The Will of The Father: A Guide to the Sermon on the Mount (Lesson 1—The Beatitudes, Part 1)

Introduction:

1. The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7) is one of the most famous and most challenging sections of Jesus’ teaching. It presents the heart of life in the kingdom of heaven
2. At its core is this call from Jesus:  “For I am saying to you, that if your° righteousness is not abounding more-than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you° may never enter into the kingdom of the heavens.”
   (Matthew 5:20)
3. This is a call to righteousness—a way of life shaped from the inside out.
   It is not about external performance, but about deep transformation.
4. This study is not merely to understand Jesus’ words, but to practice them. At the close of the sermon, Jesus says: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and is doing them, I will liken him to a prudent man, who built his house upon the rock.”
   (Matthew 7:24)
5. This guide will help you to:
   1. Observe what Jesus teaches
   2. Reflect on how it applies to your life
   3. Practice what He commands
   4. Teach it to others
6. At the end of this journey, you’ll see the full pattern of Kingdom life Jesus laid out for His followers.
7. In this study, we are trying to answer three questions:
   1. What does the text say?
   2. What does the text mean?
   3. How does the text apply to my life?
8. To do this:
   1. Our goal is to leave behind anything we have heard about these passages and look at what the text actually says and only what the text says. Our goal is not to rely on tradition or hearsay, but to base our understanding on what we can clearly observe in the Scriptures.
   2. We must keep verses and concepts in their context.
      1. Note: Our study on the Sermon on the Mount is a section within the larger context of the Gospel of Matthew. It contains themes that are taught throughout the Gospel. 
      2. This means to better understand passages in the Sermon on the Mount, we will need to look at other passages in the Gospel of Matthew.
      3. I’d also recommend reading or listening to the Gospel of Matthew in one sitting at least once. 
   3. Our understanding and application of the text must come from what we observe.
9. For this reason, I’ll provide the text from the Modern Literal Version (MLV). This translation consistently renders the same Greek words the same way, which helps us trace the flow of the text and see what is being emphasized. You can download this Bible at: https://modernliteralversion.org/ or purchase a printed copy on Amazon for about $8. If you don’t want to use this version, however, the study will work well with any good translation. 
10. Download a printable version of the guide here (download link beneath the preview, there also an introduction that may be helpful):

By Jeremy Sprouse

Jeremy has been married to Erynn since August 1999. They are blessed with six children: Jaden, Isaiah, Isaac, Ean, Joseph, and Evelyn. Jeremy preaches for the Patrick St. church of Christ in Dublin, TX and is the author of To Train Up a Knight.