SERMON ON THE MOUNT
By D.A. Carson
Spring Harvest/Paternoster
170 pages. £4.99. ISBN 1 85078 405 1
This book arose out of a series of Bible Expositions to the Cambridge Inter-Collegiate Christian Union (CICCU) in 1975. The material has been revised and adapted for the printed word, and reprinted several times. It contains a masterly exposition of the teaching of Jesus in Matthew's Gospel, chapters 5-7.
Dr. Carson has a brilliant gift for explaining the meaning of Jesus's teaching, and applying it pastorally and practically to the individual and the church. At one point he comments: 'interpreting the Scriptures demands both balance and precision so that no one teaching is thoughtlessly extrapolated out of proportion'. It is exactly that kind of balanced teaching that he gives us. He is also willing to tackle difficult issues. If you thought that you had read all the possible explanations of the phrase in the Lord's prayer, 'Lead us not into temptation', then read Carson. You will find that he sheds new light on the phrase in a convincing and challenging way (page 78). Two Appendices deal in a scholarly and helpful way with critical approaches to the Sermon, and a variety of theological interpretations.
