Why does the Sermon on the Mount contain such difficult teachings?

The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is often presented as a beautiful passage to inspire spiritual growth in the believer. However, the reality is that in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus tells His audience to cut off their hands, to pluck out their eyes, and to be perfect like God. In addition, He tells them that looking with lust equals adultery and that anger is the same as murder. Finally, Jesus tells His audience to get right with others before offering their animal sacrifices and that they’ll be answerable to the Sanhedrin – a Jewish council from two thousand years ago. Clearly, there’s a context of Judaism that must be factored into understanding the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is purposely introducing a perfect and impossible standard (the true spirit of the Law) in order to expose the spiritual slavery and hypocrisy of His Jewish audience. With this in mind, the Sermon on the Mount is not a sweet passage for Christian growth, but instead it serves as “nails in the coffin” of anyone who thinks they can keep the true standard of the Jewish law.