Beatitudes
The Beatitudes
Part I
August 13, 2006
- Matthew 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- A parallel verse is Luke 6:20-26
- This particular section of scripture is known as the Beatitudes, a subsection of scripture known as the Sermon on the Mount – Matthew 5-7.
- The word beatitude, according to Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary means: a state of utmost bliss.
- Anchor Bible Dictionary states that the root word for beatitude is: makarios, which means “blessed” or “happy”.
- These eight beatitudes actually reflect what the traits of Christ’s life and what the traits of Christians should be – the path to happiness.
General Lessons
- All Christians should be like this – we are “to be”.
- Not just some, or the clergy, or whatever and the lay people are exempt - all are called to be like this.
- We, as Christians are meant to exemplify everything that is contained in the beatitudes.
- We also should manifest these characteristics – we are “to do” – walk them out – all of them – we are not exempt from any.
- Though many, especially those outside of the church, don’t like them.
- Why?
- Have you ever heard the question, “Isn’t Christianity really for those that can’t make it alone and need a crutch?
- The answer: Yes – end of subject, no further discussion needed.
- My question: Why is the fact that we need a crutch considered to be a criticism of Christianity – especially when it is true?
- The truth is we all need a crutch – everyone – period.
- The problem is that people don’t see a crutch as something positive – it’s not how we are raised in this country.
- Goes back to the “do’ers” – we take great pride in doing – in being all we can be.
- And then God comes along and says, no, it’s better for you to have a crutch – Me – to be a “be-er” – like Mary who chose the better part.
- Calling Christianity a crutch gives Christians heartburn.
- Because it’s offensive to our self-sufficiency and pride to label Christianity as a crutch.
- Yet, it’s scriptural – Mk 2:17 – “When Jesus heard it, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.’”
- Christians are those that come to Jesus because they realize they are sick.
- Christians are people that have become convinced of their spiritual poverty – that they need a crutch.
- That was Jesus’ earthly ministry – to manifest the beatitudes through teaching, preaching, and healing.
- Matt 4:23, “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.”
- Jesus’ ministry was to preach about the coming kingdom, to teach about the way of the kingdom, and also to demonstrate the purpose and the power of the Kingdom by healing the sick.
- Jesus was about preaching, teaching and healing.
- And that’s what he is doing with the Beatitudes – preaching and teaching and bringing spiritual healing.
- So, let’s get started.
- Matt 5:3 - “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
- Matt 5:3 (Amp) – “Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the poor in spirit (the humble, who rate themselves insignificant), for theirs is the kingdom of heaven!"
- Let’s look at the key words.
- #1 – Blessed
- Webster’s Collegiate – Bringing pleasure, contentment or good fortune.
- Strong’s - makareeos – which is an adjective which means happy.
- New Bible Dictionary – Denotes a state of happiness that comes from a spiritual relationship.
- Poor
- Webster’s Collegiate – Less than adequate; unproductive; unfavorable
- Stong’s - ptokhos – reduced to beggary, destitute of wealth, influence, position, honor, lowly, afflicted, destitute of the Christian values and eternal riches (spiritual destitution), helpless, powerless to accomplish an end.
- Easton’s Bible Dictionary – Used figuratively to show a great lack.
- Spirit
- Webster’s Collegiate - the immaterial intelligent or sentient part of a person
- Strong’s - pneuma - The rational spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks, decides; higher than man, but lower than God.
- New Unger’s - A term used in the Scriptures generally to denote purely spiritual beings; also the spiritual, immortal part in man.
- Kingdom of heaven – the reign of God in our heart and life.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in them; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- The first thing that we must notice is that the world we live in screams just the opposite – “Blessed are the rich.” “Blessed are the self-sufficient.” “Blessed are the self-starters.”
- Why we need to understand this beatitude – it’s how God works; not the world.
- As Martyn Lloyd-Jones puts it, “This, of necessity, is the one which must come at the beginning for the good reason that there is no entry into the Kingdom of Heaven, or the Kingdom of God, apart from it. There is no one in the Kingdom of God who is not poor in spirit. It is the fundamental characteristic of the Christian and of the citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, and all the other characteristics are in a sense the result of this one.:”
- Why is this at the beginning?
- Because, in essence, this – blessed are the poor in spirit – is really an emptying.
- The ones that follow are a manifestation of God filling us - we cannot be filled until we are empty.
- You cannot fill a vessel with new wine that is still partly filled with old wine – the old has to be emptied – otherwise the new is not pure.
- Yet, we’re not talking about personality.
- Nor, or we talking about what we have in the realm of natural things such as money or possessions.
- Nor does one need to go out of life – to stop living life - to become poor in spirit.
- What we are talking about is poverty of spirit – it’s a spiritual thing.
- Ultimately, it is man’s attitude toward himself - it is how we see ourselves in light of God.
- So, how are we to see ourselves? :Let’s look at some folks.
- Abraham – Gen 18:27 - Abraham answered and said, “Behold, I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes.”
- Jacob – Gen 32:10 – “I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps.”
- Moses – Ex 3:11 - But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?”
- David – 1 Chron 29:14 - “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.
- Even though David and his people were performing a good act, David did not yield to the temptation of self-esteem. Instead he was caught up in sovereign grace – “Who are we that we should be able thus to offer willingly! To God be the esteem, to God! And not to us, even in our virtue.”
- Solomon – 1 Ki 3:7 - And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.
- Job – Job 42:5-6 - 5 I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; 6 therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
- Isaiah – Isa 5:6 - And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
- John the Baptist – Jn 1:27; 3:30 – “Even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.” “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
- Tax Collector that went up to the temple to pray and stood in the back of the temple – Luke 18:13,14 - 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
- The centurion that sent friends to greet Jesus when Jesus was not far away – Lk 7:6-9 - 6 And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. 8 For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 9 When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”
- The Canaanite woman that approached Jesus for healing for her daughter who was severely oppressed by a demon – Matt 15:27, 28 - 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
- Peter when he saw the power of Jesus on the Lake of Gennesaret as demonstrated by the great catch of fish after fishing all night and catching nothing – Lk 5:8 - But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”
- Paul
o Rom 7:18 – “So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.’
o 2 Cor 4:7 – “But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.”
o 1 Cor 3:6,7 – 6 “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.”
o Tim 1:15,16 – 15 “The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.”
- What then is poor in spirit?
o It is coming to a place where we sense that we are powerless.
o It is coming to an understanding that we are spiritually bankrupt and helpless before God.
o It is a sense of moral uncleanness before God.
o It is a sense of personal unworthiness before God.
o It is reaching the conclusion that if we are to have any life or joy or usefulness, it will have to be all of God and all of grace working in us and not ourselves.
o Ultimately being ‘poor in spirit’ means a complete absence of pride.
o It means a complete absence of self-assurance.
o It is an understanding that we are nothing in the presence of God.
- It’s us – it’s there and we, as Christians must recognize it.
- It is just this tremendous awareness of our, as MLJ puts it, “utter nothingness as we come face to face with God.
- We see our poverty of spirit more and more as we become Marys and choose the better part – sitting at the feet of Jesus.
- However all is not dismal as it might appear – because as we admit out poverty of spirit we become happy – we find pleasure, contentment and good fortune.
- And we inherit the Kingdom of God.
Beatitudes
Part II
August 20, 2006
- Matthew 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Review
- Beatitudes are really a statement of what Christians are meant to be and what they are meant to grow in.
- It’s coming to the place that we can’t do it ourselves and that we need God.
- Christianity is about needing a crutch – there is nothing wrong with that.
- Jesus came for the sick, not the well.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in them; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Understanding that we are poor in Spirit is the beginning because it is about emptying, which is required before we can be filled.
- Ultimately, being poor in spirit is about a complete absence of pride.
- It’s about recognizing your sin, your pain, your hurts, your anger, your wrong behavior – whatever it is that is in you that controls you or causes you to control your life - the things God wants to remove from you, so you can move on.
- That leads to the next beatitude.
- Those that are poor in spirit are also mourners.
- Matt 5:4 – “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
- Matt 5:4 (Amp) – “Blessed and enviably happy [with a happiness produced by the experience of God’s favor and especially conditioned by the revelation of His matchless grace] are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted!”
- Mourn
- Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary – “to feel or express grief or sorrow.”
- Strong’s - Pen Theh O – To lament – it is the strongest word in the Greek language for mourning.
- Most often used in scripture to express feelings for the dead accompanied by weeping.
- It is a present, active, plural verb which indicates and activity that is ongoing.
- Word Studies in the NT - The phrase ‘they that mourn’ means - Signifying grief manifested; too deep for concealment.
- Comforted
- Webster’s - to give strength and hope to; to ease the grief or trouble.
- Par ak al eh o - to call to one’s side, call for, summon. 2 to address, speak to, (call to, call upon), which may be done in the way of exhortation, entreaty, comfort, instruction, etc. 2a to admonish, exhort.
- Most often used in scripture to indicate that one is called to another’s side to aid him, as an advocate - to denote the act of consoling and consolation – often used to indicate the person of the Holy Spirit.
- A third person passive future verb that indicates that there will be a response from someone or thing.
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- John Piper, “Blessed are the poor in spirit who mourn. Blessed are the people who feel keenly their inadequacies and their guilt and their failures and their helplessness and their unworthiness and their emptiness – who don’t try to hide these things under a cloak of self-sufficiency, but who are honest about them and grieved and driven to the grace of God.”
- Think about these words – blessed – enviably happy – are those that mourn.
- Does that make sense to you?
- Would it make sense to you if someone told you that the way to be happy is by mourning?
- Be honest.
- How about if someone told you the way to being happy is to make yourself miserable?
- How about if someone told you the way to a happy life is to spend all your spare time at a funeral?
- Is there much difference between these and saying blessed are those that mourn?
- On the surface, no.
- The key is in the second phrase – for they shall be comforted.
- How? When? By Whom?
- To understand this we have to first understand that Jesus is not talking about the natural, but the spiritual.
- Jesus did not say that those who mourn in a natural sense are happy.
- MLJ – “As we saw that poverty of spirit was not something financial, but some thing essentially spiritual, so this again is something entirely spiritual and has nothing to do with our natural life in this world.”
- It is spiritual – it’s about sin – the fruits of sin.
- It’s following the first beatitude – to be poor in spirit.
- As we honestly, before God, look at our lives we have to come to the conclusion that I am not living it entirely as God wants me to – there is sin in it – our spirit is poor – that should make us mourn.
- Why? Because we see the sin – the sin that made Jesus suffer and be abused and ridiculed and caused Him to be humbled even to the point of death on a cross.
- Should that make us mourn?
- For those that saw the Passion of the Christ, what was your reaction?
- We should mourn because of “all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” (Jude 15)
- Lloyd Olgivie in the Preacher’s Commentary, “To mourn is to care deeply, to know godly sorrow for sin, to be deeply concerned about the evil in the world and to know the meaning of suffering because of the sin, injustice, and perversion in society.”
- It doesn’t stop there though – we are a body.
- We are knit together and we impact each other.
- Therefore, we should mourn because of the sin of others – not only our Christian friends, but especially for the non-Christians.
- Even more so, we should be people who mourn because we have an understanding of what our sin did to Jesus and what sin means to God.
- But, God in His infinite grace doesn’t leave us there – in the mourning.
- He meets us in our mourning and makes us happy.
- He meets us not because we are poor in material goods or in spirituality, but because we have come to the place where we have become convinced and understand our spiritual poverty.
- He meets those who have become convinced of their misery and want.
- He meets those who have laid their pride, their hurts, their anger, their sin on the alter and allowed God to break it.
- He meets those who have become like the man in Luke 18:13 – “But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
- He meets those that are of a contrite spirit and tremble at God’s word – Isa 66:2 – “All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.”
- And God makes them happy.
- Those who mourn are those that are really happy – a paradox.
- It’s when we see ourselves for whom we really are – utterly hopeless – that the Holy Spirit comes to us and reveals the Lord Jesus Christ to us as the perfect satisfaction of our sin and everyone else’s.
- As we live with a repentant spirit we open ourselves to the presence of God.
- Ps 51:17 – “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
- What joy! What happiness – we are in Him, no longer in ourselves.
- If we truly mourn about sin and who we are without Christ – we will be comforted and happy.
- Let’s define this man that mourns –
o He is sorrowful, but not morose – sullen and gloomy.
o He is sorrowful, but not miserable – state of unhappiness.
o He is serious, but not solemn – somber or overly serious.
o He is sober minded, but not sullen – resentfully silent.
o He is grave, but not cold or prohibitive.
- The Christian who mourns is not superficial in any sense, but is fundamentally serious and fundamentally happy.
- Serious about his or her faith and quite happy because of it.
- The joy of the Christian is – as MLJ puts it – “a holy joy, the happiness of the Christian is a serious happiness.”
- The type of joy that does not apologize for who they are – a follower of Jesus – but is outwardly happy over it.
- The Heidelberg Catechism addresses it this way: “Question. What is your only comfort in life and death? “Answer. That I, with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ; who with his precious blood has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, wherefore by his Holy Spirit he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me heartily willing and ready henceforth to live unto him.”
- And that means being mournful about all sin, how it impacted God and knowing that as we do the Holy Spirit will lead us into true happiness.
Beatitudes
Part III
August 27, 2006
Review
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in them; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 - Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
- Matt 5:5 (Amp) - Blessed (happy, blithesome, joyous, spiritually prosperous—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the meek (the mild, patient, long-suffering), for they shall inherit the earth!
- Meek
- Webster’s Collegiate – Enduring injury with patience and without resentment; mild; submissive.
- Harper’s Bible Dictionary - The quality characteristic of humility when coupled with gentleness. The meek person not only does not threaten or challenge others but accepts others openly and confidently.
- Word Studies in the New Testament – It’s primary meaning is mild, gentle.
- Strongs – prah ooce - Mildness of disposition, gentleness of spirit.
- Inherit
- Everywhere it means to receive all or a part of something.
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- One can ask the question, “What is the difference between being ‘poor in spirit’ in vs. 3 and being ‘meek’ in vs. 5.
- ‘Poor in spirit’ is more concerned about the person himself; that he is broken-hearted; whereas ‘meek’ pictures a person concerning his relation to God and others.
- Matt 5:5 is an echo of Ps 37:11 – “But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”
- Do you see that what these two verses are saying is so opposite of what we, especially Americans, believe.
- This is what we believe: Blessed are the strong and powerful, those of ability, self-assurance, those in control, and the aggressive, for they shall be our leaders and inherit the powerful positions in the earth.
- But, Matt 5:5 and Ps 37:11 says the opposite.
- The meek and they alone, shall inherit the earth.
- We are again reminded that the Christian is totally and radically different than those of the world.
- And the world will not understand the true Christian as they walk in meekness – but will see it as weakness.
- This is a mystery to those of the world – we should be a mystery – an enigma – to those around us that are in the world.
- In fact, you could call this a road sign – if we are walking out our Christian faith and are indeed meek – people should find us strange.
- So how do we walk out ‘meek’?
- Let’s go back to Ps 37:11 - “But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”
- Let’s also look at the parallel between 37:11 and 37:9.
- Ps 37:9 – “For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit (possess) the land.”
- It’s obvious that the meek are people that wait for the Lord.
- How do you walk out meek? Wait for the Lord – become Mary!
- We can also go back a few verses to get more clues on how to walk out meek?
- Ps 37:5 – “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He will Act. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. 7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him; fret not over the one that prospers in his way, over the man that carries out evil devices. 8 Refrain from anger and forsake wrath! Fret (become angry) not yourself; it tends only to evil.”
- So, what are people like who are meek (vs 11) and wait for the Lord (vs 9)?
- They are people who commit their whole lives – how they live – the way they walk – to the Lord (vs 5).
- They are people who understand that the Lord is the one that does it all – makes us righteous and provides justice (vs 6).
- They are people who are quiet before the Lord – who rest before the Lord – who are still before the Lord, waiting upon Him to speak and to direct their paths – who sit at His feet; abide in Him. (vs. 7).
- They are people who do not compare themselves to others and become easily angered over other people that appear to be prospering more than themselves (vs 7).
- They are people who do not get angry and forsake wrath and getting reveng, knowing that it leads only to evil. (vs 8)
- Meek people become meek by first trusting God.
- They come to the understanding that they can’t do it – that they can’t trust themselves to work it out, but they can trust God.
- They understand that God is the author and finisher of their faith (Heb 12:2).
- They understand that life is complex – that it is full of complexities and pressures and obstacles – and that it is only God that can get them through life as they follow the path that has been set before them (Heb 12:1)
- They understand that they must develop an intimate, personal relationship with God by being quiet before Him – by spending time with Him – not just asking for this and that and then leaving.
- They understand that God is their life – not a priority or just part of their lives like their spouse, children, job, ministry, etc.
- So, they wait patiently in stillness for God to speak and to work in their lives.
- Christians are people that are to be steady – to be patient – because they understand that God is sovereign – is omnipotent. – that He has their lives in control.
- When you’re meek you understand that God works everything out for the best (Rom 8:28).
- Meek people – Christians – have a quiet steadiness about their lives whether in everyday life or in the midst of trials and tribulations – like Job – though He slay me, yet will I serve Him. (Job 13:15).
- Meek people don’t get upset or bothered or loose faith when the heathen around them prosper in their ways.
- John Piper – “Their family and work and life are in God’s sovereign hands; they trust Him; they wait patiently and quietly to see how his power and goodness will work things out; and so the setbacks and obstacles and opponents of life do not produce the kind of bitterness and anger and fretfulness that is so common among men.”
- Meekness based on the parallel in Ps 37 all starts with trusting God. Then, as we walk in that trust we grow in the confidence that God will use His power and mercy and grace to do only good things for us – no matter what the situation looks like.
- The trust then helps the meek to wait patiently and quietly for the outcome – and without expectation – because we came to that place that Terry described several weeks ago – “Having a heart that has no will of it’s own in any matter.”
- And meek people do not get angry when opposition comes and there are setbacks – they just go back to waiting on God and trusting Him.
- Abraham demonstrates meekness in Gen 13 when he allowed the younger Lot to assert himself and make the first choice of where he would settle – the plain of Jordon. Moses did not complain or question the choice – that is meekness – trusting God.
- Moses demonstrated meekness when Aaron and Miriam criticized Moses severely in Num 12:1-4 questioning whether God only spoke through Moses.
- V 3 says Moses was meek and the Lord defended Moses and chastised Aaron and Miriam.
- God will defend the meek.
- David exhibited meekness in his relationship with Saul. He was anointed king by Samuel and yet ran for his life for 20 years – passing up the opportunity to kill “God’s anointed” on two different occasions.
- Jeremiah spoke the truth which was hard vs. the easy things other prophets were speaking – often leading to rejection, being isolated, and persecution and suffering. Yet, he went about delivering the message God gave Him – that is meekness.
- Stephen – spoke the truth in Acts 7 and it cost him his life – yet his response was “Lord, do not charge them with this sin. (Vs 60)
- Paul suffered countless ways – including being left for dead – yet he continued on in the message of Christ – loving people, trusting God – a great example of meekness.
- Of course, the greatest example is our Lord. Think of His suffering and His crucifixion – yet His attitude towards His enemies were one of love, and through it all He remained in total submission unto God – what meekness.
- Matt 11:29 – “I am meek, and lowly of heart.”
- James 1:19-21 - 19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness that God requires. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
- James is comparing two people.
- The first is one is one who is not meek – that does not like to listen, to wait, to trust – especially to anyone that speaks with authority.
- This person is slow to hear, quick to speak, and quick to anger – he responds out of his own agenda and is usually not interested in other people’s agenda.
- The second person is meek – he is quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger – he listens and considers – he is teachable.
- Not talking about a robot.
- Ja 3:13-17 - 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
- Talk about a wonderful phrase – “meekness of wisdom”.
- There is a very, very close tie between being meek and being wise.
- It’s explained in vs 17 – wisdom is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere – basically the same as those we’ve outlined for meekness.
- Christians are meek people who are also wise – because they are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable.
- Meekness, as Piper puts it, “begins with God and ends with God”.
- MLJ puts it this way, “We have no excuse for not being meek. The man who is outside has an excuse, for it is impossible to him. But if we truly claim that we have received the Holy Spirit, and this is the claim of every Christian, we have no excuse if we are not meek. It is not something that you do and I do. It is a character that is produced in us by the Spirit. It is the direct fruit of the Spirit. What must we do? We must face the Sermon on the Mount; we must meditate upon this statement about being meek; we must look at the examples; above all we must look at the Lord Himself. Then we must humble ourselves and confess with shame, not only the smallness of our stature but our utter imperfection. Then we must finish with that self which is the cause of all our troubles, so that He who has bought us at such a price may come in and possess us wholly.”
- And these are the people that shall inherit the earth.
- The completion of the promise is reserved for the future, when the meek inherit the new heaven and the new earth, which has no sin and no remnant of the curse.
Do you have trouble trusting God?
Beatitudes
Part IV
September 3, 2006
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 - Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
- Matt 5:6 (Amp) - Blessed and fortunate and happy and spiritually prosperous (in that state in which the born-again child of God enjoys His favor and salvation) are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God), for they shall be completely satisfied!
- Hunger
- Webster’s Collegiate – a craving or urgent need for food; a strong desire.
- Strong’s – pi nah o - to suffer want; to be needy; to crave ardently; to seek with eager desire
- Unger’s Bible dictionary – The use of hunger in this verse is symbolic – meaning a deep and earnest longing
- Verb (Swanson) – actively pursuing in the present
- Thirst
- Webster’s Collegiate – a desire or need to drink; an ardent desire
- Stong’s – dip sah o - figuratively, those who are said to thirst who painfully feel their want of, and eagerly long for, those things by which the soul is refreshed, supported, strengthened.
- Unger’s - This sensation is sometimes accompanied by vehement desire, and the term is therefore used figuratively in the Scripture in the moral sense of a longing after God.
- Verb (Swanson) – actively pursuing in the present
- Righteousness
- Webster’s Collegiate – acting in accord with divine or moral law: free from guilt or sin; morally right or justifiable.
- Strong’s – dik ah yos oo nay - state of him who is as he ought to be - the condition acceptable to God. Integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking feeling, and acting.
- Unger’s - Purity of heart and rectitude of life; being and doing right.
- Satisfied
- Webster’s Collegiate – to make happy, to be gratified to the full.
- Stong’s – khor tad zol - to fill men; to fulfill the desire of anyone.
- Brown – Driver – Briggs – to reach the full limit; to have in excess.
- Verb (Swanson) – indicates the present and the future.
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, right relationship with God, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Note that hunger and thirst have basically the same meaning – which means God is driving home a point – to be happy, we must, absolutely must seek righteousness with eager desire.
- The truth is that God has placed within each one of us an insatiable hunger and thirst in our hearts – we just make wrong choices.
- We try to satisfy it with stuff: vacations, toys, sports, drugs, personal excellence, clothes, food, cars, etc., etc.
- Nothing wrong unless they replace God – become gods.
- But the longing remains – and the disappoint returns.
- Isaiah 55:2a – “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labor for that which does not satisfy?”
- But the answer is not in stuff – it won’t continually satisfy.
- All too often we choose to drink out of broken cisterns that we dug for ourselves that hold no water. (Jer 2:12,13)
- C. S. Lewis put it this way, “If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world.”
- Isaiah goes on in 55:2b,3 – “Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.”
- What we desire shows us our heart.
- So what is good?
- What is the rich food that we are to delight ourselves in?
- Simply put, God – we are to lay aside everything that entangles us and incline our ear to God and hear Him – and listen to Him.
- And obey Him – walk out what He tells us to do – proves we’re listening.
- In that is life – true life – in Christ – joy, happiness, etc
- In everything else is death.
- Why we have wars – men are pursuing their own righteousness.
- Why we have poverty – men are pursuing their own righteousness.
- Why we have sin and all the negative things we have – we incline our ear to things other than God.
- We must pursue righteousness - vigorously – with our whole heart – with everything that is in us.
- That’s what the previous Beatitudes have been building towards.
- We have been told we must be ‘poor in spirit’, that we must ‘mourn’, and that we must be ‘meek’.
- MLJ, “The others, as it were, have been causing us to look at ourselves and to examine ourselves; here we begin to look for a solution, and thus there is a slight change in the emphasis. We have been looking at our own utter helplessness and weakness, our utter poverty of spirit, our bankruptcy in these spiritual matters. And having looked at ourselves, we have seen the sin that is within us and that mars God’s perfect creation of man. Then we saw the delineation of meekness and all that it represents. And we have seen that the Christian man is one who bemoans and regrets and hates it all. Here we turn and look for the solution, for the deliverance from self for which we long.”
- The solution starts with righteousness - so, what is righteousness?
- The best way to understand it is to once again look at other scriptures, especially those in the same context.
- Let the scriptures interpret the scriptures.
- The word righteousness appears many times in the Bible, but we’ll only look at the five times its’ in the Sermon on the Mount.
- Matt 5:6 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
- Matt 5:10 - “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
- Matt 5:20 – “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
- Matt 6:1 - “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.
- Matt 6:33 – But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
- So, what do these scriptures tell us?
- We find out that righteousness is pretty important to God.
- When you look at these verses and other verses we find out that righteousness is something we have because of God.
- 2 Cor 5:21 – “For our sake He made Him to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”
- So, we’re righteous – so now what?
- Righteousness requires an action – though you receive it by being (Mary) it is demonstrated by doing (Martha).
- These verses show pretty clearly that what Jesus meant has to do with living it out, making righteousness priority number one, and making it a heart issue – not a brain issue.
- You walk out righteousness by emptying yourself, mourning your sin, walking in meekness, showing mercy to other people; being pure in heart before God who alone can see the heart; and by living a life of peace with those around us.
- By living out the Beatitudes.
- Ultimately, righteousness means – as MLJ puts it – “the desire to be free from sin in all its forms and in its every manifestation.”
- The opposite of righteousness is filling yourself with self, enjoying sin, walking in pride, taking revenge, having an impure heart, and being contentious – a peace breaker – again, choosing to walk in sin.
- By not living out the Beatitudes.
- Why is it important to pursue righteousness?
- That’s where God is – He is no where else!
- God hates sin and distances Himself from it.
- When you pursue righteousness, you pursue God.
- When you don’t pursue righteousness you pursue sin and God is not to be found.
- When you pursue anything else before righteousness, like happiness – the great American dream – you end up in misery.
- It’s glory fades – it doesn’t satisfy for long and you have to keep looking for the next thing – going from x box to holy jeans to having what the joneses have.
- Sidebar – big reason there’s all this credit card debt.
- The great message of the Bible from beginning to end is this: pursue righteousness.
- The ones that are truly happy are those that are pursuing righteousness – that is where joy and peace – the fruits of the Spirit are (Gal 5:22).
- The ones that are truly happy are those that desire to be right with God - that are free from the power of sin.
- That are free from the very desire to sin.
- That’s why we must pursue, hunger, thirst, go after with everything we have – covet – eagerly long for – vehemently desire – covet with our whole heart – righteousness.
- As we do, we will be happy.
- As we do we will be holy.`
- As we do we will long to be like our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Why pursue righteousness?
- We will be satisfied – filled beyond our wildest imagination.
Are we satisfied with our lives?
Are we hungering and thirsting after righteousness?
Do you want to be satisfied – as the song goes – real satisfied?
Beatitudes
Part V
September 10, 2006
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Matt 5:7 - “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”
- Matt 5:7 (Amp) – “Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy!”
- Merciful
- Webster’s – full of mercy; providing relief; compassionate.
- Strong’s – used twice – merciful.
- TDNT – Old Greek word for merciful means sympathetic.
- Greek-English Lexicon of the NT – To show kindness or concern for one in serious need despite that person’s having committed a moral offense; having mercy or showing compassion must involve some act of kindness or concern.
- Mercy
- Webster’s - A blessing that is an act of divine favor or compassion; compassion or forbearance shown esp. to an offender or to one subject to one’s power; lenient or compassionate treatment.
- Strong’s - to help one afflicted or seeking aid; to help the afflicted, to bring help to the wretched.
- Eerdman’s Dictionary - The compassionate disposition to forgive someone or to offer aid, assistance, or help to someone in need.
- Grudem’s Systematic Theology - The compassionate disposition to forgive someone or to offer aid, assistance, or help to someone in need.
- Matt 5:7 (Gary) – “Happy are those who are full of mercy, providing relief and being compassionate to those around them; showing kindness and concern for those that are in serious need while overlooking their sin and moral failures; for they will receive a blessing that is an act of divine favor, will be shown compassion by God, and will receive assistance during their time of need, even when they are wretched.”
- Mercy is an attribute that is needed more and more.
- According to William Hendriksen, mercy is “Love for those in misery and a forgiving spirit toward the sinner. It embraces both the kindly feeling and the kindly act.”
- You see mercy carried out in Luke 10 in the story of the good Samaritan where Jesus shares the parable in response to a lawyer’s question about who our neighbors are.
- Jesus asks the question in vs 36, “Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”
- The lawyer then answers it in vs 37: “The one who showed him mercy.”
- Whereupon Jesus told him, “You go, and do likewise.”
- Mercy is an action word – being merciful just doesn’t happen. It requires effort.
- We’re moving forward in the development of a Godly man – now we’re talking about a person’s disposition – their temperamental makeup.
- We are to be merciful – it should be second nature to us.
- But, it requires us to get out of ourselves – to have been emptied of our pride and our self-actualization.
- So the mark of a merciful man is this: they do not forget to practice pure Christianity.
- Matt 25:31-46 - 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered ll the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44 Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45 Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
- C. H. Spurgeon, “To be merciful would include, first of all, kindness to the sons of want and the daughters of penury (poverty). No merciful man could forget the poor. He who passed by their ills without sympathy, and saw their suffering without relieving them, might prate as he would about inward grace, but grace in his heart there could not be. The Lord does not own as of his family one who can see his brother have need, and shut up “his bowels of compassion from him.”
- Why not?
- Because the merciful person is on the lookout for those to whom he can show mercy.
- Because they know their poverty of spirit, have mourned over sin and its impact upon God and others, are meek, and hunger and thirst for righteousness.
- Matt 25 ministries are a great place to start – the sick, the thirsty, the hungry, the strangers, the naked, and those in prison.
- But, that’s not all – we need to show mercy to everyone – those in and those outside of the Kingdom – for when Christ showed mercy to us, we were outside the Kingdom.
- But it doesn’t stop there.
- Those who are merciful do not take to heart the offenses that are done against them.
- They don’t take the offense in such a personal way that they are driven to revenge.
- The merciful extend mercy to the fullness in such a manner that there is complete forgiveness of all personal attacks and offenses.
- There must be great mercy in a Christian’s heart towards those that are outwardly sinful.
- Like Jesus had for us – He has mercy on all souls.
- Since we are called to be like Christ, we are called also to extend mercy to all.
- Does not mean you forget when someone sins against you – you can’t.
- Even God doesn’t - He just chooses to remember them no more (Isa 43:25).
- Doesn’t mean that a merciful person stops the consequences of sin.
- Sometimes we need to support the claims of justice and a person must walk through the consequences of their sin in order to bear witness to the truth of God’s justice.
- A child may need to be punished.
- A speeder may have to pay a fine.
- A criminal may have to go to jail.
- A minister may have to step down from ministry.
- A person may need to pay retribution
- A sinner may have to endure the wrath of God.
- Unfortunately those who have not accepted Christ and become Christians will spend eternity in hell.
- A certain governor of Georgia, John Wesley’s day, said that he would have his servant on board his vessel flogged for drinking his wine; and when Mr. Wesley entreated that the man might be pardoned on that occasion, the governor said, “It is no use, Mr. Wesley, you know, sir, I never forgive.” “Well, then, sir,” said Mr. Wesley, “I hope you know that you will never be forgiven, or else I hope that you have never sinned.”
- We want to let our Christianity control us, not we control our lives.
- We want our Christianity – the mercy of God – to control us by being merciful.
- Gal 2:20 – “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives n me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
- It’s by faith.
- That’s how we are merciful.
- Faith must rule over our flesh.
- MLJ – “He is in control, not I; so that I must not think of myself as a natural man who is controlling his attitude and trying to be Christian in various ways. No; His Spirit controls me at the very centre of my life, controls the very spring of my being, the source of my every activity. You cannot read these Beatitudes without coming to that conclusion.”
- The whole of our life is an expression and a proclamation of what we really are.
- So, if we are a Christian, we will be merciful.
- And with being merciful comes a blessing.
- We will receive mercy.
- Ps 41:1 – “Blessed is the one who considers the poor (or weak)! In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him; 2 the Lord protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land.”
- Lk 6:38 – “37, “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
- The truth is, if you treat people one way, they will tend to treat you the same way.
- If you show mercy you will receive mercy.
- If you don’t judge, they won’t judge.
- If you don’t condemn, they won’t condemn.
- If you give mercy, it will be given to you in good measure.
Beatitudes
Part VI
September 17, 2006
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Matt 5:7 (Gary) – “Happy are those who are full of mercy, providing relief and being compassionate to those around them; showing kindness and concern for those that are in serious need while overlooking their sin and moral failures; for they will receive a blessing that is an act of divine favor, will be shown compassion by God, and will receive assistance during their time of need, even when they are wretched.”
- Matt 5:8 – “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
- Matt 5:8 (Amp) – “Blessed (happy, enviably fortunate, and spiritually prosperous—possessing the happiness produced by the experience of God’s favor and especially conditioned by the revelation of His grace, regardless of their outward conditions) are the pure in heart, for they shall see God!”
- Pure
- Webster’s – Free from moral fault or guilt.
- Strong’s – Clean; imparts no uncleanness; free from corrupt desire, from sin and guilt; blameless; innocent.
- Harper’s Bible Dictionary – The condition of being free from any physical, moral, or ritual contamination.
- TDNT – Moral purity, innocence, and chastity.
- Greek English Lexicon – Pertaining to being holy in the sense of moral qualities and possessing certain essentially divine qualities in contrast with what is human.
- heart
- Webster’s – The emotional or moral as distinguished from the intellectual nature; one’s innermost character, feelings, or inclinations; the essential or most vital part.
- Strong’s – The center and seat of spiritual life; the soul or mind as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, and endeavors; of the will and character.
- Dictionary of Biblical Imagery - The heart is used metaphorically to describe the intangibles that constitute what it means to be human. It’s “what makes us tick,” that is, human personality. In other words, the heart is used to describe those dynamic forces that make us unique individuals. As such, the heart can be imbued with moral qualities.
- Harper’s Bible Dictionary - The heart is the center of emotions, feelings, moods, and passions.
- Matt 5:8 (Gary) – “Happy are those who’s emotional or moral makeup - their thoughts, emotions, feelings, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors, moods, and passions that make us the unique person that we are, are clean; free from moral fault, guilt, corrupt desire, and sin; and, blameless before Christ, for they shall look to and see God.”
- So, where are we, and where are we going?
- MLJ – “Now the first three Beatitudes were concerned with our need, our consciousness of need – poor in spirit, mourning because of our sinfulness, meek as the result of a true understanding of the nature of self and its great ego-centricity, that terrible thing that has ruined the whole of life.”
- These three – blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, and the meek – emphasize the vital importance of a deep awareness of need.
- Then comes the statement ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness – God’s provision for the deep need expressed in the first three – we shall be filled – fully satisfied.
- Then we look at the result of that satisfaction – the result of being filled – we become merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers – beatitudes numbers 5-7.
- These all lead to the last one – persecuted for righteousness’ sake.
- Encouraging, huh?
- Pure in Heart
- So who are the pure in heart?
- Those that are mourning because of the impurity of their hearts.
- Those whose heart has been changed by the Trinity.
- Jn 15:3 – “Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.”
- Those whose heart God has changed.
- Christianity is not only about intellect and doctrine and theology – it’s about heart.
- Why the emphasis on heart?
- To get the answer let’s remember the Pharisees.
- What was their approach?
- Was it heart?
- No – it was about tradition, about the law, about conduct, about moral principles, about a philosophy – about the intellect and works.
- It’s about the Talmud and the Mishnah, voluminous products of oral tradition and Old Testament commentary.
- Why God and Jesus always indicated that Christianity started with the heart.
- But, as they say, Houston we have a problem.
- This is what God has to say about the heart in the OT and NT
- Jer 17:9 – “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?”
- Matt 15:18,19 – 18 “But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.”
- The old heart is still not looking too good.
- Yet, that is where the Lord looks.
- 1 Sam 16:7 - “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.’”
- And that is what we speak from: Matt 12:34b - “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.”
- So, what are we to do? Our heart is evil, but that’s where God looks and that’s what we speak from?
- He wants us to operate from our heart: Matt 18:35: “So my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
- Why? Because our actions will demonstrate our heart. Our heart will not produce good stuff, but God’s heart in us will produce bountiful, delicious, glorious fruit.
- He wants us to love Him first “with all our heart”. (Matt 22:37).
- We can only do that with the heart He has given us.
- It’s about the heart – the center of our personalities.
- He doesn’t merely want our actions.
- He doesn’t merely want our thoughts.
- He doesn’t merely want our words.
- He doesn’t merely want our money.
- He doesn’t merely want our gifts.
- He doesn’t merely want us to pray.
- He doesn’t merely want us to fast.
- He doesn’t merely want our worship.
- Yes, He wants all of that.
- What He wants most is our innermost personality – our heart.
- That’s where God wants us to operate from as Christians.
- If we do, we will follow the commands.
- If we do, we will run hard after the Trinity.
- That’s why Jesus says, “Blessed are the pure in heart”.
- But, according to the scriptures we’ve read it is evil.
- So how can we do these things?
- Because He made our hearts pure – not us – therefore, they are pure.
- Jesus made the hearts of Christians pure when He went to the cross.
- We just need to operate from the pure heart and not our flesh.
- Another reason we need to know what is in the Scriptures, abide in Him, follow His commands.
- MLJ – “Blessed are those who are pure, not merely on the surface but in the centre of their being and at the source of their every activity. It is as deep as that.”
- Ps 24:3,4 – “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.”
- Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord – enter into His presence – see Him.
- Those who do have nothing to do with what is false and those free from deceit.
- The result: The pure in heart shall see God.
- What’s our part: Heb 12:14 – “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.”
- But those who know the Lord cry out: Prov 20:9 – “Who can say, ‘I have made my heart pure; I am clean from my sin?’”
- No one – because God did it.
- Or say: “Who can be saved?” (Matt 19:25)
- None can save themselves
- Jesus responds in Matt 19:26 – “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- Because of what God and Christ did – that’s why we are pure – that’s why our heart is pure – because of the cross and resurrection.
- That’s why we shall see God.
- What’s that mean – we shall see God.
- The curtain was torn – (Lk 23:45) - we can boldly walk into His presence.
- We can climb up on His lap.
- Then what?
- We will see His glory – in fact, we should be awestruck by it.
- We will receive His blessings.
- We will be taken care of by Him.
- We will receive His mercy.
- We will receive His grace.
- The Holy Spirit will lead us and guide us into all truth.
- And most of all, we will see Christ – face to face – as we spend eternity with the trinity.
Beatitudes
Part VII
September 24, 2006
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Matt 5:7 (Gary) – “Happy are those who are full of mercy, providing relief and being compassionate to those around them; showing kindness and concern for those that are in serious need while overlooking their sin and moral failures; for they will receive a blessing that is an act of divine favor, will be shown compassion by God, and will receive assistance during their time of need, even when they are wretched.”
- Matt 5:8 (Gary) – “Happy are those who’s emotional or moral makeup - their thoughts, emotions, feelings, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors, moods, and passions that make us the unique person that we are, are clean; free from moral fault, guilt, corrupt desire, and sin; and, blameless before Christ, for they shall look to and see God.”
- John Piper – “With each beatitude another nail is driven into a coffin. Inside the coffin lies the corpse of a false understanding of salvation. The false understanding said that a person can be saved without being changed. Or; that a person can inherit eternal life even if his attitudes and actions are like the attitudes and actions of unbelievers.”
- That is the message that reverberates through each beatitude – the message that God so poignantly wants to communicate.
- In other words, Christians are different than non-Christians – radically different.
- It’s interesting that this sermon comes at this time, what with all the hate and anger that is being demonstrated over the Pope’s remarks in Germany.
- It provides a great illustration between Christianity and other religions.
- NBC is considering showing Madonna’s tour where she is crucified on a cross.
- Not much has been said, but ask yourself this question: “Would they even consider doing something like that concerning other religions.”
- Christians are different! Period!
- Each beatitude following the one preceding it emphasizes again and again that the blessings of eternity will only be given to those who are new creatures in Christ.
- Blessings of eternity:
o If we recognize our poverty of spirit we receive the kingdom of heaven.
o If we mourn, we’re comforted.
o If we’re meek we inherit the new earth.
o If we seek righteousness we’ll be filled.
o If we are merciful, we’ll receive mercy.
o If we’re pure in heart, we’ll see God.
- God is establishing an entirely new and different kingdom – the Kingdom of God – and the beatitudes describe its citizens.
- It’s a whole new culture – different than the world.
- God is doing it – that’s why it’s impossible for a person of the world to live out these beatitudes – because only a new person in Christ can live these out.
- We can only live out the beatitudes if we are in Christ.
- If we’re not living them out maybe we need to ask ourselves a question: “Are we in Christ?”
- Brings us to Matt 5:9 – “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
- Matt 5:9 (Amp) – “Blessed (enjoying enviable happiness, spiritually prosperous—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the makers and maintainers of peace, for they shall be called the sons of God!”
- Key Word
- Peacemakers
- Webster’s Collegiate – One who makes peace by reconciling parties at variance.
- Strong’s – One who tends to lesson conflict; who is mild of temper; and, has a soothing appearance or effect. One who loves peace.
- ISBE - Better rendered “peace-workers,” implying not merely making peace between those who are at variance, but working peace as that which is the will of the God of peace for men.
- TDNT – One who encourages that state of peace among people; who are like God in loving peace.
- Matt 5:9 (Gary) – “Happy are those that are mild of temper and love peace; who have a soothing effect on those around them, working peace by reconciling those in conflict and expressing the peace of God for all men, for they shall be exhibiting God-like qualities and shall be called sons and daughters by God.”
- Think about the shock that this must have been to the Jews who thought that the Messiah would come as a conquering hero.
- What is a peacemaker?
- A child of God – those who are sons of God are in fact peacemakers
- He or she is a person whom God has chosen to save.
- A person that is in Christ – that is a peacemaker.
- A person as MLJ puts it, “They are so absolutely unlike everybody else. They are people who stand out as being different from the rest of the world, and they are different because they are children of God.”
- And they love peace, because God loves peace.
- He is a God of peace – He gives peace that “surpasses all understanding” - peace that “guards your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4:7)
- That’s what is different about Christianity – about God – it is not a religion of hostility – it is a religion of peace.
- The Spirit of God is a Spirit of peace.
- After all, isn’t one of the fruits of the Spirit peace (Gal 5:22).
- Illustration from John Wesley: “Going across in a ship to America with Mr. Oglethorpe, who was to be the governor of Savannah, I one day heard a great noise in the governor’s cabin. So I went there, and the governor said, “I dare say you want to know what this noise is about, sir, I have good occasion for it. You know, sir,” said he, “that the only wine I drink is Cyprus wine, and it is necessary for me; I put it on board, and this rascal, my servant, this Grimaldi, has drunken all of it; I will have him beaten on the deck, and the first ship of war that comes by, he shall be taken by press, and enlisted in His Majesty’s service, and a hard time he shall have of it, for I will let him know that I never forgive.” “Your honor,” said I, “then I hope you never sin.” The rebuke was so well put, so pointed, and so needed, that the governor replied in a moment, “Alas, sir, I do sin, and I have sinned in what I have said; for your sake he shall be forgiven; I trust he will not do the like again.” So the peacemaker always thinketh that it is best for him, as he is a sinner himself, and responsible to his own Master, not to be too hard a master on his servants, lest when he is provoking them he may be also provoking his God.”
- What happened here?
- The captain had a revelation – a huge revelation.
- It wasn’t about him. It wasn’t about getting revenge. It wasn’t about getting even.
- It was about bringing peace to the situation.
- And that came through forgiveness, not taking revenge.
- We must be quick to forgive when someone sins against us – no matter what the sin – that includes adultery, murder, etc.
- See, a peacemaker has an entirely new and radical view: that the glory of God be among men.
- Because the peacemaker knows that it is only God that can truly bring peace – again, peace that surpasses all understanding - peace that guards our hearts and minds. (Phil 4:7)
- MLJ – “He (the peacemaker) knows that God made man perfect, and that the world was meant to be Paradise, so when he sees individual and international disputes and quarrelling, he sees something that is detracting from the glory of God.”
- The peacemaker is one that is ready to humble himself and do whatever he has to do – whatever is necessary for the particular situation he is involved in to insure that the glory of God is promoted.
- He is concerned about God and His glory, not about his own.
- And the results:
- The peacemaker is called the son of God.
- WOW!
- First, He is blessed – he is happy.
- That’s pretty good, but there is even more.
- Secondly, it is implied that we are a child of God.
- Again, WOW!
- Do you see what is being said?
- Peacemakers are adopted children of God.
- We have been grafted into the vine.
- That is evident because it is obvious that the Spirit within us is what makes us different from those in the world – a peacemaker.
- C. H. Spurgeon – “As the child of God, moreover, he hath a likeness to his Father who is in heaven. God is peaceful, longsuffering, and tender, full of loving-kindness, pity, and compassion. So is this peacemaker. Being like to God, he beareth his Father’s image.”
- Because we are Christians, we must reflect our Father who has adopted us – and be peacemakers.
- Thirdly, peacemakers are called a son of God.
- So, what’s the difference between this and the previous one?
- Implied we are a child of God deals with adoption.
- However, being called a Son of God strongly implies that that is their name – the name that they shall be known by – even by those in their world, daresay, even their enemies.
- It’s our name – which defines our actions.
- There was a soldier in the army who was a big fellow, who had been a boxer prior to enlisting. He had also performed many deeds of valor while in the army. When he had been converted through the preaching of a chaplain all his fellow soldiers made a laughingstock of him. They counted it impossible that such a man as he had been should become a peaceful Christian. So one day when they were working in the kitchen, one of them threw a whole pot of hot soup on him. He tore his clothes off to wipe away the hot soup and yet kept his composure and in the midst of the excitement, said, “I am a Christian, I must expect this,” and smiled at them. The one who did it said, “If I had thought you would have taken it in that way, I would never have done it; I am very sorry I ever did so.”
- They knew he was a Christian, and he demonstrated that he was a peacemaker – even his enemies saw that.
- Matt 5:38-42
o But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also
o If anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well
o If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles
o Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.
- Matt 5:43-45 - 43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.”
- Peacemakers love and pray for their enemies – they don’t seek revenge.
- Peacemakers attempt to spread peace wherever they are or to whomever they are with, regardless of the situation.
- Again, so different than the world and other religions.
- I’m not advocating that a Christian should be a pacifist and not fight for his or her country.
- Nor am I saying that a Christian should be a wimp.
- We must merely give onto Caesar what is Caesars (Matt 22:15-21)
- What I’m advocating is that God is much more concerned about the state of our hearts than the affairs of the world.
- We must follow the laws of the land – it leads to peace. But, the law of God is higher and more important.
- If you ask Jesus about taxes He will turn it into a command aimed right at our hearts: “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matt 22:15-21)
- If you complain to Jesus about the injustice of your brother not properly dividing the inheritance and you not getting what you deserve He will turn it into a warning: “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Lk 12:13-15)
- If you complain about someone’s atrocities like Pilate mixing blood with their sacrifices He will turn it into a demand for personal repentance: “No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Lk 13:1-5)
- It’s not about others – it’s about me, you, us.
- John Piper: “You must have a new heart. Without a merciful, pure, peacemaking heart you cannot be called a son of God at the judgment day.”
- Jesus is not out of touch with the world today – the “real issues of life”.
- He is just much, much more concerned about our salvation and our becoming the Christian the Bible calls us to be, because to Him that is a much, much more weighty matter than the temporal destiny of what is going on on earth.
- The earth shall pass away, but Christians are eternal.
- Blessed are the peacemakers that pray for and greet and love everyone, especially those that oppose you.
- For you shall be called sons of God.
- You shall inherit eternal life with Jesus.
Beatitudes
Part VIII
October 8, 2006
- Matt 5:1-12 - 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Matt 5:7 (Gary) – “Happy are those who are full of mercy, providing relief and being compassionate to those around them; showing kindness and concern for those that are in serious need while overlooking their sin and moral failures; for they will receive a blessing that is an act of divine favor, will be shown compassion by God, and will receive assistance during their time of need, even when they are wretched.”
- Matt 5:8 (Gary) – Happy are those who’s emotional or moral makeup - their thoughts, emotions, feelings, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors, moods, and passions that make us the unique person that we are, are clean; free from moral fault, guilt, corrupt desire, and sin; and, blameless before Christ, for they shall look to and see God.
- Matt 5:9 (Gary) – Happy are those that are mild of temper and love peace;- who have a soothing effect on those around them, working peace by reconciling those in conflict and expressing the peace of God for all men, for they shall be exhibiting God-like qualities and shall be called sons and daughters by God.
- Matt 5:10 - 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- Matt 5:10 (Amp) - 10 Blessed and happy and enviably fortunate and spiritually prosperous (in the state in which the born-again child of God enjoys and finds satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of his outward conditions) are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake (for being and doing right), for theirs is the kingdom of heaven!
- Key Words
- Persecuted
- Webster’s – Harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict; caused to suffer because of belief.
- Strong’s – dee o ko – to pursue in a hostile to pursue (in a hostile manner) in any way whatever to harass, trouble, molest one; to be mistreated, suffer persecution on account of something.
- Word Studies in the NT - The verb means originally to put to flight; thence to run swiftly in order to overtake or attain, as the goal or the competitor in the race. Hence to pursue with hostile intent, and, generally, to molest, harass, persecute. Persecute is from the equivalent Latin persequor, to follow up, and is used earlier, in the sense of pursue, while pursue, in turn, is used in the sense of persecute.
- Righteousness
- Webster’s Collegiate – acting in accord with divine or moral law: free from guilt or sin; morally right or justifiable.
- Strong’s – dik ah yos oo nay - state of him who is as he ought to be - the condition acceptable to God. Integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking feeling, and acting.
- Unger’s - Purity of heart and rectitude of life; being and doing right.
- Matt 5:10 (Gary) – Happy are those who are harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict; who are pursued in a hostile manner in order to trouble or mistreat them because of their beliefs and because they have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.
- Yes, if you pursue Christ – if you walk out the Beatitudes you will be persecuted – you will suffer.
- 2 Tim 3:12 – “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
- Exciting, huh? Good stuff!
- That’s why we are encouraged to count the cost before we build the foundation of our lives (Luke 14).
- But, hey Gary, that was yesteryear – we live in an enlightened world – we live in America!
- Do we?
- Do a search for “Christian Persecution” and see what you get?
- Peru’s National Evangelical Council documented the killings of 90 evangelical Christians between 1983 and 1985. This doesn’t include the 20 that disappeared after being detained by the police for questioning.
- Look at countries in Africa or other countries like China, Malasyia, Viet Nam, Cuba, or any Islamic country.
- Besides, the scriptures haven’t faded away – they are as relevant today as they were 2000 years ago.
- 2 Tim 3:12 – “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
- That’s elsewhere – we live in America – yep, where the Laodicean church is prevalent – so persecution appears low.
- Try being the Philadelphia church – and look at what we have lost.
- Pretty all encompassing – Paul used the word all.
- Why did Paul say this?
- First, he saw it first hand
- Second, he understood some things.
- As John Piper puts it, “He makes it on the basis of a deep conviction about the nature of Christianity and the nature of the sinfulness of man. He is convinced that there is such a tension between the message and way of life of Christians on the one hand and the mindset and way of life of the world on the other that conflict is inevitable.”
- John 15:18-20 - 18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”
- The truth is, millions of people today are being persecuted – hated - because of their Christian faith – because it hates Jesus.
- If you don’t believe it, move to China, Middle East, parts of Africa, parts of Southeast Asia or be a Beatitudes Christian in America.
- But isn’t God a God of blessing? Yes, but look at what Job had to say in Job 2:10 in response to his wife advising him to “Curse God and die”: “But he said to her, ‘You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?’ In all this Job did not sin with his lips.”
- Now, let’s focus more directly on persecution - suffering.
- It’s been established that if we are Christians we will be persecuted.
- Why?
- Because of whom we are and what we stand for.
- Because when you walk out the Beatitudes your light will shine.
- Because we are righteous – we are light that lives in darkness.
- Vs 10 – righteousness - having a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting and right relationship with God through Christ.
- Do you find it interesting that there are two references to righteousness – vs 6 and 10?
- The first comes after three Beatitudes where we are emptying and examining ourselves – developing an understanding of who we are – poor in spirit, those who mourn over their poverty of spirit, and those who recognize that they need to be meek and hand over their lives – trust in God. Then comes righteousness – in those forms.
- The next three are not about emptying, but about how God has filled us – an overwhelming mercy, a pure heart, and the ability to make peace. Again comes righteousness.
- In vs 10 the persecution is “for righteousness’ sake”.
- What’s that mean?
- Lets look ahead to Vs 11 – The reviling and persecution is “for My sake”.
- When we are persecuted for righteousness’ sake we are being persecuted because we are in Jesus.
- Christians are persecuted because of their relationship with Jesus.
- You want to avoid persecution? Don’t mention the name of Jesus – don’t serve Him.
- If you mention the name of Jesus – you will be persecuted.
- Makes no sense.
- But you’ll be in good company – Abel, Moses, Joseph, David, the Prophets (esp Elijah and Jeremiah), the apostles, and Jesus.
- It doesn’t make sense that Christians will be persecuted because they are merciful, pure of heart and are peacemakers?
- What’s offensive about that?
- To understand you have to get to the heart – a relationship with Jesus changes our inner most being – changes our morals.
- Jn 14:13 –“No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
- When you serve Jesus you can’t serve something else – and as you take a stance it will offend people.
- If you are against abortion, it will be an attack against those that are pro-choice.
- If you define marriage as male/female it will be an attack against homosexuality.
- If you are against pre-marital sex, it will be an attack against those that choose to live together and those that have pre-marital sex.
- If you are humble, you will expose pride.
- If you are pro-Christ you will be seen as close-minded and anti other religions.
- If you exhibit Godly behavior you will magnify areas where people don’t exhibit Godly behavior.
- If you are against destroying embryos it will be an attack against finding cures for people.
- Bottom line – if you are a Christian you will offend – because you are different.
- MLJ – “Why are the righteous thus persecuted? . . . The righteous are persecuted because they are different. That was why the Pharisees and the scribes hated our Lord. It was not because He was good; it was because He was different. There was something about Him that condemned them.”
- Rom 9:33 - as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”
- Jesus is an offense – we are an offense because we become like Jesus.
- Jn 3:20 – “For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”
- Wicked people don’t like the light – and we are the “light of the world” - Matt 5:14
- And if we let it shine, our light will be seen.
- Goes on in verse 21: “But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out in God.”
- Now that I have your attention let’s back off a little bit. We might not always be persecuted in every relationship we have.
- Matt 5:16 – “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
- In this case it appears that some get saved when you let your light shine.
- So, one of three things will happen when you display Christ to unbelievers – persecution, conversion, or they will be on the road to one or the other.
- However, many times neither one happens.
- Why?
- You are not acting as light, salt, or the city set on the hill.
- You are acting as light, salt, or the city set on the hill people will be converted or you will be persecuted or as Piper puts it, “The people around you are moving toward one or the other of these two poles: persecution or conversion.”
- It’s inevitable – there is no gray area.
- All is not lost. As you pursue righteousness and as we endure persecution because of our righteousness, we will receive the Kingdom of Heaven.
- It comes back around to it’s not about here – it’s about there – heaven.
- As we walk out the Beatitudes, the definition of a Christian, we will increase in righteousness.
- And we will face persecution.
- And the Kingdom of Heaven is ours.
Beatitudes
Part IX
October 22, 2006
Review
- They say – whoever they is – that you’re suppose to tell people what you’re going to say, then say it, then tell them what you said.
- That’s what today is partially about – I’ve been telling you about the Beatitudes and now I’m going to tell you what I said about them.
- I’m going to read the amplified version we developed for Matt 5:3-12.
- And then we’re going to do a little wrap up on persecution.
- It has great value – persecution which brings suffering.
- Matt 5:3 (Gary) - “Happy are those in a spiritual relationship who understand there is a great lack of any Christian values and eternal riches in themselves; that they are helpless and powerless to achieve eternal life within and of themselves; that they need a Savior, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.”
- Matt 5:4 (Gary) - “Happy are those that have the freedom to not conceal their grief but openly express sorrow as they lament their sins, their friends sins, the sins of the world, and the death sin brought the Lord; for their sorrow shall be eased and they shall be given strength and hope as the Holy Spirit comes alongside as their advocate and consoles them with exhortation, admonishment, and instruction.”
- Matt 5:5 (Gary) “Happy are those that are mild in disposition and gentle of spirit; who do not threaten or challenge others but accepts them openly and confidently and with humility; who are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, and are reasonable; for they shall possess their part of the earth.”
- Matt 5:6 (Gary) – “Happy are those who painfully feel that they are needy and have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they will be made happy and reach their full limit, and even are filled to excess both now and into the future.”
- Matt 5:7 (Gary) – “Happy are those who are full of mercy, providing relief and being compassionate to those around them; showing kindness and concern for those that are in serious need while overlooking their sin and moral failures; for they will receive a blessing that is an act of divine favor, will be shown compassion by God, and will receive assistance during their time of need, even when they are wretched.”
- Matt 5:8 (Gary) – Happy are those who’s emotional or moral makeup’s thoughts, emotions, feelings, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors, moods, and passions that make us the unique person that we are, are clean; free from moral fault, guilt, corrupt desire, and sin; who are blameless before Christ, for they shall look to and see God.
- Matt 5:9 (Gary) – Happy are those that are mild of temper and love peace; - who have a soothing effect on those around them, working peace by reconciling those in conflict and expressing the peace of God for all men, for they shall be exhibiting God-like qualities and shall be called sons and daughters by God.
- Matt 5:10 (Gary) – Happy are those who are harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict; who are pursued in a hostile manner in order to trouble or mistreat them because of their beliefs; because they have a deep and earnest longing to live a life that is wholly acceptable to God, actively pursuing a life of integrity, virtue, purity, rightness, and correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting, for they shall reign with God in their heart and life both now and eternally.
- Matt 5: 11,12 - 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- Matt 5:11,12 (Amp) - 11 Blessed (happy, to be envied, and spiritually prosperous—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, regardless of your outward conditions) are you when people revile you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things against you falsely on My account. 12 Be glad and supremely joyful, for your reward in heaven is great (strong and intense), for in this same way people persecuted the prophets who were before you. [II Chron. 36:16.
- Key Words
- Revile
- Webster’s – To subject to verbal abuse; to use abusive language
- Strong’s – on a did zo – to reproach, upbraid; criticize serverely; to disapprove or rebuke severely.
- Louw and Nida Greek – English Lexicon – to insult in a particularly strong and unjustified manner.
- TDNT – To bring reproaches – disapproval or rebukes.
- Persecute
- Webster’s - to harass or punish in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict - to cause to suffer because of belief
- Strong’s – To burn, to hotly pursue.
- Harper’s Bible Dictionary - Taking formal hostile activity against a specific group.
- Rejoice
- Webster’s – to feel great delight.
- Strong’s – khah – ee-rol - To feel rejoice – feel great delight exceedingly.
- Exegetical Dictionary of the NT – exult; be extremely joyful
- Great
- Webster’s – Remarkable in magnitude; large in number or number
- Strong’s – pol oos – much
- Greek – English Lexicon of the NT – a great deal of; quantity many times greater than normal.
- Matt 11,12 (Gary) - 11 Happy are you when others subject you to verbal abuse, reproach, and when you are insulted in a particularly strong and unjustified manner; when you are harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict; who are pursued in a hostile manner in order to trouble or mistreat them because of their beliefs and when others speak evil and lies against you because of Me, your Lord and Savior. 12 Feel great delight; be exceedingly glad for your reward in heaven is of a quantity many times greater than normal, remarkable in magnitude, for so they pursued the prophets before you and harassed or punished them in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict because of their beliefs.
- Persecution is used 59 times in the Bible and suffer is used 120 times.
- It goes with being a follower of Jesus as stated in vs. 11 – “evil against you falsely on my account”.
- But, it’s worth it - because we are a follower of Jesus
- Remember we talked about how when you walk the Beatitudes Christian life one of three things will occur in all your relationships.
- They’ll be converted.
- You’ll be persecuted
- Or you will be on the road to one of the two.
- We also noted that vs. 11 and 12 are an extension of vs. 10 – and helped us define “persecuted for righteousness sake” as being persecuted because of our relationship with Jesus.
- We are persecuted because we are not citizens of this world but of His Kingdom, and His Kingdom is not of this world (Jn 18:36)
- We are persecuted because we were counted worthy to suffer for Him. - Acts 5:41 – “Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.”
- Persecution is not just about shame and rejection.
- Jesus said that there would be even stronger tribulation than that – Matt 24:9: “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.”
- But, as always with God there is a silver, yes, even a gold lining in the dark clouds.
- And yet Jesus says blessed – happy are you.
- We are to be glad when we are rejected, hated, turned on, even martyred – for His sake, just like the disciples were in Acts 5:41.
- We, as Beatitude Christians can find happiness in persecution. How?
- Whew! This is heavy stuff.
- Matt 5: 11, 12 - 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
- Remember, the Beatitudes are to be taken as a whole and these two scriptures, as they amplify vs. 10 – the last Beatitude – continue to define the Christian.
- A Christian is one who recognizes their poverty of spirit, mourns over it, is meek vs. proud, hungers and thirsts after righteousness and becomes merciful, pure in heart and a peacemaker.
- Then follows “persecution for righteousness sake”.
- Does that make sense?
- In Christ, it does.
- In Christ it makes sense to be “blessed” – happy – and to “rejoice and be glad”.
- Only in Christ can it make sense.
- Why?
- Because of what is happening here.
- Again, these amplifications of the eighth Beatitude shows us that Christians are different – we are not like non-Christians.
- Matt 10:34-36 - “34 Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.”
- In other words as MLJ puts it, “The effect of My ministry is going to be a division, a division even between the father and the son, and the mother and the daughter; and a man’s foes may very well be those of his own household.”
- There is a clear-cut division between Christians and non-Christians.
- That is proven by persecution.
- And persecution happens because there is an antagonism within a non-Christian towards Christians because they are different.
- How he persecutes isn’t important, whether simple rejection, laughter, ridicule, physical abuse, or martyrdom – its still persecution.
- When I was saved – Bob Berkfeldt – mom and Mormons
- We must understand that a Christian is not just slightly different – he is fundamentally and radically different – as different as east and west, light and dark – infinity apart.
- A Christian is also controlled and dominated by Christ.
- He is totally loyal and faithful to Jesus.
- Vs. 11 – Blessed are you when men revile you . . . on my account.
- Christians are persecuted because they’re living for Jesus.
- So how do we walk through it?
- How do we walk through persecution and be blessed – happy?
- By seeing beyond the here and now – who we really are.
- By seeing what is in store for us.
- Our life must be controlled by Christ – by thoughts of Him and what He has done for us and heaven and the world to come.
- That’s how we rejoice and become glad – not by what is going on around us – or what we see.
- Watch the news – it’s depressing.
- This is the heart of the matter – the good stuff.
- Obviously we are not to rejoice because of persecution – we should regret and grieve over the fact that so many humans are tools in Satan’s hand – causing persecution.
- So, why should we rejoice, be exceedingly glad which the Greek word indicates?
- Vs. 11 – “For your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
- First, taking them in reverse order, we are like the prophets of old – we are just as important as Isaiah, Nahum, Obadiah, Zephaniah, etc.
- But, above that, it also means we are living lives that are exemplifying Christ.
- Second, we have rewards waiting in heaven!
- Glory!
- That begs the question: Is it ok to focus on rewards?
- 1 Cor 3:10-15 – “10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.”
- 2 Cor 5:10,11a – “10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. 11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others.”
- When Paul was reflecting on his life in his second letter to Timothy in 4:8 he talks about the “crown of righteousness” that is laid up for him in heaven.
- So, yes, it’s good to focus on the rewards.
- This then begs another question: “How are these rewards possible?”
- Grace, grace, grace! Everything from justification to salvation to sanctification to glorification to rewards and everything is else is by grace.
- Going back to vs 11 and 12: What is being said here is this, according to MLJ: “If this happens to you (persecution), says Christ in effect, it is just the hall-mark of the fact that you are destined for heaven. It means you have a label on; it means your ultimate destiny is fixed.”
- Double glory!
- See, if we believe that we are destined for heaven and that we have rewards it should dominate our way of thinking and our actions.
- Again, MLJ – “According to this argument, my whole outlook upon everything that happens to me should be governed by three things: my realization of who I am, my consciousness of where I am going, and my knowledge of what awaits me when I get there.”
- This argument is found throughout the scriptures.
- It’s not about persecution. It’s about who we are, where we are going, and what awaits us.
- It’s not about us!
- Triple glory!
- Paul, who was persecuted much put it this way in 2 Cor 4:17,18 – “17 For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”
- Slight momentary affliction vs. weight of glory beyond all comparison.
- Seen transient stuff vs. unseen eternal stuff.
- To which are we going to look?
- That’s how the Heb 11 folks were able to do what they did – they saw the present, they saw the future and they saw there was no comparison – not even a tiny bit – they saw that it was a momentary affliction and they rejoiced and were exceedingly glad.
- That’s what gave Rowland Taylor and Bishop Ridley and John Bradford, who were Puritans, the impulse to kiss the stakes at which they were burned in 1555.
- That’s what caused Obadiah Holmes, after 90 lashes turned his back to jelly, to tell the magistrates, “You have struck me with roses”.
- That’s why Thomas Hardcastle said that persecution is “a precious season of grace”.
- A letter by John Hooper three weeks before he was burned at the stake in 1555 stated: “You must now turn all your thoughts from the peril you see, and mark the felicity that followeth the peril. Beware of beholding too much the felicity or misery of this world; for the consideration and too earnest love or fear of either of them draweth from God.”
- John Rogers was burned alive in 1555. His children accompanied him to the place of execution and called out encouragements to him through their tears that he might be strong and not turn back and dishonor Christ.”
- Dietrich Bonhoeffer was hung in 1945. As he left his prison room on the way to the gallows he said to Payne Best, “This is the end – for me the beginning of life. Ten years later the camp doctor wrote, “At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the steps to the gallows, brave and composed. His death ensued after a few seconds. In the almost 50 years that I worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man dies so entirely submissive to the will of God.”
- How about Vanya Moiseyev, a 20 yr old Baptist in Russia who was tortured to death wrote in his last letter to his brother in 1972: “Don’t tell our parents everything. Just tell them, ‘Vanya wrote me a letter and writes that Jesus Christ is going into battle. This is a Christian battle, and he doesn’t know whether he will be back.”
- I could go on and on.
- But the bottom line is this: “If we live a life that is fundamentally and radically different – the Christian life – walking out the Beatitudes - knowing who we are in Christ, knowing our destiny is heaven, and knowing that there is waiting there great rewards we will rejoice and be exceedingly glad in persecution and count it joy that we were considered worthy to suffer slight momentary afflictions for His name.”
- How? The Holy Spirit will be with us to walk us through whatever transient light affliction we face so that we reach the eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.
- One question: are we that kind of Christian?
- Are we more interested in the here and now?
- Or, are we focused on who we are in Christ, what are destination is – heaven, and the rewards that await us.