Synopsis:
In his first meeting with the disciples, Jesus didn’t announce his mission statement or lay out his plan to change the world. Instead, he used eight succinct sentences, ninety-six simple words, to draw a picture of what he required in a disciple … a description of the kind of disciple he intended to build. The Beatitudes are an instruction manual for discipleship.
And they can change your life. You will find here the most important skills for facing your most challenging spiritual problems … the attitudes necessary for living in the presence of God … the secret to dealing with other people in Christ-like ways.
These eight principles—spoken on a desert mountainside in an isolated portion of an obscure country by a callous-handed carpenter to a group of nobodies—have impacted more people than any words ever spoken. In a time when the voice of Jesus has become harder to hear, when culture shouts for opposing ways, it is necessary for disciples to hear these words again … and shape our lives by them.
Suggested Schedule:
|
Day |
Session |
Time |
Title |
|
Fri pm |
1 |
7:00-8:00 |
The Illustrated Disciple |
|
|
|
8:00-8:30 |
Group Discussion |
|
Sat am |
2 |
8:30-9:00 |
Poverty and Mourning: The Spirit of Penitence |
|
|
3 |
9:00-9:30 |
Meekness and Hunger: The Spirit of Need |
|
|
|
9:30-10:00 |
Group Discussion |
|
|
|
10:00-10:15 |
Break |
|
|
4 |
10:15-10:45 |
Up the Mountain and Down Again: Sequence and Structure in the Beatitudes |
|
|
5 |
10:45-11:15 |
Mercy and Purity: The Spirit of Openness |
|
|
|
11:15-11:45 |
Group Discussion |
|
Sat pm |
|
11:45-1:00 |
Lunch Break |
|
|
6 |
1:00-1:30 |
Peacemaking and Persecution: The Spirit of Sacrifice |
|
|
|
1:30-2:00 |
Group Discussion |
|
Sun am |
7 |
Class |
A Template for Discipleship |
|
|
8 |
Sermon |
The Beatitudes in Relationship Language |
