Bible Studies

(click on a study, copy and paste it---and it's yours)

The Story of the World (and Us) Part 4b: Someone Special (leader)

What did Jesus say?

A. Luke 4:14-21 (p. 1093 NIrV)

The prophet Isaiah was looking forward to the coming of someone special (see Part 3b or p. 739 NIrV).

a. Who would be “on” that person? (The Spirit of the Lord)

b. What would be the Spirit of the Lord help this person do? (He will know and respect God. He will be wise and will not judge by the way things appear or by what people say, but will be completely fair and just. He will rule over people as God wants him to rule.)

c. What is “the year when he will set his people free” mean? —vs. 19 (This refers to the time when God would free his people from all that oppresses them—sin, death, diseases, poverty, persecution, etc.)

After Jesus read about that special person, what does he say (vs. 21)? (“Today Isaiah’s hope is coming true.”)

What does he mean by that? (He, Jesus, is the one Isaiah wrote about.)

B. Matthew 5-7 (p. 1032 NIrV)

Matthew 5:1-16 Jesus tells us who are blessed, how to become blessed (Recall that all the nations were to be blessed through Abraham (see Part 3a).
- What does the word “blessed” mean? How is it different from “happy?” (The word “happy” refers to an emotion that can change quickly, depending on circumstances. The word “blessed” refers to the condition of fertility—having life, physical and spiritual life, within us.)
- Who are blessed according to Jesus? —vs.3-11 (Those who are spiritually needy, those who mourn their sins and the sins of the world, those who are free of pride, who hungry and thirsty for what is right, who show mercy, whose hearts/minds are pure, who make peace, who suffer for doing what is right. These are the types of people who are open to receive God’s life and who display that life in the ways they live.)
- Would our cultures call these types of people blessed? (No. Our cultures suggest that the wealthy, the famous, the powerful, the popular ones are ‘blessed.’)
- What does “salt of the earth” mean? —vs. 13 (In ancient times salt prevented food from spoiling by being rubbed into it. Salt gave flavor to food and also purified wounds.)
- How can a group of people be the salt of the earth? (By speaking out and acting against whatever oppresses us, destroys our relationships, diminishes our humanity, keeps us from serving God, etc.)
- What does being “the light of the world” mean? (In the darkness, light illumines the path and keeps us from falling. Light in the distance helps us to know what direction we should be traveling. Light takes away all fear of what might happen in the darkness, etc.)
- How can we be the light of the world? (By telling people about Jesus—who is the light of the world—John 8:12; by living a life-style that shows people how were meant to live, etc.)
- Is this the same as being a blessing to the nations as Abraham was called to be? (Yes)
Matthew 5:21-26 Relationships between one another

a. Jesus reaffirms the “salty” commandment that we must not kill one another.
- What “salt” does he add to that commandment? (Do not be angry with your brother)
b. Instead of killing one another, what “light” should we shine on our relationships with other people? —vs. 23-26 (We should seek to be reconciled to them.)
- (Can we do that?) (Not on our own)

Matthew 5:27-32 Relationships between husbands and wives

a. Jesus affirms the “salty” commandment against adultery. What “salt” does he add to that commandment? (Do not even look at a woman in the wrong way.)
- What does this mean for us as followers of Jesus? (We stop seeing women/men as objects that satisfies our needs. Instead, we respect them as persons whom God loves.)
b. Is Jesus serious about poking our eyes out? What might he mean? (Yes, Jesus is very serious about how we treat people of the opposite sex and about sexual purity. He wants us to stop whatever it is that leads us to treat them wrongly.)

c. What does Jesus say about divorce? —vs. 31-32 (That it is wrong. Marriage is a relationship of committed love and faithfulness between a man and a woman. Divorce betrays that love and breaks that commitment)

Matthew 5:33-37 Honesty and oaths

a. How does Jesus want us to speak? (Honestly, sincerely, with integrity)

Matthew 5:38-48 Relationship with our enemies

a. What does “Eye must be put out for an eye, and tooth knocked out for tooth” mean? (This rule was meant to keep people from inflicting more injury on someone who had injured them. The punishment should only be equal to the injury received, not more.)

b. What does Jesus say in contrast to that?
- Negatively —vs. 39: Do not (fight against an evil person).
- Instead: —vs. 39-41
  1. (Turn your other cheek to them)
  2. (Let him have your coat also)
  3. (Go two miles with him)

Summary —vs. 44: (Love your enemies; pray for those who hurt you.)

Is this possible? (Yes. Difficult, but possible with the help of the Spirit of the Lord.)

Matthew 6 Spiritual activities necessary for living as followers of Jesus:

a. What are “good works?” (Matthew 6:1) (Things done for the benefit of others)
- Why doesn’t Jesus want us to put them on display for everyone to see? (Because then we are really doing them for our benefit, not for the benefit of others.)
b. What does Jesus expect his followers to do in order to stay “salted” and to shine with the light of the world? Three things:
1. Jesus says: When you (give to needy people.) —6:2
  
  a. What relationship is looked at here? (Our relationship with other people)
  
  b. What should we not do when we give to others? (Announce it so that everyone knows how generous and good we are.)
  
  c. Why not? (Jesus wants us to help those who need help because we truly care about them, not in order to look good or to be applauded by people.)
2. Jesus says: When you (pray). —6:5
  
  a. What relationship is looked at here? (Our relationship with God)
  
  b. What should we not do when we talk with God? (Make sure that people see us or hear what we are saying.)
  
  c. Why not? (Jesus wants us to talk with God because we truly love him, not because we want people to know how religious we are.)
3. What we should include in our prayers:
  - How is God addressed? —6:9 (Our Father in heaven)
    - What does that mean? (That we can talk to God knowing that he loves us as a father loves his children.)
  - What three things are asked of God? —6:9-10
    1. (His name be honored, respected, highly valued)
    2. (His kingdom come)
    3. (His will be done)
  - What three things should we ask for ourselves? —6:11-13
    1. (We receive daily bread)
    2. (Our sins be forgiven)
    3. (We be kept from severe trials where the enemy might defeat us.)
  - Jesus says: When you (fast) —vs. 16
    - What does fasting mean? (Primarily it means to go without eating, but it might also mean to go without watching TV, drinking, shopping—whatever happens to control our life in an unhealthy way.)
    - Why do people fast? (To lose weight or to gain control over whatever controls us. Some people fast in order to remind themselves that other people do not have enough to eat. In bible times, people fasted so that they could concentrate on praying.)
    - What relationship is looked at here? (Our relationship with our selves, our habits that might be unhealthy. What controls my life?)
    - What should we not do when we fast? (Call attention to it)
    - Why not? (That would be doing something (fasting) in order to receive honor and praise from people. We should ‘fast” from that!)
  - Why does Jesus want his followers to give to others, to pray, and to fast? (So that we would always be “salty people” and a light for the nations.)
Matthew 6:19—7:27 Attitudes and behaviors expected from Jesus’ followers
1. Matthew 6:19-24
  - What are “riches in heaven?” (Whatever God values: love, justice, reconciliation, healthy relationships, truth, peace, etc., etc.)
  - Is Jesus correct in saying “Your heart will be where your riches are?” (Yes. What we value, we want. What we want, we do our best to get. When we get it, we try to keep it.)
  - What does Jesus mean by our having good and bad eyes? (What we see we often want. Our eyes “tell” our hearts what they should desire and get. Good eyes direct our hearts toward good things; bad eyes direct them toward bad things. Sometimes we can tell from a person’s eyes whether or not they are sincere, cold, or uncaring. Here the eyes tell us what is in a person’s heart.)
  - Is Jesus correct when he says: “You cannot serve God and money at the same time? (Yes)
2. Matthew 6:25-34
  1) Jesus sees that we are worried about what things? (What we are going to eat, wear, etc.)
  
  2) Should we be worried about them? (No)
  
  Why not? —vs. 32 (Our heavenly Father knows that we need them.)
  
  3) What should we be “worried” about? —vs. 33 (God’s kingdom and his way of living.)
  
  4) What is Jesus concerned about here? (That we have the right priorities: God’s kingdom and God’s way of living, then what clothes we might wear, how large a house we should live in, etc.)
  
  c. Matthew 7:1-6
  1) What does Jesus mean by telling us not to judge other people? (Jesus isn’t saying that we should not judge someone to be right and wrong, good or bad, but that we shouldn’t be judgmental, criticizing and condemning others so that we look good. If we are not willing to show mercy toward others, we shouldn’t be surprised when mercy is not shown toward us.)
  
  2) What danger does Jesus see in our judging other people? (That we see ourselves to be superior to them and better than they are. We might think that others deserve punishment for their sins, but we don’t.)
  
  d. Matthew 7:7-12
  1) How can we possible do all that Jesus tells us to do? —vs. 7
  a) (Ask for the strength and the ability to do what Jesus calls us to do.)
  b) (Search for the ways to do every day what Jesus wants us to do.)
  c) (Knock on the door of faithful discipleship. Desire to do what Jesus wants us to do.)
  2) What is Jesus’ promise when we do them?
  a) (Ask: it will be given to you)
  b) (Search: you will find)
  c) (Knock on the door: it will be opened to you)
  
  e. Matthew 7:13-27 The choice is ours
  1) What does “enter God’s kingdom through the narrow gate” mean? (We detach our lives from ourselves and from other things and attach them to Jesus, pledging to live from now on as disciples of Jesus and as members of Jesus’ “salty” and “light-shining” community. Together with other disciples we strive to put Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount into practice every day.)
  
  2) What do the “large gate” and the “wide road ” refer to? (The seemingly attractive life of pleasure and wealth; doing what everyone else does; doing whatever it takes to get ahead in life; doing what I want to do, etc.)
  
  3) What does Jesus warn us about in verses 15-20? (People who say we should follow them because they know what we should do and how we should live. We can tell who they really are by observing how they live and what they do.)
  
  4) What does Jesus warn us about in verses 21-23? (Saying that we know Jesus but not doing what he wants us to do. We can’t say that we are disciples of Jesus but then ignore what he tells us to do in this Sermon on the Mount.)
  
  5) How does Jesus picture our lives when we listen to what he has said and put his words into practice? —vs. 24-27 (As a house built on a foundation of rock. It remains standing no matter how terrible the storm around it is.)
  
  6) What does he mean by that? (When we live according to Jesus’
  instructions in this Sermon on the Mount our lives will be strong and secure. We will be able to endure every storm that comes our way.)

Interfriends

Bible Studies

The Story of the World (and Us) Part 4b: Someone Special (leader)

Bible Studies

The Story of the World (student)

The Story of the World (leader)

Being a Follower of Jesus

Sermon on the Mount

Power point Overview of the Bible