The Sermon on the Mount

The Heart of Jesus’ Teaching

(Matthew 5–7)

One spring morning around AD 29, Jesus climbed a hillside overlooking the Sea of Galilee, sat down, and began to teach the ever-growing crowd. What He said that day is the longest unbroken teaching we have from Him, and it is the heart of everything He came to give us.

He opened with the eight Beatitudes, pronouncing God’s blessing on the very people the world overlooks:

1. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
2. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
3. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
4. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
5. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
6. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
7. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
8. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.”

These are not polite wishes. They are solemn promises from the mouth of God: this is who belongs to His Kingdom, and this is what He will give them.

Then He told the crowd: “You are the salt of the earth… You are the light of the world.” “I have not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfil them.” Six times He said, “You have heard that it was said… but I say to you…”

• Do not murder → Do not even be angry.
• Do not commit adultery → Do not look with lust.
• An eye for an eye → Turn the other cheek, go the extra mile, give your cloak as well.
• Love your neighbour → Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.

He taught them how to give alms, pray, and fast in secret, and right in the centre He gave us the prayer we still say at every Mass: Our Father, who art in heaven…

He told them not to store up treasures on earth, not to serve money, not to worry about tomorrow, but to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.”

And He summed up the entire Old Testament in one golden line: “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.”

Finally He warned: “Enter through the narrow gate… Not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom… Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them is like a wise man who built his house on rock…”

When He finished, the crowds were stunned. Matthew tells us: “He taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”

That day on the mountain, Jesus didn’t just give a beautiful speech. He gave the charter of His Kingdom and showed us the kind of life He came to make possible. Every miracle, every parable, every step toward the cross would simply be this Sermon lived out. And every Christian who has ever truly followed Him has simply tried, by His grace, to live these same words.

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