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I want to look at the Uniqueness of Jesus’ teaching on human relationships
1. "Buddha said, ‘If someone is suffering, that is his karma.’ You are not to interfere with another person’s karma because he is purging himself through suffering and reincarnation! Buddha said, ‘You are to be an island unto yourself.” – Dr. Ron Carlson
2. Mohammed – a. “slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem of war” Sureh 9:5
a. Matthew. 22:37-40 "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like unto it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and all the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
b. Matthew 5:44 "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.”
c. Luke 23:34 “"Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."
On Salvation
1. Buddha - Buddhists have no concept of salvation and atonement for wrong doings. Buddha accepted the power of the Hindu gods, but denied their efficacy in bringing humans salvation.
"Nirvana is the ultimate goal of spiritual practice in Buddhism. It is the total, absolute and permanent cessation of suffering. It is the merging of the individual into being one with the universe." Nirvana means "never having to be reborn."
b. A true Buddhist does not depend on external powers for his salvation. Nor does he expect to get rid of miseries through the intervention of some unknown power. He must try to eradicate all his mental impurities to find eternal Happiness.
According to Mohammed, salvation must be earned
Those who believe (in the Qur’an), and those who follow the Jewish (Scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabians, and who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord: on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve” (Surah 2:62).
"Every man's actions have we hung around his neck, and on the last day shall be laid before him a wide-open book." (Sureh17:13)
According to Jesus
Salvation is by grace through faith in the finished work of Christ. And even that faith to believe God is a gift from God.
John 6:40 "And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day."
Jesus is also unique in His death and resurrection
There are 300 OT prophecies fulfilled about Jesus in OT... written over 400 years before He came and 29 were fulfilled in one day.
The word blessed means more than the word ‘happy’, to be blessed means the inner joy and peace that comes from being right with God. It is a declaration of reward for the inner spiritual character of the person being spoken of and a quality that pervades their life.
This passage in many way parallels Isaiah 61
It was the very message that Jesus spoke of Himself when He stood in the synagogue.
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Those who are poor in spirit goes beyond the understanding of those who are poor financially although that is often tied to the understanding of being poor. However, a poverty of spirit speaks to people who have a genuine humility before God. They recognize that there is nothing in and of themselves that could contribute to the kingdom of God. They have a sense of deep repentance and the life most marked by this is the sinner that Jesus describes who beat his chest and said, have mercy on me oh Lord, a sinner.
They aren’t self-sufficient, free from pretension and know that their only hope is fully resting in the gift of life that Jesus has given them.
The incredible generosity and spirit of the people that I served in Rafael Freyere, Cuba last year.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to comfort all who mourn, Isaiah 61
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
The mourning for the Israelites had come at a loss of national identity in their age, they were being ruled over by the Romans and had been completely been taken advantage of.
Jesus came to bring comfort.
Those who mourn are those who have experienced loss and for some the loss is incredibly heavy whether that is the loss of a family member, the loss of health, the loss of a job. Jesus came for those who have their spirit broken, who have been bullied into submission. He has come for those who have been abused, hurt and mistreated. He has come for you. He has come to wrap his loving arms around you.
For those of us in Christ, we know that death does not have the final victory. He has conquered.
My greatest loss was losing my father at the age of 55 to colon cancer. Together with my brothers I sang “It is Well With My Soul” at his funeral, but my soul was in turmoil.
There is also a mourning over the sin in our life that leads to depths of remorse, but greater depths of love.
How deep the Father's love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasureHow great the pain of searing loss
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to gloryBehold the man upon a cross
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffersIt was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finishedhe will swallow up death forever.
The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears
from all faces; Isaiah 25:8;‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities
Jesus came for those who understand humility.
The people that follow Jesus and live in His presence understand the power that is available to them. They know their authority, but they do not act in a condescending way towards others, they don’t ‘lord’ it over others. They do not exploit the vulnerable and the exposed. They look for ways to come alongside others.
This character quality was one that Jesus embodied and enables his followers to experience through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled.
to bestow on them a crown of beauty, instead of ashes,the oil of joy instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.Jesus came for the hungry, the spiritually hungry ones, those who have an appetite for the things of God. He came to give us life.
Taste and see that the LORD is good. We have as much of God as we want.
David also spoke of the deer panting for water in the same way he thirsted after God in Psalm 42
There is a drive and desire to do the will of God that they are ready to go wherever that hunger and thirst takes them.
It may look like one of the following…
People who have pursued missions because they want to give of themselves, allow God to stretch them.
People who have pursued ‘God road-trips’ going to places where they know that the Spirit of God is moving.
People taking a stand for a righteous God honoring cause.
People who fast to seek the Lord’s face for clarity and direction, I took a personal retreat to Singing Waters in Hockley Valley.
Now let’s be clear that we are already have been declared righteous so we are not adding to our identity. We are going through a process that will allow us to discover it in a greater way or with greater intensity or focus.
Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy
It is the recognition of all that we have been forgiven that allows us to show amazing mercy towards others. Merciful people are those who don’t demand their own rights. They have learned to show forgiveness for all the forgiveness that they have received.
Blessed are the pure in heart,for they will see God.
It is a singleness of mind. It is a clear cut focus. The transformation from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh. The law moving from tablets of stone to being written on human hearts.
They will see God in all events and circumstances of life. Living in His presence will change us, it will change our thought process. The light of His Word will reveal the impurities
Blessed are the peacemakers,for they will be called children of God.
They will promote the complete reconciliation with God, it is possible.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.Simply put, Jesus said that they persecuted him and they will persecute us also for following Him.
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