The Bible Says It. I Believe It. That Settles It.

Yeah, okay.
If you have been reading Out of My Hat for very long or if you know me even casually, you've probably already tossed the BS flag on me.

I mentioned that I'm reading through the gospels old school, and the Bible I'm using is one of those red letter editions where the words attributed to Jesus are set apart by being printed in red. Today I am wondering (not for the first time) about The Sermon on the Mount -- chapters 5, 6, and 7 in Matthew's gospel.

Is this how it really happened?
Jesus sits on a mountain side. His followers gather. He speaks the words recorded (30 years later) in the Bible.
Or does it even matter?

I suppose it mattes to those that want to stand on the inerrancy of the Bible, but what about those of us that really focus more on what the Bible teaches than on how the lessons are presented?

Here are some of the weird thoughts that run through my head:

   * It takes fewer than 15 minutes to read The Sermon on the Mount. I know preachers (and you probably do, too) that can't preach on "the poor in spirit" in less than an hour! Did people gather out on a mountain side for a 15 min TED talk by Jesus?

    * Jesus must not have had any seminary classes on preaching, because he goes from one thing to another, hasn't developed a six week sermon series, doesn't have an altar call with every head bowed and every eye closed, and never passes an offering plate!

   * How did Matthew remember all of this -- THIRTY YEARS LATER?

So are chapters 5, 6, and 7 of Mathew's gospel an accurate representation of what really took place that day? And does it really matter?
My answers are "sort of" and "not really."

For about twenty years I served as an itinerant evangelist, going to different churches and often preaching the same messages. I'm pretty certain that Jesus taught the same lessons everywhere he went and the Apostles (like Matthew) that heard them over and over again, learned them very well.

We know from other accounts of Jesus's teaching that he sometimes taught for long periods of time that resulted in the large crowds being hungry and in need of eating something.

I would say that Matthew's account of The Sermon on the Mount is a kind of a Reader's Digest version that covers the lessons that Jesus regularly taught, and a setting that was common for teaching large crowds. Regardless of the actual setting or the order of what he taught, the values and truths of the lessons are still valid. I know that I'll read similar stories and variations on the teachings as I make my way through the gospels. These are not necessarily inaccuracies or contradictions; just a different persons perspective or remembrance of something that took place a few decades ago.

It's a weird little post -- I know, but just what I felt like sharing today. As I continue through the Bible, I'll circle back the the teachings of The Sermon on the Mount and continue to share my strange insights and questions about what I'm reading.

John