April 22, 2014
Matthew 5:1-2
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.
CONSIDER THIS. . .
Many think of the Sermon on the Mount as “pie-in-the-sky” idealism, as “nice, but optional teaching” for the Christian. But what if the Sermon on the Mount is not an unachievable to-do list? What if it is, rather, a spec sheet of sorts, of the “capacities” of a believer. Think about how automobile makers describe their high performance vehicles: “Zero to Sixty in 5 seconds, 570 HorsePower engine, 190 mph top speed” and so on.
What if THE SERMON on the Mount is actually a vision of what it looks like when a follower of Jesus is full of Jesus, living into the extraordinary capacities available in the Kingdom of God. What if you are actually a Ferrari 458 Italia but you are operating more like a Buick Electra?
John Wesley, in his first sermon on THE SERMON, says it is as if Jesus had said, “Who is he that lusts to live and would fain see good days? Behold, I show you the thing which your soul longs for! See the way you have so long sought in vain; the way of pleasantness; the path to calm, joyous peace, to heaven below and heaven above!”
Don’t let the stunning parallels between Jesus and Moses and the Sermon on the Mount and the Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai be lost on you. We will dig into this soon, but for now, just start thinking of yourself as a Ferrari. I know, it feels like a stretch, but the Buick is now on Craig’s List. You were made for exquisite performance. Your soul longs for it. That’s the holy discontent brewing in the pit of your soul.
Ladies and Gentlemen, start your engines. ;0)
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J.D. Walt writes daily for Seedbed’s Daily Text. He serves as Seedbed’s Sower in Chief. Follow him @jdwalt on Twitter or email him at jd.walt@seedbed.com.
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