TUESDAY, November 27, 2012: Matthew 7:24-29
As the last words in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, this passage carries a lot of weight. It completes this series on integrity (walking on the narrow way), and concludes all that Jesus has been saying here. Real understanding of Jesus’ words here will be demonstrated by the extent to which they’re lived out. We … Read more
MONDAY, November 19, 2012:Matthew 6:25-26
In September 1988, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” became the first a cappella song to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Indian mystic Meher Baba coined the phrase used in the title while communicating with his friends and followers in the West. The fuller version of the quote says, “Do your best. Then, don’t … Read more
THURSDAY, November 8, 2012: Matthew 5:40
A tunic was the cotton or linen inner garment worn by a person in Jesus’ time. Even a poor person would have more than one. But a cloak was a great, blanket-like outer garment that was often used as a blanket at night. Jewish law said that tunic could be used as a pledge, but … Read more
THURSDAY, November 1, 2012: Mark 10:1-12
In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus allows for divorce only on the grounds of infidelity. In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus gives no excuse for divorce. Many scholars argue that Matthew softens the strict ethic of Jesus’s original words. Either way, in Jesus we find a serious call to fidelity in marriage. Jesus implies that the bond of marriage … Read more
MONDAY, October 22, 2012: Matthew 5:21-22
In verses 17-19 Jesus says that he has not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. He illustrates his point using this literary formula: “You have heard that it was said [Old Testament law], but I say to you….” He focuses on anger, adultery, divorce, oaths, retaliation and love for enemies in the … Read more
WEDNESDAY, October 17, 2012: Matthew 5:13-16
Using the images of salt and light as ingredients of the ever-emerging Kingdom of God makes all kinds of sense to those who hear the original message. Jesus points to two ordinary elements in the ancient world that make an extraordinary connection with the people listening to him. In the ancient world, salt is a … Read more
TUESDAY, October 16, 2012: Matthew 5:1-12
Last week we read through these statements in detail. Today we read them as part of this larger sermon/teaching called the Sermon on the Mount. When Jesus delivers the Sermon on the Mount in general and the Beatitudes in particular, he is describing how his followers impact the world around them. Because the Kingdom of … Read more
