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SOTM (Part 2 - Greater Righteousness )

I. - (Torah and Prophets)

A. - Jesus Fulfills the Torah

“Do not think that I have come
to abolish the Law or the Prophets;
I have not come to abolish them
but to fulfill them.
For truly I tell you,
until heaven and earth disappear,
not the smallest letter,
not the least stroke of a pen,
will by any means disappear from the Law
until everything is accomplished.
Therefore anyone who sets aside
one of the least of these commands
and teaches others accordingly
will be called least in the kingdom of heaven,
but whoever practices and
teaches these commands
will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
For 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.

B. - 6 Case studies

1. - Anger
“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.’
But 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 the fire of hell.
“Therefore, if you are offering
your gift at the altar
and there remember that your
brother or sister
has something against you,
leave your gift there in front of the altar.
First go and be reconciled to them;
then come and offer your gift.
“Settle matters quickly with your adversary
who is taking you to court.
Do it while you are still together on the way,
or your adversary may
hand you over to the judge,
and the judge may hand you over
to the officer,
and you may be thrown into prison.
Truly I tell you, you will not get out
until you have paid the last penny.

2. - Lust
“You have heard that it was said,
‘You shall not commit adultery.’
But I tell you that anyone who
looks at a woman lustfully has
already committed adultery with her
in his heart.
If your right eye causes you to stumble,
gouge it out and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose one
part of your body than for your
whole body to be thrown into hell.
And if your right hand
causes you to stumble,
cut it off and throw it away.
It is better for you to lose
one part of your body
than for your whole body to go into hell.

3. - Divorce
“It has been said,
‘Anyone who divorces his wife
must give her a certificate of divorce.’
But I tell you that anyone who
divorces his wife,
except for sexual immorality,
makes her the victim of adultery,
and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

4. - Telling the Truth
“Again, you have heard that it was said
to the people long ago,
‘Do not break your oath,
but fulfill to the Lord the
vows you have made.’
But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all:
either by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
or by the earth, for it is his footstool;
or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.
And do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make even one hair
white or black.
All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’;
anything beyond this
comes from the evil one.

5. - Revenge
“You have heard that it was said,
‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’
But I tell you, do not resist an evil person.
If anyone slaps you on the right cheek,
turn to them the other cheek also.
And if anyone wants to sue you and
take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.
If anyone forces you to go one mile,
go with them two miles.
Give to the one who asks you,
and do not turn away
from the one who wants to
borrow from you.

6. - Enemy Love
“You have heard that it was said,
‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
But I tell you, love your enemies and
pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children 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.
If you love those who love you,
what reward will you get?
Are not even the tax collectors doing that?
And if you greet only your own people,
what are you doing more than others?
Do not even pagans do that?

C. Be Whole/Complete

Be perfect, therefore,
as your heavenly Father is perfect.


(II. - Righteousness and Religious Practices)

A. - True Reward
“Be careful not to practice
your righteousness in front of others
to be seen by them.
If you do, you will have no reward
from your Father in heaven.

B. - True Devotion (3 ways it can go sideways)

1. - Generosity to the Poor
“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 others.
Truly I tell you,
they have received their reward in full.
But when you give to the needy,
do not let your left hand
know what your right hand is doing,
so that your giving may be in secret.
Then your Father,
who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.

2. - Prayer
“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 others.
Truly I tell you,
they have received their reward in full.
But 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.
And when you pray,
do not keep on babbling like pagans,
for they think they will be heard
because of their many words.
Do not be like them,
for your Father knows what you need
before you ask him.
“This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
For if you forgive other people
when they sin against you,
your heavenly Father
will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others their sins,
your Father will not forgive your sins.

3. - Fasting
“When you fast,
do not look somber as the hypocrites do,
for they disfigure their faces
to show others they are fasting.
Truly I tell you,
they have received their reward in full.
But when you fast,
put oil on your head and
wash your face,
so that it will not be obvious to others
that you are fasting,
but only to your Father,
who is unseen;
and your Father,
who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.

III. - Righteousness and Relationships with God and Others)

A. God and Money
1. Sky Treasure
“Do not store up for yourselves
treasures on earth,
where moths and vermin destroy,
and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves
treasures in heaven,
where moths and vermin do not destroy,
and where thieves
do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is,
there your heart will be also.

2. Two Eyes
“The eye is the lamp of the body.
If your eyes are healthy,
your whole body will be full of light.
But if your eyes are unhealthy,
your whole body will be full of darkness.
If then the light within you is darkness,
how great is that darkness!

3. Two Masters
“No one can serve two masters.
Either you will hate the one
and love the other,
or you will be devoted to the one
and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and money.

4. Do not worry
“Therefore I tell you,
do not worry about your life,
what you will eat or drink;
or about your body,
what you will wear.
Is not life more than food,
and the body more than clothes?
Look at the birds of the air;
they do not sow or reap or
store away in barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not much more valuable than they?
Can any one of you by worrying
add a single hour to your life?
“And why do you worry about clothes?
See how the flowers of the field grow.
They do not labor or spin.
Yet I tell you that not even Solomon
in all his splendor was dressed
like one of these.
If that is how God clothes
the grass of the field,
which is here today and
tomorrow is thrown into the fire,
will he not much more clothe you
—you of little faith?
So do not worry, saying,
‘What shall we eat?’ or
‘What shall we drink?’ or
‘What shall we wear?’
For the pagans run after all these things,
and your heavenly Father
knows that you need them.
But seek first his kingdom
and his righteousness,
and all these things
will be given to you as well.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will worry about itself.
Each day has enough trouble of its own.

B. God and Neighbor
1. Do not judge
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.
For in the same way you judge others,
you will be judged,
and with the measure you use,
it will be measured to you.

2. Speck in the eye
“Why do you look
at the speck of sawdust
in your brother’s eye
and pay no attention
to the plank in your own eye?
How can you say to your brother,
‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’
when all the time
there is a plank in your own eye?
You hypocrite,
first take the plank out of your own eye,
and then you will see clearly
to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

3. Holy pearls
“Do not give dogs what is sacred;
do not throw your pearls to pigs.
If you do,
they may trample them under their feet,
and turn and tear you to pieces.

4. Seek and knock
“Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives;
the one who seeks finds;
and to the one who knocks,
the door will be opened.
“Which of you,
if your son asks for bread,
will give him a stone?
Or if he asks for a fish,
will give him a snake?
If you, then, though you are evil,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your
Father in heaven
give good gifts to those who ask him!

C. Golden Rule
So in everything, do to others
what you would have them do to you,
for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

SOTM (Part 1 - Kingdom Identity) )

I. Surprise Who is living The Good Life

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people insult you,
persecute you and
falsely say all kinds of evil
against you because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
because great is your reward in heaven,
for in the same way
they persecuted the prophets who were before you.


II. Salt of the Land

“You are the salt of the earth.
But if the salt loses its saltiness,
how can it be made salty again?
It is no longer good for anything,
except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

III. Light of the World/City on a hill

“You are the light of the world.
A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.
Neither do people light a lamp
and put it under a bowl.
Instead they put it on its stand,
and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way,
let your light shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your Father in heaven.

SOTM (Part 3 - The Choice)

I. Two Gates/Paths
“Enter through the narrow gate.
For wide is the gate
and broad is the road
that leads to destruction,
and many enter through it.
But small is the gate
and narrow the road that leads to life,
and only a few find it.

II. Two Trees (Types of Leaders)
“Watch out for false prophets.
They come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.
By their fruit you will recognize them.
Do people pick grapes from thornbushes,
or figs from thistles?
Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit,
but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit,
and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
Every tree that does not bear good fruit
is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
“Not everyone who says to me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but only the one
who does the will of my Father
who is in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day,
‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name
and in your name drive out demons
and in your name perform many miracles?’
Then I will tell them plainly,
‘I never knew you.
Away from me, you evildoers!’

III. Two Houses
“Therefore everyone
who hears these words of mine
and puts them into practice
is like a wise man who
built his house on the rock.
The rain came down,
the streams rose,
and the winds blew
and beat against that house;
yet it did not fall,
because it had its foundation on the rock.
But everyone
who hears these words of mine
and does not put them into practice
is like a foolish man who
built his house on sand.
The rain came down,
the streams rose,
and the winds blew and
beat against that house,
and it fell with a great crash.”