The Sermon on the Mount is found in its most detailed form in Matthew chapters 5-7. Jesus has been going around Galilee preaching the Gospel and performing miracles (healing and casting out demons). He has quickly gained a huge following (Read Matthew 4:23-25). In chapter 5, Jesus walks up a mountain, sits down, gathers His disciples, and begins to teach them. The crowd following Him listens closely to His words. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus provides a template to the world of His teachings. Jesus defines what it means to be a true follower of God. He explains how followers of God are to relate to God and to their fellow man (family, friends, spouses, strangers, rich, poor, enemies.) As we’ll see, Jesus’ teaching on these topics was in stark contrast to the predominant teaching of the day espoused by the Pharisees who were the teachers of the Law.
A. Internal versus External
The focus of the Pharisees’ teaching was on the external. One can identify a true follower of God by how well they obey the Law and tradition. Jesus’ focus was on the internal, specifically the heart. It is the heart that motivates a person to be a friend or an enemy to God and others. The heart is the source of love and hate; blessing and cursing. According to Jesus, a true follower of God is one whose heart is full of love for God and others. Such a heart will produce a desire to pursue righteousness and godliness and will impact how they view and relate to their fellow man. Pharisees’ teaching – external only; Jesus’ teaching – internal that impacted the external. Examples of these contrasting teachings found in the Sermon on the Mount. Read Matthew chapter 5:21-24; 27-28; 38-48; chapter 7:12. The Pharisees taught that sin and righteousness were only external acts. Jesus said that both have their origins in internal thoughts.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
John the Baptist (cont'd)
2) John prepared the people for the Messiah’s purpose – Read Luke 3:15-17. a) The Messiah will bring a new, more powerful baptism – the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire. What is the difference between John’s baptism and the coming Messiah’s baptism? John’s baptism by water – symbolized the repentant one’s decision to turn from their sinful life and to walk the path of righteousness. However, problem is water does not enable one to continue on the path of righteousness. When one is faced with the choice to obey or disobey God, the water does not convict you/teach you to choose righteousness. Water does not teach you the will of God/mold you in the spiritual image of God. The Messiah’s Baptism of Holy Spirit and fire – Holy Spirit 1) convicts sin leading to repentance; 2) Gives the repentant the power to overcome sin so that they can stay on the path of righteousness. 3) Fire is a symbol of judgment associated with the Holy Spirit that relates to judging and punishing the wicked.
Illustration: Baptism – Greek word is baptizo – to immerse. An ancient Greek recipe for making pickles says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable (say a cucumber) should first be dipped into boiling water and then 'baptised' (baptizo) in a vinegar solution. The first dipping is temporary. The cucumber is still a cucumber. The second, the act of baptizing (immersing) the vegetable, produces a permanent change – the cucumber is a pickle. Just as the dipping of the cucumber into the boiling water did not produce a pickle, John’s baptism did not have the power to produce a permanent change in the life of the repentant one. Just as the dipping of the cucumber into the vinegar solution produced a pickle, the baptism of the coming Messiah would produce a permanent change.
b) Take away sin from the world – Read John 1:29-30; How did John refer to the Messiah? As a king or a military leader? No. A Lamb … a baby sheep – the most timid of creatures; a fragile animal. Poses a threat to no one. Not the type of Messiah the Jews was expecting. By referring to the Messiah as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin from the world, what was John saying about how the Messiah would accomplish this? In the Old Testament, a spotless lamb with no blemishes or defects was sacrificed to take away the sins of the people. The lamb died to pay the penalty for the sins of the people. According to John the Baptist, the Messiah’s purpose was to die to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world NOT to lead the Jews in revolt against Rome, restore the greatness of Israel, and exact vengeance on the Gentiles.
The Baptism of Jesus by John - Read Matthew 3:13-17. A huge moment in history. Jesus comes to be baptized by John the Baptist. Steps into the Jordan River and stands before John to be baptized. What was John’s reaction? I am not worthy to baptize you. You should be baptizing me. Paraphrase what Jesus said to John – “This is the right thing for us to do.” What did Jesus mean by this? Jesus allowed Himself to be baptized by John not as a sign of repentance because Jesus had no sins to repent. The purpose of His baptism was to 1) confirm Jesus as the Messiah and as the Son of God. 2) affirm/validate John’s ministry which was to prepare the way for the Messiah. John the Baptist’s ministry led up to this moment. It was all about this moment – the revelation of the Messiah. How did God reveal Jesus to be the Messiah through His baptism by John? Read verses 16-17. Heaven split open and the Holy Spirit descended as lightly as a dove upon Jesus and God the Father spoke from heaven telling John – “This is My Son whom I love and am very proud of.” God expresses His approval and pride to His Son’s act of righteousness. This is one of only two times that God the Father speaks in the New Testament. It is also the first time we see the Holy Trinity together. In John chapter 1, John the Baptist says this event confirmed for him that Jesus was the one he had prophesied about. As far as we know, only Jesus and John the Baptist witnessed this miraculous event.
Afterwards, Jesus leaves to be tempted by Satan in the wilderness. John the Baptist continues to preach repentance and baptize. In Mark 6:14-29, John the Baptist confronts Herod about his affair with his brother’s wife. The confrontation leads to John’s death.
Illustration: Baptism – Greek word is baptizo – to immerse. An ancient Greek recipe for making pickles says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable (say a cucumber) should first be dipped into boiling water and then 'baptised' (baptizo) in a vinegar solution. The first dipping is temporary. The cucumber is still a cucumber. The second, the act of baptizing (immersing) the vegetable, produces a permanent change – the cucumber is a pickle. Just as the dipping of the cucumber into the boiling water did not produce a pickle, John’s baptism did not have the power to produce a permanent change in the life of the repentant one. Just as the dipping of the cucumber into the vinegar solution produced a pickle, the baptism of the coming Messiah would produce a permanent change.
b) Take away sin from the world – Read John 1:29-30; How did John refer to the Messiah? As a king or a military leader? No. A Lamb … a baby sheep – the most timid of creatures; a fragile animal. Poses a threat to no one. Not the type of Messiah the Jews was expecting. By referring to the Messiah as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin from the world, what was John saying about how the Messiah would accomplish this? In the Old Testament, a spotless lamb with no blemishes or defects was sacrificed to take away the sins of the people. The lamb died to pay the penalty for the sins of the people. According to John the Baptist, the Messiah’s purpose was to die to pay the penalty for the sins of the whole world NOT to lead the Jews in revolt against Rome, restore the greatness of Israel, and exact vengeance on the Gentiles.
The Baptism of Jesus by John - Read Matthew 3:13-17. A huge moment in history. Jesus comes to be baptized by John the Baptist. Steps into the Jordan River and stands before John to be baptized. What was John’s reaction? I am not worthy to baptize you. You should be baptizing me. Paraphrase what Jesus said to John – “This is the right thing for us to do.” What did Jesus mean by this? Jesus allowed Himself to be baptized by John not as a sign of repentance because Jesus had no sins to repent. The purpose of His baptism was to 1) confirm Jesus as the Messiah and as the Son of God. 2) affirm/validate John’s ministry which was to prepare the way for the Messiah. John the Baptist’s ministry led up to this moment. It was all about this moment – the revelation of the Messiah. How did God reveal Jesus to be the Messiah through His baptism by John? Read verses 16-17. Heaven split open and the Holy Spirit descended as lightly as a dove upon Jesus and God the Father spoke from heaven telling John – “This is My Son whom I love and am very proud of.” God expresses His approval and pride to His Son’s act of righteousness. This is one of only two times that God the Father speaks in the New Testament. It is also the first time we see the Holy Trinity together. In John chapter 1, John the Baptist says this event confirmed for him that Jesus was the one he had prophesied about. As far as we know, only Jesus and John the Baptist witnessed this miraculous event.
Afterwards, Jesus leaves to be tempted by Satan in the wilderness. John the Baptist continues to preach repentance and baptize. In Mark 6:14-29, John the Baptist confronts Herod about his affair with his brother’s wife. The confrontation leads to John’s death.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Key persons/groups/terms found in the Gospels (cont'd)
Parables – A story lesson which conveys spiritual truth from everyday life. It was a popular teaching method used by Jesus. For examples see Luke 15 and Luke 18:9-14. Luke 10:25-37 – the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Some parables Jesus would explain to the people what they meant while with other parables He would not. Many people, even His disciples, would walk away from Jesus’ parables scratching their head trying to figure it out. Only people who listened with their hearts and not their ears fully understood many of Jesus’ parables. Unfortunately, the people’s hearts had been hardened/dulled by the teachings of the Pharisees who emphasized an external form of godliness rather than an inward form.
John the Baptist – Read Luke 3:1-2, Mark 1:6 (camel’s hair is very coarse. Itchy. Very uncomfortable; locust – common delicacy in desert communities), Luke 3:3-6
All four gospels cite Isaiah 40:3 when introducing John the Baptist.
Role of John the Baptist – Prepare humanity for the coming of God’s salvation – the Messiah. Prepare the people for the coming of Jesus. John was to set the table. He was the Prologue, the opening act. John was not to be subtle/subdued in preparing the way for Jesus. Reading Isaiah 40:3-5 quoted by Luke, what imagery do you see? John the Baptist was to be a bulldozer tearing down religious tradition that had burdened the people. He was to tear down the religious establishment responsible for creating this tradition, i.e. Pharisees and Sadducees. They were more concerned with attaining and sustaining power/influence over the people. They used religion as a tool to attain and sustain power/influence over the people. Rather than guiding people to a true relationship with God, the Pharisees and Sadducees made straight paths to God crooked. They deepened the valleys and built tall mountains. They made it difficult fr people to see God/know His salvation. John’s job was to be the bulldozer to make the path between God and humanity straight and level NOT so that humanity could go to God for salvation but so that God could bring salvation to man.
How John the Baptist carried out his role. Read Luke 3:3, 7-14. (Point out that reference to brood of vipers is directed at the Pharisees and Sadducees in the crowd. Read Matthew’s account of John the Baptist’s ministry.) 1) John prepared the people for Jesus’ message – repentance for forgiveness of sins. Looking at John’s sermon found in all four Gospels, there are three similar parts. a) Confess sins; b) Turn away from path of sin. No longer are you to walk in it. Go in the opposite direction. c) Show evidence of this new direction in your everyday life. As John says in verse 8, “produce fruit in keeping with repentance.” Don’t just say it, live it. Otherwise you are hypocrite. John lists examples in verses 11-14. John preached that one’s salvation is not based on genetics (being a Jew) or on tradition. Read verses 8-9. John’s message of salvation through repentance was continued by Jesus. He built upon John’s message. Took it to a higher level. How? Jesus Himself would be the source of salvation.
Hundreds of people came from many miles to see and hear John the Baptist. Why? Was it because of his physical appearance? Long haired wild man wearing camel’s hair and eating locusts. At first that may have been the reason people came to see John. What kept the people there; what got their attention was his message of repentance. It was new, different from the theology of the religious establishment (Pharisees and Sadducees.) John’s message focused on an inward change that produced an external change. The religious establishment focused on external change (rules, laws, tradition) that made no impact the heart. The boldness/courage in which he preached his message attracted many people. John the Baptist taught as one with authority. He did not preach a feel good/Kum Bah Yah sermon. John was straightforward/tell it like it is/honest/direct. He was not politically correct. John called a sin sin and made no apologies for it. John the Baptist was afraid to step on anybody’s toes whether you were a pauper or a king or a Pharisee or Sadducee. John was equal opportunity fire and brimstone. Read Luke 3:8, 19-20. John got in people’s faces and called them sinners. He told them to repent or they would go to Hell. John shook people up. You walked away from one of John the Baptist’s sermons either saved or angry. John had to be that way. He was the coming Messiah’s bulldozer.
John the Baptist – Read Luke 3:1-2, Mark 1:6 (camel’s hair is very coarse. Itchy. Very uncomfortable; locust – common delicacy in desert communities), Luke 3:3-6
All four gospels cite Isaiah 40:3 when introducing John the Baptist.
Role of John the Baptist – Prepare humanity for the coming of God’s salvation – the Messiah. Prepare the people for the coming of Jesus. John was to set the table. He was the Prologue, the opening act. John was not to be subtle/subdued in preparing the way for Jesus. Reading Isaiah 40:3-5 quoted by Luke, what imagery do you see? John the Baptist was to be a bulldozer tearing down religious tradition that had burdened the people. He was to tear down the religious establishment responsible for creating this tradition, i.e. Pharisees and Sadducees. They were more concerned with attaining and sustaining power/influence over the people. They used religion as a tool to attain and sustain power/influence over the people. Rather than guiding people to a true relationship with God, the Pharisees and Sadducees made straight paths to God crooked. They deepened the valleys and built tall mountains. They made it difficult fr people to see God/know His salvation. John’s job was to be the bulldozer to make the path between God and humanity straight and level NOT so that humanity could go to God for salvation but so that God could bring salvation to man.
How John the Baptist carried out his role. Read Luke 3:3, 7-14. (Point out that reference to brood of vipers is directed at the Pharisees and Sadducees in the crowd. Read Matthew’s account of John the Baptist’s ministry.) 1) John prepared the people for Jesus’ message – repentance for forgiveness of sins. Looking at John’s sermon found in all four Gospels, there are three similar parts. a) Confess sins; b) Turn away from path of sin. No longer are you to walk in it. Go in the opposite direction. c) Show evidence of this new direction in your everyday life. As John says in verse 8, “produce fruit in keeping with repentance.” Don’t just say it, live it. Otherwise you are hypocrite. John lists examples in verses 11-14. John preached that one’s salvation is not based on genetics (being a Jew) or on tradition. Read verses 8-9. John’s message of salvation through repentance was continued by Jesus. He built upon John’s message. Took it to a higher level. How? Jesus Himself would be the source of salvation.
Hundreds of people came from many miles to see and hear John the Baptist. Why? Was it because of his physical appearance? Long haired wild man wearing camel’s hair and eating locusts. At first that may have been the reason people came to see John. What kept the people there; what got their attention was his message of repentance. It was new, different from the theology of the religious establishment (Pharisees and Sadducees.) John’s message focused on an inward change that produced an external change. The religious establishment focused on external change (rules, laws, tradition) that made no impact the heart. The boldness/courage in which he preached his message attracted many people. John the Baptist taught as one with authority. He did not preach a feel good/Kum Bah Yah sermon. John was straightforward/tell it like it is/honest/direct. He was not politically correct. John called a sin sin and made no apologies for it. John the Baptist was afraid to step on anybody’s toes whether you were a pauper or a king or a Pharisee or Sadducee. John was equal opportunity fire and brimstone. Read Luke 3:8, 19-20. John got in people’s faces and called them sinners. He told them to repent or they would go to Hell. John shook people up. You walked away from one of John the Baptist’s sermons either saved or angry. John had to be that way. He was the coming Messiah’s bulldozer.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Key persons/groups/terms found in the Gospels (cont'd)
Sadducees – A Jewish religious and political group that was a rival to the Pharisees. While the Pharisees were scribes and teachers, the Sadducees were priests. Consequently, the Sadducees controlled the temple. The high priest was a member of the Sadducees. While the Pharisees enjoyed the support of the general public, Sadducee support was largely confined to the wealthy upper class. The Sadducees did not believe in angels, demons, the resurrection of the dead, Satan, Hell, immortality of the soul - eternal life and eternal damnation, and the coming of the Messiah. They accepted only the first five books of the Bible (the Pentateuch) as authoritative Scripture. The Sadducees completely rejected the oral laws and traditions embraced by the Pharisees. The Sadducees did not completely reject Greek culture and cooperated with the Romans. They were more concerned with political influence than spiritual matters. The Pharisees and Sadducees were constantly at odds with one another in an effort to gain greater influence over the Jewish people.
The Sadducees resented Jesus because He believed in the resurrection, eternal life, Hell, etc. More importantly, they attacked Him for teaching as one who had authority to interpret God’s Law/to speak on behalf of God but that authority did not come from the Sadducees.
Although the Pharisees and Sadducees were polar opposites in their beliefs, the one thing that united them was their resentment of Jesus. They regarded Jesus as a threat to their hold on Jewish society. They worked together to remove that threat.
Sanhedrin – The highest Jewish judicial court in Jerusalem under the leadership of the high priest. It is similar to our Supreme Court with the high priest acting as the Chief Justice. The Sanhedrin consisted of 71 members (70 elders, priests, and teachers of the law plus the high priest.) Membership in the Sanhedrin was conferred by appointment and accompanied by a ceremony of ordination through the laying on of hands. The Sanhedrin heard matters related to Jewish religious law. Jesus was put on trial before the Sanhedrin for breaking the Law and claiming to be the Son of God. During the New Testament era the Sanhedrin was controlled by the Pharisees and Sadducees who rarely agreed on anything. Think Republicans and Democrats who control Congress today. Read Acts 23:1-11.
Samaritans – A group of people who lived in a region called Samaria located between the Sea of Galilee and Jerusalem. In Old Testament days, it was the location of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. In 722 B.C., Assyria conquered the Northern Kingdom and forced thousands of Israelites into exile. The Assyrians then forced several different people groups to live in the Northern Kingdom – peoples of different cultures and religions. Read II Kings chapter 17. Over time these people groups intermarried with one another and with the few remaining Israelites who were not sent into exiles. A group of Samaritans developed a worship of God based on the first five books of the Bible. They had their own priests and built a temple on Mt. Gerizim where the Samaritans worshipped God by offering animal sacrifices. The Samaritans rejected Jerusalem as a holy place. They believed in a Messiah who in their view would be a great prophet like Moses. Because of the Samaritans’ mixed heritage and their different religious beliefs, the Jews developed a growing hostility towards Samaritans. They regarded Samaritans as half-breeds both physically and spiritually. During the Intertestamental Period, the Jews destroyed the Samaritan temple at Mt. Gerazim. This act created a permanent rift between Samaritans and Jews marked by racial, social, and religious segregation. Think of the segregated relationship between whites and blacks in the South from 1865-1960’s. The Samaritans avoided contact with Jews and Jews avoided contact with Samaritans. For example, many Jews refused to step foot on Samaritan soil. They would cross the Jordan River and travel along the eastern boundary to get to Galilee. Jews regarded any object touched by a Samaritan to be unclean. Pharisees used the word Samaritan as a racial epithet against Jesus. A small group of Samaritans (about 700) continue to practice their religion (including animal sacrifices) in Israel today on Mt. Gerizim.
The Sadducees resented Jesus because He believed in the resurrection, eternal life, Hell, etc. More importantly, they attacked Him for teaching as one who had authority to interpret God’s Law/to speak on behalf of God but that authority did not come from the Sadducees.
Although the Pharisees and Sadducees were polar opposites in their beliefs, the one thing that united them was their resentment of Jesus. They regarded Jesus as a threat to their hold on Jewish society. They worked together to remove that threat.
Sanhedrin – The highest Jewish judicial court in Jerusalem under the leadership of the high priest. It is similar to our Supreme Court with the high priest acting as the Chief Justice. The Sanhedrin consisted of 71 members (70 elders, priests, and teachers of the law plus the high priest.) Membership in the Sanhedrin was conferred by appointment and accompanied by a ceremony of ordination through the laying on of hands. The Sanhedrin heard matters related to Jewish religious law. Jesus was put on trial before the Sanhedrin for breaking the Law and claiming to be the Son of God. During the New Testament era the Sanhedrin was controlled by the Pharisees and Sadducees who rarely agreed on anything. Think Republicans and Democrats who control Congress today. Read Acts 23:1-11.
Samaritans – A group of people who lived in a region called Samaria located between the Sea of Galilee and Jerusalem. In Old Testament days, it was the location of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. In 722 B.C., Assyria conquered the Northern Kingdom and forced thousands of Israelites into exile. The Assyrians then forced several different people groups to live in the Northern Kingdom – peoples of different cultures and religions. Read II Kings chapter 17. Over time these people groups intermarried with one another and with the few remaining Israelites who were not sent into exiles. A group of Samaritans developed a worship of God based on the first five books of the Bible. They had their own priests and built a temple on Mt. Gerizim where the Samaritans worshipped God by offering animal sacrifices. The Samaritans rejected Jerusalem as a holy place. They believed in a Messiah who in their view would be a great prophet like Moses. Because of the Samaritans’ mixed heritage and their different religious beliefs, the Jews developed a growing hostility towards Samaritans. They regarded Samaritans as half-breeds both physically and spiritually. During the Intertestamental Period, the Jews destroyed the Samaritan temple at Mt. Gerazim. This act created a permanent rift between Samaritans and Jews marked by racial, social, and religious segregation. Think of the segregated relationship between whites and blacks in the South from 1865-1960’s. The Samaritans avoided contact with Jews and Jews avoided contact with Samaritans. For example, many Jews refused to step foot on Samaritan soil. They would cross the Jordan River and travel along the eastern boundary to get to Galilee. Jews regarded any object touched by a Samaritan to be unclean. Pharisees used the word Samaritan as a racial epithet against Jesus. A small group of Samaritans (about 700) continue to practice their religion (including animal sacrifices) in Israel today on Mt. Gerizim.
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