A Few Things Everyone Should Know
When
I was in Year 7 I had a wonderful R.E. teacher (before they abolished prayer in
schools) who was instrumental in the shaping of many of the beliefs I hold
today. She taught our class something valuable. She said, ‘No matter where you
go from here, no matter what happens to you, there is one thing that you must
always remember and never forget. If you can remember it, and you can believe
it, then you will be all right.’
This
is what she taught us… and I will never forget it…
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
This
verse has indeed helped me many times in my life when I thought nothing would.
My teacher then taught us, apart from the above, we should also remember this:
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the
life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
Another
thing my RE teacher told me to remember was the Lord’s Prayer – the prayer that
Jesus asked we say daily to our Lord.
Our Father Who Art in Heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name
Thy Kingdom come,
Thy will be done,
On Earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily
bread,
And forgive us our sins,
As we forgive those who sin
against us
And lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from evil,
For Thine is the Kingdom, the
Power and the Glory,
Now and forever. Amen.
And
finally, she taught us that as long as we let the commandments and teachings of
Jesus steer us down the path of life, we would be okay. Here are those
commandments and those teachings.
The Commandments and the
Teachings of Jesus
Mark 12:28-30- One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that
He had answered them well, asked Him, "What commandment is the foremost of
all?" Jesus answered, "The foremost
is, 'HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND
WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.'
John 14:1 - "Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also
in Me.
Mark 10:13-16 - And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them;
but the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and
said to them, "Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for
the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. "Truly I say to you, whoever
does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at
all." And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His
hands on them.
Matthew 24:10-13 - "At that time many will fall away and will betray one another
and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.
Because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. But the
one who endures to the end, he will be saved."
Mark 7:20-23 - And He was saying, "That which proceeds out of the man, that is
what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the
evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and
wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and
foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the
man."
Luke 16:13 - "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the
one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the
other. You cannot serve God and wealth."
Matthew 16:24-26 - Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone
wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow
Me. "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses
his life for My sake will find it. "For what will it profit a man if he
gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in
exchange for his soul?”
Matthew 7:13-14 - "Enter
through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads
to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow
that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
Matthew 10:37-38 - "He who loves father or mother more than Me is
not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy
of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of
Me.
Mark 12:41-44 - And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the
people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting
in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which
amount to a cent. Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, "Truly I
say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury;
for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in
all she owned, all she had to live on."
Matthew 18:1-4 - At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, "Who then is
greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" And He called a child to Himself and
set him before them, and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are
converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom
of heaven.
Matthew 23:11-12 - "But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever
exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be
exalted."
Matthew 5:14-16 - "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be
hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the
lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine
before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your
Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 5:5 - "Blessed are the meek,
for they shall inherit the earth.
Matthew 5:7-11 - 7 "Blessed are the
merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of
God. Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and
persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of
Me."
Matthew 6:1-4 - "Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men,
to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in
heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honoured by men. I
tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you give
to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so
that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in
secret, will reward you.
Matthew 7:7-12 - "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock
and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who
seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if
his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will
give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good
gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good
gifts to those who ask him! So in everything, do to others what you would have
them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
John
14:21 - "He who has My commandments and keeps them is
the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I
will love him and will disclose Myself
to him."
Matthew 7:21 - "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom
of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will
enter."
John 13:34-35 - "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved
you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my
disciples, if you love one another."
Matthew 5:43-48 - "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbour and hate
your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute
you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise
on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax
collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing
more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your
heavenly Father is perfect."
Matthew 6:14-15 - "For if you forgive
others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your
transgressions."
Matthew 5:38-39 - 38 "You have heard that
it was said, 'AN EYE FOR AN EYE, AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH.' But I say to you, do
not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the
other to him also."
Matthew 5:21-22 - "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT
COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' But I
say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before
the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be
guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty
enough to go into the fiery hell."
Matthew 18:21-22 - Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my
brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said
to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times
seven.
Matthew 7:1-5 - "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you
judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured
to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not
notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother,
'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' and behold, the log is in your own
eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will
see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."
Luke 6:38 - "Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a
good measure--pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your
standard of measure it will be measured to you in return."
Luke 6:30 - "Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what
is yours, do not demand it back."
Luke 14:12-14 - And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, "When
you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or
your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return
and that will be your repayment. But when you give a reception, invite the
poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, since they do
not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of
the righteous."
Matthew 7:12 - "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want
them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets."