Sermon on the Mount and the Prince
Anyone who is even vaguely familiar with the teachings of Jesus and theories of Machiavelli would see just how starkly different are the two in their approach to everything especially leadership. Jesus was a symbol of compassion and forgiveness and in his Sermon on the Mount, he presented summary of his teachings which included the golden rule "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets" and the beatitudes such as 'the meek ... shall inherit the earth" and "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Obviously Machiavelli wasn't the man Christ was addressing because his rules of leadership and ruling are widely different and radical. Machiavelli's political theories were grounded in that belief that a ruler, "who wants to keep his post must learn…...
mlaReferences
1) Jesus: Sermon on the Mount
2) Machiavelli The Prince
There may have been some women there who have had one, and I'm sure it would hurt to be called that; in fact, I think they would stop listening. Also, there might be men whose wives, or daughters, or girl friends (or even mothers) had had an abortion, and they would be offended by the label murderer applied to women they loved or cared about. People stop listening when they get offended.
A also thought that he had not prepared the speech for us. I thought it was a speech he had given many times before, and he probably didn't change it or adapt it to our church congregation. In our congregation, the issue is a divisive one. It would maybe have been better if he had found that out and then adapted the speech for an audience not already completely persuaded. He talked in a sort of confidential manner…...
While God’s word was delivered to specific people at a specific time in a specific place, the quality of the Word is such that it lives on and can be applied to all people in every place in every time. The reason for this is that the Word of God is universal and carries a meaning that gets to the heart of what it means to be human and to be a child of God. To do the will of God is always Christ’s message. Whether that means that one must fight against temptation, or exercise more charity towards one’s neighbor, or to honor God by keeping His commandments, the message is there for everyone to receive and apply it in his or her daily life. The job of the preacher is to condense that message and make it fresh for the audience so that they feel it and feel…...
mlaReferences
Duvall, J.S. & Hays, J.D. (2012). Grasping God’s word: A hands-on approach to reading, interpreting, and applying the Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.McDill, W. (2006). The 12 essential skills for great preaching (2nd ed.). Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group.Robinson, H.W. (2014). Biblical preaching: The development and delivery of expository messages. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Sermon
Every youthful generation is going to have its own tastes in clothing and recreation, its own musical style, its own favorite musical artists, always in contrast to their parents and the previous generation. Adults should be patient and understanding, and good Christians should not condemn or condone a wild rock and roll star that sins, but instead pray for that person.
Good morning my friends, my congregation, and my neighbors! I hope that you saw the Lord's brilliant handiwork this morning in that glorious sunrise. If you were up as early as I was, you witnessed God's wonderfully multicolored landscape painting. Those high cirrus clouds reflected heavenly pink, orange, purple and red brushstrokes on the magical canvas that God shares with us each day.
May we bow our heads for a moment and speak to our God: "Oh Lord, we are so grateful for this wonderful life we have been given, we…...
mlaWorks Cited
Amazing Discoveries. "Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Christianity." Retrieved April 1, 2012, from http://amazingdiscoveries.org/elvis .
Fairchild, Mary. "What Does the bible Say About Forgiveness?" About.com. Retrieved April 1,
2012, from 2008.http://christianity.about.com .
sermon "The Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men," by John itherspoon, given on 17 May 1776. Specifically, it will consider who itherspoon is responding or directing his sermon to. hat does he say? How is this sermon significant? itherspoon's sermon came at a crucial time in American history, and his words are still powerful and poignant today.
The Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men
itherspoon's sermon is significant for several reasons. He urges his fellow citizens to think deeply about their lives, and their sins as they prepare to head off to war with Great Britain. He directs his comments directly to these men who will soon shoulder arms and march off to war, and "beseeches" them to accept God before they leave their families and friends, many of them for the last time. He pleads,
herefore, my beloved hearers, as the ministry of reconciliation is committed to…...
mla
The sermon is evidently being delivered to a black congregation. The suffering of Sister Caroline is shown to be uniquely black in nature because of the references to her suffering in the vineyards (cotton fields) for long, hot hours. Sister Caroline has furrows of care in her brow because of the suffering that is part of the African-American condition. Life is so hard that death is shown as a respite. In contrast to the elevated language of "Go Down, Death: Funeral Sermon," the poem "Incident" is short and pithy. It directly addresses the subject of race, detailing how the poet was called a racial slur as a child, by a boy her own age. The poet describes herself as excited about going to Baltimore but her innocence is quickly shattered. The brevity of the poem underlines the fact that being called the 'n-word' was all she could remember of…...
Those responsible for murdering atrocities such as Crusades, the witch trials and the Inquisition do not seem, from today's perspective, to have any love in their hearts.
One must perhaps also recognize that these perpetrators of murder and terror felt that they were promoting a type of love. Those who burned witches and heretics for example tended to believe that they were saving the souls tortured in this way from the eternal fires of damnation. They may have seen this as a type of ancient "tough love." From today's perspective, and surely from the viewpoint of Jesus' original meaning, this was not the type of love that was meant.
Today, religion has taken a new and interesting form, as has the many sayings of Jesus. I believe that today's more tolerant attitudes have brought new possibilities for the fulfillment of Christ's commands. In this way, I also believe that the Bible…...
We can all make a difference even if just in our own mental outlook.
Second we are told to "reprove" and to "rebuke." These two harsh words underscore the enormity of the efforts we are about to make. Also, they illustrate further the proactive nature of this passage. These are active verbs, suggesting direct ways to deal with sin in the world. eproving and rebuking, like preaching, are communicative words. This passage is about how the word of God can and should be delivered from generation to generation throughout the world.
To reprove and rebuke, we must ourselves be pure of heart. Aim to purify your mind so that your actions reflect God. Then in recognizing the sins of others we can see opportunities to preach the word. eproving and rebuking may take on the spirit of scolding but we do not seek to judge others. ather, we reprove and rebuke…...
mlaReferences
Goodwin, Thomas. The glory of the gospel: Sermon II." Available online at: http://www.puritansermons.com/goodwin/good06.htm
Guzik, David. 2006. 2 Timothy 4 - Paul's Final Testimony to Timothy. Available online at http://www.enduringword.com/commentaries/5504.htm .
He lobbies against practices that were common in the seventeenth century and instead claims that people should focus on performing more traditional tasks that would make it possible for them to be equal and for discrimination based on intellect or wealth to be removed from the English society. From his perspective, much needs to be changed in order for people to live in agreement with how God wants them to live. The writer is determined to have people comprehend the importance of equality in a society that is experiencing great suffering. He cannot accept people's interest in material matters and advises against all forms of discrimination, regardless of society's standards.
Winstanley can virtually be considered to be an opportunist when it comes to the way that he applies religion to a political matter. He knows that people in England are severely influenced by religious passion and that it can be…...
Dunbar writes his entire poem in a dialect that is nearly indecipherable at first glance as well.
All of the collective characters in Death of a Salesman, Beloved, and "Antebellum Sermon" have experienced some kind of difficulty in their pasts (some obviously more horrific than others); however, there is the commonality that all seem to oppress what they have faced in their pasts. Sethe and Paul D. choose to not deal with the past while other characters like Stamp Paid fights against it, which is still a form of oppression. illy chooses to live in his world of illusions rather than deal with the mistakes that he has made in his life. Sethe, Paul D, and illy Loman all actively choose to not accept their pasts and this means that there will never be resolution for them in life. On the other hand, "Antebellum Sermon" has the narrator talking about…...
mlaWorks Cited
Baym, Nina. The Norton Anthology of America Literature: Shorter Edition. W.W.
Norton & Company; 5th edition, 1999.
Blount, Marcellus. "The Preacherly Text: An African-American Poetry and Vernacular
Performance." Performance. Spec. Issue of PMLA 107.3 (May 1992): 582-93.
Homiletical Outlining an Expository Sermon
Introduction
An expository sermon tries to illustrate, explain and give the practical application of scripture in life. It aims at helping the audience to identify the factual interpretation of scripture in their life. Such a stance is an ideal of high order. It is a reigniting of the preacher’s soul that glistens with conviction and an enthusiastic touch (Knott, 1930; Hamilton, 1992). Every writer and preacher broaching homiletics views expository sermons as an approach par excellence. The preaching of expository sermons is a fabulous area for the preacher. It inspires the preacher, profoundly, to study scripture. Expository preaching encourages the preacher to look for sermon content from the Bible as opposed to other sources such as works of science and philosophy. It is a misplaced notion to think that the Bible isn’t as rich in material for sermons as those other sources. Most people who think that…...
mlaReferences
Brosend, W. (2017). The homiletical question: An introduction to liturgical preaching. Eugene, OR: Cascade BooksHamilton, D.L. (1992). Homiletical handbook. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing GroupKnott, H. E. (1930). How to prepare an expository sermon. Standard Publishing Company.McDill, W. (2006). The 12 essential skills for great preaching (2nd ed.). Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing GroupRobinson, H.W. (2014). Biblical preaching: The development and delivery of expository messages. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic
Introduction The text of Luke 14:16-21 tells the parable of the great banquet. The host of the banquet tells his servant to invite the guests—but the guests have various excuses for why they cannot come. The host becomes angry and commands his servant to “go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame,” and they shall be the guests at the banquet. The meaning of this text is simple: it alludes to the question regarding why Jesus would “eat with sinners” (Lk 15:2) instead of rejecting them the way the Pharisees did. Jesus came to the Jews and it was the Jews who rejected Him because He did not fit their idea of what a Savior should be. They expected an Earthly or worldly savior—one who would lift them out of their subservient position beneath the Roman…...
mlaReferences
Fabarez, M. (2002). Preaching that changes lives. Nashville, TN: Thomas NelsonLloyd-Jones, D.M. (2011). Preaching and preachers. Grand Rapids, MI: ZondervanVines, J. & Shaddix, J. (1999). Power in the pulpit. Moody Press
Freud, Socrates, Christ
I, Socrates, have only questions for the author of Civilization and Its Discontents, Dr. Sigmund Freud. It surprises me greatly that Dr. Freud should so misread the great tragedy of Oedipus Tyrannos by my fellow Athenian, the poet Sophocles. Does Freud really believe the motivations of Oedipus to be some sort of universal constitutent of human behavior? As my distinguished colleague Frederick Crews (Professor Emeritus of English at U.C. Berkeley, which remains even to this day a hotbed of Socratic-style impieties, if I do say so myself) has noted about Dr. Freud's work, it frequently makes the claim of scientific discovery without any actual reference to the empirical verifications of the scientific method: in other words, it is made up out of whole cloth.
I mention this because even in Civilization and its Discontents, your strange Dr. Freud considers his notion of the "Oedipus complex" to be absolutely central…...
mlaWorks Cited
Freud, Sigmund. Civilization and its Discontents. Translated with an introduction by James Strachey. New York: W.W. Norton and Co, 1962. Print.
gospels in the ible, each purporting to tell the true story of Jesus' time on earth. In these four books, the famous "Sermon on the Mount" is only recorded in full one time (in Matthew), though a much abridged version is recorded in Luke and supposedly told when Christ has descended from that same mountain. (Maybe he was giving a synopsis of his longer lecture) Understandably, no single short book could possible encompass all the events of any man's life, let alone the life of a wise prophet and Messiah. It seems odd that this sermon is not elsewhere recorded not because each of the gospels should be expected to tell of the same episodes ( as if there we no others), but rather because generally speaking they do stick to the same canon of stories. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are referred to as the synoptic gospels because they…...
mlaBibliography
Bruce, Robinson. "The Christian Scriptures (New Testament)" Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. < http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_ntb1.htm >
"The Gospel According to Seneca"
Goodace, Mark. "The Case Against Q. FAQ" < www.ntgateway.com/Q/faq.htm>
Kirby, Peter. "The Existence of Q" Early Christian Writings. < http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/q-exist.html >
In the second edition to Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon, Bryan Chapell provides a guide to expository preaching based on the fundamental principle that the purpose of preaching is to promote union with Christ. According to Chapell, union with Christ has personal, community, and theological or cosmological implications. The second edition to the Chapell text includes several amendments and additions, encouraging libraries to stock both copies. Moreover, the author outlines some thematic changes to the second edition including greater explication of what Chapell (2005) calls the Fallen Condition Focus, or FCF (p. 14). While it may seem obvious that the FCF is the central story of Christ, redemption and resurrection need to remain the core focus of preaching. Preaching is also need-based, according to Chapell (2005), offering specific solutions to individual dilemmas while also offering a spiritual solution to all human problems. All themes common in preaching, from gratitude…...
mlaReferences
Chapell, B. (2005). Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository Sermon. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
## Islam's Promotion of Equality
Islam, as a comprehensive religion, places great emphasis on fostering equality and inclusivity among its followers, regardless of their race, gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. This principle of equality is deeply rooted in the teachings of the Quran, the sacred text of Islam, and the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
### Quranic Teachings on Equality
The Quran repeatedly emphasizes that all human beings are created equal in the eyes of God. In Surah Al-Hujurat, verse 13, it states: "O mankind! We have created you from a single (pair) of a male and....
The Gospel of Matthew portrays Jesus as a wise teacher who often uses parables and metaphors to convey his messages. The Gospel emphasizes the importance of following and obeying the teachings of Jesus, and highlights his role as the Messiah and fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
Compared to the other gospels, Matthew places a strong emphasis on Jesus' teachings, particularly the Sermon on the Mount which includes the Beatitudes and other ethical teachings. The Gospel also includes many references to the Jewish scriptures and traditions, emphasizing Jesus' role as the fulfillment of Jewish prophecy.
In terms of Jesus' actions, Matthew portrays him....
Gospel of Matthew: A Tapestry of Teachings and Actions
Among the New Testament gospels, Matthew's account stands out as a comprehensive portrayal of Jesus' teachings and actions. While the other gospels share common themes and narratives, Matthew presents a unique perspective that emphasizes Jesus' role as the rightful heir to the throne of Israel and the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
Genealogy and Birth Narratives
Matthew begins with a detailed genealogy that traces Jesus' lineage back to Abraham, the father of the nation Israel. This underscores Jesus' claim to be the promised Messiah from the House of David. The birth narratives in Matthew....
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now