In Matthew 4:18 and 19 Jesus of Nazareth, having recently entered into His earthly ministry, we find Him walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Seeing two men casting their nets into the sea, He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him. They would soon be joined by ten others whom Jesus would make “fishers of men.” Beginning in 5:1 we find Him calling His 12 chosen men to Him and telling them about the kingdom of heaven, specifically, how to enter into that soon-coming kingdom of heaven. Another part of their commission as “fishers of men” (apostles–“sent ones” would be to tell others how to join them there. In the previous postings we examined His initial statements relative to the kingdom He would establish following His death. The kingdom of heaven is also known as the church.

In verse 20 Jesus introduces a spiritual application to the Law that their Jewish ancestors had lived under for many generations. Over time He speaks on a variety of subjects, some of which can be confusing unless one has access to background information about Old Testament times in the Jewish community. The Lord begins each example with the words such as: “You have heard that it was said by them of old time, ….” “You have heard that ….,” etc. He followed such foundational statements, He then explains the soon-to-be-added spiritual aspect to several specific rules of behavior. Obviously, His teachings apply to the true saints of His modern day church (Eph. 2:20/ 1 Cor. 10:11/ 2 Pet. 1:21). In verses 21 through 27 He adds to the rule against murder an additional aspect which warns against being angry with someone without a cause. In verses 23 through 26 He tells us that we must be totally honest in our dealings with other people, to admit when we are wrong and to make things right with those we have offended. Otherwise, all of our religiosity, good works, etc. will have been in vain.

In verses 27 and 28 Jesus reveals that SIN TAKES PLACE IN THE MIND. He uses the example of lust leading to a physical act. He points out that sin actually takes place when a thought (temptation) is allowed to linger and become a desire (lust). Acting on the desire is simply adding to the sin. The sin (lust) has already taken place in that the sinner has already committed adultery with the woman in his heart. The same is true regardless of the sin involved. For example, Adam and Eve sinned when they decided eat of the fruit of the forbidden tree. Eating of it simply brought the sin to fruition. If they had not eaten of it, the fact that they wanted (lusted) to was sin. Lust, regardless of its type, must be repented of. The rich man will miss out on salvation because he could not get rid of his lust. Had he done so he would have automatically gotten rid of his stuff and followed Jesus in that He had looked for Him and knew that whatever He told him was Truth. Read James 1:14-16.

In verses 28 through 30 Jesus simply tells us to do whatever is necessary to get sin out of our lives and keep it out. One can gouge out both eyes and cut off both hands and it will mean nothing if one continues to sin. In that sin begins and is conducted in the mind (heart), it is there that the battle for supremacy takes place. It is there that the human will makes the final decision whether to give in to temptation from Satan or to submit to the will of God. If one resists the devil “he will flee from you” (Jam. 4:7). But only for a while. We must continue to resist his temptations for he will continue to attack us with his “fiery darts” (Eph. 6:16). We must be vigilant in our preparation for Satan’s attacks because THEY ARE COMING. We are human, just as was Jesus of Nazareth. If He had an advantage over us, then He is not our example to follow. Satan knows what buttons to push and when to push them. He attacks when and where we are most vulnerable. Therefore, it is necessary that we do not pollute our minds with sin in any form, such as t.v., books, internet, movies, music, places, etc.

In verses 31 and 32 we find a rule that has been misunderstood by many, myself included. Due to mass communication being what is, such confusion can be eliminated by learning about societal norms as they existed during ancient times. The teaching concerning divorce and remarriage is one such example. Jesus stated that in olden times among the Jews if a man put away his wife he gave her a declaration of divorcement. “But I say to you, that whosoever puts away his wife, except for adultery, causes her to commit adultery, and whosoever marries a divorced woman is guilty of adultery.” The explanation is that in ancient times Jewish women did not work outside the home, learn a trade, develop economic skills, etc. and therefore had no way to support themselves except prostitution. This is one reason girls married early. So even a pure, chaste woman whose husband had divorced her had to prostitute herself in order to survive. The belief was that, not having committed adultery, there had to be another reason for her husband to divorce her, thereby making her unfit for marriage. Whoever married a divorced woman who had become a prostitute entered into her adultery.

In verses 33 through 37 Jesus speaks about swearing by something over which you have no control. He forbids such oaths concerning such things. In my experience, three forbidden proclamations stand out. I have heard people say, “I swear on my mother’s grave,” and, “I swear on the Bible” and “I swear to God.” We are forbidden to do this. Jesus says, “Let your communication be ‘Yea’ (yes) and ‘Nay’ (no). Anything more than this comes from evil.”

Verses 38, 39 and 42 are three more confusing social rules that require some background information. Anciently, the king and those who served him on state business were not held to the same standard of behavior as the common man. If an official of the king, when acting in an official capacity, commanded someone to carry something one was obligated to do so. To not do so was considered a grave mistake. Later, when the Romans ruled the Jews, they assumed total control over the nation. The Jews had only the rights allotted to them by their rulers. One of the rights imposed on the Jews was that, by law, a Roman could strike a Jew on the cheek one time. Christ’s Words relative to those social laws were what He was referring to in these three verses. Verses 40 and 42 speak to the same general rules of social and legal behavior.

In verses 43 through 47 Jesus speaks about the love we are to have for our fellow man, not all of whom are model citizens. The key to these verses is His words found in Romans 12:19: “Vengeance is mine …, I will repay.”

Verse 48 is crucial and summarizes the entire Sermon on the Mount. Jesus’ 14 Words are in fact a capsulized version of the entire Bible: “Therefore, you are to be perfect, even (the same) as your Father Who is in heaven is perfect.” There has been much discussion concerning the Words spoken by Jesus relative to 1) the supposed impossibility of obeying the command for perfection and 2) the meaning of the word “perfect.” First, His Words are not options, but rather COMMANDS. As a human being, Jesus did the supposed “impossible” and commanded us to do “even as” He did (Rev. 3:21/ 1 Jn. 2:6). And second, the word “perfect” simply means that we must be IN OUR HUMAN, EARTHLY LIFE JUST AS JESUS WAS DURING HIS EARTHLY LIFE. He said that anyone who saw Him saw the Father. We are required to emulate His life.

He tells us that in order to join Him in the kingdom of God upon His return we must be His SPIRITUAL BRETHREN. He defined His spiritual brethren as “Those who obey My Father Who is in heaven” (Mat. 12:46-50). Jesus was a “Do as I say and do” leader. Another, even more graphic statement is found in John 15:13 and 14 where Jesus says to His disciples (and all who would join Him in the Kingdom of God), “Greater love has no man than that He lay down His life for His friends.” Then He says words that most people choose to overlook: “You (disciples then and now) are My friends IF YOU DO WHATSOEVER I COMMAND YOU TO DO.” Notice that He did not tell them that they need “only believe, love Me and repent.” The lesson is clear for those who will hear it: IF WE DO NOT OBEY THE HOLY SCRIPTUES HIS DEATH WILL HAVE NO EFFECT ON OUR LIVES, NOT NOW, NOT EVER. As far as the church sinner is concerned, His death was in vain.

Statements such as those found above caused many of His disciples to leave Him ( Jn. 6:59-66). Today, statements such as those cause false disciples to go temporarily (and deliberately) blind when reading such statements as Matthew 12:46 through 50 and John 15:13 and 14. There is an age-old saying that “Ignorance is bliss,” and “What I don’t know won’t hurt me.” The belief among the blinded ones is that we are not responsible for what we do not know. The Lord reminds us that ignorance is no excuse. He said: “MY PEOPLE ARE DESTROYED FOR LACK OF KNOWLEDGE” (Hos. 4:6). Note God called those who were dying due to a lack of knowledge “MY PEOPLE” (in the church). Knowledge of what? His Truth–His Word by which we all must live and by which all will be judged (Mat. 4:4/ Jn. 12:44-50). L.J.