Autumn Bible Studies

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT
When: Thursdays @ 2:30-4pm in the Lounge. September 24 – December 17 (with mid-course break before All Saints Day celebration).
St. Matthew’s account of what is commonly known as the Sermon on the Mount was the beginning of Jesus’ formal education of His disciples. In these three chapters we read Jesus’ practical applications of His gospel message: “Repent, the kingdom of heaven is near.” Essentially, the teaching
is Jesus’ guide on how to “strive first for the kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33). It’s His prescription for the path of repentance that leads to the redemption .
The Sermon on the Mount contains many well-known passages, including the Beatitudes, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Golden Rule, as well as various celebrated and provocative ethical maxims, such as turning the other check, going the extra mile, loving one’s enemies and walking the straight and narrow.
Familiarity, however, does not produce an instant grasp of what Jesus’ teachings mean for would-be disciples in the 21st Century. Nor does it soften the challenge of the practicability of its requirement for ‘righteousness’.
In this 12-week Bible Study programme, we take time to encourage one another as we explore Jesus’ teaching of His first century disciples together, and discuss what we do with it, as modern disciples, if its purpose was to shape and affirm the identity of Jesus’ end-time community. Supportive material will be available from leader Rosanna Cousins.

September 24 Matthew 5:1-12 Unexpected Blessings – The Beatitudes
October 1 Matthew 5:13-16 Salt and Light
October 8 Matthew 5:17-20 The importance of obeying God’s Law
October 15 Matthew 5:21-30 What’s wrong with private sins?
October 22 Matthew 5:31-37; 19:3-9 Faithfulness in marriage and speech
November 5 Matthew 5:38-48 How to really love your enemies
November 12 Matthew 6:1-6; 6:16-18 Advice on being religious
November 19 Matthew 6:7-15 A pattern for dynamic prayer
November 26 Matthew 6:19-34 Worldly ambitions
December 3 Matthew 7:1-12 Relationships that encourage                              December 10 Matthew 7:13-20 The narrow way                                               December 17 Matthew 7:21-29 Making the choice for life