Sermon on the Mount - 1

Sermon on the Mount – An Introduction

Matthew 5:1-2

Matthew 5:1–2 ESV

1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

1. Introduction – This morning we are starting in on a new study.

a. We are going to be studying one of the most famous, most treasured, most quoted…and misquoted sections of the Bible…

i. We are embarking on a study through the Sermon on the Mount.

1. This Sermon is absolutely incredible. It contains on the Beatitudes…amazing statements of God blessing people when they least expect it.

a. This sermon includes Jesus’ interpretation of the Law.

ii. It includes the Lord’s Prayer – a model prayer for us to follow. This sermon contains Jesus’ teaching on worry.

1. Judge not lest you be judged – that is in the Sermon on the Mount…but what does it really mean?

a. The Golden Rule…do unto others as you would have them do unto you…in this sermon.

i. The wise man building his hose on the rock and the foolish man building his house on the sand…yep…you guess it…in the Sermon on the Mount.

b. And with this much meat…this much substance…I believe it is worthy our time to make our way through this incredible message.

i. I took a class in my 1st year at Tyndale on the Sermon on the Mount.

1. It was a 13-week course, 3 hour lectures each week…and prof spent 9 of those 13 weeks in just the Beatitudes…it was a pleasure to sit in that class.

a. And I have loved these words of the Sermon on the Mount ever since that class.

i. I love these words because they are so practical…because they are detailed and rich and deep in theological truth.

ii. These words teach us what life is like in God’s kingdom…they teach us how to live the Christian life…

1. These words teach us how to live counter-culturally…how as Christians we are to stand out from the world around us.

c. So that’s why we are going to through study.

i. So often we as God’s people blend in with the world around us.

1. We seek to conform. Churches, whenever they are trying to be hip and cool and bring in more people…usually their first move is to adopt worldly practices.

a. “If we just look more like the world then people will want to come…” that’s the rationale.

i. But that mindset is pretty much the exact opposite of what Jesus tells his people to do.

ii. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells us to shine our lights, not hid them or blend in, but shine, so that others may see our good works and glorify our Father in heaven.

1. We all need this reminder. We need to be reminded of why we are on this journey with Jesus.

a. We need to be reminded of how we are to live on earth as Christians.

d. So here’s what we are going to do this morning.

i. I’m going to briefly introduce this sermon to you. We’ll look at its background…I’m briefly introduce to you what I think is the main point of this sermon.

1. And as we close today, I’ll ask 2 pertinent questions that need to be asked and answered at the beginning of a study of this magnitude…

a. Those questions are…”Who is the Sermon on the Mount for?” And “Is the content of this sermon even attainable?”

ii. So as we dive into God’s Word this morning…Look at Matthew 5:1-2. These introductory words of this sermon are just fascinating. Hear God’s Word.

2. Background – Why did Jesus peach this sermon in the first place? What’s the background to these 3 incredible chapters?

a. Why is so much material crammed into these chapters that can be read in 30 minutes?

i. Well, since we are in Matthew 5, the background for the Sermon on the Mount is Matthew 1-4.

1. In chapters 1-4 of Matthew’s Gospel, we have Jesus’ birth, the visit from the Magi, we have Jesus’ baptism, his temptation in the wilderness.

a. We have Jesus’ first recorded sermon…repent for the kingdom of God is at hand.

i. And we have the calling of the first disciples.

ii. This is all important background info for the Sermon on the Mount.

1. Jesus was born to be the Saviour of the World. Born to preach freedom for the captive…born to bring recovery of sight to the blind, and good news to the oppressed.

a. All of this can be summed in saying that Jesus came to establish God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

iii. Jesus came to show people and teach people how to live in God’s kingdom and how they can live that way right now.

1. Jesus called his disciples…he called people to follow him…and he taught his followers how to live.

a. And wherever Jesu went, people followed him…and so Jesus ministered to the people. And not only did Jesus feed the hunger and heal the sick…

i. Jesus also never missed an opportunity to teach people what life in God’s kingdom looked like.

1. And life in God’s kingdom can be summed up with one word – holiness.

b. And this has always been the case. God’s people have always been called to be holy – it’s always been an enduring quality of God’s people.

i. And that brings us to the larger background of the Sermon on the Mount.

1. Since this Sermon is recorded for us in Matthew’s Gospel…a book in the NT, that means that the background of the Sermon on the Mount is actually Genesis through Malachi…the entire OT.

a. I’ve said it before…if we want to better understand the NT, it would serve us well to better understand the OT.

ii. God’s purpose has always been to call out people from the world to follow him…to be his people.

1. God’s people have always been called to be holy…to be set apart from the rest of the world.

a. The call to be God’s people was first given to Israel… “I will be your God and you will be my people.”

i. God established a covenant relationship with them and Israel was to be holy as God is holy.

iii. They were to follow his commands and statutes…they were to delight in the Law of the Lord.

1. They were to look different, act differently, govern differently them the other nations around them.

c. But as you read through the OT – it is one mistake and one misstep after another for Israel.

i. They forget who they are and what they were called to be and do as God’s chosen people.

1. They began to assimilate…and instead of being different form other nations, they wanted to look the same.

a. Israel wanted to govern like other nations…so they demanded a king, even though God was their king.

i. Israel wanted to worship like other nations, so they built idols and statues and poles to worship.

ii. In every way that Israel was to be set apart and different…they assimilated. And ultimately if was because of their assimilation…their refusal to listen to warnings and heed the words of various prophets that God sent them into exile.

1. Israel lost their fundamental different-ness…they lost their identity as God’s people. They weren’t living holy lives.

d. And in the Gospel of Matthew, along comes Jesus…announcing repentance, announcing the arrival of a new beginning, the arrival of the kingdom of God on earth.

i. With Jesus the new age had dawned, but life in the new age…life in God’s kingdom would look similar to life in Israel…it is to have that one key characteristic…holiness.

1. The people who live in God’s kingdom – today, we would say those who have asked Jesus to be their Lord and Saviour…those who are Christians…are to be defined and characterized by this one word…holy.

a. And what the Sermon on the Mount does is shows Jesus’ followers how to live in holiness.

i. How to live differently…how to be set apart.

1. How to be salt…how to be light…how to live counter culturally.

ii. When the world is trying to find loopholes around certain laws…Jesus elevates the interpretation of those laws…he elevates them to a holy standard that his people are to follow.

1. When the world is generous for show…Jesus tells his followers to be generous in private.

a. When the world is fretting and worrying and panicking…Jesus tells his followers not to worry.

i. If God takes care of the flowers of the field or the birds of the air…surely he will take care of his most prized creation.

2. Jesus tells his followers to pray for their enemies…to turn the other cheek…not to lash out in vengeance…Jesus tells his followers to go the extra mile.

a. At its heart…this is really counter cultural stuff.

i. Life in God’s kingdom…life as a Christian is not to be marked by sameness to the world around us…

1. When God’s people imitate the world…that’s when they get in trouble.

3. Main Point – And really all of this is summed up in Matthew 5:20, which I believe is the main point of the Sermon on the Mount.

Matthew 5:20 ESV

20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

a. Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the religious leaders, you will never enter the kingdom of God.

i. Now, Jesus isn’t telling us that we have to keep more laws…though we should keep his laws.

1. Jesus isn’t telling us that we have to do more things…though we should do things.

a. Jesus is telling his listeners that those who follow him will not have a surface level, showy attitude towards holiness and righteousness.

i. But Jesus’ followers will be qualitatively different than the rest of the world.

ii. 5:20, the main point of the sermon…a verse we will come back to time and time again throughout this journey.

4. Two Questions – And as we close this morning, I want to ask and answer 2 questions that are quite pertinent when beginning a series of this magnitude

a. Question 1 – who is this sermon for?

i. In order to answer this question, we need to look again at the introductory words…vv.1-2.

1. There are actually 2 parts to this answer.

a. Notice at the end of v.1…Jesus’ disciples gathered around him.

2. Those men whom Jesus called, the men whom he said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”

a. Those men who left everything behind to follow Jesus, those men…and I’m sure some others who could qualify as ‘disciples’ gathered around their teacher…around their rabbi…

i. Those men who dedicated their lives to following Jesus…they were the primary recipients of this sermon.

ii. So for today…who is this sermon for? It is for those who follow Jesus.

1. For those who believe Jesus died and rose again for the forgiveness of sin.

a. For those who placed their faith in Jesus atoning sacrifice.

i. This sermon is for those who dedicate their lives to follow Jesus.

2. This sermon is not for some elite sub-culture of the Christian world. It is not simply for pastors or missionaries.

a. But the content of the Sermon on the Mount is for all Christians for all time.

i. It is there to show us how to be godly people in an ungodly world.

1. How to be holy amongst all the unholiness.

a. To show us how different we are to be.

b. But there’s another aspect we have to look at here in answering in question.

i. Because whenever Jesus taught…he is primarily instructing his disciples, but in the background…and sometimes in the foreground…is the crowd.

1. Those who follow Jesus around…but haven’t necessarily decided to follow him yet.

a. Simultaneously, Jesus is instructing his disciples about life in the kingdom, while at the same time he is showing others what that life is like.

ii. At the beginning of the Sermon, it was the crowds who gathered around Jesus…and at the end the crowds were amazed by that they heard.

1. And it’s the same today…there’s this dichotomy of who this sermon is for.

a. Yes, it is for those who have put their faith in Jesus already…

i. But the content of the sermon is to be lived out in front of those who have not decided to follow Jesus…yet.

c. And the second question new have to ask and answer is this…is this even attainable?

i. And for this I want us to go back to when Moses was given the 10 Commandments.

1. Do you remember the preamble to giving of the 10 Commandments?

a. What did God say, “You can do this!” “You’re awesome and in your own power you’ll be able to keep my laws!”

2. No, the preamble to the Commandments isn’t based on Israel at all…it says this, “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt…”

a. And because I am your God and you are my people…I am giving you the strength to follow me and my laws.

ii. So back to the sermon…are the contents of this sermon attainable? Can we get to a place where we actually pray for our enemies? The comes clear when we see who the preacher of the Sermon on the Mount is…

1. The preacher is Jesus…who’s yoke is easy and who’s burden is light.

a. Jesus…who taught with real authority…not burdensome legalism.

d. Is this sermon attainable??? Absolutely, it is…but it’s not attainable through you own will and volition.

i. It’s not attainable by trying harder or putting in more effort.

1. It’s attainable because Jesus has made it attainable.

a. It’s doable because of who God is…a God who delivered us from sin and has called us to be holy.

ii. It’s doable because God has given us his Spirit to reside in us so that we would be ruled from the inside out.

5. Conclusion – so from now until we’re done…we’re going to be reminding ourselves of who we are as God’s people.

a. We are going to be reminding ourselves of how we are supposed to live as God’s people on earth…we are to be holy and different.

i. And we are to live that way until God’s kingdom comes on earth like it is in heaven.