Foundational Attitudes

Last week I stated that foundation of anything will determine it’s outcome.

That is why Jesus offered his disciples a foundation laying message. He wanted his disciples to learn the foundations of a Godly life. He would state it and illustrate it and then gave the disciples the opportunity to practice what they learned. This is the way of Jesus. Establish the word, call us to practice and equip us to obey it.

Using the visual illustration of the Champlain Towers South in Surfside we are exploring how we examine and deal with foundational issues in our life.

In many ways we could summarize the idea like this.

Jesus cares about our foundation because what we build on will determine the outcome of our relationship with God and our relationships with people.

The key issues of relationship with god and others is the question of what foundation will I build my life?

Jesus wants his learners to see and know that a life built on anything other than God’s foundational practices will collapse.

A life build on the wrong foundation will collapse in stages.

Like the Surfside Condo Tower, a life build on the wrong foundation can fool you. It can offer the appearance of stability, comfort, luxury, and success.

But a life built on the facade of health, pretend stability, and superficial strength is a recipe for spiritual and relational disaster.

It may not happen all at once, but through our shared experience, we know lives and relationships come down in stages if we don’t address the foundational issues.

God’s love, grace, and mercy calls us to address our foundation before our lives and relationships collapse.

One difficult about addressing foundational faults and cracks is that we have to see and admit their is weakness.

As I begin today, would you be so courageous as to begin from a vantage point of personal weakness?

PRAY

Your foundational attitudes will determine what you value.

You have heard wise people, like John Maxwell say cliche things like:

64 Attitude quotes https://www.quotetab.com/john-c-maxwell-quotes-about-attitude

You can't be a smart cookie if you have a crummy attitude.

You are only an attitude away from success!

Attitude ... is the prophet of your future.

In a word, most bad attitudes are the result of selfishness.

The sum of all your thoughts comprises your overall attitude.

Each thought you choose is the building materials of your life.

Each thought you choose is a brick make.

The bricks you are making reveal What you value the most.

The foundation on which you place those bricks will determines the Whether your life will withstand the pressures and circumstances of life.

2 Corinthians 10:5 (ESV): We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,

What do my attitudes reveal about who and what I value?

Today let’s focus on

Luke 6:45 ESV

The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Luke is saying…

Our attitudes show what our heart truly values.

Luke 6:45 (Luke (NAC)): heart” is commonly used by Luke to refer to the inner being of an individual out of which attitudes (Luke 2:35; 16:15) and values come (12:34). (Luke 2:35; 16:15)

This proverb simply states that a tree is known by the fruit it produces. A bad tree produces hate and judgment of others, whereas a good tree produces a love even of enemies attitude.6:44

The fruit discloses the cultivation of a tree; so the expression of a thought discloses the cultivation of a man’s mind.”

An evil heart produces critical and judgmental attitudes (5:22; 9:47), doubts (24:38), and wickedness (Acts 8:22); but a good heart produces good fruit (Luke 8:8; note especially 8:15, which is a Lukan addition to the parable).

Disciples (learn to) value what God values.

Foundational Trust and People Building.

Luke 10:27 (ESV)

And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

DISCIPLES OF JESUS ARE RESCUE CREWS WHO ARE ON MISSION TO RESCUE PEOPLE STUCK IN THE RUBBLE OF LIFE. TO OFFER THEM A NEW, SOLID FOUNDATION TO BUILD UPON.

How we invest our power, words, prayer, money, and energy exposes what (who) we value.

HOW DO WE INVEST OUR POWER, WORDS, PRAYERS, MONEY, AND ENERGY? TO RESCUE PEOPLE STUCK IN THE COLLAPSE OF THEIR FOUNDATIONS.

Jesus offers a shocking illustration that portrays these bricks as indicative of what foundation we are building on…

Luke 7:1–10 ESV

After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him. When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.” And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

Power structure

Centurion and a Slave: They both had a kind of power. One kind of power structure is overt, but the real power is covert.

OVERT POWER IS WHAT WE ARE ACCUSTOMED TO: STRENGTH, RESOURCES, FORCE,

CENTURION: Conqueror, Military Occupier, Leader, Slave OwnerOut of his mouth came, SICK SLAVE: COVERT POWER.

Covert Power:

Servant must not have taken his or her position and the defining truth about themselves.

The servants attitude must not have been affected by their circumstances.

The servant must have put the needs of the master above their own.

Recognizing Real Authority: (Humility) JESUS.

THE CENTURION SUBMITS TO A POOR JEWISH ITINERANT TEACHER …

Who interestingly enough can’t seeem to get his religious leaders to listen…

Be cautious what power structure you submit to!

WORDS

Our words reflect our attitudes. Have you ever noticed this?

HOW WE SPEAK ABOUT OTHERS IS THE MESSAGE…

The Centurion Speaks Highly of His Servant so that others speak highly of the servant…

You can effective change your attitude by choosing your words.

What we say and what we don’t say with words.

THIS ONE IS HIGHLY VALUED TO ME.

PRAYER

What is on your prayer list shows what we value

What we pray about and what we ask others to pray about shows what we value!

Prayer for healing is an easy illustration. Most of our prayer list show that we value someone else’s health.

Dennis Turner: COVID 19

Vanessa and Baby, Anthony

How about praying for us to make create assess points for people to find and follow Jesus.

Luke 7:—4 (ESV)

When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him,

MONEY & ENERGY

What we think about, give our power to, and pray about will guide our generosity and energy.

Involved others in seeking the salvation of the servant. Earnestly pleading for others Generosity:

We know what we treasure as a foundation in our heart by our finances.

Luke choose a most peculiar illustration: A Centurion and a slave. An Enemy!

The type of person God can make a disciple is an individual with humility and deep trust.

HUMILITY

Luke 7:9–10 (ESV): When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” 10 And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

Our attitudes show what our heart truly values.

Am I building on what God values?

What am I going to do with my attitude:

POWER

WORDS

PRAYER

MONEY

ENERGY

WHERE THESE BRICK ARE PLACED INDICATE WHAT FOUNDATION I AM TRULY BUILDING UPON