Matthew 7
Judging
1 Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brothers eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, Let me remove the speck from your eye; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brothers eye.6 Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
Ask, and It Will Be Given
7 Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.8 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent?11 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
Golden Rule
12 Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Two Ways of Life
13 Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
False and True Teaching
15 Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheeps clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
True Way into the Kingdom
21 Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.22 Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?23 And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!
Parable of the Two Builders
24 Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.26 But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.
Response to the Sermon
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching,29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
MATTHEW 7
Judging Others
(Luke 6.37,38,41,42)
1 Don't condemn others, and God won't condemn you.
2 t God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them.
3 You can see the speck in your friend's eye, but you don't notice the log in your own eye. 4 How can you say, “My friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you don't see the log in your own eye?
5 You're nothing but show-offs! First, take the log out of your own eye; then you can see how to take the speck out of your friend's eye.
6 Don't give to dogs what belongs to God. They will only turn and attack you. Don't throw pearls down in front of pigs. They will trample all over them.Ask, Search, Knock
(Luke 11.9-13)
7 t Ask, and you will receive. Search, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened for you.
8 Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who searches will find. And the door will be opened for everyone who knocks.
9 Would any of you give your hungry child a stone, if the child asked for some bread? 10 Would you give your child a snake if the child asked for a fish?
11 As bad as you are, you still know how to give good gifts to your children. But your heavenly Father is even more ready to give good things to people who ask.
12 t Treat others as you want them to treat you. This is what the Law and the Prophetst are all about.The Narrow Gate
(Luke 13.24)
13 t Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate.
14 But the gate to life is very narrow. The road that leads there is so hard to follow that only a few people find it.A Tree and Its Fruit
(Luke 6.43-45)
15 Watch out for false prophets! They dress up like sheep, but inside they are wolves who have come to attack you. 16 t You can tell what they are by what they do. No one picks grapes or figs from thornbushes. 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. 19 t Every tree producing bad fruit will be chopped down and burned.
20 t You can tell who the false prophets are by their deeds.A Warning
(Luke 13.26,27)
21 Not everyone who calls me their Lord will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only the ones who obey my Father in heaven will get in. 22 On the day of judgment many will call me their Lord. They will say, “We preached in your name, and in your name we forced out demons and worked many miracles.”
23 t But I will tell them, “I will have nothing to do with you! Get out of my sight, you evil people!”Two Builders
(Luke 6.47-49)
24 Anyone who hears and obeys these teachings of mine is like a wise person who built a house on solid rock.
25 Rain poured down, rivers flooded, and winds beat against that house. But it was built on solid rock, and so it did not fall.
26 Anyone who hears my teachings and doesn't obey them is like a foolish person who built a house on sand.
27 Rain poured down, rivers flooded, and the winds blew and beat against that house. Finally, it fell with a crash.
28 t When Jesus finished speaking, the crowds were surprised at his teaching. 29 He taught them like someone with authority, and not like their teachers of the Law of Moses.