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Speaker 1: Let us pray. But I say unto you, love your enemies,

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Speaker 1: Bless them that curse you, do good to them that

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Speaker 1: hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you

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Speaker 1: and persecute you. Matthew five forty four. Dear Lord, as

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Speaker 1: I listen to the truths in to day's reading, I

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Speaker 1: thank you for giving me the beatitudes of how I

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Speaker 1: am supposed to be in order to live a life

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Speaker 1: full of abundance and freedom. As I begin to honor

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Speaker 1: the way that I am called to live, I thank

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Speaker 1: you that as I pray to you, I do not

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Speaker 1: have to worry about where I am going to eat

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Speaker 1: or where I am going to sleep, because when I

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Speaker 1: live in divine obedience to You and your word, you

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Speaker 1: continually provide all that I need. Therefore, I declare that

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Speaker 1: worry and fear will no longer be a part of

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Speaker 1: my story, for I know that, like a good parent,

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Speaker 1: you too desire to feed and provide for every need

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Speaker 1: I have. In addition, I acknowledge that my greatest command

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Speaker 1: is to love you and to love my neighbors as myself.

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Speaker 1: With these truths fasten tight around my heart, I will

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Speaker 1: live at a higher level. I will serve with greater humility,

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Speaker 1: and I will lead with my way of being so

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Speaker 1: others may see life and follow you Lord in Jesus name. Amen,

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Speaker 1: Thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time

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Speaker 1: with God by listening to today's Bible story brought to

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Speaker 1: you by Bible in a Year dot.

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Speaker 2: Com Sermon on the Mount.

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Speaker 3: In our last story, we saw Jesus through the eyes

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Speaker 3: of Peter. His mighty works of healing and acts of

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Speaker 3: compassion brought Peter to his knees. He truly saw that

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Speaker 3: Jesus was a man worth following, and he would soon

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Speaker 3: come to the understanding that Jesus was God himself. Now

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Speaker 3: we listen to the heart of Christ through the Sermon

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Speaker 3: on the Mound. Jesus declares what the Kingdom of Heaven

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Speaker 3: looks like when it is acted out on earth. People

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Speaker 3: aw at his eloquence, wisdom, and authority. Inspired by the

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Speaker 3: Book of Matthew.

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Speaker 4: Hello, this is Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of

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Speaker 4: the Bible in a Year. We are so thankful for

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Speaker 4: each one of you. So many have joined this podcast

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Speaker 4: over the past nine or ten months. In fact, well

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Speaker 4: over twenty million people have joined us, and we're grateful

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Speaker 4: for each of you. In our previous episode, we heard

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Speaker 4: how Jesus called Peter and other disciples to become fishers

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Speaker 4: of men. We saw how when they obeyed him in faith,

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Speaker 4: he provided more abundantly than they could have ever imagined.

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Speaker 4: And we saw how jesus healings ministry began to grow

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Speaker 4: and spread in the region. But in all this business,

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Speaker 4: Jesus never neglected to find time in solitude to seek

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Speaker 4: God's presence, the heavenly Father's strength. Today we'll hear from Jesus'

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Speaker 4: most well known sermon and his words concerning God's kingdom

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Speaker 4: and what that looks like when we live out kingdom

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Speaker 4: principles and priorities here on earth. Is called the Sermon

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Speaker 4: on the Mount. So let's hear the word of God.

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Speaker 3: Jesus scanned the crowds as they followed his every step.

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Speaker 3: His popularity was growing rapidly, and thousands of people followed

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Speaker 3: him into the valley outside Galilee. Their hearts were hungry

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Speaker 3: for truth. They were longing to know what the Kingdom

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Speaker 3: of God truly looked like. Jesus them at the bottom

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Speaker 3: of a small hill. He climbed to the top and sat.

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Speaker 3: The wind carried his voice for all to hear, and

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Speaker 3: they listened to every word flowing from his mouth. Blessed

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Speaker 3: are those who are poor in spirit. The Kingdom of

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Speaker 3: heaven belongs to them. Blessed are those who hurt, for

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Speaker 3: the time will come for them to be comforted. Blessed

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Speaker 3: are those with strength, but use it for good, for

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Speaker 3: they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who long

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Speaker 3: for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful,

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Speaker 3: for they will receive mercy in return. Blessed are those

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Speaker 3: who are persecuted for doing what is right, for the

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Speaker 3: Kingdom of heaven will reward them greatly. The crowd was

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Speaker 3: completely silent as they listened to Jesus. You all are salt,

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Speaker 3: But if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it

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Speaker 3: be used. You are also a light, meant to guide

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Speaker 3: and direct people to safety, and a light is of

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Speaker 3: no use hiding under a basket. Let your light shine

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Speaker 3: so they might glorify your father in heaven. Jesus could

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Speaker 3: see the crowds processing his words. What he spoke were

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Speaker 3: old truths, but it seemed new to them. Jesus smiled

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Speaker 3: and held up his finger do not think that I

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Speaker 3: came to abolish the laws or the prophets you have

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Speaker 3: learned since your youth. I have not come to destroy

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Speaker 3: the law, but bring it to fulfillment. For you have

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Speaker 3: heard it said, do not murder. But I tell you

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Speaker 3: whoever harbors hatred in his heart or insults his brother

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Speaker 3: as judged the same. You have heard it said, do

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Speaker 3: not commit adultery. But I have come to tell you

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Speaker 3: that whoever lusts after a woman in his mind, or

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Speaker 3: treats a woman as an object, is committing adultery in

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Speaker 3: his heart. The crowd began to stir a bit. What

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Speaker 3: Jesus was saying was revolutionary and changed the way they

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Speaker 3: saw themselves. Then Jesus said something that would change everything.

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Speaker 3: You have heard people say.

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Speaker 2: And I for an eye.

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Speaker 3: But if anyone slaps you on the cheek, you ought

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Speaker 3: to turn the other cheek. Do not return evil for evil,

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Speaker 3: Love your enemies, Bless those who scorn you. Everyone is

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Speaker 3: good at loving those who love them in return. However,

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Speaker 3: the mark of a pure heart lies within someone who

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Speaker 3: is able to love the unlovable. Jesus looked at the crowd.

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Speaker 3: He could see a group of Pharisees glaring at him

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Speaker 3: in the corner of his eye. Jesus's tone was gentle

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Speaker 3: yet firm. He spoke clearly, saying, there is a trap

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Speaker 3: that many people fall into. They desire to only do

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Speaker 3: good when people are watching for them. Their reward is

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Speaker 3: in the validation of others. Beware of this. When you

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Speaker 3: give to the needy, do not sound a trumpet like

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Speaker 3: some do in the synagogues. Give in secret for your

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Speaker 3: heavenly Father sees you when you pray. Do not add

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Speaker 3: spectacle or poetry to come off as righteous to others.

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Speaker 3: Some love to stand on the street corners and proclaim

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Speaker 3: them devotion to God. When you pray, do so just

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Speaker 3: between you and the Lord. Some of Jesus's disciples interrupted

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Speaker 3: him and asked, then, teach us how to pray. Jesus

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Speaker 3: answered and said, our Father, holy is your name. May

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Speaker 3: your kingdom come and your will be done here as

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Speaker 3: it is in your perfect will, provide our daily needs,

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Speaker 3: and forgive us of all our sins. And may we

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Speaker 3: also forgive those who have trespassed against us, Lead us

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Speaker 3: away from temptation, and deliver us from evil. The prayer

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Speaker 3: was simple yet profound, and it spoke of the relationship

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Speaker 3: man ought to have with God. Do not be anxious

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Speaker 3: for anything, Jesus said, Look at the birds of the air.

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Speaker 3: They do not toil and worry, yet their heavenly father

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Speaker 3: feeds them. You are more important than they, so trust

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Speaker 3: that the Lord will provide. No one ever added one

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Speaker 3: moment to their life by worrying. Do not be anxious

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Speaker 3: about tomorrow. It has its own troubles. Live to day.

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Speaker 3: Jesus could see that some of the people were beginning

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Speaker 3: to look to one another. The nature of humans is

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Speaker 3: to look at the flaws in one another instead of inward.

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Speaker 3: Jesus knew this and gave a stiff warning to all

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Speaker 3: who were listening. Be careful not to judge others, for

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Speaker 3: you yourself will be judged. Why would you point out

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Speaker 3: the small piece of sawdust in someone else's eye when

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Speaker 3: you have a large wooden plank stuck in your own.

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Speaker 3: There was a chuckle from among the crowd. Jesus smiled,

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Speaker 3: Be mindful to understand your own flaws before mentioning the

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Speaker 3: flaws of others. You will serve them better if you

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Speaker 3: do so. Jesus welled up with love for the people.

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Speaker 3: He saw them as God did children. In need of

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Speaker 3: a loving parent, ask great things of God. Seek him

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Speaker 3: and he will answer. How many of you parents would

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Speaker 3: deny your children bread and instead give him a stone?

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Speaker 3: If you, being sinful, would not even do this, Even

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Speaker 3: more so, God will give happily to those who seek

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Speaker 3: his favor. There was a pause, and Jesus stood to

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Speaker 3: his feet. The wind blew from behind him, and his

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Speaker 3: robe flowed in the wind. He stepped down once and

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Speaker 3: raised his voice. He did not want anyone to miss

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Speaker 3: his next words. Treat others the way you wish to

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Speaker 3: be treated. This is the true heart behind the law

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Speaker 3: of God. And understand this that the gate to the

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Speaker 3: Kingdom of God is narrow. The easy path is wide

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Speaker 3: and open. However, its ease is deceptive. It is the

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Speaker 3: way of death. The true path of God is hard.

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Speaker 3: It requires sacrifice, struggle, and humility. This is why many

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Speaker 3: will choose to avoid it. Ultimately, a tree is judged

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Speaker 3: by its fruit. Every healthy and good tree bears fruit

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Speaker 3: that people can enjoy. Every bad tree produces thorns and poison.

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Speaker 3: The same with our hearts. A good heart will produce

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Speaker 3: good actions. Likewise, a bad heart will produce corrupt actions.

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Speaker 3: Make no mistake words are not enough. Not everyone who

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Speaker 3: declares to know the Lord will enter into the Kingdom

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Speaker 3: of heaven. Jesus began to walk down the hill when

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Speaker 3: he looked upon a firm stone on the ground. He

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Speaker 3: picked it up and smiled. He held the stone up

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Speaker 3: in the air and said, everyone who hears these words

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Speaker 3: of mine and does them is like a wise person

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Speaker 3: who builds their house on a firm rock. When the

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Speaker 3: rain fell and the floods came, their house was sturdy.

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Speaker 3: Yet those who do not listen and do not do

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Speaker 3: these things are like people who build their homes on sand.

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Speaker 3: When troubles come, they will be washed away. Jesus dropped

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Speaker 3: the stone and walked away. The crowd stood there, astonished

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Speaker 3: that he held so much authority in his words.

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Speaker 4: As we begin today's reading, a large crowd is gathered

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Speaker 4: outside out of Galilee to hear Jesus speak. Jesus stood

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Speaker 4: on top of a mountain, a place where his voice

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Speaker 4: could reach far and wide, so that all in the

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Speaker 4: crowd could hear what he had to say, because what

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Speaker 4: he had to say was life changing. He began by

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Speaker 4: telling the people what it means to be blessed. These

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Speaker 4: weren't blessings as we understand them. It wasn't about good

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Speaker 4: fortune or wealth or health. It was something far greater,

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Speaker 4: much deeper. This was about the blessing of joy and

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Speaker 4: of total satisfaction, and to live in the fullness and

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Speaker 4: the wholeness of God's grace. Jesus then went on to

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Speaker 4: describe the attitudes that will lead to this fulfillment, the

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Speaker 4: perfect satisfaction. These were attitudes that we call the bee attitudes,

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Speaker 4: and these attitudes are the attitudes that we should seek,

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Speaker 4: not only attitudes towards ourselves, but attitudes towards others. The

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Speaker 4: be attitudes Jesus describes here stand in stark contrast as

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Speaker 4: to how the world seek ease what is important. These

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Speaker 4: were deep, deep teachings and not easy ones to follow.

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Speaker 4: He then reminded the people of the purpose of these

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Speaker 4: beatitudes that we were called, all of us who follow Jesus,

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Speaker 4: to be salt and light, to be agents of preservation

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Speaker 4: and illumination in a dark and desperate world. We are

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Speaker 4: still called to do that today, to be salt and

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Speaker 4: light in our world, in our culture, to make a

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Speaker 4: difference in people's lives, to turn on the light of

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Speaker 4: the Gospel and to be salt in the earth. Next,

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Speaker 4: Jesus turned his attention to his own purpose. He told them,

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Speaker 4: in no uncertain terms, that he did not come to

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Speaker 4: abolish the law or the writings of the prophets, but

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Speaker 4: to bring them to fulfillment. This is very important. God

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Speaker 4: had outlined in the Ten Commandments the requirements for holy living,

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Speaker 4: a life set apart for God. This is the law

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Speaker 4: that he gave to Moses. This was the standard by

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Speaker 4: which people were expected to live, and principles that we

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Speaker 4: can live by even today. The Ten Commandments spoke of

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Speaker 4: murder and adultery, and divorce and swearing oaths, and vengeance

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Speaker 4: and love, and for each of these Jesus began with

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Speaker 4: the basics of the law. But rather than lowering the

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Speaker 4: standards of the law, Jesus raised the standards. He was

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Speaker 4: showing them that the real perfect standard was not just

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Speaker 4: weighty and burdensome. It was impossible in our own power.

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Speaker 4: This is why we need a savior. Jesus came to

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Speaker 4: fulfill the law and the prophets for us, and when

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Speaker 4: we trust in him, his righteousness becomes our righteousness. He

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Speaker 4: was also teaching them and all of us something else.

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Speaker 4: The issue of sin and disobedience to God is an

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Speaker 4: issue of the heart. Without changed hearts, it is impossible

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Speaker 4: to live a righteous life. They didn't know this yet,

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Speaker 4: but the one speaking to them was their only hope

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Speaker 4: and our only hope. For a life changed, a heart

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Speaker 4: sh changed the only way that any of us could

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Speaker 4: meet the high and holy standard that God has established.

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Speaker 4: Jesus cautioned people against acting righteously for the sake of

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Speaker 4: recognition that is, self righteously, especially with regards to caring

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Speaker 4: for the poor. Again, he was pointing them to the

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Speaker 4: heart of the matter, their own hearts. The Lord then

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Speaker 4: began to teach the people about prayer, starting with the

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Speaker 4: posture of prayer. Prayer is not to be a spectacle

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Speaker 4: a show for others to see. It is rather a

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Speaker 4: personal conversation with the God who created us. Jesus himself

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Speaker 4: lived by this example, often retreating in solitude to pray.

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Speaker 4: When asked how they were to pray, Jesus gave them

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Speaker 4: a pattern for praying, an outline, if you will, as

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Speaker 4: to how to pray. We know it as the Lord's prayer,

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Speaker 4: and it is a beautiful model for how to speak

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Speaker 4: to our Father in Heaven. It is a prayer that

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Speaker 4: has endured to this day, one that speaks to our

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Speaker 4: relationship with God. Our submisis to His will and dependence

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Speaker 4: upon His provision and forgiveness, and our need to forgive

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Speaker 4: others as God has forgiven us. As he continued to

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Speaker 4: teach the crowd, Jesus poured out wisdom from God's heart.

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Speaker 4: He called people to invest in God's kingdom, to be generous,

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Speaker 4: storing up treasures in the life to come, treasures that

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Speaker 4: will never decay or be destroyed. He called the crowds

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Speaker 4: to release their worries to God, trusting that he will

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Speaker 4: provide for their every need, and he urged them and

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Speaker 4: us to boldly ask God to provide, reminding us that

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Speaker 4: the Father in Heaven is infinitely gracious and kind and

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Speaker 4: giving good gifts to all who ask. Finally, Jesus concluded

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Speaker 4: the message with an illustration. He said, in Matthew chapter

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Speaker 4: seven and verses thirteen and fourteen, enter through the narrow gate.

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Speaker 4: For why ite is the gate, and broad is the

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Speaker 4: road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.

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Speaker 4: But small is the gate, narrow the road that leads

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Speaker 4: to life, and only a few find it. So with

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Speaker 4: this is an illustration and a warning. He warns us

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Speaker 4: about those who would lead us astray, false prophets and

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Speaker 4: false religions, disguised disciples who claim to follow the Lord

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Speaker 4: but are way way lost. Jesus' words would stick to

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Speaker 4: some that day. Those who heard and held on to

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Speaker 4: his teaching would build their foundation their lives on a

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Speaker 4: solid rock, and they would be prepared to weather the

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Speaker 4: storms of life. It is so important that you build

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Speaker 4: your life on the foundation of Jesus Christ. As Jesus

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Speaker 4: taught us, we must not build our lives on the

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Speaker 4: sifting sands of time that crumble, but upon the solid

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Speaker 4: rock who is Christ himself. At the center of Jesus'

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Speaker 4: famous sermon is the theme of true righteousness and the

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Speaker 4: truth that righteousness is not a result of our action,

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Speaker 4: but a condition of our hearts. And ultimately, jesus words

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Speaker 4: would remind us that our hope, our only hope for righteousness,

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Speaker 4: is him Christ himself. He is the ultimate good gift

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Speaker 4: of the heavenly Father, who knows our needs and provides

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Speaker 4: for them in every way so that we could accomplish

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Speaker 4: His purpose and will for our lives. Let's pray thank

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Speaker 4: you Dear God, for this powerful sermon from the very

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Speaker 4: lips of Jesus and how it points us to our

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Speaker 4: great need of You. You've told us to be perfect,

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Speaker 4: even as the heavenly Father is perfect. And we know

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Speaker 4: we are not perfect, but you are. So we thank

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Speaker 4: you for your perfect sacrifice for us of the Cross,

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Speaker 4: for your resurrection that we might have forgiveness of our

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Speaker 4: sins and be given your righteousness that we may live

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Speaker 4: in the eternal hope of Heaven. Help us to live

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Speaker 4: putting You first in all things, to seek first the

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Speaker 4: Kingdom of God and your righteousness, Lord, knowing that you

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Speaker 4: will bless us with everything we need in life and

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Speaker 4: in the life to come. Amen. Thank you for listening

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Speaker 4: to Today's Bible in a year. I'm pastor Jack Graham

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Speaker 4: from Dallas, Texas. You can download the Prey dot com

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Speaker 4: app and make Bible study in prayer the priority of

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Speaker 4: your life. And if you appreciate this podcast, please share

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Speaker 4: it with someone else. I also want to encourage you

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Speaker 4: to go to Jack Graham dot org. That's Jack Graham

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Speaker 4: dot org for we have resources that are free and

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Speaker 4: available for you so that you may know Christ and

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Speaker 4: grow in Him. God bless you