“The Blessing No One Wants”
Matthew 5:10-12
If you look at the very first beatitude in verse 3 and then look at the last one we just read you will quickly notice that the both end with the same promise. “Happy are those who are poor in spirit...Happy are those who are persecuted... And here’s the promise...theirs is the kingdom of Heaven. These two verses are what we might call bookends. The beginning and the end and they present the same promise. Now want us to look back at what we have said for the past two months. These are the 8 keys happiness that we see here.
Key #1. We must learn to eat humble pie. Humility is a key to happiness. Humble people do not think less of themselves. They just think of themselves less.
Key #2. Joy comes in the mourning. Happiness comes when we learn to grieve over the sin that is in our lives and we deal with it.
Key #3. Happy are the meek. Meekness is not weakness. Meekness is strength under control.
Key #4. We are happy when we are hungry and thirsty for the right things. For the things of God.
Key #5. Practice mercy. This book is a book that teaches mercy. The Good Samaritan practiced mercy while the other 2 men passed the injured man completely by.
Key #6. Happy are those who are heart is pure. Many of us need a spiritual heart transplant. A new heart.
Key #7. Be a peacemaker. With all of the conflict we see in our world, being a peacemaker will not only bring you happiness but it will pour over into the lives of others. All the way back to the book of Genesis we see conflict.
Today we come to Key #8. And I want to read it again. Matthew 5:10-12..
Now when we look at the Big Picture here we see two things that are huge (1) we see 8 keys to happiness. (2) Not only do we see a picture of happiness, we see a picture of Jesus Himself. Listen to these verses. Jesus said:
* I am meek and humble in heart.
* Jesus knew grief. He wept over the death of His friend Lazarus.
* Jesus was always hungry for more of God. While the disciples slept Jesus prayed all night in the garden of Gethsemane. Sweat drops of blood.
* When people objected because Jesus invited sinners to eat with He and the disciples He said it’s not the healthy who need a doctor. It’s the sick. He said go and learn what this means. I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
In scripture after scripture we see that the Beatitudes give us a clear picture of who Jesus was and how practicing these principles can lead us to real happiness. Today we move to the final key. Key #8. And it is probably the most unlikely of all... in fact I call this the blessing no one wants. Happy are those who are persecuted. Happy are you when people insult you... happy are you when people say bad things about you. Let me ask you something, are those the things you look forward to each day? Persecution, slander, gossip, insults? I don’t. But we have to look at the context. We are happy when people do these things because of our faith. Because of Him. If Jesus is the reason for our persecution then we will be happy.
This is what we call a paradox. A paradox by the way is not two ducks. A paradox is a statement that when we first hear it we cannot understand how it could possibly be true. I see 3 of them in this passage.
1. Persecution is a Given in the Christian life. Too many people have bought into the lie that says if you live for Christ everything will be great. We will be successful, wealthy and problem free. There is a Greek word for that kind of thinking. Hogwash. Another one. Baloney.
To be clear the Bible teaches that just the opposite will happen to those who obey Christ. Jesus never taught a “prosperity gospel.” He taught a persecution gospel. Happy are those who are persecuted because of righteousness. John Stott said we should not be surprised if persecution comes... but rather we should be surprised if it does not. Jesus told the disciples that they would face incredible struggles. Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death and you will be hated by all nations because of me. This is exactly what has taken place in the lives of the apostles.
* Philip was beaten, thrown into prison and crucified.
* James was stoned to death.
* Andrew was crucified and left on the cross for 3 days.
* Bartholomew was beaten with clubs and was then crucified.
* Simon was crucified.
* Jude was crucified.
* Peter was crucified upside down because he said, “I don’t feel worthy to be crucified in the same manner as the Lord.”
Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:12 “in fact everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted.
Peter said in 1st Peter 4:12.. Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.
Persecution is a Given. There are at least two reasons why we will be persecuted. (1) Because of the life that we live. V. 10 says “those who are persecuted because of righteousness.” Now some of us might feel persecuted or mistreated but it may have nothing to do with righteousness. Listen if you don’t use deodorant don’t claim persecution because no one wants to sit next to you. If you’re rude or disrespectful don’t be surprised if you are left out or pushed away. There is a difference between being persecuted for righteousness sake and being self-righteous. Real persecution comes when we are living a godly life.
(2) We will be persecuted because of the Lord we love. Jesus says that people will insult, persecute and say false things because of me. To be righteous means to be like Jesus. You see for one reason or another some people are so upset with God that they take it out on those who love Him. In the early church they were confronted with a choice-will you follow Caesar or will you follow Christ. You can’t do both. (Jesus actually said that we could by the way). But the early believers said I choose Christ so they were branded as outlaws/criminals.
2. Persecution is a Gift. Most of us will agree that persecution is a given but to say that it is a gift is a stretch for most of us. Happy are those who are persecuted. The Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them. That’s the gift. And no one can take it away. Hebrews describes what happened to an number of the heroes of the faith. Hebrews 11:36-38. Verse 39 contains a very curious phrase. “The world was not their home and in some mysterious way, they saw persecution as a gift that brought them to their home in heaven.
You and I live in a country where we are allowed to freely gather for worship. Authorities will not come in to shut us down for preaching the gospel. We will not be arrested in the parking lot because we are carrying a Bible in. Most of us have never been beaten because of our righteous behavior. Here’s the point. We might never be called on to give our life for Jesus but the question is would we? Would you? We sit here today in padded chairs and we say absolutely! I mean how do we know if we would be willing to give it all for Christ? Let’s check our commitment for a moment.
1. Check your commitment to prayer and to God’s book, the Bible. What does that if to do with it? If you are not willing to study God’s word you probably will not give your life.
2. Check your checkbook. Ouch! If you were able to look at someone’s checkbook you would be able to tell a lot about their lifestyle. In the USA we have much more than most of the world. Check your checkbook and see if you are committed with your finances. If you’re not willing to give 10% of your income how can you convince someone that you are willing to give your all? Check your checkbook.
3. Check your commitment to sharing God’s book/word. Do you share it with your family? Your friends? If you don’t do it now you certainly won’t when you are being persecuted.
Persecution is a Given. Persecution is a Gift.
3. Persecution brings Gladness/happiness. V. 14. James says when you face a trial, count it as joy. Jesus says when you are persecuted be happy. What does than mean? How is that possible? Well it doesn’t mean be happy when a problem comes up, when a trial pulls you down or when people mistreat you. It means be happy for what those things represent. If you are living a godly life and someone persecutes you for that, be happy! Why? It shows you love Jesus! It shows you are living a godly life! Be happy because you will see Heaven and great will be your reward.
A group of Christians..men and women and some children had been worshiping in secret in another country. They were a part of what we sometimes call the underground church. One evening as they were having Bible study a group of armed men kicked the door down and held all of them at gunpoint. They said we have heard that you are Christians and so we were sent here to find out and we plan to kill each of you if what we have heard is true. They said how many of you are truly believers in Christ? Hands went up. Not everyone. So those who didn’t raise their hands were sent out of the building. Once they were out the soldiers said OK now you can put your hands down. The people were surprised. The soldiers said two weeks ago we raided a group like this with orders to kill everyone but instead as we waited outside to kick the door down we heard them talking about God’s love. We had never heard that and we all gave our lives to Christ. We wanted to come here and worship with you but we just wanted to make sure you were actually committed.
