THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT, MATTHEW 5-7

"Now when He saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them, saying:

Blessed...

I think that if I had to name my favorite aspect of The Sermon On The Mount ALETHEIA, it would be that Jesus saw the crowds. Literally. They were in front of Him and beside Him and all around Him. And so, in order to speak and be heard, He went up on a mountainside. The mountainside was the equivalent, I think, of a modern day stage. His disciples were present there. Listening. And. So. Were. The crowds.

The Greek word for crowd is ὄχλους : ochlous. It literally (apply strictness and exact meaning) is a throng or group of common people and rubble. The word conveys that they were all alike, as a multitude of diverse aspect, but positioned collectively as one. The beauty of this is that they, along with the disciples, were wrapped up in His words, His stories, His messages. The crowds were listening. And so were the disciples.

Salt and Light...Commandments and Oaths

Prayer and Fasting...Treasure and Asking and Seeking and Knocking

A Tree and Its Fruit...A Wise Man who built his house on a Rock

At the end of His Sermon, it was not the disciples that were amazed at Jesus. It was the crowds, the common people, the ragamuffins and the rubble and the ruffians.

"When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at His teaching, because He taught as One who had authority, and not as their teachers of the Law." Matthew 7:28

Count me in among the ruffians, the rubble and ragamuffins! The Sermon on the Mount is full of awe and wonder because the Wisdom of God is both simple and astounding.

It would be my honor to share with you The Sermon On The Mount, so that you too can stand as a ragamuffin ruffian in awe of Jesus, The Rabbi, The Teacher who "taught as One with authority." He is worthy of rapt attention. Each time we listen to Him we will never be the same. He alone is all good and all God (like that).