Build Strong Relationships

(adapted from Southeast Christian Church’s series Living a Life of Integrity)
SERIES: “WORDS OF WISDOM FOR KINGDOM LIVING”

TEXT: MATTHEW 7:1-12

TITLE: “BUILD STRONG RELATIONSHIPS”

INTRODUCTION: A. Graduates, we’re glad that you’re with us this morning
1. We share in your celebration of achievement

2. You’ve completed high school and your life lies ahead of you

3. Whatever you do, I encourage you to build strong relationships in this life
--Relationships that prepare you for the life to come

4. Whether you’re going on to college, entering the military, or joining the full-time
work force, relationships are the most important thing for you to build

B. Several weeks ago in our series through Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount we looked at
Jesus’ words concerning building our lives
1. He admonished us to invest in things that are eternal and not temporary

2. The relationships that we build here on earth will shape us for eternity

3. In the passage we’ll look at today we’ll learn that God wants us to build strong
relationships with others and with Him and to begin to see Him as a gracious,
loving Father.

4. This passage concludes with the Golden Rule, which you probably learned as a
child—“Do to others as you would have others do to you.”
--In a sense it is a backdrop from which to view all of the principles within the
Sermon on the Mount.

I. YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER CHRISTIANS
A. Avoid Judgmental words
--Mt. 7:1-2. – “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will
be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
1. In his book, A Gentle Thunder, popular Christian author Max Lucado tells about a time he took his
family on vacation to a historical city. While they were touring an old house, Lucado said he noticed a
family behind them was from New York. And he said, “They didn’t have to tell me they were from
New York. I could tell. They wore New York City clothes. The teenage son had one half of his head
shaved and on the other half of his head, his hair hung down past his shoulders. The daughter wore
layered clothes and long beads. The mother looked like she’d raided her daughter’s closet, and the
dad’s hair was down the back of his neck.”
He said, “I had these people figured out. The boy was probably strung out on drugs. The parents
were going through midlife crisis. They were miserable people and in need of spiritual guidance.