THE GREATEST SERMON EVER PREACHED

Intro to Matt 5-7

What was the greatest sermon you ever heard?

What impact did it have on your life?

What new direction did it lead you in holiness as you travel forward to Heaven?

We are about to enter the greatest sermon notes preached by a man, not just any man….. but God, Himself. The words are spoken by the Chief Shepherd, the Head of the church. The Master speaking words that a man has never spoken before. This sermon tears into the heart of what Biblical Christianity supposed to be. This sermon points out the outward walk and the inward habit of mind, of one’s life in Christ. This sermon called “The Sermon On The Mount” is the greatest sermon ever preached, and it exposes the very core of your being.

The Sermon on the Mount is the most quoted section of the Bible, next to the Ten Commandments.

It contains the Golden Rule. Matthew 7:12

The Lord’s Prayer. Matthew 6:9-15

One of the most misunderstood portions of scripture. Matthew 7:1-6

His solution for anger and anxiety. Matt 5:21-26; Matt 6;25-34

In the sermon, Jesus openly comments about divorce and remarriage. Matt 5:31-32

Jesus speaks about the true characteristics of his followers, characteristics which are almost universally rejected today.

One theologian wrote “Most people like the Sermon on the Mount because they do not really know what it says.”

This is Jesus’ first major message in the gospel of Matthew. This sermon is also recorded in the gospel of Luke. (Luke 6:17-49) Between the two records, Matthew contains more of the sermon. 

D.A Carson said in his book “Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount,” ”The more I read these chapters the more I am both drawn to them and shamed by them. Their brilliant light draws me like a moth to a spotlight; but the light is so bright that it sears and burns. No room is left for forms of piety which are nothing more than veneer and sham. Perfection is demanded. Jesus says, “be perfect…as your heavenly Father is perfect. “ The great theme of these three chapters speaks about the Kingdom of God.

Side note:

“The kingdom of heaven” was Matthew’s customary expression for what other New Testament writers preferred to call “the kingdom of God” Matthew used this expression because like many Jews of his day who would avoid using the word “God”. They felt it was too holy, too exalted; therefore rewordings like “Heaven” were adopted. But understand! Kingdom of heaven is identical to the kingdom of God. These three chapters of Matthew are concerned with entering the kingdom, which is equivalent to entering into life. As Jesus said, "…Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven." And he laid his hands on them and went away. And behold, a man came up to him, saying, "Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?" Matt 19:14-16

What we need to understand is that this sermon deals with the internal and not external, the spiritual and moral, rather than the physical and political. The greatest concern in this sermon is the eternal soul of man.

Augustine called it “The perfect standard of the Christian life.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer based his classic book, “The Cost Of Discipleship” upon this sermon that Jesus preached in the open air.

For the child of God it’s simply 

the greatest sermon ever preached.

Martyn Lloyd Jones asked “What does the Sermon On The Mount mean to us? Where does it come in our lives and what is its place in our thinking and outlook? What is our relationship to this extraordinary Sermon that has such a prominent position in these three chapters in the Gospel according to St. Matthew?”

See! This sermon goes contrary to any generation, location or century, because this sermon goes against human societies and governments. This message goes against the social norms of today! Because it challenges and destroys your worldview. This sermon clearly shows us exactly where we stand in relation to the kingdom and eternity. No other section of Scripture makes us face ourselves like the Sermon on the Mount. It is the antidote to the deception and sham that plagues Christianity. Every time you read the “Beatitudes” you see where you fall short of this amazing revelation.

This Sermon exposes us to 

the X-Rays of Christ’s words.

Why? Because in Christ’s kingdom the most exalted person are those who are lowliest in the world’s estimation. Jesus declared that John the Baptist was the greatest man who had ever lived until that time. In Matthew 11:11 we read “Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” Yet John the Baptist had no possessions, had no home, lived in the wilderness and dressed himself in a hair garment and ate locusts and wild honey. He wasn’t part of a religious system or had a high position in the government. He preached a message that that the world’s eyes would see as completely irrelevant and absurd. By the social norm he was an outcast, a misfit and a failure, yet he received the highest praise from our Lord.

“This what the sermon on

the mount addresses.”

It strikes the very heart of mankind to examine their lives; or to turn away and call it foolishness. Very similar to many great to mediocre messages preached in pulpits across the globe today. You’ll either respond out of adoration, or you will reject this message as your heart becomes callus and numb. This sermon speaks into every heart and forces us to examine our own hearts in light of His words. What A. M. Hunter wrote back in 1965 is still true today, “After nineteen hundred years the Sermon on the Mount still haunts men. They may praise it as Mahatma Gandhi did; or like Nietzsche, they may curse it.

They cannot ignore it.” This sermon speaks directly to the heart of mankind and exposes us to our depravity and unreconciled heart to the truth of God’s Word. But in this! God gives us grace to face this powerful sermon seriously and honestly and prayerfully until we become living examples of it.

Here is the warning for all of us 

as we approach this sermon.

And that is the tendency to fix our eyes on a certain particular statement and to concentrate on that over the whole of this sermon that Jesus preached. It’s that idea that I will have people come to me and say “I am going to be most interested when you come to explain this part…” To do such a thing is a “betrayal” to this Sermon on the Mount as a whole.

Now listen to me carefully! To jump only to a particular portion and overlook the rest as least important is a disservice to this Sermon. This sermon seen as a whole, is greater than a collection of parts and snippets…we must never lose sight of the whole. To do so, it can lead to social applications which end in complete fallacy or heresy. For example when Jesus speaks on “turning the other cheek”; or “Judge not, that you be not judged.” It’s taking Scripture out of context and turning it to fit their social norm and making it say something completely different than Jesus intended for His audience. For example! “Turn the other cheek” means I denounce all forms of war as being unchristian, so God calls us all to be pacifists.

No, that is not what

 Jesus is saying here.

This is why we need to read this Sermon as a whole, and not in parts. Just as you would listen to a musical composition of a symphony. The song is telling a story as a whole, not just in parts. This is how were supposed to approach this Sermon….the whole sermon.

Here are some things I want us to observe and prepare for, as we approach this powerful sermon by Christ, Himself.

1. Jesus’ Sermon Is Radical But Not Entirely New.

In the Jewish context, Jesus is presented as a prophet, just like those in the Old Testament. Jesus is calling people to reconsider who God is and what he desires for His created children. What Jesus speaks about is not an outward conformity but inward transformation by His grace. The message is that God is our Father who sees and cares about the heart, not just external righteous deeds and religion. What do I mean by that? What Jesus says and boldly proclaims is something that has been proclaimed for the many years previously.

For example!

David said “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.” Psalm 32:1-2

Moses said “You shall be holy to me, for I the LORD am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine.” Lev 20:26

Isaiah spoke radically “Behold, the LORD's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear. For your hands are defiled with blood and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies; your tongue mutters wickedness.” Isaiah 59:1-3

Listen to the radical words of Daniel “I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.” Daniel 9:4-6

Jesus’ sermon was radical but nothing new as He said "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” Matt 5:17-18

But what’s amazing about this sermon

is what happens at the end.

We read “And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.” Matt 7:28-29. At the end of the sermon the crowds are amazed, but this isn’t so much because the content is new. But because of the clarity, strength, and authority with which Jesus teaches. His teachings are radical, but not out in left field where they wouldn’t understand what He meant in the culture of that day.

2. Jesus’ Sermon Is Meant To Show You Your Deep Need Of His Grace, And That You’re Not Beyond The Reach Of This Grace Either.

What Jesus says exposes our hearts to ask “Then who can be saved” The Old Testament law demonstrates man’s need of salvation, and the New Testament message offers the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Sermon on the Mount clarifies the reasons for the curse and shows that man has no righteousness that can survive the scrutiny of God. The blessedness that Christ’s offer is not dependent on self-effort or self-righteousness, but on the new nature God gives.

  

The Kingdom of God has been set apart to righteousness. Rom 14:17

The fruit of the Spirit is in all righteousness. Eph 5:9

The Scriptures instruct us in righteousness. 2 Tim 3:16

God’s chastisement yields the fruit of righteousness. Heb 12:11

God’s righteousness has no fellowship with unrighteousness. 2 Cor 6:14

His righteousness is evidence of the new birth. “If you know that He is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.” 1 John 2:29. This sermon begins with the presentation of the new sovereign Man.

The One who will not fall, and One

who brings blessing rather than cursing.

As one theologian said “The first Adam was tested in a beautiful garden and failed; the last Adam was tested in a threatening wilderness and succeeded.” In Jesus Christ, a new reality has come. A new Man and new King of the earth came to reverse the terrible curse of the first king. 

3. Jesus’ Sermon Is Meant For You To Examine And Abandon Your Worldview For A Biblical One. 

Abandoning your theories, your opinions on every aspect of one’s life as we prepare for eternity. Your righteousness will never exceed the Scribes or the Pharisee’s and unfortunately for them neither will theirs, gain the Kingdom of Heaven. The Pharisee’s believed the right religion consisted on divine laws and religious tradition. There primary concern was for complete observance of the Mosaic Law and everything else that was handed done by various Rabbis’ over the centuries….an outward conformity. For example! A right theology, living in the right way, separating ourselves from worldliness, taking stands on moral issues, and so on, are noble things; but it has to come from an internal life and attitude.

It’s not a system to say, “This or that is wrong.” It reveals that it grieves the heart of God because he has put His truth into our hearts. It’s not an external conformity but an internal one that has been transformed by the gospel. It’s not just being religious and following tradition. It’s a heart change that is set to please a holy God. Remember what it says in 1 Sam 16:7 “But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart." Solomon said “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. This sermon exposes our worldview with the correct one that is only pleasing to God….and the only one that gain Heaven’s blessings.

John MacArthur sums up well the importance 

of this Sermon and why we need to study it:

1. It shows the absolute necessity of the new birth. Its high standards go far beyond the Mosaic Law. Man must not only do right, he must be right. No other scripture more clearly shows man’s desperate situation without God.

2. It intends to drive the listener to Jesus Christ as man’s only hope of meeting God’s standards. Man needs a supernatural power to enable him to live up to the divine standards, and that is only possible through Christ.

3. The sermon gives God’s pattern for happiness and for true success. It reveals what God has designed man to be. In it we find the way of joy, peace, and contentment.

4. A life obedient to the principles of the Sermon on the Mount is the church’s greatest tool for evangelism.

5.The life obedient to the maxims of this proclamation is the only life that is pleasing to God.

  

Understand! Those who enter the Kingdom of Heaven must have a righteousness that surpasses that of the Scribes and Pharisees for they only had the self-righteousness of legalism which says, “I am good because I do (or do not do) these things.” True righteousness is unconcerned with self-proclaimed goodness.

For true righteousness comes from the heart and says,

“I love you Lord, help me to do whatever pleases You.”

As Paul wrote “who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” Titus 2:14. Jesus died in order that I might now live the Sermon on the Mount though His finished work on the Cross. That’s what we’re going to see over the coming months as we dive into the greatest message ever preached!