Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he cured them. And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan. When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. —Matthew 4:23-5:1

Introduction and Context

The Sermon on the Mount is not only the Scripture of the church but also the

that made sense to the Jewish disciples who followed Jesus.

“If we get Jesus’s context wrong, we’ll get him wrong.” —Dr. Amy-Jill Levine, Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies, Vanderbilt Divinity School

Jesus is not a

talking to other Christians; he is a

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talking to other Jews.

Jesus is not telling his fellow Jews to do

with Torah … Rather, he is giving them insight into the

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of the law, and telling them to listen up.

Jesus is providing instruction on how best to live into the

of the kingdom of heaven now.

What the Sermon on the Mount is NOT:

1. Not
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   . Matthew 5:2-5 (NRSV)
2. Not a list of general
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   principles.
3. Not a list of things we
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   do.

Jesus is declaring “an objective reality as the result of a divine act.” —Dr. Eugene Boring, Professor of New Testament, Brite Divinity School, TCU

Terms

Kingdom of Heaven
Jesus uses “the kingdom of heaven” as a contrast to “the kingdoms of

.”

“Heaven is a different place, a better place, a real place, a place where God rules and life is as God wants rather than as humanity has constructed.” —Dr. Levine

The “kingdom of heaven” is where what God wants done is done.

“The kingdom of heaven occurs when people take the words of Jesus in these chapters to heart and live into them.” —Dr. Levine

The kingdom of heaven is where past,

, and future unite at table eating together with no borders, no bias, and no bigotry.

Repent
Not simply a matter of saying we are sorry but includes

what was wronged.

What Is a Beatitude?

The Greek NT word is makarios translated as “blessed.” Jeremiah 17:7-8, Psalm 118:26 NRSV

The beatitudes or blessings are nothing short of God’s

for human life.

“When we hear that we are blessed, we should hear as well a sense of

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. A blessing given, a talent bestowed, if unappreciated and unused, is wasted.” —Dr. Levine

The opposite of “blessed” is “

.”

The beatitudes are not

for conversion, but a declaration of the “marks of the church.” Matthew 5:1-11

Jesus on “blessedness”: happy, fulfilled, whole, fully human

Jesus is introducing us to the contrast between life as the present world

it and life as God

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it.

The gospel is less about how to get into the Kingdom of Heaven after you die, and more about how to live in the Kingdom of Heaven before you die. —Dallas Willard

Action Steps

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   today in a way that will require you to mourn deeply one day.
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   in a way that brings honor to the memory of your parents and how they raised you.
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   the power and love God has given you to live in the kingdom of heaven today.