What Is God’s Purpose for My Life? The Sermon on the MountSample

Day 8: Recognize God's Authority

With Jesus’ sermon done, Matthew relates the reaction of the crowd. The Greek word translated here as "astonished" (exeplessonto) more literally means to be beside yourself with amazement or spellbound. The reason they were astonished is even more important than the reaction itself, though.

Matthew says that the crowds were amazed by the authority with which he taught.

No rabbi had ever spoken that way because to do so intimated that you had the authority to interpret the Scriptures for yourself, and that simply wasn't done. Rabbis in Jesus' day would quote previous rabbis quoting previous rabbis, and so on, until the lineage of thought lost its source and their teachings just came to be seen as conventional wisdom.

In a sense, that hesitancy was admirable. They knew enough about their limitations to be afraid of saying definitively, "This is what God means." At the same time, they were still making that claim but doing so without the accountability that comes from attaching your name to your ideas.

Treating their understanding as conventional wisdom removed much of people's ability to question it. That's why, when Jesus taught as he did, openly challenging their views and claiming to have the authority to explain God's word, it astonished the crowds so much.

Jesus, as the son of God and author of the Scriptures, was able to speak with greater authority than the scribes and religious leaders because he possessed a greater authority than they did. And, given the nature of the life to which he was calling them, establishing that authority was a necessary precursor to their obedience. The same is true today.

If we don't recognize Christ's authority, then we can more easily ignore his teachings. However, if we understand that these are the words of God himself, then choosing not to obey them takes on an entirely different level of audacity.

We can't pick and choose the parts we'll keep while ignoring the parts we don't like when we understand that all of it comes from the mouth of incarnate God.

Christ's standards for his disciples have not changed over the centuries since this Sermon was first delivered. What he expected of his followers on that hillside are still his expectations for you and for me.

How we respond to those expectations each day determines whether we will survive the storms or be washed away.

Reflect on your life. Does it rest on Jesus’ good and firm teaching? Do you trust him to care for you in times of anxiety and worry? Do you love him with your motives for doing good work? Do you want to tell others about him?

All of these rest on your trust in his authority.

Spend time with Jesus, imagining that he’s sitting with you as you learn at his feet. Meditate on his teachings, what Christ convicted you of in this study, and consider the next steps.

How can you draw closer to God and bring others along with you?

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