The Sermon on the Mount
In July Matt and I will preach five sermons through the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus's Sermon on the Mount is found in chapters 5-7 of Matthew's Gospel. There is so much to say about the Sermon on the Mount, but I don't want to get into all the details here. Rather I want to explain why we will spend the month of July looking at it and raise the question of interpretation. The Sermon on the Mount is Jesus's most famous sermon. It has always been a primary teaching pastors have passed on to their congregations. In the early church, before the New Testament was organized, pastors at least had some version or copy of the Sermon on the Mount. These pastors would work with their church's to memorize the sermon. Just think about that. Early Christians, without leather bound Bibles, gathering at church to memorize Jesus' teaching. There is no doubt that the practice of memorization - specifically the Sermon on the Mount - formed c...