The Sermon on the Mount

When his disciples had all gathered around Him, He taught them:

Blessed and happy are those who are lowly in spirit, for they will be in the Kingdom of God and will rule over it.

Blessed and happy are those who mourn and weep for the evil done in the world, for they shall be comforted and will laugh for joy.

Blessed and happy are the meek, those who willingly obey God and are not vain about it, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed and happy are they who hunger and thirst for God's righteousness in their lives, for they shall be filled with it.

Blessed and happy are they who are merciful, for they will receive mercy from God.

Blessed and happy are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed and happy are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.

Blessed and happy are they who have been persecuted because the righteousness of God is in them, for they will have the Kingdom of God.

Blessed and happy are you when men hate and despise you; when they refuse to associate with you and say every wicked, vile and evil thing about you, lying against you because you follow Me. Rejoice and leap for joy when that happens because your reward in the Kingdom of God will be great, for that is how their ancestors treated the prophets before you.

But woe and misery will come to you rich for you are enjoying life now.

Woe and misery will come to you who have never been hungry for you will suffer hunger.

Woe and misery will come to you when everyone speaks well of you for that is how their ancestors spoke of the false prophets.

Now he speaks just to His disciples again, not to the others who are arriving.

You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt were to loose its saltiness, what would we salt the salt with? Actually it would be good for nothing and would be thrown out in the street to be walked on by everyone.

You are the light of the world. A city built on the top of a hill cannot be hidden and if you light a lamp you don't hide it under a basket, you put it up high so it lights the whole room. Just like that lamp, let your light shine forth so that everyone can see your good works and give praise and glory to your Father in heaven.

From this point on, Jesus speaks to all the people.

Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy them but to fulfill them - to magnify them and make them binding in the spirit as well as the letter of the law. I tell you most fervently, not the crossing of a "t" or the dotting of an "i" will be taken from the law until the heaven and earth are destroyed and everything prophesied in the law and the prophets has been accomplished.

Anyone who breaks even the commandment they consider of least importance and teaches others to do the same will be called less than nothing in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever practices and teaches all of the commandments will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. You cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven unless your righteousness is far beyond the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees.

You have heard that it was commanded of your ancestors, "You shall not kill," and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment. But I tell you whoever is angry with his brother without a cause will be in danger of the judgment. Whoever speaks contemptuously to his brother will be in danger of the council and whoever says, "you cursed fool," will be in danger of the lake of fire.

So if you bring your gift to God's altar, and then remember that your brother has any grievance against you, leave your gift there before the altar, go and first be reconciled to your brother and make peace with him, and then come and offer your gift.

Agree with your opponent quickly while you are disputing with him, or he may take you to court, and the judge may put you in custody and you may be thrown in prison. Truly, you won't be released until you have paid your last dime.

It has also been said, "Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce. But I tell you whoever divorces his wife, except in the case of flagrant adultery, causes her to commit adultery and whoever marries her that is divorced commits adultery.

Again, you have heard, "You must not break any oath you have made, but you must perform your oaths to the Lord. But I say to you, don't swear oaths at all. Don't swear by Heaven, for it is God's throne. Don't swear by the earth, for it is God's footstool. Don't swear by Jerusalem, it is the city of the great King. Don't swear by your own head because you cannot make one hair truly change to white or black. Simply say yes or no, for whatever is more than these comes from the evil one.

It has been said, "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." But I tell you, don't resist evil done to you; if someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn to him the left also. If anyone sues you and takes away your coat, let him have your cloak also. If a soldier compels you to carry his burden a mile, go with him two miles. Give to him that asks of you and don't turn away from him that would borrow from you.

You have heard it said, love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you and pray for those who treat you maliciously and persecute you. This will make you the children of your Father in heaven. He makes His sun rise on the evil as well as the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. If you love and do good to those who love and do good to you, what reward do you have? Even the wicked people do the same. If you give a kind greeting only to your brothers, what are you doing any more than others? Don't the wicked do that as well?

Love your enemies, do good and give, not expecting any return; you will indeed be the Sons of the Highest, for He is good even to the wicked and unthankful.

So become perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. Be compassionate and merciful, just like your Father in heaven.

Even though you are to let your light shine, to allow your good works to be seen by people, don't do good hoping to be seen and praised or to receive some reward. If you do you will get no reward from your Father in heaven. When the sanctimonious pretenders give charity in the synagogues or on the streets, they have a trumpet blown so people will gather around and see what they are doing and think they are great and generous people. That is the only reward they will get.

When you are doing good works, don't even let your left had know what your right hand is doing; do good things in secret, your Father in Heaven sees the secret things and will reward you.

When you pray private prayers to God, don't stand in the synagogue or in the street as the sanctimonious pretenders do so people will see they are praying and think they're so very pious. That is the only reward they will get.

Go into a private place and shut the door. God hears, even if you pray in your mind, and will reward you for your private prayers.

When you pray don't use endless vain repetitions as the pagans do; they think that their gods are hard of hearing and they have to say the same thing over and over to be heard. Don't be like them, your Father knows what you need long before you ask him, but He still wants you to ask. It's not to remind God, it's to keep you aware of where your blessings come from.

Here is the general order of the things you should pray about: Our Father in Heaven, Your name is Holy and all of our thoughts and actions should be aimed at acknowledging and upholding that Holiness.

Please bring you Kingdom to the earth soon, and do your will on earth, as it is done in Heaven.

Please give us our daily bread this day, not only our physical needs, but our spiritual.

Please forgive us our sins, in the same manner we forgive those who sin against us.

Please don't bring us into difficult trials, but deliver us from the evil one.

For yours is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

If you forgive men the evil they do to you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you don't forgive men the evil they do to you, neither will your Father forgive your sins.

Also, when you fast don't act like the sanctimonious pretenders. They put on a sad and pained expression and let their hair become a mess so that everyone will see that they are fasting. That is the only reward they will get.

When you fast, brush and comb your hair and wash your face; don't give any hint you are hungering and thirsting. Your Father who sees that you are fasting secretly, will reward you.

Don't accumulate treasures for yourselves here on earth, where moths and rust will corrupt them, and where thieves break in and steal. Do accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moths nor rust cannot corrupt them, and where thieves cannot break in to steal. Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

The eyes are the light of the body. If your eyes are focused on right purpose and attitude, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are focused on evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

No one can serve two masters: either he will hate the one, and love the other, or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and materialism.

So I tell you, don't be anxiously concerned about your life, what you should eat, or what you should drink nor what you should wear on your body. Isn't life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

Look at the birds of the air. They don't plant nor harvest and gather their food into barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you much more important than they are?

Which of you by mental concentration can add one foot to your height?

Why take anxious thought concerning what you will wear? Look at how the lilies grow in the meadow; they don't work and they don't make clothing, but I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed as beautifully as one of these flowers. If God clothes the plants of the field, which are here today and gone tomorrow, won't he provide the clothes you require, you who have so little faith?

So take no anxious thought, saying to yourself, what will we eat or what will we drink or how shall we be clothed? (After all these things do the people of the world diligently seek.) But your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. Therefore, first seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be provided for you. Take no anxious thought for tomorrow beyond prudent planning, for tomorrow will take thought for the things of itself. Each day is sufficiently filled with its own troubles, you don't need to add tomorrow's potential troubles to it.

Don't condemn others, so that you will not be condemned. For you will be judged by God in the same way you judge other people. Forgive others and you will be forgiven.

Give, and it will be given back to you in full measure, shaken and pressed down, brimful and running over and poured out in your lap.

Can a blind man lead another blind man? Won't they both fall in the ditch? So, if you are trying to remove a speck from your brother's eye and you have a big board in yours, how can you do it? Don't be a hypocrite, don't even try to remove the speck in his eye until you've removed the board from yours.

Don't give holy things to the dogs, don't throw your pearls on the ground before swine, they will trample them under their hooves and then tear you up with their tusks.

Ask, and it shall be given you. Seek, and you shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened to you. For every one that asks receives, and he that seeks finds, and to him that knocks the door shall be opened. Who among you would give his son a stone if he asked for bread? Or if he asked for a fish, would you give him a snake? If you who are unrighteous know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more does your Father in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

Everything that you wish that men would do for you, do the same things for them - this is the law and the prophets.

Enter in at the narrow gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many go in that way. But narrow is the gate, and tight is the way that leads to life, and few find it.

Beware of false prophets! They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. How can you tell? You can know them from their fruits. Do people gather grapes off of thorn bushes, or figs off of thistles? Every good tree produces good fruit, but a corrupt tree bears evil fruit. A good tree cannot produce evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bear good fruit. Every tree that doesn't produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So by their fruits you will know them.

Not every one that says to me in all sincerity, "Lord, Lord," will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven - but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in the day of resurrection, "Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name? Didn't we cast out demons in your name? Didn't we do many other wonderful works in your name?" And then will I say to them, "I never knew you - depart from me, you who did works of lawlessness.

Whoever hears these sayings of mine, and does them, I will compare him to a wise man who built his house on a rock. The rain poured down, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house and it remained standing for it was founded on a rock.

And every one that hears these sayings of mine, and does not do them, I will compare him to a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain poured down, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house and it fell - and great was its fall.

And when Jesus had ended these words, the people were astonished at His teachings. For he taught them with authority, and not as the Scribes.

Life of Christ Part Twelve - Jesus Heals the Sick and Calls Matthew

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