I. The Sermon on the Mount-The Beatitudes
- In Matthew 5:1-16, Jesus was on a mountain in Capernaum when he was alone with His disciples. The disciples didn't really know what impact Jesus would have yet and what His message and plan was but all they know is they followed Him to learn and be "fishers of men". In this mount, Jesus gave a sermon to His followers about what our attitudes are supposed to be as believers. It was pretty much like a Bible study to teach his disciples some truth and guidelines for the Kingdom of God.
It is a message for us that God wants to bless us. God wants us to have joy and happiness but it's not the same happiness as what the world wants us to do. While the world tells us to be prideful and to stand up for ourselves, the Lord tells us to be humble and trust in God. Sometimes, we have that burden in our heart that keeps haunting us, telling us to repent and change our ways but then we tend to look at other people (believers or non-believers) and say "at least I'm not doing what he is doing; compare to her, I'm way better; or at least I still go to church and read my Bible". This is the wrong attitude. We should always seek for righteousness, be merciful, be pure in heart, and be a peacemaker for we will be blessed. In verse 11, we learned that we, as His followers, will definitely be persecuted but don't be disturbed because we will receive reward from heaven. If you openly say that you are a Christian or a born-again or protestant Christian, it is not if we get persecuted by when we get persecuted. We always see movies mocking Christians and we have our neighbors, friends, co-workers, and even our own family ridicule our ways. Jesus said in verse 12 that even the prophets were persecuted and laughed upon and that's ok. Instead, let's rejoice and be glad for we have a place in heaven.
Remember that Jesus did not come to our world to teach and preach to those who already know and obey God but to find those who does not know Him. Jesus did not come here to heal the healthy but those who are sick. As it is written in Mark 5:1-16- When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
It is a message for us that God wants to bless us. God wants us to have joy and happiness but it's not the same happiness as what the world wants us to do. While the world tells us to be prideful and to stand up for ourselves, the Lord tells us to be humble and trust in God. Sometimes, we have that burden in our heart that keeps haunting us, telling us to repent and change our ways but then we tend to look at other people (believers or non-believers) and say "at least I'm not doing what he is doing; compare to her, I'm way better; or at least I still go to church and read my Bible". This is the wrong attitude. We should always seek for righteousness, be merciful, be pure in heart, and be a peacemaker for we will be blessed. In verse 11, we learned that we, as His followers, will definitely be persecuted but don't be disturbed because we will receive reward from heaven. If you openly say that you are a Christian or a born-again or protestant Christian, it is not if we get persecuted by when we get persecuted. We always see movies mocking Christians and we have our neighbors, friends, co-workers, and even our own family ridicule our ways. Jesus said in verse 12 that even the prophets were persecuted and laughed upon and that's ok. Instead, let's rejoice and be glad for we have a place in heaven.
Remember that Jesus did not come to our world to teach and preach to those who already know and obey God but to find those who does not know Him. Jesus did not come here to heal the healthy but those who are sick. As it is written in Mark 5:1-16- When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
This is the reason that Jesus loved the crowd. He didn't love the audience because He wanted to be famous but He knew that the majority of the people who were listening were separated from God because of their sins. He was compassion to them and always wanted to preach to them, heal them, teach them, and minister to them so they may know the truth and receive salvation. The Gospel is free regardless of your background and your past. It is for us and it does not matter if you were once a murderer, idolater, sex addict, thief, liar, etc. The Gospel is for everyone to receive so we can realize that there is still hope and a God that loves us and He will offer us salvation as long as we realize the sins that we have committed, ask for forgiveness, and follow His ways. Listening to Christian radio is really great because you learn something new everyday. We always talk about getting eternal life by following God but the pastor gave a better explanation. He said that "that it is not because we'll gain eternal life that is important because no matter what, everyone will receive eternal life. The important thing is where you'll be spending your eternal life".
II. Salvation through faith
- Romans 3:21-31 is a validation that we are all sinners and have fallen short of the glory of God. God could have just destroyed us and thrown us in the fiery hell but He cared and loved us so much that he sent His only begotten son as a sacrifice. So we should not boast that we are holy, religious, and deserve to go to heaven. We, humans, do not deserve anything. It is only by God's grace that we can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ. We can't say that because we are good citizens, or we follow the law, or we do all this charity work and help others that we are righteous. Observing the law does not make us righteous for the laws were made to show that we are not perfect. Our salvation only comes through our faith. We need to read the Bible, admit that we our sinners, trust in Jesus Christ as our savior, ask for forgiveness, change our ways, and follow His ways. We need to build a relationship with our father, worship Him, praise Him, honor Him, and love Him and He will bless you and shower you with His grace and give you His promise of salvation through faith.
- Romans 3:21-31 is a validation that we are all sinners and have fallen short of the glory of God. God could have just destroyed us and thrown us in the fiery hell but He cared and loved us so much that he sent His only begotten son as a sacrifice. So we should not boast that we are holy, religious, and deserve to go to heaven. We, humans, do not deserve anything. It is only by God's grace that we can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ. We can't say that because we are good citizens, or we follow the law, or we do all this charity work and help others that we are righteous. Observing the law does not make us righteous for the laws were made to show that we are not perfect. Our salvation only comes through our faith. We need to read the Bible, admit that we our sinners, trust in Jesus Christ as our savior, ask for forgiveness, change our ways, and follow His ways. We need to build a relationship with our father, worship Him, praise Him, honor Him, and love Him and He will bless you and shower you with His grace and give you His promise of salvation through faith.
III. Proverbs for Today/2:16-22
16 To deliver you from the immoral woman,
From the seductress who flatters with her words,
17 Who forsakes the companion of her youth,
And forgets the covenant of her God.
18 For her house leads down to death,
And her paths to the dead;
19 None who go to her return,
Nor do they regain the paths of life—
20 So you may walk in the way of goodness,
And keep to the paths of righteousness.
21 For the upright will dwell in the land,
And the blameless will remain in it;
22 But the wicked will be cut off from the earth,
And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.
IV. Old Testament Reading:
Genesis 20-22 and Psalms 9:1-12
16 To deliver you from the immoral woman,
From the seductress who flatters with her words,
17 Who forsakes the companion of her youth,
And forgets the covenant of her God.
18 For her house leads down to death,
And her paths to the dead;
19 None who go to her return,
Nor do they regain the paths of life—
20 So you may walk in the way of goodness,
And keep to the paths of righteousness.
21 For the upright will dwell in the land,
And the blameless will remain in it;
22 But the wicked will be cut off from the earth,
And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.
IV. Old Testament Reading:
Genesis 20-22 and Psalms 9:1-12
Prayer: Heavenly Father we thank you that you sent your son to this world to spread the good news and help us, the unrighteous to be righteous again in your eyes. Father God, may you continue to use us so we can seek those that need our help, need your gospel, and need You in their life so they will start walking the way of the Lord and also inherit your kingdom. Father, once again, we ask for forgiveness from our sins, and we know that we would receive salvation not through our good works, but because of your grace through faith in Jesus Christ. We lay to you our heart's desires, Lord, that you may grant them and provide for us all our needs. We ask all this through your Holy Son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
