The Most Viral Words in History // M-Note 7.11.2026

What if I told you there is a sermon online that has over 10 billion views since being posted? This sermon, only a little over 20 minutes long, has been used as the basis for laws and governments, influencing world leaders. The sermon has been debated and studied by ethicists, philosophers, lawyers, and theologians. The sermon has been quoted at least a trillion times, the most viral words in the history of the world. Now if I told you all of that, wouldn’t you be at least a little interested in what this sermon says, and who preached it?

Well, you are in luck, because this weekend, I will start a new series, Heaven on Earth: A Study of The Sermon on the Mount, where together we will see what all the buzz is about! This sermon is everything that I said above, and more. It is the longest and most complete sermon from Jesus that we have. It contains most of his most well known teachings, things like the beatitudes, the Lord’s Prayer, turn the other cheek, the golden rule, and love your enemy. It is easily the most influential sermon ever preached, listened to and quoted by Christians and non-Christians alike. I will spend the next three weeks teaching about it and how it speaks to our lives today. I encourage you to actually read it before Sunday. It can be found in Matthew 5-7 and will take even the slow readers among us less than 15 minutes to read. You can also find the text on The Gathering app.

In addition to the new series, there is another big reason to be in worship on Sunday. If you go to our Webster site, I will be introducing our new site pastor Steve Lefebvre and his family. He will be leading worship and I will be preaching. Welcoming a new pastor is a rare special occasion and I can tell you first hand how meaningful it is when a lot of people show up to welcome you. Webster folks, I hope you all come at 9:30 or 11am to welcome Steve and his family to Webster!

Before I let you go, I have one more challenge for you. Through the years, The Gathering has grown because many of you have been willing to mention it to a friend and invite them to come with you. Sometimes, the longer we attend, the less we remember the power of our invitation. This weekend is a great time to invite someone new to come with you. A new series, new leadership at sites, the beginning of a new and exciting season in the church - these are all reasons I hope you will invite someone to join you this weekend in worship. I can’t wait to see you there.

Peace,

Matt

P.S. Next Sunday, July 19, there will be a Start a New Group Lunch & Learn after the last services at McCausland (Clayton & Webster folks, you can head here!), Metro East, & West County! If you've ever had even the smallest nudge to lead a CoreGroup or a Wellness Group, this is a great opportunity to explore those ideas with no pressure to commit. You can register here, just to let us know you're coming.