HOW TO BE DELIRIOUSLY HAPPY
MATTHEW 5:1-11
All of the world seeks to be happy and fulfilled in life. Truth is most people never really find what they are looking for.
* In 1965, The Rolling Stones went from being just another band to one of the greatest bands of all times with the release of the song
“ I Can’t Get No Satisfaction”- I try and I try and I try and I try, but I can’t get no satisfaction. It was about trying to find happiness thru money, power, possessions, relationships, etc. The song expressed what most people feel- “no matter how much of any of these things you have/experience it is never enough-you always yearn for more.”
** The song echoes the life experience of Solomon in Ecclesiastes. He talked about all of the possessions and experiences life has to offer and he came to the conclusion that “Everything is vain” pointless/empty.
Here, though, Jesus gives us a recipe for finding joy and happiness in life. He gives us the ways to be “blessed”- deliriously happy.
Mt 5:1-2 1 When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,
Jesus was teaching to His disciples. These blessings Jesus is teaching about are only for the children of God. They can’t be fulfilled in unbelievers. Jesus talks about the attitudes we must have in order to find this blessedness.
Be-attitudes- it is not about what you do, but what you are. If you merely try to do these things you won’t get there.
*Our dog Scooter loves to dance on his hind legs, but he can dance on his hind legs only for so long before going back to standing on 4 legs.
* When it comes to doing these things that Jesus is talking about, anyone can “do these things” for a while, but you will arrive at the place of delirious happiness when you ARE these things.
A. BLESSED IN FINDING GOD
Here Jesus gives 3 important factors in the salvation process but also how to remain happy as a believer. It involves emptying self of “self”.
1. HUMILITY
Mt 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
“Poor in spirit”- recognizing your spiritual poverty apart from God. To realize you are lost and spiritually destitute. This is the first step to God, realizing that you are lost and in desperate need to be saved.
** The reward is the Kingdom of Heaven.
** God also promises earthly blessings for humbling ourselves.
Lk 14:11 “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
2. REPENTANCE.
Mt 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
Spiritual poverty leads to mourning.
When you see yourself for what you really are, it breaks your heart and you desire to be made clean.
Mourning is part of repentance. Mourning helps us to change!
Mourning means we are processing things, we are learning a lesson. Mourning means there is hope for better decisions next time and a better future. If we don’t mourn over our sins, we will continue to live in them. We will never be comforted. So yes, blessed are those that mourn, for THEY will be comforted.
3. MEEKNESS.
Mt 5:5 “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.”
Meekness- “gentleness”. It does not mean weakness.
It is used to describe “gentleness under control.” Picture a strong wild stallion. It is powerful and wild. It is not useful. The cowboy catches it and breaks it over time. The horse is still just as powerful, but has yielded itself and is under the control of its new master.
** When a person is saved, they have also yielded to the control of a new master. His name is Jesus. A person that is wild and reckless and not submitted to Jesus Christ has never been born again. When a person is saved, Jesus is his new Lord.
** The reward for meekness is that God will make sure you get your portion that He has for you. You don’t have to fight for it, He gives it freely.
B. BLESSED IN EXPERIENCING GOD
The believer is blessed as he draws near to God and becomes more like His Savior Jesus Christ. God’s goal is to transform us into His image.
1. RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Mt 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."
Righteousness involves
(1) Right standing with God. Obtained because Jesus transfers His goodness to us.
(2) Living your life in such a way that no one can bring a charge of fault against you. You seek to help and bless others and not to misuse or hurt another.
* The blessing is satisfaction. With salvation, comes the removal of guilt and shame. In life, you can live with a clear conscience.
2. MERCY.
Mt 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”
God showed us mercy at salvation by removing the penalty of sin from us-though we deserved death, He gave us life.
* In our lives, people hurt us or others. It is easy to demand justice when someone hurts you. It’s easy to hate or hold a grudge forever. Fighting back is easy, Showing mercy is the harder thing to do.
* Also, mercy can be extended to those in great need that haven’t hurt us.
By definition, No one can deserve mercy.
Mercy looks at need, not deservedness.
** The reward of showing mercy is that we will receive mercy. The way that believers treat others is the way that God will treat you. After all, He has already extended mercy to you when you had sinned against Him and also saved you when you cannot ever have deserved it. As His child, He expects/demands that you extend mercy likewise.
3. HOLINESS.
Mt 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
Purity of heart is the root of holiness. It is easy to wash the outside of the body and be clean from dirt. But spiritually speaking, once is not clean unless the inside is washed.
Mt 15:11 “It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”
My former pastor use to say it this way “What’s in the well comes up in the bucket.”
* If you are constantly saying or doing unholy things then you don’t have just a behavioral condition, you have a heart condition. If you get your heart right, then your behavior will soon take care of itself.
** The reward for holiness is that you will see God. The literal translation is “the pure in heart shall be continuously seeing God for themselves.”
** Do you want to see and experience God more in your life? Then seek Him with all your heart and live a holy life!
C. BLESSED IN SERVING GOD.
Believers are called to serve God in His Kingdom. This comes with great blessings, but also some problems.
But even in the problems that come, God overcomes those problems with great blessings.
Which servants are blessed by God?
1. THE PEACEMAKERS.
Mt 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
Have you ever heard of “peace breaking out”? No, wars break out, peace must be made. It’s easy fight, more difficult to make peace.
* How are we believers peacemakers?
(1) Between Man and God- we share the Gospel to reconcile man to God and they are saved.
(2) Between Man and Man- to seek out all solutions to problems that divide us. Satan divides, Christ unites. Share Jesus and His love.
** Reward? Special position/title- “children of God”. IOW, we have come to emulate the Father. We are like Him!!
2. THE PERSECUTED.
Mt 5:10-11 10 Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Satan and the world hated Jesus Christ for:
(1) who He is- He is God in the flesh. The Son of God that Satan hates.
(2) what He came to do- destroy the works of Satan and sin.
* Jesus warned that the world would hate us because it also hates Him.
** Think about it, only believers that truly love Jesus and really live for Him are persecuted. Your persecution is not because you have displeased God, but because you ARE pleasing Him and living for Him every day.
* The Reward? You inherit the Kingdom of Heaven and your reward will be great in Heaven.
All of these promises that Jesus gives us in the Be-attitudes ought to bring us delirious happiness.
