One of my absolute favorite ways to see and hear the sermon on the mount is with the Visual Bible: Matthew. The visual Bible is a video that covers the whole Gospel of Matthew word for word but in story and with Jesus in locations that are similar to where Jesus was in his sharing the message. The actor who plays Jesus is so full of life and energy, that he is one of my favorite portrayers of Jesus. I would highly recommend you try to find a Visual Bible and watch this yourself sometime. They are available in Christian bookstores and Amazon has several of them. The Visual Bible is available for Matthew, John and Acts. It all started with the movie Jesus, which has been seen by more people around the planet than any other movie in history. The movie Jesus is done by the Visual Bible people on Luke, but it was edited down to make it a more reasonable length.
One of my fond memories in the ministry was doing the Sermon on the Mount at a lake in Centennial Park in Howard County as a part of a church service and picnic after the worship. Standing by the lake I had a chance to say what Jesus would say on several occasions. It was a lot of fun. One of the reasons it was a fond memory for me was that for some people, they had never heard the sermon all together. We usually break it up in worship, read a few verses, the preacher talks about it and we hear another part later on in the year. And if you follow the lectionary in worship, it's in year A and you don't get parts of it until the fourth year when year A rolls around again.
The sermon starts with the first 12 verses that we are more familiar with, the Beatitudes, Blessed are the..... But Jesus goes on to talk about far more than that. He teaches us about gratitude, about prayer, about caring for others. It really is the essential teaching and the game plan for every Christian. So I challenge you to read it for yourself sometime. Matthew, chapter 5 and 6 and 7. Find a new version to read it, perhaps. The Message will really help you to hear it differently than you may have been used to. If you can't put your finger on a Bible right away, go to www.Biblegateway.com and you can read it there in whatever version you would like.
A quick walk through includes what it really takes to be Happy. Then comes the idea that you are salt and light, a better way to make the world whole and peaceful. Jesus tells us how important the law is, like Moses with the Ten Commandments, but he reminds us it's the essence of the love of God that makes a difference. Jesus is full of surprises in that he takes excuses we make about all kinds of things and "ups the anti", raises the stakes, in other words he tells us somethings are far more important than we make them. When we are angry, it's like murder, when we lust, it's like adultery, when we say something, it should stand as a guaranty. He talks about divorce, pledges/commitments, retaliation, and love.
He warns us about showy religion, showy prayer, showy fasting, when we are trying to look better and more faithful than we really are. He warns us about too much dependency on treasurers that can be stolen or rust and get eaten by moths. He reminds us of serving our neighbors to bless them. He warns us how dangerous worry can be. He tells us not to judge one another, like we want to so often. He offers us great ways to get to God, as easy as asking, seeking, knocking to connect with God in prayer. He warns us that it take more effort to concentrate on doing what he asks of us, which makes it a narrow gate. But faithfulness brings fruit and good things.
Finally he warns us not to be hypocrites. He doesn't want his people to be accused of messing up other people's relationship to God. If we listen and put it into practice, he reassures us that we will be the one who built his house upon the rock. When the wind blew, and the rains came and the waves came up, the house on the rock stood firm. But if we ignore God's directions, we are building on the sand, so that when the rains come, and the wind blows, and the floods come, the house on the sand goes SPLAT!
"When Jesus finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching because he was teaching them like someone with authority and not like their legal experts." (Matt. 7:28-29 Common English Bible.)
So come and join us for this service. But more importantly, read the sermon all at once, and then pick the things you will start to do as Jesus says. Blessings on your adventure, your pilgrimage, your journey as a follower of Jesus.
Pastor Jeff
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