Jesus' Authority and the New Covenant
Matthew writes that when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. All of the true prophets, including John the Baptist, also taught as though they were speaking the very words of God, because telling the truth with boldness was the mark and the sign of a prophet.
discussion question
What was meant by “taught as one having authority”?
One commentator says the scribes taught by invoking various theories and experts, but refusing to take a position themselves, whereas his followers saw Jesus as speaking as though he was, himself, authoritative about the Kingdom of Heaven and the requirements to fulfill the law and the teachings of the prophets.
Though it has only been partially revealed thus far, the point of Jesus' authoritative speaking is that he was there to impart, and even to personify, a whole new covenant between God and his people. From Law to Grace is the general theme of the New Testament and the life of Jesus Christ. By setting out the necessity of fulfilling the Old Covenant (the Law) in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is setting the stage for disclosing the new grounds on which his believers will meet God.
