One of the benefits of transitioning from part-time to full-time pastoral ministry in 2022 has been the gift of preaching more regularly at First Pres SLC. It's helped me recognize my own rhythms when it comes to preaching and has given me ample opportunity to dive deeply into Scripture.
Most recently, we finished up a sermon series on Jesus’ Sermon the Mount from Matthew 5-7. The greatest sermon of all time. An incredible text to dive deeply into over and over again. And perhaps the most frequently quoted text in the history of the world:
“Love your enemies.”
“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.”
“Judge not, lest ye be judged.”
“Do to others what you would have them do to you.”
I’m guessing you’ve heard some of these before, even if you’ve never stepped foot in a church. Not easy words by any means—in fact, probably some of the hardest words we’ll ever have to wrestle with—but worth building one’s life around nevertheless. Like a house upon a rock.
The Sermon on the Mount is the prime directive for those looking to follow Jesus. It challenges cultural narratives, demands humility, and affirms both humanity’s great sinfulness and our ultimate worth. It establishes the church as the hands and feet of Christ. It draws attention to the broken and unseen. It teaches us to reflect and pray. And it calls for desperate and uncompromising trust in the will and grace of God.
One can never get enough of messages like that.
I preached on three different texts from the Sermon on the Mount in this series. The last two in particular came at times when I questioned them fully but needed them desperately. (Funny how that happens, huh?) Sometimes the Holy Spirit hits you square in the face with what you need to hear when you need to hear it, even—and especially—when it’s hard.
For what it’s worth, I hope these words from Jesus resonate with something deep and sacred inside you and draw you into the upside-down, holy, and beautiful life he has planned for you.
Salt and Light (Matthew 5:13-16)
What does Jesus mean when he says to us, “You are the salt of the earth… You are the light of the world”? Notice he doesn’t say “you should be” or “you will be”—he simply says, “You are.”
“Do not worry” sounds hard enough in itself, but what about when you tie it in with money, security, and fear? Jesus walks us straight into the heart of worry in this text, and even more so into the wonderful care of the Father who loves us.
Generous Living (Matthew 7:7-12)
It starts with “Ask and you will receive” and ends with “Do to others as you would have them do to you”—the famous Golden Rule. How are these two related? Why is it so hard to simply ask for the things we need from God? And what does all of this have to do with generosity?
“Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.”
“Judge not, lest ye be judged.”
“Do to others what you would have them do to you.”
[full sermon transcript here]
[full sermon transcript here]
[full sermon transcript here]
