“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
~ Matthew 5:48
Hi James and Ellen,
Would you have liked to personally have heard Jesus teach? The Sermon of the Mount covers three chapters in the Matthew Book. Jesus may have at times used a question and answer format to teach His disciples – and the large throngs of guys, gals and kids who followed Him. Your grandpaa thinks that what is called the Sermon of the Mount is actually one of these question and answer times when Jesus used a question and answer approach to teach His disciple – and the large hordes of guys, gals and kids who followed Him. Jesus’s disciples – along with a large mass of guys, gal and kids who were following Him, were possibly hanging out with Jesus on a gentle, sloping hillside that is located near the northeast corner of the Sea of Galilee. Your grandpaa thinks that there is a good possibility that a guy – possibly one of the disciples who Jesus had already chosen, took notes of Jesus’ answers. When your grandpaa reads what Matthew scribed in what is called the Sermon of the Mount, it seems to be to your grandpaa that the Sermon of the Mount is a series of mini sermons with each of the mini sermons an answer that Jesus gave for a question that was asked of Him by one of His disciples or by a guy in the multitude that was following Jesus. Jesus had not told Matthew yet that he was one of His disciples. Matthew was still doing his thing as a tax collector in the town of Capernaum. Matthew still may have taken notes at that time and used the notes to begin Matthew 5.
If you were asked to teach a Sunday School class or preach the next Sunday morning’s sermon, how would you begin teaching your class or preaching your sermon? Nine individual blessings set up the mini messages that make up the Sermon of the Mount. The nine different blessings are called beatitudes. Beatitudes in Spanish can be translated as greetings versus blessings. Beatitudes translated into Spanish is Bienaventuranzas. Blessings translated into Spanish is Bendiciones. Welcome translated into Spanish is Bienvenido. Your grandpaa believes that Jesus wanted to very warmly welcome every guy, gal and kid – in whatever life situation that each guy, gal or kid was in, who was following Him to hear Him talk, teach or preach. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were feeling spiritually vulnerable would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were feeling emotional anguish would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were experiencing fear of being in Jesus’ presence would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were really hungry for spiritual truths would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were always thoughtful to other guys, gals and kids would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were already living totally committed lives in the truths that Jesus was teaching would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were always encouraging other guys, gals and kids to pursue peace would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were being picked on by other guys, gals and kids because of their committed faith in Him would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. Your grandpaa thinks that the guys, gals and kids who were being insulted and who were being lied about by other guys, gals and kids would have felt personally welcomed by Jesus at the moment that He greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him. If you had been there sitting on the side of a sloping hill near the Sea of Galilee, would you have felt welcomed at that moment that Jesus greeted every guy, gal and kid who was following Him? Your grandpaa really wishes that pastors and/or church leaders were a whole lot more intentional today about welcoming every guy, gal and kids who comes to a church service believing that God – as God the Spirit, has prompted each guy, gal and kid to go to the church service versus viewing a lot of the guys and gals who are in a church service as being there as consumers of the Gospel with little if any desire to apply the Gospel in their lives in proactive ways.
Your grandpaa thinks that it is good to vocalize a personalized greeting – just as Jesus personalized welcoming or greeting or blessing the guys, gals and kids who wanted to hear Him talk, teach and/or preach. After telling His disciples – and the large crowd of guys, gals and kids who were listening to Him talk, teach and/or preach, that they were to let the flavor in their lives from believing in what He was telling, teaching and/or preaching to them to be used as salt in the lives of other guys, gals and kids, that they were not to hide their life’s light under a bowl – after accepting what He was telling, teaching and/or preaching, from the lives of other guys, gals and kids, that they were to continue to accept the law’s teaching as guidelines for their lives and that they were to use forgiveness instead of vengefulness to demonstrate their obedience to His talking, teaching and/or preaching. Verse 48 – “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”, explicitly sums up what Jesus talked about, taught and/or preached.
Matthew 5 (731)