Getting Started: Do you remember a specific sermon you heard sometime in your life? Why did that message stick with you?
Digging In: Matthew 5-7 contains what is often referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount”. Read at least the beginning and the ending: Matthew 5:3-12 and Matthew 7:12-27. Our focus will be more on the closing section.
- The Sermon begins with words of blessings and closes with words of warnings. Which blessings and warnings stick out to you as you read?
- 7:13-14- Two Gates: Why does Jesus describe the gate as narrow? From what you know about the Sermon on the Mount, why is the life that Jesus describes illusive to so many?
- If the gate is as narrow as Jesus has described, how should we be living?
- 7:15-20. Who do you think Jesus is referring to in this section? What do false prophets look like?
- vs. 20 Two Trees: Jesus states that a true follower of Him will show different fruit in their lives. If you were to expand on these verses, what are the kinds of “fruit” in a person’s life that will define whether they are a good tree or a bad tree?
- vs. 24-27 Two Houses: What is the defining difference on whether the house stands or falls?
- vs. 24, for the sake of clarity: Who is like a wise man?
- vs. 24 There are two things a wise person does with the words of Jesus. What are they?
- From your perspective, is the bigger problem of our day hearing the words of Jesus or putting them into practice?
- Which is the bigger challenge for you and the people you know?
- vs. 21-23- What is scary about this text?
- For the person on the right path, showing the fruit of the right tree, and building on the right foundation, there is nothing to fear. Where do you and your loved ones need prayer?