A Teaching Recap from Larry Ramirez

Faith in Jesus is more than believing that He exists. It is more than agreeing with the right ideas, saying the right words, or identifying ourselves with the right beliefs. Faith is trust. Faith is surrender. Faith is following Jesus into a whole new way of being human.

In Matthew 5, Jesus sits down on a mountain and begins to describe the life of the kingdom. What we call the Beatitudes are not a religious checklist. They are not requirements we perform in order to earn salvation. They are the evidence of a heart being transformed by faith. Jesus is showing us what a life surrendered to Him begins to look like.

And this matters because faith is never meant to remain theoretical. Faith in Jesus changes how we see ourselves, how we treat others, and how we live in the world.

Jesus Sees the Crowd

Matthew 5 begins with a simple but beautiful phrase: “Seeing the crowds…” Before Jesus teaches, He sees. He sees the people coming toward Him. He sees their hunger. He sees their weariness. He sees their pain. He sees their need.

And this is part of what faith begins to form in us. Faith opens our eyes. It teaches us to see people—not as interruptions, problems, categories, or strangers, but as beloved ones standing before God.

Larry said it this way: we have to look people in the eyes. We have to love them. We have to allow the love and power of God to flow through us like a spring, like a river.

That is where this kind of faith begins to become visible. It is not only in what we believe about God. It is in the way His life begins to move through us toward the people in front of us.

Faith Begins with Humility

Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Faith in Jesus begins with humility. To be poor in spirit is to recognize our need for God. It is the end of pretending. It is the end of self-salvation. It is the end of trying to build a life with our own effort, our own goodness, our own religious performance, or our own strength.

We cannot save ourselves. We cannot heal ourselves. We cannot transform ourselves from the outside in. Faith begins when we finally tell the truth: Jesus, I need You.

Larry shared from his own life and testimony, reminding us that even when we believe for the miraculous, we are not the healers. Jesus is the healer. Our part is obedience. Our part is faith. Our part is to trust His Word, lay hands on the sick, pray, and believe Him with the outcome.

That kind of faith keeps us humble. It keeps us dependent. It keeps us free from carrying a weight we were never meant to carry. We are not God. We are not the source. We are not the Savior. But we do get to trust Him. We do get to obey. We do get to participate.

Faith Brings Our Pain to Jesus

Jesus continues, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

Faith does not ignore pain. Faith does not require us to pretend we are fine when we are not. It does not deny grief, loss, disappointment, sin, or the brokenness of the world. Faith brings all of it to Jesus.

There is a kind of mourning that becomes holy because it is no longer isolated from God. It is mourning held in His presence. It is pain brought into communion. It is grief that does not have the final word because Jesus Himself comes near with comfort.

God often does His deepest work in us in the very places where we become most aware of our need. It is in those places that we discover He is not distant. He is not offended by our weakness. He does not turn away from our tears. He comforts those who mourn.

Faith Produces Gentleness and Trust

Jesus says, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

Meekness is not weakness. It is strength under control. It is power that has learned to trust God. It is the refusal to force our own way, defend our own name, control every outcome, or win every argument.

Larry said something simple and deeply important: “I don’t want to be right. I want to be righteous.”

That is what faith begins to produce in the heart. Faith teaches us that we do not have to grasp, strive, manipulate, or prove ourselves. We can trust the Father’s timing. We can trust His ways. We can trust that surrender is not loss.

In the upside-down kingdom of Jesus, the way up is down. The meek inherit the earth. The lowly are lifted. The surrendered are strengthened. The ones who do not have to control everything are the ones who discover that God can be trusted with everything.

Faith Creates a Hunger for Righteousness

Jesus says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Faith changes our appetites. What we hunger for reveals what controls our hearts. When faith begins to transform us, we start to desire what we did not desire before. We begin to hunger for the Word of God. We begin to long for holiness—not as performance, but as wholeness. We begin to desire the life of Christ to be formed in us.

This is not about becoming religious. It is about becoming alive. Righteousness is not merely about being correct. It is about being rightly ordered in love. It is about the heart coming into alignment with God. It is about becoming the kind of person who reflects Jesus from the inside out.

Faith does not simply change what we say we believe. Faith changes what we want.

Faith Changes How We Treat People

Jesus says, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”

A heart that has received mercy becomes a heart that extends mercy. Forgiven people forgive. Loved people love. Those who have been rescued by grace begin to become agents of grace in the lives of others.

Larry shared honestly from his own story about the way faith led him into reconciliation. Following Jesus meant taking ownership. It meant going back to people he had hurt. It meant asking forgiveness. It meant no longer blaming others for the choices he had made.

That is what faith does. It does not stay abstract. It becomes visible in our relationships. It changes the way we speak. It changes the way we repair. It changes the way we respond to people who have hurt us. It changes the way we take responsibility for the pain we have caused.

Mercy is not weakness. Mercy is what happens when the mercy of God has become real to us.

Faith Purifies the Heart

Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

God is not only concerned with outward behavior. He sees the heart. He sees the motives, desires, agreements, wounds, and hidden places no one else can see. And the good news is not simply that Jesus forgives our outward sins. The good news is that Jesus transforms us from within.

He purifies the heart. He cleanses the inner life. He does not merely teach us to manage behavior. He makes us new.

Faith allows Jesus access to the hidden places. It lets Him touch what we would rather conceal. It trusts that His light does not come to shame us, but to heal us. A pure heart is not a heart that has never needed mercy. A pure heart is a heart that has been surrendered to love.

Faith Makes Us Peacemakers

Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

Jesus came to make peace between God and humanity. And now, His life in us leads us into the ministry of reconciliation.

Peacemaking is not avoiding truth. It is not pretending conflict does not exist. It is not keeping everyone comfortable at the expense of what is real. Peacemaking is participating in the reconciling life of Jesus.

It is building bridges instead of walls. It is taking ownership where we have caused harm. It is moving toward repair instead of retreating into pride. It is refusing to let bitterness become our inheritance.

Larry shared about places in his own family where, after decades, peace began to come through repentance, ownership, and forgiveness. That is not small. That is the kingdom of God entering the real relationships of our lives.

Faith makes us peacemakers because the Son of God has made peace with us.

Faith Stands Firm Through Opposition

Jesus says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Following Jesus will sometimes cost us. Faith will not always be popular. Obedience will not always be understood. The way of the kingdom will often look upside down to the world around us.

But faith remains faithful. Faith stands for truth with love. Faith remembers that eternal reward is greater than temporary difficulty. Faith is proven not only in comfort, but also in hardship.

The Beatitudes paint a picture of a person whose life has been transformed by faith in Jesus. Because of faith in Jesus, we are humbled before God. We find comfort in Him. We walk in gentleness. We hunger for righteousness. We show mercy. We pursue purity. We make peace. We remain faithful through trials.

Is Faith Changing the Way We Live?

Larry asked a question that is worth carrying: Is my faith in Jesus changing the way that I live?

That is the question. Not simply, Do I believe the right things? Not simply, Do I know the right language? Not simply, Do I agree with the right doctrine? But is faith in Jesus actually forming Christ in me?

Is it changing how I see people? Is it changing how I respond to pain? Is it changing how I handle conflict? Is it changing what I hunger for? Is it changing how I forgive? Is it changing how I love?

Faith in Jesus is not merely believing the right things. It is allowing Christ to shape our character until the world around us begins to see Him in us.

May we be a people who open our eyes. May we be a people who open our mouths. May we be a people who walk in faith. May we look people in the eyes and love them well. May the love of God flow through us like a river. And may our lives continue to testify that Jesus still transforms hearts.

Watch the full message here:
https://www.youtube.com/live/roDHQuHCquU?si=qkzSKfxvmUj–9wu

Reflection Questions

1. Where is Jesus inviting me to admit my need for Him instead of relying on my own strength?
2. What grief, disappointment, or pain do I need to bring honestly into His presence?
3. Where am I trying to be right when the Lord is inviting me to become righteous?
4. What do my current hungers reveal about what is shaping my heart?
5. Is there someone I need to extend mercy to—or someone I need to ask forgiveness from?
6. Where is Jesus inviting me to become a peacemaker?
7. How is my faith in Jesus changing the way I actually live?

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