The Gospel of Matthew has been read and loved by the church for almost two thousand years. In the early centuries of church history, it was the most quoted of all four Gospels. Its influence among New Testament scholarship has waned in the modern era, but it continues its profound influence on the life of the church. From Matthew’s Gospel come the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Great Commission. Thus the mission, worship, and the educational ministry of the church are all in profound debt to the first Gospel.