius said:
“Do not do unto others what you would not want others to do unto you”. - Confucius
Very similar to when people tell you, you’ll be ok, “as long as you do not step on anyone’s toes”.
How many of you parents have given that advise to your child when you sent them to school, or when they got hired at their first job?
Christianity is not a passive faith. It is an active faith. See what Jesus did here..
Only Jesus puts this principle in the positive. Do something good to our neighbor. Take the initiative.
Not only avoiding causing harm, but bringing good into another person’s life!
Jesus raises the bar.
The Christian life is impossible.
Living the Christian life is impossible, that is why Jesus wants to live His life in us.
..this is the law and the prophets … Jesus showed us something greater.. it is not about what I want people to do to me (reciprocity) .. it has become paying the ultimate price, without expecting anything in return..
The good that we do, it’s because of what Jesus had done for us.
Right Perspective
which leads to a
Right Priority
which leads to the
Right Pursuit
which in turn leads to knowing the
Right Person
who will lead us to the
Right Principle
