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A unit on Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
Bible Passage: Matthew 5-7
Matthew 7:13-14 - Jesus teaches his followers about two different paths in life that we can take, one is wide and leads to destruction but many enter through it, and the other is narrow and leads to life but few can find it. Here he is referring to his way and teachings as the narrow path, a challenging road to follow but which leads us to fullness of life.
Matthew 7:1-5 - Jesus taught his followers not to judge others or they would be judged by the same standard. He taught that they should focus on removing the plank in their own eyes before pointing out the speck of sawdust in someone else’s eyes, thus highlighting the hypocrisy of judging others when we ourselves are not perfect.
Matthew 6:25-34 - Jesus teaches his followers not to worry about things like food or clothing, since life is more than these things and since God takes care of our needs. He gives the examples of birds who do not store food in barns but are fed by God, as well as flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow and yet are clothed in beauty. Rather than worrying, we should seek first God’s kingdom and righteousness and everything else will be provided. We shouldn’t worry about the future but should let the future worry about itself.
Matthew 6:19-24 - Jesus taught his followers to focus on storing up heavenly treasures rather than earthly ones, since earthly treasures do not last but heavenly treasures last forever. He also taught that whatever we treasure and value is what will be in our hearts. He then says that having healthy eyes (that focus on things of the spirit) fills us with light, while having unhealthy eyes (that focus on worldly things) fills us with darkness. Finally, Jesus says that we cannot serve both God and money.
Matthew 6:1-4 - Jesus taught his followers to be careful not to do their good deeds publicly, in order to be seen and praised by others. When giving to the needy, they shouldn’t do so like hypocrites who just want recognition, or else they will get no reward from God and their only reward will be the admiration of others. Instead of showing off their good deeds, they should do them secretly, without any fanfare. If they do so, then God, who sees what’s done in secret, will reward them.
Matthew 5:38-42 - Jesus taught his followers that although the Law of Moses says that the punishment for an offense should match the crime (ie. an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth), the way his followers should take is the path of non-violence and turning the other cheek. Jesus then said that if someone were to sue them for their shirt, they should give them their coat as well, and if someone were to force them to walk with them one mile, they should go with them two. He ended by telling his followers to give to everyone who asks and to not refuse the one who wants to borrow from them.
Matthew 5:33-37 - Jesus taught that although the Law taught us not to break oaths, but to fulfill our vows, his teaching is that we shouldn’t take oaths at all. We should not swear by anything—not heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or our own heads. Instead we should simply be honest and truthful, letting our ‘yes’ be ‘yes’ and our ‘no’ be ‘no’.
Matthew 5:13-16 - During his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught that we are the salt of the earth. If salt loses it’s saltiness, it is no longer good for anything but is thrown out. He also taught that we are the light of the world. Nobody takes a lamp and hides it under a bowl, but rather, they put it on a stand so it can give light to everyone. Likewise, we are to let our light shine so that others will see God’s goodness through us.