SM#48: Minds Blown. Now What?

When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were awestruck at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their experts in the law. (Matthew 7:28-29)

BEFORE WE BEGIN:

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Okay, on with our final study in our series on the Sermon on the Mount!...

Prefer to listen rather than read? Click this pic for an AI overview.

CORE

(The heart of the message)

Jesus has finished talking. How will you respond?

CONUNDRUM

(Raising questions skeptics might be asking)

Hey Jesus.

So that's it? Authority is your major flex? Not love, or peace, or kindness, but authority? Why should anyone be impressed just because you're bossy?

What gives Jesus?

CONTEXT

(What’s going on before and after this passage)

Matthew tells us that when Jesus began his Sermon on the Mount, there were crowds around, but he was speaking directly to his disciples:

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he opened his mouth and began teaching them with these words. ~ The Apostle Matthew (Matthew 5:1-2)

So the crowds have been there, listening, eavesdropping, assessing. Certainly Jesus intended this. If his words were meant to be completely private, he could have assembled his team together indoors. But apparently, Jesus wants to invest his time teaching his disciples while simultaneously giving outsiders a chance to overhear, listen in, and make their own minds up. (This feels like a good model for churches. Make sure disciples are being taught, but always be mindful of non-Christians who want to assess if this movement is for them.)

Now at the end, we hear the reaction, not of the disciples but the crowd. And it reminds us that, while we've been overhearing Jesus' teaching to his disciples, it is our turn to respond.

The end of our section really happens in the first verse of the next chapter:

When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. (Matthew 8:1)

This is the bookend to Matthew 5:1. And now, it's our turn to descend the mountain with a choice to make: Will we follow Jesus as disciples who are learning to imitate him, or as the crowd who are merely admiring him?

CONSIDER

(Observations about the passage)

These words... It is specifically the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount that move people to be awestruck. Miracles could have the same effect, but we mustn't forget that the teaching of Jesus is one of his greatest miracles.

The crowds... How many people stayed to listen to Jesus? Matthew doesn't say. But it was more than a few. It could have been thousands, or hundreds, or dozens. The Greek word just means a lot of people, often translated as a "multitude". These people were interested enough to travel to listen to Jesus, but were not yet committed followers. Some of us might see ourselves in this group.

Awestruck... The Greek word here is ekpléssó, a compound word literally meaning to knock out. (Funny how language works: a "knock out" means significant strike or blow, but a "strike out" means nothing contacted anything.) Today we might say Jesus "blew our minds". Take note that the thing that was so mind blowing to the crowds in this instance was his teaching itself, not a miracle or healing or other supernatural feat. The crowds didn’t just leave with a new philosophy; they left with a spiritual concussion. Jesus didn't just touch their hearts; he tackled their worldviews. When we really hear what Jesus is saying, we will be awestruck also. If we aren't a little bit dizzy after reading the Sermon on the Mount, we haven't actually heard it.

Authority... The key feature of Jesus' teaching that was so mind blowing was not his oratorical skills or his rhetorical talents or his polemical prowess used to woo and win the crowd. As far as we know, there was nothing fancy in Jesus' way of communicating that won over hearts and persuaded minds. What was most stunning, and still is today, is that Jesus speaks with an authority only God should display. He does not appeal to Scripture (or other rabbis) in order to support his case, but instead claims to be the fulfillment of Scripture, the Bible's embodiment, and the Author behind it all.

The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority!(Mark 1:27)

No one ever spoke the way this man does! ~ The temple guards (John 7:46)

Experts in the law... This is a translation of a single Greek word: grammateus (pronounced: gram-mat-YOOS, not gram-ma-TAY-YOOS, like Amadeus, but now I know you want to sing that song, don't you). These were professional scribes, who spent all their working hours learning, copying, and teaching the law. A scribe could also be a Pharisee, but was the most authoritative kind of Pharisee because he knew the letter of the law so thoroughly. And when these men would teach, they would build their case on Scripture and support their understanding by quoting other respected scribes. This is how a pastor preaches today. Exegete Scripture and support his case by quoting other respected leaders. This is the difference between derived authority and inherent authority. If a pastor preached like Jesus - “The Bible may say this… but I say to you” - he would be out of a job.

In Jesus' day, the scribes were the most expert of all the experts in Jewish Law.

CONFESSION

(Personal reflection)

I confess that for much of my life I have not been appropriately awestruck by the words of Jesus. My philosophical mind was more attracted to the writings of the apostle Paul, since he delved deep into the theological implications of the Jesus event. Now that's exciting stuff! Jesus just seemed too practical, too focused on everyday ethics over esoteric metaphysics. Booooring.

For a long time as a pastor, I preached a lot more Paul than Jesus. Eventually I noticed my own out-of-focus soul and I became more open to rethinking my theology. That's when I stumbled on the Anabaptist way of thinking about Jesus, Scripture, ethics, and everything. My focus shifted. I decided that, while Paul and the other New Testament writers are helping the church apply Jesus' teaching, we can't understand a book by only reading the footnotes. So I became convinced that life and teaching needed to start with Jesus and radiate out from there into understanding and applying the rest of the Bible.

And yet, as we all know all too well by now, I didn't always follow the teaching of Jesus. I did in many ways, until I didn't. And now another shift has taken place inside me: I am more passionate than ever about learning from Jesus, understanding Jesus, being amazed by Jesus, following Jesus, and sharing the good news of Jesus with others. Just try and stop me.

Lighthouses are beautiful, yet they also warn of danger. Jesus does both, and so should we.

COMMENTARY

(Thoughts about meaning and application)

This might be a good place to pause and think about what we find most amazing, most stunning, and most compelling about Jesus' teaching.

I will take the rest of this Commentary section to explain some of mine. Here are the themes that blow my mind the most in the teaching of Jesus:

1. GRACE IN PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

2. MERCY THAT'S STRONGER THAN JUDGEMENT/JUSTICE

3. PEACE AS THE PATH, NOT JUST THE DESTINATION

4. LOVE OVERRULING LAW

5. HEAVEN HERE AND NOW

6. GOD'S WORD IN PERSON OVER PRINT

7. GOD'S WAY IN PERSON OVER PROPHETS

For now, let me make brief comments about the first five (and remember you can go back to read full studies on each of these topics if you want to dig deeper)...

1. GRACE IN PLACE OF PERFORMANCE. Jesus begins the sermon by blessing the poor in spirit, those who have hit rock bottom and have nothing left to give, as already being in the Kingdom of Heaven. This is profound preemptive grace. He begins his ethical teaching by handing the keys to the Kingdom to those who are at their lowest point. What a position to be in to start learning how to walk in the way of Jesus. Jesus is the only teacher who offers the reward before the work. Grace is the ultimate spoiler alert: Jesus gives you the ending - "You are blessed and you belong” - before your story even unfolds. While most moral philosophy is a "Buy Now, Pay Later" scheme where you never quite finish the installments, Jesus's approach is "Paid in Full, Now Let's Go for a Walk." All striving, all performance-based acceptance, is defeated with the first words out of his mouth. (I could go on - and on and on and - but because I've written an entire book about this topic, I will leave it at this for now.)

2. MERCY THAT'S STRONGER THAN JUDGEMENT/JUSTICE. Yes, Jesus says "Paid in Full, Now Let's Go for a Walk" - but what happens when we stumble and fall while walking with Jesus? Thankfully, Jesus centralizes mercy over judgement. Jesus blesses those who are merciful to others because they also need it. He teaches his disciples to pray daily for forgiveness just as how we are daily forgiving others. He kicks every Christian out of his judgement seat. And he instructs us to pay attention to the log in our own eye before we try to help others with their splinters. Jesus revolutionizes moral philosophy by centering mercy as a necessary element in any ethical system that will sustain loving community in unity. Mercy is how we overcome the negative influence of the world around us, online and in person. For those who fail, and for those who judge those who fail – mercy. Most moral philosophers offer ethical systems that teach us how to live, but do not give as much emphasis on how to recover when we fail catastrophically. They function like a GPS: when we get off course they just keeps saying "Recalculating" to get us back to where we should be. But they are not as helpful when we get into an actual accident. The ethic of Jesus, on the other hand, goes beyond being our GPS keeping us on the straight and narrow, to also becoming our ambulance, our hospital, and our rehab physiotherapist to get us healthy and whole again after we crash. This is unique to Jesus in the world of moral philosophy. Jesus is the ultimate Physician-Philosopher. The Jesus ethic not only guides, it rescues. The mercy ethic rescues not only individuals from the crushing weight of guilt and shame; it rescues relationships and even entire societies from the weight of accumulating transgressions. In a time of performative moral outrage, mercy is our way to peace. In a time of severe division, mercy is how we build bridges. In a time of canceling people who fail, mercy is how we reconcile and restore. In a time of widespread woundedness, mercy provides an ER. Mercy is not a copout. Condemning from a distance is the copout. Mercy is the hard truth. Mercy, then, is how imperfect people move toward maximum human flourishing.

Mercy triumphs over judgment. ~ James the brother of Jesus (James 2:13)

Most moral philosophy is like a GPS. Jesus's Kingdom ethic is both a GPS as well as an ambulance if and when we get into an accident.

3. PEACE AS THE PATH, NOT JUST THE DESTINATION. When we walk with Jesus, we are not just walking toward peace; we are walking the path of peace. There is no denying that Jesus' emphasis on non-violent enemy-love is revolutionary. There is no other moral vision that so radically combines enemy-love, nonviolence, limitless mercy, and self-giving grace. And I am convinced this is one of the most practical reasons why the world needs Jesus today. Gandhi knew this, Martin Luther King Jr knew this, the early Christians knew this, and the Anabaptists recovered this. And now, because of the Sermon on the Mount, we can know this too.

4. LOVE OVERRULING LAW. Jesus internalizes the letter of the law into a matter of the heart. Murder becomes anger, and adultery becomes lust. Hence, it is respect, more than rule-keeping, that guides our thoughts and attitudes. Other times, Jesus redirects the law away from justice (eye for an eye) to merciful nonviolence (turn the other cheek). Jesus even says that if we turn back to the letter of the law, we are pursuing "evil". Now ethical decisions are made through other-centred empathy - a desire to treat others the way would want to be treated in their place. And eventually, Jesus upgrades the Golden Rule to the Platinum Principle: love others as he has loved us.

5. HEAVEN HERE AND NOW. Jesus puts his emphasis on the Kingdom of the Heavens coming to earth (Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as in heaven). This creates a sense of belonging and purpose for his followers - our job every day is to embrace, experience, and extend the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. We do this as citizens, soldiers, and ambassadors of God's Good News. The Kingdom isn't a retirement plan for the afterlife; it’s an invasion of heaven into our present life. This paradigm creates continuity between this life and the next. If we want to live lives of love, peace, and joy when we die, we might as well start now.

The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. ~ James, the brother of Jesus (James 3:17)

For me, these themes make a cumulative case for Christ above all other ethical philosophers, holy prophets, religious gurus, or popular life coaches. This case for Christ is intellectually defensible and rigorously reasonable, so it satisfies my mind. After all, Jesus’ ethic better explains and heals real human problems - guilt, shame, violence, revenge, exclusion, loneliness, purposelessness, hypocrisy, and fractured community. But it is more than that. The Jesus Way resonated with me at a deeper frequency. I realize that Jesus answers the questions my subconscious soul has been asking. To me, the teachings of Jesus bear the marks of the miraculous. They offer the most powerful apologetic I can imagine because the solutions Jesus offers fit with the needs of our world so well. It's like Jesus has insider designer knowledge of the human soul. Reading his teachings, investigating their meaning, and living them out is like experiencing a miracle here and now. I no longer need to debate whether there is evidence for God (Jesus' teachings offer me that) or whether the resurrection happened (that's easier to believe once we encounter the miracle of Jesus' teachings) or whether the gospel records are reliable (somebody wrote this stuff in the first century and that's all I need to experience their power) or whether Jesus even existed (obviously somebody came up with these revolutionary ideas within first century Israel, and it is that person we are calling "Jesus").

The teachings of Jesus form a cumulative case for Christ because they offer the most coherent and transformative vision I know of for human flourishing: grace for the weak, mercy for the guilty, peace as the path, love at the centre of ethics, and a kingdom vision that gives all lonely souls a purpose and place to belong that gives eternal meaning to this present life.

I am grateful for all the wisdom to be found in various religions and philosophies. But ultimately, when I assess who or what to offer my core allegiance to, nothing compares to Christ. I don't need to look elsewhere. Jesus is enough.

CONCLUSION

(One last thought)

Jesus has presented all of us with a unique moral vision leading to maximum human flourishing. And he offers this teaching, not as a humble suggestion from an itinerant philosopher, but as one who claims inherent authority over all philosophy, religion, and even scripture itself. Remember Jesus even goes so far as to see himself sitting on the heavenly throne of Judgement Day.

Jesus is not just the most masterful chess player in the world of moral philosophy. He is the one who flips the board and claims authority over the whole tournament.

In light of this, Jesus invites us all to, not just follow his teaching, but to embrace him as our Teacher, as our Lord, as our Everything.

And so, let's close off this series with a prayer. The great Christian existential philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard, wrote this prayer, and we can join our hearts in praying along with him:

"Lord Jesus Christ, you did not come into the world to be served and thus not to be admired either…. You yourself were the way and the life – and you have asked only for imitators. If we have dozed off into this infatuation, wake us up, rescue us from this error of wanting to admire or adoringly admire you instead of wanting to follow you and be like you."

~ Søren Kierkegaard (Practice in Christianity)

Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)

Jesus doesn't want our polite applause.

He wants our hearts.

He has already given us his.

CONTEMPLATE

(Scripture passages that relate to and deepen our understanding of this topic)

Matthew 5-7

CONVERSATION

(Talk together, learn together, grow together)

1. What is God revealing to you about himself through this passage?

2. What is God showing you about yourself through this passage?

3. Are you an admirer or an imitator? Part of the crowd or a disciple?

4. What is one thing you can think, believe, or do differently in light of what you are learning?

5. What questions are you still processing about this topic?

CALL TO ACTION

(Ideas for turning talk into walk)

1. The Mercy Audit: Identify one person this week toward whom you feel "justified" in your judgement. Intentionally "drop the case" against them, that is, drop your stones, and extend a specific act of mercy instead.

2. The Quiet Kingdom: Find one way to bring "Heaven to Earth" in a mundane moment. Whether it's how you tip, how you drive in traffic, or how you respond to an annoying email - act as a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven Here and Now.

3. The Upgrade Invitation: Do some personal assessment. Ask yourself if you tend to be an admirer or an imitator of Christ. If you're not fully committed to the road of discipleship, can you identify why? What is something you could do, or someone you could talk to, to help you resolve the stuckness?