When was the last time we changed our mind? Was it a sin?

Lying has been called the royal road to chaos. Followers of the one named “faithful and true” are called to be radical truth-tellers.

In a confused culture that both disregards marriage at the same time as campaigns to broaden its definition – Jesus speaks of God’s plan.

Jesus turns his attention to now raise the bar on sexual purity. Confronting our sex-crazed culture Jesus equates lust with the guilt of adultery.

Jesus warns against self-satisfaction with only external behaviors while ignoring the heart. It is not enough to just not murder, we must not even want to murder.

Should we eat shellfish? Keep the Sabbath? Shave beards? The question of our present relationship to the Old Testament law is a live one. How much discontinuity and continuity must there be?

But we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.

Jesus turns to describe the Christian’s relationship to the world as both salt in its distinctiveness and light in its presence. We are those who are different and yet not removed.

Jesus continues to declare those whom God approves of. The person who mourns over their sin, the meek, those who desperately desire righteousness, and the merciful.

Jesus wastes no time in laying the foundations for the whole sermon in the first line. The most important question when it comes to the Kingdom of God is simply this – are you in it?