{"id":17858,"date":"2023-03-09T07:14:14","date_gmt":"2023-03-09T07:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mediashower.com\/blog\/?p=17858"},"modified":"2023-03-10T07:16:46","modified_gmt":"2023-03-10T07:16:46","slug":"communication-secrets-of-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/communication-secrets-of-jesus\/","title":{"rendered":"The Communication Secrets of Jesus"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>TLDR: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Sermon on the Mount is one of the most widely-quoted sections of the Gospels. In this text, Jesus used powerful and timeless communication techniques that have resonated with religious and non-religious audiences alike. If you\u2019d like to deliver your content and have the message really stick (perhaps for centuries to come), try the following techniques: frame your message using positive language; challenge the status quo with a higher goal; use powerful and simple images; and speak with authority.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>So What? <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus\u2019 communication techniques can help us communicate our most passionate ideas, as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><center><iframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6aZs5IKiXhY\" width=\"640\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><center><\/center><\/center>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Biblical experts have said that Jesus\u2019 Sermon on the Mount, as famously recounted in <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblegateway.com\/passage\/?search=Matthew%205-7&amp;version=NIV\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Matthew 5-7<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, is the most important of all his teachings. In the sermon, he laid out moral guidelines that later became the basis of Christianity, inspiring generations of devotees.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The sermon is remarkable for its use of paradox, challenging the status quo of his time (and possibly ours) with a fresh perspective on success and who exactly is #Blessed. It starts with the opening lines:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBlessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><br \/>\n<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>Choosing Positive Framing<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Oxford Dictionary defines the word \u201cbeatitudes\u201d as \u201csupreme blessedness.\u201d In this \u201csupreme\u201d mountaintop sermon, Jesus spared his listeners a list of \u201cthou shalt nots\u201d and instead offered them an evergreen message of compassion and hope.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you craft your communication using positive language, it opens the ears, hearts and minds of your listeners. They become more receptive to your ideas, especially if they\u2019re presented in a new and surprising way.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Challenging the Status Quo to offer a Better Way<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus\u2019 understanding of \u201csupreme blessedness\u201d was in some ways the opposite of the cultural traditions and religious teachings of his time. Rather than downplaying these differences, he emphasized them. He called upon his listeners to imagine a higher standard of living, while reminding them often that they were \u201cblessed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Six times in the sermon he says, \u201cYou have heard it said . . . but I say to you . . .\u201d For example:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou have heard that it was said, \u2018Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth. But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Great communicators frequently draw comparisons between the status quo and a higher goal. Many years later, Martin Luther King, Jr. would use this technique in his <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Letter from Birmingham Jail<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, saying, \u201cInjustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.\u201d And Mahatma Gandhi often reminded his followers, \u201cThe future depends on what we do in the present.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Powerful, Yet Simple Imagery<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jesus also used simple, powerful images that would have been meaningful to his listeners. He told them to \u201cbe like salt,\u201d which was used to flavor and preserve food, even more so in ancient times. These simple images still resonate today:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><center><iframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XQhQuPiBmNU\" width=\"640\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><center><\/center><\/center>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Later in this sermon, he asked his listeners to consider flowers in a field and birds in the air. If God took care of these lowly creatures, why do they worry whether God will take care of them?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cLook at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">27 <\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People have spent thousands of years unpacking the symbolism in these images, but the images themselves are simple and easy to understand. Even children get them.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Content With Authority<\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the end of the sermon, gospel writer Matthew comments, \u201c<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching,<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke as though he had the God-given authority to do so. He didn\u2019t say, \u201cThis is what I think\u2026\u201d or \u201cMy opinion is\u2026\u201d He was not wishy-washy. He spoke as though his words were true; he claimed the authority to speak his truth.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Authority is earned. It comes from being confident in your beliefs, understanding your material, and knowing in your bones that this is a message that <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">you must deliver<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. While a college degree or job title can confer some authority upon you, ultimately you must claim that authority before you can convey it to others.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Most of us find that authority difficult to muster in our communication. It helps to really <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">believe <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in what you\u2019re speaking or writing. We can plug into this by infusing our communication with a high degree of meaning and purpose. Speaking to great human truths, to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">your <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">deepest truths, can help you tap into that authority.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Most of us don\u2019t (intentionally) deliver sermons on a daily basis. We might be writing marketing copy, an email campaign, or an email to a colleague. But the more we can use these communication secrets \u2013 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">framing the positive, challenging the status quo with a higher vision; using powerful yet simple images, and speaking with authority \u2013 the better our messages will ring from the mountaintop.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Does your content need more power to communicate with clarity and purpose? <\/span><\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/mediashower.com\/user\/free_trial?__mscta=2850_95396_162\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Give Media Shower a try by clicking here.<\/span><\/i> <\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mediashower.com\/user\/free_trial?__mscta=2850_95396_162\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-17809 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/MediaShower-CTA-1-1.png\" alt=\"Free trial CTA\" width=\"680\" height=\"240\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/MediaShower-CTA-1-1.png 680w, https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/MediaShower-CTA-1-1-300x106.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p> The Sermon on the Mount is one of the most widely-quoted sections of the Gospels.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":109,"featured_media":17860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[459],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17858"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/109"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17858"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17858\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17863,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17858\/revisions\/17863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mediashower.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}