Matthew 1: 18-24 (An Angel of the Lord appears to Joseph in a dream)

• 18) This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.  19) Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.  20) But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  21) She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  22) All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet;  23) “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).  24) When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

Matthew 5:1-12a – (The Beatitudes)

1) Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2) and he began to teach them. He said:

3) “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4) Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5) Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7) Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8) Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9) Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10) Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11) Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

12) Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven…”

Matthew 5:17-20 – (Fulfillment of the Law)

• 17) “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.  18) For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.  19) “Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  20) For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 6:16-18 (Fasting)

• 16) “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  17) But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,  18) so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

Matthew 6:33 – “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Matthew 9:16 – “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse.”

Matthew 9:27-31 (Jesus heals two blind men)

• 27) As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” 28) When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”  “Yes, Lord,” they replied.  29) Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you”; 30) and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.”  31) But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.

Matthew 9:35-10:1 (The workers are few)

• 35) Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.  36) When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  37) Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  38) Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”  10:1) Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.

Matthew 14:13-20 (Jesus feed five thousand)

• 13) When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns.  14) When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.  15) As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”  16) Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”  17) We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.  18) “Bring them here to me,” he said.  19) And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.  20) They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.