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The Sermon of Heaven on Earth

SOMETIMES the Gospel writers use different events in the life of Jesus to indicate the identical ideas to the reader. I think Luke 4 uses the jubilee announcement of Jesus’ ministry to perform the same function Matthew 5 does with the “Sermon on the Mount.”

In Matthew, after being baptized by John in the Jordan and emerging unscathed from the Temptation in the wilderness, Jesus begins His ministry preaching, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17).  Matthew calls is “the gospel of the kingdom” (v. 23).

Then as the multitudes gather, He begins with the Beatitudes, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). The Sermon on the Mount is about the kingdom of heaven, and in verse 17, Jesus speaks of the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets.

In Luke, after Jesus is baptized and then tempted in the wilderness, He begins His ministry by preaching in the synagogues. On one particular Sabbath, His text was Isaiah 61, a reference to Jubilee as a foreshadow of the coming of Messiah and His kingdom.

And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:
 
The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:17-21)

Here is good news for the poor in spirit, healing and comfort for the brokenhearted and those who mourn, liberty for the captives and all who are oppressed, and the time of God’s favor and righteousness to be manifest on earth as in heaven. Jesus’ commentary is that this Scripture is now being fulfilled, and everyone understands Him to mean that it is fulfilled in Him.

Mark’s fast-paced Gospel presents the same message, short and sweet: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).

In all three Gospels, there is fulfillment. The time is fulfilled; the Law and the Prophets are fulfilled; the Jubilee is fulfilled. They all speak of the kingdom, the rule and reign of God; they all are fulfilled in Jesus the Messiah; and they all find their ultimate fulfillment on earth — the will of God being done as it is in heaven.

The Sermon of Heaven on Earth

And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth and taught them. (Matthew 5:1-2)

The traditional designation for the teaching in Matthew 5-7 is “The Sermon on the Mount.” As I study it, I see that it is about the kingdom of heaven breaking into the earth.

In Matthew 4, after Jesus passed the test in the wilderness, completely blasting away the deceptions of the devil, He began His ministry, starting in Galilee. His message was simple: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matthew 4:17). “And Jesus went about all Galilee preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people” (Matthew 4:23).

As His fame grew throughout the region, multitudes gathered, bringing those who had various sicknesses, diseases and afflictions, the demon-possessed, the epileptics and the paralytics — and Jesus healed them all, demonstrating that the kingdom of heaven was truly present on earth.

Seeing the multitudes, Jesus began to elaborate about the kingdom, beginning with what we know as the Beatitudes. This is not a short course in ethics, a checklist of do’s and don’ts, as some might suppose. Book-ended by the declaration of the kingdom of heaven (verses 3 and 10), it is a pronouncement of blessing on all to whom it has come.

• The kingdom belongs to those who are poor in spirit, who trust in God alone (v. 3).
• The kingdom brings comfort, encouragement and hope for those who mourn over sin and its consequences (v. 4).
• The meek, who are not proud and arrogant but live humbly before God, inherit the earth from our Father in heaven. For the kingdom of God is not for heaven only, but also for  earth (v. 5).
• The kingdom brings fullness and satisfaction for those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for it is how God’s rightness is being revealed (v. 6).
• The kingdom brings mercy to those who allow mercy to flow through their lives toward others (v. 7).
• Those who are pure in heart (whose hearts are not divided, but are established in faith and set on God) shall see God, for it is His kingdom (v. 8).
• In this kingdom, those who promote peace and goodwill are called the sons of God, for they have the wisdom that is from above (James 3:17) and show the character of God (v. 9).
• The kingdom belongs to those who are persecuted for the sake of God’s way of doing and being right (v. 10). For we overcome the evil one by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of our testimony, and because we love Him more than our own lives (Revelation 12:11).

The Salt of the Earth and the Flavor of Heaven

You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. (Matthew 5:13)

The Sermon on Heaven on Earth is about the kingdom of heaven — the will of God being done on earth as it is in heaven.  In this verse, Jesus tells all His disciples that we are the “salt of the earth.”

Salt was very important back in Biblical times (and still is today). Not only was it a vital requirement for the body, it was used as a seasoning and preservative, and was also an integral part of the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament (Leviticus 2:13) as the symbol of unbreakable covenant. Here in His sermon, Jesus is focusing on salt as a flavoring.

If we are the salt of the earth, then what is the flavor? The kingdom of heaven. Jesus announced that His kingdom was now “at hand,” that is, that it was now present in the world (Matthew 4:17). He went about “preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people” (Matthew 4:23).  He not only preached the kingdom, He demonstrated its power to bring healing, wholeness and freedom. He brought the flavor of the kingdom — the flavor of heaven.

Jesus calls us the salt of the earth. Our job is to bring the flavor of heaven to the world, to manifest the kingdom of Heaven on Earth in all we do and say. We bring the teaching, the works, and the life of Jesus Christ to the world through the preaching of the gospel. It is only through faith and obedience to Him that we retain our saltiness and bring forth the savor of heaven.

Shining With the Light of Heaven

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16)

Jesus calls us the “light of the world.” That is a powerful declaration, for a number of reasons.

• God is light. “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5).
• God is the Father of Lights. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning” (James 1:17).
• Light overcomes the darkness. “And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:5).
• Jesus is the Light of the World. “The true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world” (John 1:9)
• Darkness is passing away. “Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining” (1 John 2:8).
• God has delivered us from darkness. “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Colossians 1:13).
• God has caused the true light to shine in us. “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).
• God has made us light in the Lord. “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8).

As believers in Jesus Christ, we are the light of the world. We shine with the light that comes from the Father through the Son. It is the light of the knowledge of the glory of God seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

This light is for all the world. Before He ascended to heaven, Jesus gave this command to His disciples:

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover. (Mark 16:15-18)

You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. (Acts 1:8)

Jesus, Light of the World, authorizes us to take His light into all the world. He supplies us with the power to overcome the darkness and shine for Him. He does not intend for us to be hidden away, but to be set up on a lampstand, and as a city on a hill, so that every one can benefit from the light and give glory to our Father in heaven. For the light is His, and heaven is where it comes from.

The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth

Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. (Matthew 5:17-18)

Nothing in Jesus’ words or acts should be taken as setting aside or breaking anything in the Law or Prophets. Quite the opposite, for Jesus was announcing that He is the fulfillment of all that is required by the Law and foretold by the Prophets. The focus of the Old Testament promise is on the coming of Messiah and the establishment of God’s kingdom. Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, anointed by God to rule and reign — to be King — over His people. His anointing is to set the people free from bondage and affliction, to remove burdens and destroy yokes.

Jesus is the promised King and Messiah who assures us that everything God has promised will be fulfilled, on earth as well as in heaven. It has already begun.

Greatness in the Kingdom

Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:19-20)

All the Law and the Prophets are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. He is the one by whom the commandments are given the proper understanding and purpose. In the natural, we are often inclined to weigh the commandments of God from the greatest to the least — even the Pharisees did this. But all of God’s commandments are important to God, and so they should be to us.

I believe that the real distinction Jesus is making is not between greater and lesser acts, but between outward acts and inward disposition. That is, it is about the matters of the heart. It is not only the outward actions of obedience that are important; God also looks upon the inward man — the obedience of the heart (as we will see in Matthew 5:21-48). This may seem like a lesser thing to some, but if we ignore it or treat it lightly, we will be disqualified for greatness in the kingdom of heaven.

We need a righteousness that goes beyond the righteousness of the Pharisees; we need a righteousness of the heart. When we obey God with the whole heart, we will stand among the greatest in His kingdom.

Greatness in the kingdom of Heaven on Earth is a matter of the heart.

© 2008 by Jeff Doles.
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