The Greatest Sermon Ever preached | Sermon On the Mount | Illustrated Sermon
CRAZY AUNT SARA
The woman whose power and influence of Scripture memory launched me on my way to becoming a Christian Strong person of faith.
My life was radically changed at fourteen. Coming out of the drug scene into a new life in Christ was joyful yet challenging. The company of friends I had hung out with in the party lifestyle was tempting me after receiving Christ at Windemere to “come out and party again” and not be such a prude.
Thank God my father stepped in. He worked it out for me to go live with my “crazy Aunt Sara” for the summer of 1973. She was joyful and always praising Jesus, and my family’s unregenerated souls could not identify with this aunt, who we thought had “gone too far” in her religion with this Jesus stuff. Conversely, the moment salvation came to our home, Aunt Sara was the one we could identify with most.
Aunt Sara owned her own floral shop, and that summer I worked there as her janitor. It was in that flower shop, surrounded by roses and Scripture, that she began challenging me with the power of Scripture memory. She took flat white rose boxes and had me tape them to the wall of her shop. The first Scripture Aunt Sara had me memorize was Galatians 2:20:
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
It took me one week to successfully memorize, and I felt so accomplished. Then Aunt Sara said, “Okay, Jerry. Take that rose box down and put another up. It’s time for the next Scripture.”
Aunt Sara’s mentorship influenced me to memorize thirteen books of the Bible—Paul’s epistles and Matthew 5–7.
How many times have you experienced in your own life the power of Scripture memory and its influence as a witness to those around you?
Enter Jesus — The Greatest Sermon Ever Preached
Picture Jesus as He delivers His Sermon on the Mount on a beautiful outdoor hillside near the Sea of Galilee. The crowd included the disciples, fishermen, farmers, the poor, the sick, and religious seekers. These were ordinary people hungry for truth and healing.
Can you imagine the power of Jesus’ words as they cut through ritualism and spoke directly to the human conscience and heart? Those who gathered were accustomed to legalism and oppression, but the power of Jesus’ sermon gave them hope.
He delivered blessings—while warning us to be followers, not just hearers. The Greatest Sermon Ever Preached was not a “take out your pen as I give you these eight points” moment. The truths He delivered were far more than information; they were transformational.
The believers present were encouraged to be influencers—salt and light to the world.
A Living Sermon
I will close with a story that so stirred and challenged me. I thought, “Why shouldn’t I memorize Matthew 5–7 and deliver it as an illustrated sermon?”
So, I gathered a team of costumed disciples who sat with me as I delivered, by memory, Jesus’ Greatest Sermon Ever Preached.
This presentation became part one of a two-part illustrated sermon series. The first message is The Greatest Sermon Ever Preached from Matthew 5–7. The second is a powerful dramatization in which I quote, by memory, the Book of Philippians, dressed as the Apostle Paul, imprisoned.
Both of these illustrated sermons were created to help people see, hear, and feel the living Word of God in a fresh and unforgettable way.
As you listen to these presentations, my prayer is that you’ll be inspired to treasure Scripture in your heart—to strengthen your memory of God’s Word and live out its truth daily.
The Story Behind This Post
John Wesley, the dynamic 18th-century English revivalist and founder of Methodism, left behind an astonishing legacy of faith and endurance. He preached an estimated 40,000 sermons, traveled more than 250,000 rugged miles—mostly on horseback—and averaged about 4,000 miles a year to ignite revival fires across England.
Wesley organized over 500 Methodist societies throughout the British Isles. By the time of his death in 1791, his movement had expanded to 541 itinerant preachers and about 135,000 devoted followers worldwide—72,000 in Britain and 60,000 in America. Even if some figures are approximate, they reveal the breathtaking magnitude of his mission and his unyielding devotion to evangelism, discipleship, and spiritual awakening throughout the English-speaking world.
Among Wesley’s most faithful companions was Edward Perronet (1721–1792)—a brilliant, godly man and the gifted author of the hymn “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name,” often called the National Anthem of Christianity.
Wesley so admired Perronet that he once announced to a crowd that Edward would preach the next day. The humble Perronet, deeply loyal to John and Charles Wesley, was overwhelmed at the thought of preaching before such giants of the faith. At that time, persecution of Methodists was fierce in England; their courage came at great cost.
Still, out of obedience to Wesley’s request, Perronet stepped into the pulpit and declared he would preach “the greatest sermon ever preached.” Then, opening his Bible to Matthew chapter five, he began reading the Sermon on the Mount—and continued reading through chapters six and seven.
When he finished, he quietly sat down. Indeed, that was the greatest sermon ever preached, for those chapters are one continuous sermon spoken by Jesus Christ Himself. It is a sermon majestic in tone, piercing in truth, and eternally powerful in its call to righteousness.
Edward Perronet left a lasting mark on the world for Christ. The homiletic simplicity of his “sermon” that day before the Wesleys has echoed through the centuries. Beyond that, he authored three volumes of Christian poetry, including a poetic rendering of Scripture.
In 1756, he boldly published The Mitre—a fiery poetic critique of the Church of England’s claim that the Eucharist was a rite reserved only for Anglican priests. Perronet’s pen, like his faith, was courageous and uncompromising.
John Wesley once wrote to Alexander Mather on August 6, 1777:
“Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or laymen; such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth.”
Amen to that.
