Sermon On The Mount

As Jesus draws near to the end of the message, he has a few words about how he desires Christian relationships to work, particularly about how we ought to be slow to judge others before we've taken a good look in the mirror ourselves.

Money and possessions. Two things that have pulled human hearts away from their loving Creator since the Fall. But they cannot sustain nor comfort us, and Jesus doesn't want his followers worrying about such things, but to seek first the Kingdom of God, and to trust their needs will be met.

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• 26 03 01 - Sermon - Sermon On The Mount Part 5 - Micah Stephenson - Night.mp3

Giving, prayer and fasting. Three simple practices that Jesus expects his followers will continue to do in their obedience to him. But how do these simple things go beyond mere rule-following and habit? As we looked at last week, it's all about our heart posture in doing them.

As he continues his counter-cultural sermon, Jesus takes aim at the teachings of the Pharisees, the religious elite of the day. Jesus raises the bar to show them - and us - that we cannot achieve righteousness through our outward efforts, because it's an inward thing that begins in our hearts.

Salt and light. Two incredibly simple illustrations Jesus used to show his followers how they ought to live differently from the surrounding culture, and simultaneously how they'll impact that culture for the kingdom of God. So it's worth asking, how salty are we? How brightly do we shine?

What are the Beatitudes all about? In Jesus' opening remarks to his famous Sermon on the Mount, he describes the character qualities that he desires his followers to embody - and the blessing they will receive. At first reading, it looks like a simple list, but dive a bit deeper, and you'll see they are incredibly counter-cultural.