“The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them. Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.

When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying…” Matthew 4:24 – 5:1,2

He spent the night in prayer, seeking the Father’s heart before appointing the Twelve disciples who would later start His church on earth. At that point in His ministry, Jesus was incredibly popular, and therefore, a great crowd greeted Him as He came down from the mountain where He selected the Twelve. The multitude came from Judea and Jerusalem, as well as the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, both to hear His words and expectant to witness His work. They had heard about the miracles, which validated Messiah’s message. The Kingdom was near.

People from every walk, both Jews and gentiles, crowded the Mount of Beatitudes, located on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, between Capernaum and Gennesaret. It what there that Jesus gave his longest and most quoted sermon. Matthew dedicated three chapters to the words of that sermon.

Jesus saw these followers as sheep, longing to hear their Shepherd’s voice, ready to fill the emptiness that religion had failed to satisfy.

[bctt tweet=”Jesus’ followers longed to hear their Shepherd’s voice and were ready to fill the emptiness that religion had failed to satisfy.” username=”PatHolbrook”]

The Pharisees sought to help those who wanted to seek righteousness by codifying the Law into 365 prohibitions and 248 commandments, thus making the righteousness of the law impossible to obtain.

Jesus, in offering Himself as their King, demanded the same righteousness as a prerequisite to enter God’s Kingdom. The difference was, however, incommensurable. Christ’s measure of righteousness had nothing to do with attending the feasts, nor following the Sabbath’s laws. In the New Covenant offered by Israel’s long-awaited Messiah, righteousness would be obtained by repenting and putting one’s faith in His Person.

[bctt tweet=”Christ’s measure of righteousness had nothing to do with attending the feasts, nor following the Sabbath’s laws. #MondayMotivation #MondayDevotional #Jesus ” username=”PatHolbrook”]

The multitude on Mount Sinai agreed in one thing: Righteousness is needed to enter the Kingdom of God. They had heard the same thing since their toddler years, preached on the synagogues and every gathering where Jews would meet. The question in their minds was not: “What is required to enter God’s Kingdom”, but rather: “What IS righteousness.”

Jesus summarizes the contrast on verse 20:

“For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

To the Pharisees, His words were heresy. They even accused Him of being demon-possessed. But Jesus did not back down. He had come to fulfill the Law by becoming their righteousness – The righteousness they could never attain, as hard as they may work in keeping the Law. But in a seemingly simple, however deep discourse, the Savior explained to those following Him what true righteousness looks like.

[bctt tweet=”That is the heart of the Sermon of the Mount: an exposition of the holiness of God, and His expectations for those who believe in His Son and are accepted into His Kingdom. #MondayMotivation #MondayDevotional #Jesus” username=”PatHolbrook”]

The sermon is fascinating… and challenging. For as many other things the Savior said, there is much more in its words than what meets the eye. This sermon is not a simple agglomeration of disconnected teachings. It is believed that it is one harmonious unity, seamlessly progressing in rational order. It was Jesus’ inaugural sermon, delivered soon after His return from Galilee, where He had performed His first miracles, and strategically delivered at a time when His followers had enough evidence given by His supernatural miracles to substantiate His Messianic claims.

I want to invite you to join me on a journey for the next several weeks, as we unfold the Sermon of the Mount together.

It will inspire and make you think. My main objective in this blog series, however, is to challenge our walk as followers of Jesus, for a deep study on His words on the Mount of Beatitudes should challenge anyone who calls himself a Christian.

Because, even though it’s true that His amazing grace is vaster than the ocean and salvation does not depend on anything you and I do or don’t do, there is no doubt that He longs to find His church walking in righteousness when He returns.

[bctt tweet=”Even though it’s true that His amazing #grace is vaster than the ocean & #salvation does not depend on anything we do, no doubt He longs to find His church walking in righteousness. #MondayMotivation #MondayDevotional #Jesus” username=”PatHolbrook”]

So, I invite you to come back next week as we start unpacking Jesus’ Words… to understand what the “blessed” in The Beatitudes really look like.

In the Meantime, I invite you to read the Sermon, found on chapters 5 through 7 in the gospel of Matthew, and rejoice in the fact that you and I do not have to abide by endless prohibitions and laws. Jesus’ blood, our righteousness, is all we need to enter the Kingdom of God. And His Spirit, our Guide, is all we need to be able to live as Christ taught us to live, that we may experience and further His Kingdom, right here on earth.

Come back next week for the continuation of the series!

Question: Is there any part of the sermon of the Mountain that challenges you in particular? Share your thoughts below!

Have a blessed week!