Sermon On The Mount

And tonight, we are continuing the series on the sermon on the mount. It's my honor to uh join the team of those who have gone before me in teaching from earlier portions. This of course is Matthew chapters 5,6 and 7. And I'm not alone in thinking this or the first to say it, but I very much enjoy the sermon on the mount. I first encountered it way back in the year of our Lord 1,976 when I was a Bible quizzer on the book of Matthew and those chapters five, six, and seven were fascinating to me then and still remain that way. I did want to note that I also am using uh two of the sources that I believe Amber when she kicked this off in late May used. The Sermon on the Mount by Amy Jill Lavine, a book and also the Bible Project podcast.

But then I also gleaned from a book that's some years ago. In fact, I don't know if you'll remember, Brother Cardan. I actually taught it to the senior high class way back in the day 70s. Uh Meet Your King by Warren Reersby. And I I have that the book's falling apart, brother Carden, but I still have it. And so I gleaned from that, too, those three sources primarily. And to review, over the last few Wednesdays after the introduction in late May, the nine blessings or biatitudes were covered over a couple of Wednesdays, I believe, one by brother Willilifford and the other last week by Pastor Long.

And we also were given last week word pictures uh that Jesus used to illustrate that we are the salt of the earth, the light of the world. And as we live out these biatitudes, that's what we are to this world, salt and light. And so it's important that we heed those. Uh tonight we're picking up uh the portion that I've been assigned is Matthew chapter 5 and beginning at verse 21 through 64. Chapter 6 verse4. And so if you want to have your Bible open to that, I'm going to read portions as I go along and make some comments. But as a introduction uh to remind you, the law uh teaches us or in particular Israel in the Old Testament times teaches us to be God's people.

That's uh the intent and purpose of it. And Jesus came, this was brought out last week, and I want to emphasize it. He came not to discard the law. Okay? Some people think, well, New Testament, the Old Testament's gone. But no, he didn't come to discard or destroy, but he came to fulfill the law. And what Jesus actually does in this sermon on the mount, and I guess all of his teaching, is to teach a greater righteousness.

And he's using tonight, uh, we'll just call them case studies for us to consider to show a superior way of doing God's will. So he's not doing away with the law, but he is showing us a greater righteousness. And beginning with verse 21 of Matthew 5, uh Jesus gives us six instances of laws from the Old Testament that he interprets because of the new life that he's come to give. Remember he said, "I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly." And so he's interpreting these six instances of laws to help us understand what the new life is all about. He focuses on the attitudes and intents of the heart, not only on the external actions. So again, he doesn't oppose the law, but we'll say it this way, he extends it. He amplifies it and draws out the full implications of each one to get to the core value of the commands that he cites.

So he's showing, we'll say it this way, too, God's wisdom in these six commands that he's offering us. And with the phrase, I say to you, Jesus, you're going to discover that many times here. When he says, I say to you, he's giving a contrast of of new authority or taking authority and shares a more expansive meaning than the literal command. He's explaining for us that this is the way you live, a higher righteousness. You've heard it said, but I say unto you. And that's what the higher or greater righteousness is all about. uh these three examples someone has said I don't know how crucial this is to point out but someone has said that they're actually in two groups of three and the first triad uh these three examples really emphasize when you give a a broad stroke uh the dignity of everyone the dignity of everyone is emphasized and if you want to again have your Bible open beginning with verse 21 chapter 5 I'm reading from the King James version if you have a different one in front of you I think it'll still make sense to Jesus says verse 21, "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, thou shalt not kill." And that's actually murder.

Many of the other English translations say murder. And whosoever shall kill or murder shall be in danger of the judgment. Now, this law is still in effect. Okay? You shouldn't murder, in case you were wondering. Uh again, that's just to illustrate or demonstrate, I should say, that Jesus came not to do away with the law. And violating that law, committing murder does bring consequences in society.

You'll be judged, you'll be caught, tried, put in prison, or whatever the punishment might be. And of course, there are spiritual consequences as well. But so, let me say it this way. If you've not murdered, you are doing the will of God. Okay? If you've not murdered anyone, that's pleasing to God. That's the command.

But there is a deeper value to that command. You're going to see that here and with the other five examples. Verse 22, here it comes. But I say unto you, so you've heard, you've read in the Old Testament, don't murder. But I say to you that whosoever is angry with his brother without cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother Reika shall be in danger of the council. and whosoever shall say, "Thou fool shall be in danger of hellfire." In effect, Jesus is building a fence around this command of not murdering, uh, to create circumstances where violating it is a little more difficult.

The idea is if you're not angry, you're probably not going to murder somebody. So, not having anger in your heart and certainly hatred as well. Jesus didn't abolish this command not to murder, but he just shows the heart of it. And the issue underneath murder, maybe there are different ways to look at it, but this is certainly one. The issue underneath murder is devaluing another person. Murdering someone indicates that that person's life held no value to you at all. It was worthless because you just took it.

You just snuffed it out. And that's what murder the issue underneath is all about. Devaluing other devaluing others. And you can devalue somebody without murdering them. Declaring or acting as if a person is worthless could be considered the spirit of murder. When you run someone down or deem them as unworthy. And this means that the attitudes and the language that we have about others is important to God.

It's meaningful. It's something that he takes note of the attitudes we have toward people and the language that we use about them. Everybody should be loved and valued because we're all the creation of God. Everybody uh should be loved and valued because we're made in his image. And we're not God to judge somebody's worth. Now, I know sometimes we do it and it comes easy and and we think we have good reason to, but we are really not God to judge someone's worth. And notice, if you will, in verse 22 that the actions deescalate.

He's talking about murder and then anger and then insult. But the consequences increase. You go from the lower court to the higher court or in that day the Sanhedrin or then to God's court. And so the things deescalate in terms of actions, but the consequences uh increase. And this of course scrambles our sense of value. It's kind of backwards the way we might think of it, but it shows that God takes issues of the heart seriously. and mistreatment of others to any degree, it matters to God.

He takes note of that. And if we uh have that habit, breaking the habit of evaluating another's worth is needed. We we need to work on our hearts and must hold up the dignity of others and treat people the same whether present or not. So verse 23, he goes on, "Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary quickly, whilst thou art in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison." Verse 26, verily I say unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out then until thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. So in verses 23 and 24, we have a short parable. Jesus says, if you go to the altar to offer a gift of worship to the Lord and you recall that somebody has a legitimate complaint against you because you wronged them, Jesus says, "Stop everything.

Go find that person and resolve it. take care of it and confess to God. Of course, go to your brother and sister. And Matthew, if you want this reference, chapter 18 verses 15-20, uh tell us a little formula, for lack of a better word, uh to use in those instances. And it's been I didn't look it up, but it's been uh within the last month or two that Pastor Dong dealt with that passage of scripture um quite a bit. And so I'm not going to go over it again tonight, but if you want to go back to the archives or just study those verses yourself, Matthew 18 and verses 15- 20, uh, talk about that. Verses 25 and 26, Jesus is essentially saying, uh, don't wait to rectify things.

Uh, you don't want to arrive in court guilty. You know, if you're on the way, settle matters. You don't want to get all the way to the court in front of the judge and be found guilty. So patch things up, take care of things quickly while you're in the way is what he is saying. So uh we're not to murder and if you're not doing that, that's good. But there is a deeper meaning that Jesus has brought out for us to understand. And the second case study uh starts in verse 27.

It says, "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old times." So again, the Old Testament, "Thou shalt not commit adultery." Here Jesus is quoting the seventh commandment of the 10 given to Moses which involves doing right by God and your neighbor. Then he gives God's wisdom that is underneath it and addresses if you'll notice here character and the heart. Verse 28 here it is. But I say unto you, so you've read, you've heard, don't commit adultery. But I say unto you that whosoever lookth on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. Adultery essentially or at least one way of putting it is taking something that is not yours. And Jesus says you can do that in your heart through lust.

It's possible. Desires are not identical to deeds. And so I will be quick to say uh somebody might take the attitude well I I lusted in my heart. I might as well commit the sin, commit the actual deed. No, that's that's not the same. But spiritually they are equivalent. The deed and the desire.

Lusting in our heart, they are equivalent spiritually. Lust is really the antithesis or the opposite of love. It's distorted. It's backward view. And looking in this case, Jesus says if you look on a woman to uh lust after her, looking in this means a present ongoing sustained stare. In other words, you go on looking to cultivate desire or lust. Uh to look as Jesus is discussing it here is not just a casual glance.

And I think that's important to note so that we're not uh neurotic. You know, you're driving down the highway and see a billboard of something physically attractive and think, "Oh, no. I gotta uh go crazy here. Have a mental breakdown." But it is possible to glance. It is possible to note an attraction and not lust. Okay. So, Jesus is talking about something that involves staring to feed inner sensual desire as a substitute for that which is uh forbidden in the commandment.

So, that that's what he's getting at. And I hope that helps some of us. I know uh as teenagers uh years ago uh growing up in the church, you know, we we'd have some of our discussions and and start panicking just because you happen to glance. I remember I won't even say that when brother Jerry White used to have a little comment, but I won't share that. But um nonetheless, it is important that we recognize that I think. And this verse, if you'll notice, is directed at men. It's directed at men.

And it's basically decrying, objectifying women. It's directed to men to cries objectifying women. Of course, women aren't excluded from the command or exempt. But I think uh we're all mature adults here. I think it's obvious why it's addressed to men because men are more physically attracted by sight and more quickly than women. Uh years ago when I taught the young marriage class back at the old church, uh we listened to a lecture by Gary Smallley. He's the I think he's the guy of the five love languages.

But this lecture was entitled why uh women are weird and men are strange. I guess it was a forewarner of men are from Mars, women are from Venus or something like that. And uh he said something in the course just to point out differences. Uh he used a couple of illustrations. He said that men when it comes to attraction are like a light switch and women are more like an iron. You have to warm it up and it takes time. And so, uh, in to quote someone famous, a fictional person, that's all I have to say about that.

And it should be noted that, uh, I'll say this too, even though this is talking about adultery and therefore married women, it should be noted that, uh, unmarried women are not fair game either to when it comes to lusting in hearts, that misses the point. It's not just a married woman that is involved here. And so, it's important that we recognize that. Now, how do we deal with that? Verse 29, Jesus says, "If thy right hand offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee. For if it be, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off and cast it from thee, for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." Jesus is using hyperbole here, extreme exaggeration to say that something radical uh needs to be done in your heart if you're battling lust.

Literal surgery is not intended because that wouldn't solve the problem of the heart. I could gouge out my right eye. I could have my right hand surgically removed. But if I still have lust in my heart, you know, it's there. I just now I don't have an eye. Now I don't have a hand. So that's not what he's driving at.

We could say that this uh example signifies repentance. It's changing. It's stopping. It's cutting off as it were the right hand or gouging out the right eye. Uh showing the extreme remedy that's needed within us in our hearts because that's what he's talking about. Metaphorically, Jesus is telling us you got to take drastic measures within. Discipline yourself as necessary.

And whatever you need to do, he's saying it's worth it to please God. Whatever you need to do, it's worth it to make heaven your home. And perhaps the greater vision or wisdom behind all of this command is the correct relationships that we should have between men and women, respecting one another, having dignity toward one another. Both the dignity of each is upheld through this teaching of Christ. And so that's the second case study. The third is in verse 31. And this Jesus says, "It hath been said, whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement." Verse 32, "But I say unto you," here's the deeper meaning, "that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery, and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery." The New International Version of this verse reads, instead of saying causeth her to commit adultery, it reads it makes her a victim of adultery.

And I find that clarifying. Makes her a victim of adultery, not one who actually commits it. It's in the passive voice. And for a better understanding of Christ's teaching on this, uh, Matthew 19, if we can go there, the Pharisees came to Jesus testing him. They had a question for him. They really didn't want the truth. They really didn't want to know uh the reality of it.

But they were asking a loaded question about divorce. And either way Jesus answered, they were going to have a aha gotcha in their minds at least. Matthew 19:3, the Pharisees also came unto him tempting him or testing him. And saying unto him, is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause or for any cause? That was the question they posed. And Jesus in answering goes way back to Genesis to cite the original plan. Verse four.

And he answered and said unto them, "Have you not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female? And he said, for this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put aunder." So Jesus is appealing to Genesis and saying that marriage is a divine plan, divine union uh between one man, one woman and God considers it a permanent relationship until death do them part. So loyalty is the key. Loyalty to God and his expectation, loyalty to a spouse if you're married. And loyalty is the lens through which we should look at divorce.

In other words, uh we should do everything in our power uh to remain loyal to a spouse. Faithfulness to the other is the ideal. And anytime there is uh difficulty uh problems uh the preservation of the marriage is always the goal. It doesn't always work out. I understand that. But that's the goal. That's what uh should be uh strived for.

if I'm saying that properly with grammar. Uh preservation of the marriage is the goal whenever there are difficulties or problems. And after this answer, the Pharisees say unto him, this is verse seven, why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement and to put her away? He saith unto them, Jesus, Moses said this, Jesus said this, Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, suffered you or allowed you to put away your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And uh first of all, the way the Pharisees stated that, why did Moses command us? Well, he didn't command. He peritted.

So, he didn't command it, but it was permitted. And Jesus said Moses did that because of the hardness of your hearts. It was happening. And so, he needed some way to to make it official and legal and not just be uh sending spouses away uh without any documentation. And so, there was this permission. And the Pharisees in asking this question, they were referencing Deuteronomy chapter 24 uh with their questions. And let me just read that to you quickly.

Uh Deuteronomy chapter 24:1. When a man hath taken a wife and married her, and it come to pass that she find no favor, or other translations say displeases him, no favor in his eyes, because he hath found some uncleanness, other English versions say indecency in her. then let him write her a bill of divorcement and give it in her hand and send her out of his house. So that was Moses in Deuteronomy 24:1 that he permitted. And um just to let you know uh in the days of Christ uh there were a couple of views uh primary views about this passage uh in the latter part of the the first century BC and then also into uh the first century AD. This would have been during the time of Christ. That was during the reign of Herod.

And the two schools of thought was one divorce was only for immorality, sexual immorality. And the other view was divorce was for any cause. You know, just any innocent thing that the man didn't like, he could uh divorce his wife. And Jesus in his response protects marriage and he protects women. Uh I don't think it's any secret that in that day women had if any rights at all. They were few and uh very uh little protection when it came to the law. And so he was protecting marriage and women with a strict view of Deuteronomy 24.

And he says here in Matthew 19:9 just as he did in 5:32. And I say unto you, whosoever shall put away his wife except it be for fornication and shall marry another committh adultery. and who so marrith her which is put away doth commit adultery. So that was his response a strict interpretation of Deuteronomy 24:1 and again to protect marriage and to protect women of course in that day. Um I probably could stop right here but I I will offer just a little bit more on this topic. Um Jesus is saying that divorce is only for uh sexual immorality or sin. uh he says except for fornication and the Greek word which I'm not an expert on Greek but it's porna we get our word pornography from that and uh from what I have read it's a a word that uh is not easily or or or strictly defined in English and there are some I'm just offering this to you as a a a school of thought that's out there I'm not the pastor of this church I do I'm on staff I'm a minister but I'm not the pastor and so I'm is presenting the view that some people will interpret this these words of Jesus in a more wide way uh to include harm or disloyalty toward a spouse.

Uh they ask questions, you know, could porna, that broad word in the Greek, could it include inc an incestuous relationship in a marriage? Uh could it include an illegal one? It may sound kind of strange, but it's possible that a person could marry someone and not know that the person had been married and didn't legally break off the other marriage that could, especially if you're marrying a con man, I guess. But, uh, it could happen. Uh, could porna involve an act of lwdness, however you want to define that. Uh, could it include desertion, spousal abuse? Uh, in our day, gender identity crisis is a sad but true thing.

But uh there can be a spouse that says, you know, by the way, I'm transitioning and and I'm not the person you thought I was when you married me. Uh so could it apply to that? Uh various addictions when seeking help is refused. So these are just some things that people have thought about and uh certainly this view is intended to protect the victim, the vulnerable in these kinds of situations. But I just wanted to raise these points and in doing so I again add or emphasize that I'm not the authority for this local church on these matters. Uh clearly I'll say it this way uh because each circumstance can be different in a marriage. Clearly prayer the study of scripture to rightly divide the word of truth, godly wisdom and certainly uh counsel uh all are needed in our contemporary or current situations that might be faced regarding a marriage.

So I'm just showing you the two schools of thought and uh God has to give us wisdom. We need him without question uh in our day and time for sure. And then uh the second group of three uh call it the triad if you will uh these remaining three cases uh instruct us how to manage conflict. They guide us in working together cooperating especially giving the means of doing so when people are at odds with each other. In verse 33, Jesus says, "Again, you have heard it hath been said by them of old time, thou shalt not foresear thyself, but shall perform unto the Lord thine oaths." Jesus is referencing three different places in scripture, which I won't read to you, but one's in Le Vicus and one in Numbers and one in Deuteronomy. And he's to define it, taking an oath, of course, is promising or giving your word and strengthening it by an appeal to God. Taking an oath, swearing by him.

And it's designed, of course, just to show that you mean business. But Jesus says in verse 34, "But I say unto you, swear not at all. Neither by heaven, for it is God's throne, nor by the earth, for it is his foottool, neither by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be yay, yay, nay, nay. For whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil." So Jesus is saying, don't bring God into it when it comes to your word. Just let your word be sufficient.

Keep your promise. Do what you say you will do. Now over time back in that day, a tradition of not saying God's name developed. So people would swear by things closely associated with God. Uh the Pharisees use these little tricks to sidestep keeping their word. Uh I guess it's kind of like crossing your fingers behind your back in our day. uh that loopholes were used such as swearing by the temple and not the gold or by the altar, not the gift.

And in uh Matthew chapter 23 verse 16, Jesus gives a blistering address to the Pharisees, religious leaders, he says, "Woe unto you, you blind guides which say, whosoever shall swear by the temple is nothing, but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor, uh ye fools and blind, for whether is greater the gold or the temple that sanctifith the gold." So he's saying either way uh you you can't you know just swear by the temple and say well I didn't really mean it don't have to keep my word but if I swear by the goal then I really have to do it. He said that's crazy. Another example is verse 18. Whosoever shall swear by the altar it is nothing. But whosoever swearth by the gift that is on the altar he's guilty. So again if I just swear by the altar I can get out of keeping my word. But if I swear by the gift on the altar then I really do have to keep it.

Jesus verse 19. Ye fools and blind, for whether is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifith the gift? Who so therefore shall swear by the altar swearth by it and by all things there on. So suffice it to say, Jesus is saying your word should need crutches to demonstrate that it's true. You should just say what you mean, mean what you say. Yes. Yes.

No. No. And uh I've thought about this. I've even been guilty of it. Maybe you have, too. I'll be talking to somebody and I'll say, you know, I really mean it or seriously. Uh, and when I say that, I realize, you know, that that kind of sounds like there are times when I don't mean it or times when I'm not serious.

And I, you know, I like to tease, but what I'm saying is that if you have to add those little uh blurbs on the end, maybe we're not being true to our word at other times. So Jesus is just saying this. Don't swear by anything. Don't use God to manipulate trust in you. Uh, just mean what you say. Say yes, say no, and let that be your word. And uh here again, I could stop, but I I'll add this little bit, and this is uh I I'll say it this way.

This is I, Nathan, speaking and not the Lord or your pastor along, but uh just as a little aside along with this, I I did want to offer these few thoughts. uh and that is be careful claiming uh God told me uh when you're uh talking about situations or God gave me peace to validate what you're saying. Now it may be true. God may have actually spoken to you and I'm thinking more along the lines that not someone who is a a known or sanctioned prophet who has to exhort and declare to a congregation or maybe make a prophecy something like that. That's not what I'm saying. But just to uh you know about decisions and and things that you might ordinarily counsel if you um say go to your pastor and say well God told me that such and such should be done or I should do such and such. Well who can discuss that with you?

I mean okay I'm not going to argue with God. uh and automatically you have uh lessened if not eliminated accountability because you know what can I say to that God told you and so I I'm not saying God doesn't speak but I'm just saying uh be careful in in prefacing and and using that to add weight to maybe something that you are feeling uh because once you say that there's no appeal and and you've painted others in a corner nobody can discuss it with you nobody can vet it uh even a spiritual overseer can't really offer guidance because what do you do with that when you say God told me this and so you could it's possible I'm not saying you are but you could be sincerely mistaken so there's always that aspect to consider and so just be extra careful and again this is I Nathan not the Lord or Pastor Dong speaking but just be extra careful saying you've heard from God and I'll say this too if others are skeptical don't disdain them don't look down your nose don't say well I'm up here on uh pedestal with God and he alone speaks to me and you poor people down there don't know what you're thinking or doing. Uh don't disdain people that might be a little skeptical. Time will tell if you've heard from God. It'll it'll bear out. It really will. And uh because what he said will come to pass, but in the meantime, and this is where the the rubber meets the road.

If you feel like God told you something, but a a spiritual overseer or a mentor tells you to put on the brakes or to wait, uh that's where the rubber meets the road. But I did want to say this, your submission to that will be honored as God's will is confirmed. And certainly, uh your submission will protect you. If by chance you were sincerely wrong and hadn't really heard from God about something, uh your submission will protect you. So either way, submission to leadership and and uh letting them have a chance to counsel and pray with you and talk things through and examine the scripture, whatever the case may be. And I know I'm speaking vaguely and in broad terms, but uh just throwing that out there and uh you can completely ignore that or edit that from the live stream, whatever you need to do, but that's uh my two cents on that. Then verse 38 talks about retaliation.

You have heard that it hath been said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. This excites some people, right? But the law uh was really keeping offenders uh from paying a greater price than the offense deserved. It it helped prevent personal revenge. Uh it's putting a ceiling on vengeance. Sometimes it's hard to know where to draw the line when uh pursuing justice. And so this law is not saying it's a license to get even, but it just puts a limit on getting even.

And uh it prevents a spiraling violence. Typically, the law was applied by setting a monetary amount to pay for the offense. instead of you know if you lost your eye instead of taking somebody else's eye which seems kind of brutal uh you you have a monetary value that's placed in and the person will pay that. So, it's a fair recompense. And uh this is not a command. You don't have to seek compensation if you're wrong, but uh it's something that you can be done. But the greater wisdom of Jesus is found in verse 39.

But I say unto you that you resist not evil, that whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain or two. Give to him that askketh thee, and from him who would borrow of thee, turn not thou away. So in teaching about this law, an eye for an eye, tr a tooth for a tooth. Jesus basically changed the subject and instead of responding to the aspect of physical injury, he's talking more about humiliation. And he talks about a slap, a suit, and subjugation or servitude.

And Jesus is advocating here the attitude of being willing to suffer loss instead of causing another to s uh suffer. So you see the greater or higher righteousness there. Don't escalate violence. You don't give up your uh agency or that is your ability or capacity to act or even exert your own power. But you're shaming the attacker uh with his responses and and retaining your honor. You know, if somebody slaps you on the cheek and you turn to him the other also, that shows courage on your part. You're not escalating the violence, but you're showing some courage.

If you offer your cloak when someone uh takes your coat away at the law, that shows the incivility or injustice of it. In the Old Testament, if somebody had a debt, they would give as collateral uh their cloak, their outer garment. But the scripture said every night that man who had the cloak had to give it back to the owner so that they had a means of keeping warm. And then the next day they gave it back and he kept it all day. And uh if you're giving away your cloak in the Old Testament terms, you're showing the incivility or injustice of what uh the man is doing by suing you. The second mile uh there that person is being told, you're treating me as less than human, forcing me to walk a mile and carry your stuff, but I'm not going to allow that. instead I choose to do more and I'm going to humiliate you by going a second mile.

And so this is the way Jesus taught us uh to handle these kinds of things, leaving judgment to God and letting him repay. And when he says uh resist not evil, that's really meaning don't resist an evil person or an evildoer. It doesn't mean that you put up with a wrong and do nothing and just be a doormat. But resist means to stand against in that you are keeping the evil doer from going forward or doing more. You're just standing your ground. And uh if if he slaps you on the cheek, you turn to him the other also. You're you're standing against what he did and stopping it right there.

And with the lawsuit and with the being forced to go a mile. And so you don't stand against it in a way that matches what's being done, paying uh evil for evil, but you don't resist in kind. You don't stand against them, make them an enemy. And that's what Jesus is driving at here with in terms of retaliation. So you see the deeper meaning behind it. And then the last one, love your enemies. I got about 10 minutes here and I apologize.

I'm stumbling over my words trying to get all this in for the next person to pick up. Uh love your enemies. Verse 43. Ye have heard that hath been said, thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy. Here he's quoting Leviticus uh 19 17 and 18. And the popular application is if you love your neighbor, then logically you hate your enemy, right? That that just makes sense.

And that's what he's addressing here. But Jesus flipped it around in verse 44. He says, "But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you." Love is an attitude resulting in action versus just a feeling. We choose to love and we decide to seek the well-being of an enemy. Love is an act of the will, not just an emotion. And here's something important to note. Your feelings don't have to agree with your choice or your attitude or behavior.

In other words, you choose to love that enemy, but inside, you know, your feelings don't necessarily have to match up, but you still make the choice uh to love anyway. And in our humanity, I know it takes effort to understand that, to believe that, to act on it. But our enemies are just as valuable to God as we are. That's tough to consider, but they are. They are just as valuable to him as his creation. So loving your enemy demonstrates maturity. It's godlike.

It's a testimony to others. And that's what verse 45 points out. That you may be the children of your father, which is in heaven. For he maketh his son to rise on the evil and on the good and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. So he's saying act as God so you may be the children of your father which is in heaven. We know in Romans 5:10 scripture says that God loved us while we were yet sinners. We were his enemies if you will, but yet he made the choice to love us.

So it's not easy. Uh it's like praying for the rival team. It's like praying for an obnoxious person. uh in a very extreme it's praying for members of the Kullex clan, praying for Nazis. Uh I recently got to visit the country of Germany with my family, a portion of them. And uh we went to the DA concentration camp. It's about 40 minutes outside of Berlin.

And uh as we were hearing by a guide and then reading literature and and other information, seeing the remains of that concentration camp, hearing about all the suffering, I knew even then that I was scheduled to teach this lesson in these verses. And so I I put what I was seeing and hearing there about the suffering of those people in this context that those prisoners, it's unimaginable to me that they would be called on to love their captives. But that's what Jesus was saying. And again, that does not compute. Uh it it was just horrific. If I had time, I could tell you about some of the things we learned, what they were suffering. You could of course read it for yourself.

But uh to love those captives, that's just I can't even get my brain wrapped around it. But that's the teaching of Christ. And it takes the greater righteousness called for by Jesus. He just kind of directs us to reframe our view of the enemy and to have empathy and consider how we can even help them. Because if we give in to hostility, we contribute to the problem. It just escalates. So to be like God, we have to imitate his generosity toward the just and the unjust.

the evil and the good. Verse 46, for if you love them which love you, what reward have you? Do not even the publicans the same? And if you salute your brethren only, what do you more than others? Do not even the publicans so if we only love those who love us. That's easy. It's natural.

But verse 48, he says, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your father which is in heaven is perfect." And we know that perfect is not meaning to never do wrong, but it is a completeness. It's a process of of becoming complete doing the will of God ongoing. And uh I find that describing it as a process is both a challenge and a comfort. It's a challenge in that uh you know we're called on to grow and be better and and do that. But it's a comfort knowing that when we don't do so well that it's a process and I'll just keep trying and keep going after it. And so following the instructions of Jesus uh will make us complete. And then in the last few moments that I have, I'll just quickly uh go over verses 6 1-4.

In the sixth chapter, Jesus introduces three areas. Um you'll hear about these in about three weeks, I think. Prayer, fasting, and then my part is giving. Uh he's talking a little bit about religious practices or as apostolics, we would probably say spiritual disciplines. And uh telling us that u they're intended to align us with the heart of God. our our religious practices or spiritual disciplines. But Jesus notes sometimes they do the opposite and a person can seek his own honor or his own status.

And he calls that hypocrisy. Uh we think of hypocrisy as somebody saying one thing doing another. But really Jesus defines this as someone who does the right thing but with the wrong motive and reason. And that's what we find here in verse six I mean chapter 6 verse one. Take heed that you do not your arms before men to be seen of them. Otherwise, you have no reward of your father which is in heaven. Therefore, when thou doest thine arms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may have glory of men, verily I say unto you, they have their reward.

But when thou doest thine arms or arms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth, that thine arms may be in secret, and thy father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. uh the Pharisees were giving charitably to obtain God's favor but also the attention of man and uh the correct motive for giving is to glorify God to help others and righteousness or good deeds should not be displayed just to elevate ourselves or to draw attention to ourselves is what Jesus is saying here. So you're you're doing a good thing in giving, but your motive if it's wrong, you're missing the point is what Jesus says. And I have a number of things I could say, but time is failing me. So let me just uh add this that if anyone would wonder, well then does this make public giving wrong? Is there ever a time when we, you know, can't we ever know that someone's giving such and such an amount? Well, Barnabas, if you'll remember the book of Acts, sold land and gave the proceeds to the church.

And everybody knew it. It wasn't a secret. They knew he had done that, but it was his motive and his manner that was important. He did it with the right motive and in the right way. And so, uh, it doesn't preclude public giving. In fact, there's a bit of a quandry. You know, righteous acts need a public impact because we're the salt of the earth and the light of the world and and we relate to the lives of others.

And so uh we can do some things publicly and people can know what we're doing. But to avoid just being pious before others and drawing attention to ourselves, we just know this. If our deed is based in what is right, if our motive is pure, then it's okay. If it's in self-interest to be seen, uh to be patted on the back, then it's not okay. So it's the motive behind the action that is so critical. So there are times when, you know, we might say publicly, "Pastor, I'll give a $100 for that cause." And if my motive is right, if I'm not just doing it because I, hey, Reaver gave a hundred bucks. That's not the point.

Uh, I can just show that I'm unified with a leader or in a cause, something like that. So, it's not necessarily wrong. It's the motive behind it. And someone said this, our motive and action must be in harmony. Our head must align with our heart. So, it's important that we give with the right spirit. So, in summary, uh, I know I've rushed through all of this.

It was quite a homework assignment I had. And uh Jesus does give us these extensions or deeper meaning and fulfilling the commands he cited. If we just fulfill them literally or on the surface, it's good. Murder, adultery, divorce, oaths, retaliation, love your enemies, and uh not being hypocritical with our religious practices such as giving that he notes here in the first four verses. If we just do those things, it's good. It's right. It's what we should do.

It pleases the Lord. But there is of course the extended deeper meaning that Jesus is sharing with us. And if we can attain that, it's even better is what Jesus is saying. It contributes to the greater or higher righteousness that he teaches. And someone has said this that when Jesus got done keeping his word, what he says unto us is actually more difficult than the ten commandments that were originally given. And I I can see that. But thankfully, we have the Holy Spirit in our lives.

We have the word of God to counsel us. We have church leadership and a family. We have the avenue of prayer and fasting. All of these things can help us to do the will of God and reach this greater or higher righteousness that is called for by Jesus in this teaching on the sermon on the mount. So stand with me if you would. And uh that's a lot to digest. I guess if there's any uh thing for me to offer, you could uh listen to this again sometime or watch it online and go through it on your at your own pace.

But I hope that it and at least enlighten us and help us to understand better what Jesus was teaching on the sermon on the mount. So, if you would join me in prayer and let's ask the Lord to let his word settle deep in our hearts. Lord, thank you so much for this time together and for your people. Thank you for your word which enlightens and instructs us. And I just ask that you would help us to understand it and to follow it as you have outlined it. Help us as Apostolic Pentecostal Church individuals and as a church family to be known as the people who follow your will, fulfill your word. I ask these things in Jesus name.

Amen.