Seeds for 05/15/2023 - Matthew 5:1-2
Scripture: 1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, 2 and He began to teach them.
Observation: Chapters 5-7 of Matthew’s Gospel are comprised of Jesus’ famous Sermon on the Mount. For reference, this sermon is comprised of teachings that occur scattered throughout the Gospels of Mark and Luke as well. These three Gospels are referred to as the “synoptics,” which comes from two Greek words and means “to see with the same eye” or “having the same perspective.” They each present Jesus and His story in their own particular way, but are coming from the same general perspective.
One thing we can glean (and scholars have) from the fact that much of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 is also represented in a variety of places and settings in Mark and Luke is that the teaching we find here captures the heart of Jesus’ teaching on kingdom living and discipleship. This is the essence of what He was teaching, whether all together at one time or at different times and places.
So what of these two verses before Jesus gets started? This comes right on the heels of Matthew noting that news spread about Him due to His healing ministry in particular and that large crowds from everywhere were following Him . So, what was Jesus’ response to this surging popularity?
“Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down.” Disciples learned by sitting at the feet of their teacher. This was both a real description and an idiom. Matthew is telling us that Jesus’ response to the crowds that followed due the healing miracles was to find a good place to sit down and see who would want to learn the teaching about life in the kingdom, not only seek, receive, and be awed by the healing power.
“His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them.” Those who wanted to learn about God and His kingdom came and sat before Him.
The takeaway seems simple and straightforward. Jesus will teach those who show up hunger to learn. If you want to know what life in God’s kingdom and discipleship to Jesus are really about, He will teach you. That teaching is comforting, challenging, inspiring, and convicting. But it is faithful, true, and available to all those who truly want it.
Application:
When in your life have you felt a hunger to learn more from Jesus and His Word?
What else might the Holy Spirit be speaking with you about in the text today?
Prayer: Lord, you have the words about the truth, beauty, and goodness of God’s kingdom. Open my heart, mind, and life to hear and receive your teaching. Amen.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” (Matthew 13:23)
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When in your life have you felt a hunger to learn more from Jesus and His Word?
I am more immersed in His Word over the last 10-15 years due to reading and studying the Bible. Seeking and looking for deeper meaning, really studying the Word, not merely reading and passing through but doing a deep dive. Practices taught and implemented have helped me have a deeper understanding of His Word. Pastor Guy, thank you for following in Jesus’ teaching path, I have learned a lot.