1. Reflect upon the Sermon on the Mount assignments. What did you discover? In your questionnaire, did your responses show a moral person? Did these show a Christian person?
Reflecting upon the Sermon on the Mount assignments, I have discovered how unholy and unmoral I am as a person. I tell myself that I am a Christian everyday, but I continue to sin to no avail. I feel that the society I live in has a better hold on me than the religion I have given my faith to. Another thing that I discovered from the Sermon on the Mount is how radical it was, not just in Jesus' time, but in our own society. People such as Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi, who practiced the notions that Jesus presented in the Sermon, were tarnished by many people and had their lives cut short by other people. As I look upon, I see how unmoral and unchristian I am. Society has shaped me to accept things such as fighting and lusting over a woman, but I know these things are wrong. From this experience, I see myself as being of the evils and wrongs around me, but subjected to society's rule so much that I just the normal terrors that I see everyday.
2. 2. Two major ideas I want to remember and why I want to remember them:
The first idea I want to remember is the man who wanted to give his coat away from Storycorps. He was so tuned to his faith and morality that he risked his life in order to help someone who wanted to take his. The man from the story took Jesus' teachings to heart in order to help another man. In my life now, I want to use what Jesus has taught us in order to help. If that man could risk because of what he heard from another man, why can't I?
The other idea I want to remember is that of Martin Luther King and the Memphis Trash Collector's Strike. Here was a man, who won the Nobel Peace Prize and traveled all over the world, coming to Memphis in order to help some trash collectors. Martin Luther King took Jesus' teachings to heart by helping the least among him, and he paid his life for it on the balcony of that Memphis hotel. As a Christian, I want to use my gifts to help the world in any way I can.
3. One image that captures the chapter for me:
4. One significant question I have from this chapter, whether intellectual or personal, with a possible answer:
How are you supposed to be a moral and Christian person if you are subjected to the rules of society?
I have been pondering over this question for some time now.I feel trapped in a society that makes it okay for lying, decadent behavior, cheating, lust, and sexuality to be acceptable in the world. As a Christian, it gets harder everyday to accept faith in Christ when the world seems against it. The only solution I see is to be aware of the evil around you and keep strong in your faith in Christ. If you falter, Jesus will understand.
