And Then I Grew Up...Àpẹrẹ

This passage is the climax of the Sermon on the Mount. This is the culmination of the longest recorded sermon of Christ, and that culmination is obedience. If you have the time, go through Matthew 5-7 and see all that Christ is discussing before this passage, because it is a blueprint of what to be obedient to. In this passage, there are two parts to the obedience Jesus is calling us to: Hear the word, and put it into practice. The first step of obedience is listening; the second is practice. You have to hear what God is saying to you through prayer and His word, and then put into practice what you are hearing. Christ calls the person who does this wise. If you hear God’s word and put it into practice, that is maturity. So, how do you hear His word, and how do you put it into practice?

Hearing God’s word happens when you are enveloped in it. You become enveloped by reading the Bible daily, listening to worship, fasting, praying, listening to sermons, and spending time in a Godly community. Commit to at least one of these things and begin to listen to what God is speaking to you. Putting God’s word into practice happens after you hear it. It is simple but hard to do: listen, then obey. When God tells you to do something when you are praying, do it. When you are convicted during a sermon, listen. When you are reading the Bible and something challenges you, make a change.

Hearing and obeying God and His word is wisdom and maturity. If you want to be spiritually mature, hear God’s word and put it into practice. Commit yourself to spending time listening to what God is saying to you. Maybe it takes waking up a little early to pray. Maybe this looks like cutting time on social media to read your Bible. Whatever the method, commit yourself to listening, because in order to be obedient to what God is saying, you have to hear what He is saying.