Matthew 5:1-12 Intro the the Beatitues

[Guest]

The following was written from notes that I took on Steve's intro lecture to the Beatitudes. I hope that I did not butcher Steve's teaching, and that others will find this usefull. Feel free to use it, make comments or corrects, and hopefull it will be useful to someone else as well.

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Title: The Beatitudes and Attitudes of Living Like Jesus
Date: Given on Sunday Morning June 25th, 2006
Text: Mathew 5:1-12

Matthew 5
1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:
2 And 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 they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after 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 the children of God.
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.


Intro:
As I was growing up, there was a basket ball player named Michael Jordan, that dominated the game. Air Jordon, as he was often referred to, was renowned for his amazing dunks. Often doing things that seemed almost impossible. He became the idol of many young basketball wannabes including myself. He appeared in many advertisements, with the catch phrase, "I wanta be like Mike." One that I remember was where Michael Jordan was delivering a 6 pack of Coke a cola to some kids in a tree house, as though he was dunking a basketball.

Over time that began to fade in the distance, and I've come to realize that there are better goals in life that being a basketball star. As Christians, our goal should be to be like Jesus. If we want to be like Jesus, what better place is there to look, than in the Gospel accounts of the Life of Jesus. I thought that today we would a look at what is probably the most well known sermon that Jesus preached, the Sermon on the mount. We won't be looking at the whole thing, but rather focusing a bit on the first 12 verses, more commonly know as the Beatitudes.


I. What is a Beatitude?

A. Some things to Note
1. There are beatitudes through out the Bible, in both the old and the new testaments. In fact, all of the beatitudes in this list in Mathew, are either is a quote from the Old Testament, or very similar to another beatitude in the Old Testament.
2. Mathew 5:1-12 is the longest list of Beatitudes in any one place in the Bible. There is some similarity with Luke 6:20-23, but there are almost as many differences as there are similarities.
3. When looking at the list of beatitudes, here in Mathew, you find that the Greek work used here is "markarios" --- which could be properly translated as Happy. It could also be translated asblessed, fortunate, or well.
a. The Happiness that Jesus is speaking of here is happiness that is at a different level, than the emotional happiness, than we would probably normally associate with the word happy. It would be more of a blissfulness.

B. As I mentioned before, there are many beatitudes through the Old and New Testaments. More often than not, the beatitudes are associated with God.
We don't often think of God as being Blessed or Happy, but there are many places in the Bible where God is called Blessed, or his name is to be blessed.
For example:
1. Psa 28:6 Blessed [be] the LORD, because he hath heard the voice of my supplications.
2. Psa 41:13 Blessed [be] the LORD God of Israel from everlasting, and to everlasting. Amen, and Amen.
3. Psa 113:2 Blessed be the name of the LORD from this time forth and for evermore.

C. Let's take some time to look at some of the places in the Old Testament where someone other than God is called blessed.
1. Declaration
a. In Judges we find the story of Jael, the Kenite woman, who nailed Sisera ... to the floor of her tent, with a tent peg, winning the battle for the Israelites over the Canaanites. In Judges 5:24 in the Song of Debora, we see that Jael is declared as being blessed.
b. Judges 5:24 Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be, blessed shall she be above women in the tent.
c. Why is Jael called blessed or happy? Is it because she had nailed Sisera? Probably not, as because generally speaking nailing people to the floor of of a tent doesn't bring happiness. Rather rather she is called happy because she found favor with God for rescuing the Israelites.
2. Wishing
a. Another example can be found in Ruth 2:20, where Naomi wishes a blessing on the one how had helped Ruth, who was Boaz.
b. Ruth 2:20a And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed [be] he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead.
Here we have seen examples of a declaration of blessedness, as in Jael's case, or a wishing of blessedness in the case of Naomi and Boaz. Beatitudes can also apply to a category of people. Next we'll look at some examples of beatitudes that apply to categories of people.
3. Categories of people
a. Lets take a look at one of the more famous beatitudes found in the first chapter of the Psalms.
Psalm 1:1 Blessed [is] the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
c. Another well know beatitude, which Paul quotes in Romans 4:6-8, is Psalm 32.
Psalm 32:1 Blessed [is he whose] transgression [is] forgiven, [whose] sin [is] covered.
d. Isaiah 30:18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD [is] a God of judgment: blessed [are] all they that wait for him.
These are categories of people that are called blessed or happy. I think we can all agree that they that wait upon the Lord are happy.

These are only a sample of beatitudes in the Old Testament, and not a systematic study of all of them.

D. We've seen that the Beatitudes that Jesus spoke in his sermon were not unique to his ministry, but it is also good to note that these beatitudes are also not only beatitudes that Jesus spoke.
1. Let's take a look at some other beatitudes that Jesus spoke.
a. Mat. 13:16 But blessed [are] your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
This is a special blessing to the disciples who were physically with Jesus.
b. Mar. 24:45-46 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? Blessed [is] that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
Here we see that those that are obedience are happy. This is a reoccurring theme that those that are obedient are blessed. Obedience brings a sense of happiness.
c. Luke 11:28 ... blessed [are] they that hear the word of God, and keep it.
d. John 13:17 If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.
What is interesting to note here is that what may be the only beatitude in the book of John, is a beatitude about obedience to God's word bringing happiness.

E. Now we have looked at some of the other beatitudes that Jesus spoke, let's take a look at other beatitudes in the New Testament that were given by others.
1. Luke 1:28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, [thou that art] highly favoured, the Lord [is] with thee: blessed [art] thou among women.
Here we break into the story of Jesus' birth, at the point where the angle is delivering a message to Mary. Just as Jael was declared blessed for saving Israel, so Mary is called blessed for bringing a son into the world that would be the saviour of the human race. Next we see Elisabeth issuing a beatitude when Mary went to visit her cousin.
2. Luke 1:42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed [art] thou among women, and blessed [is] the fruit of thy womb.
We can see that beatitudes, were a common thing among the Jewish people. If they had reason to make a declaration of blessedness or wish happiness on someone, they would issue a beatitude.
3. James 1:12 Blessed [is] the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
This beatitude in James is phrased much like the ones by Jesus in Matthew 5, a declaration of blessedness, followed by a reason. The book of James is unique in that it seems to be a commentary on sermon on the mount. In the book of James, there are more than 20 illusions or quotes from the sermon on the mount
4. 1 Peter 4:14 If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy [are ye]; ...
Here we see an sort of inverted beatitude, where Peter first say if you are reproach, then happy are ye. If you rearrange it to say "Happy are ye, if ye be reproached for the name of Chirst", you will see that it is very close to:
Matt. 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
5. There are 7 beatitudes in Revelations. Revelation being a book filled with symbolism, there are many 7s, even some that are not counted or marked. We will not look at all of the beatitudes in Revelation now, but I did want to point out that both the first and the last of them point to the blessedness or happiness of obedience.
a. Rev. 1:3 Blessed [is] he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time [is] at hand.
b. Rev. 22:14 Blessed [are] they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
I think we can safely say that the obedient life is the happy life.


II. The Sermon on the mount.
The previous Beatitudes that we looked at were scatter about, but right here at the start of the sermon on the mount, we see the largest group of beatitudes in one place.
Here is Matthew we find that there are 8 beatitudes given by Jesus. It appears that there are 9, but the one in vs 11, is really a personalization of the previous one.

A. Jesus gives a reason
1. With each of the beatitudes give here, we see that Jesus gives both the beatitude and a reason that he see these people as being happy. It's nice that he gives us a reason, because for the most part, the reasons are not self evident. These by default are not people that most would envy.
a. Morning isn't a self evident reason to be happy
a. It isn't self evident why the meek, often thought thought of as week would be happy.
b. Or why those that are persecuted are happy.
2. It should also be noted that even though there are 8 beatitudes, there only 7 reasons give. It appears that Jesus was bring this full circle as a deliberate literary closure.
a. Matt. 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
b. Matt 5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
c. Jesus was trying to point out that all the benefits apply to those who have the kingdom.
-- they will be fulled
-- they will inherit the earth
-- they will obtain mercy
-- they will see God
-- they will be called the sons of God
-- they do posses the kingdom
d. Also of interest is the fact that the first and the last reasons are present tense while the others are future tense. This seems to point out that there is a future and a present for these people. They posses the kingdom, which is the chief happiness.
e. Paul points out in Romans 14:17 that the kingdom of God isn't the dietary laws of the Jews, but it is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
The Kingdom of God is a joyful place.


III. The Kingdom of God
A. What we can say is that the The kingdom of God is the central point of the beatitudes, and it can be rightly said that the beatitudes describe conditions and blessings of citizenship. Sort of a charter of citizenship for the Kingdom of God.

B. Jesus redefines happiness:
1. The kingdom of God is a joyful kingdom (Romans 14:17), but it not joy as in the type of joy that the world gives, but rather it is a supernatural joy only known to those in the kingdom.
2. It is a happiness that exists, even if it isn't at the emotional level
3. It is such that we can morn over sin, and still be happy in our spirit.
4. In James 1, we are instructed to be joyful even when there are trials. Trials are not a fun thing, but during a trial we can still be happy at the level of the spirit, even if we are unhappy at the level of the emotions.

/* ------------------ optional side note ----------------------
C. What is the kingdom?
We are talking about the kingdom, so lets take a minute to briefly discuss what the kingdom really is.
1. The kingdom is the new order of things that Jesus inaugurated when he came.
2. The Prophets predicted that the Messiah would come as a king.
a. Zech 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he [is] just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
b. In the Gospel accounts, we see that Jesus fulfilled this at his first coming.
(Matt 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, John 12)
3. Jesus kingdom is a monarchy. The poeple in Act 17:7 realized that the apostle were preaching that there is a new king, but they were mistaken when they though that they were trying to over through Rome.
4. A king must have a kingdom and where there is a kingdom there are subjects, and a domain.
5. Those that are part of the kingdom, enjoy the benefits of the kingdom.
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D. Worldly happiness pails in comparison to spiritual happiness
1. The conditions in the beatitudes are conditions that are not enviable to the world
The world envy the Rich, the powerful, those insulated from sorrow, the popular, those that are "loved by all".
2. But those that the world envy are not happy in the sense that Jesus described happiness in the kingdom of God.
3. Happiness in the Kingdom of God is those that have found favor with God.
a. As we already looked at Psalm 32, Happy is the man who's sins are forgiven.
b. I would like for you to listen closely and to ponder this axiom by Steve Gregg. It isn't a direct quote from the Bible, but the Bible eludes to it in many places.
It is difficult to be unhappy with a clean conscience, and it is difficult to be happy with an unclean conscience. -- Steve Gregg
4. You can be happy, blessed, and blissful, knowing that God has nothing against you, because you are forgive, and have not violated his commandments.
In 1 John 3:18 we see that we know we are of the truth, because we keep his commandments. We can have confidence towards God when we have kept his commandments. And because we have kept his commandments, we will have a clean conscience.
5. People may be happy in the ways of the world, they may laugh, be rich, they may not morn, they may not be persecuted, all men may speak well of them, but because they do not have a clean conscience, they do to bed, and do not sleep well. This is not to say that all the people that enjoy the conditions I just listed are necessarily at odds with God, but Jesus points out that what the world says brings happiness is not what truly brings happiness to the spirit. Rather having a right relationship with God is what brings true happiness. If men hate you but God can say well done good and faithful servant, that is what will bring true happiness.


IV. The Citizens of the Kingdom
A. The beatitudes are a composite description of those who qualify for citizenship in the Kingdom of God. We do not qualify by having these traits, because it could be said that we have these traits because we are part of the Kingdom or because of the work that God has already done. But what we can say is that they are qualifications. Again its not that you get into the kingdom by doing these things, but rather these are conditions for grace. If you are poor in spirit or morning over our sins, then we will receive grace. At least 2 places in the New Testament it says that God resits the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5). It is not to say that we earn grace, but that there are some qualifications.

B. What I'm trying to say is that it is not just the poor in spirit that have the kingdom of heaven, or the meek that inherit the earth, or the merciful that obtain mercy, but we must be all of these in order to be in the kingdom. All the traits apply to all Christians, and all the privileges apply to all Christians. Some Christians may be inherently more proficient in some areas, but that does not mean that other Christians do not posses the same traits.
D. It seems that Jesus is using a literary devices to show that these are not really all different people, but really these are all Christians.
1. We wouldn't say that some Christians are meek and others not. For Jesus said elsewhere that all Christians are to be merciful (Luke 6:36), and such shall obtain mercy
3. Wouldn't we also say that all Christians call the children of God?
4. Are not all Christians are to be pure in heart? For in Hebrews 11, it says that only the pure in heart will see God.
5. I believe that we can also safely say that all Christians are to hunger and thirst after righteousness, for later on in chapter 6 of the sermon on the mount, Jesus says to seek ye first the kingdom of God. (Matt. 6:36)


Closing:
What we see here in Mathew Chapter 5 is the Ideal. The Bible often presents the ideal because God can not lower the bar of perfection, or we might make it over the bar and begin relying our ourselves. So this is not to say that we a Christians are perfect, only Jesus is perfect, but it is our goal as true Christians is to be like Him. We must remember that we can only do this through his Holy Spirit. When we begin to rely on ourselves and our own strength, we will fail. The Bible does realize that the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. The disciples were not perfectly obedient, they fell asleep when Jesus asked them to stay awake and pray. They wanted to stay awake, but they didn't. In James (3:2) is says that in many things we all stumble, but stumbling is a mis-step from the goal. It isn't something that you do on purpose, it is a deviation. The normal life of a Christian is a walk of obedience, and towards perfection in the image of Christ. Stumbling is an accident or failure. Someone who stumbles doesn't define the rest of their life in a series of stumbles, but rather they realize they have stumble, and pick themselves up and go on. You don't keep stumbling, but you keep walking. You may stumble again as some point, but life is not just a series of stumbles, it a series of steps. It is a walk. Sometimes, even bad people stumble into good behaviour, and sometimes Godly people stumble into some kind of a failure or imperfection. Because it is a stumble it is not something that they do regularly. The ideal is not to stumble, but to walk. Realistically we all realize that we sometimes stumble, but that doesn't mean every moment, or most of the time. Stumbling is not descriptive of who we are, or what we are aimed at. What we are to be aimed at is Christ-likeness and perfection, that is where the bar is. The Bible can not lower the bar, but God can give us grace, when we fail to measure up. But failing to measure up, suggests that it is our goal. What we have been looking at here, is where Jesus describes the ideal citizen of the kingdom, and that ideal should be our ideal. We should be one who walks in the Spirit. I'm going to end here, but I want to challenge you to take some time and study the beatitudes in Mathew Chapter 5, so that we can each one can strive to be the kind of citizens that the King deserves to have in his kingdom. Our goal should be "I wanta be like Jesus."

* Written from notes taken on Steve Gregg's intro lecture to the Beatitudes.
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