Their jaws dropped in astonishment at what Jesus said! They were blown away by what they were hearing because it rang so true and was said with the Power of Heaven behind it…There truly was another way to live life here on earth. The initial response to Jesus’ Kingdom Manifesto on the Mount was a crowd of people astonished at its powerful truth that was going to set them free.
Sermons on Sermon on the Mount
Whether we realize it or not, experiencing life with God is the hunger of every human soul. Though there are a variety of ways people throughout time have sought to connect with God, in this section of Jesus’ discourse on the hill, Jesus clarifies that intimacy with Him precedes ministry for Him when it comes to stepping in to life with God now and for eternity.
Just as a current can pull a swimmer off course so there are forces that can distract those who are accompanying Jesus in our walk with Him. In this section of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus warns His followers about impressive and persuasive people who will enter our lives and, if we are not prepared, will pull us from our pure, simple, child-like walk with Christ our King.
Life is intended to be lived with God while apprenticing with Jesus to live by the Golden Rule. So, how do we begin this walk with our Lord? In this message we look at the first of 4 contrasting pictures that bring the Sermon on the Mount to a close. In this first one, Jesus shows us how to step into life with God forever.
In the Sermon on the amount, Jesus taught us that treating others the way we want to be treated is equivalent to following God’s Law. Though this teaching seems to simplify the Law, it’s actually rather complicated in practice. Everyone wants to be loved in how they’re treated, but how each person gives and receives love is unique, and sometimes people want to be loved in a way that opposes God’s will. How do we follow Jesus’ teaching amidst these challenges? We must actively communicate with others and with God.
In addition to guiding us personally, God loves to guide His people together. If we ask, seek and knock together, our Heavenly Father promises to give us what He describes as “good things.” So, in this message on the 1st Sunday of 2020 we discover why we will ask God for clarity on His vision for this local church’s future together and how we plan to do so throughout this next year together.
He was “born a child and yet a king.” So the Sermon on the Mount is His vision for the King’s kingdom – how things look when everything goes according to His way. This vision includes an ongoing conversation between God and His people that leads to His glory and our peace. His path to divine peace, revealed in Matthew 7:7-11, is a gift for all as we head into the New Year and beyond!
Alexander the Great is credited for saying, “The more I get to know my neighbor, the more I love my dog.” Relationships are hard because they cause conflict and conflict is hard because it causes anxiety. As we know, God made us to experience people and peace. In this part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shares God’s brilliant approach for sustaining relationships and tranquility. For this wisdom, we give thanks to God on this Sunday before Thanksgiving and every time we begin to feel the honest and painful emotions of Alexander the Great.
Jesus announced and demonstrated that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. In other words, a tectonic shift in governance is taking place. How we respond determines the quality of our lives now and for eternity. For those who awaken (i.e. repent) there is, among other things, the potential to displace apprehension with exhilaration. Greater than any medical university or clinic can provide, Jesus’ wisdom transforms anxiety into sustained peace.
In this portion of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus reveals a crucial reality. As those with good eyes can observe the world beyond the capacity of those with impaired vision, so everyone with God has the privilege to see Him and His ways more clearly than those apart from Him. Beyond this revelation, Jesus also provides hope for those of us who long to know God and His ways more clearly in the form of activities we can do that enable us to do things that we can not do by our own direct effort (i.e. spiritual disciplines).