1512 | Matthew 4:20 Jesus heals the Sicck to fish for peo ple .” 20 At once they left their nets and fol lowed him .
21 Go ing on from there , he saw two oth er broth ers , James son of Zeb e dee and his broth er John . x They were in a boat with their fa ther Zeb e dee , pre paring their nets . Jesus called them , 22 and im me di ate ly they left the boat and their fa ther and fol lowed him .
Jesus Heals the Sick
23 Jesus went through out Gal i lee , y teach ing in their syn a gogues , z pro claiming the good news a of the king dom , b and heal ing ev ery dis ease and sickness among the peo ple . c 24 News about him spread all over Syr ia , d and peo ple brought to him all who were ill with var i ous dis eas es , those suf fer ing se vere pain , the de monpos sessed , e those hav ing seizures , f and the par a lyzed ; g and he healed them . 25 Large crowds from Gal i lee , the De cap o lis , a Je ru sa lem , Ju dea and the re gion across the Jor dan fol lowed him . h
4:21 x Mt 20:20
4:23 y Mk 1:39 ; Lk 4:15 , 44 z Mt 9:35 ;
13:54 ; Mk 1:21 ; Lk 4:15 ; Jn 6:59 a Mk 1:14
b Mt 3:2 ;
Ac 20:25 c Mt 8:16 ; 15:30 ;
Ac 10:38
4:24 d Lk 2:2 e Mt 8:16 , 28 ;
9:32 ; 15:22 ; Mk 1:32 ; 5:15 , 16 , 18 f Mt 17:15 g Mt 8:6 ; 9:2 ;
Mk 2:3
4:25 h Mk 3:7 , 8 ; Lk 6:17
5:3 i ver 10 , 19 ; Mt 25:34
5:4 j Isa 61:2 , 3 ; Rev 7:17
5:5 k Ps 37:11 ; Ro 4:13
5:6 l Isa 55:1 , 2
Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount
5
Now when Jesus saw the crowds , he went up on a moun tain side and sat down . His dis ci ples came to him , 2 and he be gan to teach them .
The Beatitudes 5:3 – 12pp // Lk 6:20 – 23 He said :
3 “ Blessed are the poor in spirit , for theirs is the kingdom of heaven . i 4 Blessed are those who mourn , for they will be comforted . j 5 Blessed are the meek , for they will inherit the earth . k 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness , for they will be filled . l
7 Blessed are the merciful , for they will be shown mercy .
a 25 That is , the Ten Cities commitment to the family business , their assets , and their livelihood .
Discipleship to Jesus was going to be different from what many might have anticipated . It was not going to be simply an apprenticeship program . Discipleship was a life that began in relationship with the master and moved into all areas of their experience . This is the beginning of kingdom life . 4:23 – 25 “ Teaching ” is often related to explaining truth to those already familiar with the content . “ Proclaiming ” or preaching is generally related to the teaching truth to those unfamiliar with the content . This good news is also demonstrated through Jesus ’ “ healing ” every disease and sickness among the people . Both teaching and miracles announce that Israel ’ s hoped- for kingdom promise is at hand .
4:12 – 25 The darkness of our own world is real even when we , or those around us , don ’ t notice it . To be away from Jesus is to be in darkness . We can ’ t let the superficial appearances of people mask the real needs that even they might not recognize . To reach them most effectively we must take as our calling the joy of living in the light of Jesus and continually allowing our lives to shine into theirs with the true kingdom life .
Whatever our profession , discipleship means that we prioritize joining with Jesus in reaching our daily world with the good news of life in the kingdom of heaven . We follow Jesus ’ call to join him in advancing the kingdom of heaven .
5:1 – 2 Matthew specifies three primary groups of people around Jesus in his earthly ministry . The disciples are those who have made a commitment to Jesus as the Messiah . The religious leaders are
UNCORRECTED PROOF
Jesus ’ opponents for much of his ministry . The crowd is a curious group of people who have not yet made a commitment to him .
5:1 – 2 Jesus ’ Sermon on the Mount is not for a few more- committed believers . Matthew is a manual on discipleship , and throughout most of church history this Gospel has been used to provide the content of instruction for fully formed Christian living .
5:3 The “ poor ” are those who have encountered unfortunate circumstances from an economic point of view , and persons who are spiritually and emotionally in need of God ’ s help . These people will experience their most complete fulfillment as they draw on the resources of the kingdom of heaven to guide their lives . 5:4 Mourning characterizes life in the “ already but not yet ” presence of the kingdom . We mourn oppression , persecution , personal sin , and social evil because we mourn the things that God mourns . We can also become instruments of the good news of the kingdom as we share with others the comfort of God . 5:5 The meek are people who do not assert themselves over others to advance their own causes . This does not imply weakness , however , for this same term is applied to Jesus . 5:6 Persons who “ hunger and thirst ” will die if they are not filled . Those who respond to Jesus ’ invitation to kingdom life will find he fills their deepest personal hunger and thirst for righteousness . 5:7 In God ’ s great mercy he does not give humans what they deserve ; rather , he gives to them what they need . True disciples have experienced God ’ s merciful forgiveness that they can then demonstrate toward others .