He Taught as One Who Had Authority – 9/15/24

My wife and I have been watching season four of “The Chosen.” Have you seen any of that? We’re usually behind. And many have asked me what I think about that series. I’ve mentioned before, I really like it, but there are times where I’m frustrated because I think that’s not how it happened. Maybe. But as long as we continue to remember that it’s just a show, that many of the characters, much of the dialog have been created by the writers, but they’re trying to stay true to the biblical message. And I feel like overall they do that.

But one of the things that is really hitting me right now in the middle of, or near the end of season four is the way Jesus — and I think this is very true when I read the gospels — forces us to either adore him or reject him. There are so many times where you think, okay, Jesus, de-escalate the situation and he escalates it more. You can win those, and he says the opposite. He has zero interest in leaving people with the assumption that he’s just a good guy, a good teacher, a good example. You either adore him, worship him, stand in awe of him, or you reject him, which is very consistent with what’s happening in the Gospels. He makes claims and requires such a personal response that only an egomaniac or demoniac could make unless he is who he claims to be.

John Duncan, who is a Scottish preacher in the, was a Scottish preacher in the 1800s, was one of the first to write this as a succinct argument. Look at this.

“Christ either deceived mankind by conscious fraud, or He was Himself deluded and self-deceived, or He was Divine. There is no getting out of this trilemma. It is inexorable.”

So he was either a deceiver, or he himself was deceived, or he is divine. 100 years later, Oxford professor C.S. Lewis famously added a fourth possibility. Could have been a legend that evolved over a long period of time, and then he disproves that. And then he concluded in his classic book, “Mere Christianity,”

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who is merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level of the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was and is, the Son of God:  or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

So in what ways did Jesus not leave this open to us? And to answer that question, we need to study the whole gospel of Matthew, which we will do. But for today, let’s explore the answer to that question from the Sermon on the Mount. To start with, we want to hit the last two verses where we ended from last week and see the response to the sermon. Matthew 7:28-29,

“And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority and not as their scribes.”

So the thing that astonished the original hearers was the authority of Jesus. It left them stunned, dumbfounded. The word astonished means to amaze or astound. But the Greek there is very interesting. It’s made up of two words. The first you know, it’s “ek.” what does “ek” mean? Exit? We get exit from it. It means out. And “plesso” means to strike or pound or hit.

Imagine you’re at a red light. It turns green. You enter the intersection and suddenly, wham! A car hits the front of your car, spins you into another lane, into a different direction. You’re shocked, astounded, dumbfounded, trying to figure out what just happened. Glad you’re alive. That is a vehicular astonishment. I was heading in this direction, and suddenly, before I knew it, I’m heading in a completely different direction. I was struck or hit out of where I was going.

Now, Matthew’s not talking here about vehicular astonishment. He’s talking about an intellectual or spiritual astonishment. I’m minding my own business, believing what I believe, and all of a sudden I encounter this sermon, and it just blows my mind. I’m in a different lane. I’m heading in a different direction. There are things that I hadn’t thought about or didn’t view the way that sermon says I’m called to view them.  I’m astounded at the authority of the one preaching this, that he would call me to a very different direction that I would not have anticipated.

Notice they were not astonished by Jesus’ humor. He didn’t tell a lot of church jokes. They weren’t astonished by Jesus’ storytelling ability,  you know, I was just mesmerized by his linguistic artistry. They weren’t astonished by his kindness or relatability. “You know, he gets me.” All of that is true. He does get you. He is a great storyteller. He is kind. But that’s not what astonished them. What astonished them was his authority.

“…for [verse 29] he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.”

So to understand, what do they mean, “teaching as one who had authority and not as the scribes”? Let’s start with, well, how did the scribes teach? And then maybe we will understand more clearly what astonished them about the way Jesus taught.

Who are the scribes? The scribes were the caretakers of the Law. They formed during the period of Ezra when Israel returned from the Babylonian captivity. They copied, explained, and protected the Law. When they copied the Law by hand, they counted the letters to ensure accuracy as they protected the Law. They also established what were often called “fences” or “hedges” around the Law. So if I’m called to protect the Law, the safest thing to do is to build hedges and protection around the Law so that people don’t violate the Law. And what happened over hundreds and hundreds of years, hedges grew and grew and grew.

A number of years ago, someone very kindly gave me the 22 volumes of the Babylonian Talmud, which I read every day faithfully. I do not. It is the compilation of centuries of oral tradition recorded in the late 4th and 5th century after Jesus. So this would record, the Babylonian Talmud would be the record of the oral tradition that would go back before Jesus, and during Jesus’ time, and several hundred years afterwards, finally in recorded form. And the Talmud, which is what it’s often called, is the record of Jewish Law. And it illustrates how meticulous these scribes were in building these hedges.

I was actually going to give some examples, but I was afraid if I did, they would come across as absolutely ridiculous. It would be like going in a lawyer’s office, you know all the books of equal size, just pulling one off and just randomly opening it and being like, why does it have to be so specific in order to guard this, and this, and this from being misunderstood? In the Talmud, they cover subjects like ethics, ritual purity, modesty, agrarian law, Shabbat, which is the Sabbath, a whole volume on Sabbath rules. And what they do — and each one is pretty consistent — they’ll state a law or a principle, and then they will quote rabbinical tradition, or Rabbi Ashi, Rabbi Judah says, they’ll quote rabbis from the past or rabbinical traditions from the past in order to substantiate this principle or law. And lawyers do the same thing today, you’re establishing legal precedent in order to build a case for the law or the principle you’re trying to establish. But you can imagine hundreds and hundreds of years of these adding up. And these guys, they knew it, and they memorized huge portions of the Talmud, what became the Talmud, and of the Old Testament.

And so when Matthew says the hearers were astonished because Jesus taught as one who has authority and not as the scribes, he’s referring to the fact that the scribes taught based on the authority of the rabbinical tradition. They had rabbinical credentials, and they knew all of the other rabbis that they were to quote who were highly esteemed. So it was an elite club, and everyone in the club trusted one another in the club. And you reinforced your position based on those other voices in the club. And Jesus comes along and teaches very differently. He’s not establishing his authority based on the club. He didn’t even join the club. He taught very differently.

So how did Jesus teach? And in order to answer this question, we’re going to do two things. Number one, we’re going to summarize the Sermon on the Mount. If you’re visiting, we’ve been in the Sermon on the Mount for the last six and a half months. So it’s going to feel a little overwhelming, so we’re going to jet through it. But it’s just a little review. But as we walk through it, what we’re going to try to do is notice a few, only a few, examples of how Jesus taught as one who has authority. So let’s jump in.

Sermon on the Mount summary. When the King and his kingdom come near, he begins with the introduction, the citizens of the kingdom,

1.  Who we are, a new identity (5:1-16)

Jesus teaches that it is the unlikely ones who are the blessed ones — those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek. And look what he says in verse 11.

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.”

Now we just roll past that, but wait a second. Can you imagine if I did that? If I said, hey, brothers and sisters, this week I want you to embrace the difficulties of life on my account. I want you to serve me and do everything you do on behalf of me. And when things are hard, encourage yourself that you’re doing it for me. And you’d be like, you’re a narcissist. We’re not doing that. That’s freaking me out. As you should be freaked out. But notice, Jesus, he said that. You are blessed when you’re reviled and persecuted, and people utter all kinds of evil against you on my account. You talk about authority. Who do you think you are? And then he describes us as salt and light, who are for the good of our neighbors and the glory of our Father.

2. How we live. He moves from who we are, identity, to how we live, a new authority.

And this is the main body of the sermon. It goes from 5:17 to 7:12. And both, you’ll notice we know it’s the main body because in both 5:17 and 7:12, he refers to the Law and the Prophets communicating, that all of this teaching is filling up the Law and the Prophets. This isn’t something new in that sense. It’s filling up. Look at how he begins, 5:17.

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

Another mind-blowing statement. My coming, Jesus says, fills up the entire old covenant, the Law and the Prophets. That’s authority. Look at the next verse, verse 18. Again we’re just looking for examples of how Jesus taught as one who had authority. Verse 18, he begins,

“For truly, I say to you,”

Now he does this five times in the Sermon on the Mount. The word truly, you know another Hebrew word, you say it often, maybe, if you’re Southern Baptist you say it more, “amen.” That’s the Hebrew word and the Greek word, “amen.” Normally we use this word at the end of a sentence, and even in the Bible, it’s often at the end of the sentence or the end of a prayer saying, “may it be” or “surely this is true.” Jesus uses it unlike anyone else. Listen to what one rabbi, Rabbi Jeremias says:

“This use of amen is without parallel in the whole of Jewish literature and the rest of the New Testament.”

Why? Well, the Old Testament prophets, when they began their sermons, they typically began not with Amen, but with what words? “Thus says the Lord.” We’re a mouthpiece of the Lord. When the scribes began their teaching, they generally might quote the Torah, the Old Testament, but then they will reinforce their position and emphasize their authority by quoting other rabbis. Jesus isn’t doing that. He is amening his own sermon. What does that mean? The authority by which I communicate what is true is grounded in me. You see how you’re either an egomaniac or your’re God. What are you doing?

And then he has this formula he repeats six times as he communicates six case studies on things like anger, lust, divorce, oathes, retaliation, love of enemies in all of the rest of chapter 5. And each one begins with,

“You have heard, but I say to you…”

In other words, those who live in my kingdom live lives shaped by my words. What I say shapes who we are, Jesus is saying. That is authority.

And then he moves, number three, to what we live for. So who we are, how we live, and now

3. What we live for, a new security.

Here in chapter 6, he teaches us what we don’t live for and what we do live for. Look at what we don’t live for. We don’t live for status.

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them…”

We don’t live for likes or pats on the back or approval. Otherwise, you will be riddled with the fear of man. You will have days where you think people are so happy with you. And then other days where you come crashing down in despair because someone let you down or looked at you with a negative look. And Jesus applies this to giving and praying and fasting. Don’t live for status. And then don’t live for stuff, the rest of chapter 6.

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,”

Otherwise — and we spent a good part of our summer looking at this — otherwise we will be an anxious people. If you live for status, you’ll be riddled by the fear of man. If you live for stuff, you will constantly be afraid that you won’t have enough or you won’t be able to keep what you thought you had. So what do we live for? Chapter 6:33, he ends,

“Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Your Father knows you need things. He will provide. Seek first his kingdom. And then

4. How we fix what is broken –  a new responsibility.

And here Jesus is teaching us how do we live a kingdom life in a fallen, broken world. He begins with the famous words,

“Judge not that you be not judged.”

And we explained as we looked at that, that judging is like owning a weapon. It can be really helpful or really harmful depending on how you use it. And so Jesus provides us with a safety course in judging that helps us navigate difficult relationships in a broken, fallen world. Here are the four parts to the safety course. We’re just going to have to rattle them off, but we spent many weeks on this.

Start with yourself. Stop trying to force feed. That’s the part about cramming pearls. My kingdom is not characterized by coercion. Keep asking your Father. Ask, seek, knock. Prayer is the alternative to coercion and manipulation. And then, be creative in your kindness. Imagine, what would he want? What would I want if I were him? And then do that.

5. The choice before us, a new destiny.

And here Jesus paints four vivid images to highlight the difference between the real and the fake. Two gates or ways. Two trees. Two workers. And in this section, let me give you one more, or we’ll only have two more examples, another example of Jesus’ authority. In verses 21-23, Jesus moves from the field with the two trees to the court, the law court. He presents himself as the authority, the judge. And he says,

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’”

In other words, I am the one who will adjudicate this. And then he provides the evidence in verse 23,

“I declare to them, ‘I never knew you.’”

In other words, your destiny is determined by your relationship with Jesus. And then he issues the verdict,

“Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”

In other words, judgment is alienation from Jesus. Talk about authority, –judge, evidence, verdict.

And then look at the last one. This is where we were last week. Two builders. The difference between standing and falling in life and death is whether you do or do not do “these words of mine.” So our response to the words of Jesus is the most defining factor regarding our life and death, whether we stand or fall. Who says things like that?

You could imagine the first hearers hearing these controversial words. Now some of you may feel like, well, wait a second here, I think the most important thing is to know that Jesus cares about me, loves me. Yes, it’s true. But I think one of the reasons Jesus starts the first sermon in Matthew — and there are going to be several more — is if you don’t settle the authority question, nothing else will matter. If Jesus is your friend, but he’s not Lord, it’s like having a teddy bear. But when you go through intense trials, a teddy bear is not going to be enough. Jesus is Lord. And you’ve got to settle that early on, or nothing else will matter. And that seems to be what Jesus is doing in this most famous first sermon in Matthew.

Now, what does this mean in our day? And why is this so controversial? So controversial that many hearers today would not be astonished by this teaching, they would be repulsed by it. Why might we today be repulsed by the authority of Jesus? Well, think about, where is authority today? Authority is no longer — I’m talking generally speaking in our culture, is no longer from God. It’s no longer in the institutions of our culture. Authority has moved completely inward and is in my feelings and desires. Let me just give you one example. Glennon Doyle, self-help writer, New York Times bestseller, she says this:

“We are here to fully introduce ourselves, to impose ourselves and ideas and thoughts and dreams onto the world…. So we cannot contort ourselves to fit into the visible order.”

Now, just pause there for a second. We cannot contort ourselves, meaning we don’t bow, we don’t bend, we don’t pray, we don’t love, we don’t serve. That’s being. We are contorting. No. What are we doing?

“We must unleash ourselves and watch the world reorder itself in front of our eyes.”

That’s creation language. We are gods. We speak, and creation happens. We reorder things based on our feelings, our self-created identities. So when you live in a culture where we are being taught this through music and movies, through the air we breathe, and then you sit under Jesus’ teaching, it’s no wonder we’re not astonished, we’re offended. We have a clash of deities. And the casualties from this way of thinking are countless. James K. A. Smith says it this way,

“For several generations now we have refrained from ‘imposing’ any substantive vision of the good life with respect to family, marriage, and sexuality, for example.”

Those are just a couple examples. There are many more.

“We have given people room to pursue both their sincerely held convictions and their passions for pleasure. We (allegedly) haven’t ‘imposed’ a normative vision of human social arrangements except the maxim ‘Be autonomous.’

Did you understand what he’s saying there? We claim we’re not imposing any authoritative view, but the authoritative view we’re imposing is ‘be autonomous.’ In other words, you do you. You be you, because you are gods.

“The result? Erosion of family stability (especially for the poor)…

The people who imagine and invent this stuff, they’re doing fine outwardly, but it has had devastating results on the poor,

“and widening inequality, exposing the most vulnerable to even more social threats, [think of children in the womb, think of children] eviscerating the working class and amplifying inequality – none of which looks very just, even if it is the result of observing a kind of procedural justice.”

So we’ve never talked more about justice while perpetuating injustice, in the name of autonomy. The Bible says,

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is a way to death.”

Jesus is saying, “I am the way.” I am the way. That’s a collision. So there’s a way that seems right to me. I think I’m driving along through the intersection just fine, and Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount blows me out. Knocks me off. And what we need to be able to do this morning as we wrap up this sermon is to say, am I astonished? Or am I so blind to my own assumptions that I can hear or read the Sermon on the Mount and just be unfazed?

So I want us to respond. We need time to respond. I know many of you are doing that on your own and in your life groups. But let’s take a few minutes now. I put a couple questions there in your outline.

What has astonished you or surprised you in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount?

How has Jesus’ teaching encouraged you? Or how is he changing you?

Let’s take a few minutes right now. You can either write this out or read over the Sermon on the Mount in your Bible and pray. If you’re online, please do the same thing. But let’s take a few minutes. And then I’m going to come back in a few minutes. We’re going to have some time for some of you to share just a little snippet of what God has been doing in your heart, maybe something you’ve written out. So pray about that, if the Spirit is speaking to you to encourage your brothers and sisters. But for now, let’s take time, respond to the Spirit, write that out, and then I’ll come back in a few minutes.