Some of you have encouraged me to record more of the Bible, so I am presently working on the Sermon on the Mount.

The Beatitudes are in line with the keynote of this website: "Truth comes when it is needed." Similarly, the Beatitudes describe conditions of thought that are receptive to blessing. It is as if Jesus were setting the prerequisite - if any of these Beatitudes apply to you, you will benefit from my teaching.

The only thing that is constant is change, said the ancient philospher, Heraclitus. And certainly nothing has changed since then!

And yet we expend enormous energies in resisting change. Generally, risk is assigned to and evaluated based upon change, while avoiding change is assumed the safer option. What a profound contradiction of the nature of things.

Ever thought of worrying as a presumptuous sin? Is it not feeling responsible for something over which you have no control? How often have I caught myself in this predicament - feeling responsible but helpless in being able to do anything about it? and then the ensuing guilt!

Has the God of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, etc. evolved? Surely we can say that man has evolved, from the time of walking everywhere, to the present modes of transport, from the time of commonplace slavery to today's concept of equal rights... Surely, if man has evolved, so has God.

Research Hezekiah for your favorite takeaway. There is so much in his life story. 

Also, be ready to "praise the Lord" - to share some good.

Playback:

We have all felt the hurt of insensitive talk - and hopefully we have felt the pain of our own insensitivity in saying something that put a stone on another's heart - I say hopefully, because it takes a hardened heart to be oblivious to the impact of one's own words.

In this day and age, when the world is praising the virtues of tolerance, how can the Bible’s message of intolerance of wrong be relevant? Have you noticed that there was no room in the Old Testament for negotiation between the God-fearing and the idol worshippers, the righteous and the unrighteous? In the New Testament Jesus whipped the money-changers out of the temple, and taught, “If thine eye offend thee, pluck it out.” In this last example, we get a hint of what the message of intolerance really is, for we can be certain that Jesus did not intend his listeners to follow his words literally!

Two kings, Jehoshaphat and Ahab, sitting on their thrones, “clothed in their robes," want to know whether God wants them to go into battle or not (actually Ahab wants confirmation of his desire to do so). 400 prophets are called in, and they tell Ahab exactly what he wants to hear.

According to the Gospel of John, Jesus did not trust “man” at all - "because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.” He knew the nature of the human condition. He, the spiritual man, did not need the material thought testifying on his behalf, because he knew the fickle nature of this man - a self-centered perception, lacking moral depth.

When I get settled, have financial security, then I will be happy. When I am healed, then I will have something to be grateful for. When I find a compatible partner, then I won't feel lonely anymore. When I win the lottery... When I have gained a greater spiritual understanding, then I will be at peace. These are examples of vain expectations which lead people to live unsatisfying lives. 

This morning I read about Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. He started well. Built defenses against Israel who had been threatening. (Ahab, the king of Israel, was the ultimate materialist, a God-sneering scumbag!) Jehoshaphat went to great lengths to bring his people back to the worship of God, and his nation prospered mightily. But next we read,

This morning I opened to Paul's letter to the Colossians chapter 2. If this is not a warning of church organization, I don't know what is! This is what I get:

"As you have received the Christ, Truth, use it.

The Book of Job is apparently the oldest book in the Bible - thousands of years old.

It tells of a good man, very successful and wealthy, very devout. But his children were spoiled brats, and rather than deal with it, he prayed to God to protect them despite their selfish, "carnal" ways.

Reading James (Bible) this morning - after he describes the rich, well-dressed man getting the royal treatment, while the poor man in shabby clothes is treated as a second-class citizen: "if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors."

To say that the Sermon on the Mount is a masterpiece would be an understatement, and there is general agreement on this point, and yet how many people know what it is, or have read it? When I finally studied it in its entirety (Matthew 5-7), I was amazed how thorough and complete the instruction is. It is noteworthy that there is not one rule for what to do “physically”. From beginning to end, it addresses the heart, what one is thinking and feeling. It is not possible for another person or an institution to intervene. Its rules can only be applied by the individual and enforced by the Principle behind them, God. 

As children, we are taught to be careful around a stove, to look both ways before crossing a street, to be cautious with the approach of strangers, etc. But generally, we are not taught to avoid respecting persons, even though the Bible warns that respecting persons is a sin. Instead, it is customary to trust the well-dressed, educated-looking person, but to be wary of the badly dressed, ill-educated one. A smooth-talker often gets a pass while others are under scrutiny. 

“Sinners are never saved.” (1st Ed S&H) To most Christians this is heresy. Their whole pitch of Christianity is that Jesus died for our sins! But what says Paul, the earliest documenter of Christianity (some contend, the most accurate)? “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” A sinner who stops sinning is dead! - no longer a sinner.

Hannah was not able to have a child, which was a tragic state of affairs in those days. When she had reached the very depths of despair, she prayed earnestly - made a covenant with God - that if she were blessed with a child, she would give up him to serve in the temple. This prayer was strictly between her and her God - no witnesses.

This morning I read another challenging passage in the Bible (I look for the challenging passages!) Jesus taught that when you have guests over for dinner or whatever, don't invite your friends, family members or "important people", lest they reciprocate. Instead, invite "the poor, the lame, the maimed, the blind," those who cannot give back - and you will be blessed and rewarded "at the resurrection of the just." (Luke 14)

I opened to Romans 12. The following was the message I got: "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”:

The moment we entertain a desire to see another harmed for the wrong they have done, whether it be an ex-friend, a perennial enemy, a blatantly immoral politician, etc., we step outside the protection of Principle - we open ourselves to harm. If people spent as much time and effort watching against this as they do "unhealthy" food, society would be much healthier physically and morally!!