Welcome to Day 2113 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

Sermon on the Mount 11 – A Christian's Amazement: Who Is This Radical Teacher – Daily Wisdom

Putnam Church Message – 07/25/2021

Sermon on the Mount – A Christian’s Amazement: Who is This Radical Teacher?

Matthew 7:28-29 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with real authority—quite unlike their teachers of religious law. Many secular and religious people are prepared to accept the Sermon on the Mount as containing self-evident truth. They know it includes such sayings as “God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy; Love your enemies; No one can serve two masters; Do not judge others, and you will not be judged; and Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you.” They say, in these passages, Jesus of Nazareth is the moral teacher at his most straightforward and best. As we have learned these past 11 weeks, Matthew 5-7 is much more than that. It is the Manifesto of Christ to the citizens of God’s kingdom. It is our marching orders. His teachings and sketch of the Christian counter-culture are his commands for radical discipleship. What remains for us now is to consider the uniqueness of the teacher himself. We shall find it impossible to drive a wedge between the Jesus of the Sermon on the Mount and the Jesus of the rest of the New Testament. Instead, the teacher of the Sermon on the Mount is the same supernatural, dogmatic, divine Jesus to be found everywhere else. So the main question the Sermon forces upon us is not so much, “What do you make of this teaching?” as “Who on earth is this radical teacher?” The reaction of those who heard the Sermon is they were amazed at the authority of his teaching. The teacher's great authority struck the first hearers of the Sermon (the crowds, as well as his disciples, 5:1). He did not hem and haw, or hesitate as I do when I speak. He was neither tentative nor apologetic. Nor again, on the other hand, was he ever bombastic or flamboyant. Instead, with quiet and unassuming assurance, he laid down the manifesto for the citizens of God’s kingdom. By the end of Jesus’s teaching, the crowds were amazed, for the Greek verb is strong; it means “dumbfounded.” You know, the look of someone who is dumbfounded. In fact, I look that way quite often. Mouth open, glazed look in the eyes because it is difficult to take it all in. Let us analyze this authority of Jesus, as exposed in the Sermon. On what was it grounded? What was Jesus’s self-awareness which led him to speak in this way? What clues does the Sermon itself give of how he understood his identity and mission? We do not have far to seek to find answers to these questions.  Today we will explore the seven attributes of this radical teacher.

1. Jesus’ authority as the teacher

The crowds were amazed at his teaching, for he taught with absolute authority. Yes, Jesus presented himself first and foremost as a teacher, and he amazed his listeners with the substance, the quality, and the manner of his instruction. But, of course, there had been thousands of other teachers throughout the area and in the temple. Many were his contemporaries. What, then, was so special about Jesus? He somehow assumed the right to teach absolute truth. He was a Jew, but his message was not Jewish. He was interpreting Moses’ law, but in such a way as to show that it was God’s law. What he had to say was not limited to a particular people (Jews) or a particular place (Palestine). Being absolute, it was universal. So he spoke as one who knew what he was talking about. He knew who would be great in God’s kingdom and who least, who was “blessed” in God’s sight and who was not, which way led to life and which to destruction. With complete self-confidence, he declared who would inherit the kingdom of heaven, who would inherit the earth, who would obtain mercy, see God and be fit to be called God’s children. How could he be so sure? His hearers naturally compared and contrasted him with the many other teachers they were familiar with, especially the scribes. What struck them most was that he taught with absolute authority—quite unlike their teachers of religious law. The scribes claimed no authority of their own. Instead, they conceived their duty in terms of faithfulness to the tradition they had received. So they researched commentaries, searching for examples, claiming the support of famous names among the rabbis. Their only authority lay in the sources they were constantly quoting. On the other hand, Jesus had not received a scribal education. He outraged the establishment by sweeping away the traditions of the elders. He had no particular reverence for social traditions and spoke with a freshness of his own which captivated some and infuriated others. If he did not teach like the scribes, he did not teach like the Old Testament prophets either. Instead, Jesus insisted that his words were God’s words. Yet, there was a difference. The prophets introduced their oracles with a phrase like: “Listen to what God says.” Jesus never used this phrase, but instead, he would begin emphatically, “I tell you the truth” or “But I say to you,” thus daring to speak in his name and with his authority, which he knew to be identical with the Father’s.  Not that he was contradicting Moses, as we have seen, but rather the scribal corruptions of Moses. Yet, in doing this, Jesus challenged the centuries’ inherited tradition and claimed to replace it with his accurate and authoritative interpretation of God’s law.

1. Jesus’ authority as the Christ

There is evidence in the Sermon on the Mount, as in many other parts of his teaching, that Jesus knew he had come into the world on a mission. Matthew 5:17 Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. The claim sounds innocent enough until one reflects on its implications. Jesus asserts that all predictions of both law and prophets found their fulfillment in him. Jesus did not think of himself as another prophet or even the greatest of the prophets, but rather as the fulfillment of all prophecy. This belief that the days of expectation were now over and that he had ushered in the time of completion was deeply embedded in the consciousness of Jesus.  The Sermon on the Mount has five direct references to God’s kingdom.  They imply that Jesus had inaugurated the kingdom of God.  It was the beginning of the restoration of Eden, not just a garden, but the entire world. The culmination of this will happen when Christ returns a second time. Jesus knew himself to be Christ, God’s Messiah of Old Testament expectation.

1. Jesus’ authority as the Lord

The flexibility of the Greek word “Lord” must be recognized: not every instance of its use implies a consciousness of divine authority. Not everyone who addressed Jesus as Lord chose this name as the equivalent of deity; it could, as a polite form of address, mean little more than our “sir.”’ Only the context can help us judge how much dominion and deity may rightly be included in the word “Lord.” For example, the section in the Sermon on the Mount in which Jesus referred to people who addressed him as “Lord, Lord.” He was not complaining that they chose this title, for he accepted it as appropriate. Instead, his point was that they were using it glibly and were not investing it in its true meaning. He was not just “Sir” to be respected; he was “Lord” to be obeyed. Thus Jesus saw himself as more than a teacher, advising that people might or might not heed at their discretion; he was their master, issuing commandments, expecting obedience, and warning them that their eternal welfare was at stake. Clearly, in all this, Jesus was no ordinary rabbi. His expectation was not just that they would absorb his teaching; it was that they would be devoted to him personally. The acceptance of this devotion, no doubt, is why he was not content with the title “Rabbi” on its own, for he was their “Teacher and Lord.”

1. Jesus’ authority as the Savior

It is plain in the Sermon that Jesus knew the way of salvation and taught it. He was able to declare who was blessed and who was not. Jesus could point to the narrow gate which led to the hard way, which ended in life. He was clear about which kind of house would survive the storms of judgment, and which would be destroyed. But if we penetrate more deeply into his message, we find that he not only taught salvation; he granted it. Thus, even in the beatitudes, he appears as one who distributes blessedness and gives the kingdom. Jesus considered his hearers, that little group of peasants, “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” How could they possibly have a restraining and enlightening influence on the world? Only because they followed Jesus.

1. Jesus’ authority as the Judge

The whole Sermon on the Mount was preached against the subdued background of the coming Day of Judgment. Nevertheless, Jesus knew it was a reality and desired it to be a reality in the minds and lives of his followers. So he declared the conditions of salvation and warned of the causes of destruction, especially in his graphic portrayal of the two ways and their destinations. Jesus claimed that he would be the Judge. He used the personal pronouns “I”’ and “me” three times. First, he would be the Judge, hearing the evidence and passing the sentence. Matthew 7:23, “But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’” Second, he will be the criterion of the judgment. People will bring their use of his name in their ministry as evidence, but this will be inadmissible as evidence. I never knew you. The destiny of human beings will depend not on their knowledge and use of his name, but on their knowledge of him personally. Not service for Christ, but a relationship with Christ will be the issue. Third, the sentence he pronounces will also concern him: “Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.” He implied that no worse fate could be envisaged than eternal separation from himself. Jesus is the only person qualified to be the prosecutor, judge, and jury.

1. Jesus’ authority as the Son of God

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives us a comprehensive doctrine of God. He is the Creator, the living God of the natural order, who gives sunshine and rain and supplies birds with food, flowers with clothing, and human beings with life necessities. Jesus is also the King, whose righteous and saving rule has permeated into human lives through Jesus. But above all—again through Jesus— we have access to our Father. In all these sayings, Jesus called God “your Father.” Then once, he referred to “the will of my Father.” He gave his followers the privilege of addressing God by the same intimate title he used “Abba, Father.” This concept he was later to express in a saying in Matthew 11:27. My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 

1. The authority of Jesus as God

Whenever we attempt to understand the divine nature of Jesus as God, it is more than we can comprehend.  Jesus knew God as “my Father” clearly, and he knew his Sonship to be unique. But now we can take a further hesitating step. There is evidence that he thought of himself as being on a level with God, even one with God. It is not that he ever said this in so many words in the Sermon, but his claim to exercise divine prerogatives and his ways of speaking of himself imply it. Three examples may be given. The first example is the final beatitude. It will be remembered that the eight beatitudes are generalizations in the third person. In contrast, the ninth changes to the second person as Jesus addresses his disciples in Matthew 5:11-12, “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.” It is this analogy with the prophets which is arresting. If Jesus compares his disciples to God’s prophets, he is comparing himself to God. Second, since Jesus regarded obeying him as Lord and doing the Father’s will as equivalents, he was putting himself on a level with God. Third, it comes in the verses about the Day of Judgment and have already been mentioned. Everybody knew that God was the judge. So did Jesus. He knew that people would appeal to him on the last day and that he would be responsible for passing sentences on them. In saying so, he again equated himself with God. Here is the radical teacher, for he taught with absolute authority—quite unlike their teachers of religious law. He teaches with the authority of God and lays down the law of God. He expects people to build the house of their lives on his words, and adds that only those who do so are wise and safe. He says he has come to fulfill the law and the prophets. He is the Lord to be obeyed and the Savior to bestow blessing. He casts himself in the central role of the judgment-day drama. He speaks of God as his Father uniquely and finally implies that what he does, God does, and what people do to him, they are doing to God. We cannot escape the implication of all this. The claims of Jesus were put forward so naturally, modestly, and indirectly that many people never even noticed them. But they are there; we cannot ignore them and still retain our integrity. The only alternative is to take Jesus at his word, and his claims at face value. In this case, we must respond to his Sermon on the Mount with deadly seriousness. For here is his picture of God’s alternative society. These are the standards, values, and priorities of the kingdom of God. When we, as citizens of God’s kingdom, are almost indistinguishable from the world, we have lost our saltiness, and our light is extinguished. Instead, we need to be evidence that God’s new society is already tasting the joys and powers of the age to come. Only when the Christian community lives by Christ’s manifesto will the world be attracted and God be glorified. So when Jesus calls us to himself, it is to this that he calls us, for Jesus is the Lord of the Christian counter-culture. Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal. As we take this trek together, let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend to others Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

I am Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Everyday! See you next time for more wisdom from God’s Word!