Yesterday morning, I started teaching on the greatest full-length sermon ever
preached which has been written down for us. One in which no one ever since or beforehand could come close to giving.
That is because it is given by the perfect sinless Son of God Himself. (Of course, this could be said of anything our Lord has ever taught, preached, or said for that matter.) We were just
told at the end of Matthew chapter 4 that Jesus was “going throughout all Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom.” Here in
these next three chapters, we have the subject and substance of that teaching and
preaching.
Now,
interestingly enough, Jesus nor Matthew ever call this message “The Sermon on
the Mount”. It received that name early on in the late 4th century from
the bishop of Hippo, Augustine. And, of course, he called it that because it
clearly has all the elements of a sermon and it took place on a mountain top. The
sermon has been referred to as being a “Christian manifesto” or “manifesto for
the Christian life.” It will take you about 18-20 minutes to read through it, depending
on your speed, but a lifetime to fully grasp it and put it into practice. John
Stott certainly had it right when he wrote, “The Sermon on the Mount is
probably the best-known part of the teaching of Jesus, though arguably it is
the least understood, and certainly it is the least obeyed.” With that being
the case, I think it would be good to look at the Sermon as a whole and be sure that we understand the main argument of it. What it is that Jesus desires to get across and what He is calling for in it. Far too many have misapplied this
Sermon and done more harm than they realized.
Like
every good sermon, there is a main theme and central point that is sought to
be conveyed by it. This grand masterpiece of a Sermon spoken by the greatest
man to ever teach on this earth is no exception. And to find out what that
theme and main point is, we just need to notice two words which are repeated
throughout it. The first is the word, “kingdom,” being found 8 times in these 111 verses. “Blessed
are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the KINGDOM of heaven” (5:3). “Blessed
are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is
the KINGDOM of heaven” (5:10). “Whoever then annuls one the least of these
commandments, and teaches others the same, shall be called least in the KINGDOM
of heaven; but whoever does and teaches, he shall be called great in the KINGDOM
of heaven” (5:19). “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses
of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the KINGDOM of heaven.”
(5:20). In the Lord’s Prayer as we typically call it, we are taught to pray “Your
KINGDOM come.” (6:10). “But seek first His KINGDOM and His righteousness” (6:33).
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the KINGDOM of heaven.”
(7:21).
What
word is found almost just as often and many times right there with the term, “kingdom”? The word, “righteousness”. It appears a total of 6 times. “Blessed
are those who hunger and thirst for RIGHTEOUSNESS for they shall be satisfied”
(5:6). “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of RIGHTEOUSNESS,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (5:10). “For I say to you that unless your
RIGHTEOUSNESS surpasses of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the
kingdom of heaven.” (5:20). We are told in 5:45 that God sends the rain on the
RIGHTEOUS and unrighteous alike. And 6:11 how we are to “beware of doing your
RIGHTEOUSNESS before men to be noticed by them” (6:11). And “But seek first His
kingdom and His RIGHTEOUSNESS” (6:33). (You could almost make the point for this to be the key verse of the Sermon itself combining both of these important repeated words.)
Putting
this together, we could say that the main point of the message, or “big idea”
of it as we were taught to call it in seminary, is “the righteousness of the
kingdom.” The “Big Idea” is the summary of the message in one sentence. The sermon
is about the type of person who serves as a citizen of the kingdom and the kind
of righteousness required to be a part of it. And what we are confronted with
when we read through the message is that we do not possess that kind of righteousness in
and of ourselves apart from Christ. You see, what a lot of people miss with
the Sermon on the Mount is that Jesus’ intention with it is not for it to serve
as a ladder by which we may obtain the righteousness needed to walk up into the
kingdom of heaven, but instead for it to be a mirror to reveal to us how much we
lack such. Mirrors are honest things. You can go throughout your day with
something on your face and be all the while oblivious to it. But the moment you
come in front of a mirror, you are confronted with it and are faced with the
decision of what you are going to do about it. And, in this case, the mirror shows you that there is
no way you can clean it up yourself. That’s what the law of God is designed to
do, of which this Sermon on the Mount is a part of. Jesus’ goal is to strip us
of any claim of righteousness we may try to make to be able to enter the kingdom so
that we look away from ourselves to Him for that righteousness. Paul says in
Romans 3:19-20 that the law speaks “so that every mouth may be shut and all the
world may become accountable to God” . . . that “by the works of Law no flesh
will be justified in His sight, for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.”
When
we read through the sermon, we are continually presented with the reality that
none of us truly and fully meet the requirements for the blessings of the kingdom
in the Beatitudes (5:3-12). We fail to see the depths of our spiritual poverty
(v. 3), don’t mourn enough over our sins (v. 4), aren’t as humble as we like to
think we are (v. 5), in fact, the moment you think you are so greatly humble, you
show that you’re not. We don’t hunger and thirst for righteousness as we should
but can be said to hunger and thirst for a lot of lesser things (v. 6). We aren’t
always merciful to others, especially those who are not so merciful to us (v.
7). Can any of us say we have a pure heart (v. 8)? There probably have been
some thoughts we have already entertained in our mind just today that would
prove that wrong. How often have we been a peacemaker instead of furthering
strife due to our pride and sinfulness (v. 9)? Certainly there have been many occasions where we are guilty of the ladder failing to do the former. We can be described as having
lost our saltiness at times (5:13) and as hiding our light under a basket
rather than letting it shine through our good works (vv. 14-16).
He
says in chapter 5 verse 20 that our righteousness must surpass the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees who meticulously sought to keep every jot and tittle
of the law outwardly, even adding their own laws and regulations to God’s,
making them even more rigid and strict. In that day, this made the scribes and
Pharisees appear to be the most righteous of all peoples. However, Jesus next
will move on to expose such a perspective and reveal it to be a façade. They may
be able to boast of their outward righteousness but not of any internal righteousness
within them. They really were “whitewashed tombs” looking clean and polished on
the outside with rottenness and decay within (Matthew 23:27).
For
instance, while they could each say that they hadn’t physically murdered
anyone, none of them would be able to claim that they hadn’t harbored hatred
towards someone in their heart (Matthew 5:21-26) That certainly would be the
case with them towards the Samaritans and Gentiles as well as some of their fellow Jews.
They could rightly say that they had never physically committed adultery by
literally not hoping in bed with another man’s wife. But none of them, or us for
that matter, could say that they hadn’t done so by lusting after such in their heart
(vv. 27-30). They thought themselves to be faithful in marriage but in their
allowance of divorce showed themselves failing to follow God’s standard as He designed
with the holy lasting unbreakable union (vv. 31-32). They made a big show with extravagant vows they
uttered but missed God’s intention for them to be men of their word where such vows
and oaths would not be needed (vv. 33-37). They would intentionally
misinterpret the command for the corporate punishment to fit the crime to claim
that it gave them an individual right to retaliate when wronged which was not the teaching of that law (vv. 38-42). They would justify
hatred for their enemies rather than responding to them with love (vv. 43-47).
And Jesus ends that section and the chapter with the impossible standard for
any of us to meet. “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is
perfect” (v. 48). It is not the outward righteousness of a Pharisee that is
needed to be a part of God’s kingdom but a perfect inner righteousness of the
heart which none of us have. Already, we are stripped away from finding any
hope within ourselves to make it into the kingdom.
But
Jesus isn’t done with the Sermon yet! Wait, there’s more! We also have to deal with
the fact that many of the righteous things we do aren’t done solely for the
Lord but also for others to see, whether that is in our giving (6:1-4), praying
(vv. 5-15), or fasting (vv. 16-18). How easy is it to want others to know when
we are doing these things so that they will give us applause or some sort of
recognition for it? So that they would think us to be so righteous and holy? We also are confronted with our misplaced priorities storing up temporal
treasures on this earth rather than eternal ones (vv. 19-24), becoming overly
concerned with our material needs instead of the things of God’s kingdom (vv.
25-34). (Both the commands not to “store” and “worry” are in the present tense
in the Greek, indicating that these were things Jesus assumed His hearers are
already doing. In essence, He is saying, “stop storing up for yourselves
treasures on earth” and “stop worrying.”) How hypocritical we can be to judge someone
else so quickly without doing anything about our own sins (7:1-6). Trying to
get someone to address the dust in their house so to speak when we have the
mess in our own house to clean up first. We don’t continue to ask, seek, and
knock in our pursuit of God and the good things He will give us either (vv. 7-12).
We
are told that the gate to the kingdom is narrow and that there are few who find
it (vv. 13-14), to watch out for false prophets who can be recognized by the
bad rotten fruit of their life and teachings (vv. 15-20), false professors who
merely give lip service to the Lord but lack obedience which always follows genuine
faith (vv. 21-23). And then Jesus ends the sermon with a call to be wise by hearing
and heading His word as a wise man who builds his house on a foundation of
stone and not sand (vv. 24-29).
In
light of all that, on what basis can any of us enter into and be a part of this
kingdom Jesus preached about? Certainly not on our own basis, on the basis of
the condition of our hearts, or on the basis of anything we do. Jesus makes a
pretty thorough and convincing case of that with this message. He shuts our mouths
of any claim of righteousness we could ever try to make of ourselves by
revealing the sinfulness of our hearts and actions to us. No, it must be on the
basis of another who fit all of those requirements for kingdom blessings given
in the first part of chapter 5. Who perfectly was salt and light in this world
never losing that saltiness or hiding that light. Who perfectly kept God’s law
both inwardly and outwardly, surpassing the scribes and Pharisees, being
perfect as His heavenly Father is perfect. Who never did any righteous deeds to impress men whether that would be in giving, praying, or fasting. Who always had
the right priorities and never worried about physical needs but perfectly
seeking God’s kingdom above all else. The One who is the Just Judge and true prophet with good
fruit to bear witness to such. Jesus is the only One fully and completely who actually meets the description given in the Sermon on the Mount and has consistently put it into practice.
This
sermon shows us we can’t come to Jesus like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable in
Luke 18 to enter God’s kingdom or expect to be a part of it. The Pharisee who
came up to the temple to pray bragging about all the religious and holy things
he thought he had done. Instead, it is designed to lead us to have the posture
of the tax collector in that same parable who could not even look up towards God
but beat his breast exclaiming, “Lord, have mercy on me, THE sinner.” Not “A”
sinner among others but THE sinner of sinners. The most sinful person he knew.
Our hope to be a part of this kingdom and receive the blessings of it has to be
on the basis of God’s grace and mercy in Jesus serving as our righteous substitute.
If we are born again by the Spirit and given eyes to see the truth of what
Jesus says here, we should forsake ourselves and run to Christ for our salvation.
For the righteousness we need to be a part of His kingdom. Rightly understanding
this sermon with the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life should lead you to
sing the words of Augustus Toplady, “Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy
cross, I cling; Naked; come to Thee for dress; Helpless, look to Thee for
grace; Foul, I, to the Fountain fly; wash me, Savior, or I die.”
Matthew
in essence summarized this very message back in chapter 4 verse 17 when he
wrote, “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom
of heaven is at hand.” As Sinclair Ferguson put it, “In a word, the message of the
Sermon on the Mount is, ‘This is what it means to repent and to belong to the Kingdom
of Heaven.’” In one sense, we could say that this is a very evangelistic
message as it is intended to lead someone to the good news of the gospel in
order to be saved.
Now, does this mean that the Sermon has no more relevance for someone once they have become a Christian? Once they have realized their lack of righteousness and came to Christ in faith and repentance to receive His righteousness and the forgiveness of their sins from Christ dying as their sacrifice on the cross? Absolutely not! It still very much has relevance for our lives as it goes from being a MIRROR to becoming a MAP. No longer is it needed to be that mirror to reveal our unrighteousness and how we cannot enter into this kingdom on the basis of ourselves at all. It is needed now to serve as a map of how we are to live as part of this heavenly kingdom on the basis of grace. Puritan Samuel Bolton helpfully said it like this, “The law sends us to the Gospel, that we may be justified [declared righteous], and the Gospel sends us back to the law again to inquire what is our duty in being justified.” And it is because of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer, we have hope to actually live this out. For the things Jesus says to become true of us.
Alistair Begg has given a very helpful illustration of this with the comparison of a thief and his relationship to the Ten Commandments both before and after his conversion. He tells the story as follows: "Imagine a thief coming to church on a Sunday. He comes in and is just so obviously a thief. He steals stuff all the time. Not everyone knows this. In fact, the people around him have got no clue. He sits up in the church and looks up behind the pulpit and he finds that the Ten Commandments are up there in bold letters. There it says it. "Thou shalt not steal." And he sits a little lower in his chair because he realizes that law condemns him. The minister then explains that Jesus Christ, the perfect One, has kept the law in all of its detail fulfilling all of its precepts for those who will love Him and trust Him and that this same Jesus has paid the penalty that the law brings upon the unbeliever by His death upon the cross and that this wonderful liberation is available to those who will come and trust in Jesus. And the thief says, 'That sounds fantastic. That is exactly the kind of thing that I have been looking for. I want to be free. I want to be free in my conscience. I want my sins to be forgiven. I want to be a new person. Just like the thief on the cross.' And out he goes into his week. He comes back the following Sunday and he takes his place again in the congregation and he looks up and the Ten Commandments are still there in all of their brightness and convicting power. But when he looks up at 'Thou shalt not steal,' it's not N-O-T that is flashing. It's 'SHALT' that is flashing. And he realizes that the prohibition has become a promise in Jesus. That He in giving His Spirit to live in his life enables him to do what the law requires him to do. And it is not a ladder on which this poor thief is trying to climb in acceptance into heaven but is a mirror which has shown him his need of a savior and then it is a map which orders his way of life."
This also rules out the idea that this Sermon can or should be used for political gains or to promote social change in the country. How many times do we find a Politician appealing to this Sermon to attempt to manipulate people into supporting a specific policy they are championing? Ironically, ignoring everything else the Bible says which would contradict other of their polices and their lifestyle. Or they will claim that if we all just followed the principles taught in this sermon, our nation would be just fine. But here is what they get wrong. This sermon only can apply to a believer who has the Holy Spirit indwelling inside him or her. As Martyn Lloyd-Jones has said, “It is wrong to ask anybody who is not first a Christian to try to live or practice the Sermon on the Mount. To expect Christian conduct from a person who is not born again is heresy. The appeals of the gospel in terms of conduct and ethics and morality are always based on the assumption that the people to whom the injunctions are addressed are Christian.”
So, let's be sure not to approach this spectacular sermon with the wrong perspective of it but to use and apply it appropriately. Not as a means for us to be able to enter God's kingdom or heaven or as a political manifesto of some type but as a blueprint for the righteousness which characterizes the kingdom. A righteousness we don't have in and of ourselves and cannot obtain by anything we do. A righteousness which can only be found in Christ and what He has done. And as a map for how we are now to live as Christians with the power and strength given to us by the Holy Spirit. By His grace, no longer should it be the "least understood" for us nor the "least obeyed."
