MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE – Mountains & Plains

Mountains and plains in Israel

If you happened to miss church this past Sunday, you missed another great sermon.  Rev. Ryan Gabriel spoke about the Sermon on the Plain (found in Luke 6).  His sermons always give food for thought, and this one was no different.  However, today I want to look at both of Jesus’ sermons and see what, exactly, was the difference between the two.  Matthew tells us about the Sermon on the Mount.  That one is longer (two chapters), and we hear about that one far more often than the Sermon on the Plain.  True enough, there is about a third of each that overlaps the other.  However, the two were preached to two completely different audiences and for have two different overall messages.   Scholars often debate as to if each of these sermons were preached all at once (once for the “mount” and once for the “plain”), or were they preached at various times and then written down as one.  To me, it doesn’t actually matter.  The messages and lessons that are contained in each are the same, no matter them details of when/where they actually occurred. 

Sermon on the Mount

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus was speaking primarily to a Jewish audience.  This would have included the leaders of the Jewish community, as well as the common folk.  He went up on the mountain, above the people that were following Him, to get away from the pressing crowd somewhat.  He wanted to speak to them, but He couldn’t really get their attention and be heard unless He moved up above them a bit.

 

Sermon on the Plain

In the Sermon on the Plain, He was talking to primarily to a Gentile crowd.  There were people from many of the towns around where He was.  He had just spent a whole evening and night praying to God on a mountainside.  When He came down, he called all His disciples to Him (there were many more than just the 12 we read about throughout the Gospels and Acts), and picked out 12 of them.  Jesus would continue teaching ALL His disciples, but these 12 would receive specific instructions to raise them to more of a leadership role as time went on.  After Jesus chose those 12, He walked out onto the plain (a large enough flat area of the ground that everyone could come close) and He began teaching everyone. 

There are differences between the two sermons, other than the people who were there to hear the sermons, and the difference in where Jesus stood to preach.  The Sermon on the Mount was primarily about what it meant to be a good Christian.  There was a great deal of compare/contrast of the haves vs. the have-nots, and a reversal of roles when it came to who would get into heaven and who wouldn’t.  In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus was emphasizing kindness and caring to the poor and those in need.  In the Sermon on the Mount, the point Jesus was trying to make as:  “All you folks who think you’re the best at following God’s rules and  laws have it COMPLETELY WRONG!  Here’s what it REALLY means to follow the laws you have been given by God.”  In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus was basically saying:  “Here’s what else you need to know… it’s not just about how YOU follow the laws… it’s about HOW YOU TAKE CARE OF EACH OTHER!!”  

The Sermon on the Mount was prompted by what the Pharisees and his disciples were saying to Jesus about ministry practices.  The Pharisees were alarmed that Jesus forgave people of their sins in the name of God. To them, that was the supreme blasphemy.  They also did not approve of his healing on the Sabbath. According to the Pharisees, Jesus was breaking Jewish Law right and left.  The Sermon on the Mount was meant, to a large degree, to set them straight. 

The Sermon on the Plain started out as Jesus talking directly to His disciples.  He had just picked His apostles, and was beginning to teach them.  The first thing that He wanted them to know was that IT WASN’T ABOUT THEM.  It was about OTHERS:  How they treated others; How everyone should treat others; How we should especially take care of those who could not take care of themselves; How those were the types of people that would be rewarded in heaven.  He even started out with an admonishment, asking them why they even bother to call him “Lord” if they weren’t going to follow what He was teaching them.  OOOooo… that got their attention, alright!

Luke has been called the “social Gospel” because of its overall sympathy for the poor and emphasis on kindness throughout the entire book.  In Luke, we see teachings from Jesus like:
** Love your enemies and do good to those who hate you (Luke 6:27).
** Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (Luke 6:31).
** Do not judge, and you will not be judged (Luke 6:37).

Both the Sermon on the Mount and the Sermon on the Plain laid the groundwork for the Christian church, and they both continue to instruct us and guide us today.  Timeless and eternal, Jesus reaches out to us through the ages and still guides us in the way He would have us go today. 

I encourage you to spend some time this week rereading both Sermons:

Sermon on the Mount:  Matthew 5-7 
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%205-7&version=NIV

Sermon on the Plain:  Luke 6
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%206&version=NIV

 

Take care of each other!

Until next time… J…