Subscription Lists
Point of Reference
by Fred Price
The Sermon on the Mount summarizes the ethical aspect of Jesus’ teaching, characterizing citizens of His kingdom; actually going beyond the legal expectations of the Law to its ultimate intent. Similar to the Ten Commandments, it is both God-directed and people oriented, calling for its adherents to be actively involved in others’ lives through genuine expressions of love in obedience to God’s will; serving as a standard of living for Christians everywhere.
To start with, the Beatitudes – or Blessings – go a long way in confirming the Old Testament teaching of Psalm 1; which depicts the consequences of the choices we make. In studying God’s word – and through obedience to it, or lack thereof – we can expect success and fulfillment or disappointment and even discipline. Those consequences often a result of the company we keep and the counsel we listen to. The Hebrew word for blessing carrying the connotation of happiness, or more appropriately pleasurable satisfaction i.e., contentment. Truly blessed people live within the boundaries God sets for them, “success” then manifesting itself both materially and spiritually. (Not so much a “reward” for good behavior as the natural by-product of a life well lived.)
Genuine Christians possess a consciousness of God that permeates all they do, His will fostering the confidence needed to live our faith “out loud”, serving as our moral/ethical compass throughout life. Allowing us to then model His criteria for integrity for the rest of society, based on obedience to the moral teachings and ethical precepts raised to new heights expressed throughout His Word. Which all sounds rather prim and proper, what some would derisively call “High-Church” and thought to be essentially unattainable; but is it really?
The Sermon on the Mount was a classic teaching situation. Jesus assuming the natural position of a rabbi with his students gathered around and enumerating his thoughts and expectations concerning fulfilled, complete, “happy” or blessed lives.” (Luke giving a corresponding list of woes for those who fail to recognize and respond to the Spirit’s prodding in and through God’s Word. See Luke 6:20-26)
“Modern Christians cherish the notion that Jesus came to free us from the unbearable burden of laws we cannot keep…”1But the three chapters of Matthew that record this particular sermon seem to at least hint at something else; a heightened expectation that makes the gospel not only good news concerning salvation but a means of living equitably with God and man. Jesus warning “Do not think I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Matthew 5:17 (In word, truth and deed.) Further stating that, “…unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdome of heaven.” Matthew 5:20 An example of these heightened expectations being, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:27,28
Jesus aimed to rescue the precepts of God from misinterpretation and misrepresentation by “fulfilling” and/or properly characterizing them. Conversely warning against clouding, nullifying or “abolishing” scripture for personal preference and/or benefit; as in Mark 7:11 & John 8:1-11. (John 8 being a classic example of the way people today still twist scripture to suit their own purposes, portraying Jesus as soft on sin rather than dealing with the prostitute’s and Pharisees’ flaunting of the Law. Essentially telling them both to, ‘Go… leave your life of sin.) A primary concern for Jesus being that His followers practice what they preach. (See Matthew 23:1-3)
Honing in on the connection between our thoughts and actions, Jesus likewise compared anger to murder. (Matthew 5:21,22) The small indiscretions of the mind being the starting point for great sin; suggesting we refrain from committing the big ones by guarding against the small ones. The progression of sin demonstrated in the cavalier way we often interact with our neighbors, developing into a disregard for them, leading to spite-filled attitudes directed at them, culminating in our devaluation of them by destroying their reputations and prospects for success or in literal acts of assault. Less dramatic – but just as lethal is our reluctance to share the gospel with those we think so little of. (So many other sins likewise start out innocuously enough with just a glimpse of a porn sight or some innocent flirtation at work, sometimes blossoming into full-blown acts of betrayal and perversion.)
Surprising to some, many rabbinical teachings of Jesus’ day focused on defining the minimum requirements of the law, Jesus actually taking the opposite approach, focusing on the maximum or ultimate intent of it. For instance, Hillel, a renowned Jewish teacher of the Torah, summed up its expectations as, “Whatever is hateful to you, do not do to your fellows.” Jesus, however, maximized this sentiment by instructing us to love even our enemies. (Matthew 5:44 See also Matthew 19:18,19 – where He starts with “negative” commands and ends with a positive one, the idea being that love will cause us to “naturally” refrain from hurtful, lawless actions.) Doing to others, proactively – regardless of the response – what we would have them do to us. (Matthew 7:12 – See also Matthew 5:38-42)
“That is not to say Jesus was compiling a longer, tougher set of rules for us to live by, but that he was redirecting our attempts to be like him by maximizing our relationships with him and others.”2 Going beyond the minimum being a predominant theme of Jesus, expressed in “You have heard it was said… But I tell you…” (See Matthew 5, verses 21,22; 27,28; 31 – 34; 38,39 & 43,44) Followed by repeated warnings against the false piety of hypocrites, countered by genuine reverence for God and His will in chapters 6 & 7.
Accepting Christ as our personal Lord and Savior is actually only the first step of an adventure full of surprises, challenges and yes, disappointments. Discipleship and evangelism being the next steps in any genuine relationship with Him. Jesus unequivocally declaring that the greatest commandment in the Law is to, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart… soul… mind… and strength.” The second being to, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In fact, he goes on to say that, “There is no commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:29-31Loving the Lord our God giving us the capacity to love others as well; the “acts of righteousness” inspired by that kind of love fulfilling the dictates of the Law and Prophets on a level we couldn’t otherwise. (See Matthew 22:40 & Romans 13:8-10)
Athol Dickson writing, “If I try to love God with all my heart and soul and mind to the exclusion of everything else, I exclude the love of my neighbor and risk viewing her as a distraction, a thing that interferes with my devotion to God. This is the mistake of pious hermits and those of us who prefer churches to soup kitchens. But if I center my attention on loving my neighbor as myself and forget about loving God, I find it impossible to maintain that neighborly love because I am no longer connected to the source of love itself. This is the mistake of secular humanism. True love must flow from God through me to everyone else…”3 Which is indeed the only path to genuine happiness.
1From Sitting at the Feet of Jesus, by Ann Spangler & Lois Tverberg – Zondervan Publishing
2Same as above – subtitled, How the Jewishness of Jesus Can Transform Your Faith
3From The Gospel According to Moses: What My Jewish Friends Taught Me About Jesus – Baker Publishing – as quoted by Spangler/Tverberg
Rate it:
Fred Price - married (50 years), father of two grown children, grandfather of six.
Fred retired earlier this year after 42 years as a factory worker. He has always had a heart for young people and the challenges they face today. Over the years Fred has taught Discipleship Groups for High School and college students.
Receive the newest devotional each week in your inbox by joining the "Point of Reference" subscription list. Enter your email address below, click "Go!" and we will send you a confirmation email. Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your addition to this list.