He Taught On the Mountain
Matthew continues the story of Jesus & Israel.
The significance of these next three chapters of Matthew (5-7) cannot be overstated.
Collectively known as the “Sermon on the Mount,” the text never calls it a sermon. We’re just looking at the introductory two verses today. Note what it does and doesn’t say.
It says that he went up the mountain when he saw the crowds. Yet this doesn’t tell us whether he eventually is teaching the crowds or just his disciples who came to him. It doesn’t say he preached, but that he taught.
Matthew’s insertion of Jesus into the story of Israel does actually continue here, even in these short two verses. Remember what we’ve noticed so far:
Jesus had to go to Egypt as a child, and soon thereafter escaped (Israel, in its infancy found itself in Egypt, and was delivered there out by God)
Jesus was baptized (Israel went through the Red Sea)
Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness (Israel spent 40 years in the wilderness)
Now we see him come to a mountain. Where he taught and spoke about the Law.
See where this is going? Moses ascended a mountain (Sinai) to receive the Law of God. Like Moses ascending Mount Sinai to receive and teach the Law, Jesus now goes up a mountain—not to receive, but to reframe and fulfill the Law in himself.
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Sometimes it’s good to consider the conclusion even before we begin. It can be easy to finish a bit overwhelmed with a sigh at the end of Matthew 5-7 and miss Jesus’ conclusion:
Everybody who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise builder who built a house on bedrock. (Matthew 7:24)
Jesus isn’t philosophizing here. He isn’t simply giving a law. He is teaching. And good teachers don’t teach just to hear themselves talk. Jesus is expecting that what he teaches is to be put into practice. One paraphrasing translation says that these are words to build a life on.
Indeed.
Jesus isn’t simply offering lofty ideals or spiritual insights—he’s teaching with the full expectation that we will seek to build our lives on these words.
Matthew 5:1-2
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up a mountain. He sat down and his disciples came to him. He taught them, saying…
Psalm 86:11
Teach me your way, Lord, so that I can walk in your truth.
Make my heart focused only on honoring your name.
Prayer (inspired by Augustine’s Confessions)
God,
You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you. Still my heart, Lord, that I might be ready to learn. Silence the distractions, the pride, the assumptions that I already know enough.
Teach me your way, not as a concept or a set of rules, but as a life to live and a truth to embody. Shape me to be one who listens carefully to Jesus—not just admiring his words but practicing them with humility and perseverance.
I do not always know what to do first. The world feels complicated, and even my good intentions seem pale. So guide me, God, in the path that leads to wisdom. Help me to know what matters most and to live accordingly.
Let me not only hear these words of Christ, but build my life on them.
By your Spirit & in Christ,
Amen.