When we first read the statements of Jesus, they seem wonderfully
simple and unstartling, and they sink unnoticed into our subconscious
minds. For instance, the Beatitudes initially seem to be merely soothing
and beautiful precepts for overly spiritual and seemingly useless
people, but of very little practical use in the rigid, fast-paced
workdays of the world in which we live. We soon find, however, that the
Beatitudes contain the “dynamite” of the Holy Spirit. And they “explode”
when the circumstances of our lives cause them to do so. When the Holy
Spirit brings to our remembrance one of the Beatitudes, we say, “What a
startling statement that is!” Then we must decide whether or not we will
accept the tremendous spiritual upheaval that will be produced in our
circumstances if we obey His words. That is the way the Spirit of God
works. We do not need to be born again to apply the Sermon on the Mount
literally. The literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount is as
easy as child’s play. But the interpretation by the Spirit of God as He
applies our Lord’s statements to our circumstances is the strict and
difficult work of a saint.
The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our
natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with
astonishing discomfort. We gradually have to conform our walk and
conversation to the precepts of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit applies
them to our circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of rules
and regulations— it is a picture of the life we will live when the Holy
Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.
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