Matthew 7 - Jesus Finishes His Sermon on the Mount

Click Here to Read or Listen to Matthew 7 

Since there are so many good things in this chapter, I am going say a little bit about each one of them. 

Judging Others

Jesus hits the nail on the head here. We usually judge people because of something going on in ourselves. Oftentimes very judgmental people have a very low self esteem. At the heart of hypocrisy is when we judge someone before we look in the mirror. In A.A. they say, "Make sure to keep your own side of the street clean." 

Ask, Seek, Knock

What I love about these verses is that Jesus shows us the progression of prayer. Each action represents a different level of our will. We can ask for something, but a next step is seeking it out in an intentional way. We can seek something intentionally, but when we knock, we are taking action. Sometimes I think we ask for things from God, but he may want us to take step of action, or a step of faith. 

Importantly we see the Father's heart. When we ask for something, we know that God's heart is like that of an earthly father. He wants the best for us and even knows what we need before we ask. This then becomes a paradigm for what prayer looks like, especially when our prayers are not answered right away. 

Narrow and Wide Gates

I think these verses can easily be misinterpreted. One could read this and say, "God's way is very narrow and he only allows a few people in." I.e. It is an exclusive club. When God sent Jesus, God opened up the way to ALL people. In that sense it was a very wide way. The way is narrow in the sense that so few people want to acknowledge they need a Savior. But this is not because God has made it unnecessarily hard to find him. 

True and False Prophets

False prophets were the number one problem in the early church after Jesus rose from the dead and sent the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The problem was they looked good on the outside but upon further inspection they were not good at all. They preached a false gospel motivated by greed. Jesus gave a lithmus test to measure these so called "prophets". Do they bear fruit? 

Galatians 5:22 describes the fruit of the Spirit as, "Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self control." 

True and False Disciples

Jesus gives a very similar warning about who is truly a disciple. Many people might claim to be a Christian, or proclaim they have done miracles for God. But the real question is do their words and actions reflect the will of God. Do they, "walk the talk"? Though none of us are perfect, or obey God's will every time, does the overall way we live reflect we follow Jesus and desire to live like he lived. 

The Wise and Foolish Builders

Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount with these words. He promises his hearers that if they put his words into practice they will be like a house that is built on a solid rock. Notice Jesus claims these are "his words". He is already beginning to show he is more than a prophet or teacher. 

Importantly he reminds them that the person who has built their lives upon the rock are those who not only hear his words BUT ALSO put them into practice. 

My hope is that as we read God's Word together this year, that we will be very intentional about putting Jesus' words into practice. We will not only show ourselves as true disciples, but we will live the life we've always wanted that God wants for us. 

Where in today's passage is Jesus calling you to put into practice something he taught? Are you judgmental of others? Why? Where can your Christian life more accurately reflect God's will? 


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