Outline Today – Review: a) Spirit, Soul & Body b) Life & Death – Matthew’s Gospel – Summary Info – Intro & Background: Where, when & why… – Goal = Maturity.

Outline

• Today– Review: a) Spirit, Soul & Body b) Life & Death– Matthew’s Gospel – Summary Info– Intro & Background: Where, when & why…– Goal = Maturity Defined (Beatitudes) What…

• Coming Weeks– Sermon on the Mount & Beatitudes– Practical Applications – Future topics: a) Spirit, Soul & Body, b) Nature of God

Grace??? A new filter…..

• “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation…” (1 Corinthians 3:11–12, NASB95)

• Eph 2:8-10 – His creation vs. our cultivation• Discipleship is maturing to become in experience

what we are by birth• “and being fully assured that what God had

promised, He was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:21, NASB95)

Salvation

• Past Tense: Spirit (my spirit has been saved)• Present Tense: Soul (my soul is being saved)• Future Tense: Body (my body will be saved)

We must train our souls…

The Real Issue: Life or Death

• Our tendency is to make the primary issue Right Vs. Wrong (sin or self focused)

• God is always calling us to make the primary issue Life over Death (focus on Christ vs. Self, Spirit vs. Soul, Zoe vs. Psuche, Tree of Life vs. the Tree of the Knowledge of Right and Wrong)

Jesus’ Mission

• ““The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10, NASB95)

• If you see God’s primary concern as right or wrong, I believe you have a MISTAKEN idea of His nature

Sermon on the Mount – Part #2

Pursuing Kingdom Life

Matthew’s Gospel

• Matthew sees Jesus as the King of the Jews (emphasizes his royalty & lineage as opposed to Mark’s humanity of the ‘Son of Man’)

• Audience is new believers (Discipleship Manual)

• Fullest and most systematic account of Jesus’ life

• Collects the saying of Jesus into five ‘sermons’

• These parallel the 5 books of the law• Telling his Jewish readers that Jesus brings a

New Law (He sits here as the new lawgiver)• Structure of the gospel of Matthew: – Introduction: birth, baptism, temptation

Word (Chap 5-7) Deed (Chap 8-9)Word (Chap 10) Deed (Chap 11-12)Word (Chap 13) Deed (Chap 14-17)Word (Chap 18) Deed (Chap 19-23)

Word (Chap 24-25)

• Conclusion: Death and resurrection

Matthew’s Theme

• Theme: the kingdom, the difference between the Jewish expectancy and the Christian experience

• Secret of the kingdom: Messiah is coming not once, but twice…thus the age to come has been inaugurated (but not consummated) by Jesus already

• Matthew’s theme: “How do you live in the kingdom now?”

The Kingdom – a two way process

• The Gospel of Grace (Indicatives): What Christ has done for us (our foundation)• The Gospel of Grace (Imperatives): What we are to do with/ through Christ• We work out what He works in us (avoiding

legalism & license)

Sermon – When?

• Matthew & Luke sequence this event in the 1st year of Jesus’s public ministry

• His fame had spread (outdoor preaching), but opposition hadn’t gelled

• (Matt) Sermon follows the choosing of the 12 disciples and implies an ‘ordination’ or ‘commissioning’ message

• Message of ‘Repent’ gives way to the nature of the kingdom for His disciples

Sermon on the Mount: Importance

• Jesus’ most comprehensive statement on a believer’s role in cooperating with the grace of God

• The ‘Constitution’ of God’s kingdom• It contains the Core Values/Beatitudes of the

Kingdom (thus revealing the nature of God)• It is THE STANDARD for spiritual development

and ministry impact• It is the impartation of the kind and quality of

Kingdom life

Intro & Background

• Jesus language here is poetic, thus not to be taken with inflexible literalism

• For example, The Lord’s Prayer is a poem of two stanzas, each of which has three lines of four beats apiece

• “Proverbs are principles stated in extremes” and we are to “seek the principle that underlies the proverb” (A.M. Hunter)

Interpretation is Important!!!!

I know what it says, but what does it mean!?!

Everyone who takes everything in this passage literal should be missing some body parts!!!!!

Sermon….WHERE?

• Christ sat as the new lawgiver and Mediator…

Old Testament Law Sermon on the Mount Lord came down The Lord went upSpoke in thunder Speaks in a still small

voicePeople ordered to keep their distance

Invited to draw near

Spoke through Moses God Himself speaks to usBrought Death Brings Life

“For the Law was given

through Moses; grace and truth were realized

through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17,

NASB95)

Sermon - Who?

• Directed to His disciples, but in the hearing of the multitude, for it is said ‘the people were astonished’ (Matt 7:28)

• ““If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”” (Mark 4:23, NASB95)

• Sermon is recorded through the ages for us to consider, or rather for it to consider us…

-6 + 5 = 8

• Weeding our garden: 6 Temptations• Water our garden: 5 Activities• Fruit or Produce: 8 Beatitudes

Parable of the Sower (Matt 13)

• The Seed represents the Word/Spirit & thus life.• The Soil represents the Soul/flesh and thus brokeness. • “For thus says the LORD…“Break up your fallow ground, And do

not sow among thorns. “Circumcise yourselves to the LORD And remove the foreskins of your heart…”” (Jeremiah 4:3–4, NASB95)

• “Sow with a view to righteousness, Reap in accordance with kindness; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD Until He comes to rain righteousness on you.” (Hosea 10:12, NASB95)

• “Watch over your heart with all diligence, For from it flow the springs of life.” (Proverbs 4:23, NASB95)

Confused???

• This gardening business sounds like an awful lot of hard work?

• How does this square with what grace says? • Are the Beatitudes given or earned?• What if I feel guilty or I don’t do all these

things in this passage?• Will I ‘fail’ the test?• Are you as confused as I am?

Perfection?

• ““Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48, NASB95)

• Perfect:‘perfect’ (17), ‘man’ (1), ‘of full age’ (1)• 1) brought to its end, finished. 2) wanting nothing

necessary to completeness. 3) perfect. 4) that which is perfect. 4a consummate human integrity and virtue. 4b of men. 4b1 full grown, adult, of full age, mature. Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon

Perfection

• “For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons (fully mature) of God.” (Romans 8:14, NASB95)

• “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;” (Romans 8:29, NASB95)

• “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you—” (Galatians 4:19, NASB95)

Read Matthew 5:3-10

The End