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THE
SECRET OF HAPPINESS
(Matthew 5-7)
…Our world is in a
desperate search for happiness. Often it is thought that the path to happiness
is found either through __money__, fame, power, or pleasure. The problem
is that none of these really __satisfy__ the human heart. If we are to
find true happiness we must not seek it in the world’s ways, rather we must look
for it in the way Jesus outlined. The Sermon on the Mount, among other things,
tells us the __secret__ to happiness in life.
…This sermon is maybe the
__best__
known part of the entire Bible. Some of its expressions have become part of our
everyday speech. Even those who do not know this sermon understand what we mean
when we speak about “doing unto others” or “the salt of the earth.”
…Matthew records
__five__
of Jesus’ sermons, and this one is His greatest. It is important for Christians
to both know, and by God’s grace, live this out in our daily lives.
SIX
REASONS WHY IT IS IMPORTANT FOR US TO STUDY THE GREATEST SERMON EVER GIVEN.
I.
The Lord Jesus Died To __Enable__
Us To Live the Sermon on the Mount.
A. Why
did Jesus die? Paul tells us, “Jesus gave Himself for us…to purify for Himself
a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.” (Titus 2:14)
B. This
means that Jesus died to make it possible for us as Christians to live this
Sermon out in our daily lives. Therefore it is important for us to know this
sermon.
II.
Nothing Shows Us
the Absolute __Need__
of the New Birth, And the Holy Spirit and His Work Within, So Much As The Sermon
On The Mount.
A. These
beatitudes __crush__
us to the ground. They show us our utter helplessness. Were it not for the new
birth, we would all be undone.
B.
Read and study
it, “face yourself in the light of it. It will drive you to see your ultimate
need of the new birth and the wonderful work of the Holy Spirit. “ There is
nothing that so leads to the __Gospel__
and its grace as the Sermon on the Mount.
III.
The More We Live
and Try to Practice this Sermon On the Mount, the More We will Experience
__Blessing__.
A. Look
at the blessings that are __promised__
to those who do practice it. If you want to have power in your life, and to be
blessed, go straight to this Sermon. Live and practice it, give yourself to it
and as you do the blessing will __flow__
into your life.
B. If
you desire to be __filled__,
don’t seek some mystical experience, rather face this sermon and its
implications and demands, see your utter need, and then you will get it.
“Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they will be
__filled__.”
IV.
The Living Out Of
This Sermon is by far the Best __Means__
of Evangelism.
A. The
world today is looking for, and desperately needs,
__true__
Christians. Men and women who reflect the Lord in their daily lives. The real
church needs to begin living the Christian life. If she did so, “men and women
would be __crowding__
into our buildings.” They would say, “what is the secret to this?”
B.
If only all of
us were living the Sermon on the Mount, people would know that there is a
dynamic in the Christian Gospel. For whenever the world sees a true Christian
man or woman, it not only feels condemned, it is drawn, it is
__attracted__.
V.
This Sermon, More
Than Any Other, Reveals To Us A __Portrait__
Of Jesus.
A.
These verses
bring us into the deepest possible __contact__
with the our Lord.
B. One
man put it this way, “the preacher of this Sermon
__is__
the Sermon and we are constantly brought into the most intimate contact with
Him.”
VI.
This Sermon Shows in clear Language How we can
__Please__ Our Heavenly Father.
A.
It is true
that we cannot please Him until we first become a member of His family thru new
birth.
B. But
once in, it is a __privilege__
to please Him. Here we discover what He wants of us.
LESSONS FOR OUR LIVES:
1.
We must know this sermon, for it
directs us in how to live in this world.
2.
What we
believe and how we live must be forever joined together.
3.
Jesus claims
to be the absolute authority in teaching and applying the Bible. He is our
Lord.
4. Jesus
will tell here the horrible words to those who do not know Him “Depart from Me,
I never knew you”. You must be born again. Come to Christ today, receive the
Lord and be saved.
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