Lesson One: "The Radical Call of the Sermon on the Mount"

Sermon on the Mount, Photo on Pinterest

[Email: hughbradyconrad@yahoo.com]

In our Community of Matthew, which is part of our Fellowship of Matthew, we will look at various words that Jesus preached in his ministry and the interpretations of what he said in the New Testament, in the Book of Matthew. 

The primary focus of the New Testament is Jesus’s words when he describes the two greatest commandments. The first is the greatest admonition, to love God. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself. 

We will explore those but first, we will look at the Sermon on the Mount, the one in which Jesus says things that most Christians today ignore. 

Dr. Edward Sri, a professor of theology and scripture, called that sermon a “Radical call.” 

Why is that? 

The famous “Sermon on the Mount” (Matt 5-7) is best known for its beautiful spiritual and moral teachings. Indeed, it would be hard to beat a sermon that had the Beatitudes, the Our Father, and the command to love your enemy all packed into one!  

One thing, however, which is not commonly noted about the Sermon on the Mount is how explosive its message was and how Jesus’ words would have shaken the world of many who were listening to Him on the Galilean hillside that day. 

“Love your enemy.” 

“Blessed are the merciful.” 

“Turn the other cheek.” 

With these words, Jesus was not simply setting forth a brand new, lofty ethical standard. While Christ’s teachings in the Sermon on the Mount certainly have great moral applications for Christians of all ages, we must see how Jesus was giving a very specific challenge to the people of His day. Jesus was offering a new vision—a new vision for what it meant to be God’s people. 

Edward Sri, “The Radical Call of the Sermon on the Mount,” St. Paul Center, June 27, 2019

Dr. Sri is the Vice President of Mission at the Augustine Institute and a fellow at the St. Paul Center. 

Siri's interpretation, historical and spiritual

He looks at the message from the Sermon on the Mount in historical and religious terms. The Jews were suffering under Roman rule, and Jesus wanted to talk to them about a kingdom that was not of this world, but was going about it in a strange way,

After attracting this large following, Jesus decided to lead the crowds up a mountain in Galilee for a special discourse about the kingdom. This action itself could have led some of His followers to ponder what might happen next. In those days, the hill country of Galilee was a refuge for Jewish revolutionaries who were plotting their assaults against foreign oppressors. The caves in those hills made for good hiding places. Not too long before this, a group of bandits had hidden in the Galilean hills during a fierce conflict with King Herod.  

So when Jesus led His followers up a mountain in Galilee, perhaps a few may have been wondering whether He was going to start some type of revolt of His own—like Judas the Galilean had done in the Galilean hillside one generation earlier. Was Jesus going to make a claim to be Israel’s king and lead the people in a fight for the kingdom? The crowd waited for Him to speak. 

Jesus then began to address His band of followers on the mountainside with a startling message. He introduced an unexpected lineup of people who would be blessed in the kingdom He was building: 

“Blessed are the merciful . . . Blessed are the peacemakers . . . Blessed are those who are persecuted” (Matt 5:7, 9-10).  

What a shock. What kind of kingdom movement was this? Jesus seemed to be blessing all the wrong people. The peacemakers, the merciful, and the persecuted were not the expected first-round draft choices for a kingdom-building team. 

Edward Sri, St. Paul Center, June 27, 2019

That is why the message of Matthew is so inspiring. He is the only one of the four Synoptics — Mark, Luke, and John along with Matthew — to include the beatitudes in his book. 

Why? Because it is the essence of Christianity, it provides the greatest challenge of any of the words that Jesus uttered.

Nevertheless, the Jewish people did not necessarily want to hear that message. They were looking for another one,

Many would have preferred vengeance over mercy, vindication over persecution, and fighting for freedom over making peace.  

Consider a few other famous commands in the Sermon on the Mount, such as “love your enemy,” “pray for those who persecute you,” and the so-called “go the extra mile” (Matt 5:41, 44). 

Sometimes these teachings are misunderstood as practical instructions for becoming pushovers for Jesus. But in their first-century context, these challenges would have been much more intense. 

In these commands, Jesus was subverting the revolutionary and nationalistic tendencies which pervaded much of first-century Judaism. 

For example, “love your enemy” (Matt 5:44) was not simply an abstract principle to be applied when you had to face someone who wanted to do you harm. Rather this command had a specific, concrete meaning for the Jews who heard His teaching that day. For those original listeners, “love your enemy” would have sounded something like: “Love the Romans who persecute you. Love Herod and His illegitimate, violent monarchy. Do not join the revolt movements.”  

Edward Sri, St. Paul Center, June 27, 2019

That is what is challenging about the words of Jesus. How can you possibly love the Romans? They were despicable people. They were violent and were focused on a monarchy without giving anything to the people.

And we are supposed to love such people?

Yes, that is what Jesus is telling us, and that is what is so challenging. It is easy to love those whom you love, but loving those who have done terrible things to you?

Can a child ever love a parent who abuses him or her? Can a wife love a husband who is a philanderer and has treated her horribly?

Obviously, that is the challenging part of this, and it is what should make our discussions interesting.

Lessons to be learned

In this segment at the end of the piece, I will describe my reaction to the writing of different people, primarily Matthew but also what others have said about the writings.

When Dr. Siri says that “The famous “Sermon on the Mount” (Matt 5-7) is best known for its beautiful spiritual and moral teachings,” that says it all. Jesus’s message to us in this is to love one another, even your enemies, and to turn the other cheek when confronted by others. 

These messages are not always easy to accept. Loving God is one thing, but loving our neighbors, which means everyone other than you, is very difficult. In fact, many people simply ignore this part of the Bible, talking instead of the Old Testament that is often considered to be fictional and not the words of Jesus.

That is why we should dwell on what Matthew says. It is about the words that Jesus utters, the ones that he intended for us to hear, and those are the words that matter.

And so often, the ones that are difficult to accept.