Following Peter's declaration that Jesus is the Christ, Jesus sets clear expectations up front that the Christ must suffer and be killed. He also sets clear expectations that all who follow him must also embrace suffering and death to self—to "take up their cross and follow."

In this passage of Matthew, we see varied responses to Jesus. This is because different people have made different conclusions about who Jesus is—who someone is determines how you respond to them.

Matthew 13 introduces the Parables. In this sermon, Pastor Daniel briefly explains why Jesus communicates through parables, and then spends the rest of the time focusing on the Parable of the Sower. The conclusion is that we want to be the fourth soil, but any one of the other three types can be a threat to our growth. We are called to examine ourselves.

Though Jesus' gospel proclamation is a blessing, the Scribes and Pharisees take offense at him. This because he challenges their hypocrisy, he works "outside the box," and he has greater authority than theirs..

Jesus demonstrates he has authority in various healings and exorcisms. Further, his authority is unlike any of the prophets beforehand, for he even pronounces forgiveness to a paralytic—something that only YHWH himself has the authority to do.

Guest ministry from Rick Paladin at CFC Potsdam.

In Session 3 of the AWAKE Conference, Pastor Rick Paladin unpacked the call on every Christian in Romans 12:1–2.

In Session 2 of the AWAKE Conference, Pastor Rick Paladin unpacked the call of Moses in Exod 3–4.

In Session 1 of the AWAKE Conference, Pastor Rick Paladin unpacked the call of Isaiah in Isa 6.

Jesus continues describing both the culture and standard of the Kingdom of Heaven in his Sermon on the Mount. In chapter 6, Jesus addresses heart motivation and challenges people to love the kingdom more than personal gain. In chapter 7, he uses repeated sets to illustrate what it's like to love the kingdom of heaven. This all describes the standard God has for kingdom people, but the standard doesn't bring transformation—only an encounter with the Holy Spirit can change the heart.

Potsdam