As we have seen again and again, the Savior’s sermon calls his followers to a higher righteousness. We ask: Is there more than obedience? Is more than a careful attention to duty and appropriate behavior required of those who aspire to Christian discipleship? The answer is yes. An emphatic yes.
Our Lord calls us to purity of heart, to purity of soul, to purity of motive. We are not only to do the right things. We are to do them for the right reasons.