The Sermon on the Mount

LESSON 2 – tHE bEATITUDES

Introduction

Background

While Matthew is the first of the gospels in the New Testament, it was likely not the first gospel written. It is believed both Matthew and Luke had copies of Mark’s gospel, written 10 or more years before, on which they based their overall narrative. Each adapted the story in their own way.
It was long held that Matthew and Luke used another common source, called Q, which contained the stories found in their gospels but not in Mark. More recently, that has been questioned with some now suggesting Luke worked from copies of both Matthew and Mark.
Matthew arranges his gospel around five speeches from Jesus, of which the Sermon on the Mount is the first and longest. It was likely never delivered as one long sermon but rather Matthew collected a series of Jesus teachings and placed them here near the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Found here are some of Jesus’ most famous teachings (The Beatitudes, The Golden Rule, The Lord’s Prayer).
This speech gets its name from v. 1 which says Jesus saw the crowds and went up a mountain where he began to teach. Explicitly, Matthew says he was teaching his disciples. At the same time, we can assume the crowds also followed and listened. The mountain brings to mind Moses receiving God’s commandments on Mt. Sinai (Matthew often likens Jesus to a “new Moses”). Luke places these teachings “on a level plain” rather than on a mountain.
Amy-Jill Levine has called the Sermon on the Mount the “beginners guide” to the kingdom of heaven. It is the very heart of Jesus’ message.
Matthew mostly uses the term kingdom of heaven whereas the other gospels use kingdom of God. That’s because Matthew draws a sharper distinction between heaven, where God’s will is done and where God alone rules, and earth, where God’s rule is not yet fully real. The kingdom of heaven comes to earth when people take Jesus’ words to heart and live them out in our daily lives.
This speech in Matthew shares much in common with Jesus’ “Sermon on the Plain” found in Luke 6:20-49. We will compare similarities and differences as we go along but it’s worth reading all the way through as we begin.

Reflection

How would you summarize the heart of Jesus’ message? What do you consider his most important teachings and how do you practice them in your daily life?

Summary

Matthew begins with the stories around Jesus’ birth (c.1-2), his encounter with John the Baptist (c.3), his temptation in the wilderness, call of the first disciples, and the very beginning of his public ministry (c.4). Before he goes any further, Matthew gives us a sense of what the rest of this gospel is about; what it means to live in God’s kingdom which through Jesus has come near.

If you have time, read through the entire sermon in one sitting. (Matthew 5-7).