Where Do I find Some "Kingdom Ethics?"
The Sermon on the Mount, which echoes throughout the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Paul's letters, and the rest of the New Testament, was universally understood as the charter document for "followers of Jesus and the movement."
In the church's first three centuries, the Sermon on the Mount was the guiding light for how communities acted and supported each other; no other biblical passage was referred to as often. This shared understanding and reverence for the Sermon on the Mount united the early church; today, we need church leaders who will offer the same message, take the same stand, and support the moral appeals and lifestyle presented. The echoes may have faded as the church evolved, but the shared tradition, with its timeless relevance, remains.
If we See-Discern-correctly, will we ACT?
What is a "kingdom ethic?"
Ethics is about doing, not believing.
"Consider this: there is not a single word in [the Sermon on the Mount] about what to believe, only words about what to do. It is a behavioral manifesto, not a propositional one." ~ Robin Meyers
This practical nature of the Sermon on the Mount should inspire us to act, not just believe.
When Jesus talks about 'kingdom,' he is talking about community. What do we see as a community that you can observe as kingdom-making? This emphasis on community should make us feel a sense of belonging and unity.
In Jesus's time, "laws" were not ethics. So, make sure to distinguish the two. Ethics, as found in the Sermon on the Mount, is about doing God's will. So, think of "Kingdom ethics" as "community ethics ."
There is an eschatological dimension to the Sermon on the Mount: the kingdom is here and now, and the future has begun to take place in the present of our lives. The ethic of the Sermon on the Mount calls for each of us to Discern. A discerning ethic is what Jesus had in mind, and it was for the here and now, not of any "other-worldly detachment" from the present world. The coming Kingdom of God shapes the way Jesus-followers live right now in this world. Not waiting for eternity to come.
The ethics of the Sermon on the Mount is about wisdom.
Think and read the Psalms.
The ethics of the Sermon on the Mount are "Jesus' ethics."
For us, they are messianic in nature and kingdom/community-oriented. When it comes to action, they also describe how a gathered community of Spirit-filled people lives in the community, the kingdom, day by day.