I wrote an entire lesson on the Sermon on the mount...here is Chapter 5
Part 1 ''The Beatitudes''
Matthew 5
1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Being poor in spirit is to be completely inept spiritually (which we all are before our new birth). When we come to this understanding we open ourselves to receive blessings of God, the indwelling of Christ, and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit.
It is the hand in glove principle. The glove can do nothing in and of itself, but when the hand is in the glove, the glove can do anything, and everything the hand can do. We are the glove, and Jesus is the hand. Spiritually we can do nothing of ourselves, but when indwelt by Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit we can do everything Jesus can do.
Coming to this understanding in the first step of receiving the poor in spirit blessing.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
In Matthew 9:14 the disciples of John the Baptist ask Jesus why His disciples did not fast, Jesus answered them, "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?". We that belong to Christ are longing, mourning for His return. We live out our lives here on earth lovesick for our beloved.
We who mourn, we who long for the return of the Bridegroom will be comforted in death, martyrdom, or at His return. We will one day see our Savior face to face, this is our comfort.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Meekness is not weakness, it is quiet restrained strength like a war horse. A war horse is very strong yet submissive to their master. God has not called us to be weak, but humble, submitting to His leadership in out lives, quietly reflecting Christ to those we come across. It is those that humble themselves before the Lord, and walk in pure obedience to Him that will inherit the Earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
This verse really speaks for itself. When we hunger and thirst for righteousness, God will fill us with His righteousness. He will enable us to walk in the foot steps of Jesus, in true holiness, and true righteousness. But we must long for this, and commit ourselves to following Christ where ever He leads.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
This is kind of the reverse statement of saying if you do not forgive God will not forgive you. This is the flip side of that, if we show others mercy God will show us mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God
In Psalm 24 David asks the question ''Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?'' the answer is ''He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully''. We must have a pure heart to see the Lord. It is not good enough to do the right things we must do them for the right reasons. Our hearts, and our motives must be pure.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
We must walk in peace with all men, never causing conflict or being violent. Paul tells us in Romans 12 "Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." And again in 1st Thessalonians 5:15 "See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men."
When we walk in peace with all men people will take notice that we are Children of our Father.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Peter tells us us in 1st Peter 2:20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. And again in 4:15-16 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.
When we suffer for Jesus' name or the true gospels sake we truly glorify God in our trouble.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
This has brought peace, and comfort in my life many times. Jesus told His disciples ''Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also''. And He has told me personally that they do not hate you, they hate ME, they are not rejecting you, they are rejecting me.
If we will stand for truth, and for Christ even in the face of adversity the Word tells us that we will receive a great reward. We are not to be man pleasers , but God pleasers, and God is pleased when we will not back down, but continue in the truth even when everyone else reject it and seemingly rejects you.
Peter tells us us this in 1st Peter 2:20 For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. And again in 4:15-16 But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.
When we suffer for Jesus' name or the true gospels sake we truly glorify God in our trouble.
Part 2 ''A light set on a hill''
13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Christians are to be the salt of the earth. Salt performs two important functions. It is most common of all preservatives. It keeps things from going bad. For millions of people in the world, salt still has this purpose. In the second place, salt gives taste and flavor to food. Food without salt is bland.
The Christian’s task is to be the salt of society, preserving, reconciling, adding taste, giving meaning where there is no meaning, giving hope where there is no hope.
To be the salt of society means that we are deeply concerned with its well being. We preserve values and moral principles and make a contribution to the development of cultural and social life. We add taste and flavor to the common life.
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
We are also called to be the light of the world. Isaiah tells us to "Arise, shine, your light has come,and the glory of the Lord rests upon you nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn." When we have the True Light of the world living inside of us we should shine like He did, men should be drawn to us, glorify God because of our good works, and an door will be opened to share with them the gospel.
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus did not destroy the law He fulfilled it making himself the spotless Lamb God need to redeem the world. Although we live in God's grace, that doesn't mean that the law is destroyed, we must follow God's commandments, and just as important we must teach other to obey Christ. Those that teach that sin is ok or the commandments were for the Jews only are doing much harm to the Body of Christ.
For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven
The righteousness of the Pharisees was an outward righteousness done out of religeous duty or obligation and to be seen of men. Our righteousness should be an inward righteousness done of of a pure heart that has been changed by God, and love for our Savior.
Part 3 Grace vs Law
Many people use the fact that we are under grace rather than law as an excuse to remain in sin when in reality we will see that it is actually harder to live under grace than law. The difference is we are enabled to do so through the indwelling of Christ and empowerment of the Holy Spirit, while those under the law had to try and keep the law in their own ability which is impossible.
21 Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;
24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.
26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
31 It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement:
32 But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
33 Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:
35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Ye have heard that it was said of them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.
Under the law you could not murder, under grace you can't hate. As a matter of fact you can't even hold anger in your heart or else you will be in danger of Hell fire.
Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.
We need not participate in unimportant arguments. If someone is saying something we know to be incorrect just love them any way. There is no reason to cause conflict over it, unless of course they are believing something that may be dangerous to their eternal soul, and even then Paul tells us in Titus after the first or second correction leave them to their delusions.
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Under the law you could not commit adultery, under grace you cannot even lust.
And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
Some people use this passage as proof that the bible is not to be taken literally. Well first off Jesus did literally say these things, secondly I think He meant it. It would be better to go into Heaven lame than into Hell whole. Others say that Jesus was using hyperbole to make a point, but I again believe He meant what He said. Jesus was stressing the importance of complete obedience to the Father, and stating that we should be willing to do anything it takes to bring ourselves into obedience.
It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.
Under the Old covenant Moses allowed men to divorce their wives for any reason or even no reason, but Jesus says adultery is the only lawful reason to divorce. And if you divorce and re-marry or if your ex- wife re-marries then that is not a lawful marriage in God's eyes, but adultery.
Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
Under the Law one could swear on God, but had to keep that promise. The commandment that says ''do not take the Lord's name in vain'' actually meant if you swear on God's name keep your promise. If you were to answear on God's name and then break that promise you would be breaking the 3rd commandment, but if you kept it you were fine. However Jesus now tells us that under grace we need not to swear at all but let our answer stand for itself.
Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
Under the law we were to receive equal payment when we have suffered loss, but under grace we are to suffer loss, and let God revenge us.
Jesus said that God requires more of us than just living by a set of rules, as in the Old Testament. Many people of Jesus' time lived strictly by the Old Testament rules, but still found enough "loopholes" to live lives of wickedness and greed. They acted very holy in public, and they thought they we doing all that God required of them. But Jesus said they were hypocrites, like drinking cups that were washed clean on the outside but were filthy inside. Rather than any outward show of holiness, it is our inner lives, attitudes and motives that really matter to God.
