Text: “It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).
Jesus is the Son of God. He walked the face of the earth preaching and teaching the multitudes of people. Many listened to what He had to say, but on the other hand, many who listened did not believe His words.
He taught people how to live the good life here on earth and how to spend eternity with Him in His kingdom. He talked about subjects very common to people. He talked about such things as murder in the heart; adultery in the heart; marriage as being sacred and binding; loving people, including your enemies, and doing good to God and to His people.
He taught people how to pray by giving them a model prayer which we know as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Jesus talked about the eye being the lamp of the body. He taught it impossible to serve two masters. He pointed out that worry was not beneficial, but instead, it was harmful to the person and God the Father did not want harm to come to any of His children.
Judging was not something for us to do because none of us are perfect and judgment could be passed upon us. We are to continuously seek Him for our needs and our wants. We are to ask Him to supply our needs just as we ask our earthly mother or father to provide for our welfare.
He gave us an example of the disaster that would befall a structure not built upon solid ground. The structure He talked about was our very own life. He said, “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rains descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock” (Matthew 8:24, 25).
Jesus taught using parables or stories. His parables compared two things and were a great way to teach. For example, He talked about the kingdom of heaven and compared it to a mustard seed. The mustard seed is a very small seed, but when planted in the rich ground grows a plant quite large.
He compared the kingdom of heaven to a treasure hidden in a field, “…which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field” (Matthew 13:44). This illustrates how important the kingdom of God is to every person. Jesus paid the price so people could have access to the kingdom. People should be willing to give up everything to gain access to the kingdom.
“All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: ‘I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world’” (Matthew 13:34, 35).
Scripture tells us that after Jesus began His ministry multitudes of people started to follow Him. “And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him” (Matthew 5:1, 2).
As Jesus looked out over the multitude of people, He told them about the essential characteristics of people in His kingdom. He began His Sermon on the Mount with 10 very important items called the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes tell people how to be blessed or happy.
Life will not be easy and people will face trials and tribulations. All the issues and circumstances people face will still permit them to experience joy and hope in their life. The joys of life should not be dependent on worldly conditions. Hope should not be reliant on what the world has to offer. True joy and hope will only come to people if they follow the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus wanted people to know who He was and how important they were to Him. He told them, “You are the salt of the earth…” (Matthew 5:13). It is interesting to note that Jesus would use an item very common to the people. Did you ever stop to think about the use of the word “salt”.
Is there anyone in the room that does not or has never used salt? Why do we use this substance? Is it good for us? Salt makes bland food taste a little better. Using too much salt makes food taste nasty. Some people cannot use salt because it increases their blood pressure while other people are not affected.
Salt has been used as a preservative for many years. Salt is used to preserve meat. Salt pulls the water or moisture out of meat and prevents bacteria from growing and spoiling the meat. Fishing was a common occupation in Jesus’ day and the way to preserve the fish was by using salt.
As Jesus’ disciples were seated around Him on the mountain, He said to them, “You are the salt of the earth…” (Matthew 5:13). He said this to indicate to them they are pure like salt and they would be responsible for maintaining the purity of His Word and His teachings as they came in contact with the ways of the world.
They, as well as all Christians, are to work to prevent decay and corruption in the world. Their actions, their words, and their deeds should be different from those of non-Christians. They need to rebuke such things as impurity, lust, hatred, anger, greed, selfishness and all other sins.
Since all Christians are “salt of the earth” all need to project the image of Christ by exhibiting His attributes of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These attributes are like preservatives and will hinder or deter Satan from doing his work of destroying or spoiling what God wants for His children.
Jesus does not want us to lose sight of our mission. He does not want us to lose our positive attributes. He says, “If the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?” (v. 13) In other words, if we lose our zest for living according to the words Jesus spoke, our positive influence for good to all His children will be lost. If we cannot do good in the world, then we are of no value to Almighty God. We can’t be like the world doing worldly things and living like all other worldly people if we are the “salt of the earth”. Salt bring out the flavor in food and people who are the “salt of the earth” bring out positive aspects of God’s children.
Jesus also said to the disciples, “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:14). As we know, light takes away darkness. Darkness is the absence of light. When we turn on a light in a dark room, the darkness disappears. By the same token, Christians are the light of the world and there will be a difference when they are present with other people.
Christians who are living for Jesus will cast forth a glow indicating love for Christ and love for others. This glow will come forth without any effort on the part of the person because it is a part of the person’s life. “There is the possibility of hiding this light.
We can hide our light by not speaking up and witnessing for Jesus and living our life in a worldly manner and following in the footsteps of other worldly people. If we choose to deny Jesus, our light is lost. Living according to our sinful nature will cause our glow to dim and go out. When we lack empathy, sympathy, concern, understanding or love, our light will lose its brightness and fade out.
Jesus said, “A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden” (Matthew 5:14). When the light of Jesus shines forth from us, people will know who we are and what we stand for. We will not be able to hide the light. The light shining from us will be like the light from the lighthouse which guides ships safely into port. Our light will guide lost souls to the one who can help them.
Jesus then said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). All the good works we do are not for our glory, but they are for the glory of God the Father.
When our light shines, people will look at us and know we are different. Some people will admire us and want what we have. Others will classify us as Jesus freaks and turn from us. We can consider ourselves candles lit by the Lord Himself. We are candles the Lord does not want hidden or as Scripture tells us, “…put under a basket.”
Jesus’ message is like a very strong light and cannot be hidden from Almighty God. This message will light up the life of all people who come into its bright shining rays. These people will become the lights of the world that will forever carry forth the “Good News of Jesus Christ.”
Some people had the idea that Jesus came to destroy the Law, but this was not the case. He said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17).
The Law was given to guide people into a right relationship with Almighty God by doing what was morally and ethically right. God wanted people to love Him with all their heart and mind.
Unfortunately, people do not always obey a law. When they choose to disobey the law, changes take place in their life. For example, if you are driving a car and you refuse to stop for the red light or the stop sign, there is a good possibility you will be involved in an accident. Sometimes people try to interrupt the law and begin to stretch the true meaning.
For example, I have seen people make a U-turn on a red light just because there are no cars approaching from the opposite direction. One day when I was police chaplain, I was riding with the officer when directly in front of us the driver decided to make a U-turn on a red light. That person misinterpreted and broke the law for which he received a traffic citation.
Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets” (Matthew 5:17). Does that Scripture indicate the Law is still valid? In the Old Testament, there were three classes or groups of law. For example, there was the ceremonial law, the civil law and the moral law.
The ceremonial law had to do with various offering: burnt offering; grain offering; fellowship offering; sin offering, and guilt offering. Each of these offerings had a specific purpose, specific significance and each pointed to the death of Jesus who was the Perfect Offering.
For example, the purpose of the burnt offering was to pay for sins in general, to show one’s devotion to God and to point to Christ, the Perfect Offering. The grain offering showed honor and respect to the worship of God, and recognized that everything we have belongs to God and pointed to the fact Christ was perfect and gave Himself to the Father and all others. The other offerings had similar meanings. Since the death and resurrection of Jesus, these ceremonial laws are no longer necessary and we are not bound by them. We are still bound to the idea behind the law and that is to worship and love our heavenly Father.
The civil law, as demonstrated in Deuteronomy 24:10, 11, applied to daily living of the people. For example, all people were supposed to be treated with respect. A poor person in need was to be helped and not looked down upon. Less fortunate people were not to be taken advantage of by those with more worldly means. Civil law gave people the opportunity to better themselves and provided assistance for those who were unable to do so.
The moral law, which is the Ten Commandments, was given by God and is a direct command. The moral law was given by God to direct people in the right direction. It is a set of standards and serves as a guide for each of us. The Ten Commandments are still relevant today.
Conclusion:
Jesus taught us the way to live life that would permit us to enter His kingdom and spend eternity with Him. He stands at the door of our heart knocking and asking permission to come in. He wants to occupy first place in our heart. He only asks. He never forces us to accept. He tells us we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. We are to live our life so that other people will see how meaningless and spoiled life is without Jesus in their heart. His light is to shine from us to others to lead them from darkness to the Light.
“The Carpenter”
“The sun beat down on the village,
And in at the open door;
But the Carpenter’s hands were busy,
For the Carpenter’s folk were poor.
The sweat was bright on His forehead,
As He cut and planed each length;
For, to feed and to clothe His dear ones,
The Carpenter gave His strength.
“The Carpenter stood in the city,
And the helpless about Him lay;
The lame man shouted for fleetness;
The blind man sobbed for the day.
And healing flowed from His fingers;
At His touch the weak grew brave;
For, to heal and to help the helpless,
His virtue the Carpenter gave.
“On a lonely hill, Golgotha,
Men set the cruel Tree;
And crucified the Carpenter
That day for you and me.
They nailed those hands so holy.
Those feet they drove the spike –
For, to save the souls of all mankind,
The Carpenter gave his life.”
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Amen.
