AUTHENTIC CHRISTIANITY

Matthew 5, 6 & 7

INTRODUCTION:   

Do you remember Larry Craig…Senator Larry Craig?  He was a big story in 2007.  Larry Craig was the senator from Idaho who consistently took a stance against homosexuality when he was on the floor of the United States Senate and then, on June 11, 2007, was arrested for lewd homosexual conduct in a men’s restroom in the airport in Minneapolis, MN.  Craig pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of disorderly conduct.  But the weightier charge against him in the court of public opinion is that he is a hypocrite.

“Hypocrite” – don’t you hate the very sound of the word?  The term comes to us from the Greek language (the same language in which the New Testament was written) and the Greek word originally meant an actor on the stage; one who played the part and pretended to be someone whom he was not.

 

That’s not too bad as a working definition of the word today.  Sometimes definitions evolve and words change their meanings but that one has stayed pretty true to its original meaning for thousands of years.  I have a theory about why: the word “hypocrite” has not changed very much in meaning over the last few thousand years because people have not changed very much in their behavior over the last few thousand years.

 

There were hypocrites in ancient Greece and there are in modern America.  There were hypocrites in the time of Jesus and there are hypocrites in our time as well.  The definition of the word has not changed because it didn’t need to.

 

Often, when I talk to people about coming to church, they say, “I would except there are so many hypocrites in the church.”  And there are, you know.  There are hypocrites in the church.  Lots of them.

The world hates hypocrisy in the church. 

·         That is part of the reason that the scandal of the Catholic priests molesting little children was so shocking: because the world hates hypocrisy in the church. 

·         That’s why the behavior of Ted Haggard, the mega-church minister in Colorado Springs made news headlines: because the world hates hypocrisy in the church.

·         That’s why people pilloried Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart: because the world hates hypocrisy in the church.

 

And do you know who else hates hypocrisy in the church?  The church does.  It is an embarrassment to the church when high-profile leaders are exposed as hypocrites.  The church hates hypocrisy in the church. 

 

And so does Jesus.

 

More than anything else, I believe Jesus wants authenticity among his followers.  I base that statement, in part, because of the scathing criticism Jesus leveled at the Scribes and Pharisees when he taught.  These were trained, professional and scrupulous religious leaders among the Jews.  But Jesus realized that you can be very religious and very hypocritical at the same time.  And Jesus called for authenticity among his followers.

This is never clearer than it is in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount recorded in Matthew chapters 5, 6 & 7.  The Sermon on the Mount has been called “The Kingdom Manifesto”.  A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. 

 

In 1848, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The Communist Manifesto.  This little pamphlet suggested a course of action whereby the working class could overthrow the wealthy ruling class and bring about a classless society where everybody was equal.  That little leaflet spawned communism.

 

If the Sermon on the Mount is the Kingdom Manifesto, it is safe to say that it was designed to lead to the Kingdom of God on earth.  Don’t you think that deserves our attention?

 

For the first half of 2008, we are going to study The Sermon on the Mount on Sunday mornings.  And we are going to be looking at Jesus’ teachings to develop the theme of authenticity.

But before we look at The Sermon on the Mount in detail, I want to look at it broadly.  I believe The Sermon on the Mount teaches us about spiritual foundation, spiritual formation and spiritual fellowship.

I.                    SPIRITUAL FOUNDATION (Matthew 5)

Jesus begins his sermon by laying the foundation upon which he will build his Kingdom.  His Kingdom is to be built in the hearts and lives of people but not just any people.  The people within whom Jesus can build his Kingdom are those who are authentic, genuine, sincere and un-hypocritical.

 

For instance, he speaks about their attitudes.  He says that Kingdom people are people who are broken, transparent, bridled and have an insatiable appetite for that which is right.  They demonstrate mercy, have pure hearts and do what it takes to make peace. 

 

Jesus is not blind to reality.  He also advises would-be citizens in his Kingdom that if they adopt these attitudes, they will be picked-on for it.  But do not despair; he says that it is a good thing to be persecuted for doing good things.

Jesus says that his Kingdom comes in the kinds of people who are influential.  By that, I do not mean the wealthy, powerful, important people by the world’s standards.  As I use the term “influential” in this context, I mean that Jesus Kingdom comes to the thermostats, not the thermometers of this world.  A thermometer merely reacts to its environment and reflects it.  But a thermostat changes its environment.  Jesus said we are to be thermostats. 

 

(Well, actually, he said we are to be salt to the earth and light to the world but both of those substances bring changes to their environment.)  Jesus wants his Kingdom people to be change-agents in the world in which they live.

 

Jesus said that the citizens of his Kingdom obey God’s laws with total sincerity. 

·         It’s not just that they do not murder: they don’t hate other people. 

·         It’s not just that they do not commit adultery: they don’t lust after other people. 

·         It’s not just that they do not abandon their spouses; they don’t divorce them, either. 

·         They not only keep their oaths, they don’t even have to swear an oath because they are known as people of their word. 

·         The citizens of Jesus’ Kingdom don’t seek revenge, in fact they love their enemies.

 

Just by its foundations, you can see that Jesus’ Kingdom is radically different from the kingdoms of this world.  He is calling for total authenticity and total commitment from his followers.

II.                  SPIRITUAL FORMATION (Matthew 6)

In the next section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches his followers about spiritual formation.  What are the disciplines of the disciples of Christ?

 

Well, he talks about benevolence, prayer and fasting.  But he says that these are not to be mere outward demonstrations.  Rather they are to be the sincere expressions of devoted hearts…hearts devoted to him.

 

Then he tells us that the citizens of his Kingdom will be concerned about investing in heaven rather than on earth.  Their priority will be spiritual security, not financial security.  They will be more interested in providing for their souls than for their bodies.

 

And almost as if he could anticipate the rebuttal that spirituality and wealth are not mutual exclusive, he tells us that no one can serve both the master which is money and the master who is Jesus.  Lots of people have lived as if they believed they were exceptions to that dictum.  But lots of people have been fooling themselves. 

 

So Jesus commands that his followers will invest in heavenly treasures rather than in earthly ones because the heavenly investments are eternal and the earthly ones are not enduring at all.

 

Do you want to know another benefit of treasuring up treasures in heaven?  Not only are these treasures that last for eternity, they come worry-free.  Treasures treasured up on earth bring a boatload of worry with them.  Treasures treasured up in heaven are worry-free.

 

So the citizens of Christ’s Kingdom give to the needy but they don’t do it for recognition; they pray but they don’t do it for praise; they fast but they don’t do it for fame and they are banking on heaven for their security. 

III.                SPIRITUAL FELLOWSHIP (Matthew 7:1-23)

Since such a commitment and lifestyle is certainly out of step with most of the people around us, Jesus wanted us to know about the kind of company we can expect to be keeping in his kind of Kingdom.

 

First of all, he said that we are not to be judgmental of others: not those within his Kingdom and not those outside of it.  We are to be discerning of the fact that not everyone will accept the truth of the Gospel; not everyone will sacrifice the things of earth for the things of heaven.  We must be careful not to lower the standards of the Kingdom just so we can get more people into it.  We are to be insightful enough to recognize that all will not answer the Kingdom’s call.

 

But for those who will, they merely need to ask, seek and knock and they will receive, find and enter the King’s Kingdom.

 

Jesus forewarns us that the Kingdom company will be few because most will not want the discipline of discipleship.  But for those who authentically embrace the King and his Kingdom, eternal life will be their reward.

 

So how can you tell if a person has sincerely embraced the King and his Kingdom?  We are not to be judgmental but we are to be discerning so how do we discern?  Jesus said, “Look at their fruit.”  See if their lives reflect His words.  That is the test of authenticity: don’t just listen to what they claim: see how they live.

 

CONCLUSION:     Spiritual Foundation (encore) (Matthew 7:24- 27)

In preaching, one of the hardest tasks is to come up with a compelling introduction and a compelling conclusion.  A compelling introduction compels the congregation to listen to the sermon.  And a compelling conclusion compels the congregation to live the sermon.

 

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus closed with a compelling conclusion.  He told a story about two builders: one was wise and one was foolish.  The wise one built his house upon a rock and it withstood the storms of life.  The foolish one built his house upon sand and it fell amidst the storms of life.  Jesus told us what the difference is:

·         “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”

·         “But, everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”

 

Do you catch the difference?  Both groups of people heard Jesus’ words.  Apparently both groups of people understood Jesus’ teachings.  But one group put into practice what they had heard and one group did not.  Wise people hear the teachings of Jesus and obey them.  Those who do not obey them are foolish, indeed.

 

The foundation will determine the shape and the stability of a building.  And the foundation for your life will determine the shape and the stability of your life for all time and for all eternity.  Jesus tells us to choose our foundation wisely.  Upon whom (or what) is your life being built?

 

INVITATION:            #54 – “The Solid Rock” 

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