The Spirituality of the Law “Swear not at all.”—Matthew 5:34. The reason for this command is given: We are not to swear “by the heaven, for it is the throne of God; nor by the earth, for it is the
The Spirituality of the Law “Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife?”—Matthew 19:3. Among the Jews a man was permitted to put away his wife for the most trivial offenses, and the woman was then at
The Spirituality of the Law “If thy right hand causeth thee to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from thee.”—Matthew 5:30, R. V. To prevent disease from spreading to the body and destroying life, a man would submit to
The Spirituality of the Law “Whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.”—Matthew 5:28. The Jews prided themselves on their morality and looked with horror upon the sensual practices of
The Spirituality of the Law “Be reconciled to thy brother.”—Matthew 5:24. The love of God is something more than a mere negation; it is a positive and active principle, a living spring, ever flowing to bless others. If the love
Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save
The Spirituality of the Law “Everyone who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment.”—Matthew 5:22, R. V. Through Moses the Lord had said, “Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart…. Thou shalt not
Thou art my servant; I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away. Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I
The Spirituality of the Law “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”—Matthew 5:20. The scribes and Pharisees had accused not only Christ but
The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. Matthew 13:24, 25. How vain is the
The Spirituality of the Law “Whosoever … shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.”—Matthew 5:19. That is, he shall have no place therein. For
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5:8. Satan is rallying his forces to contend with the advancing work. He would bring reproach upon the work
Chapter Three – The Spirituality of the Law “I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.”—Matthew 5:17. It was Christ who, amid thunder and flame, had proclaimed the law upon Mount Sinai. The glory of God, like devouring fire, rested
The Beatitudes “Ye are the light of the world.”—Matthew 5:14. As Jesus taught the people, He made His lessons interesting and held the attention of His hearers by frequent illustrations from the scenes of nature about them. The people had
The Beatitudes “Ye are the salt of the earth.”—Matthew 5:13. Salt is valued for its preservative properties; and when God calls His children salt, He would teach them that His purpose in making them the subjects of His grace is
The Beatitudes “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you.”—Matthew 5:11. Ever since his fall, Satan has worked by means of deception. As he has misrepresented God, so, through his agents, he misrepresents the children of God. The Saviour says,
The Beatitudes “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”—Matthew 5:10. Jesus does not present to His followers the hope of attaining earthly glory and riches, and of having a life free
The Beatitudes “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”—Matthew 5:9. Christ is “the Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), and it is His mission to restore to earth and heaven the peace that sin has
The Beatitudes “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”—Matthew 5:8. The Jews were so exacting in regard to ceremonial purity that their regulations were extremely burdensome. Their minds were occupied with rules and restrictions and the
Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. John 12:24. In this age we can see the necessity of drawing
The Beatitudes “Blessed are the meek.”—Matthew 5:5. Throughout the Beatitudes there is an advancing line of Christian experience. Those who have felt their need of Christ, those who have mourned because of sin and have sat with Christ in the school
The Beatitudes “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”—Matthew 5:4. The mourning here brought to view is true heart sorrow for sin. Jesus says, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. Jeremiah 33:3. We do not always consider that the sanctification we so earnestly desire and for which we pray so earnestly is
Chapter Two – The Beatitudes “He opened His mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”—Matthew 5:2, 3. As something strange and new, these words fall upon the ears
Chapter One On the Mountainside More than fourteen centuries before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the children of Israel gathered in the fair vale of Shechem, and from the mountains on either side the voices of the priests were heard
What if We Looked at Sin Like We Look at COVID-19? By Eric Louw A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I both ended up with what we thought was food poisoning and a fever. Thankfully, after 36 hours