It’s easy to appear righteous, do good deeds for all to see, and claim allegiance to the Lord (see Matt 6:1–8; 7:21–23). But to uphold God’s perfect standard of righteousness (5:20, 48), we must discipline our thoughts, not just our actions (5:21–30). We need to shift our focus from the paths of earthly kingdoms to the ways of God’s kingdom (6:19–24). In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus explains what it means to follow Him. The road of discipleship
Matthew 5:1–7:29