Sermon on Mount. The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus Christ, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew. It is the first of the Five Discourses of Matthew and takes place relatively early in the Ministry of Jesus after he has been baptized by John the Baptist, finished his fasting and meditation retreat in the desert, and begun to preach in Galilee. The name and location of the mountain is unstated; the Mount of Beatitudes is the traditional interpretation. The Sermon is the longest continuous discourse of Jesus found in the New Testament, and has been one of the most widely quoted elements of the Canonical Gospels. It includes some of the best known teachings of Jesus, such as the Beatitudes, and the widely recited Lord's Prayer. The Sermon on the Mount is generally considered to contain the central tenets of Christian discipleship. The Sermon on the Mount occupies chapters 5, 6 and 7 of the Gospel of Matthew. The Sermon has been one of the most widely quoted elements of the Canonical Gospels. This is the first of the Five Discourses of Matthew, the other four being Matthew 10, Matthew 13, Matthew 18 and the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24. The Sermon is set early in the Ministry of Jesus, after he has been baptized by John the Baptist in chapter 3 of Matthew's Gospel, gathered his first disciples in chapter 4, and had returned from a long fast and contemplation in the Judaean Desert where he had been tempted by Satan to renounce his spiritual mission and gain worldly riches. Before this episode, Jesus had been all about Galilee preaching, as in Matthew 4:23, andgreat crowds followed him from all around the area. The setting for the sermon is given in Matthew 5:1-2. Jesus sees the multitudes, goes up into the mountain, is followed by his disciples, and begins to preach. The Sermon is brought to its close by Matthew 8:1, which reports that Jesus came down from the mountain followed by great multitudes. While the issue of the exact theological structure and composition of the Sermon on the Mount is subject to debate among scholars, specific components within it, each associated with particular teachings, can be identified. discusses the Beatitudes. These describe the character of the people of the Kingdom of Heaven, expressed as blessings. The Greek word most versions of the Gospel render as blessed, can also be translated happy. In Matthew, there are eight blessings, while in Luke there are four, followed by four woes. In almost all cases the phrases used in the Beatitudes are familiar from an Old Testament context, but in the sermon Jesus gives them new meaning. Together, the Beatitudes present a new set of ideals that focus on love and humility rather than force and mastery; they echo the highest ideals of Jesus' teachings on spirituality and compassion. In Christian teachings, the Works of Mercy, which have corporal and spiritual components, have resonated with the theme of the Beatitude for mercy. These teachings emphasize that these acts of mercy provide both temporal and spiritual benefits. presents the metaphors of salt and light. This completes the profile of God's people presented in the beatitudes, and acts as the introduction to the next section. There are two parts in this section, using the terms salt of the earth and Light of the World to refer to the disciples; implying their value. Elsewhere, in John 8:12, Jesus applies Light of the World to himself. Jesus preaches about hell and what hell is like: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother Raca shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. The longest discourse in the Sermon is, traditionally referred to as the Antitheses or Matthew's Antitheses. In the discourse, Jesus fulfills and reinterprets the Old Covenant and in particular its Ten Commandments, contrasting with what you have heard from others. For example, he advises turning the other cheek, and to love your enemies, in contrast to taking an eye for an eye.