An Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount by Lane Rogers

I. The Sermon on the Mount is not easy to introduce. There are some very basic questions we ought ask ourselves before we proceed with this study. (Not really a sermon) Sermon started in 4:17).

A. What does the Sermon on the Mount mean to us? Where does it fit in our lives and what is its place in our thinking?

B. What is the Relationship of this master piece with the rest of the book of Matthew, and why does the Sermon occupy such a prominent place in the book?

C. From a doctrinal point of view, does the Sermon on the Mount speak of grace, law, or neither?

II. For whom do you think the Sermon on the Mount was written?

A. How does it apply to us

B. What is its relevance

C. What do you think the purpose of the Sermon was?

III. The different Ideas about the Sermon

A. The Social Gospel

1) The idea that the Kingdom of God can be formed on earth just by obeying the basic tenets of the Sermon.

2) No more war, no more poverty, all will be peace in la,la, land.

3) Karl Barth made this idea look ridiculous.

4) The Beatitudes mandate against the social gospel since they call us to a higher plain than is possible to live unaided.

B. The Sermon on the Mount is an elaboration of the Law of Moses?

1) Those who maintain such a view claim that the Pharisees and the Scribes were misinterpreting the law as given by God. Therefore, the Sermon was written to correct those erring teachers in the law. (nonsense)

C. The Next view and probably the most serious error is what we call the 'dispensational' view of the Sermon.

1) Some different Bible Versions actually teach this error.

2) The Sermon on the Mount has nothing to do with the modern Christian, or so they say:

They say that the Lord begin to preach the Kingdom of God, and the preaching of the Sermon on the Mount was in connection with the inauguration of this kingdom. Unfortunately (as the say), the Jews did not believe His teachings. He was rejected so our Lord could not establish the kingdom and therefore as an after thought, the death on the cross came about. Then this thing called the Church Age came in (also as an afterthought) and will continue until a certain point in history. The Lord will once again return, preach the Sermon on the Mount.

With the above view, the Sermon on the Mount basically was an accident and has nothing to do with us at all. (again, nonsense) I need not read the Sermon on the Mount and if its precepts have nothing at all to do with me. The problem with their thinking is that the Sermon on the Mount was preached primarily and specifically to the disciples (the purpose was not the crowd at large). Listen to the words,

Now, if the Sermon on the Mount has nothing to do with us, we are not the salt of the earth, we are not a light unto the world. None of the precepts in the Sermon apply to me if this church age thing is true?

3) There isn't one single teaching in the Sermon on the Mount that cannot be found elsewhere in the Bible. Make a list of the teachings in the Sermon on the Mount and them read your Epistles. So, if the Sermon on the Mount means nothing to us, what does that say about those same teachings in the Epistles? ( See Luke 6 , Psalms 18:25, 37:11; 40: 17).

4) The dispensational view is based on a wrong view of the Kingdom of God.

5) But the Bible teaches that the Kingdom of God is 'within' us. It teaches that the Kingdom of God is 'among us' so as we move forward with this study we will need to define the Kingdom of God.

6) And finally, why should be study the Sermon on the Mount. Titus 2:14 claims that Jesus died for us so we be a people who are purified, zealous of good works and set apart for Christ. That seems to be the emphasis of the Sermon on the Mount.

Some Matters Concerning the Division

I. Chapter 5: 3-16 are very general. They are broad statements concerning the Christian and how we ought to live. In fact, 3-10 are addressed to all of those who aspire to enter the "kingdom of heaven." (verse 3 and verse 10).

II. Verses 3-10 can be separated from verses 11-12. Notice, in 11 and 12 we have the character of the Christian as proved by the worlds reaction to him/her.

III. Verses 13-16 are the Christians relationship with society and the world.

IV. Now, we move from the Introduction of the Sermon to the Particulars.

1) 5: 17-48, the Christian and the Law of God

a. A general description of God's righteousness.

b. Matters of relationships, divorce, murder, retaliation, self-defense and our attitude toward our neighbor.

c. Chapter 6 the entire chapter

1) how a Christan ought to live his/her life in the presence of God.

d. Chapter 7, The Christian lives always under judgment!

2) We must always remember that the Sermon on the Mount is a description of 'of a person's character' and not a code of ethics.

a. It is not to be regarded a law or a new kind of Ten Commandments but rather a description of what Christians are

meant to be.

The Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven!

βασίλέία

1. Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom (Matt. 4:23)

2. In the Sermon on the Mount,He gave the character of the kingdom people (Matt. 5-7)

3. In His parables, Jesus explained what the Kingdom of heaven was like (Matthew 13:31ff).

4. When he promised to build His church, He anticipated that the Apostles were to make use of the "keys to the kingdom" (Matt. 16:18-19).

5. The kingdom is not something physical (John 3:1-7)

6. The Kingdom of Christ and God is not of this world (John 18:36)

7. Jesus said that the kingdom was imminent while He was preaching (Matthew 4:17)

8. The kingdom was at hand was also the message of John (Matthew 3: 1-2)

9. Daniel foretold that during the days of the Roman empire, God would set up a kingdom that was to never be destroyed (Dan. 2:44)

10. The coming of the kingdom was so imminent that Jesus told the people that "there be some of them that stand here which shall not taste death, till till they have seen the kingdom come with power" (Mark 9:1)

11. The Kingdom of God cannot be seen (John 3:3)

12. The Kingdom of God is within us (Luke 17:20-21)

βασίλέία

The word 'kingdom is used in two different manners in the NT. It is rarely ever used to describe a physical kingdom when Jesus or the Apostles use the word.

To be in the Kingdom means:

Those under the reign of Christ as in Luke 17:20-21

But can also mean those under realm of Christ as it is used in many other passages and sometimes it means "those under the reign and realm of Christ."

THE INTRODUCTION!

"When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up to the mountain; and when He had sat down He had opened His mouth, this is what He sued to teach them." V.2

I. He Sat Down!

This is serious business. When the Jewish Rabbi taught and was serious, He sat. He sat down. We still speak of the "Professors chair" and even when the Pope speaks we call it EX CATHEDRA, from his seat. That Jesus sat down says volumes. What he is about to say is central and important.

II. "When He opened His mouth."

a. In Greek that says a lot. Expression used when discussing weighty matters.

b. Means pouring out His heart and mind. Teaching with on barriers. That means the message came from His heart.

III. He used the verb "taught" (έδίδάσκέυ, he was teaching indic. imperf. act meaning a on- going action in the past).

IV. "The Beatitudes" mak-ar-ee-os; Makarios. It means extremely happy.

         O the blessedness, expresses a current position.

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