Summary of the Sermon on the Mount
After reading the Sermon on the Mount you might be thinking to yourself that no one can achieve the perfection that Jesus teaches here, but if you are thinking this, you are missing the point. We are not here to judge ourselves or others as to whether we are perfect or not, but whether we really love the one who is perfect. Paul understood exactly what Jesus was teaching and reflected it in his writings to the Philippians:
Philippians 3:12-14 (KJV)
12Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
13Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
We are called to strive toward the upward call of God in Christ. The truth remains that we cannot accomplish the goals set for us in this sermon by our own willpower nor achieve it by the use of self-help books. But such weakness is not an excuse for our failure. Realizing this brings us much closer to understanding Jesus’ teaching. What Jesus expects from us is to love the character that he just described in his sermon. This character is, in fact, a profile of Jesus himself. If we say that we believe in Jesus, this is the Jesus that we must believe in. This is the true Jesus who lifts us out of sin by his own character through love.
The Sermon on the Mount cannot and should not be reduced to one idea or simplified into a cliché. It is complex and speaks to us differently at different levels at different times in our lives. Today, many have taken Jesus’ teachings and transformed them into a behavioral psychology in order to satisfy man’s psychological needs. We see this frequently when pastors take the words of Jesus and conform them into motivational techniques in order to publish best-selling Christian self-help books. These are mere imitations of the true teachings of Jesus. We must understand that what started out as divine teaching has now been transformed, conformed, and finally adapted to the needs of humanity as a technique to improve the quality of life and not the divine teaching of God that brings eternal salvation.
Doers of the Word (Matt 7:21-27)
The next set of verses are very difficult for some to not only understand, but also to accept that they may apply to them. There are some who call Jesus their Lord, prophesy in his name, cast out demons, and even perform miracles who will not enter into God’s kingdom. Jesus warns us that the bottom line is that we must do the will of his Father. Everyone who hears this sermon and does them is like the wise man who properly prepares himself like a builder who prepares his house for a storm. Such a house is built upon a solid foundation that will not give way in a storm. The one who did not build his house properly loses everything because the foundation is destroyed by the flood waters bringing down the house along with it.
We should not simply gloss over these verses like they don’t affect us. The gospel of Jesus is not simply that he died for our sins, but it is the complete teaching of Jesus. He is telling us here that a true believer begins with this truth—Jesus is Lord! Everything is built upon this truth. We do not lay a foundation of works nor one of half-truths. We begin with the belief that Jesus is truth and everything else is built upon that foundation.
How do we feel when we hear the Sermon on the Mount? Are we willing to listen to what Jesus is telling us or are we satisfied with a Hallmark version of it where its sting is removed so as not to offend anyone? Are these simply nice words to repeat like poetry or are they words to live by? Jesus seems to feel that we must live by them if we are to be the wise man in this parable. I agree.
PHILOSOPHY & CHRISTIANITY 