Continue series on SOTM- Mtt 5-7- Called to Suffer.
SOTM begins w/beatitudes-last time-looked at 1st four
Lets review the beatitudes (slide for each one)
Clarify something I said about the 3rd beatitude-
Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. V5
Talked about- individually, we are more concerned w/justifying ourselves rather than edifying others.
Corporately, the church is better at organizing against some injustice- than demonstrating God’s love.
While trying to present some examples, some thought I said- all environmentalist were going to hell.
I was not trying to send all environmentalist to hell.
I was trying to illustrate how the church does not always demonstrate God’s love to the world.
Introduction- looking at- Beatitudes Mtt 5:1-12
Beatitudes are more about what God wants to do in us, than what God wants us to do.
Blessed are- God- not talking about what makes us feel happy- but, what He thinks of the man/woman
who lives the life of the beatitudes.
Such a person is blessed in God’s eyes.
Fifth Beatitude- Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. V7
Mercy- compassionate, not just having pity, but demonstrating true, active, compassion.
A compassion that motivates us to action.
Jesus does not tell us who to be merciful towards.
Is he thinking of people who experience tragedy?
Luke 10:30-34
30 Jesus replied and said, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead.
33 "But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion … NASU
Or could it be mercy directed towards those who are hungry, sick, outcasts of society?
Perhaps He is referring to those who wrong/offend us-
… justice cries out for punishment but mercy for forgiveness. John Stott
God is a God of mercy, who continually shows mercy.
It is appropriate therefore that the citizens of His Kingdom would also show mercy.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. V7
This does not mean that if I demonstrate mercy, I now deserve mercy- that somehow I have earned it.
We find a similar principle concerning forgiveness …
Mtt 6:14 "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. NASU
Forgiving others does not earn God’s forgiveness.
What motivates us to forgive is the knowledge that we have been forgiven.
Eph 4:32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. NASU
I cannot receive the forgiveness/mercy of God, unless I repent of my sins, likewise.
I cannot claim to have repented of my sin if I continue to be unforgiving/unmerciful towards others.
We forgive because we have received forgiveness.
We extend mercy because we have experienced mercy
One earmark of revival- when people recognize their own spiritual poverty- need of forgiveness/mercy.
This in turn will lead them to the demonstration of God’s love and mercy towards others.
For to be meek is to acknowledge to others that we are sinners; to be merciful is to have compassion on others, for they are sinners too. John Stott
As Jesus said …
Lk 6:36 "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. NASU
Sixth Beatitude- Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. V8
“The blessed” in this beatitude- not the emotionally pious, nor intellectually astute, but- pure in heart.
In- Bible- heart is the center of man’s personality.
Mtt 15:19-20
19 "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.
20 "These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man." NASU
Purity of heart must never be confused with outward conformity to rules, but rather …
what do you think about in your mind?
to what do you pay consistent allegiance to?
what do you want more than anything else?
what or whom do you love?
to what extent are your actions/words a cover up for what is really in your heart?
The purity referred to here is an inward purity first, that works itself into the way we live outwardly.
Psa 51:6 Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom. NASU
Psa 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me. NASU
Jesus addressed with the Pharisees their obsession with external, outward purity …
Lk 11:39 But the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the platter; but inside of you, you are full of robbery and wickedness. NASU
As we look at the SOTM, we will see God desiring a heart-righteousness over a rule-righteousness.
The pure in heart are …
the single-minded, who are free from the tyranny of a divided self. Professor Tasker
Pure heart- heart singly focused on the things of God.
Their thoughts and motives are pure and unmixed.
As people, so often we wear different masks in different settings to hide our true self.
Seventh Beatitude- Blessed are peacemakers, because they shall be called sons of God. V9
Every Christian is to be a peacemaker- all areas of life
This beatitude does not hold a blessing to the peaceful nor those who yearn for peace, but to peacemakers.
Jesus is the greatest peacemaker …
Isa 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. NASU
Peace- FWM- to be safe in mind, body, personal welfare- health, prosperity, all is well.
How do we reconcile this with …
Mtt 10:34-37
Jesus is saying that conflict is an inevitable result of His coming and the message of the Gospel.
However, the Bible is clear, that we are never to seek conflict or to purposefully be responsible for it.
Rom 12:18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. NASU
Peace and reconciliation go hand in hand.
God is the author of peace and reconciliation.
Col 1:19-22
God, who offered to the world reconciliation through His Son, and now offers it through His people.
2 Cor 5:18-20
Jesus brings peace between God and man be removing the sin that separates them, and
bringing man into right relationship with God.
The message of the Gospel, the good news, is the greatest peacemaking message in the world today.
Those who share the message bring peace to men …
Isa 52:7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, "Your God reigns!" NASU
The Christians role as peacemaker extends beyond just sharing the message of the Gospel.
It extends to reducing tensions, seeking solutions, opening communication between people, etc.
There is a difference between peace and appeasement.
The peace of God is not peace at any price.
God has offered peace to mankind and the price was the life-blood of His Son.
We must be careful of offering a false peace.
Evangelism is good, but not proclaiming the Gospel message without the cost of discipleship.
Unity in the church is a good, but not at the cost of compromising the message of the Gospel.
… they shall be called sons of God.
In Jewish thought, son often bears the meaning of partaking of the character or likeness of the father.
Son of a dog- you take on the character of a dog.
The peacemakers reward is to be called a son of God because he reflects God’s peacemaking character.
Eighth Beatitude- Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. V10
Not all attempts at peacemaking succeed.
Hopefully this is not because of our own idiosyncrasies but because of our testimony.
Persecution comes when people reject- righteousness we hunger/thirst for, because they reject Christ.
As John Stott says …
Persecution is simply the clash between two irreconcilable value-systems. John Stott
How does Jesus tell us to react to such persecution?
Mtt 5:11-12
We are not told to …
retaliate, strike back, or
lick our wounds in self-pity.
We may lose everything on earth, but we shall inherit everything in heaven. John Stott
We are called to be peacemakers, but we can expect opposition.
Discipleship means allegiance to the suffering Christ, and it is therefore not at all surprising that Christians should be called upon to suffer. Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Conclusion
The beatitudes paint a picture of a Christian disciple.
A true disciple recognizes his own …
spiritual poverty and need of God,
he mourns over his own sin that is the cause of this spiritual poverty,
this makes him meek before God and men, and
motivates him to hunger/thirst for righteousness
he has mercy on others who sin as he does,
he works to help people become- reconciled to God, and
for all his efforts he is opposed and slandered.
Jesus disciples, then, must determine their values from their perspective of eternity. DA Carson
