Scripture
The Sermon on the Mount
1One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, 2and he began to teach them.
The Beatitudes
3“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,[1]
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
4God blesses those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5God blesses those who are humble,
for they will inherit the whole earth.
6God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,[2]
for they will be satisfied.
7God blesses those who are merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
for they will see God.
9God blesses those who work for peace,
for they will be called the children of God.
10God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
11“God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. 12Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.
Translation notes (2)
- 5:3 Greek poor in spirit.
- 5:6 Or for righteousness.
The Beatitudes
3“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,[1]
for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
Translation notes (1)
- 5:3 Greek poor in spirit.
In my communications class in college, we were quickly taught the importance of clarity. We practiced writing and speaking to maximize clarity and minimize confusion. It would seem that this teaching is the standard way of training people who want to learn to communicate well. Jesus’s teachings, however, were quite different. He often taught in such a way that what He said did not always make sense, and still, His teachings were incredibly effective.
Matthew 5 records the beginning of one of the most well-known teaching moments of Jesus’ entire ministry. It is known by many as “The Sermon on the Mount.” It was taught one day when crowds of people came to Jesus to learn from Him. Because there were so many people, He went up to a mountainside and sat down to teach. He did this so that everyone could see and hear Him. He started teaching them, and what He taught must have sounded a little bit strange. “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for Him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs” (verse 3). Now, many in the crowd had been taught to believe that wealthy people had been blessed by God and that their wealth was a result of God’s blessings. This was certainly not true, but it is what many believed. Jesus corrected their faulty thinking telling them that the people who were blessed were those who were poor and knew that they needed Him. After all, we can fully understand our need for Him when we realize we are lacking.
This teaching from Jesus that we looked at today is just one of His teachings that was counter-cultural and may not have made sense to His listeners at first. However, His teachings were so surprising and shocking that few could forget them. Many thought He turned the world upside down by introducing new teachings and ideas, but I think that He was actually turning the world right-side-up.
Moving toward action
Read through the verses in the Going Deeper section found in Matthew 5:1-12. Pick one of the statements made by Jesus in these verses to memorize today. Then, as you go throughout your day, think about the verses you selected to memorize and what Jesus was teaching about following Him in those verses.
Going Deeper
Matthew 5:1-12 (NLT)
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