L3 SERMON | NOVEMBER 2, 2025

Chasing Happy – Mike Breaux

Sermon Highlights

Key Passage: Matthew 5:1–12; Matthew 7:13–14

In Matthew 5, Jesus invited people into a radically different way of living that leads to true joy and fulfillment. In His Sermon on the Mount, He described what that life looks like: a heart that’s humble and dependent on God, a spirit that grieves over sin, a life that extends mercy, seeks what’s right, and brings peace to others.

Each one builds on the other, like rungs on a ladder, an invitation to take the next step toward a heart fully surrendered to God.

This path isn’t the one most people choose. It’s countercultural, even upside down compared to the world’s definition of happiness. But Jesus calls us to turn around, paddle upstream, and discover that the narrow road with Him is the one that leads to lasting joy and real life.

INTRO

Icebreaker
Think about the things that make you happy. How long does that happiness usually last before it fades or something new takes its place?

Transition to Discussion
We all chase things that promise happiness, but Jesus offered something deeper and more lasting. He invited us to live God’s way. It’s a countercultural way of living that doesn’t depend on our own strength, but on God’s Spirit working within us. When we follow His lead, we find the kind of happiness the world can’t give and can’t take away.

GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

Read Matthew 5:1–12 and Matthew 7:13–14 together.

  • The Narrow Path — Jesus said the road that leads to life is narrow and few find it. What does it mean to choose that road in today’s world, and how have you experienced the difference between the broad and narrow ways?

  • “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” What does it look like in daily life to admit your need for God instead of trying to hold everything together on your own?

  • “Blessed are those who mourn.” When have you felt genuine sorrow over sin or brokenness—your own or someone else’s—and how did God meet you there?

  • “Blessed are the meek.” Meekness isn’t weakness; it’s strength under God’s control. Where might God be asking you to let go of control and trust His direction?

  • “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” What helps you keep a deep desire for God alive, and what tends to dull that hunger in your life?

  • “Blessed are the merciful.” Who in your life might need grace or forgiveness from you right now, and what could showing mercy look like this week?

  • “Blessed are the pure in heart.” Where are you tempted to hide behind an image or mask, and what would honesty before God and others look like?

  • “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Where could you take one step toward bringing peace or understanding into a tense or divided situation?

  • “I can’t, but God can.” People like Moses, Gideon, and Peter discovered that God’s power begins where their strength ends. Where do you need to stop striving and start trusting God’s power to work in and through you?

NEXT STEP AND PRAYER

The blessed life comes as we follow Jesus on a different kind of path. It’s a path that moves against the current of the world and leads to real life in Him. Each step in the Beatitudes invites us to grow deeper in humility, surrender, and trust.

Take a few moments to be still and ask God:

  • Where am I on this journey right now?

  • What’s one step of faith or surrender He’s inviting me to take this week?

It might be forgiving someone, releasing control, showing mercy, or simply admitting, “God, I can’t, but You can.”

Group Prayer Guide
(Leaders can close in prayer using these prompts.)

  • God, we admit our need for You. We can’t do life on our own.

  • Thank You for meeting us with comfort, mercy, and grace.

  • Help us to surrender control and trust Your strength instead of our own.

  • Keep our hearts hungry for what’s right and pure before You.

  • Make us peacemakers in our homes, workplaces, and church family.

  • Teach us to walk Your narrow path with joy, knowing that real life is found in You.

Amen.