Meditations from the Sermon on
the Mount Matthew Chapter 5 Seeing the crowds, he went up
on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came
to him. And he opened his mouth and taught
them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is
the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn,
for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they
shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger
and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed
are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are
those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile
you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you
falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your
reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets
who were before you. You are the salt of the earth.
But if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything
except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet. You are
the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be
hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and
put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to
all in the house. In the same way, let your light
shine before others, so that they may see your good works
and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Do not think
that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not
come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. For truly, I say
to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a
dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Therefore,
whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches
others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of
heaven. But whoever does them and teaches
them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I
tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and
Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said
to those of old, You shall not murder, and whoever murders will
be liable to judgment. But I say to you that everyone
who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, whoever
insults his brother will be liable to counsel, and whoever says,
You fool, will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering
your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has
something against you, leave your gift there before the altar
and go. First be reconciled to your brother,
and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with
your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your
accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard,
and you be put in prison. Truly I say to you, you will
never get out until you have paid the last penny. You have
heard that it was said, You shall not commit adultery. But I say
to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent
has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your
right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.
For it is better that you lose one of your members than that
your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand
causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is
better that you lose one of your members than that your whole
body go into hell. It was also said, whoever divorces
his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you,
that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of
sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery. And whoever
marries a divorced woman, commits adultery. Again, you have heard that it
was said to those of old, You shall not swear falsely, but
shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn. But I say to
you, do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the
throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by
Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. and do not
take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white
or black. Let what you say be simply yes
or no. Anything more than this comes
from evil. You have heard that it was said,
An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you,
do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you
on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone
would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.
And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles,
Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one
who would borrow from you. You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say
to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute
you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.
For He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and
sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those
who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax
collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers,
what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles
do the same? You therefore must be perfect,
as your Heavenly Father is perfect. . Matthew Chapter 6 Beware of practicing
your righteousness before other people, in order to be seen by
them. For then, you will have no reward
from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy,
sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues
and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly,
I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give
to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right
hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, and your Father
who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, you must not
be like the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the
synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen
by others. Truly, I say to you, they have
received their reward. But when you pray, go into your
room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret,
and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap
up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they
will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for
your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then
like this. our Father in heaven, hallowed
be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as
it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors,
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For
if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also
forgive you. But if you do not forgive others
their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. And when you fast, do not look
gloomy like the hypocrites. For they disfigure their faces
that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly I say to you,
they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your
head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen
by others, but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father
who sees in secret will reward you. Do not lay up for yourselves
treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves
break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures
in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where
thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there
your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is healthy, your
whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your
whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is in
darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters,
for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will
be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God
and money. Therefore, I tell you, do not
be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will
drink, nor about your body. what you will put on? Is not
life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look
at the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor
gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are
you not of more value than they? And which of you, by being anxious,
can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you
anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field,
how they grow, they neither toil nor spin. Yet I tell you, even
Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is
alive, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much
more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore, do not be anxious,
saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What
shall we wear? For the Gentiles seek after all
these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them
all. But seek first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added
to you. Therefore, do not be anxious
about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient
for the day is its own trouble. . Matthew Chapter 7 Judge not that
you be not judged, for with the judgment you pronounce you will
be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to
you. Why do you see the speck that
is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is
in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother,
let me take the speck out of your eye, when there is the log
in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the
log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to
take the speck out of your brother's eye. Do not give dogs what is
holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample
them underfoot and turn to attack you. Ask, and it will be given to
you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened
to you. For everyone who asks, receives. And the one who seeks, finds. And to the one who knocks, it
will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son
asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for
a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will
your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who
ask Him? So whatever you wish that others
would do to you, do also to them, for this is the law and the prophets. enter by the narrow gate, for
the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction,
and those who enter by it are many, for the gate is narrow
and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it
are few. Beware of false prophets, who
come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their
fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn
bushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears
good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy
tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good
fruit. Every tree that does not bear
good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, you will
recognize them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to me,
Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does
the will of my Father who is in heaven, On that day, many
will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name
and cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your
name? And then will I declare to them,
I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of
lawlessness. Everyone, then who hears these
words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built
his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods
came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did
not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone
who hears these words of mine, and does not do them, will be
like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the
rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against
that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it. And
when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at
His teaching, for He was teaching them as one who had authority,
and not as their scribes. .