ROOTED - Thursday, January 23, 2025

Matthew 7:28
And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching.

 

Reflection: Astonished by the Word, Part 2

Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro

If you read yesterday’s Rooted, then you know that God’s Word should incite in us a level of astonishment and wonder! So it is that when we come to read a passage of Scripture such as the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), I propose that we too should be “astonished” just as the original crowd was. Once again, often I tend to lose any sense of wonder as I read the Scripture. For me, it is instructive to note that the sense of wonder that we ought to have is akin to the astonishment the crowd had when Jesus healed the sick (note yesterday’s Rooted).  This all begs the question, “what exactly was the point of the Sermon of the Mount that elicited wonder in the original audience?” I am glad you asked!

The point of the Sermon of the Mount, I think, that inspires awe and wonder is that Jesus is reframing our understanding of the Old Testament Law by “fulfilling it” not “abolishing it” (5:17). The whole of the Sermon reframes what is righteousness in Christ, in contrast to how Old Testament saints understood “righteousness.” Everything from 5:17-7:12 is a sermon dealing with a new way of seeing who is righteous, and how one is truly good before God. For the Jewish person hearing this sermon, they were blown away by the wisdom and insight Jesus had. They were “astonished.” I contend that we should no less be dumb founded at the goodness of God and how he now deals with his people.
 

Prayer

Father in Heaven, thank you for the grace of God displayed to us in the New Testament. Thank you for fulfilling righteousness for us so that we are righteous in you!