The history that has brought this about—being filtered through the Modernist/Fundamentalist controversy that consumed American religion for many decades and still works powerfully in its depths—also has led each wing to insist that what the other takes for essential should not be regarded as essential.

One of the most influential writers in the conservative camp today is John MacArthur. He has defended the view that you cannot have a “saving” faith in Jesus Christ without also intending to obey his teachings. You must accept him as Lord, hence the name Lordship salvation.9

The setting here is somewhat different from that recorded in Matthew. It seems to me we are not dealing with a different record of the same sermon, though many of the same topics are treated.7 Here Jesus has just spent all night out in the hills in prayer, preparing to appoint twelve of his students to be his special emissaries, or “apostles,” to

What right and left have in common is that neither group lays down a coherent framework of knowledge and practical direction adequate to

Warning: against false securities—reputation and wealth (Matt. 6, and chapter 6 of this book). Warning: against “condemnation engineering” as a plan for helping people. A call to the community of prayerful love (Matt. 7:1–12, and chapter 7 of this book). Warnings: about how we may fail actually to do what the Discourse requires, and the effects

The simple but powerful structure of the Discourse on the Hill can therefore be represented as follows: Background assumption: life in the kingdom through reliance upon Jesus (Matt. 4:17–25; chapters 1 through 3 of this book are devoted to this topic). It is ordinary people who are the light and salt of the world as they live the blessed life in

Transformation of life and character is no part of the redemptive message.

Then there are the meek. (“Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.”) These are the shy ones, the intimidated, the mild, the unassertive.

This in turn has led to what is called the “Lordship salvation” debate among leading evangelicals and their followers.