New Testament Principles

Matthew 21: 21 Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have ^afaith, and ^bdoubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this ^cmountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

Principle: If ye have faith, miracles can be done.

Matthew 23: 12 And whosoever shall ^aexalt himself shall be ^babased; and he that shall ^chumble himself shall be exalted.

Principle: If you humble yourself, you will be exalted.

JST 11 But he that remaineth ^asteadfast and is not overcome, the same shall be saved.

Principle: If you remain steadfast, you will be saved.

John 12 25 He that loveth his ^alife shall lose it; and he that ^bhateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

26 If any man serve me, let him ^afollow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

Principle: If you lose yourself serving the Lord, your life will be more full and have more meaning.

The scripture Matthew 23:12 is in relation to the hypocrites in the temple. A lot of these men have put themselves above Christ and only care about profit and money. If you exalt yourself, then you are actually degraded. Sometimes it can seem like putting yourself up and above others would make you feel better, but it really belittles you and is an unrighteous desire. Here, Jesus is saying, that being humble is a very Christ-like thing to be. I think everyone can try and be a bit more humble. I try my best to be humble and aware of others. It can be hard in a world where comparison, money, and competition are everyday occurrences. Personally, I don’t think humility only applies to one aspect of life. In the scriptures it is referring to the temple and business and the men thinking they are above God. I think nowadays, humility can help us in our relationships, our living circumstances, and our gratefulness.

Here are some questions to consider when reading through the scriptures…

Is it important to be humble ALL the time?

Is there a time or place for some proudness and exaltation of ourselves?

What do you think the scripture means when it says, “He that loveth his ^alife shall lose it; and he that ^bhateth his life in this world shall keep it…”?

Are there any times in your life you have seen miracles because of faith?

How can we remain steadfast in life when the world is full of turmoil?

During our weekly discussion, another classmate shared the scripture John 12:46 and she shared that the principle could be interpreted as those that believe in Christ will not have to walk in darkness. I loved this so much and it really stuck out to me throughout the week. It is such a comfort to know that we will always have Christ on our side when we are trying to be better. I have definitely had the light of Christ bless my life, especially recently. Things seem extra crazy, but there have been amazing moments of peace that I can feel Christ’s love around me. Christ is the light of the world and we all carry a bit of that light with us. This same classmate shared a poem that I think is beautiful.

Footprints in the Sand

One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
“Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You’d walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don’t understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me.”

He whispered, “My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you.”