People play legalistic games with the sermon on the mount more than any other passage of Scripture says Larry Calvin. He goes on by telling this story: “Someone said to me, ‘You know, it’s ok for me to hit almost any right-hander who hits me. I paused and said, ‘What?’ He repeated himself. I said, ‘would you like to explain that?’ He said, ‘You know the passage that says ‘If anyone hits you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also?’ Well, it would take a left-hander to hit you on the right cheek. If a right-hander were to walk up and hit you, he would hit you on the left cheek. So if he hit you anywhere except the right cheek, you can hit him back.” I scratched my head and walked away”

A Christian friend I know kept a notebook in which he wrote down every person’s name who had offended him or done him wrong.

I heard a preacher say“When they show fruits of repentance I will forgive them.”

“It’s ok to live together as long as we are faithful to each other.”

“It’s just a white lie.”

Jesus isn’t just after our behavior, He’s after our hearts. In the Sermon on the Mount, He takes the Law beyond “Do not murder” and gets to the root of the issue—anger, resentment, lust, commitment, and broken relationships. He shows us that the Kingdom way isn’t just about avoiding sin; it’s about confronting what’s beneath the surface before it destroys us and the people around us. Unresolved anger? It festers. Distance in a relationship? It grows. Jesus’ teaching on reconciliation isn’t a suggestion , it defines who we are as followers of Christ.

I. This sermon is about the Reveal Answer

Mat 5:20 “For I say to you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

They were righteous people. Jesus lists things they considered wrong. If you were to ask them,Murder was wrong. Adultery was wrong. Divorce was wrong. Lying was wrong. Hate was wrong. But they would break every one of these rules with exceptions and justifications!

-Didn’t murder, but you could treat people terribly, by being angry, calling names and dismissing them...ignoring them. (the opposite of love isn’t hate...it’s indifference!)

-Adultery was wrong, but what they defined as adultery, allowed them to do immoral things. No wonder they all walked away when Jesus wrote in the sand after they personally caught a woman in the act of adultery! It was wrong for a woman, but there was a double standard for a man.

-Divorce was wrong. It was allowed under circumstances.

Deu 24:1 “When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens, if she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, that he writes her a certificate of divorce, puts it in her hand, and sends her away from his house.

Moses gave divorce as a way out if you found out that your wife was not a virgin at the time of marriage, or if she was an adulteress. The Jews of Jesus’ day defined indecency as something as insignificant as burning the biscuits!

-We could go on and on explaining their righteousness, but Jesus does a better job of it. Bottom line, our righteousness has to be better.

A. True righteousness Reveal Answer

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.Prov 4:23 NIV

The "heart" refers to the seat of thoughts, attitudes, and emotions, not just feelings. Guarding it means being intentional about what we allow to influence us. Everything we do, say, and believe originates from the hearts.

The heart can either lead us down a path of righteousness or a path of destruction. Our hearts are susceptible to sinful thoughts, attitudes, and beliefs. Hence, we must be mindful of what we allow into our hearts; everything we do flows from it.

B. True righteousness Reveal Answer

1. Our hearts have a significant impact on our relationship with God, and the condition of our heart can either draw us closer or push away us away from Him.

Mat 22:36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’

Mat 15:8 ‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS, BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.

2. The heart impacts our relationship with others. It can draw us closer to others or estrange us from them.

Mat 22:39 “The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ 40 “Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”

3. Guarding our hearts in godly fear is essential for maintaining a healthy relationship with God and others and for maintaining our own spiritual health

II. This sermon is about Reveal Answer

Pro 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit. NASB

A. Words can Reveal Answer

21-22 “You’re familiar with the command to the ancients, ‘Do not murder.’ I’m telling you that anyone who is so much as angry with a brother or sister is guilty of murder. Carelessly call a brother ‘idiot!’ and you just might find yourself hauled into court. Thoughtlessly yell ‘stupid!’ at a sister and you are on the brink of hellfire. The simple moral fact is that words kill. The message

-Some of the meanest things I’ve ever heard in my life came from the lips of people who claimed to be followers of Jesus.

-Some of the meanest things ever said come from the lips of couples who claim to love one another.

-It is not ok to have broken relationships with people….not speaking...avoiding them

# couples separate sometimes over words said. That stops all communication and is the beginning of the end. Jesus teaches reconciliation.

-It’s not ok to have enemies

43-47"You're familiar with the old written law, 'Love your friend,' and its unwritten companion, 'Hate your enemy.' I'm challenging that. I'm telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. The message

B. It is necessary for us to fix these broken relationships before we can Reveal Answer

-giving large amounts of money is not enough! Attending a lot of church is not enough! Praying is not enough! Relationships must be mended!

Matt. 5:23,24“This is how I want you to conduct yourself in these matters. If you enter your place of worship and, about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you, abandon your offering, leave immediately, go to this friend and make things right. Then and only then, come back and work things out with God. The message

Matt. 18:15 “Now if your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

-Jesus is not asking us to do something he would not do. He came to us when we were enemies to repair our broken relationship with him.

C. Keep Reveal Answer

-Grandpa bought a train load of cattle in Kansas City years ago with just a phone call to his banker in Western Nebraska

-it used to be a man’s word meant something

1. Marriage is not a contract...it is Reveal Answer

-Marriage vows used to mean something. Now we’re following the example of the pharisees and the words of promise spoken to one another are meaningless.

-Remember...You promised! You promised before God! You made a vow.

Ecc 5:2 Don't talk before you think or make promises to God without thinking them through. God is in heaven, and you are on earth, so don't talk too much. 3 If you keep thinking about something, you will dream about it. If you talk too much, you will say the wrong thing. 4 God doesn't like fools. So don't be slow to keep your promises to God. 5 It's better not to make a promise at all than to make one and not keep it. CEV

Matt. 5:31-32 “Remember the Scripture that says, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him do it legally, giving her divorce papers and her legal rights’? Too many of you are using that as a cover for selfishness and whim, pretending to be righteous just because you are ‘legal.’ Please, no more pretending. If you divorce your wife, you’re responsible for making her an adulteress (unless she has already made herself that by sexual promiscuity). And if you marry such a divorced adulteress, you’re automatically an adulterer yourself. You can’t use legal cover to mask a moral failure.

-It takes two people to keep this commitment. If you have gone through a divorce even though you tried to prevent it, we serve a merciful God who also went through a divorce. “I have divorced Israel” he says in the Old Testament. He didn’t desire it, but Israel was unfaithful.

2. Tell Reveal Answer

Matt. 5:33-37 “And don’t say anything you don’t mean. This counsel is embedded deep in our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, ‘I’ll pray for you,’ and never doing it, or saying, ‘God be with you,’ and not meaning it. You don’t make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong.

Eph 4:25 Therefore, putting away lying,speak the truth, each one to his neighbor,because we are members of one another.

“If a man can lie to you, he can also steal from you.”Dad

-it’s crossing the same moral fence...dishonesty.

III. This sermon is about Reveal Answer

Matt. 5:27-28 “You know the next commandment pretty well, too: ‘Don’t go to bed with another’s spouse.’ But don’t think you’ve preserved your virtue simply by staying out of bed. Your heart can be corrupted by lust even quicker than your body. Those ogling looks you think nobody notices—they also corrupt.

29-30 “Let’s not pretend this is easier than it really is. If you want to live a morally pure life, here’s what you have to do: You have to blind your right eye the moment you catch it in a lustful leer. You have to choose to live one-eyed or else be dumped on a moral trash pile. And you have to chop off your right hand the moment you notice it raised threateningly. Better a bloody stump than your entire being discarded for good in the dump.

-if you’re having trouble with pornography, you know that even if you had your eyes poked out, you still have those pictures stored in your memory.

-if your a thief, cutting off your arm is not the answer.

-Jesus is not literally telling us to do that.

-What Jesus is teaching is that

A. Guarding the heart is a serious and Reveal Answer

It’s a slow fade Casting Crowns

Be careful little eyes what you see
It's the second glance that ties your hands
As darkness pulls the strings
Be careful little feet where you go
For it's the little feet behind you
That are sure to follow

It's a slow fade
When you give yourself away
It's a slow fade
When black and white have turned to grey
And thoughts invade, choices made

A price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

It's a slow fade
It's a slow fade

Be careful little ears what you hear
When flattery leads to compromise
The end is always near
Be careful little lips what you say
For empty words and promises
Lead broken hearts astray

It's a slow fade
When you give yourself away
It's a slow fade
When black and white have turned to grey
And thoughts invade, choices made

A price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day

The journey from your mind to your hands
Is shorter than you're thinking
Be careful if you think you stand
You just might be sinking

And it's a slow fade
When you give yourself away
It's a slow fade
When black and white have turned to grey
And thoughts invade, choices made

A price will be paid
When you give yourself away
People never crumble in a day (slow fade)
Daddies never crumble in a day (slow fade)
Families never crumble in a day

Oh, be careful little eyes what you see
Oh, be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh, be careful little eyes what you see

2Sa 13:1 Some time passed. David’s son Absalom had a beautiful sister named Tamar, and David’s son Amnon was infatuated with her. 2 Amnon was frustrated to the point of making himself sick over his sister Tamar because she was a virgin, but it seemed impossible to do anything to her.

Amnon’s lust for Tamar was so intense that he literally became ill as he harbored these wicked thoughts. Later on, he added a sickness that was feigned to his natural sickness (2Sa_13:5-6). Klostermann, a commentator of some years back, suggested that the root word was very close to another word which means “to become insane.” It is doubtful that Amnon became an idiot, but his illness was brought on by his state of mind. His vexation was caused by the fact that Tamar was a virgin

2Sa 13:12 “Don’t, my brother!” she cried. “Don’t disgrace me, for such a thing should never be done in Israel. Don’t commit this outrage! 13 Where could I ever go with my humiliation? And you—you would be like one of the outrageous fools in Israel! Please, speak to the king, for he won’t keep me from you.” 14 But he refused to listen to her, and because he was stronger than she was, he disgraced her by raping her.

B. Prepare Reveal Answer

10-12 And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

1. be careful abou Reveal Answer

Job 31:1 “I have made a covenant with my eyes; How then could I look at a virgin? NASB

Job 31:1 I promised myself never to stare with desire at a young woman. 2 God All-Powerful punishes men who do that. CEV

2. Develop Reveal Answer

-many men turn to porn when they are depressed or upset.

-think on good things

Php 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

3. have an Reveal Answer

# Steve Farrar’s book, Point Man tells about a little group of men who met each week. There are seven questions that they ask each other every week:

1. Have you been with a woman this week in such a way that was inappropriate or could have looked to others that you were using poor judgment?

2. Have you been completely above reproach in all your financial dealings this week?

3. Have you subjected yourself to any explicit material this week?

4. Have you spent daily time in prayer and in the Scripture this week?

5. Have you fulfilled the mandate of your calling this week?

6. Have you taken time off to be with your family this week?

7. Have you just lied to me?

Conclusion:

The back story behind every one of these wrong behaviors is that we are in the business of reconciliation. No argument is worth losing the most precious relationships in life over!

1 Angry words! O let them never
From the tongue unbridled slip;
May the heart's best impulse ever
Check them ere they soil the lip.

Refrain:
"Love one another,"
thus saith the Savior;
Children, obey the Father's blest command;
"Love one another,"
thus saith the Savior;
Children, obey the blest command.

2 Love is much too pure and holy,
Friendship is too sacred far,
For a moment's reckless folly
Thus to desolate and mar. [Refrain]

3 Angry words are lightly spoken
Bitt'rest thoughts are rashly stirred,
Brightest links of life are broken
By a single angry word. [Refrain]

We can’t hate or despise people when our job is to bring them to Christ. We give others grace because we were given grace. We can’t have a close relationship with our husband or wives if we are cheating on them. If we are intimate with others or cheat, we are to be reconciled to our mate. This will take honesty, a lot of speaking the truth in love, and a lot of forgiveness.

Why is Reconciliation so important? Why must we take the initiative?

1. Because it’s what Jesus did. God didn’t wait for us to fix ourselves—He came to us. While we were still rejecting Him,

   Rom 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

   Heaven celebrates when even one person turns back

   Luk 15:7 “I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.(Luke 15:7), we look like Jesus the most when we seek restorationin our relationships

2. Because we’ve been forgiven. Jesus made it clear—forgive as you’ve been forgiven

   Mat 18:21 Then Peter came up and said to Him, “Lord, how many times shall my brother sin against me and I still forgive him? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy-seven times.

   -Jesus continues to tell the story about the story about a king who forgave his servant who owed him, forgave his large debt, but the servant went out and had no mercy on a fellow servant who owed him a small debt. (Matthew 18:21-35).

   -We’ve received a mercy we could never earn, so how can we withhold grace from others? Reconciliation isn’t just a nice idea—it’s the natural overflow of a heart transformed by His mercy (Matthew 10:8).

What relationship do I need to fix today? Do I need to get married? Who do I need to apologize to today? Who do I need to forgive today? Forgiveness is two sided. Sometimes it is impossible. Sometimes in abuse cases, it is not safe.

Rom 12:18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all people.

# forgiveness is like playing tug-a-war with a rope. You can let your side go. “Let Go and Let God”

Can you restore your relationship with God today by letting go of your side of the rope?

Do you need to be reconciled to God by having your sins washed away?