Study 4 Objective:
What did Jesus our Lord have to say and how does that affect us?
Back to Bible Study 4:
What is the message of Jesus Christ?
Jesus said that His words were the words of life (John 6:63). “His doctrine” was from God the Father (3:34; 7:16; 14:10), and His desire was that His words dwell in the believer (15:7). John, who outlived the rest of the apostles, had this to say about the teaching of Jesus: “whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son” (2 John 9). “But why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’”, said Christ, “and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). How can a Christian claim to surrender to the lordship of Christ and at the same time ignore His words? For the Christian, obedience is to our Lord Jesus Christ and to His gospel (2 Corinthians 10:5; 2 Thessalonians 1:8). Reflection: How does someone transgress the doctrine of Christ? The Sermon on the Mount
The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-7:29; Luke 6:20-49) records some major teachings of Jesus. Christ begins by expounding spiritual attitudes his followers should embrace. The poor in spirit, those who are touched by the plight of others to the extent that they mourn, who are meek, who hunger and thirst |
for righteousness, who are merciful, who are pure in heart, who are peacemakers, who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, such
people are spiritually rich and blessed, and are the “salt of the earth”, and they glorify the Father (Matthew 5:1-16). Jesus then compares Old Testament instructions (what “was said to those of old”) with what He is telling His believers to do (“but I say to you”). Note the comparative phrases in Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28, 31-32, 33-34, 38-39, and 43-44. He prefaces this comparison by saying that He did not come to destroy the Law but to fulfill (Matthew 5:17). As discussed in Study 3, Matthew uses this word “fulfill” in a prophetic way, not in the sense of “keep” or “observe”. If Jesus had not fulfilled every jot and tittle (5:18) of the messianic prophecies, then He was an imposter. Everything written in the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings concerning the Messiah had to receive prophetic fulfillment in Christ (Luke 24:44). Jesus’ sayings are commandments for us. He refers to “these commandments” in Matthew 5:19: “these” meaning what He was about to command as opposed to “those”, which would have meant commandments previously stated. His concern is the focus of the believer’s faith and obedience. Using comparison Jesus commands His followers to obey His sayings instead of adhering to aspects of the Law of Moses which are either insufficient (Moses’ teaching on murder, adultery and divorce in Matthew 5:21-32), or irrelevant (Moses’ teaching on oaths in 5:33-37), or against His moral view (Moses’ teaching on justice and behaviour towards enemies in 5:38-48). |