A Fresh Look at the Sermon on the Mount Pt.1

One of the pitfalls of biblical exegesis is getting bogged down in verse-by-verse interpretations. Sometimes we lose sight of the fact that the Bible wasn't written that way. It was written prosaically, with an organizational structure and paragraphs not any different than writers do today. When we hyper-focus on verses or even passages taken out of the context of the rhetorical structure of the overall piece, we run the risk of misinterpreting the intention of the text.

This tendency is well illustrated when we look at the Sermon on the Mount. For centuries, theologians have picked this sermon apart, using Jesus' words as a basis for establishing a new set of laws. This interpretation is the polar opposite of what Jesus was teaching here.

When we look at Matthew 5, we have to remember that Jesus was speaking to a crowd here. He was delivering a message, one with a central thesis, a beginning, middle and end. His audience would have been oblivious, not having a textual companion, to any verse-by-verse interpretation of this speech. Rather they would have been focused on the central ideas of Jesus' speech. With that in mind, let's take a fresh look at what Jesus is saying in this most important message.

Jesus begins his sermon with what we know today as "the beatitudes." Here, Jesus uses a fairly common rhetorical technique: he begins his speech with a "hook," an attention-getting device designed to orient the audience's attention toward the speaker and lead them directly into the thesis. Given that purpose, what is it then that Jesus is leading us to here?

If we look at the beatitudes in total and in the context of Jesus' entire ministry, Jesus is boldly instructing his audience to become the antithesis of the religious leaders of the day. Rather than the haughty power-wielding of the Pharisees, Jesus tells his followers to be meek, mournful, and merciful. Rather than being arrogant and convinced of one's own righteousness, Jesus instructs his followers to be humble and constantly searching for the righteousness of the Father. Further, Jesus adds the twin metaphors of salt and light. Here, he is instructing his audience on their role in God's Kingdom. As he will tell the Pharisees later, the Kingdom is rotting from the inside out. Jesus implores his followers to be the "preservative" of the Kingdom. Similarly, Jesus foreshadows the Great Commission here by telling his audience they are to be a "light to the world." He is preparing them for a revolutionary message.

Then, just before Jesus embarks on the "body" of his speech, he reminds his audience that paradoxically, though he is coming to revolutionize the world, he is not changing the foundations that the Father laid. This is going to be a new covenant, not one that negates the old one, but one that clears away the dross that has gathered and prepares the way for building on God's foundation. He reminds his audience that the Pharisees are not condemned for being doctrinally unsound. They know and keep the law better than any. If we are to be righteous in the sight of God, Jesus reminds us, it's not about forsaking the law and the prophets.

If that's the case, then what is it? That will be the essence of Jesus sermon, the body of his speech, which we'll look at in detail in the next post.