Matthew 5:1–7:29 is the ‘Sermon on the Mount’. Is this sermon intended for the church? Absolutely not! It’s intended for the self-righteous. It’s a pre-salvation preach that exposes self-righteous pride and performance and reveals the need for God’s righteousness as a gift through faith in order to see the Kingdom and become children of God.
Unless you really understand grace, don’t go near the Beatitudes. They will mess you up! Teaching the Beatitudes to Christians produces legalism and religious pride or condemnation in them. We must rightly divide the Word of God to see what Jesus was saying and trying to achieve here.
He wasn’t preaching to a church. He wasn’t preaching to born again believers. He was preaching to Jews where the climate of the day was a striving for righteousness through works. Israel was still under the law of Moses. The Pharisees and Scribes had also perverted the law to make it more achievable and profitable. They were the ultimate hypocrites who externally appeared to be keeping the law but inwardly they were full of hypocrisy. Israel was in bondage to the deception of the Pharisees and tried to be as ‘righteous’ as them. Legalism was a virtue in those days. But God gave the law to expose self-righteousness and bring a person to the end of themselves, not to try and be righteous by it. Israel was trying to be righteous by the law and thought they were doing okay by the standards of the Pharisees. Jesus came to expose the self-righteousness of the Pharisees and bring people out of the delusion of self-sufficiency and into a revelation that they are bankrupt before God and in desperate need of his righteousness.
The Beatitudes are revealing the attitudes and the state-of-being someone needs to have and exhibit in order to reach out for salvation and to be saved.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit; those who mourn; the meek; those who hunger and thirst for righteousness; the merciful; the pure in heart and the peacemakers.” These are the attitudes of people who have nothing to offer God to make themselves righteous and know that they don’t warrant forgiveness but require mercy.
The “poor in spirit” know they have nothing to offer God to be righteous. Those that are rich in spirit, in their minds think that they are righteous before God because of their works. Unless you realize how poor you are before God you’ll never reach out to receive his righteousness. Once you do receive his righteousness you become rich in your spirit and live out of his riches.
To mourn is to come to the realization that you are lost and are facing eternal hell. That your righteousness isn’t good enough and God’s judgments are upon you. When you come to that attitude then you are in the right place to receive from God the gift of righteousness and the comfort of knowing that God alone makes you perfect through Christ and enables you to be with him for all eternity. Once you have come into that place, it would then be wrong to keep mourning. Now it’s time for rejoicing!
“The meek shall inherit the earth.” is saying that those who are not proud in their own self-righteousness but humble before God (to trust and believe in his gift of righteousness) will, along with believing Abraham, inherit the earth. Those that are in Abraham inherit the earth through faith according to Romans four. So it’s a reference to being credited with righteousness like Abraham through faith and not works of self-righteousness as long as we are humble and not proud.
Those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness” is not a reference to having a desire to be more righteous by your own works but knowing that you’ll never be righteous enough in yourself and therefore have a desire for his righteousness and for him to make you righteous. Romans three reveals that there is no one righteous, not even one. So anyone trying to hunger and thirst to be more righteous in themselves before God are in great danger because they haven’t seen the gospel. They need to hear the Sermon on the Mount! They need to hunger and thirst for his righteousness. If they’re not hungering and thirsting for his righteousness it means they are full to the brim of their own self-righteousness. That is a dangerous place to be!
The “merciful” give mercy to others who don’t deserve mercy because they themselves realize that they don’t deserve mercy either! It’s an attitude that reveals what’s in the heart. If you don’t give mercy to others who have wronged you, it means you believe they should suffer and pay for it. It reveals an arrogance in your heart before God thinking that you yourself don’t require God’s mercy since you are so “righteous” and have never wronged God. You’ll only plead for mercy when you see you’re guilty. When you don’t give mercy to others it’s because you believe they are guilty and deserve judgment. But those who see themselves as deserving judgment and needing mercy find it easy to give mercy to others who also don’t deserve it. Blessed are the merciful because they also realize they need mercy from God and are ready to receive it.
The “pure in heart” are not those who just look righteous on the outside but those who have absolutely no impurity on the inside. It’s a reference to keeping the law perfectly and not falling short of it in the slightest. It’s absolute holiness according to the highest standards of the law. Jesus wasn’t saying that keeping most of the law is good enough. He was saying that if you want to live by the law then you can never break it. Not even once. The smallest transgression of the law brings about impurity in your heart and means you’ll never see God. So if your “seeing God” is based on the purity level of your law keeping, then you better make sure you’ve kept the law 100% of your entire life. Anything less and you’re doomed! If that sounds rather extreme it’s because it is. It’s because it’s meant to break down self-righteousness. When we come to that realization and surrender to Christ and receive his righteousness we become perfectly pure in heart for God gives us a new heart and a new nature, his nature.
The peacemakers are those who realize that the Gentiles can also be saved because it’s not by the keeping of the law that saves but by having faith in Jesus. The Jews didn’t believe that the Gentiles could be saved and therefore treated them as inferior. But God promised Abraham that all nations would be blessed (made righteous) through his seed (Christ – Galatians 3). Those that are not peacemakers are those that despise the Gentiles and treat them as inferior, thinking themselves to be superior to them since they have and keep God’s law. The book of Ephesians shows that God has removed the dividing wall of hostility between the Jews and Gentiles through Christ and made peace between the two!
Jesus was saying that as long as you Jewish people believe that the Gentiles don’t deserve salvation it’s revealing your attitude of self-righteous. When you become a peacemaker it shows you believe in the one who made peace, Jesus (Ephesians 2:11-19).
Are you beginning to see now how the Beatitudes are referring to people who are stuck in religion and need to let go of self-righteousness and reach out for Christ’s righteousness?
What you receive when you have these attitudes
Inherit the kingdom of heaven; shall be comforted; shall inherit the earth; shall be filled with righteousness; shall obtain mercy; shall see God and shall be called the children of God. These are all clear references to getting saved. You receive these things at salvation and they become yours to walk in from that point.
It’s so vital to see that Jesus was speaking to Jews under the law who had been deceived to think that they were righteous enough in themselves. He had to expose that deception in them so that they became poor in spirit, mournful, meek, hungry and thirsty for God’s righteousness, etc. How did he do this? He did it by heightening the law and showing how brutal and unforgiving it is, and that there’s no chance of being righteous before God by it! (Romans 3:19-22).
Those who try to use the Beatitudes to produce better behavior and morality in Christian’s are doing the complete opposite of what Jesus was doing and trying to expose by giving the Beatitudes. It’s not about trying to be more moral and righteous but about realizing your total insufficiency and therefore utter dependency on God’s righteousness.
People think Jesus was giving a nice little sermon on the mount about how to be a better person and kinder to others and pleasing to the Lord. He wasn’t. He was systematically exposing self-righteousness by revealing that while they may be keeping the law externally they were failing to keep it internally and therefore were unrighteous and not children of God.
The ‘Sermon on the Mount’ starts in Matthew 5:1 and doesn’t finish until the end of chapter seven. Have a read through all three chapters with the understanding I’ve just revealed and see for yourself how Jesus, with great skill, violently destroys people’s self-righteousness.
Rightly dividing the rest of the Sermon on the Mount
“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.”– Matthew 5:13
In Abraham they were the salt of the earth but when they went under the law they lost their saltiness.
“Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”
– Matthew 5:14-16
In Abraham they were the light of the world as they would show the world the way to be blessed (made righteous) but when they went under the law their light was hidden. Jesus is telling them to let their light of Abraham shine so that people will see their good works or rather ‘faith works’ and glorify God. In other words the people will thank God that righteousness is not up to them but is a gift from God that comes through faith in Christ.
The point here is that he is saying that they were children of Abraham and heirs of the righteousness of God through faith but when they went under the law in Moses they lost everything! They became poor in spirit. They became self-righteous and therefore unrighteous.
“Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. 18For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. 19Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
– Matthew 5:17-19
Why would Jesus say this here in this context? Was he wanting people to keep the law? No! He was showing them that as long as they are under the law they had better keep every part of it perfectly. Not just teach it like the Pharisees did without actually doing it, but to both teach it and do it. If they can only teach it but can’t do it then they’re not keeping it. The reality is Jesus isn’t intending for them to do it, but for them to realize that they can’t do it. “Well at least they should be trying.” some might say. No they shouldn’t! That’s the point. As long as they think their performance is okay, they’re under a delusion of false righteousness. They have to see that unless they can keep the law perfectly to the uttermost standard there is no point in even trying! Jesus’ ultimate goal is for them to eventually see that he is the fulfillment of the law and therefore anyone who comes into Christ is credited with his righteousness and perfectly fulfilling the law.
“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.”
– Romans 10:4
“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
– Matthew 5:20
That is a very strong statement! It’s a clear reference to going to heaven on the basis of our righteousness. Romans three makes it clear that no human being is righteous in themselves.
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
– Romans 3:10-12
The Pharisees had a self-righteousness. Exceeding their righteousness is not about keeping the law more than them, but it’s about receiving a righteousness that is perfect. That can only come from God.
Jesus raises the bar even higher!
Jesus then goes on to give this Jewish audience Ten Commandments. Not new commandments but old commands that the Pharisees had watered down so that people thought they were keeping the law. He shows how extreme the law really is and that it doesn’t just expose what we do outwardly but what we do inwardly. Jesus doesn’t give these commandments for us to try harder to keep, but to show how impossible it is for fallen mankind to keep God’s impeccable high standard of righteousness. (The beauty of salvation is that our spirit comes alive to God and receives the very nature of God in it so that the fruit of his righteousness can then actually manifest in our life by the power of his nature and Spirit working in us!)
All these commands are given to expose the self-righteousness of people who think they’re keeping God’s law but are actually still breaking it and are therefore unrighteous before God and should mourn because of their state, and then hunger for his righteousness.
1. Matthew 5: 21–26: To have hate or anger in your heart toward someone without proper reason is the same as murder by God’s standard.
2. Matthew 5: 27–30: To even lust after a woman in the heart is the same as committing adultery with her by God’s standard.
3. Matthew 5: 31–32: Divorcing out of selfishness causes adultery.
4. Matthew 5: 33–37: Do not swear by anything. You have no right to swear by anything as everything comes from God. To think you can is an evil delusion of pride, thinking you are more than what you are or have more than what you have. You are bankrupt before God and therefore can only offer an honest “yes” or “no” to people.
5. Matthew 5: 38–47: Always forgive and love everyone. Even those who don’t deserve it. If you can’t do this you are falling short of God’s standard. Then verse 48 commands us to be as perfect as the Heavenly Father is perfect! If that is not taking the Law to the extreme then I don’t know what is! He just put righteousness-by-works out of reach for everyone!
6. Matthew 6: 1–4: Never give money in front of others to look good.
7. Matthew 6: 5–8: Never pray in front of others to look good.
8. Matthew 6: 14–15: Forgiving to be forgiven.
9. Matthew 6: 16–18: Do not fast to look good.
10. Matthew 7: 1–5: Never judge others.
The rest of the chapter explained in context verse by verse
“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?”
– Matthew 7:11
Jesus just called them evil! That’s not a nice encouraging sermon to good Christian followers is it? Jesus would never call someone who has God’s perfect righteousness evil. This shows he was speaking to the self-righteous, to those who had evil hearts of unbelief. Hebrews three refers to Israel not entering the Promised Land because of their evil heart of unbelief in God’s ability to fulfill his promises. Their unbelief was evil. Jesus called his audience evil because of their unbelief in the gift of righteousness. These are the good things he’s referring to that they should be asking for. He’s saying that if Israel would just lay down their fleshy works of self-effort and ask the Father, he would give them the Spirit of the New Covenant and make them righteous. But you’ll never ask unless you believe you have the need. That was the whole point of the Beatitudes, to show Israel their great need.
“Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.”
– Matthew 7:12
You cannot be a hypocrite and fulfill this statement. It was given to expose their different standards by which they judged themselves and others.
“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in there at: 14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”
– Matthew 7:13–14
I suppose this is where the saying, “I’m on the straight and narrow.” came from, referring to someone who has reformed their ways and trying to do good. But this isn’t what Jesus was trying to say. He wasn’t trying to get people to perform better but to give up their performance and surrender to his righteousness. He is the gate and he is the way and he is the life. So to be on the straight and narrow is to be in Christ. It’s to have faith in him. To rely on your own efforts to be righteous is to be on the road to destruction. The meaning of the “gate that is wide” and the “way that is broad” is that it’s easy to be self-righteous. The “straight gate” and the “narrow way” is the way that is hard for Israel because they don’t want to give up their self-righteousness.
“Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”
– Matthew 7:15
That is clearly referring to the Pharisees and Scribes and legalistic teachers. Outwardly they appear gentle and meek yet inwardly they are deadly. Their teaching appears harmless yet it viciously leads you to destruction. Beware of them Israel!
“Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.”
– Matthew 7:16–20
You’ll know these legalistic teachers by their fruit. Does what they say produce life in people or death? The law is the ministry of death but the Spirit of the New Covenant is a ministry of life. The law cannot produce salvation only faith can. The law based life is an evil life that can never produce good fruit. It produces “evil fruit”, that is, actions that are based in unbelief. The faith based life is the life of the spirit that brings forth good fruit, that is, actions that proceed from faith.
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
– Matthew 7: 21–23
This verse often gets quoted out of context. People use it to try to refer to Christians who have lost their salvation because they sinned and didn’t make Jesus Lord of all. That is an “evil” interpretation of this scripture. The context is people who think they are saved because of their self-righteous works. They tried to impress God by their works. Their faith was never in Christ but themselves. They may have gone to church and sang the songs and took part in ministry but Jesus “never knew them.” That means they were never saved. It doesn’t say he once knew them but then they were lost as some people make it sound.
“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”
– Matthew 7:24–27
People read these words and then mistakenly believe we have to therefore try and do everything that Jesus had just talked about. But this was the ultimate summing up of all that he was saying. Basically that if you could do everything that he had just told them, then they would be able to stand through the storms of God’s judgments. But if they failed to perfectly do everything he had just told them, then it would be like building their house on the sand. In other words he was telling Israel, in his final flurry of hypocrisy-exposing punches, that all their self-righteous attempts to impress God was like building their house on the sand because they were not fulfilling his words. He was telling them that the storm of God’s judgments is coming and will beat them down and great is their fall going to be!
“And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”
– Matthew 7:28–29
They were astonished at his doctrine because they had never heard anything like it. It was so contrary to anything they had heard. The scribes had told them that they could achieve the law and therefore they must keep trying. Jesus came and contradicted their teaching by showing them how impossible it was to keep God’s perfect law perfectly. The scribes didn’t have authority because God didn’t back up their deceiving message. But Jesus had authority because God backed up his message.
Conclusion
The Beatitudes are not for the church but were for unbelieving Israel. The church doesn’t need the Sermon on the Mount. If you were to ask Jesus if he intended that sermon to be a standard that the church measures itself against, he would either start rolling around on the floor screaming with laughter, or bow his head and weep. This is a pre-salvation message that is delivered to self-righteous people who think that they are doing well with righteousness because they can keep some of the law. Once this message has done its job it has served its purpose and we then move on to the way of the spirit.
See, in the New Covenant we have something far superior than the Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mount. We have the substance it was all pointing to. We have the Spirit. We have a new nature. We have his righteousness. We don’t have to try and get it. We just have to rest in it. Our righteousness far exceeds that of the Pharisees. It’s the very righteousness of God that came to us as a gift when we put our faith in Jesus and were born again.
The words of Jesus are always important but we must be so careful that we know how to apply them. People get into all kinds of trouble trying to fulfill every word of Jesus but not every word was intended for us! We just have to become good at discerning what is for us and what is not for us. This is not based on preference but on rightly dividing between the covenants.
Wow brother! Amazing insight on these famous passages. Law kills Spirit gives life