Sermon on the Mount

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Yesterday I posted a link to Ted Gossard’s series on Christians and War. But, that really is an offshoot of the Sermon on the Mount. Personally, I think the Sermon on the Mount is the heart of Christianity, the standard by which Christ expects us to live—not that we can by our own strength! There is only one way we can live it, and that is by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. But, that presence can and does enable us to live it, if we will allow the Holy Spirit to rule our lives.

On that note, there are a few really good resources on the sermon that I have found stimulating. There is, of course, Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship, a wonderful work that every Christian should read at least once. Another good book is by E. Stanley Jones The Christ of the Mount, which is out of print : ( This book grew out of his work in India with people of the Hindu persuasion. If you can get your hands on a copy, read it.

I naively thought I took the Sermon on the Mount seriously, that is, until I started reading John Wesley’s series of 13 sermons on the Sermon on the Mount a few years ago. These are readily available online here in sermons 21-33. I was suddenly confronted with the stark reality of how much I rationalized my disobedience! Again, every Christian owes it to him/herself to read these, ponder them, and pray through them.
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