:confused:What lessons do you learn or teach from today's gospel lesson?? :confused:

Matthew 5
1. SEEING THE crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him.
2. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
3. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5. "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7. "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
8. "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10. "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11. "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
12. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13. "You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trodden under foot by men.
14. "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.
15. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
17. "Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them.
18. For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished.
19. Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
20. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
21. "You have heard that it was said to the men of old, 'You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.'
22. But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother shall be liable to the council, and whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be liable to the hell of fire.
23. So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24. Leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
25. Make friends 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;
26. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out till you have paid the last penny.
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Thanks Much.
:)Peace and kindness,:)
Fred

The Beatitudes are great!

ROLCAM.
Yes they are but there is much more there.
Peace and kindness,
Fred

The Beatiude a teaching from Jesus, 'beatis' in latin means 'happy' and all start with
Blessed' or happy. Jesus points out the pathway to happiness as He teaches attitudes
Which lead to happiness. That's why I like the Be-Attitudes. We the children of God
Should be the happiest, most joyfull people on earth. Jesus is teaching us to clothe
Ourselves in what He is saying, wearing it, desiring to put that part of Him in our being
As we take off the old man that is carnal and is of this world, they are as filthy rags.
We can say "Woe is me" I am a sinful man in comparison to Who He is, in comparison
To His standards, in comparson to the beauty of His Holiness. If we want a happy, loving
And joyfull life with Him and desire His kingdom he is showing us how.

"Blessed, or happy are those who are poor in spirit--- who realize their own spiritual poverty." Anyone who truly sees the Lord will inevitably feel poor in spirit...

"Blessed or happy are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."
After a person realizing he is poor in spirit, begins mouring, he finds himself meek---no longer strutting, no longer primping, no more vainglory. He's meek---with strength
Harnessed for the purposes of the King and for Him alone.

"Blessed or happy are they which do hunger and thirst after rightousness: for they shall be filled."

See the flow , first you are poor in spirit, then you are mourning over your sin, then you find yourself meek. And now that you've gotten rid of all that self-grandeur
And self glory , you will find yourself hungry and thirsty because you have emptied of all that junk. Pride must go before you find yourself hungry and thirsty for rightiousness.

"Blessed or happy are the merciful. For they shall obtain mercy."

After you have gone through the emptying process you will be filled with God's love, you will find yourself being merciful toward others.----not judgemental , not analytical.
The more rightous a man is the more merciful he will be. The more sinful a man is the more harsh and critical he will be.

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

All of us who have embraced the Lord have clean hearts. But a pure heart is one not distracted by sports, hobbies, etc. A pure heart shall see God, He is first and foremost in every area of your life.

"Blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called the children of God "

I suggest that the first peace-making activity in which you can engage is introducing
People to the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ. Think about the opportunities you had to talk to someone about Jesus or bring someone to church. Totally bless as many people as you can.

"Blessed or happy are they who are persecuted for rightousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are you when men shall curse you , and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake . Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted they the prophets
which were before you. "

The attitudes of meekness and mercy , poverty of spirit and rightousness of heart are being worked out in you, you will encounter persecution, you will have enimies, you will be slandered, and misunderstood because in Paul says this, " Yea all who live Godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. Thats a promise.
Jesus said " Happy is the one who is persecuted. You're joining a great company, the company of the prophets. And indeed you will have profit in heaven---exceedingly great reward "

TO BE CONTINUED... IF YOU ARE INTERESTED.

MAGGIE 3

Maggie 3,
Excellent point.
Blessed also means in God's favor.
Thanks,
Fred