REVIEW
FLIP CHART: SOM’S KEY VERSE, GOAL, MOTTO
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness ….” (Mt. 6:33a).
The law sends us to Christ for justification; Christ sends us back to the law for sanctification.
FLIP CHART: Show new “Perfect Righteousness” chart explaining steps to coming to Christ (As a worm, mourning, meek, spiritual hunger/thirst with the result of legal righteousness). Explain moral righteousness, immediate moral change at conversion, gradual change through life’s challenges and speeding up moral change via CCRC (Concentration, Choice, Reflection and Confession/Thanksgiving). Repeat the verse, “By one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Heb. 10:14)
FLIP CHART: John Stott’s outline of SOM.
TABLE ACTIVITY: In caring for myself what should be my three greatest concerns in order of priority?
List the concerns on the Flip Chart. Then have the table discuss them again. Give each table three votes as to the three most important, the most important being given a 3, the second most important a 2 and the least important a 1. Record the scores and choose what should be the most important concerns of an individual.
INTRODUCTION
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:43-48).
“In a 1958 issue of Christian Century. Dr. Normal Pittenger published “A Critique of C.S. Lewis.” Among his criticisms was the accusation that Lewis did not care much for the Sermon on the Mount. In Lewis’s “Rejoinder to Dr. Pittenger,” he responded: As to “caring for” the Sermon on the Mount, if “caring for” here means “liking” or enjoying, I suppose no one “cares for” it. Who can like being knocked flat on his face by a sledge hammer? I can hardly imagine a more deadly spiritual condition that that of a man who can read that passage (The Sermon on the Mount) with tranquil pleasure.” (Hughes, 139).
OUTLINE FOR THIS SECTION:
1. Cleaning up the Second Commandment
2. Loving Our Enemies
a. Loving Our Enemies is a Command
b. Praying for Our Enemies
c. Greeting Our Enemies
d. Doing good to our Enemies
3. Moving Towards Perfection
CLEANING UP THE SECOND COMMANDMENT
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’
The command is to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” They added “hate your enemy” which is not in the OT and failed to add “as yourself” which is in the OT. Jesus’ goal in these final verses of chapter 5 is to purge the Second Commandment from all corrupt interpretations and restore it to its proper meaning.
LOVING OUR ENEMIES
“To return evil for good is devilish; to return good for good is human; to return good for evil is divine.” (Alfred Plummer in Stott, 122)
Loving our enemies is a command. We love them by praying for them, interacting with them and doing good to them.
MOVING TOWARDS PERFECTION
INTRODUCTION:
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Mt. 5:48).
“Perfect” is an adjective translated from teleios in the Greek which originally meant having everything in order, not lacking anything. That is everything is done and nothing is left out.
In the NT the major word for perfection is teleios. This word means “complete” as when a ship is fitted out perfectly for sea or a legion of soldiers is equipped in all respects for battle. In the moral realm the word means blameless. (Boice, 147)
“Let us take a very simple analogy. Suppose in my house there is a screw loose, and I want to tighten and adjust this screw. I go out to the hardware store and I buy a screwdriver. I find that the screwdriver exactly fits the grip of my hand; it is neither too large or too small, too rough or too smooth. I lay the screwdriver on the slot of the screw, and I find that it exactly fits. I then turn the screw and the screw is tightened. In the Greek sense, and especially in the New Testament sense, that screw-driver is teleios, because it exactly fulfilled the purpose for which I desired and bought it.” (Barclay, 178)
So being ‘perfect’ means perfectly fulfilling God’s purpose, the purpose for which we were created.
TABLE ACTIVITY: List at least three purposes for which we were created? You will want to reflect on Matthew 5.
ILL: Soren Kierkegaard tells a tale about a make-believe country where only ducks live. One Sunday morning, all the ducks came into church, waddled down the aisle and into their pews, and squatted. Then the duck minister took his place behind the pulpit, opened the duck bible and read, “Ducks, You have wings! With wings you can fly like eagles! You can soar into the sky! Use your wings!” The ducks yelled, “Amen!” And they waddled home.
That humorous little story is a reminder of the purpose of studying the Sermon on the Mount. It is not to make us smart. Learning is not the goal, nor is gathering information. The goal of studying the Sermon on the Mount is transformation …. The goal is to move towards perfection, to become more like God, more like Christ.
I. PERFECTION – IN RELATIONSHIPS
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect
(Mt. 5:48).
The key verse in understanding the six anti-theses (anti-concepts that is concept and counter-concept) is Mt. 5:20, “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.”
“It is not enough for Christians to resemble non-Christians; our calling is to outstrip them in virtue” (true inner goodness, righteousness, dikaiosune). Our righteousness is to exceed that of the Pharisees, it is to surpass theirs.” (Stott, 121) We are to live extraordinary and unusual lives.
The six anti-theses show how in the matter of anger, reconciliation, with our families, in our promises, when offended, when persecuted we are to be different and superior to the Pharisees. In fact, we are to be perfect as God is perfect. We are called to a life of supreme goodness.
QUESTION: In our text, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect,” what is the “therefore” therefore?
The context of 5:21-48 deals with relationships. In fact every anti-thesis deals with relationships. So becoming perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect, means becoming perfect in relationships.
In fact the four cameos about non-retaliation when dealing with an evil person all focus on relationships:
Slap – giving up your dignity for the sake of relationship.
Sue – giving up your rights for the sake of relationship.
Serve – giving up your time for the sake of relationship.
Surrender – giving you your property for the sake of relationship.
We are called to become perfect in love, in loving the evil person, in loving our enemies.
Jesus is not talking about moral “sinless perfection.” If so why would he encourage us to hunger and thirst after righteousness and seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.
What he is commanding us is to develop and maintain loving relationship with everyone. We need to remember that hating our enemies is hellish, loving our neighbors is human, loving our enemies is heavenly.
“The person who cares most for people is the most perfect person.” (Barclay, 178)
Of course the only one who perfectly cares for people is God and Christ is the perfect example of a person caring for others.
How “perfect” are we in our relationships with others? It is an area that we need to examine ourselves in every day.
READING: You know, evangelicals never will be clearly understood by the world. Sometimes even our love is interpreted as hate. For example no matter how kindly you speak the biblical truth that those without Christ will perish, many will still consider that to be “hate” speech.
But despite those misunderstandings, it is also worth considering whether there is any truth to the claim that evangelicals express “hate” to other people in the world. Is there anything to it? It is worth examining ourselves inside and out to make sure that we identify anything hateful in our actions or our attitudes: impatience, unkindness, envy, boasting, pride, rudeness, self-assertion, anger, resentment, and gloating. Are we protecting, trusting, hoping and persevering? (Chip Bell, Notes 5:43-48)
ILL: It was the day after Christmas and Mr. Greene parked his car to pick up the morning paper. He noticed a dirty, poorly dressed boy looking at his car. Seeing the boy eyeing the car, he reminded himself to be quick or he might be missing a hubcap when he returned. He came out of the store with his paper under his arm and just as he opened the door to the car, the boy asked “Mister, how much would a new car like that cost?” Mr. Greene responded, “I really don’t know; my brother gave me this car as a gift.” The ragged little boy looked unbelievingly at the car with a look of wonder in his eyes, and said something unexpected. He didn’t say what you might think, “Gee, I wish I had a brother like that.” He said, “Gee, I wish I could be a brother like that.”
II. PERFECTION – LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON
. . . . that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. …… Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect
(Mt. 5:45, 48).
Hebrew is not rich is adjectives so it often uses “son of …” with a noun where we would use an adjective. For example a son of peace is a peaceful man; a son of consolation is a consoling man; a son of God is a godlike man. (Barclay, 177)
So “sons of your Father” really means “sons like your Father.”
God loves his enemies and blesses them. The greatest proof of our sonship, that God is our father, is loving our enemies. When we love our enemies we are most like God, like our Father who is perfect.
We demonstrate whose sons and daughters we are when we exhibit the family likeness, a love that is all-embracing, a love like that of the Father. (Stott, 122).
When we love our enemies, that is pray for, interact with and give to them, we share the family resemblance and our goal is to do just that, to be as perfect as God is in our relationships with others.
III. PERFECTION – IN ALL THINGS
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect
(Mt. 5:48).
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed (summorphos) to the likeness of his Son …” (Rom 8:28-29a)
QUESTION: What does it mean to be conformed to the image or likeness of Christ?
Moral perfection is emphasized in many places in the Bible. In the verse in the Sermon on the Mount the Son wants us to be like the Father. In Romans 8:28-29 it is obvious that the Father wants us to be like the Son.
We are to be “conformed” to the likeness of the Son. This word “conformed” is only used two times in the New Testament. Note Phil. 3:21 – The Lord Jesus Christ, by that power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform (summorphos) our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.
Our bodies will be just like the glorious body of Christ when we reach heaven but right now God is concerned that our moral life and character be conformed to the image of Christ.
I Cor. 15:49 says that we are to “bear the likeness of the man from heaven.” II Cor. 3:18 notes that we “are being transformed into His likeness.” In Eph. 4:24 we are commanded to put on the new self, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” In Romans 12:2 Paul challenges us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds
Someone has said that the Father was so pleased with the Son that He wanted to populate heaven with others just like Him.
Note in Romans 8:28-29 that “For” is in support of “all things.” Why do all things work for the good? Because God has chosen His children to be conformed to the likeness of the Son. The “all things” are directly related to our being conformed to the likeness of Christ.
Everyone focuses on predestination as it relates to salvation. In this text predestination is focusing on being conformed to the image of Christ. God uses “all things” in such a way to bring that about.
Our holiness, our conforming to the image of Christ, is as firmly pre-determined as our election to salvation.
Predestined by God to be conformed to the image of Christ is the greatest promise on suffering in the Bible.
READING: It is God’s eternal purpose that the believer ultimately become conformed morally and spiritually in character to the likeness of Christ Jesus. We have been predestined as Christians to be like God’s Son in character and destiny. Christ is the perfect pattern of character, form, of glorification in body and sanctification of spirit of the believer. God has destined us to be conformed to Christ when we are glorified with Him. This will take place at the consummation when the final and complete conformity of resurrection glory. We will be glorified as our Lord is glorified. (Web Notes, Romans 8:29, pg. 26).
Predestined means predestined to be like Jesus. So being perfect like the Father is more that being perfect in relationships. The Bible also teaches us to be perfect morally and spiritually and in all ways.
IV. PERFECTION – HOW DO WE GET THERE?
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect
(Mt. 5:48).
In 5:6 we are told to continue to hunger and thirst after righteousness. This is to be our goal. We are to seek the righteousness of God (Mt. 6:33). We are to press on to perfection.
QUESTION: How do we move towards perfection?
FLIP CHART: Show legal righteousness, imputed righteousness and moral righteousness.
LEGAL RIGHTEOUSNESS
What can wash away my stain? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
For my cleansing this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
For my pardon this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Nothing can for sin atone, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Naught of good that I have done, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
He is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (II Cor. 5:21).
MORAL RIGHTEOUSNESS
“… train yourself to be godly (godlike) …” (I Tim. 4:7).
FLIP CHART: Use the chart showing the The Maternity Ward, The ICU, the Rehabilitation Center.
Class Participation: Go over the verses or have someone come up and explain the chart. Or ask what the different corners on the chart represent.
FLIP CHART: Go over (1) Concentration; (2) Choice; (3) Reflection; (4) Confession. Are you a touchy person, easily offended???
“Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before.” (C.S. Lewis)
SO WHAT???
1. We need to get beyond the “duck mentality” which means learning a lot but not experiencing life change. If we are going to church with out growing in Christ we are going nowhere.
2. We need to focus on being perfect in relationships. God is our example in this. Our righteousness in relationships must surpass that of the Pharisees. God is our example in this matter.
3. Being perfect also includes focusing on our moral and spiritual character.
4. While we enjoy legal and imputed righteousness we need to focus on work on developing moral righteousness.