The Greatest Sermon, that builds upon the wonderful foundation given to Moses, expounds and expands the love of God. Note Deuteronomy 6:1-6. The beatitudes, as given in Matthew chapter five, are prerequisites given by our Savior. We believe that it is the most meaningful message ever given to mankind by a loving God.
Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (NKJV)
The poor in spirit are contrasted to those who are spiritually proud and self righteous.
Proverbs 16:19-20, “Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud. He who heeds the word wisely will find good, and whoever trusts in the LORD, happy is he.”
Jesus is starting by telling us to never forget how much we need God and not to rely upon ourselves.
What are the attitudes that God requires of His people? Those who wish to be happy and blessed by God must exhibit certain traits. These traits follow the introductory remarks given by Christ. They are:
Matthew 5:4-6, “Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.”
What was God’s adversary’s significant MONUMENTAL, CRUCIAL mistake? He lost his perspective with regard to God and became overly proud of his beauty and talents.
Ezekiel 28:17, “Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;”
Satan was the first rebel back-stabber and principle purveyor of evil because of his pride. God, wisely, will not tolerate such attitudes and spirits in His family for all eternity. We must learn to mourn all the evil that exists and try to reject it in our lives, this is the Messiah’s message.
Ezekiel 9:4, “And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.”
Similar things will happen to identify the righteous in the end of this age period. Note Revelation 7:3-4.
Matthew 5:7-9, “Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.”
The “pure in heart” have a mind that is not scheming and full of evil plots. Their emotions are not bursting with hatred and vengeance. The apostle James elaborates: “But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (James 3:17-18).
In addition to all these lofty traits God demands courage and fidelity to Him. If persecuted for standing up for Christ or His high standards, we must not falter. We must be like the heroic Prophets of the past, like Jeremiah and Elijah.
Are These Moral Goals so Lofty That They are Unrealistic?
Matthew 5:11-12, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
“Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
We are blessed when we are persecuted. The persecution drives us even closer to God. The dedication to God we display makes others uncomfortable. The truth is too close for comfort so they criticize us. God loves our courage and further, it puts us in the company of heroic prophets.
One of the more shocking statements in the book of Revelation regarding those who will not be in God’s family are the cowardly. They are lumped with terrible perverts.
Revelation 21:8, “But the COWARDLY, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
God will not test us beyond our means but may at times demand courage and fidelity.
Some writers claim that in this sermon Jesus was merely using hyperbole. He did not expect people to achieve such high moral and lofty goals. Maybe He just wants us try and be a little better? The answer based on the author of most of the New Testament is an emphatic, No! Christ wants us to really strive for this high mark.
Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
There is no doubt that Christ gave these standards for all believers to meet realizing that we cannot do it alone. We all need help from God. When Jesus left his disciples He promised that after His resurrection, He would direct the Holy Spirit to come and help us.
John 14:15-16, “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever…”
The Importance of Being the Salt and the Light
Further Jesus wants us to be the SALT AND LIGHT of the world based on our conduct.
Matthew 5:13-16, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.”
God needs the presence (taste) of us converted, humble believers on the Earth to make it worth His saving. The light we shine is vital and important to God. Even if we have weaknesses, we are still fighting for our improvement and ultimate victory as lights in this dark world. Note I Cor. 1:27.
Matthew 24:22, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (KJV) God will one day save planet Earth from the complete destruction of mankind by mankind.
Matthew 5:14-16, “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
Believers’ Examples Should Be A Light to the World
We need to let our good deeds and Godly hearts be seen by others like a shining city on a hill top –– and remember that God gets the credit.
Jesus declared certain inviolable standards and attitudes as prerequisites for entering His kingdom. These are the core attributes that God demands a believer have before ever entering His family for all eternity.
What does God value and demand of us believers and future heirs? It is humility, gentleness and a desire to be filled with true goodness. God, through His prophets, had made this very clear in who He esteems.
Isaiah 66:2, “But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.” (NKJV)
God wants those who are humble and who really revere His word and wish to fully understand and obey it. Christ goes further to describe the traits that He demands in a believer, but humility is the one that overrides the others. Why? Because one of God’s top angels betrayed Him with an outrageous lack of humility and with utter arrogance.
God needs sons who are the opposite of the adversary, Satan; believers that are kind –– not scheming or plotting evil in their hearts, but who are true peacemakers. Deceivers use Satan’s scheme of “anything goes” to drive their own selfish agendas.
Galatians 2:3-4, “Yet not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. And this occurred because of false brethren secretly brought in (who came in by stealth to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage),”
Christ will not allow people into His kingdom who are deceptive liars and schemers. If we suffer for our honesty, goodness, and pure beliefs then we have a common bond with the Messiah!
Matthew 5:10-11, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.”
The apostles considered it an honor to suffer for the name of Jesus Christ.
Acts 5:40-41, “They had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.”
We must never be ashamed of Christ’s name no matter the pressures from this evil age.
One way we can be a light is in our courage and faith. Christian behavior, even sometimes in the face of persecution, turned the ancient world upside down. Their good, kind actions and the steadfast belief in God took the world by storm. So much so that Satan had to work on co-opting Christianity to whatever degree he could.
Matthew 5:12, “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Believers became like the holy, wonderful prophets in their actions and faith. The world was impressed. Jesus pushes each of us to become a light to the world LIKE THE PROPHETS were.
Matthew 5:13-15, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
“You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.”
This is obviously a very high standard. Christ’s message to us sets a very high standard. Note the words of an evil, devilish, dark magic occult leader with regard to the affect of Christianity and the evangelism of Paul the Apostle to the world:
Acts 17:6, “But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, ‘These who have turned the world upside down have come here too.’”
What does God require from His followers but to lead the world into the light of goodness.
Matthew 5:16, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”
Then Jesus declared to His audience on the mountain that He came to glorify, elevate and fulfill the law.
Verse 17, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.”
Christ Did Not “Do Away” With God’s Laws
Clerics have for centuries contended that Christ came to set aside some of the core laws of the Ten Commandments. They have stated that the word “fulfill” as used by Jesus means that He obeyed for us and thereby we are free to break any of God’s laws. They feel justified in so doing if they cannot find enough New Testament support for them in their biased evaluation of the NT. Since they are not Sabbath keepers they are biased against that law!
However, note the bold declaration that Christ makes in Matthew 5:18, “For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.”
One cannot dodge this test because obviously the Earth is still below our feet and sky above is still full of the heavenly bodies. Why would Jesus state it this way? One reason is so we cannot possibly get around His statement –- it’s undeniable. But also because one day God will alter the universe. God will make it anew. However, at that point, we believers will no longer be carnal but spiritual and we will have no need of a written law to guide us. We will be internally righteous.
Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”
For example, if a believer is then so spiritual that he no longer needs a law on the wall that says do not steal because He would never even consider mistreating his brother in any such thievery.
Revelation 21:1-4, “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. … And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.’”
