MATTHEW
5:1-2 - Here, we have
the introduction to ‘the Sermon on the Mount’ (chs 5-7). Reference is
made to both ‘the disciples’ and ‘the crowds’. The disciples are taught
with a view to becoming teachers of the crowds. Peter learned from
Christ and later he taught the crowds (Acts 2:14-42). The Sermon on the
Mount was heard by the crowds as well as the disciples. Jesus spoke to
the crowds. His ministry to the disciples had a dual purpose. It was for
their own spiritual strengthening. It was training for the time when
they would be entrusted with the Lord's commission: ‘Go therefore and
make disciples of all nations... teaching them to observe all that I
have commanded you’ (Matthew 28: 19-20). Do you read God’s Word solely
for your own benefit? Or, do we have an eye for ways in which we can
learn to share His Word with others?
5:3-12 - ‘The
Beatitudes’ show us God’s way of blessing. We might also describe them
as the Be Attitudes, since they show us what we are to be. Jesus teaches
us that the way to happiness is the way of holiness. The only
alternative to the way of holiness is the way of hypocrisy. There can be
no true happiness when we are walking in the way of hypocrisy. Holiness
is to take shape in our lives - the shape of Jesus Christ living in us.
This is the truly happy life: the Christ-centered life. We are not to
live according to present appearances. We are to live in the light of
the future Reality of God's heavenly Kingdom. Some of Jesus’ later
statements can be viewed as an exploration of the meaning of the
Beatitudes. The general principles (3-10) are to be applied personally:
‘Blessed are you...’ (11-12). We are not only to read the Beatitudes. We
are to live them.
5:13-16 - Holiness is to be seen.
Happiness is to be shared. We are not to be secret disciples. It will
not be easy to live the life of Christ’s disciples. In a world of much
corruption, we are to be ‘the salt of the earth’ (13). In a world of
much darkness we are to be ‘the light of the world’ (14). If we are to
bring the refreshing light of Christ into our world, we ourselves must
receive spiritual refreshment as we let the light of God’s Word shine on
our lives. Reading God’s Word can never be a purely personal thing.
Being ‘the salt of the earth’ and ‘the light of the world’ - this is
what Jesus says we are - , we read Scripture with a view to
learning how we are to live in the world. Don’t lose your saltiness. Be
salty enough to create a thirst for God in other people. Don’t let your
light grow dim. Let it shine brightly. Remember - all the glory belongs
to God (16; Psalm 115:1).
5:17-20 - In verse 20, Jesus
refers to ‘the scribes and Pharisees’. Jesus warned against the shallow
superficiality of these men who were more concerned with outward
appearances than inner reality. This conflict with the Jewish religious
leaders lies close to the surface in the Sermon on the Mount. When Jesus
says, ‘This is their way. This is My way’, He is not calling in
question the authority of the Old Testament Scriptures: ‘Think not that I
have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to
abolish them but to fulfil them’ (17). He is in conflict with ‘the
hypocrites’ (6:2 5,16). He is warning against the ‘false prophets, who
come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves’
(7:15). What a difference there was between Jesus’ teaching and those
who ‘preach, but do not practise’ (23:3) - He spoke with ‘authority’,
they did not (7:29). May we be like Jesus!
5:21-37 - The
teaching of Jesus here may be summed up thus: The heart of the matter
is the matter of the heart. Jesus’ teaching was much more penetrating
than the pronouncements made by the scribes and Pharisees. Not content
to scratch the surface, Jesus asked the deeper question, ‘What's going
on in your heart?’. Jesus’ teaching has real spiritual depth. He takes
seriously the biblical teaching that ‘the heart is deceitful above all
things, and desperately corrupt’ (Jeremiah 17:9). He knows that we need a
‘new heart’ (Ezekiel 36:26). The Pharisees were bogged down in
intricate details - Do this. Do that. Do the other. All the emphasis was
on what we do. Christ was much more direct - Get the heart right. Ask
God for a heart of love (21-26), purity (27-32), and truthfulness
(33-37). Do not say, ‘Look what I've done’ (7:22). Let Christ live in
your heart; let Him change you.
5:38-48 - The Pharisees
lived by law. Jesus lived by love. The law of God - ‘holy and just and
good’ (Romans 7:12) - had been distorted by the religious hypocrites. They
were saying, ‘love your neighbour and hate your enemy’ (43). ‘Love your
neighbour’ is found in Leviticus 19:18. ‘Hate your enemy’ is not
found in the Old Testament. For the Jews, ‘neighbour’ meant their own
kind. They wrongly concluded that Gentiles were to be hated. Jesus’
parable of the Good Samaritan makes it clear that we are to love our
enemies as well as our friends (Luke 10:25-37). Jesus’ disagreement is
not with the law of God. It is with man’s misuse of it. Jesus’ teaching
is simple - Love is not to be limited. It is demanding - love is
all-embracing. We dare not bring love within our reach. We always fall
short. We can only come to Christ. Confessing our lack of love and
trusting in His perfect love, we learn to love.
6:1-18 -
Jesus says that we are not to be like ‘the hypocrites’ (2,5,16). The
word ‘hypocrite’ means ‘play actor’. It refers to ‘putting on a
performance’. This performance may be extremely religious, but God is
not in it. The hypocrites live according to ‘the letter’ of the law, but
they know nothing of the power of ‘the Spirit’ (2 Corinthians 3:6). The
hypocrites’ religious performance gets along very well without God. His
presence is not sought, welcomed or treasured. The hypocrites draw
attention to themselves. They do not direct attention away from
themselves to God. There is a better way than the way of hypocrisy. It
is the way of holiness. Our lives are to be centred on Christ - ‘it is
no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’ (Galatians 2:20). We
must not forget: apart from Him we can do nothing. We are to abide in
Him (John 15:5) - in true holiness.
6:19-34 - On the one
side of Christ’s disciples, there are the hypocrites. On the other side,
there are ‘the Gentiles’ (32). The hypocrites represent religion
without reality. The Gentiles represent the world, living for material
things only, refusing to take spiritual realities seriously. We are to
be different from both the hypocrites and the Gentiles. Our top priority
is pleasing God, not impressing men. We are to live for God’s eternal
Kingdom rather than living for a world which is passing away. Living for
Christ is very different from worldly living. Our life is to be
governed by heavenly, and not earthly, priorities (19-21). We are to
walk in the light, refusing to be overcome by the darkness (22-23). We
are to trust the Lord, refusing to let unbelieving anxiety rule our
lives ( 25-34).
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