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Lesson Scripture — Matthew 7:1-29

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Lesson Scripture — Luke 6:37-49

37 — “‘Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.'”

38 — “‘Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.'”

39 — “‘And He spoke a parable to them: ‘Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?'”

40 — “‘A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his teacher.'”

41 — “‘And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?'”

42 — “‘Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the plank that is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.'”

43 — “‘For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.'”

44 — “‘For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.'”

45 — “‘A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.'”

46 — “‘But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?'”

47 — “‘Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like:'”

48 — “‘He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.'”

49 — “‘But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.'”

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Old Testament Prophecy Related to Matthew 7:1-29

v 8 — Proverbs 8:17 — “I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me.” (Below, I am going back to verse twelve to clarify this discourse for you.)

• 12 — “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence and find out knowledge and discretion.”
• 13 — “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil’ pride and arrogance and the evil way, and the perverse mouth I hate.”
• 14 — “Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.”
• 15 — “By me kings reign and rulers decree justice.”
• 16 — “By me princes rule, and nobles, all the judges of the earth.”

v11 — Genesis 6:5 — “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

v11 — Genesis 8:21 — “And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, ‘I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.”

v15 — Micah 3:5 — “Then they will cry to the Lord, but He will not hear them; He will even hide His face from them at that time because they have been evil in their deeds.”

v23 — Psalms 5:5 — “The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity.”

v23 — Psalms 6:8 — “Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity for the Lord will receive my prayer.”

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New Testament Scriptures Related to Matthew 7:1-29

v 1 — Romans 14:3 — “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.”

v 2 — Luke 6:38 — “‘Give and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.'”

v 3 — Luke 6:41 — “‘And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye?'”

v 7 — Mark 11:24 — “Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Are you not therefore mistaken, because you do not know the Scriptures nor the power of God?'”

v 9 — Luke 11:11 — “‘If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?'”

v12 — Luke 6:31 — “‘And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.'”

v12 — Galatians 5:14 — “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'”

v13 — Luke 13:24 — “‘Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for man, I say to you, will seek and will not be able.'”

v16 — Matthew 7:20 — “‘Therefore by their fruits you will know them.'”

v16, 17 — Matthew 12:33 — “‘Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.'”

v16 — Luke 6:43 — “‘For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.'”

v19 — John 15:2 — “‘Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.'”

v19 — John 15:6 — “‘If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.'”

v21 — Luke 6:46 — “‘But why do you call Me Lord Lord, and not do the things which I say?'”

v21 — Romans 2:12-16

• 12 — “For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law.”
• 13 — “(for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;”
• 14 — “for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these although not having the law, are a law to themselves.”
• 15 — “who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them)”
• 16 — “in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.”

v23 — II Timothy 2:19 — “Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal; ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.'”

v24 — Luke 47-49

• 47 — “Whoever comes to Me , and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like.'”
• 48 — “He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation of the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.'”
• 49 — “But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.'”

v28 — Matthew 13:54 — “When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, ‘Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works?'”

v29 — John 7:46 — “The officers answered, ‘No man ever spoke like this Man!'”

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Old Testament Prophecy Related to Luke 6:37-49

v38 — Proverbs 19:17 — “He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given.”

v38 — Proverbs 28:27 — “He who gives to the poor will not lack, but he who hides his eyes will have many curses.”

v37 — Matthew 7:1-5

• 1 — “‘Judge not, that you be not judged.'”
• 2 — “‘For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.'”
• 3 — “‘And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?'”
• 4 — “Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and look a plank is in your own eye?'”
• 5 — “‘Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.'”

v39 — Matthew 23:16 — “Woe to you blind guides who say, “Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.'”

v40 — John 15:20-23

• 20 — “‘Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.'”
• 21 — “‘But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.'”
• 22 — “‘If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.'”
• 23 — “‘He who hates Me hates My Father also.'”

v43 — Matthew 7:16-18

• 16 — “‘You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?'”
• 17 — “‘Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.'”
• 18 — “A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.”

v45 — Matthew 12:34, 35

• 34 — “‘Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.'”
• 35 — “‘A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.'”

Notes on Scripture: by tkbrown

As Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount, He addresses several behaviors and attributes which differentiate His true followers from those who are not His followers. He stresses the importance of both hearing and doing what He said. The tendency of some to skip ‘doing” in favor of a way more appealing to the masses is warned against. He taught of the difficulties in adhering to a life which keeps us on the narrow road with entry at the narrow gate. Since He was persecuted while here on earth — and since then — He assures us we will be persecuted, too, for His name’s sake. He reminds us, however, in the end those who persecute my followers have their reward right here on earth. Our reward will be eternal life in heaven with Him and with God.

Discussing judgment of others, Jesus clearly states we are not granted the right, as His followers, to judge the behavior of others — whether or not it is pleasing to God. With whatever judgment we judge, we shall be judged. By whatever law we judge, we will be judged by the same law. With whatever measure we judge, we will be judged by the same measure. If we judge others harshly, we will be judged harshly in return. This includes self-righteous criticism of others; we are not to view ourselves as ‘better followers of Christ than others.’ We are to seek God’s righteousness in ourselves, but we are not to look at the behaviors of others to discern whether or not they possess God’s righteousness. It is important to remember, “When I am pointing a finger at someone else, I have three fingers pointing back at me.”

If we are a good follower of Jesus, we will lead good followers to Jesus. If we follow Jesus as we are taught in the Holy Bible, we will bring others to Christ as well. Others will want to know what we have and how to get it. Does the fig tree have to put forth effort to reproduce and bear figs on its branches? If the gardener tends the tree properly, and if it is planted in good soil, it has no choice but to bear good fruit. If the gardener does not tend the tree properly, or if it is planted in poor soil, it may bear no fruit at all. If it does bear fruit, it will likely be withered, small, or deformed — not good fruit. When this is the case, the tree will be up-rooted and thrown into the fire.

The persecution and other methods of trying our faith make us stronger as Christians. Via Christ-like compassion, which promotes the agape form of love for others, we are more prone to help others and to forgive them when we are wronged.

Oftentimes, we see someone engaging in a behavior that we deem to be sinful. Is it our responsibility to try to stop that behavior? If we do try to assist change in the other person, we must first look at our own life and clean all sin from it. Is it possible to say we are without sin? No, it is not.

When we have removed sin (the plank) from our life, only then are we to point out and attempt to assist in the removal of sin (the speck) from the lives of others. Even then, it is much easier to lead and assist by example.

If someone has need, we are to give freely — without expectation of return. If someone asks us for help, we are to give that help to the extent possible. Jesus uses the example of a child asking a parent for bread or for a fish. Would the parent give his/her child a stone or a snake instead of bread or a fish? No, the child would be given what he/she requested. He explains that it is the same when His followers ask of God. If we ask, we will receive; if we seek, we will find; if we knock, it will be opened. By this, He is saying, if we ask for God to help us grow as Christ’s follower, we will grow. If we seek God’s righteousness, we will become more like God. If we knock, the door to God’s way will be opened to us. God already knows our physical needs. Thus, there is no need to ask for those — though most of us do. When we are making requests of God, it is important we remember to thank Him for all Blessings bestowed upon us. It is also important to believe He will hear our requests and provide.

As noted above, if we choose the straight and narrow way, we will have difficulty staying on that path. Many who set out upon it, falter and fall by the wayside. He said the road is crowded, and many will not be allowed in. Many will say to Him, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name; did we not cast out demons in Your name; have we not performed many wonderful deeds in your name?” He said, because they have not obeyed His commandments, He will say, “Depart from Me. I never knew you!” Many will prefer to follow a path which seems right to them, not the path Jesus specified in the Scriptures. We cannot “do it our way and get to heaven.”

He cautioned against listening to the wolves in sheep’s clothing — those who teach false doctrine. Those who make it seem easy to meet the requirements set forth in the New Testament. This goes back to the concept we have seen often and will see much more as we continue our studies:

If we study for ourselves and verify in the scriptures, everything taught by others, we can know in our hearts whether or not we have been presented a false doctrine.

Jesus concluded the Sermon on the Mount with an example of two people hearing his sayings. He said those who hear his sayings and do them are like a person building a home and setting it upon a foundation set upon solid rock. Jesus is that rock. That house is in no danger of being destroyed when the floods come. It will stand. There may need to be repairs, but the house itself will stand. The other person hearing His sayings and doing them not is likened unto the person whose house is built upon the sand with no foundation beneath it. When the floods come, that house will fall and be washed away.

Therefore, as we continue with the studies of Jesus Ministry, I continue to emphasize the importance of studying these lessons yourself. Do not just take my word for it. What I say in these notes should be verified in the scriptures. This is the only way you can form-up that foundation for a solid support to your house in heaven. Study the scriptures until you know them front to back. Even then, it is important to continue with your daily study and with verifying the things you are taught. When this is a regular part of your spiritual growth, it will become easier because eventually, you know almost instantaneously whether or not the doctrine being presented is true. As you continue going to the scriptures in the Holy Bible and studying, it will be necessary for you to begin teaching others.

I pray these lessons are a blessing to you in the learning of Christ’s teachings while He lived here on earth and the teachings of His apostles following His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension back to heaven. May God Bless and Keep you until the next lesson when we will see Jesus Continuing His Ministry here on earth.

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