Becoming A Matthew 5:1 Disciple: Mathew 5:1
“1) And when He saw the multitudes, He went up on the mountain, and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.” Matthew 5:1
A subtle change takes place in this verse. Crowds were starting to gather and follow Jesus. Up to that point, He had been seeking them, now people were starting to seek Him.
In response, Jesus went up on a mountain and sat down. Soon His disciples came to Him. I don’t want to read to much into this, but at some point true believers will begin to seek and follow Jesus.
It seems that Jesus was not being accessible or user friendly in this verse. His disciples had to go out of their way to follow Him. The arrows had changed direction. He was not going to them, it was now up to them to go to Him.
This verse might capture a key difference between evangelism and discipleship. Evangelism goes to the lost with the gospel. Those who believe and become disciples begin going to Jesus and seeking His teaching. Notice, “His disciples came to Him.”
It was His healing and miracles that attracted the crowds in the previous chapter, but it was His teaching and instruction that attracted the disciples for the sermon on the mountain. They were drawn to His message. They wanted to learn from Him. In Matthew 5-7 Jesus doesn’t perform any miracles. His focus was on instruction.
Beware of merely chasing the miraculous and phenomenon. Jesus is the living Word. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. At some point you need to become a Matthew 5:1 disciple.
If you want to grow as a Christian, you need to start seeking Jesus through His Word. You need to study, learn and grow. You need to wear out a few Bibles. You need to spend time at His feet apart from the crowds. You need to go to Him in solitude, open your Bible and devour His Word.
Psalm 1:1-6 was the first chapter of Scripture I memorized. The Holy Spirit led me to it the night I became a Christian. This chapter set in motion the course of my walk with God. I started seeking Him daily in His Word way above and beyond church, Bible College and the latest seminars. I developed the discipline of memorizing and meditating on Scripture. God richly blesses those who go the extra mile to seek Him.
Take Matthew 5:1 to heart. Make it the pattern of your life to seek Jesus daily and sit at His feet. Do what the Apostles did in Acts 6:4 and do a reset in your life. Devote yourself to prayer and the ministry of the Word. Be proactive in seeking and pursuing Jesus in solitude.
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global