The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 5is our reading this week.
In this chapter, Jesus calls those who follow Him to engage in radical devotion and radical dependence on God.
So many important things in the bible happen on mountains, and this is no exception.
He was sitting while he gave this sermon, which is how rabbis frequently taught disciples.
The first part of the sermon is called “the Beatitudes.” They are the verses which have the word “blessed” in them (verses 3 through 11). They are comforts to believers who suffer.
The second part contains the new laws, and they contrast toe old law of Moses with the new laws of Christ. A new era began with the ministry of Jesus, who came to fulfill the law, which he explains in verses 17 through 20.
This chapter has some of the most quoted verses in the New Testament, and I know that even before I knew anything about Jesus and Christianity, I had heard the Beatitudes.
They are truly words to live by.
Although this sermon is not the reason Christ was born, as so often misstated, it are very important for Christians because it tells us how to live.
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