The sermon on the mount

By Steve Martin

    The Sermon on the Mount is a great place to explore what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. According to the Navarre Bible, the Sermon on the Mount is the first of five great

discourses of Jesus which appear in Matthew’s Gospel. In chapters 5-7 of the book of Matthew our Lord was teaching his disciples and the multitudes. This discourse contains a considerable amount of the teachings of Jesus.

    The Sermon on the Mount begins with the Beatitudes, a sure guide to perfecting one’s faith. In the beatitudes Jesus provided a roadmap to heaven. Salvation is promised to all who earnestly struggle to meet these demands of the heart. All who truly strive to follow the spirit of the teachings contained in the Beatitudes will be blessed. Living these truths will bring us an eternal reward in heaven as well as peace in the midst of the many trials in this life.

     Jesus opened with the words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3) Poverty is most often associated with a lack of material goods, but that is not what Jesus was talking about here. Here Jesus was talking about spiritual things, not earthly things. So, what does it mean to be poor in spirit?

     The Navarre Bible points out that this text is echoing back to a religious concept of poverty found  in the Old Testament. This religious concept of poverty is an attitude of the human spirit which humbly recognizes how much we need God. Rather than relying on one’s own merit to be saved, this attitude of the heart trusts completely in the abundant mercy of God. 

     The poor in spirit come to God like a little child.  A little child owns nothing other than what is given.  Every gift that child has came from God and belongs to God. Like little children we must come to God for all that we need. When we do this God will not disappoint us.  Be humble and trust our Heavenly Father.  He will provide.