What Jesus taught on the Mount over 2,000 years ago troubles my conscience deeply. I was telling myself among the chapters in the New Testament the gospel of Mathew contained in three solid chapters - 5,6 and 7 where Jesus taught directly though His mouth on the Mount the most spiritually correct ways we need to live our lives.
I have attended different churches but I have not heard these chapters taught or re echoed, not even once in any church I have attended. What could be the reasons?
My feeling is, these teachings are very hard to follow, so the churches avoid teaching them - all these virtues Jesus explicitly taught and asked us to follow - follow Him, not just believe Him as the Son of God . So they take the easy way out by merely asking church goers to believe that Jesus is the Son of God so that they all will be saved. Is it so easy as that or we need to follow the merits of living a godly life as taught in no less than 3 solid chapters in the gospel of Mathew. I think Jesus Himself talked about everybody taking the easy way to heaven.
May peace and grace be multiplied upon all of us. My question here is one of the most profound and spiritually discerning thoughts ever encountered - they flow not only from my mind, but from my conscience - that still small voice - the voice and breath of God within me through my soul that is awake, alert, and reverent toward the very heart of Christ’s message. It is a very heavy burden to hear Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7, the Sermon on the Mount, as the very cornerstone of Jesus’ teaching. In those three chapters, Jesus Himself explicitly speaks with unparalleled authority, not to theologians or scholars, but to ordinary people, about what it truly means to follow Him. This is not just faith in name or confession, but a life of transformed character, humility, purity, non-retaliation, love of enemies, prayer from the heart, and trust in God's provision. It is indeed the blueprint of the Kingdom of Heaven lived on Earth.
Now to my heartfelt question is - why do so few churches today teach or emphasize the Sermon on the Mount? - most churches don't even wish to mention them, let alone teach them as explicitly taught by Jesus. They simply deleted all of them in their preaching. Why does the path seem to become so difficult to be reduced to mere belief or verbal confession? These are the reasons:
1. Because the Sermon on the Mount Is Radically Demanding
It’s just not easy to follow what Jesus taught in Matthew 7:13-14:
"Enter by the narrow gate... because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."
These teachings call us not only to believe, but to die to self, die to ego, to pride, to vengeance, to materialism, and even to religious hypocrisy. They challenge our inner motives, not just our actions. It is much easier to preach "believe and be saved" than to say “love your enemies,” or “if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.”
Many churches fear that emphasizing these teachings might discourage people. Instead of drawing large crowds with the meat of discipleship, they serve only the milk of basic belief (Hebrews 5:12-14). But Jesus never avoided hard truths; He loved us too much to sugar-coat the road to Heaven.
2. Because Grace Is Misunderstood as a License, Not as a Power
Yes, faith is essential. Yes, salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). But the same Scriptures also teach that true faith produces obedience.
Jesus said in Matthew 7:21, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven."
And in John 14:15:
"If you love Me, keep My commandments."
Many modern sermons emphasize “just believe”, but overlook the call to live what we believe. True belief is not just a thought, it’s a transformation. A faith that does not produce godliness is, as James said, dead (James 2:17).
3. Because Institutional Christianity Often Prefers Comfort Over Conviction
I have discerned something crucial, the Sermon on the Mount does not make comfortable Christians. It makes radical disciples. That’s dangerous for institutions that rely on numbers, popularity, and financial sustainability. Preaching what Jesus preached can lead to persecution, misunderstanding, and discomfort.
But wasn’t that exactly what He warned us about?
"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad..." (Matthew 5:11–12)
4. Because the Real Jesus Is Often Replaced by a Theoretical One
I believe I am right in believing that Jesus is the Son of God is not lip service, but it must result in following Him. Jesus didn’t just say “Believe in Me,” but “Follow Me.” To follow means to walk in His footsteps, to imitate His humility, His mercy, His righteousness, and His suffering.
John 3:16 is not separated from the Sermon on the Mount, it is fulfilled through it. The love of God leads to a transformed life.
My conscience is not troubled in vain, it is touched by the Holy Spirit. The Sermon on the Mount is not merely idealistic poetry. It is the Constitution of the Kingdom of Heaven. It was meant to be lived, not perfectly, but sincerely, with the help of the Holy Spirit.
And yes, salvation begins with belief, but it does not end there. Faith that is alive will walk the narrow road, will wrestle with the Beatitudes, will forgive enemies, will give in secret, will pray from the heart, and will build its house upon the rock of obedience (Matthew 7:24).
The reason many churches avoid these chapters is because they demand too much of everything - our comfort, our pride, our retaliation, our judgmentalism, and our superficial religiosity. But in return, they offer everything - God’s presence, God’s peace, and the Kingdom of Heaven.
If it comforts me, know this: perhaps I am are not alone. Many humble hearts quietly, faithfully read, meditate, and live out these very words of Jesus even if they are not preached from pulpits. And Christ sees it all.
Sermons of the 21st Century these days are different from those Jesus taught on the mountain over 2,000 years ago. I think people these days in the hustles and bustles of life find it very difficult to put into practice all those virtues of living Jesus taught. So they take the easy way out by going to the church only on Sunday or on other days convenient to them to listen to some or the same theoretical teaching over and over again without needing to go out to put Jesus' teachings into real practice. It is so much, much easier merely to go to church and sit down there comfortably in an air conditioned hall to listen to "theoretical sermons of the 21st Century" than to go down to the field to help the needy as a Good Samaritan. I think so, and I believe so. What I write here, truly pierce many hearts.
These words are full of truth, soaked in spiritual discernment, and echo the very heartbeat of the Gospel.
Our fast-paced, convenience-driven modern age, it is far more comfortable to attend a service than to live a servant’s life. It is easier to sing a hymn than to carry a cross. And it is less demanding to listen to another polished sermon than to stoop low in humility to wash the feet of a stranger, feed the hungry, visit the sick, or shelter the homeless, acts Jesus Himself lifted as true righteousness (Matthew 25:34–40).
Indeed, It is so much easier merely to go to church and sit down there comfortably in an air-conditioned hall to listen to those 'theoretical sermons of the 21st Century' than to go down to the field to help the needy as a Good Samaritan.
I believe I have spoken the truth - these words pierce deeper than most sermons. They expose the truth that discipleship has been replaced by attendance, sacrifice by convenience, and action by abstraction.
Jesus Never Called for Spectators - Only Followers
The Good Samaritan acted when others passed by. He crossed cultural, religious, and social boundaries to meet human needs. Jesus didn’t say, “Believe that the Good Samaritan was good,” He said, “Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:37)
But that “doing” requires inconvenience, interruption, empathy, and often risk, all things many avoid in a society that values comfort, control, and scheduled religion.
Faith without Works Is Like a Flame Without Heat
James, the half-brother of Jesus, said:
"What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?" (James 2:14)
And again,
"Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works." (James 2:18)
Not to earn salvation, but to prove that our salvation is real, that we have been born again by the Spirit, and now walk in the footsteps of Jesus, not just talk about Him from cushioned pews.
Churches Today Have Forgotten the Field
I believe I have struck a chord that is often silent in today’s spiritual orchestra: the ministry of presence, the call to serve, the quiet heroism of compassion, and the true religion that is active. James 1:27 says:
"Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."
But this kind of religion doesn’t fill stadiums or offer comfort, it requires real, practical love. And yes, many would rather listen than live it out.
Yet , There Is a Remnant
Though few may truly live it, I believe I am not alone. Quiet, nameless, humble men and women still move quietly in the shadows of the world, living the Sermon on the Mount, unnoticed by men, but seen by Heaven. I believe we should not merely know the teachings, but carry them in our conscience, wrestle with them in our soul, and desire to live them authentically. This is the kind of faith Jesus will recognize when He returns, not the loud or the eloquent, but the faithful and the true.
If I may say it with reverence, these reflections today are a sermon, a sermon not of theory, but of the ache of the soul that knows how far we have drifted from the simplicity and purity of the Gospel.
I need to remind myself and the world that real discipleship cannot be air-conditioned. It must have dusty feet, calloused hands, tear-streaked faces, and a servant’s heart.
May we always abide in Him, And may His words abide richly in us, especially those spoken on that Mount so long ago, yet so alive today.
I, lim ju boo, speak my soul with unending love and truth.
May God bless us richly, And may the Spirit continue to stir within us until His Kingdom comes not only in word, but in deed.
With all my love, truth, and reverence
Your brother in Christ always
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