Introduction Matthew 5; Luke 6

Two weeks ago we studied Jesus announcing his mission Luke 4:18-19. Any insights on how Jesus’s declaration was filled immediately and how it continues to today?

  • 18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
  • 19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

Sermon on the Mount

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Today we congregate to remember the teachings of our Lord. How did they gather? Is the Mountain important?

  • Matthew 5:1 … 1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
  • Luke 6:12 … 12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.Luke 6:17 … 17 ¶ And he came down with them, and stood in the plain, and the company of his disciples, and a great multitude of people out of all Judæa and Jerusalem, and from the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, which came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases;

Dichotomy of these Teachings. Do these seem to be a paradox?

  • Matthew 5:2-4 … 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 they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
  • Luke 6:20-21 20 ¶ And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. … 21 Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.

Blessings, do these seem tangible? Notice the reversal in last two versus.

  • Matthew 5:5-12 … 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. … 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. … 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 the children of God. … 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. … 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. … 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Questions for the classroom

  • Do you know anyone who exemplifies a beatitude?
  • What is modern definition of meek?
  • What is modern definition of reward? Becky Craven, Happiness $15
  • Does anyone have a story of how *mourning brought comfort?
  • How do we make peace?
  • Any other favorite? Is there a story behind it?

Living Water

Last week, Priesthood and Relief Society week, we studied the story of a Woman in Samaria and in it we learned the phrase Living Water. I have asked Adam to talk us through it.

  • John 4:7-15 … 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. … 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) … 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. … 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. … 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? … 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? … 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: … 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. … 15 The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to draw.

Be ye therefore Perfect

The Higher Law. A twist on the Law of Moses, The law of Christ supersedes the law of Moses. But remember, what law breaks our temple covenants Doctrine and Covenants 132:19, this is an example that supersede does not mean abolish.

  • Matthew 5:38-41 … 38 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: … 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. …40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. … 41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

Insight and clarification on the Two Great Commandments Matthew 22:37-39

  • Matthew 5:43-45 … 43 ¶ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. … 44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; … 45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

The toughest commandment, Matthew 5:48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

  • President Nelson, Perfection Pending states, … the term perfect was translated from the Greek teleios, which means “complete.” Teleios is an adjective derived from the noun telos, which means “end.” The infinitive form of the verb is teleiono, which means “to reach a distant end, to be fully developed, to consummate, or to finish.” Please note that the word does not imply “freedom from error”; it implies “achieving a distant objective.” In fact, when writers of the Greek New Testament wished to describe perfection of behavior—precision or excellence of human effort—they did not employ a form of teleios; instead, they chose different words. … Teleios is not a total stranger to us. From it comes the prefix tele that we use every day. Telephone literally means “distant talk.” Television means “to see distantly.” Telephoto means “distant light,” and so on.
  • Moroni 10:32-33 teaches “Come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; … love God with all your might, mind and strength … [Then] ye may be perfect in Christ, … holy, [and] without spot.”

Preparing for the Miracle of feed 5000

It is not often, that as we are studying the New Testament a new mini series is releasing episodes that correspond to our reading. Additionally, media is complemented with technology that can increase our study and insight into events of the New Testament. I would like to state that the miracle of feeding 5 loaves and 2 fishes to 5000 is enhanced by the producers of this series and the ChatGPT tool.

  • John 6:5-11 … 5 ¶ When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? … 6 And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do. … 7 Philip answered him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. … 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto him, … 9 There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? … 10 And Jesus said, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. … 11 And Jesus took the loaves; and when he had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples

Depiction of Teaching and Feeding 5000

The mini series depicts John 6.

ChatGPT session question events and relations

Historical information on Feeding 5000 vs Sermon on the Mount. This is the question I asked ChatGPT, “where did jesus feed 5000?” …

  • According to the Christian Bible, Jesus fed 5000 people with just five loaves of bread and two fish in a miracle known as the feeding of the 5000. The location of this event is mentioned in all four of the Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-15).
  • Although the exact location is not specified in the Bible, it is said to have taken place near the Sea of Galilee, in the vicinity of Bethsaida (John 6:1) which was a fishing village on the northern shore of the sea. Some biblical scholars suggest that the location may have been on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, near the town of Hippos.

Next question to ChatGPT … “was this during the Sermon on the Mount?”

  • No, the feeding of the 5000 is not considered to be part of the Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon on the Mount is a teaching of Jesus that is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapters 5 to 7. It includes the Beatitudes, teachings on various aspects of morality, and the Lord’s Prayer.
  • The feeding of the 5000, on the other hand, is a miracle that is recorded in all four of the Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-15). It is an event where Jesus miraculously multiplied a few loaves of bread and fish to feed a large crowd of people who had gathered to hear him teach. It took place in a different location from the Sermon on the Mount, near the Sea of Galilee.

Additional question to ChatGPT … “where was sermon on the mount”

  • The Sermon on the Mount is a famous sermon given by Jesus Christ that is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapters 5 to 7. While the exact location of the sermon is not mentioned in the Bible, it is generally believed that it was given on a hillside near the Sea of Galilee, in the vicinity of Capernaum, which was a town on the northern shore of the sea.
  • Capernaum was an important location in the ministry of Jesus, and it is mentioned several times in the Gospels as a place where Jesus performed miracles and taught his disciples. It was also the hometown of Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples. While the exact location of the Sermon on the Mount is not known for certain, many biblical scholars believe that it was likely given on a hillside near Capernaum, overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

A distance question to ChatGPT … “what is the distance between Bethsaida and Capernaum”

  • The distance between Bethsaida and Capernaum is believed to be about 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) based on historical records and archaeological findings. Both Bethsaida and Capernaum were located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, and they were both important towns during the time of Jesus’ ministry. According to the Bible, Jesus spent a considerable amount of time in both towns, performing miracles and teaching the people.

Background question on the lad to ChatGPT …“any additional information on the lad who had 5 loaves and 2 fishes?”

  • The story of the lad who had five loaves and two fishes is recorded in all four of the Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-15). According to the Bible, a large crowd of people had gathered to hear Jesus teach, and they had been following him for some time. As the day wore on, the people grew hungry, and Jesus’ disciples suggested that he send them away to buy food.
  • However, Jesus instructed his disciples to feed the people themselves, and they replied that they only had five loaves of bread and two fishes, which they had obtained from a young boy. **Jesus then took the bread and fishes, blessed them***, and began to distribute them among the crowd. Amazingly, everyone was able to eat their fill, and there were even twelve baskets of leftovers.
  • The story of the lad who had five loaves and two fishes is often seen as a symbol of the power of faith and the generosity of spirit. Despite having very little, the young boy was willing to share his food with others, and this act of kindness ultimately led to one of the most famous miracles of Jesus’ ministry.