1. scripture source and soul of morality
DESCRIPTION
GodTRANSCRIPT
Bible as Mirror and Window
Scripture : source and soul of Morality
Why do we read the Bible?
We read the Bible because it We read the Bible because it tells us about….tells us about….
a. GODGOD
• We get to know who God is,
• What He is,
• His plan in creating, redeeming and sanctifying us.
b. PeoplePeople
The Bible is consist of narrative about women and men to whom the Word of God came.
c. Salvation Salvation HistoryHistory
• The purpose of the Bible is to give spiritual and religious significance of the events and to glorify God.
• The Bible leads us in reflecting on the role that God is playing in our lives.
• The Bible is the story of God’s plan of salvation
d. USUS
• The Bible provides us with a unique and irreplaceable means to understand the true meaning of what is happening in our lives
–– our relationships,
–our dreams, and
–our difficulties.
The Scripture
• Tells about….
• Our beginnings…– Of who we are as image and likeness of
God…– and on how we are to lead our lives…
• Our future…– “There are many rooms in my Father’s
house…I will go ahead to prepare them for you.”
Scripture: basis for love responding to love.
Full of wisdom, life, and abundant in love
God acts out himself among people in the ordinary events of life
A hidden presence is revealed to humanity to share in the divine nature in fellowship with others
Manifest
Words Deeds History of Salvation
Jesus, in his life and ministry revealed God’s Love to us.
Faith
•Access to the father
•Mediator between God and humankind
•Perfected Revelation
Loved in order to Love
• Out of God’s gratuitous Love he sent his only Son…to take on our humanity, show us the way to the Father, and offer himself as a libation for our sins.
• As children of God, redeemed by Jesus, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit we are called to lead our lives “worthy of the Gospel of Christ.” (Phl. 1:27)
Loved in order to Love
We are called:•“To be holy for our Father is holy”•“To be strong and stand firm and be careful to keep all the Law… Never swerve from right or left… to have the book of the Law always on your lips;
– meditate on it day and night so that you may keep everything that is written in it.
Then you will prosper in your dealings, then you will have success.” (Joshua 1:6-9)
• “Love your neighbor, as you love yourself.”
How?
“To Act Justly, To Love Tenderly, To Walk Humbly with God.”
Ten Commandments
Guidelines for a New Relationship
I will be your God, and you shall be my people…
• God entered into a covenant with Israel.
• “So now, if you are really prepared to obey me and keep my covenant, you, out of all peoples, shall be my personal possession, for the whole world is mine. For me you shall be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation." (Ex. 19:5)
• and the people all replied with one accord, 'Whatever Yahweh has said, we will do.’ (Ex. 19:7)
“A Holy nation”= Israel is to be different from the rest.= to be set a part for a purpose.
“A kingdom of priests”Israel is… = to be a sign of God’s LOVE.= to represent the TRUE God among all the nations.
As image and likeness of God, as His chosen people we, too, are likeThe Israelites…= we are set apart to be asign of God’s LOVE.
New Relationship…New Behavior…New Life
• Seen and manifested in…
Relationship with God Relationship with others
1. To be faithful to YHWH
2. To acknowledge God alone in their life and worship.
3. YHWH is the ultimate source of people’s VALUES and BEHAVIOR
The way people treat each other would be a SIGNand MANIFESTATION of how SERIOUS andWHOLEHEARTED they arein their WORSHIP of YHWH.
'I am Yahweh your God who broughtyou out of Egypt, where you lived as slaves. 'You shall have no other gods to rival me.
'You will not molest or oppress aliens, for you yourselves were once aliens in Egypt.
You will not ill-treat widows or orphans; 22 if you ill-treat them in any way
and they make an appeal to me for help, I shall certainly hear their appeal,
Ten Commandments
1. I am the Lord your God, You shall not have other god besides me.
2. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
3. Remember to keep holy the Lord's day.
4. Honor your father and mother.
5. You shall not kill.6. You shall not commit
adultery.7. You shall not steal.8. You shall not bear false
witness against your neighbor.
9. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's goods.
1. Need to set priorities.
2. Need to recognize the divine
3. Faithfulness to God demands that we adore him.
4. Give weight to our elders.5. Importance of the gift of life.6 . Respect for faithfulness in a
relationship. 7. Respect for properties8. Respect for truth9. Need for pure intention and
decent motives when dealing with
others.10. Pure intention in dealing
with the belongings of others.
Ten values
Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 5 to 7
• Calls for Way of life from its hearers.• Calls us to “imitate God”
– Merciful– Love indiscriminately– Perfect– Forgives
• Teaches us that Righteousness is mercifulness effective in compassionate actions.– Solidarity with the oppressed– Non-violent response to evil
In the Beatitudes…
• Each one is called to be a disciple who is oi, ptwcoi, tw/| pneu,mati, (poor whose disposition, frame of mind, influence did not veer away from God in spite of their dreadful situation)
s/he who is oi, ptwcoi, tw,| pneumati.
– is someone who is also gentle, – one who mourns (cries to God for help), – one who hunger and thirst for righteousness
(for they have been disenfranchised), – merciful (who do have a heart for his/her
fellow poor), – pure at heart ( continues to believe, and rely
on God in spite of his/her dreadful socio-economic situation),
– peacemaker, and will be the subject of being abused,
– persecuted, spoken to with all kinds of calumny on Jesus’ account (no matter what happens to them their faith in God is unwavering).
• “maswerte ang mga mahihirap dahil buo ang paniniwala, pagtitiwala, at pag-asa nila sa Diyos sa gitna ng hirap na dinadanas nila.”
• In spite of the different challenges in life; – they still have in them that strong
belief in God, – that their hope becomes stronger
even though they are hoping against hope.
Thus…• Matthew 5 to 7…
– Calls for a way of life • (an identity {Christian})
– Calls for an evangelization that liberates • (a mission {to do justice and teach
justice})– Calls for an identification with Jesus
• (an orientation {God’s righteousness})
End…
• 'Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. – Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew
and hurled themselves against that house, and it did not fall: it was founded on rock.
As WORD OF GOD
• The Scripture fulfills a…– FOUNDATIONAL,– SUSTAINING, and– CRITICAL ROLE for the Church , for theology, for preaching
and for catechesis.
• The Scripture is a source of the life of faith, hope and love of the People of God ; and a light for all humanity.