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The Sermon on the Mount

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The Sermon on the Mount

(a segment of the sermon will be posted daily until complete)

Should you be impatient, the entire Sermon can be heard here:
Matthew 5-7 - Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount - Bible Gateway


The Beatitudes
5:3-12pp -- Lk 6:20-23
1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them, saying: 3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
 


Thank you, beautiful...It always brings tears to my eyes like the 22nd psalm does....The Lord is my Shepard... I guess down deep I am and old softy because it always tears me up.

God Bless
 
Well, this was posted in case you couldn't happen to find a copy of the world's most published book anywhere, I suppose...
 
In case anyone is interested, here are the theological footnotes for The Sermon on the Mount:

* [5:1–7:29] The first of the five discourses that are a central part of the structure of this gospel. It is the discourse section of the first book and contains sayings of Jesus derived from Q and from M. The Lucan parallel is in that gospel’s “Sermon on the Plain” (Lk 6:20–49), although some of the sayings in Matthew’s “Sermon on the Mount” have their parallels in other parts of Luke. The careful topical arrangement of the sermon is probably not due only to Matthew’s editing; he seems to have had a structured discourse of Jesus as one of his sources. The form of that source may have been as follows: four beatitudes (Mt 5:3–4, 6, 11–12), a section on the new righteousness with illustrations (Mt 5:17, 20–24, 27–28, 33–48), a section on good works (Mt 6:1–6, 16–18), and three warnings (Mt 7:1–2, 15–21, 24–27).

* [5:1–2] Unlike Luke’s sermon, this is addressed not only to the disciples but to the crowds (see Mt 7:28).

* [5:3–12] The form Blessed are (is) occurs frequently in the Old Testament in the Wisdom literature and in the psalms. Although modified by Matthew, the first, second, fourth, and ninth beatitudes have Lucan parallels (Mt 5:3 // Lk 6:20; Mt 5:4 // Lk 6:21, 22; Mt 5:6 // Lk 6:21a; Mt 5:11–12 // Lk 5:22–23). The others were added by the evangelist and are probably his own composition. A few manuscripts, Western and Alexandrian, and many versions and patristic quotations give the second and third beatitudes in inverted order.

* [5:3] The poor in spirit: in the Old Testament, the poor (anawim) are those who are without material possessions and whose confidence is in God (see Is 61:1; Zep 2:3; in the NAB the word is translated lowly and humble, respectively, in those texts). Matthew added in spirit in order either to indicate that only the devout poor were meant or to extend the beatitude to all, of whatever social rank, who recognized their complete dependence on God. The same phrase poor in spirit is found in the Qumran literature (1QM 14:7).

* [5:4] Cf. Is 61:2 “(The Lord has sent me)…to comfort all who mourn.” They will be comforted: here the passive is a “theological passive” equivalent to the active “God will comfort them”; so also in Mt 5:6, 7.

* [5:5] Cf. Ps 37:11, “…the meek shall possess the land.” In the psalm “the land” means the land of Palestine; here it means the kingdom.
 

Love the Word, but I have a real problem with the Q Hypothesis. Here's why:

Ten Reasons to Question Q

The Case Against Q: Ten Reasons

Fallacies at the Heart of Q

The Case Against Q: Fallacies at the Heart of Q

Not only that, but Q is not Occam’s Razor. The earliest authors of the Gospels did not need a previous text to go by. As John 14:26 states (Jesus speaking):

“But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

In addition, there’s no doubt in my mind that after the resurrection and ascension, the disciples must have spent numerous days and campfires together discussing and remembering the events written about in the Gospels.

So those would be Occam’s Razor, not Q.
 
"The poor in spirit" is not about material things. It means spiritual poverty.


To be poor in spirit is to recognize your utter spiritual bankruptcy before God. It is understanding that you have absolutely nothing of worth to offer God. Being poor in spirit is admitting that, because of your sin, you are completely destitute spiritually and can do nothing to deliver yourself from your dire situation. Jesus is saying that, no matter your status in life, you must recognize your spiritual poverty before you can come to God in faith to receive the salvation He offers.

Read more: What does it mean to be poor in spirit?


Thus, if you recognize that.....you are humble in spirit.
 
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To be poor in spirit is to be humble in ego. God gave me all that I am and that is worth everything. You are rich in God's knowledge.
 
"The meek shall possess the land" - the meek referred here does not mean those that are weak, or timid, or those that would be like "door mats."


The Biblical meaning for the word meekness would be about controlled power. Moses was described as being the meekest.

Numbers 12
3 Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)


And so was Jesus.

Matt 11
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Jesus' self-described meekness is consistent with His behaviour when He cleansed the temple.

Matt 21
12 Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 He said to them, “It is written,

‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;

but you are making it a den of robbers.”


Power under God’s control means two things: 1) refusal to inflate our own self-estimation; and 2) reticence to assert ourselves for ourselves.

Paul captures the first aspect perfectly in Romans 12:3: “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” Meek people see themselves as servants of God, not thinking more highly of themselves than they ought to think. To be meek is to accept our strengths and limitations for what they truly are, instead of constantly trying to portray ourselves in the best possible light. But it does not mean to deny our strengths and abilities. When asked whether he was the Messiah, Jesus replied, “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me” (Matt. 11:4-6). He had neither an inflated self-image nor an inferiority complex, but a servant’s heart based on what Paul would later call, “sober judgment” (Romans 12:3).

A servant’s heart is the crux of the second aspect of meekness: reticence to assert ourselves for ourselves. We exercise power, but for the benefit of all people, not just ourselves.
The second aspect is captured by Psalm 37:1-11a which begins with, “Do not fret because of the wicked,” and ends with “the meek shall inherit the land.” It means we curb our urge to avenge the wrongs done against us, and instead use whatever power we have to serve others. It flows from the sorrow for our own weaknesses that comprises second beatitudes. If we feel sorrow for our own sins, can we really feel vengeful over the sins of others?

http://www.theologyofwork.org/new-t...k-for-they-will-inherit-the-earth-matthew-55/
 
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tosca1 said:
Matt 11
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
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And here it is, for He was the power of universe and yet He took on our weakness of spirit and became a symbol of righteousness.

And He offered His soul as a place of replication. Paradise without measure.
 
Day 2

Salt and Light
13 "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
 

Doesn't 'Lucifer' mean 'light bringer'?
 
Grand Mal said:
Doesn't 'Lucifer' mean 'light bringer'?
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Lucifer was Satan's name when he was still an archangel and was still in the favor of God. He was the most "beautiful" angel, called "Morning Star"......but all that went to his head. That's how I understood it.
 
I'm not allowed to comment.

The religious bit of this discussion and debate forum can not have any significant debate in it, those are the rules.
 
Tim the plumber said:
I'm not allowed to comment.

The religious bit of this discussion and debate forum can not have any significant debate in it, those are the rules.
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Sure you are. This section can have significant debate in it, and frequently it does.
You're only not allowed to criticize religion or spiritual aspects.
 
Quote Originally Posted by Tim the plumber
I'm not allowed to comment.

The religious bit of this discussion and debate forum can not have any significant debate in it, those are the rules.
Click to expand...

Manny said:
Sure you are. This section can have significant debate in it, and frequently it does.
You're only not allowed to criticize religion or spiritual aspects.
Click to expand...
Exactly.
 
Tim the plumber said:
Exactly.
Click to expand...

I can understand the moderators' position about this.

I've been in a forum wherein their religion section sees only a few religious people who post (mostly Christians). Only about 3 Christians were actively participating. I was one of them. You know why? As soon as a religious person puts up a thread, the rabid atheists descend on him like locusts on a lone blade of grass. Mostly not to debate or discuss, but to mock and make fun of his religion. Of course other religious people are intimidated to post.

Their religion section is dead! The only ones posting are the atheists - and of course the topics are criticisms of religion.

That forum had lost that segment of population whose interest is real discussion on religion or theology. Perhaps you should ask this site admin to create a section for atheists.



I find this site has variety of religious people from different faith. Which is good.
The way Religion Section is protected in this forum is one thing I admire about this site.
 
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deleted. Redundant.
 
The Fulfillment of the Law

17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
 

don't know how that bit works you can fulfill a law by making sure its followed but as lot of Christians have abandoned some old testament laws
 
Moderator's Warning:
People... do NOT comment on moderation or rules publicly. The consequences can be pretty steep.
 
Tim the plumber said:
I'm not allowed to comment.

The religious bit of this discussion and debate forum can not have any significant debate in it, those are the rules.
Click to expand...
lulz

U mad, brah? If you wanna goad and ridicule the religious 'crazies', you can always start a Basement thread. Go for gold, dude.
 
Murder

5:25,26pp -- Lk 12:58,59
21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca, ' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. 23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. 25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
 

Christians, like salt, are to draw attention to something other than themselves. Salt on a good steak adds to the flavor and makes the meat taste better, but I've never heard anyone comment on how good the salt was.
 
Texmex said:
Christians, like salt, are to draw attention to something other than themselves. Salt on a good steak adds to the flavor and makes the meat taste better, but I've never heard anyone comment on how good the salt was.
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On the other hand, it is said he comes like a thief in the night.
 
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