OVERVIEW:
The Constitution of the King and His Kingdom (chapters 5-7).
HIGHLIGHTS & INSIGHTS:
As we make our way through the Gospel of Matthew, there are several things we must keep in the forefront of our thinking that will help to keep us from going out of bounds. First of all, understand that Matthew is not written from a chronological standpoint, as are the Gospels of Mark and Luke. I like the way John Phillips explains Matthew’s approach: “He tends to group his material in order to produce a cumulative effect for the point he is making that Jesus is the Messiah of the Jews. For example, beginning in chapter 5 (today’s reading), we have the Sermon on the Mount – what Jesus TAUGHT. This is followed by a series of miracles in chapters 8 to 9, by no means in the order of occurrence, but which show what Jesus WROUGHT. These miracles are followed in turn by a series of reactions to Jesus, illustrating what people THOUGHT. It seems clear that Matthew’s material is arranged so that it can be easily remembered and certainly the contents of his gospel are more easily remembered than the contents of the other synoptics.”
Secondly, keep in mind the specific Jewish nature of this Gospel. The book of Proverbs talks about the importance of identifying landmarks. Proverbs 22:28 says, “Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.” Proverbs 23:10 adds, “Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless.” Obviously, from an historical standpoint, this has to do with the importance of identifying the land boundaries, and the importance of allowing them to remain in place. To apply the principle to the Bible itself, however, from a devotional standpoint, we could say that the “ancient landmark” of the Bible that we must never lose sight of, or remove, is the Jew! Once we lose sight of the Jew in terms of interpreting the Bible, we will find ourselves in “the fields of the fatherless”.
For example, there are four books of the Bible where people allow themselves to get doctrinally discombobulated: Matthew, Acts, Hebrews, and James. Almost every doctrinal controversy and division in the body of Christ is going to come out of a verse, passage, or chapter in one of those four books. Coincidentally enough, all four of them have something in common: they are all specifically related to the Jew! Once we lose the “ancient landmark” of the Jew in these books, we might well end up in “the fields of the fatherless” — believing in works for salvation; or that baptism is a requirement for salvation; or that you can lose your salvation; or that tongues and healing are for today; and on, and on, and on. All of those false doctrines are propagated today because somebody lost sight of the Jew in these books!
So, recognizing the place of the Jew is very important as we come to Matthew’s record of the first sermon Jesus ever preached, what we have come to call, “The Sermon on the Mount.” Keep in mind that all the way through the Old Testament, God had been promising a kingdom to the Jews. They understood that kingdom to be a literal, earthly kingdom where God’s ruler (God’s “anointed” – Hebrew; God’s “Messiah” – Greek) would sit on the throne of David. That kingdom is what the book of Matthew is all about. It is referred to as the “kingdom of heaven,” and Matthew’s Gospel is the only Gospel in which the phrase appears; and where it is found some 32 times! Matthew’s Gospel presents Christ as King of the “kingdom of heaven.” It is also referred to as the “kingdom of Israel” in Acts 1:6.
In Friday’s reading, the King appears (chapter 2), in chapter 3 He is heralded, and in today’s reading (chapter 5 and verse 1), He sits, and delivers the constitution for the kingdom! Recognize that the subject of His sermon isn’t “heaven” but the “kingdom of heaven”! (Note 5:3, 10, 19, 20; 7:21) Recognize also, that the sermon isn’t directed to the Gentiles, or to the church of God, but to Jews! (1st Corinthians 10:32) Someone might say, “But it’s in the New Testament!” Sure, it is, but the context of the book, just like this sermon in chapters 5-7, is strictly Jewish!
One of the biblical realities many people seem to overlook, when reading the Gospels, is the fact that we don’t officially enter into the New Testament, according to the Bible’s definition, until the death of Christ, which in Matthew’s Gospel isn’t until chapter 27! Hebrews 9:16-17 says, “For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. For a testament is of force (is only enforced) AFTER MEN ARE DEAD: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.” In the strictest sense of the word, what that means is that we don’t actually enter the New Testament until the very end of each of the Gospels, at the death of Christ. More will be said about this tomorrow.
As we read the “Sermon on the Mount” today, recognize that our Lord’s audience is Old Testament Hebrews who, at that time, were still under the law. His sermon is designed to present the real intent of the law, and to present the principles of the millennial kingdom (i.e. the “kingdom of heaven”). Yes, there are truths that we as Gentiles in the Church of God can apply devotionally to our lives, but it has no application whatsoever to how people are saved in the church age.