The Blessing of Brokeness
(Matt. 5:1-6?)
Intro
1. We all have our dreaded moments: medical tests, standing on the scale, childbirth, sea-sickness, nursing home….
2. One of my dreaded moments is beginning right now—preaching through the Sermon on the Mount….
3. The Sermon on the Mount contains some of the most beautiful and practical verses around—but also verses that give interpretters nightmares…
----we will probably have some disagreements in interpretation---gracious…
4. I have worked on trying to interpret this passage for more than 20 years…
5. In the process, I have gained much information; but many of my questions have remained…some of the issues involved will be found in the supplemental notes in the weeks ahead…
6. The interpretation or misinterpretation of these verses are so important because they have great results:
(1) man who pluck out an eye
(2) pacifism or self-defense (terrorists)
(3) giving everything you have away or responsible charity
(4) the danger of losing your salvation by calling someone a fool
(5) salvation by grace through faith alone or by good works
(6) sinless perfection: attainable in this life or not?
7. If the only text we had were the sermon on the mount, my system of ethics would be very different from what it now is, theology of works…
8. Some of the purposes of the Sermon on the Mount (mixed):
(1) to convict men and women of how far they fall short
(2) to demonstrate how Christ brings a new meaning to contentment
(3) to expound the real meaning of Moses’ Law for the Jews & alter it
(4) the standards of the Millennial Kingdom Christ was offering
(5) to offer ethical standards to which believers may aspire
(6) to contrast the zealot’s philosophy of spreading the Kingdom with that of Jesus’ method
(7) to correct wrong attitudes through overkill
(8) to provide immediate direction for living under Roman rule
9. What the Sermon on the Mount is not:
(1) a political or government philosophy
(2) a plan of salvation
(3) a set of teaching that over-rides all other teachings…
10. How key is it?
(1) not so important that it is included in the earliest Gospel (Mark) or the Gospel of most essential beliefs, John; only 29 verses in Luke
(2) Must be relevant or Matthew would not have included it in the Gospel that records Christ commanding His followers to "observe all things…"
11. OT Background to the sermon
(1) Moses: Law on Mount, Christ, Law adjusted on the mount
(2) Ancient Jewish belief about the Messiah’s right to do so
(3) Isaiah 66:1-7
(4) Much of Sermon on the Mount can be found in OT
MAIN IDEA: However we understand the SOM, it emphasizes the fact that Jesus’ followers are to submit to His Lordship and do His will. If we are to submit ourselves to the Lord, we must begin with a broken, teachable spirit. That teachable spirit is described for us in the "beautiful words," the Beatitudes"
I. The Poor in Spirit
1.Blessed=ìáêáñéïó= Asher=blessed/happy/fortunate/ privileged /satisfied
2. Luke parallel—different occasion (Christ repeated)—"poor"
----look at Luke 6:20-21---note here that the emphasis is on the physical here
3. If the Jews would have accepted Jesus as Messiah, millennium would have started; the more miserable on earth, the more would enjoy it! If poverty were a blessing in itself, the church should NOT try to help the poor or feed the hungry and take their blessing away! In Luke, the Blessing of RELIEF
4. But Matthew selects other words Christ taught; He emphasizes Christ’s teaching about INTERNAL relief….
5. To be "poor is spirit" means to realize our spiritual poverty….
6. A Christian man I knew once said, "I don’t need to go to church. I know all that stuff." #1, learning is only part of why we should attend church, #2, he did not know much at all beyond the basics…He was NOT poor in spirit…
7. The opposite of "poor in spirit" would be "arrogant in spirit.’
8. Until we are overwhelmed by how sinful we are, how wavering our faith is, how ignorant we are, how far we have to go,--we cannot become significant players in God’s kingdom work…
II. The Mourners
1. The mourners are those "broken-hearted"
(1) Is. 61:1-3
2. Since the Messiah had come, if Israel had received Him, He would have fulfilled these verses and thus comforted the mourners….
3. But Matthew wanted church-age believers to read this text, because there is a secondary application…
4. Mourning, times of depression or let down can be times of great growth for us….
(1) Almost every great man or woman of God struggled with depression
(2) Often depression is caused by frustration and anger…but it is when we are down that we are often most teachable, willing to listen
(3) When we are up, high, we tend to be more arrogant…
5. Solomon tells us "there is …a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance…"
----we hate the misery of grief, disappointment, depression; but yet God has determined it necessary that we go through such times…
6. Have you seen the blessing of mourning in our nation? The terrorist attacks have sobered us, shaken us, reminded us of our vulnerability and dependence upon God. Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
CONCLUSION
1. God’s kingdom is foreign to our way of thinking. In a way, He wants to break us free from the preconceived ideas we have about life and become teachable.
2. Maybe you feel "poor in spirit right now." Great, you are teachable. Maybe you are mourning right now; God wants to comfort you. And He wants us all to await His coming Kingdom, when the mourning will turn into dancing. Be assured of this, you are not alone!
3. I counsel many, many people. I have discovered that some Christians are surprised to find out that being down is not unusual. Christ says it can be downright good for your soul. Take God with you during those down times. Grow in new ways. Open up your Bible. Pray, even complain in prayer to God—He can take it. And remember, "joy comes in the morning."
