"SERMON ON THE MOUNT PARTS 1- 4"

Sermon on the Mount Part 1
based on a study by author Kay Arthur

INTRODUCTION

"When you slice a good apple in half with a sharp knife, you see the fresh goodness all the way to the core. It's more than
just a glossy red exterior; it's a crisp, sweet wholesomeness that goes straight through. No evidence of worms!
Do you long for that sort of relationship with God? A relationship which is free from hypocrisy? A relationship that's the
same on the inside (where He sees) as it is on the outside (where others see)?"

"It would be wonderful, wouldn't it? Comforting and comfortable. No guilt. No pretending. No wondering what people would think if they saw "the real you." They would be seeing the real you, (even when meeting you for the first time). Because what
you showed on the outside would be a mirror image of what you were on the inside…the very person God would have you
to be.
I know this sounds improbably. Maybe impossible. But it isn't at all! Otherwise, why would our God command us to
"be perfect, even as He is perfect"?"

"It is not impossible; it is simply a process. A process that begins and ends with God, yet one which demands your whole heart. It's a process God will lead you through as you set your heart on hearing and doing His will. And it is a process which will
bring more peace and contentment of soul than you ever dreamed possible.
Only God Can CHANGE You!….."
This will be "Look 1" at "Sermon on the Mount and Applying it to our lives"

It is the strong desire of God's heart to see us all perfect and He not only wants to change us but HE WILL! All we have to
do is want it---really want it! Not just half-heartedly want it or "sortof" want it, but WANT IT! As you pursue Him with all
your might, you will find that He is the One that has been pursuing you!
Maybe you have tried to change and have failed. And failed. And failed again.
Do not despair. God Can! \o/ Just give Him a try.
Or possibly you look around and shudder because of all the hypocrisy you see in other Christians you know. Or maybe you
look within and shudder at your own hypocrisy!

You want heaven, but you are getting hell on earth instead. You find yourself clinging to life - sometimes by your fingernails ---
in the hope that somehow, somday, somewhere life will change and heaven will come to earth. Or perhaps you have already
give up in despair. You have resigned yourself to a "living hell."

We have all been there. Honest! Really! It was not all that different in Jesus' day, either! He was hated by millions MORE than
we are and was PERFECT! Jesus looked all around him and seen ppl everywhere trying to be "religious" and failing miserably, but Jesus did not condemn them, instead, he had deep compassion for them. He lovingly began to teach each and all about
being Christ-like.
Let me ask, the last time someone done or said something that wasn't JUST EXACTLY the way you wanted to see or hear it
or "do" it, what did you do? How did you react? Were you kind, considerate, loving, gentle or vague, distant, critical, selfish, judgmental?

Real Christian life is something higher, brighter, and infinitely more powerful than pale, phony substitutes. I don't know about
you, but I don't want to stand before my God a pale, phony substitute or a "poor excuse" of a Christian's life one day.
If you didn't feel as serious about "change" as you did when we prayed the opening prayer, then, please, stop right now and
pray again…quietly…to yourself…and alone. Because this series on the "Sermon on the Mount" can be life-changing and exciting!

First, we will look at the beautitudes:
Matthew 5:1-2 "When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 5:2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them...
Here we watch Jesus putting into action His teachings and His spirit of love and understanding. He is preparing to teach the "multitude" the true Christian way to live instead of talking about them behind their back. (this here reminds me of how some
of us here like to 'private chat' about one another.) example: He/she isn't a real Christian. She/he talks too much! And on and
on! Yes, these very things are WRONG. It is ok to "say these things" as long as you are willing to tell the person who you are talking about the same things. But, if you are NOT, then do NOT. For as we see Jesus here, He is teaching, diligently and earnestly, and not just complaining

We will do a bit of reading in the scriptures next and then discuss these several verses. So, let the bible bots pull them and then you read:
Matthew 5:3-13
5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
5:4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5:5 "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.
5:6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
5:7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
5:8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
5:9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
5:10 "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
5:11 "Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.
5:12 "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who
were before you.
5:13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.

In these verses, we see that those who enter the kingdom of heave are:
1. poor in spirit
2. persecuted for ritheousness' sake
3. has a ritheousness that even surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees
4. and obeys God's will
The bottom line…Righeousness is an absolute necessity for those who are going to enter the kingdom of heaven!

For this reason, I believe the key verse for the Sermon on the Mount is Matthew 5:20.
5:20 "For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the
kingdom of heaven."

The Pharisees were a religious party which came into being during the four hundred year period between the Old and New Testaments. By Jesus; time, they had supreme influence amount the people. They believed in the resurrection, angels, spirits,
and the coming of the Messiah, but their forte was the Law of God! As a matter of fact, they had reduced God's Law to a
code of 365 negative commandments and 250 positive commandments - which included many of their own interpretations of God's Word. They claimed that these expansions came from direct inspiration and were God-given interpretations of the Law.
As a result, when the people heard the Word, they heard a distorted and diluted version of it. This is why Jesus took the scribes and Pharisees to task so sternly. Their traditions and so-called interpretations often directly contradicted God's intentions.
Jesus replied to the Pharisees on almost all occasions in correction. This is one of the things he said---
"THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME, BUT IN VAIN
DO THEY WORSHIP ME, TEACHING AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN."
That is in Isaiah.
In Matthew, we find:
7:6 And He said to them, "Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: 'This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me."
7:7 "But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men."
7:8 "Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men."
7:9 He was also saying to them, "You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition."
7:13 "thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that."

As a result of the scribes' and Pharisees' interpretation of the Law, sin had become only an external act, rather than a matter
of the heart. Something was declared right or wrong because an external condition was absent or present. For instance, if a
Jew gave alms to the poor on the Sabbath, he could so only if the beggar put his hand through the door to receive the alms.
If the Jew extended his hand out the door to give alms to the beggar, he was considered to have broken the Sabbath.
Isn't that the way is today? Thousands upon Thousands of Christians are lapping up so-called biblical teachings which are
not truly biblical…all because they do not know their God's Word well. My word to you for this problem is "STUDY INDUCTIVELY" or in other words "Study WITH God and DAILY, actively.

Sermon on the Mount Part 2
as based on Kay Arthur's Devotional Series

LIVING RIGHTEOUS LIVES

The Sermon on the Mount describes the righteous lifestyle of those who belong to the kingdom of heaven. The question is,
"How can one attain such righteousness?" The Beatitudes are certainly not qualities that come naturally to us.

The humanly impossible demands of Matthew 5:21 - 7:12 (The Sermon on the Mount) can only be fulfilled by Jesus Christ.
That's the reason Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount where He does! Before we can learn anything else about the kingdom
of heaven, we must realize how spiritually poor we are.

How do you become poor in spirit? I believe it all begins with catching a glimpse of God's spirit.

When I see Him ---- really see Him ---- in His holiness, in His power, in His blazing purity, I see myself for what I am. A
sad, full of pride, selfish person and more. And what I see isn't lovely at all.

Let's look at how Isaiah found his own "poverty of spirit."
This is just what happened to the prophet Isaiah. Let's read Isaiah 6:1 - 8 first.
Isaiah 6:1 In the year of King Uzziah's death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe
filling the temple.
Isaiah 6:2 Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet,
and with two he flew.
Isaiah 6:3 And one called out to another and said, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory."
Isaiah 6:4 And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke.
Isaiah 6:5 Then I said, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts."
Isaiah 6:6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs.
Isaiah 6:7 He touched my mouth with it and said, "Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and
your sin is forgiven."
Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?" Then I said, "Here am I.
Send me!"

When did Isaiah see himself as he really was?

At what point did Isaiah experience God;s cleansing, His forgiveness?

When was Isaiah ready to do what God wanted him to do?

John 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me
you can do nothing."

God shows us our poverty of spirit when we try, in our own strength, to walk in a way pleasing to God,,,and yet continually
fail. This is the testimony the Apostle Paul gives of his own experience in Romans 7. Humility came only when the once-proud Pharisee fell on his face and cried out, "Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?"

Romans 7:24 "Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?"

The Holy Spirit is the key to the Christian life. You attain salvation by realizing your utter spiritual poverty and turning to Jesus Christ. And you live the Christian life by remembering that apart from God's Spirit, you can do nothing!

In all of the Beatitudes (which we discussed in last week's study), you will find Jesus Christ as our glorious Example, the
Author or Leader of our faith.

Hebrews 12:2 "Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Fix your eyes on Him. See how HE walked in total poverty of spirit. Remember, Jesus was God, the mighty Sovereign of the universe. And yet, while He walked as a man on earth, He lived in total dependence upon God.

To live in poverty of spirit is to let the Holy Spirit be to us ALL that He was to Jesus!
All our decisions, directions, guidance, leadership and plans should flow through our Heavenly Father!

We should be depending on HIM for ALL these things….even the ones we think are small, for it pleases Him to know that we trust Him with ALL things!

Poverty of spirit is not a passing emotional experiece or a one-time event in the life of a child of God. Rather, it is a whole
way of life, a total dependence upon God.

It is continually realizing that in and of yourself you could NEVER please God. You could never meet His standards of righteousness.

Only by God's gift of His Spirit and by walking in His Spirit can you please Him.

Let's pause and pray:
Dear Father, my heart's desire and my prayer for each of the ppl in this room is for their salvation and walk with you. I feel
they have a zeal for you, Lord. It is my prayer, Lord, that you will lead, guide and direct each member of Bible4us and each attender into an even closer walk with you. In Jesus Name I Pray, Amen!

That is the look at the sermon on the mount for tonight. Bringing out the absolute importance of knowing God, knowing Jesus, loving God, loving Jesus, having a direct relationship with God & Jesus, hence BATHING in the SPIRIT!

Sermon on the Mount Part 3
as based on Kay Arthur's Devotional Series

DO YOU WEEP OVER SIN?

Matthew 5:4 – "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

What kind of sorrow do you experience when you sin?

There is a “worldly sorrow,” a sorrow that says, “I am sorry I got caught! I am sorry I have to pay the price for my sin.” This sorrow focuses on self and simply moans over the personal consequences of its own sin. This kind of sorrow does not focus on how sin affects the heart of God. This sorrow leads to death because it does not lead to repentance.

The other sorrow is “godly sorrow,” which leads to repentance. Repentance is a ‘change of mind that results in a regret and thus produced a change in direction. This kind of sorrow brings salvation. Godly sorrow causes us to run to the arms of God, weeping, confessing our sin. And He meets us in that moments, just as He has promised.

1 John 1:9 – “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

The comfort of God awaits us because we have mourned as God would have us mourn. God sees our heart, and our heart is to be right with our Holy Father.

Sin will cost you more than you thought you would ever pay.

Sin will take you farther than you ever thought you would stray.

Sin will keep you longer than you ever thought you would stay.

Romans 15:4 “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”  Take hope in that verse. Study the entire Bible. Get familiar with God’s early saints, their victories and their defeats. Learn from them.

Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Read these verses….

James 4:7-10 - "Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw
near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be miserable and mourn and weep;
let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom."

What is the solution? It is to stop laughing at sin. Be repentful. “Be miserable and mourn and weep,” James writes in verse 9. “Let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy to gloom.”

Is that the sort of attitude toward sin you see as you look around you today?

In closing, devote your time and energy to study and grow in the Lord. In doing this, you are fulfilling God’s clear command.

2 Timothy 2:15 "Study to show thyself approved unto God; a workman that needeth not to be ashamed; rightly dividing the
word of truth."

OH HOW AWESOME THE HOLY SPIRIT IS!!!!

Sermon on the Mount Part 4
as based on Kay Arthur's Devotional Series

MEEKNESS

Poverty of spirit, mourning over sin, and meekness does not come naturally to you and me. These supernatural traits come from God above. (To see these studies, visit www.deasweb.com/bible4us/memberpage and click on "Bible Studies.")
These beautiful characteristics of God, taught to us in human form by Jesus, are bestowed upon us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
In our previous 3 lessons we looked at our poverty of spirit and talked about mourning over sin.
This lesson is on the 3rd beatitude: MEEKNESS.
Can anyone define "meekness" for me?

Meekness - is translated gentle or gentleness in the New American Standard Bible. W.E. Vine writes "Meekness is an in-wrought grace of the soul; and the exercises of it are first and chiefly towards God. It is that temper of spirit in which we accept His dealings with us as good, and therefore, without disputing and resisting."
Anyone have a testimony or a word to share here concerning these statements?

Meekness speaks of a submission and trusting attitude toward God. It is an attitude which accepts all of God's wants with us as good. It does not murmur or dispute. It neither rebels nor retaliates. It realized that what comes to us from the hand of man has been permitted by God's sovereignty, has been filtered by His 'fingers of love,' and will be used by God for His glory and our ultimate good. \o/
Comments?

Most of us have, either now or in the past, lived an independent lifestyle, which brought MUCH grief to the heart of God. In meekness we must kneel in total submission (not part submission) to Him. We must bow before the God on bended knee and bended heart and in total trust tell Him we are willing to do whatever it is in our lives He wants, whatever pleases Him.

Meekness looks beyond circumstances - no matter how upsetting and hurtful - and bows the knees to the sovereign God. To walk in meekness, we MUST know God and accept His rule. Of all the trusth I have ever learned, NONE has brought me more assurance, boldness, calmness, devotion, equilibrium, gratitude, and humility than understanding the sovereignty of God. Meekness says, "not my will, but thine, O lord" and means it.

God's sovereignty means "GOD RULES OVER ALL." Yes, HE rules even Satan. Satan does nothing without God allowing it. God sees the big picture, and by being able to do so, knows what is best for us. God desires all of us to be better Christians and He knows what it is going to take to get us there. He knows our hearts - whether our desire to serve Him is sincere and if so, "how sincere" it is. Some of us take only a little urging, while others of us take much more than that. Rest assured, thought, the more you practice "surrender" to God, the easier it will get through the years.

Let's look at 2 Corinthians 4:18 - "while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal."
We can rejoice in that verse when trials and tribulations come our way. We might not understand all that there is for us to learn from them, but in that verse, we can rest that GOD IS ALL KNOWING, and He knows BEST!

Now look at Romans 8:28 - "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."

AMEN AND AMEN.