Drew Willard, pastor of the United Church of Christ of the Villages, FL, will be leading a session on Biblical storytelling, entitled “The Three Point Sermon on the Mount,” on July 3 at the United Church of Christ‘s General Synod. Recently he shared what he calls “the Cliff Notes of the Sermon on the Mount” with some of the folks in the Florida Conference:
- You have heard that it was said, “One Way,” but I say to you, “God is still speaking…”
- Don’t pray, donate or serve just for show, for God is with you wherever you go.
- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you – or else!
So What?
The Sermon on the Mount is a powerful collection of Jesus’ teachings. While I have heard hundreds of sermons, few have been as memorable or had as much impact as one I heard in chapel as an undergraduate student. One of my New Testament professors stood before us and shared the Sermon on the Mount from memory.
- If you have been a Christian for many years and are quite familiar with the Sermon on the Mount, what new ways of reading, hearing or engaging it have been especially helpful or meaningful?
- What is your initial response to Willard’s Cliff Notes of the Sermon on the Mount”?