(This sermon has been adapted from the Bible study of Mark A. Copeland and can be found at ExecutableOutlines.com, where permission is given to use and share this as long as it is free.)
INTRODUCTION
Last week we did a broad overview of the Sermon on the Mount.
We first looked at the theme of the Sermon and we determined that the theme of the sermon is: The Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Then we looked at the Content of the sermon.
We divided it into different parts and subsections.
Following that we looked the difference between the phrase Matthew used namely “The Kingdom of Heaven” and the phrase the other gospel writers used namely “The Kingdom of God”.
We determined that it is indeed one and the same thing and that the reason Matthew used that phrase was because he wrote to the Jews.
They were reluctant to use the name of God and Matthew also wanted to emphasize the fact that this Kingdom was a spiritual one and not a physical one.
Lastly we looked at the different meaning for Kingdom.
This morning we begin to take a closer look at "The Sermon On The Mount,"
In Matthew 5 we notice first the section referred to as "The Beatitudes"
SCRIPTURE
Let’s read it from
Matthew 5:3-12 KJV
(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.
SERMON
So what is Jesus saying in these verses?
We find that, in these verses, Jesus is discussing two things:
• He is discussing the blessedness of those who possess certain qualities.
• He is stating what benefits they receive as a result of the qualities they possess.
If we summarize it we can almost say that it is as if Jesus was answering two questions the people might have been asking:
• Who are the citizens of this kingdom of heaven?
• What benefits do they receive?
In discussing these passages of scripture I will first discuss each beatitude and will then move on to the benefits.
Meaning of Blessed
But before we go on let’s quickly look at the word Blessed as used in this scripture and determine the meaning of the word:
The English word “Blessed” is translated from the Greek word “makarios”, which means: Happy, Honored
But this is not just the normal happiness that is spoken about here.
This is God-given happiness that is experienced by Believers.
Let me tell you a truth: This happiness is not based on physical circumstances, but it is based on inner joy.
So we can say that this blessedness, this God-given happiness, is both
• a current attitude toward God and life
• It is also a hope for the future.
So as we read this scripture we can take the word “Blessed” and replace it with the phrase God-given Happiness.
Let me give you an example by replacing verse 3 with this phrase:
The poor in spirit has God-given happiness: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
If you are truly blessed it means you have God-given happiness.
Answer this question for yourself:
Do I truly have God-given happiness?
Is my happiness based on inner joy rather than physical circumstances?
If your answer is yes then you can truly say you are blessed.
So now we know the meaning of the word blessed.
Therefore let’s first look at "The Beatitudes" from the viewpoint of the question:
WHAT IS THE CHARACTER REQUIRED OF THE CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN?
The first thing we need to understand is that only those who have ALL of these qualities that I am about to discuss are truly Kingdom of Heaven citizens.
Let me explain why:
• You cannot be poor in spirit but you do not hunger and thirst for righteousness.
• You cannot mourn, but not be pure in heart
• You cannot be meek but not a peacemaker
Do you understand why all these characteristics have to be present?
And if you look closely you will see that some of them follow on the previous one.
Peter says something similar in:
2 Peter 1:5-11 GW
(5) Because of this, make every effort to add integrity to your faith; and to integrity add knowledge;
(6) to knowledge add self-control; to self-control add endurance; to endurance add godliness;
(7) to godliness add Christian affection; and to Christian affection add love.
(8) If you have these qualities and they are increasing, it demonstrates that your knowledge about our Lord Jesus Christ is living and productive.
(9) If these qualities aren't present in your life, you're shortsighted and have forgotten that you were cleansed from your past sins.
(10) Therefore, brothers and sisters, use more effort to make God's calling and choosing of you secure. If you keep doing this, you will never fall away.
(11) Then you will also be given the wealth of entering into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
So let’s look at the Citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven
CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN ARE THOSE WHO...
POOR IN SPIRIT
(3) Blessed are the poor in spirit:
"To be poor in spirit is to have a humble opinion of ourselves; to be sensible that we are sinners, and have no righteousness of our own; to be willing to be saved only by the rich grace and mercy of God" (BARNES)
It is to be conscious or convicted of our moral / spiritual poverty.
The phrase denotes a beggar who is dependent on a provider.
An example of this can be found in Luke 18.
Jesus tells the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector that went to pray.
The Pharisee prayed the following:
Luke 18:11-12 GW
(11) …'God, I thank you that I'm not like other people! I'm not a robber or a dishonest person. I haven't committed adultery. I'm not even like this tax collector.
(12) I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my entire income.'
Then the Tax Collector prayed as follows:
Luke 18:13 ESV
(13) … the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'
Listen to Jesus words:
Luke 18:14 GW
(14) "I can guarantee that this tax collector went home with God's approval, but the Pharisee didn't. Everyone who honors himself will be humbled, but the person who humbles himself will be honored."
If you are not poor in spirit what are you?
You are proud of heart.
You are like the Pharisee.
To be poor in spirit means that we acknowledge that we are dependent on God alone as our provider.
So the first characteristic is that you need to be poor in spirit.
MOURN
(4) Blessed are they that mourn
When we think of the word mourn we think of crying.
In the context of our scripture it means loud wailing.
In the Greek language this is the strongest term for mourning.
So what should one mourn over?
What should one have loud wailing over?
It is because of:
• one's own spiritual poverty
• one's personal sinfulness
Let’s look at an example in the Bible
We find David after his adultery with Bathsheba, that he write the following in:
Psalms 51:3-4 ESV
(3) For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
(4) Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.
When David received the message that his son will die it is recorded as follows in:
2 Samuel 12:16-17 GW
(16) David pleaded with God for the child; he fasted and lay on the ground all night.
(17) The older leaders in his palace stood beside him to raise him up from the ground, but he was unwilling. And he wouldn't eat with them.
We see that David Mourned in front of God because of his sin.
The second characteristic is thus to mourn – Mourn over one’s sinfulness.
But it is also interesting to see that the first characteristic and the second one is connected to each other.
The fact is that, unless one is poor in spirit one cannot mourn.
You should therefore be poor in sprit to enable you to mourn.
If you are not poor in spirit you will not mourn over your spiritual poverty.
MEEK
(5) Blessed are the meek
To be meek is to be humble.
It is to NOT be self-righteous
When we look at the origin of the word it implies domesticated strength, like a trained horse.
Jesus Himself said that He is meek:
Matthew 11:29 KJV
(29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
Matthew 21:5 KJV
(5) Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.
When you are meek it means that you would rather suffer injury than inflict it
BUT, this is NOT out of weakness, but out of humility
It is also realizing one's own poverty of spirit, one's own sinfulness.
A good example of meekness is Moses.
Moses was not a weak or timid man
We read about this:
Exodus 32:19-20 GW
(19) When he came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. In a burst of anger Moses threw down the tablets and smashed them at the foot of the mountain.
(20) Then he took the calf they had made, burned it, ground it into powder, scattered it on the water, and made the Israelites drink it.
Exodus 32:30-34 GW
(30) The next day Moses said to the people, "You have committed a serious sin. Now I will go up the mountain to the LORD. Maybe I will be able to make a payment for your sin and make peace with the LORD for your sin."
(31) So Moses went back to the LORD and said, "These people have committed such a serious sin! They made gods out of gold for themselves.
(32) But will you forgive their sin? If not, please wipe me out of the book you have written."
(33) The LORD answered Moses, "I will wipe out of my book whoever sins against me.
(34) Now, go! Lead the people to the place I told you about. My Messenger will go ahead of you. But when I punish, I will punish them for their sin."
But let’s read the following in:
Numbers 12:1-3 GW
Miriam and Aaron began to criticize Moses because he was married to a woman from Sudan.
They asked, "Did the LORD speak only through Moses? Didn't he also speak through us?" The LORD heard their complaint.
(Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on earth.)
What do you see here as one of Moses’ characteristics?
He was a humble man.
HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS
(6) Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness
First we see here that there is an intense desire towards righteousness.
Jesus says that they hunger and thirst towards it, which indicates an intense desire.
In other words, they are looking for the righteousness which will meet:
• Their spiritual poverty
• Their mourning over their spiritual poverty
Let me tell you something this morning:
To hunger and thirst is not a half-hearted search
It is one that is exemplified by David in:
Psalms 42:1-2 GW
…As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When may I come to see God's face?
This longing is an ongoing thing
You should hunger and thirst for righteousness every day, just as you hunger and thirst for food and water every day.
So up to now we saw that the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven should have the following characteristics:
• The should be poor in Spirit
• They should mourn
• They should be meek
• They should hunger and thirst after righteousness
The next characteristic is that they should be:
MERCIFUL
(7) Blessed are the merciful
Mercy is the result of knowing God.
It is not the grounds of knowing God.
In other words we are merciful because we know God.
We are not merciful to know God.
Mercy is the ability to put one's self in another person’s situation and act with compassion.
Act with empathy.
It means that we show love towards those in misery.
Think of the Good Samaritan.
It is to possess a forgiving spirit toward those who sin against you.
For example when Jesus was on the cross He said the following in:
Luke 23:34 GW
(34) …"Father, forgive them. They don't know what they're doing." Meanwhile, the soldiers divided his clothes among themselves by throwing dice.
And when Stephan was being stoned to death he said the following in:
Acts 7:60 GW
(60) Then he knelt down and shouted, "Lord, don't hold this sin against them." After he had said this, he died.
Will you be able to show mercy when it really matters?
This brings us to the next characteristics:
PURE IN HEART
(8) Blessed are the pure in heart
This talks about our attitude.
Jesus speaks about the heart here.
The focus is on the heart.
It is believed to be the centre of our being.
Neither the mind nor any ritual actions is seen as the centre.
Pure in this context can mean singlemindedness and focused.
It means singleness of heart,
It is an honesty which has no hidden motive, no selfish interest, and is true and open in all things.
It refers to one who is sincere, honest, without hypocrisy.
David wrote the following Psalm, Psalm 24, where he said in verses 3-4:
Psalms 24:3-4 GW
Who may go up the LORD'S mountain? Who may stand in his holy place?
The one who has clean hands and a pure heart and does not long for what is false or lie when he is under oath.
This brings us to our next characteristic:
PEACEMAKERS
(9) Blessed are the peacemakers
There was hostility between God and humans because of sin.
Humans changed the situation, not God.
The word peacemaker denotes reconciliation between God and humanity
This results in peace between people.
However, this is peace through repentance and faith.
If you proclaim Salvation then you are a peacemaker.
It is those people who devote their lives to making peace by following the Prince of Peace
See what Paul wrote to the Roman church in:
Romans 12:18-21 GW
(18) As much as it is possible, live in peace with everyone.
(19) Don't take revenge, dear friends. Instead, let God's anger take care of it. After all, Scripture says, "I alone have the right to take revenge. I will pay back, says the Lord."
(20) But, "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink. If you do this, you will make him feel guilty and ashamed."
(21) Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil with good.
It is not always easy to be at peace with people.
It takes effort.
Romans 5:1 KJV
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
"At peace with God and thus themselves filled with sweet peace, they live in peace, if possible, with all men and work to keep and to make peace where peace is threatened or lost. Theirs is the work of true Christians who follow in the footsteps of the Prince of Peace." (LENSKI)
Are you a peacemaker?
The last characteristic Jesus mentions in this sermon are that they are
PERSECUTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS' SAKE
(10) Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake
We can read this piece of scripture as follows:
Who have allowed themselves to be persecuted, or have endured persecution
The idea is that they did not flee from it but willingly submitted to when it came to them.
Verse 11 explains in what why they are persecuted:
• Being reviled or reproached
• Being Persecuted
• Being slandered falsely
All for Jesus' sake
As citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven we might have to face persecution.
The early church did.
We read about it in:
Acts 14:21-22 KJV
(21) And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch,
(22) Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
Philippians 1:29-30 GW
(29) God has given you the privilege not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him.
(30) You are involved in the same struggle that you saw me having. Now you hear that I'm still involved in it.
So let’s quickly recap the characteristics:
• They should be poor in Spirit
• They should mourn
• They should be meek
• They should hunger and thirst after righteousness
• They should be merciful
• They should be pure in heart
• They should be peacemakers
• They should be willing to be persecuted
These are the characteristics of the citizens of the Kingdom of heaven
The question is this:
Is it worth it?
To answer that, let's now look at the "The Beatitudes" from the viewpoint of another question:
WHAT BENEFITS DO CITIZENS OF THE KINGDOM RECEIVE?
We have already concluded that their condition can be summed up into one word:
Blessed
In light of the benefits received we see the reason why they are blessed.
Why they are happy.
THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN
(3) Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
(10) Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
From the previous lesson we have concluded that the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven is under the kingly rule of God
They are in a spiritual kingdom
This, today involves being part of the church
So the church is the PRESENT manifestation of the kingdom of heaven
It also involves the new heaven and the new earth, which will be in the future.
So we can conclude that we have the benefit of being part of the Kingdom of Heaven.
THEY SHALL BE COMFORTED
(4) Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
This refers to those who mourn over their sins and spiritual poverty
Even now they are comforted.
Listen to this scripture found in:
2 Corinthians 1:3-5 GW
Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He is the Father who is compassionate and the God who gives comfort.
He comforts us whenever we suffer. That is why whenever other people suffer, we are able to comfort them by using the same comfort we have received from God.
Because Christ suffered so much for us, we can receive so much comfort from him.
And they will be comforted in the future:
Revelation 21:1-4 GW
I saw a new heaven and a new earth, because the first heaven and earth had disappeared, and the sea was gone.
Then I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, dressed like a bride ready for her husband.
I heard a loud voice from the throne say, "God lives with humans! God will make his home with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There won't be any more death. There won't be any grief, crying, or pain, because the first things have disappeared."
THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH
(5) Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Because they placed the Kingdom of God first, they inherited the earth.
Matthew 6:33 GW
(33) But first, be concerned about his kingdom and what has his approval. Then all these things will be provided for you.
Therefore, by placing God first and searching to become part of His Kingdom, you have gained the ability to have inherited earth.
Also, you will one day be part of the new earth.
THEY SHALL BE FILLED
(6) Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
When we empty ourselves and search after righteousness, we will be filled with that righteousness.
This righteousness is founded in Christ.
Romans 5:9 GW
(9) Since Christ's blood has now given us God's approval, we are even more certain that Christ will save us from God's anger.
THEY SHALL OBTAIN MERCY
7) Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
When you are part of the Kingdom you have the enjoyment of receiving forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus.
As a result thereof you will receive mercy on judgement day
THEY SHALL SEE GOD
(8) Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Getting into contact with God can only be achieved through Jesus.
John 14:6-7 GW
Jesus answered him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me.
If you have known me, you will also know my Father. From now on you know him through me and have seen him in me."
But listen to this.
Listen what John wrote in:
Revelation 21:3, 22:3-4 GW
I heard a loud voice from the throne say, "God lives with humans! God will make his home with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them and be their God.
(3) There will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and the lamb will be in the city. His servants will worship him
and see his face. His name will be on their foreheads.
In the future we will see God face to face.
THEY SHALL BE CALLED CHILDREN OF GOD
(9) Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
The citizens of the Kingdom is called children of God, even today and in the future
1 John 3:1-2 GW
Consider this: The Father has given us his love. He loves us so much that we are actually called God's dear children. And that's what we are. For this reason the world doesn't recognize us, and it didn't recognize him either.
Dear friends, now we are God's children. What we will be isn't completely clear yet. We do know that when Christ appears we will be like him because we will see him as he is.
Revelation 21:5-7 GW
The one sitting on the throne said, "I am making everything new." He said, "Write this: 'These words are faithful and true.'"
He said to me, "It has happened! I am the A and the Z, the beginning and the end. I will give a drink from the fountain filled with the water of life to anyone who is thirsty. It won't cost anything.
Everyone who wins the victory will inherit these things. I will be their God, and they will be my children.
CONCLUSION
We have seen that reason why these citizens are called blessed.
We have looked at the characteristics that you should possess namely:
• The should be poor in Spirit
• They should mourn
• They should be meek
• They should hunger and thirst after righteousness
• They should be merciful
• They should be pure in heart
• They should be peacemakers
• They should be willing to be persecuted
We have also looked at the benefits of being a citizen:
• The Kingdom of heaven is theirs
• They are comforted
• They inherit the earth
• They shall be filled
• They shall obtain mercy
• Thy shall see God
• They shall be called children of God
Perhaps we can now better understand why those in the kingdom of heaven are truly called BLESSED.
Certainly the benefits of the kingdom outweigh anything this world has to offer, or any persecution it might inflict!
BUT the blessedness of the citizens is only for those who have the characteristics of the citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven.
DO YOU HAVE ALL THE CHARACTERISTICS or is there one you are missing or need to work on?
