“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. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” — Matthew 5:17-20 ESV

Arguably the greatest sermon of all time is also the most famous, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, recorded in Matthew 5-7.  It is an incredible message that outlines the nature and character of the Kingdom of God, and just how different it is from the powers and kingdoms of the world.  It is a fairly straightforward and simple message, but it has generated enormous controversy in terms of how to interpret and apply it.

There are those who believe that the Sermon on the Mount is meant to show just how impossible it is for a person to live up to the standards of God’s Law.  As Jesus says in Matthew 5:20, “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  Perfect perfection is what it takes to make it into heaven, and the only perfectly perfect person was Jesus Christ.  Our salvation is by faith in him alone, not through our works, and just in case you think you can work your way into heaven, Jesus makes it clear in this sermon that we never can.  It’s not just the act of murder that’s wrong, it’s even calling someone an idiot.  It’s not enough to love your neighbor, you have to love your enemy also.  According to this view, the purpose of the sermon is to illustrate our depravity and need for a Savior.

Others see Jesus describing the ideal nature of the Kingdom of Heaven.  It’s a Utopian vision of what could be and what will be when Jesus returns and consummates the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.  It’s certainly not the way the world works right now, but it’s what we can aspire and hope to experience one day.  After all, “For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” (Matt. 7:14 ESV)  According to this view, the sermon was meant to inspire us to look forward to the coming of the Kingdom of Heaven… eventually.

But what if Jesus meant what he said?  Not some of it, but all of it?  Not eventually, but right now?  Not to say what we have to do to earn our salvation, but to show how to live because of our salvation?  What if, because of the salvation made possible by and given to us through Jesus Christ, we set aside anger and lust, forgiving others as we’ve been forgiven, loving our enemies as much as our neighbors, followed Jesus sincerely instead of ostentatiously, trusted in the provision of the Lord instead of what we gain by our own hands?  What if we followed the narrow path into depths of living of which we can only dream, the path along which Jesus invites us to follow him?

After all, the key to “unlocking” the Sermon on the Mount is found in Matthew 7:24: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”  The solid rock that secures our faith isn’t just believing in Jesus, it comes in doing what he said, and what he said was the message of the Sermon on the Mount.  If we truly want to change the world, it starts by taking Jesus seriously and doing what he said.

Join us this fall as we walk through the Sermon on the Mount and follow Jesus along the narrow path that leads to more and better life than we’ve ever dreamed of.  

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” —Matt. 7:24-27 ESV

Blessings,

Rev. David Garrison