Learning To Be Blessed Series

INTRODUCTION

SLIDE #1

How many of you want to live a blessed or happy life?

How do you live a life that is blessed or happy? What is the secret formula for living a blessed and happy life?

What if I could share with you a formula for having the blessed life that you have been looking for?

What is the world’s formula for blessings or happiness? In most cases the world’s formula for happiness is just the opposite of what Jesus taught in the opening of the Sermon on the Mount. Who better to give the formula to happiness than Jesus, the author of giver of life?

Do you want to live a blessed life enough to tune into what Jesus gives us?

Today we are going to start a series on what has been called the greatest teachings ever given.

The Sermon on the Mount begins in Matthew 5:1-12 with what has been called "The Beatitudes." The word beatitude¨ comes from a Latin word that means, "blessed¨ or "happy¨. In this section of Matthew, Jesus gives to us the formula to spiritual bliss and spiritual prosperity.

The beatitudes are paradoxical, being the very reverse of the world’s view. To the skeptic, Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:1-12 do not make sense.

For those who have put these to the test, there is no question that God’s way to blessings and happiness is the best way.

What we find in this passage is attitudes that Jesus expects people of the Kingdom to strive to possess. These attitudes do not usually come naturally or easily for us. We need to learn them.

WE need to understand that Jesus wants all of His children to live in a state of blessing. With each corresponding attitude or action, a blessing follows.

Today I want us to look at the path that Jesus has laid out for citizens of heaven.

Let’s begin in verses 1-3

SLIDE #2

Matthew 5:1-3 ( ESV ) Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

SLIDE #3

SERMON

I. BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT

This is the first step involved in learning to be blessed. Being poor in spirit is the recognition on our part that we are missing something very valuable in our lives.

Another way of reading this verse is, "Blessed is the man who has realized his own utter helplessness, and who has put his whole trust in God.¨

On the surface this does not make sense. How many people want to be spiritually poor?

When we are poor in spirit we understand that we have a need; an emptiness, within us that only a relationship with Jesus will fill.

In the book of Revelation, the bible tells us that the church at Laodicea did not have this awareness and they were condemned because they thought they had no spiritual need.

SLIDE #4

Revelation 3:17-18 ( ESV ) For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

This is an example if folks who will not be blessed.

This is where many people fall short; they feel that they are a good person, so they do not need God. This is why for many people they have to hit bottom before they come to Jesus. It takes them hitting bottom before they realize just how poor in spirit they are.

Jesus says that those who are poor in spirit will have the opportunity to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. They will have the opportunity to be a part of the Church now and later when the church is taken up into heaven as the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-29)

When we are poor in spirit, when we realize we are missing something important in life it can lead to this next beatitude found in verse 4

SLIDE #4

Matthew 5:4 ( ESV ) "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

SLIDE #5

II. BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO MOURN V4

There are many people who start to recognize a need for Jesus, but you cannot stop there.

The next step that comes after recognizing your need is that we mourn over our sin against God.

This verse could be written as John MacAurthur Jr. writes, "Happy are the sad.¨ How many people are happy when they are sad? The paradox of the second beatitude is obvious. What could be more self-contradictory than the idea that the sad are happy, that the path to happiness is sadness that the way to rejoicing is in mourning?