Jesus wanted to set forth the doctrine of His future church, but if the God-man had had a manager, he would have been told it was not advantageous to tell people what he wanted from them so early on.

The Jews in Galilee had the same mindset of the Maccabees some 200 years earlier. They wanted to fight and evict the Romans from their land. Those in Judea and Jerusalem were heavily involved with politics and this is how the Sadducees and Pharisees had become wealthy. The Herodians wanted to restore the kingdom to someone in the Herodian bloodline, while the Essenes lived apart in enclaves of communal living.

This new doctrine was diametrically opposed to the desires of all the Jewish groups and only born again believers in Christ who would be baptized in the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost could understand the dogma and want to live by it.

Jesus told the people that they were the salt of the earth, that in time would be able to help the heathens to get out of idolatry. Their light would shine so bright, that people would be attracted to them.

Jesus warned his followers that the five books of Moses still stood, including the instructions from the Old Testament prophets. At the same time Jesus told them that it did not matter how much they prayed, gave to the work of God and did good works, piety and good works would never grant them salvation.

Murder was common and Jesus unequivocally stated that murder was not acceptable in the Kingdom of God regardless of the circumstances. Murder was never an option in retaliation.

When Jesus began to talk about anger, it struck a raw nerve among the Jews. Man’s sinful nature is full of anger and rage. Anger feels so good when we do not get our way because it shuts up the people with whom we have a conflict. The Son of God warned that aside from righteous anger directed at sin, this powerful emotion is not tolerated in the Kingdom of God.

This sermon will be a litmus test of your spiritual growth. Open your ears and listen to what the Messiah stated to see how you measure up. Even if you fail this test, you can still get a pass by embracing repentance and being willing to change.

Print out the sermon outline and let's examine the Scriptures together Sunday morning at 9:00 AM PST.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor John S. Torell