• Matthew 5-7
• Unique composition of citizens of the Kingdom - Matthew 5:3-12
  • Blessed are:
    • Poor in spirit - humility
    • Mournful
    • Hungry and thirsty
    • Merciful
    • Pure in heart
    • Peacemakers
    • Persecuted for righteousness
    • Persecuted for Christ
  • You are:
    • Salt of the earth
    • Light of the world
• God’s plan for saving man:
  • Hear the gospel - Romans 10:17
  • Believe Jesus is the Son of God - Mark 16:16
  • Repent from sin - Acts 17:30
  • Confess faith in Christ - Romans 10:9-10
  • Be baptized - I Peter 3:21
  • Live faithfully unto God - Revelation 2:10
• Superior righteousness of the Kingdom - Matthew 5:17-48
  • Must be inward, spiritual, and real - not outward, routine, and ceremonial
    • Six illustrations
      • Law of anger/hate in heart - Matthew 5:21-26
      • Law of lust in heart - Matthew 5:27-30
      • Law of oath-breaking in heart - Matthew 5:31-32
      • Law of oath-taking - Matthew 5:33-37
      • Law of retaliation - Matthew 5:38-42
      • Law of merciful kindness - Matthew 5:43-48
• The secret of the practice of true religion - Matthew 6:1-18
  • Performed to please God, not man
    • Almsgiving - Matthew 6:1-4
    • Prayer - Matthew 6:5-15
    • Fasting - Matthew 6:16-18
• Pitfalls to avoid - Matthew 6:19-7:6
  • Hoarding - Matthew 6:19-34
    • Anxious grabbing for things of this life
      • Learn to trust God
      • Seek the kingdom
  • Faultfinding - Matthew 7:1-5
    • Passing unwarranted severe, critical judgments
      • Self inspect and correct
      • Practice mercy
  • Wasteful spending - Matthew 7:6
    • Giving the precious to the uncouth
• Two great sources of power and usefulness to be sought - Matthew 7:7-12
  • Prayer - Matthew 7:7-11
    • Towards God
  • Golden rule - Matthew 7:12
    • Towards man
• Hope’s one foundation
  • Hear and heed the Word - Matthew 7:13-27
    • Destruction of those who won’t
    • Production of those who will

• Three things which qualify something as precious:
  • Rarity: the only begotten Son of God - I John 4:9
  • Usefulness: that we might live through Him, a propitiation - I John 4:9-10
  • Intrinsic value: purity, He did no sin - Hebrews 4:15
• Precious to us in life
  • As a sacrifice for sin - John 1:29
  • As a sure foundation - I Peter 2:4-7
  • As food for the soul - John 6:48-57
  • As a guiding influence - John 8:12
  • As an intercessor, advocate - Romans 8:34
• He is precious unto us in the hour of death
  • Because of His promise - Revelation 2:10
  • Because of His presence - Hebrews 13:5,6; Luke 23:43
• He is precious to us in the day of Judgment and throughout eternity
  • Because of His rich rewards:
    • To eat of the tree of life - Revelation 2:7
    • To not be hurt of the second death - Revelation 2:11
    • Name retained in the Book of Life - Revelation 3:5
    • Be a pillar in the temple - Revelation 3:12
    • Sit with Him in His throne - Revelation 3:21
    • Abide where joy is unmixed with sorrow - Revelation 21:4
    • Live in the city of no night - Revelation 21:25
  • Because Heaven is more than just a place, it is being with Him who is there
    • To be at home with the Lord - Philippians 2:21
    • Where Jesus is we will find Heaven

[Sorry, no audio available for this lesson.]

• Companionship
  • Genesis 2:7-8 - God created woman as a suitable companion to man.
  • I Corinthians 11:8-9
  • Genesis 29:30-33 - Leah was married, but unloved.
• To glorify God and go to Heaven
  • I Peter 4:10-11
  • Acts 18:25-26 - Aquila and Priscilla
  • James 5:16
• To raise godly children
  • Ephesians 6:1-4
  • Ephesians 5:22-23 - One of the best things you can do for your children is to have a good marriage.

• The book was written by Simon Peter. Some have claimed that this is not the same Peter that wrote I Peter because of the difference in how he introduces himself in each book. In each book, however, he describes himself as an apostle, which means they were both written by the same man.
• The letter was written to the same audience as I Peter - Christians in Asia Minor. I Peter was probably written around 64-65 A.D. Peter is said to have died in 68 A.D., which dates this book around 65-68 A.D.
• This book was partly written to combat Gnosticism. Gnosticism was a mixing of Christianity and Eastern religions. It emphasizes the “evil” of matter and the “good” of knowledge.