Various groups and organizations have rules and values their members are expected to live by. So it is not surprising that Jesus Christ left His followers guidelines to live by. Then and now power, wealth, and pleasure are highly regarded as measures of success. But Jesus taught that in His Kingdom, success is measured by how much we depend upon God in all we do. He said a better indication of success is whether we are poor in spirit or recognize our powerlessness. That is because these conditions drive us to depend upon God–a never-failing resource to help us reach our destiny. A huge benefit of choosing God and living by His values is this: God sends His Holy Spirit to live inside of those who follow Jesus the Christ. When we yield to His Spirit’s promptings, He gives us power to do what God expects of us. Jesus taught that loving God and loving people are core Kingdom values. In Luke 6, He urges us to reject self-centered and prideful living because those who live this way will discover in the future, that their situations will be reversed. They will suffer eternal loss, but those who choose to live for God will inherit eternal riches that never lose their value.
Dr. Melvin E. Banks, Sr.
Dr. Melvin E. Banks, Sr. is the founder and chairman of UMI (Urban Ministries, Inc.). Under his direction, UMI has grown to be a leading publisher of Christian education resources for churches in the African American community. Read More
