Outline of the Sermon on the Mount

I’m currently preaching in Matthew 7, so I’m in the stages of wrapping up the Sermon on the Mount (SM). Having spent several months in this artistic chunk of Matthew’s Gospel, I’m convinced (for now anyway!) that the outline of the SM is this:

• 5:1-2 — Before Jesus Began
•           5:3-16 — Prologue: Beatitudes, Salt, and Light
•                     5:17-20 — Jesus Came to Fulfill the Law and Prophets
•                               5:21-48 — Six Subjects to Show the Law’s Intent
•                                         6:1-18 — Disciplines to Practice in Secret
•                               6:19-7:11 — Dealing with Possessions and People
•                     7:12 — The Golden Rule is the Law and Prophets
•           7:13-27 — Epilogue: Two Ways, Two Trees, Two Foundations
• 7:28-29 — After Jesus Finished

Here is the Sermon itself (excluding the set-up verses of 5:1-2 and 5:28-29) fleshed out in more detail:

•           5:3-16 — Prologue: Beatitudes, Salt, and Light
•                5:3-12    Eight beatitudes
•                5:13-16  Salt of the earth and light of the world
•                     5:17-20 — Jesus Came to Fulfill the Law and Prophets
•                               5:21-48 — Six Subjects to Show the Law’s Intent
•                                    5:21-26   Anger
•                                    5:27-30  Lust
•                                    5:31-32  Divorce
•                                    5:33-37  Oaths
•                                    5:38-42  Retaliation
•                                    5:43-48  Loving Enemies
•                                         6:1-18 — Disciplines to Practice in Secret
•                                              6:1-4      Giving
•                                              6:5-15    Praying
•                                              6:16-18  Fasting
•                               6:19-7:11 — Dealing with Possessions and People
•                                    6:19-24  Don’t lay up treasures on earth
•                                    6:25-34  Don’t be anxious about your life
•                                    7:1-5      Don’t judge others hypocritically
•                                    7:6-11    Don’t give what is holy/pearls to dogs/pigs
•                     7:12 — The Golden Rule is the Law and Prophets
•           7:13-27 — Epilogue: Two Ways, Two Trees, Two Foundations
•                7:13-14    Two ways: narrow or wide
•                7:15-23   Two trees: healthy or diseased
•                7:24-27  Two foundations: rock or sand