if you would, to Matthew chapter
5 as that will be the starting point for my message this morning.
I've decided to begin a verse-by-verse study of the passage commonly
known as the Sermon on the Mount. I'm not sure how far I'll continue
on this track in future messages, but I plan to at least cover
some of the initial verses found in chapter 5 of Matthew. But
before we begin a verse-by-verse study, I wanted to take our time
this morning to introduce the study by bringing an overview
of the entire sermon found in Matthew chapters 5 through 7.
So I've cleverly titled this morning's message, Introduction
to the Sermon on the Mount. I do think an introductory overview
will serve us well and it will provide a proper framework by
capturing the central theme of the sermon which Christ delivered
to the multitude who were following Him as he went up into a mountain
and he preached the words that are described and recorded here
in these three chapters. If you recall a few weeks back,
David Simpson touched on this in his message when he was visiting
here, pointing out to us a few key verses that helped to establish
the context of the entire sermon. And in a few moments, we'll refresh
our memories by looking at some of those again as well. But initially,
I'd like for you to consider that the great theme of the Sermon
on the Mount is the gospel of the kingdom and the nature of
the kingdom of heaven itself. If you look back at the closing
verses of Matthew chapter 4, you'll see that's what Jesus
was preaching. In verse 23 of Matthew 4, it
reads, And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues
and preaching the gospel of the kingdom. And it goes on to say
that great multitudes followed Him. If you go on down to verse
25, it says they followed Him from Galilee and from Decapolis
and from Jerusalem and from Judea and from beyond Jordan. And as chapter 5 begins, we see
it is to some of this multitude, if not all of them, that Jesus
continues to preach. And what was He preaching? We
saw in verse 23, the gospel of the kingdom. in this sermon known
as the Sermon on the Mount. If we survey this passage from
the lead-in here in the latter verses of chapter 4 all the way
through the conclusion of the sermon at the end of chapter
7, you'll discover that the word kingdom itself is used no less
than ten times. Now, the kingdom of heaven is
the same as the kingdom of God, and it doesn't speak of a kingdom
with geographical borders. But rather, it speaks of a dominion
or a reign. And although the kingdom of God,
it can refer to God's sovereign rule, we know that He sovereignly
rules over all things and all people. So we see that simply
describing the kingdom as His sovereign rule, that doesn't
completely capture the sense of the kingdom that's set forth
in the Sermon on the Mount. You see, the kingdom described
by Christ in this passage is one into which everyone does
not enter. In fact, we'll observe in a moment
that it's one that most do not enter. It's a spiritual kingdom
inhabited by spiritual children, not physical. It's just as physical,
natural born Israel is distinguishing the scripture from the spiritual
children of promise, spiritual Israel. So it is with this kingdom. It is a spiritual kingdom inhabited
by spiritually born-again children. In Romans 14, 17, we see a description
of the kingdom of God that corresponds to that which is preached by
Christ here in Matthew. Romans 14, 17 reads, For the
kingdom of God is not meat and drink. See, it's not physical.
but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. The Kingdom
of God is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. Here in the Sermon on the Mount,
the Kingdom of Heaven does indeed speak of God's sovereign rule.
But it does so in the specific sense in which His sovereign
rule bears directly on His redemptive glory. His redemptive glory. What God is like is His glory. His redemptive glory is that
which we learn of God only in redemption, or as 2 Corinthians
4, 6 says, only in the person and work of Christ, in the face
of Jesus Christ. So it does speak of his sovereign
rule as it bears on his redemptive glory. See, it's seen in the
salvation of sinners, the ones who will inhabit this kingdom. And it's seen in his purpose
to bless those inhabitants, to freely and fully and to provide
everything for them for the whole inheritance of grace, the inheritance
of eternal life, heaven itself. all based on the righteousness
of the Lord Jesus Christ. The kingdom of God is righteousness
and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. The kingdom spoken of
here includes all things of eternal life and glory. that Christ as
the representative, substitute, and surety obtained for His people
by establishing an everlasting righteousness of infinite value
whereby God the Father is manifested as both a just God, that is,
one who extracts a sufficient penalty for the injury against
His holy justice, but He is both a just God and a Savior. That
is one who shows mercy to sinners, who transgress the law, who break
the law, violators of the law. And he does all of this. based
upon the satisfaction to his law and justice, the satisfaction
made by Christ, a righteousness unto salvation. It is Christ's
establishment and imputation of righteousness that justifies
and demands the regeneration and conversion, the new birth,
and the final glory in heaven of all whom he represented, all
that the Father gave all then for whom He lived and obeyed
and suffered and bled and died and for whom He rose again."
Yeah, you see, because righteousness demands life. He rose again. And that's what this Sermon on
the Mount is about. It's about life, eternal life. You know, we have called our
media ministry here, Reign of Grace. And I know that it's theme
verse, Romans 5.21, that it's very familiar to many of you.
In fact, if you look on the front of your bulletin, you'll see
that we have that verse there. But I want you to either look
at it there on your bulletin or turn with me to Romans 5.21. And let's look at it afresh and
consider how it relates to the kingdom of God or the kingdom
of heaven. Remember now, we're not talking
about a kingdom with geographical borders. but rather a dominion
or a reign. And with that in mind, consider
Romans 5.21. That as sin hath reigned unto
death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal
life by Jesus Christ our Lord. You see, there's a kingdom, a
reign, that is unto death. And it's established, it's a
product of, it's entered into by sin. Sin reigning unto death. But there's also a reign of grace. A kingdom, see, that reigns. That reigns how? That's established
how? That's entered into how? through
righteousness unto eternal life. Grace reigning through righteousness
unto eternal life. See how all this fits. The theme
of this sermon is the gospel of the kingdom. A gospel As we
learn in Romans 1, 16 and 17, it's the gospel that's the power
of God and salvation because therein is the righteousness
of God revealed. So it's a gospel wherein the
righteousness of God is revealed. And it's a gospel of a kingdom.
So it's a reign of grace. Grace, again, reigning through
what? Righteousness. The righteousness
that's revealed in the gospel. See how it comes together. This
here is the proper context for a proper understanding of the
Sermon on the Mount. The sermon whose theme is the
gospel of the kingdom. Be turning, if you would, to
Acts chapter 28. You see, the kingdom that Christ speaks of
here in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, it's the same subject
that was set forth in pictures and types in the Old Testament.
And it's the same subject that's so extensively expounded upon
in all of the New Testament epistles. I hope you see that. In my study,
I really gained an appreciation for this. I used to think that
The language of the Sermon on the Mount of Christ teaching
and in particular, we see this in parables, and I've often wondered,
I wonder why it's not as clear, for example, as as the doctrinal
presentation of the gospel is in some of the epistles, Romans
and elsewhere. And you know, in studying this,
I found out, well, it really is. It's the same message. Look at Acts with me in chapter
28, verse 23. Here Paul, he had come into Rome,
and in verse 23 it reads, And when they had appointed him a
day, there came many to him, speaking of Paul, into his lodging,
to whom he expounded and testified what? The kingdom of God. And what was that about? persuading
them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses and out of
the prophets from the Word." See, it was the whole of the
Old Testament Scriptures, the law and the prophets, the New
Testament not having been written yet. And he did so, it says,
from morning till evening. And then if you pick up again
in verse 30, we read, And Paul dwelt two whole years in his
own hired house and received all that came in unto him. Preaching
what? The Kingdom of God. And teaching
those things. What's the preaching of the Kingdom
of God? Teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus
Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding Him. To preach
the things concerning Christ is to tell who He is and what
He accomplished. It looks as if Paul preached
and even discussed, as he had this hired house, this rental
house I gather, that men came to him throughout the day and
asked questions of. He discussed those things. He
preached to them. Things pertaining to the kingdom
of God. Things which concerned the Lord
Jesus Christ. See the consistency with the
theme of the whole of Scriptures as we compare this sermon to
the very same gospel that's set forth in the epistles. Christ's
sermon here is dealing with the gospel, the gospel of the kingdom. Now this kingdom, it includes
the past, it includes the present, and it includes the future because
it's made up of God's people, see, of all ages. Sometimes it's
called the kingdom of God. Sometimes the kingdom of Christ
or the kingdom of His dear Son. And sometimes it's called the
kingdom of heaven. But Christ makes it very clear
in the Sermon on the Mount that this kingdom, it's a kingdom
of righteousness. It's the kingdom that's spoken
of in Hebrews 1.8 where we read that a scepter of righteousness
is the scepter of thy kingdom. A scepter is a staff that was
born by a sovereign. It would be that like which a
sovereign king would carry as a symbol or emblem of his authority,
the authority by which he rules. Well, if a scepter of righteousness,
if that's the scepter of this kingdom, then righteousness itself
is the authority or the basis upon which his kingdom is established. upon which it's entered into,
and through which grace itself reigns." This kingdom is about
a reign. Grace reigning through righteousness,
as we just looked at in Romans 5.21. So this kingdom, inhabited
by God's people of all ages, It's based upon that which is
finished and accomplished at just one point in time, at the
point when righteousness itself was established, when God's justice
was satisfied by the obedience and death of Christ some 2,000
years ago and imputed to all whom He represented. All of history
converging on the cross of Calvary. Now, that's why those who preach
God's truth. They agree with what Paul wrote
and they conduct their ministries accordingly when he said this,
God forbid that I should glory, save, or accept in the cross
of Christ. So if the scepter, the authority,
or the basis of this kingdom is righteousness, then think
with me. To be ignorant then of this righteousness That is,
are not in submission to it as the basis of rule of this kingdom. That would be to be a rebel against
the authority or basis upon which this kingdom rules. To be ignorant
of righteousness or not in submission to it then would be to be unacquainted
with grace. See, grace reigns through righteousness.
And it's by grace that men are saved, his way of salvation.
And as we'll see in this study of the sermon here, the only
ones who will enter this kingdom are the ones who have a righteousness
that answers perfectly without any blemish or flaw or even the
least imperfection, the demands of God's holy law and inflexible
justice. And as we'll also see. This required
righteousness. It goes way beyond anything that
any sinner could ever possibly produce or find within himself. Hebrews 9.14 tells us that Christ
offered Himself without spot. And that's what it takes, see?
It takes a perfect, unblemished satisfaction. And as Romans 3.20
tells us, by the deeds of the law, no flesh shall be justified. See, the sins of the citizens
of this kingdom, they have to be borne away. They have to be
borne away by a God-man who truly fulfilled the law. And no mere
man can do that. By deeds of the law, no flesh
shall be justified. With that, let's survey a few
of the key verses found in this sermon that will help us to establish
the framework of Christ's message in the Sermon on the Mount, remembering,
as we do, that its central theme is the gospel of the kingdom.
First, we'll see the truth of the establishment of the kingdom. Look with me in Matthew 5, now
down at verses 17 and 18. We see here the truth of the
establishment of the kingdom. It reads there, Christ says,
Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am
not come to destroy but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till
heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise
pass from the law till all be fulfilled. This perfect and complete
satisfaction to law and justice by Christ who was made under
the law, speaks of the righteousness whereby this kingdom is established.
You see, it's a wrought out righteousness. And it's one that Christ did
not fail to produce in its entirety. He fulfilled the law. Every jot
and tittle, you know, that's said to be like the smallest
pronunciation mark in the Greek alphabet, speaking of the jot
and tittle. In our day, it would be like
saying, oh, he fulfilled it all. He dotted every I and he crossed
every T. He did so, see, both in its precept,
its demands for perfect obedience, and as a substitute for sinners,
he also did so, he satisfied, fulfilled the law in its penalty. Paying the debt for his people,
a sin debt, that they all owed but that none could pay for themselves.
You see, that's what it's meant when we use the phrase, we talk
about His righteousness being His obedience even unto death. He provided a double cure. He
saved from wrath and made pure, as the songwriter said, all in
Him, our substitute. Listen, to presume that this
kingdom is entered into, To presume that it's established or entered
into based on anything other than what he came to do. He came
to fulfill the law. Such a presumption would be a
denial of his very mission. What he came for. He came not
just to make something possible to be fulfilled or completed
later if you did your part. or to find something in you at
some later date. He came to accomplish something,
and He did. He came to fulfill it completely. Every jot and tittle. Well, look with me down a few
verses to verse 20. We've seen first now that the
kingdom is established with righteousness. Christ's fulfillment of the law
through His obedience unto death. And here in verse 20, we'll see
that it's this very righteousness This perfect fulfillment, it's
that same righteousness that is required for all the citizens
who will enter into the kingdom. Christ proclaims in Matthew 5
20, for I say unto you that except your righteousness shall exceed
the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, the most devout. outwardly moral, law-keeping
group, many say perhaps in all of history. He says that, except
your righteousness exceed theirs, ye shall in no case enter into
the kingdom of heaven. You see, he was setting forth
an impossibility. This multitude who followed Christ,
who was listening to his sermon with his disciples, they knew
who these scribes and Pharisees were. And he didn't say, now
if your righteousness will just measure up to theirs. No, he
said it must exceed it. And we see something in the verses
that follow verse 20 of just how far it must exceed it. So
he was setting forth really an impossibility. In verses 21 through
the end of the chapter, he elaborates on this and he summarizes the
requirement in the last verse of chapter 5, verse 48. where
we see Christ's command, be ye therefore perfect, even as your
Father which is in heaven is perfect. That's how much it must
exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Can you
do that? Well, that's what's required
for all the citizens who will enter into the kingdom of heaven.
So we've seen that this kingdom is established with righteousness
first, and secondly, that this same righteousness, Christ's
complete fulfillment of what God requires, that's what's required
for all the citizens who will enter in. But thirdly, we're
told something of the way of entrance, the way of entrance
into this kingdom as we proceed through the sermon. Look with
me first at Matthew 6.33. Here, in chapter 6, Christ commands,
but seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things shall be added unto you. That is, this
is what the citizens of this kingdom, that is, those to whom
all these things shall be added, this is what they will seek first
and foremost. They'll seek the kingdom of God
and His righteousness. It is indeed, see, a reign of
righteousness. And the inclusion in this verse
of and His righteousness, that excludes any possibility of the
seeking the kingdom of God itself having any causal effect, any
causal effect, or any merit in procuring or even appropriating
these blessings of God. And then regarding the entranceway
into the kingdom, in the final chapter of the sermon, Matthew
7, if you'll look at verses 13 and 14, Christ says this, Enter
ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is
the way that leadeth to destruction. And many there be which go in
there at, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way
which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Can
you imagine what this multitude, this was a multitude that followed,
and we saw they were following from Decapolis, from Jerusalem,
Judea, Jordan, all over. Can you imagine what they must
have thought when they heard this, that only a few? They look around them, there's
a multitude of them. They said, only a few find this narrow way
that leads to eternal life. You see, here we see that this
way of righteousness is not the popular way that most folks travel. Look, it's not the way that any
initially and naturally travel. It's not the way they travel.
We're not talking about people just going aimlessly through
life, OK, with no regard. We're talking about those who
are traveling away in pursuit of their religious interests
and endeavors to be accepted by God. Folks who need to be
off of that way and repent, as Paul wrote in Philippians 3 when
he said, the things that I thought were gained, not my immorality,
not my indifference, no, the things I really thought recommended
me to God that would gain my acceptance to God, I now count
those but loss. And that's what we're talking
about. We're talking about people who are not. They're going down
a way in pursuit of their religious interests. to be accepted by
God, but it's not the narrow way. Well, that should wake some
folks up, don't you think? We need to be taught of God,
we see from this, in such a way that it changes our course. You
know, that's why God says that all must repent. And that Christ
came to seek those that were lost and call them to repentance,
the Scripture tells us. You see, and that doesn't mean
a moral reformation, although that might serve you well. Nor
does it mean some new or renewed degree of interest or zeal for
spiritual things, although that might prove to be beneficial
to you. No, it means repentance, it means
Whereas I was walking one way, I do a 180 degree reversal, a
change in what we would naturally think. It means a U-turn on the
road that we in most of the religious world are inclined to travel
upon, traveling a broad way, but not the way of entrance into
this kingdom. You see, this kingdom is a way
so narrow that only a perfect righteousness will get the job
done. Yeah, the kingdom is righteousness.
So seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. And then next week as we begin
our verse-by-verse study, we'll see something of the nature of
this kingdom. In the passage where we'll begin
back at the onset of the sermon in Matthew 5 verses 3 through
12, these verses are often referred to as the Beatitudes. We'll see
there a description of the qualities or characteristics, along with
descriptions that pertain to the reward or some aspect of
the blessings they have, of those who are citizens of the kingdom,
who are the blessed of God. As each of those verses begin,
blessed are. And here, too, we'll see characteristics
or qualities that appear to be paradoxes, concepts totally foreign
to our natural way of thinking. Well, we've seen that the kingdom
first is established with righteousness. And secondly, that this same
righteousness, his complete fulfillment, that it's required for all the
citizens who will enter in. And thirdly, that the way of
entrance is not a popular way. It's not natural. It's not a
way that would seem naturally right to us, but rather it's
a way of perfect righteousness. And fourthly, then, near the
end of the sermon, we'll examine the blessed assurance for those
who are citizens of the kingdom. In Matthew chapter 7, verses
24 through 26, we read of the one considered wise who built
his house upon a rock, contrasted to the one considered foolish
who built his house upon the sand. One of them stood, the
other fell. And we'll look at that in a lot
more detail when and if we get that far in our verse-by-verse
study. But for this overview, I want you to simply understand
the consistency of these key verses in the context of the
rest of the sermon's overall message. How Christ see is describing
the wise man as one whose foundation is solid, not built on sand,
but on the solid rock, as the songwriter wrote, A hope built
on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. It's a righteousness
He established through which grace reigns in His Kingdom. The righteousness which satisfies
a holy God. None other than the righteousness
of God in Christ. That which He came to do in fulfilling
the law. Or, as we put it, in His obedience
even unto death. And that perfect, that untainted
righteousness is then freely imputed to or charged to the
account of the sinner he justifies, who on that basis is adopted. He's made a citizen of this kingdom. And on that ground, there's certain
assurance. You know, though that foundation
of sand that's ascribed to the foolish man We know from Scripture
it will not stand. You know, it's one that we all
naturally attempt to build upon, and one which we will foolishly
hang with, but for His abounding grace that reigns in His kingdom
through righteousness. You see, even our faith and our
repentance, being given eyes to see That which we didn't see
before that would cause us to throw away the plans to build
our house on sand. That would cause us to forsake
the broad way that leads to destruction. Even that, that faith and repentance
is nothing more than the fruit and effect of that which was
accomplished. Which He purchased for us in
establishing righteousness at the cross of Calvary. The righteousness
through which grace reigns. And then finally, as David Simpson
pointed out to us when he was visiting a few weeks back in
his message, it'll help if as we study these verses, if we
remember the reaction of this religious multitude who followed
our Lord and Savior, their reaction at the end to what they heard
in this great sermon, evidencing how vastly different it was from
that which was promoted by the religious majority of their day.
And the same is true in each age as it is today. As the last
verses of chapter 7 read, And it came to pass, when Jesus had
ended these things, the people were astonished at His doctrine. For He taught them as one having
authority, and not as the scribes. He spoke with authority. It was
the Word of God. And it was unlike the teaching
of the scribes, the well-respected religious mainstream, the highly
esteemed biblical scholars of their day. Yeah, just as Proverbs
16, 25 tells us, you see, there is a way that seemeth right unto
a man, but the end thereof are the ways that seem right. The
end thereof are the ways of death. Christ speaks in this Sermon
on the Mount of the way of life. And in doing so, he blew these
folks and their religious underpinnings completely away. They were astonished
at his doctrine. And notice, he apparently preached
doctrine. For you see, that's how he is
known. He's standing there before them,
but he, Christ himself, preached doctrine concerning himself. See, we know Christ by the doctrine
of Christ. And they were astonished at his
doctrine. who he is and what he would accomplish. Now, given this natural reaction
to Christ's teaching, this astonishment by this very religiously interested
multitude, look, they had followed him for quite some way. Should
not that prompt us all to look to his word, to be taught something
that's contrary to our natural sinful disposition, that which
we're predisposed to think as sinners, as fallen sinners, and
instead to be taught something that our natural wisdom would
never perceive. You see, at some point we all
need to not only be astonished, but brought to change courses. We have to get off the Broadway
that leads to death if we're to inhabit this kingdom. Shouldn't
that encourage us to seek to understand God's wisdom as we
begin our study of this great sermon, desiring that God will
use the instrument of His Word through the power of His Spirit
to make it a factual one to all who hear it. For we know that
the Word of the Gospel is described in the Scriptures as sharper
than a two-edged sword. When that word is applied by
the master swordsman, that is, when it's in the irresistible
hands of God the Holy Spirit, and really only then, it cuts
the heart asunder, the Scriptures tell us. And it brings men in
their astonished minds and hearts to forsake that way which seemeth
right unto men that leads to death, and instead be made willing
in the day of His power to choose the way of life the straight
gate, the narrow way, to rest in the very blood and righteousness
of Christ, in which all the citizens of this kingdom find their joy
and assurance of eternal life." Man, isn't that grace? That God,
who in Christ accomplished all we needed for reconciliation
before God, that in time He has to come and make us willing to
choose that which would give us eternal riches untold. That's
in our own best interest. That speaks volumes of our fallen,
depraved natures and of the wondrous grace of God in Christ. You see, that's what the Scriptures
here say the kingdom of God is. It's righteousness and peace
and joy in the Holy Ghost. This is the way God saves sinners. It's the gospel of the kingdom.
Turn to Colossians chapter one. And while you're turning there,
I want to encourage everyone to consider the seriousness of
this subject of what is being taught here concerning this kingdom.
You see, to fail to enter into the kingdom of heaven. That's
to perish eternally, and that's an awful long time. But to enter
the kingdom of heaven, that's to be saved, to enter into eternal
life and all the blessings that go with it. by the adoption of
grace, a grace which reigns through the righteousness of God in Christ."
And that's a blessing, you know, for which words seem inadequate
in order to express the gratitude that a citizen of this kingdom
experiences when he finds himself destitute, in need of God's mercy,
with nothing to offer, in need of His righteousness, and thereby
finds that he himself is indeed an object of God's mercy and
grace. Look with me in Colossians 1
verses 12 through 14. Paul, he tries to express here
his gratitude for this blessedness that's found in Christ, writing
in verse 12, giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us
neat, that is sufficiently complete, to be partakers of the inheritance
of the saints in light, who hath delivered us from the power of
darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear
Son. in whom we have redemption through
His blood, even the forgiveness of sins. As David the psalmist
wrote, blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity. See, whose sins are forgiven.
Whose sins are not charged to His count. And that's true of
each and every one who will inhabit this kingdom. For their sins
are imputed, are charged to Christ and His righteousness. The very
one required for admittance into this kingdom. The righteousness
through which grace reigns unto eternal life. It's imputed or
charged to them. You see, by imputation, they
have all they need to be reconciled before God. And in time, then,
they are made partakers of the inheritance in life. They're
brought from spiritual darkness to light as they're given eyes
to see. To seek and behold the kingdom
of God and His righteousness. To trust in that which Christ
accomplished at the cross where He delivered us from the power
of darkness. I believe that speaks of Christ's
victory over Satan. If you recall in 2 Corinthians
4, verses 3 and 4, we read, But if our gospel be hid, it is hid
to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world, Satan,
hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light
of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine unto them. But as Paul writes in Colossians,
the citizens of this kingdom, they're delivered from this power
of darkness. The light of the gospel does
shine unto them. And I believe that this translation
that's spoken of here in Colossians 1.13 translated into the kingdom
of his dear son. Although I'm not sure, I realize
that it may be referring back to that which takes place at
the cross. But I'm more inclined to believe
that it's speaking of that which takes place in each successive
generation as all those whom Christ justified and redeemed
are born again, or they are translated. I think that because I did a
word study on that word translated, and it means simply to move from
one place to another. I was looking to see if it carried
with it the connotation of a complete metamorphosis, a complete change
in standing or state, and I didn't see that. Those who are justified and redeemed,
they're born again. They're translated into the kingdom
of His dear Son. But on what basis? And on this
part, I'm sure. In whom they already have. Notice the past tense. and whom
they have redemption through His blood, even the forgiveness
of sin." Now, that's my understanding of this passage, and it seems
consistent with how the citizens of this kingdom are predominantly
referred to back in the Sermon on the Mount. We're going to
see that next week. They're referred to by evidences
that are only found in those who have already been given light,
who have already partaken of the inheritance in light. Remember,
the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. That is, first, it's righteousness
established and imputed at the cross. As Colossians 1.14 says,
redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. And
secondly, the kingdom of God is peace. Christ having made
peace, reconciliation between God and His people at the cross. And also, peace made in time
in their own minds, see, as it's made known to them in each generation. And thirdly, the Kingdom of God
is, or the Kingdom of Heaven, is joy in the Holy Spirit. Unspeakable joy as we learn of
our blessed inheritance. Untold eternal riches in Christ. Wow. Those who enter the Kingdom
of Heaven, they receive the whole inheritance of grace. All of
salvation for just as long as they can hang on to it. No. It's
eternal. You see, they didn't gain it.
And the One who did, He can't lose it. It's forever and ever
and ever. They inherit it. They didn't
deserve it. They don't serve it. They didn't
earn it. They inherit it. It's free. Put down your money.
This isn't the magic kingdom at Disney World. You cannot afford
the cost of admission into this kingdom. Oh, my prayer is that
God will use our study of this great sermon, delivered on the
mount by the Lord Jesus Christ here, that He'll use it to your
eternal good. The Word of God delivered here
in this passage by the incarnate Word of God Himself, the Lord
Jesus Christ. And I pray that God will accompany
His Word with a life-giving power of the Holy Spirit, knowing that
all who are delivered from the power of darkness will be translated
into the Kingdom of His dear Son. All through God's ordained
means, and I pray even through this message today, the Gospel
of the Kingdom of Christ. the good news of His righteousness
imputed. Well, today I hope you've seen
the serious eternal significance of the gospel issues set forth
in God's Word, set forth in these key verses that we looked at.
In them, I believe we see the frame of reference for a proper
understanding of the entire Sermon on the Mount. And as a result,
I hope that you too come to see first how the kingdom of heaven
is established by Christ's fulfillment of God's law, righteousness. And secondly, how that very same
righteousness is required for all who would enter into this
kingdom. That nothing less than be ye perfect will meet the standards. And thirdly, how that the entranceway
into this kingdom is the way of righteousness, not the vainly
traveled broad way that most, and all initially, travel upon,
but one which leads to destruction. And fourthly, I hope you'll see
that the only real rock, solid, sure, and certain foundation
upon which a sinner rests is based upon this same righteousness
imputed or charged to the sinner. And that alone, as the songwriter
put it, all other ground is sinking sand. And lastly, I pray that
you too will be astonished by the doctrine of Christ. But I
pray it will be an astonishment that leads you to find your rest
in Him. Based upon the satisfaction He
made, this same righteousness, and that alone made yours, the
sinners, by imputation. God will make his people see
like the wise man who built upon the solid foundation that we
read about in Matthew 7. They will be made wise unto salvation. May God give eyes to see and
ears to hear, hearts and minds to understand and love his way
of salvation, the way of eternal life, the gospel of the kingdom.