Matthew 7:28-29

Matthew 7:28, 29

28 When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.

The teachings of Jesus are unlike any that the people alive at that time had ever heard.  These are life changing truths that have been recorded for us in Scripture so we can continue to be transformed by them today.  It has been an amazing journey to work through this sermon over the last several weeks.  I have read this passage on many occasions and have taught many of the passages on several occasions but this has been the first time for me to work through the entire text verse by verse.  I have enjoyed it very much and have been striving to put many of these teachings into practice in my life.  These two verses describe the response of the original hearers.  To be honest with you I find their response to be anti-climactic.  They had just heard the greatest sermon ever given; so, I would have expected a more heart-searching response.  Their two responses are certainly true but don’t go far enough from my point of view.

HIS TEACHINGS WERE AMAZING: The message that Jesus gave amazed the crowd.  These truths were clear, powerful and convicting.  It was not like the cold religious rhetoric they had become accustomed to hearing.  He was courageous in what He said and was not concerned with what people might think of His convictions.  He confronted some very powerful people and He congratulated some very unpopular people.  His positions were unexpected and forced them to rethink everything they had believed up until that point.  They were amazed by the content of His message as well as by the courage He demonstrated. 

HIS TEACHINGS WERE AUTHORITATIVE: The other aspect that took His hearers by surprise was the authority with which He spoke.  He confronted sin head on and proclaimed the truth with boldness and conviction.  The scribes and other leaders would teach in a very stoic and complicated language in an effort to appear intelligent and impressive.  Jesus was blunt and confrontational with very little concern about the reactions of those who heard Him.  He spoke as a means of revealing the will of God and spoke on behalf of God.  He said exactly how God expects us to live no matter how different that might be to our traditions.

APPLICATION: We should stand in awe at the teachings of Christ; but, more importantly we must grow in our knowledge who God is and what He expects of us.  As preachers of Scripture, we must declare God’s Word with authority.  His Word is the only reason any of us can write or teach others about the expectations of God for our lives.  We must teach the Bible with confidence and apply it to the hearts and lives of the people around us.