The Sermon on the Mount in Matthew's Larger Story
Daily Scripture
Matthew 7:28, 11:1, 13:53, 19:1, 26:1
Matthew 7
28 When Jesus finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching
Matthew 11
1 When Jesus finished teaching his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.
Matthew 13
53 When Jesus finished these parables, he departed.
Matthew 19
1 When Jesus finished saying these things, he left Galilee and came to the area of Judea on the east side of the Jordan.
Matthew 26
1 When Jesus finished speaking all these words, he said to his disciples,
Daily Reflection & Prayer
A wise teacher tells seminary students, “Any text without a context is a pretext.” But we’re busy, so we often shrink “context” to just one or two verses before and after the passage we’re studying. That helps, but real context is much bigger. Today’s five readings, which most of us never notice as connected, reveal the larger context of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Scholar N. T. Wright noted that Matthew used the phrase “When Jesus finished” as “bookmarks” throughout his gospel. Wright explained that Matthew used these “bookmarks” to mark off five great blocks of teaching: (1) the Sermon on the Mount (chapters 5-7), (2) instructions for mission (chapter 10), (3) parables (chapter 13), (4) teachings about Christian community (chapter 18), and (5) warnings about coming judgment (chapters 23-25). Five major teaching sections, deliberately structured. *
- Why would Matthew structure his gospel around five major teaching blocks? Wright suggested a striking parallel: “Every Jew knew, the first five books of the Bible were known as the ‘five books of Moses,’ the ‘Pentateuch.’ One of the main things Matthew wants to tell us is that Jesus is like Moses—only more so.” ** Moses gave Israel the Law in five books, and Matthew presents Jesus giving God’s people his teaching in five great sermons. This shows that the Sermon wasn’t a random collection of ethical advice. How does this framework point to the importance of taking the Sermon seriously as the foundational teaching that defines what it means to follow Jesus?
- As we conclude this study of the Sermon on the Mount, what one teaching has most challenged or transformed you over these weeks? What is one specific principle Jesus taught that you can begin applying in the coming month?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you for inspiring your servant Matthew to preserve this masterful collection of your teachings. Over these weeks of study, you’ve challenged me, comforted me, and called me higher. Help me not just to admire your Sermon but to live its heavenly principles in my earthly life. Build my life on the rock of your principles. Amen.
GPS Insights
Dan Enwistle
Dan Entwistle, who serves as Managing Executive Director for Church of the Resurrection, wrote today's Insights.
Don’t we love a good rescue story? An underdog leader steps up, overcomes an oppressor, and declares freedom and justice. Moses was that hero, and his story is a defining story for the Hebrew people. Moses survived the ruthless Pharaoh’s decree to kill all the newborn boys, he led the people from slavery into the wilderness, and he fasted for 40 days on Mount Sinai before descending with God’s laws carved in stone. Moses set the standard for heroism and leadership.
When Matthew wrote his account of Jesus’ ministry, he did something dramatic that isn’t found in Mark’s gospel. He pointed to the overlap between Moses and Jesus, even casting Jesus as the new Moses. Today’s GPS commentary quotes NT Wright: “Jesus was like Moses—only more so.”
While these parallels between Moses and Jesus could fly over our modern heads, they’d have been obvious to Matthew’s contemporaries. He even structured his Gospel into five sections, echoing to the five books of Moses, the Torah. Look at a few of the significant overlaps in Matthew between Moses and Jesus:
- Just as Moses survived Pharaoh’s decree to slaughter Hebrew infants, young Jesus survives King Herod’s command to murder the boys near Bethlehem.
- Both Moses and Jesus flee for their lives to escape a tyrant—with Moses fleeing Egypt, and Jesus’ family taking refuge in Egypt.
- Before launching his public ministry, Jesus fasts in the wilderness for 40 days, mirroring Moses’ 40-day fast on Mount Sinai.
The story builds until Matthew tells us that Jesus looks out at the crowds, ascends a mountain, and sits down to teach (Matthew 5:1). The imagery was unmistakable. Moses descended Mount Sinai with the law; Jesus stands on a mountain to deliver his message. This was Jesus’ “Sinai moment.”
However, the tone is different. This mountain isn’t wrapped in smoke and thunder, and the law isn’t external: Do not murder. Do not commit adultery, etc. Instead, Jesus invites his hearers with gentleness and warmth, and he offers a new standard—a New Covenant. For example, we’re no longer simply refraining from murder; we’re addressing the seeds of anger in our hearts. It’s not just about outward actions; it’s an invitation into inward transformation, with even higher standards of humility, mercy, meekness and peacemaking.
Jesus didn’t just raise the moral measuring stick, he shifted the focus from what we do, to who we are supposed to become. Now the work isn’t about compliance; it is a transformation of our hearts.
As we conclude our six-week study of Sermon on the Mount, I am reading Matthew 5-7 once again, slowly and carefully. I’ll be listening for Jesus to speak and seeking, with grace, to be changed from the inside out. May it be.
© 2026 Resurrection: A United Methodist Church. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* Wright, N. T., Matthew for Everyone, Part 1: Chapters 1-15 (The New Testament for Everyone) (p. 79). Westminster John Knox Press, Kindle Edition.
** Ibid., p. 80.
