Matthew 5: The Newness of the Sermon on the Mount

I'm preaching on the sermon on the mount for the next few weeks. I've been ruminating on a thought - and it has probably hit everyone else before - but it hit me hard this morning.

The Sermon on the Mount is full of OT allusions but is fundamentally new - because it is about Jesus (and therefore relating to God as Father).

He never calls people back to the OT Law. He calls people to obey Him. His implicit message is in line with that of the apostle Paul - 'Don't follow Moses, instead follow me.' Don't follow the morning star when the sun has just risen. His last words to his disciples before his ascension reflect his last words in his sermon.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:19-20)

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock." (Matthew 7:24)

Remember it is Jesus who gives us clearer calling than the OT law (see my next post).
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." (Matthew 5:27-28)

The last beatitude is actually the punch-line ... the first seven are the expectations of OT hope. The eighth is explicitly about Jesus - and focused the other seven to be about Jesus. “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me." (Matthew 5:11)}

It is Jesus' disciples (and no one else) who are the light of the world, the salt of the earth, the blessed ones, the wise builders, the good tree etc...

It is this Jesus' focusedness of the sermon on the mount that explains His need for its most difficult verses (the ones I'm preaching about on Sunday). Why else would he need to allay their fears?

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:17-20)

My take home. This is not mere continuity with the OT. The true light has come into the world - listen to him.