Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 16
Dr. Timothy Keller
27 May 2012
Matthew 6:1-15
1"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9"This is then how you should pray:
10'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11Give us today our daily bread.
12Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13And lead us not in temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.'
14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you don not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
FOUNDATION
--Don't pray and do good works for pride and self congratulation.
--Don't try to control God through moral actions.
--God rewards you as a Father--so it's not a conditional relationship.
--Prayer is about relationship---not about asking for things.
--Based on adoration.
--Grace based familial relationship with God.
SUBSTANCE
--Adoring language of intimacy.
--Plunging yourself into the fullness of God.
--Acceptance - THY will be done!
--Romans 8:28
--Accepting the good, bad, and things I don't understand.
--Asking or strength to face the challenges.
--Resolution for guilty feelings and behavior.
--Lack of forgiveness means a lack of repentance.
--Repentance means rebelling against the evil status quo--God did not create the world as it is now; it got this way through sin; He will put things right.
--Prayer connects us with that future.
--Prayer allows us to be an agent of change.
KEY
--Father, forgive them is the ultimate Lord's prayer because it was prayed by Jesus who was free and clear of sin--It was a prayer for us!
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Love in Hard Places
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 15
Rev John Lin
20 May 2012
Matthew 5:38-47
38"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?
CHALLENGE OF VENGENANCE
--Eye for an eye describes a sort of fairness
--Socially lower classes had more severe punishments than upper class for the same crime.
--In theory, a more equitable punishment to fit the crime.
--Instead of insult for insult, maybe we absorb the deficit.
--Resolve the situation by bearing the burden.
OBSTACLE OF OTHERNESS
--Kindness and forgiveness to all whether they are like us or not.
--Facebook is about creating an image of ouselves--narcissism.
--Emotional disengagement makes your life thinner when you blow people off that aren't more like you.
NAKEDNESS AND EXOSURE TO GOD'S GAZE
Forgiveness means that I'll take the burden of your offense.
Rev John Lin
20 May 2012
Matthew 5:38-47
38"You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' 39But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
43"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?
CHALLENGE OF VENGENANCE
--Eye for an eye describes a sort of fairness
--Socially lower classes had more severe punishments than upper class for the same crime.
--In theory, a more equitable punishment to fit the crime.
--Instead of insult for insult, maybe we absorb the deficit.
--Resolve the situation by bearing the burden.
OBSTACLE OF OTHERNESS
--Kindness and forgiveness to all whether they are like us or not.
--Facebook is about creating an image of ouselves--narcissism.
--Emotional disengagement makes your life thinner when you blow people off that aren't more like you.
NAKEDNESS AND EXOSURE TO GOD'S GAZE
Forgiveness means that I'll take the burden of your offense.
Integrity
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew PART 14
Dr. Timothy Keller
13 May 2012
Matthew 5:33-37
33"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' 34But I tell you, Do not swear at all; either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes', and your 'No,' 'No; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
God is always present--so how can we lie in his presence.
Psalms 16:8
We want to delight Jesus, even though it's hard to live up to--but we know he loves us.
INTEGRITY AND COMMUNITY
--we must trust those around us.
IDENTITY
--Who am I really?
--What remains constant in me?--even when I'm alone.
DIGNITY
--By lying, we try to control people--and thus disrespect them.
--No levels of truthfullness.
--We will be judged for idle words.
Truth is hard, because so often we pay a price for it
--Jesus paid the ultimate price.
--He paid the price for our lies as well.
Dr. Timothy Keller
13 May 2012
Matthew 5:33-37
33"Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' 34But I tell you, Do not swear at all; either by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes', and your 'No,' 'No; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
God is always present--so how can we lie in his presence.
Psalms 16:8
We want to delight Jesus, even though it's hard to live up to--but we know he loves us.
INTEGRITY AND COMMUNITY
--we must trust those around us.
IDENTITY
--Who am I really?
--What remains constant in me?--even when I'm alone.
DIGNITY
--By lying, we try to control people--and thus disrespect them.
--No levels of truthfullness.
--We will be judged for idle words.
Truth is hard, because so often we pay a price for it
--Jesus paid the ultimate price.
--He paid the price for our lies as well.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Law and Love
Savior and Teacher: A Study of Matthew - PART 12
Reverend Leo Schuster
29 April 2012
Matthew 5: 17-22
17"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish but to fulfill them them. 18For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
21"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca' is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of fire and hell.
AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE
--Practice the truth of scripture.
--How do we build our lives?
--God uses authors to compose the Holy Document.
--Is our foundation strong enough to sustain us?
AIM OF THE BIBLE
--Designed to show us Jesus and to change us.
--Jesus enters our world to show us a way for a whole new life.
--The Bible allows us to see ourselves as we truly are--FLAWED.
God's anger is good in its righteous indignation to injustice.
In our brokenness, we contribute to injustices towards Jesus.
Live a life of love when we feel anger.
Reverend Leo Schuster
29 April 2012
Matthew 5: 17-22
17"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish but to fulfill them them. 18For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. 20For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
21"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca' is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of fire and hell.
AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE
--Practice the truth of scripture.
--How do we build our lives?
--God uses authors to compose the Holy Document.
--Is our foundation strong enough to sustain us?
AIM OF THE BIBLE
--Designed to show us Jesus and to change us.
--Jesus enters our world to show us a way for a whole new life.
--The Bible allows us to see ourselves as we truly are--FLAWED.
God's anger is good in its righteous indignation to injustice.
In our brokenness, we contribute to injustices towards Jesus.
Live a life of love when we feel anger.
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