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Sermon on the Mount • Sermon • Submitted
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33 “You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’
34 But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne.
35 And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King.
36 Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black.
37 Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.
38 “You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
39 But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also.
40 If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too.
41 If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles.
42 Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.
43 “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy.
44 But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!
45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.
46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much.
47 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that.
48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Love is all you need?
Love is all you need?
Were the Beatles correct?
All you need is love
All you need is love
All you need is love, love
Love is all you need
Well, maybe, depending upon how you define love.
If you define love as desiring the best for the other, often at great personal cost to self, then, yes, love is all you need.
In these passages, Jesus culminates his teaching with a teaching on love. What Jesus has said thus far leads to him changing our definition and understanding of love.
He looks, now, at our broader relationships outside of the close family ones we discussed last week. Now, in these passages he shows us what it means to be salt and light in the relationships we encounter in our broader world. It all culminates in a teaching of love.
Oaths
Oaths
Loving people enough to be truthful.
Grandpa - I mean what I say and say what I mean. If you don't believe me, just ask me.
Loopholes - Like crossing our fingers behind our backs...
16 “Blind guides! What sorrow awaits you! For you say that it means nothing to swear ‘by God’s Temple,’ but that it is binding to swear ‘by the gold in the Temple.’ 17 Blind fools! Which is more important—the gold or the Temple that makes the gold sacred? 18 And you say that to swear ‘by the altar’ is not binding, but to swear ‘by the gifts on the altar’ is binding. 19 How blind! For which is more important—the gift on the altar or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20 When you swear ‘by the altar,’ you are swearing by it and by everything on it. 21 And when you swear ‘by the Temple,’ you are swearing by it and by God, who lives in it. 22 And when you swear ‘by heaven,’ you are swearing by the throne of God and by God, who sits on the throne.
Pharisees had loopholes that said you only had to keep oaths if you brought God into the promise. IF you swore by God, or brought God’s name into the oath, then you had to keep that vow. But, if you did not, the other person would believe you intend to keep you vow but since you didn’t bring God into the promise, you had a loophole that allowed you to wiggle out of the deal...
Jesus declares that any promise, any vow, should be kept. He states that no matter what we swear by, we are bringing God into the picture. Therefore, any vow must be kept. Also, generally speaking, someone who has to bring in more than a simple yes, or no, shows how they aren’t to be trusted, or haven’t been trusted in the past...
Our word is our bond
Pastor Matthew always does what he says he will to do.
Retaliation and Revenge
Retaliation and Revenge
The Old Testament Law held justice at ONLY an eye for an eye. It limited retaliation and kept revenge from getting out of hand.
24 an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot,
Prank war with Mom's work
In retaliation, things get “out of hand” real quickly...
A better translation of “resisting evil” would be… "Don not retaliate revengefully by evil means"
Jesus highlights a new justice - not that we let people walk all over us, but we bring about justice in peaceful ways...
A strike on the right cheek was an insult. Master did this to slave, superior to inferior...
Turn insult back upon the one insulting - in a non insulting way. The act is not longer insulting...
Being sued you highlight the greed that has led to this issue - in a non aggressive, but albeit controversial way.
This image of being sued is as one being sued in debtors court. This isn't one being sued because of injury. This is, the debt has been paid and you cannot repay the debt. So, the one who loaned the money sues. Clearly, the only thing this person has to be sued for is clothes
Giving your tunic and cloak would cause you to be naked. In such, you are saying I am exposed because of a system of greed that has taken EVERYTHING from me. In doing this, although you are exposed, ultimately YOU expose the shame of those who are greedy.
Gal in Missouri who had her bank account emptied because of a payday advance...
Carry Roman Gear
Palestinians could be forced to carry Roma gear for 1 mile. But, going another mile now highlights that this is not a threat or a means of oppression.
Go the Extra Mile...
You are now NOT being forced, but volunteering to carry the items of a person whom you view as an oppressor. Now, you have gained power over the powerful...
As they beg and plead for you to stop
As they question why you do what you do
As they see Jesus light illuminate from you
As you have conversations about life and realize you both are more similar than you at first thought.
Love for Enemies
Love for Enemies
The culmination of what Jesus has said so far is LOVE!
What is love? It is to desire what is best for the other, often and great cost to you...
But, the Pharisees had rules about those they loved. They would love their neighbor, but their neighbor wasn't anyone/everyone... Their neighbor was the one who was just like them. Only those who look, think, talk, act like them.
This is why they ask, “Who is my neighbor”
25 One day an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking him this question: “Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 Jesus replied, “What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it?” 27 The man answered, “ ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ” 28 “Right!” Jesus told him. “Do this and you will live!” 29 The man wanted to justify his actions, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
They believed that they only had to love those like them...
You know, those with the same skin color, or the same religion. Or those who have the same economic status, or who were born in the same country. You know, those who came from a home with a mom and a dad. And, those who vote the same way I do and cheer for the same football team and attend the same high school...
This is the type of love that creates racism, nationalism, us vs them ism...
Jesus challenges us to a different way...A way that honors the humanity of all - INCLUDING our enemies and those who mistreat us and abuse us...
Honestly, can you truly have an enemy if you love them?? If you truly want what is best for the other, and you are willing to sacrifice for that to happen, then, can you truly have an enemy??
The house being broken into...
This is the only time Jesus calls us to perfection. Not perfection in that we are sinless, but perfection in reaching towards the goal of loving others - at great costs to us.
What is the best example that Jesus uses? This is what God has done… Rain falls on the righteous and unrighteous (God’s friends and God’s enemies)
19 We love each other because he loved us first.
This is the heart of God the Father
This is what Jesus does and displays
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. 7 Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. 8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
And this is the litmus test of our vows and our honesty. Is what we say about ourselves and Jesus true? If so, it will be seen in how we love others at great cost to us!!!
34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
So yes, love, true self-giving, sacrificial love, is ALL we need!