Our Bibles contain a wealth of information and are the only structure that can make a positive and lasting difference in our lives. In my Pentecost Offertory message, I referenced the Sermon on the Mount as presented by our Savior, Jesus Christ. It was a brief mention and I knew that I needed to delve far deeper into the Sermon and the intention that Jesus had in presenting this groundbreaking message. Jesus used roughly only 2300 words to deliver the lesson of a lifetime for His followers and ultimately the whole world.
The Sermon on the Mount, covered in Matthew 5-7, comprises the most compelling and foundational teachings that we as true Christians can rely on as our life’s compass. Why is that? The Sermon is indeed foundational and builds on the structure established by God the Father when He, through Jesus Christ, directed Moses to accept and share the Ten Commandments. In Exodus 19:20 (New International Version throughout), we read: “The LORD [that is, Jesus Christ] descended to the top of Mount Sinai and called Moses to the top of the mountain. So Moses went up and the LORD said to him, ‘Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD and many of them perish.” Then, in Chapter 20:1-17, God, in the Person of Jesus Christ, delivers the ten simple but vital commandments for His chosen people to adhere to.
When Jesus ascended the Horns of Hattin, west of the Sea of Galilee, and roughly 1,000 feet above the Town of Capernaum where He had been building His ministry, He began by defining the qualities that characterize how true followers of Christ should conduct themselves. This portion of the Sermon is referred to as the Beatitudes. In Matthew 5:3-16, Jesus specifically established the standards such as being a peacemaker, being humble, thirsting for righteousness, and being merciful. He went on to clarify that His followers would never hide their faith from the world, but shine forth as a lamp, and as a brilliant and righteous city on a hill. Jesus taught the people assembled on that mountainside about the appropriate love one must have towards one another, as well as a moral underpinning that was lacking not just in the Roman government of the day, but also with the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders in power, whose focus on their own wealth and position was antithetical to God’s commandments. Jesus was also illustrating that obedience to God’s Law would be impossible without total reliance and obedience to God, and the intercession and sacrifice that only He could make.
However, having made His opening remarks, Jesus made an interesting point by establishing the connection between His teaching and that moment on Mt. Sinai when Moses received the Ten Commandments from Him. In Matthew 5:17, Jesus is quite clear: “Do not think I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Here, Jesus was reinforcing His connection with the Father and the Law. He was doing all that He was sent by the Father to do; He was illustrating that the Commandments of God are grounded in the purest sense of agape love. This is the unconditional love and care for another’s well-being, regardless of their backgrounds. This is difficult for us as human beings, and yet it is required that we work towards the perfection of Jesus and the Father as true Christians. Again, unless we rely on the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the mercy of the Father, this would not be possible for us.
In Matthew 5:9, we see Jesus specifically mentioning the importance of seeking peace in this world: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.” We cannot seek peace and pursue it if we are focused on and aiding the wars of this world. We must not be involved with the political and economic structures that directly and indirectly breed hatred, mistrust and fuel war.
Jesus stood on that mountainside and without the trappings of power and authority, He established a new world order, and, just as He dealt with the money changers in the Temple, the so-called religious leaders of the day would learn that this Man of peace would not accept the hypocrisy of their world. Jesus’ disciples understood that this was a Man of peace and justice, but also the Messiah who would not compromise to get along in this world.
Jesus taught selflessness, empathy, and humility, and He cautioned that even the mere thought of the actions that were prohibited by the Ten Commandments were equal in the eyes of God to the act itself. Murderous and adulterous thoughts, wickedness of mind and spirit, and taking no action to help when others are in need are indeed sinful. Therefore, obeying the Father could not be reduced to self-righteous adherence to rules, rituals, and regulations. Jesus Christ, on behalf of God the Father, gave the fleeing Israelites the Ten Commandments so His people could draw closer to Him. God the Father then sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to intercede on our behalf and bear our sins so that we can have a relationship with Him forever in the Kingdom.
Jesus showed that the spirit of the Law would now be equally important with adherence to the Law. This then established a new longitudinal and spiritual meridian extending from Mt. Sinai, to the mountain west of Galilee upon which Jesus presented His Sermon. The connection between the Old Testament books such as Exodus were brought right to that hillside, and Jesus came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, just as He said in Matthew 5:17.
Jesus also made clear the importance of establishing the daily need for prayer to the Father. Jesus intercedes with the Father on our behalf, and in Matthew 6:9-13, He established the Lord’s Prayer as an outline and as a way for us to connect with God the Father with sincerity, humility, and shows us the way to live our daily lives in a God-centered, rather than worldly manner.
Jesus also establishes what many of us learned from parents and grandparents as the Golden Rule. Simply stated: Do unto others as we would have done to us. He covered this perfectly in Matthew 7:12: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Again, Jesus here reinforces His connection to the Laws of God, and therefore fulfills the words of the Prophets.
True Christians will recognize the Sermon on the Mount as the most consequential message, from the most significant Being that ever existed on this earth. Roughly 2300 words contained in 109 verses (NIV) and as Jesus said: “…it sums up the Law and the Prophets.”
The Sermon on the Mount was a direct gift and lesson from God through His Son, Jesus Christ. We must honor this gift by studying it and living by these lessons.