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The church of Christ that meets at Cloud Nine, 4960 E Highway 90, Sierra Vista, AZ (2026)

06/17/2026

Weekly Encouragement - You Have Heard That It Was Said - Matthew 5

In Matthew chapters 5-7, Jesus taught His disciples in what is known as the Sermon on the Mount. His disciples at that time were Jews who had been brought up as believers in Jehovah God. They had been instructed by their parents when they were children and this teaching had been reinforced by the teachings and scripture readings in the synagogues. Nearly everyone knew the Law, the Psalms, and the major stories of Israel by heart. Jesus knew what they had been taught; He knew what they had heard. He had been brought up in this society. In Matthew 5:21-48, Jesus is teaching these Jews a better understanding of how God really wanted them to live. We also can learn from these teachings of Jesus how to better live our lives pleasing to the Father.

Matthew 5:21 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'” The sixth commandment of the ten commandments is stated in Exodus 20:13 "You shall not murder.” The Jews probably thought that to be pleasing to God and avoid judgment, all they needed to do was not kill another in murder. But Jesus taught that thoughts of hatred and contempt for their brother were as bad as murder and also had bad consequences. Even when they did not murder their brother physically, they could sin against them with their thoughts. Jesus then encourages them to quickly reconcile with their brother if there is a problem and to quickly make peace with their adversary.

Matthew 5:27 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'” The seventh commandment of the ten commandments is stated in Exodus 20:14 "You shall not commit adultery.” The Jews probably thought that to be pleasing to God, all they needed was to avoid having a physical sexual relationship with someone other than their spouse. But Jesus taught in Matthew 5:28 “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Adultery in the heart is just as much adultery as the physical action. Then Jesus teaches that if their eye or hand causes them to sin, it would be better to pluck out their eye or cut off their hand than for the whole body to be cast into hell.

Matthew 5:31 "Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'” Instruction on divorce is found in Deuteronomy 24. Deuteronomy 24:1 "When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her out of his house.” Although there were different schools of thought in Jesus’ time about the grounds for divorce, once the reason was established, the husband had to give his wife a certificate of divorce. Here is Jesus’ response to divorce. Matthew 5:32 “But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.” Taking the exception out for a moment, Jesus said that when the man divorces his wife, he causes her to commit adultery. By his action he caused her to sin and would therefore bear some of the guilt for the sin. Putting the exception back in, if the reason the man is divorcing his wife is because of sexual immorality, she is already committing sexual immorality; he does not cause her to commit adultery. Then Jesus added “and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.” No exception here. Whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Matthew 5:33 "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'” Here was some of the instruction concerning oaths. Leviticus 19:12 “And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the LORD.” Numbers 30:2 “If a man makes a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.” But Jesus teaches them to not swear at all. Matthew 5:37 “But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.”

Matthew 5:38 "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'” Here was some of the instruction in the law. Leviticus 24:19-20 “If a man causes disfigurement of his neighbor, as he has done, so shall it be done to him—fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he has caused disfigurement of a man, so shall it be done to him.” The understanding that had resulted was that they were free to retaliate for whatever wrong they had suffered. But Jesus taught them not to resist an evil person. Don’t retaliate. If someone sues you, give them more than what they ask. If a soldier compels you to carry his load for a mile, carry it for two miles. Give to whoever asks of you and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. In other words, be generous and giving.

Matthew 5:43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'” The commandment about loving their neighbor is found in Leviticus 19:18 “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.” The Israelites were never explicitly commanded to hate their enemy. Jesus continued in Matthew 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” They were to love their enemies, bless them, do good to them, and pray for them. Then He gives the reason why. Verse 45 “That you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Jesus instructed to be loving like the Father in heaven who gives good things to both the evil and the good, the just and the unjust.

In this portion of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught about murder and anger, adultery and lust, divorce, oaths, retaliation, and love for enemies. He taught a deeper understanding of how we should apply God’s will in our lives. I encourage you to apply these teachings to your life that you may be pleasing to your Father in heaven.

06/15/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on Romans 14 by Keith Moore!

06/11/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on Romans 13 by Keith Moore!

06/10/2026

Weekly Encouragement - The Light of the World - Matthew 5

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 5:14a "You are the light of the world.” While we are light, Jesus is the true light. John 8:12 “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’” Because of the light that He brought into the world, we do not “walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” Jesus showed us and taught us how we should live. That is light. As Christians, we reflect the light of Jesus, the true light. We reveal God the Father and Jesus the Son to the dark world. We show the way to God by how we live. We demonstrate truth, hope, and righteousness. As light, we are visible evidence of Christ’s presence.

Matthew 5:14b “A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.” A city on a hill is elevated; it is seen from far away. It is a landmark for travelers. We, like such a city, should be open and visible to all those around us. We don’t have to try to shine. If Christ is in us, we will shine.

Matthew 5:15a “Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket.” Putting a light under a basket would smother the flame, block the light, and waste the purpose of the lamp. We can hide our light through fear of what others might think or do. Our light will not shine if there is sin in our lives. We might not be a light when we compromise the truth or when we are silent when we should speak up for the truth. We will not be a light if we demonstrate that we are worldly minded, don’t trust in God or neglect the spiritual disciplines we should have.

Matthew 5:15b “But on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” Just as a lamp is put on a lampstand so that it can better illuminate the room, your life influences your home, your workplace, your church, and your community. Light doesn’t choose who sees it. It simply shines, and everyone in its radius benefits.

Matthew 5:16a “Let your light so shine before men.” “Let” means don’t hide or dim or bury your light. Don’t apologize for your light or be passive. Letting your light shine is intentional. It means living in such a way that Christ is unmistakably in your life.

Matthew 5:16b “That they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” The goal is not self-promotion, or praise from others or pride in who we are. We don’t seek recognition or attempt to show moral superiority. The goal is God’s glory. When people see our patience, our integrity, our compassion, our purity, our forgiveness, our faith, and our joy in trials, we don’t want them to say, “What a good person.” We want them to say, “what a great God.” We want them to also make Jesus their Lord and Savior.

Our identity is that we are light. Our visibility is that we must be seen. Our warning is that we don’t hide our light. Our influence is that our lives affect others. Our responsibility is that we let our light shine. The purpose is that God gets the glory.

The apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians and told them specific ways that they could be lights in the world. Philippians 2:14-15 “Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” The ways that the apostle points out to be lights in the world are to do all things without complaining and disputing.

There are many things about which we could complain. It is easy to find fault with people around us, with the way those in authority have established things, with how much things cost or even with the weather. But the admonition by Paul is that we do all things without complaining. Don’t complain but instead be prayerful and thankful. Phillippians 4:6 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” The answer to complaining or anxiety is to pray to God and be thankful.

There are also many people with diverse opinions with whom we could argue, dispute, or be contentious. 2 Timothy 2:24-25 “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth.” The servant of the Lord must not quarrel. Instead we should be gentle, able to teach, patient, and humble. We can still correct others, but we do it in a loving, kind way - avoiding disputes.

When we don’t complain or argue or dispute with others, we will be very different from those in the world who spend much of their time complaining and disputing. The apostle Paul states that we will be perceived as blameless and harmless; we will become what God wants His children to be. Then people will not be able to find fault with our character or spirit. We must appreciate that we live and work in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. God wants us to shine as lights in the world.

If we are to be lights in the world, we must walk as children of light. Ephesians 5:8-10 “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.” To walk as children of light implies that we have the Holy Spirit of God within us and that we bear the fruit of the Spirit and continually seek to find what is acceptable to the Lord.

I encourage you to see that God wants you to be the light of the world. You are reflecting the light of Jesus and of God the Father. How you live matters in whether or not you are that light.

06/08/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on 1 Corinthians 16 by Edward Anderson

06/03/2026

Weekly Encouragement - The Salt of the Earth - Matthew 5

Jesus continued His Sermon on the Mount by describing His disciples as the salt of the earth. Matthew 5:13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”

Salt has many uses. It can preserve meat. It was used to mummify bodies. In cold climates where there is snow on the roads, spreading salt on the roads can make them safer for travel. Salt is used for purification. Salt can preserve meat. But perhaps the most common use for salt is to enhance the flavor of food. Many like salt on meat, potatoes, rice, French fries, tomatoes and even watermelons. Historically, salt has been the cause of wars because people wanted salt on their food. The word ‘salary’ derives from the Latin salarium, (sal is the Latin word for salt). There is some debate over the origin of the word salarium, but most scholars accept that it was the money allowed to Roman soldiers for the purchase of salt.

You and I, as followers of Jesus, are the salt of the earth. We give flavor to this distasteful world. In a world filled with wickedness, selfishness, and hatred, it should be refreshing to see Christians who make a difference by being righteous, living in love, and doing God’s work. But I also believe that we don’t just flavor the earth for our neighbors, but we give flavor to the earth for God. Let us look at some of the Biblical examples where there wasn’t enough salt or flavor.

Consider the flood. Genesis 6:5-8 “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, ‘I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.’ But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.” God saved Noah and his family, but He destroyed the rest of mankind because there were such widespread wickedness and violence. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord, but there weren’t enough righteous individuals to provide salt or flavor to keep the Lord from destroying the rest of the world.

Consider the ancient cities of S***m and Gomorrah. Genesis 18:20-21 “And the LORD said, ‘Because the outcry against S***m and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave, I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know.’" The Lord sent two angels to visit Lot in S***m and Lot welcomed them into his house. But the men of the city surrounded the house and requested that Lot bring them out so that they could have homosexual relations with them. The men of the city became violent so the angels pulled Lot into the house, shut the door, and struck the men of the city with blindness. But before that, the Lord had spoken to Abraham and told him that he was considering destroying S***m. Genesis 18:23-26 “And Abraham came near and said, ‘Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it? Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?’ So the LORD said, ‘If I find in S***m fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.’” Then Abraham tried to bargain with the Lord. What if there were only 45 righteous? What if there were only 40, 30, 20 or even 10 righteous? The Lord finally agreed not to destroy the city if there were just 10 righteous in the city. But there weren’t 10 righteous in the city. So the Lord destroyed S***m and Gomorrah. There wasn’t enough salt or flavor in S***m – not enough righteous individuals.

Consider the nation of Israel and later the nation of Judah as recorded in the biblical books of Judges, 1 Kings, and 2 Kings. Time and again the Israelites turned away from the Lord and worshiped the Gods of the surrounding peoples. When they did that, the Lord gave them over to their enemies. Eventually the nation of Israel was taken into captivity by the Assyrians and never returned. Later the nation of Judah was taken into captivity by the Babylonians. These things happened to the Israelites because there wasn’t enough salt or flavor among God’s people – not enough righteous individuals.

What about today in your country? There is evilness everywhere. Violence is on the increase. Abortion is common. Homosexuality is open and condoned. There is an increase in witchcraft, Satan worship, and the occult. Greediness is prevalent. Illegal drug use and addiction is a plague. The internet is filled with falsehood and deception. Who can you trust? The world needs “salt”.

What about you? Are you known for always telling the truth? Are you busy doing good and helping others? Do you take a stand against wrong and defend what is right? Do you make it known that you believe in God and that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior? Do you demonstrate love to your neighbor? Do you demonstrate integrity? Would others consider your actions righteous? Are you flavoring the world for God? Are you the salt of the earth?

Jesus said “but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.” When salt no longer has the capability to enhance the flavor of food, it is worthless and can be thrown away. You might as well throw it on the ground and walk on it. What does this say about you and me? If we do not provide a good influence in the world, what good are we to God? If we no longer flavor the world, what benefit are we? We must be different from the world in a good way to give it flavor to God.

I encourage you to be the salt of the earth. I encourage you to flavor the world with righteousness. I encourage you to be the seasoning of the world for God. You and I have an important role to play on this earth.

05/31/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on Romans 12, by Keith Moore

05/30/2026

Weekly Encouragement - Blessed - Matthew 5

Many people followed Jesus because He was able to heal the sick. But Jesus’ mission while on earth was not so much to physically heal people, but he came to bring the message of truth to the world. Seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain and began to teach His disciples. He starts His teachings with the beatitudes or describing those who are blessed. Blessed can mean “happy” or “fortunate” or “doing well”. Jesus is describing a state of divine approval – a life that God looks upon with favor.

Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” The first blessing is upon the “poor in spirit”. When we consider someone who is poor, we typically think of someone who has few of this world’s possessions. Does that mean that the poor in spirit have very little spirit? I don’t think so. Instead, the poor in spirit are those who are humble, not proud. They recognize their need for God’s grace in their life as opposed to being self-sufficient of themselves. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6). Theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Both John the Baptist and Jesus had already proclaimed that the kingdom of heaven was at hand – it was coming very soon. The poor in spirit or the humble would be those who would be part of that coming kingdom.

Matthew 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.” There are multiple reasons to mourn. The most common reason to mourn is when you lose a loved one to death. But another reason to mourn is to be contrite in your knowledge that your sins separate you from the holy God. The apostle Paul teaches us that godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation (2 Corinthians 7:10). In the coming kingdom, those who mourn for their sinfulness and repent will have their sins forgiven - they will be comforted.

Matthew 5:5 “Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.” The meek person is gentle and mild in his own cause. Meekness implies accepting what God allows to happen to you. Meekness is strength under God’s control—gentle toward people, trusting toward God, and free from the need to fight for your own status. Meekness is not weakness. By contrast, the spirit of the world is assertiveness, dominance, and self-promotion. The meek shall inherit the earth. To inherit the earth could mean that they will live long on this earth. Or, since there is promised new heavens and a new earth (2 Peter 3:13), the meek could inherit that new earth. Or it could be referring to the promised holy city that will be inherited (Revelation 21:2).

Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.” We understand what it means to hunger for food and thirst for drink; these are fundamental desires of a person. But to hunger and thirst for righteousness implies a strong desire to be righteous before our holy God. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness and come to Jesus will now be justified and made righteous because Jesus died and took our sins upon Himself on the cross. Romans 3:24 “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”

Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.” God requires us to be merciful and forgiving to others. Matthew 6:14 "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” If we are merciful to others, God will give us mercy.

Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.” A pure heart has but one desire – to please our Father in heaven. In the coming holy city, we are told that “the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.” (Revelation 21:3). The pure in heart will inherit the holy city and they will see God.

Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” We should be interested in two areas of peace. The first is peace between individuals and groups. The works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5:20-21 describe works that bring conflict. The fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23 includes peace; the sons of God with the Spirit seek peace and have peace. The second area of peace is peace between man and God. We can only have peace with God through Jesus Christ. The sons of God proclaim the gospel so that others may have peace with God.

Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” When we stand up for our faith in God, for our faith in Jesus Christ, and for truth and right, we will be persecuted. People will revile us and falsely say all kinds of evil against us. When the apostles were beaten and commanded not to speak in the name of Jesus, they left “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.” (Acts 5:41). We can rejoice when we are persecuted because we believe we have the kingdom of heaven and our reward is great in heaven.

Let me summarize the characteristics that Jesus taught that are blessed by God as found in Matthew 5:3-12. The first is humility; God requires that we humbly come to Him to receive His grace. Next is mourning for our sinfulness - having godly sorry for our sins that leads to salvation. Then there is the hunger and thirst for righteousness. As we receive God’s mercy, we give mercy to others. We have a pure heart that seeks to please God in all things. We are peacemakers with others and proclaim the gospel of peace with God. And finally, when we are persecuted for righteousness, we rejoice that we are counted worthy to suffer shame for the name of Jesus. I encourage you to seek these characteristics in your life so that you may be blessed by God.

05/27/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on being a new creation by Jon Click!

05/24/2026

The Cloud Nine Church of Christ Welcomes you!

Today's study is on Humility by Levi Moore!

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