Manifesto: "a written statement declaring publicly the intentions,
motives, or views of its issuer."
The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is Jesus’ most definitive statement
of the principles of Kingdom living.
In this study we’ll seek to understand Jesus’ radical teaching within its
context of first century Judaism – then translate the principles into our
own lives today. If we can understand what Jesus meant and absorb that into
our spirit, we can grow to become the kind of disciples that make Him proud.
The Sermon on the Mount provides an ethical and philosophical framework
that can help us order our lives as Christ followers. But organized religion
has domesticated Jesus and watered down his message, providing a low-dose
familiarity that can make us immune to Jesus’ full-strength teaching. Here
we allow Jesus’ uncompromising message to both shame us and enflame us to
become part of a Christ-committed counter-culture to challenge the present
world order.
This examination of Jesus’ manifesto in the Sermon on the Mount, with its
provocative discussion questions, provides an excellent 13-lesson study for
personal enrichment, for use by small groups and classes, and for sermon
preparation by teachers and preachers.
Preface
Introduction
I. Kingdom Citizens (5:1-16)
1. Paradoxical People: the Beatitudes (5:1-13)
What Is the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus
Proclaims? (Excursus 1)
2. Witnessing People: Living as Salt and Light in the
World (5:13-16)
The Religion of the Pharisees
(Excursus 2)
II. The Kingdom and the Spirit of the Law (5:17-48)
3. The Spirit of the Law and Reconciliation
(5:17-26)
Did Jesus Believe in Hell? (Excursus 3)
4. Adultery, Lust, and the Spirit of Marriage (5:27-30)
5. Divorce and the Spirit of Marriage (5:27-32 with
19:1-12)
Loving Your Enemies Case Study: Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. (Excursus 5)
6. The Spirit of Truthfulness and Love (5:33-48)
III. Piety in the Kingdom (6:1-18)
7. Giving, Prayer, and Fasting (6:1-8, 16-18)
Verses on How God Looks at the Poor
(Excursus 6)
8. The Lord's Prayer (6:9-15)
IV. Materialism and the Kingdom (6:19-34)
9. Temptation to Idolatry (6:19-24)
10. Temptation to Worry (6:25-34)
V. Discernment in the Kingdom (7:1-29)
11. Judging Self and Others (7:1-6)
12. Asking in Faith (7:7-12)
13. Discerning the True Way (7:13-29)
Appendices
Appendix 1. Question Handouts for Group Participants
(may be duplicated at no extra charge)
Appendix 2. Songs and Hymns Based on the Sermon on the
Mount and Related Themes
Appendix 3. Inductive Bible Study Questions for the
Sermon on the Mount (downloaded separately in PDF format)
Appendix 4. Readers Theater Scripts for the Sermon on
the Mount (downloaded separately in PDF format)