The Wisdom of the Sermon on the Mount

 

If you wish to be challenged by Jesus, just go to Matthew, Chapters 5-7, and read through the Sermon the Mount.  There are rich ideas there, many of which inspire us Christians to a deeper life in Christ.

The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5, 6 and 7.^] It is the first of the Five Discourses of Matthew and takes place relatively early in the Ministry of Jesus after he has been baptized by John the Baptist and preached in Galilee.

The Sermon is the longest piece of teaching from Jesus in the New Testament, and has been one of the most widely quoted elements of the Canonical Gospels.  It includes some of the best known teachings of Jesus such as the Beatitudes, and the widely recited Lord's Prayer. To most believers in Jesus, the Sermon on the Mount contains the central tenets of Christian discipleship.

Matthew 5:3-12 discusses the Beatitudes. These describe the character of the people of the Kingdom of God, expressed as "blessings".^[ In Matthew, there are eight (or nine) blessings, while in Luke there are four, followed by four woes.^[

 

In almost all cases the phrases used in the Beatitudes are familiar from an Old Testament context, but in the sermon Jesus elevates them to new teachings. Together, the Beatitudes present a new set of ideals that focus on love and humility and they echo the highest ideals of Jesus' teachings on spirituality and compassion.

Matthew 5:13-16 prsents the metaphors of Salt and Light. This completes the profile of God's people presented in the beatitudes, and acts as the introduction to the next section.

There are two parts in this section, using the terms "salt of the earth" and Light of the World to refer to the disciples - implying their value.

In Matthew 6 Jesus condemns doing what would normally be "good works" simply for recognition and not from the heart.  The discourse goes on to condemn the superficiality of materialism and call the disciples not to worry about material needs, but to "seek" God's kingdom first. The Lord's prayer (6:9-13) contains parallels to 1 Chronicles 29:10-18.

The first part of Matthew 7, i.e. Matthew 7:1-6 deals with judging. Jesus condemns those who judge others before first judging themselves: "Judge not, that ye be not judged.

In the last part in Matthew 7:7-29 Jesus concludes the sermon by warning against false prophets, and emphasizing that humans are unable to do right ("bear fruit") apart from God.  Matthew 7:12 is the famous Golden Rule and Matthew 7:24-27 is the parable of the House Built on the Rock.