Misusing the Sermon on the Mount

Misusing the Sermon on the Mount

Someone recently sent me a copy of a pamphlet that had been left in their doorway by a local church. It misused several scripture passages in a way I have seen far too often. I want to comment in case you may have run across similar teaching.

The authors of the pamphlet claimed that we must follow the teachings of Jesus. As examples of those teachings, they quote from Matthew chapters 5 and 6. Here are the specific verses individually:

Matthew 5:28 “but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (NASB 2020)

Matthew 5:44 “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (NASB 2020)

Matthew 6:14 “For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” (NASB 2020)

They claim that these are not merely suggestions for a good life, but instead are standards to which God holds everyone. They state that we will one day be judged on our obedience to teachings like these.

The scripture passage from which they are quoting is part of a teaching session Jesus gave. We call it the Sermon on the Mount. He was teaching people the true meaning of the law given by Moses in the Old Testament.

We know this because He tells His audience things like we find in Matthew 5:21–22 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT MURDER,’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be answerable to the court.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be answerable to the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be answerable to the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.” (NASB 2020) and a few sentences later in: Matthew 5:27–28 He says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (NASB 2020)

Jesus makes it clear that simply obeying the letter of the law is not sufficient. Rather, obeying the spirit of the law is necessary.

In this discourse, Jesus includes some other directives that these teachers fail to mention. Here is a sampling:

Matthew 5:29–30 “Now if your right eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.” (NASB 2020)

As is true of each of us, the writers of this pamphlet have sinned with their eyes and their hands yet have neither gouged their eyes out nor cut their hands off. They are picking and choosing which of the teachings of the Law of Moses (which is what Jesus was teaching) must be obeyed. Scripture does not allow for this. Indeed, James talks about obedience to the law and says that if we keep every point of the law yet stumble at just one point, we have broken all if it. James 2:10 “For whoever keeps the whole Law, yet stumbles in one point, has become guilty of all.” (NASB 2020)

Jesus in the same passage from which they quote makes the true requirement very clear. In Matthew 5:48 He says, “Therefore you shall be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (NASB 2020) This is the spirit of the law, and this is the standard to which we are held by that law.

The idea that we are to follow things that Jesus taught to Jews who were still under the Law of Moses is demonstrably ridiculous. We are not under the law of Moses. Unless we are ethnic Jews, we never were. In fact, we were specifically excluded. We see this communicated clearly in Ephesians 2:11–12 “Therefore remember that previously you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision” which is performed in the flesh by human hands—remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the people of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world. (NASB 2020)

No one could keep the Mosaic law. Even Peter knew that, as we see in Acts 15:10 “…why are you putting God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our forefathers nor we have been able to bear?” (NASB 2020)

Further, Romans 6:14 tells us that “sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under the Law but under grace.” (NASB 2020) Everyone who tries to avoid sin by obeying the law will fail. Only Jesus could do that. He did it, and He gave us the credit for it.

This is the beauty and power of the Gospel. It is the grace of God that frees us from slavery to sin. The Holy Spirit living in us guides us into all truth, according to John 16:13. He is working in us to desire, and then to actually do, godly things (Philippians 2:13) and Titus 2:11-12 tells us that it is grace that teaches us to deny ungodliness and live upright and godly lives in this world.

This pamphlet also teaches error about judgement. In it, the claim is made that everyone will be judged according to their deeds. To support their claim, they reference this passage. Revelation 20:12–13 “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged, each one of them according to their deeds.” (NASB 2020)

Notice however, that in this passage it is the dead who are being judged. People who have eternal life are not dead, they are very truly alive.

Here is what John has to say about it in John 3:16–18 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him. The one who believes in Him is not judged; the one who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (NASB 2020)

Those who are in Christ are not judged. Those who choose not to believe are not in Christ and will be (are already) judged.

Saint, when the day of judgement comes, your earthly deeds will not be under a microscope. For you it will be more like walking up with Jesus by your side and hearing Him say, “this one’s with me.”