Matthew 5:1,2 - Sermon on the Mount

This is one of the most famous sections in the gospel, but also one of the least well understood, and almost certainly the least well practised!

Some say this represents a summary of a single teaching session, others that it is a compilation of teachings presented on several occasions. The text seems to make it clear that this is a summary of a single period of teaching. However, it is also equally clear from Scripture that Jesus taught at least parts of this message on other occasions. Most prominently in the "sermon on the plain" in Luke. They didn't have printing presses, tape or video recorders, and certainly not the internet. So if someone said something worth saying, they would almost certainly repeat it, or something similar, on many occasions.

A more vital question is that of application and meaning. Some say the standards are impossibly high, and see it as referring to the future kingdom. Such a notion is complete garbage. The teaching is designed for sinners coming into the kingdom of God living in a fallen world, ie now! So however it should be applied, it is meant to be applied to our lives today.

I will offer my view here so you know where I am coming from. However, this is such an amazing section of Scripture, and I offer these views tentatively, to at least give us a framework within which to work. The framework may well need changing though.

First there are three things that I believe the sermon is NOT:

1. It is not a replacement for the Law. Jesus Himself says that He did not come to do away with the Law or Prophets, but to fulfil them (Matt 5:17).
2. It is not meant to be applied in a legalistic manner, but is more about a change in our hearts.
3. It is not a meant as a system for government. The rest of the Bible makes it quite clear that government is meant to resist evil. It is just not designed for this. Moreover, Jesus said that His kingdom is not of this world.

So how are we to view it? I believe we are to view it as how the kingdom of God operates in our lives today, and how forgiven sinners are to live in a fallen world.


A detailed look at the various approaches taken to interpreting the Sermon on the Mount can be found here.