Jesus' Sermon on the Mount teaches the value of His Kingdom, and these puzzle the Jewish people. Consider this warning from Matthew 6: 24 : " No one can serve two masters , either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. "Essentially, Christ is telling the crowds that wealth, the law, and the values of this world that people hold so high won't get them into the kingdom. In fact , relying only on these things "is the road that leads to destruction, " Emotions are definitely heating up. Everything Jesus says points in a direction that most people aren't willing to go. His commands don't just forbids murder and adultery, Jesus says they include hatred and lust (the inner attitudes behind the actions). Then He hits the crowd right between the eyes: " For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter into the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5 : 20). Add to this zinger. "not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord,"will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7 : 21). Is Jesus holding up a standard that is too high for anyone to attain? Not on your life. His point is this: It's not a matter of Human ability. He's the one who gives us the power not to sin. And if we mess up, He'll always forgive us and help us start over again.
Read next
From @thomasbrown