In Matthew’s gospel we come to learn that Jesus is the only promised and perfect king. We read of his perfectly just kingdom, and we learn of his primary values of his counter-culture kingdom. At the outset of the sermon on the mount, the beatitudes introduce us to the primary values of Jesus’ counter-culture kingdom. They are, in a way, Jesus’ inaugural address as king. In this series, we will learn how to gain entrance into Jesus’ forever kingdom, and we will learn how to live as a citizen of his perfectly just kingdom, all while living within the borders of broken kingdoms with unjust systems, and under the leadership of imperfect and unjust kings here on earth.
