The Beatitudes
Matthew 5: 1/11
Before Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount, Isaiah the prophet proclaims, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” He was speaking concerning the ministry of John the Baptist who was baptizer of those in Jordan that had confessed their sins.
John said, “I indeed baptize you with water into repentance; but he that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear; he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.” Then we read that Jesus came to John to be baptized, that all righteousness might be fulfilled.
In the middle of the fourth chapter, after the wilderness experience, Jesus began by saying, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” He then begins to choose the ones that would make up the inner circle of men that would follow Him in His earth ministry
In chapter five, beginning with verse one, “And seeing the multitudes, He went up into a mountain; and when He was set, his disciples came unto him; and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying. Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Luke simply states, blessed are the poor. It has been disputed whether Christ meant the poor in reference to the things of this life, or to the humble. Note, it is said that the gospel would be preached to the poor. Mat 11:5 “The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.”
The riches of this life produce care, anxiety, dangers, and self-reliance. But the poor in spirit usually have a humble opinion of themselves. We Knowthat we are sinners, and have no righteousness of our own, and have a need to be saved only by the grace and mercy of God. We know that our riches cannot save us. To be poor in spirit is opposed to pride, and vanity and ambitions.
Matthew 19:23 Jesus said unto his disciples, “Verily I say unto you, that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Sometimes a man’s riches can get in the way of his depending upon God.
Jesus then stated, Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted.” This verse could have two meanings; either, that those are blessed who are afflicted with the loss of friends or possessions, or that they mourn over the life they were living. As Christ came to preach repentance, to induce people to mourn over their sins and to forsake them, He probably had the latter in mind.
Listen to what Paul had to say, “For godly sorrow worked repentance to salvation………….”
Verse five, “Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth. Meekness is an act of patience when evil words are spoken about you. It does not mean to surrender your rights, nor cowardice; but it is the opposite of sudden anger or long-harbored vengeance. Jesus insisted on his right saying, “If I have done evil, bear witness of the evil; but if I have done well, why smites thou me.” “
Paul asserted his right when he said, “They have beaten us openly uncondemn, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out, but let them come themselves, and fetch us out.”
We do not need to press the rights of other to secure our own rights, just be meek and have patience.
Blessed are the merciful –Those who are affected by the sufferings of others. A person who is merciful will also receive mercy. “Whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little one, shall in no wise lose his reward.” Showing mercy is a virtue, and having the ability to show mercy is a wonderful quality.
There is no better way to imitate God than to show mercy; nothing delights the heart of God more than to exercise of mercy. We who are guilty sinners; wretched, dying and exposed to eternal woe, He has shown his mercy by giving His Son to dies for us; by His willingness to pardon and save us and sending the Holy Spirit. We are partakers of His unending mercy every day that we live.
Jesus then stated, Blessed are the pure in heart –That is, those whose minds, motive, and principles are pure; who seek not to have the actions of others corrected, but who desire to be holy in heart. Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart.
They shall see God - when we see Him, we will behold him as a Judge, yet He is our Friend. “And we shall see his face, and we will be in His presence.” What a great privilege and high honor to be in the presence of the King.
Blessed are the peace makers; for they shall be called the children of God. Those who strive to prevent contention, strife, and war use their influence to reconcile opposing parties whether in families the neighborhoods or the church. It should be the desire of every person to be a peacemaker.
There is an old English proverb, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” I believe that long and deadly quarrels could have been prevented if a little kindness had been shown. The song says, “We ought to show a little kindness and overlook with blindness.”
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, to persecute means to literally pursue; follow after. Here it means to vex, or oppress one, on account of his/her religion. To have your name, reputation or property endangered just because you are a friend of God is a sinful thing, and should be repented off.
We are not to provoke one to anger but to do good works with the words that we speak. All that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
In verse thirteen, Jesus is still speaking to the multitudes telling them, “Ye are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses it savor, [its ability to be effective] wherewith shall it be salted? It is good for nothing, but to be cast out, and trodden under the foot of men.”
Being good salt and letting our light shine in a world that is filled with darkness will create a climate of love, peace and light causing men to open their hearts to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In chapter eight Jesus closes His sermon on the mount by stating, “Whosoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock.” “And every one that hears these sayings of mine, and does them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which builds his house upon the sand.”
And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
