Jesus begins one of the longest sections in His sermon. He looks at the Law and gives us our Creator’s intention for that law. Jesus begins with murder and dissects it to display anger as the source of murder. Jesus then puts a priority in the kingdom that exceeds the checklist of the religious by teaching that it is not enough to be innocent of murder; we need to become reconcilers.

What is this book we call the Bible? The average person may view the Bible as “the good book”, professors see it as a myth, critics see it as a tool used to control the masses, and modern deconstructing Christians see it as a buffet to pick and choose. In the midst of all the modern opinions, the most important and fascinating view is how Jesus sees the Bible.

In the context of the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us what we are and what we should be doing. We are salt and light. We don’t try to be these two; we are these two, and because of who we are, our lives must be engaged in glory-giving works. Jesus warns there are two thieves who destroy our good works, and we must be vigilant to guard against them.

Jesus opens His first recorded sermon with an attention getter. He declares to all who would listen that the path to blessedness is a road less traveled. In stark contrast to the culture of the day that took health, wealth, and power as signs of God’s blessings, Jesus says it is the spiritual bankrupt, grieving, powerlessness door mats that have the keys to blessings and happiness.