Pretty catchy title, now to make sense out of it. I have actually been accused of being too nice. People have told me that I let others walk all over me. The bible tells us in so many words or less that the meek shall get their faces bashed in. Wow, there's alot of incentive to become a Christian. Ok, I'm exagerating a little. I believe you may have heard it this way. Matthew 5:5 "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the Earth." If you're not familiar with this verse, it was taken from the sermon on the mount when Jesus spoke to thousands on a mountain side when He shared with them the beatitudes. I know what you're thinking...gee, that really helps alot. Ok, what is a beatitude? The Roget's thesaurus says this about the word beatitude. A condition of supreme well-being and good spirits: blessedness, bliss, cheer, cheerfulness, felicity, gladness, happiness, joy, joyfulness. Now wait a minute, there's nothing in that discription that says anything about people putting "the smack down", on me. To make this easier I'll copy the rest of them, see if you get my point. Matthew 5:3-12: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons[a] of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
So, does all this mean God wants us to be wishy washy pansy followers? Au contraire mon frere. Jesus isn't asking us to cower and give up. My wife has an alter-ego she calls "Big Dog". When things get a little tough, Big Dog comes out and takes over. Jesus is asking us to be the same, unashamed and bold in our beliefs. He wants us to be good followers...disciples. If you look at each one, Jesus spells out what is required to be a follower.
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Only the poor in spirit will enter into the kingdom of God. Why? Because they come to God having full knowledge of their own lostness (is that a word?) and their own sinfulness. They readily confess that they are full of guilt and are totally unqualified to enter into the kingdom of God. The poor in spirit are the ones who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. The mourning of Christians referred to in this beatitude is not because of financial loss, terminal sickness, the death of loved ones, loneliness, a divorce, or some rejection being experienced. Christians mourn because they realize that they have sinned against a holy God and have brought dishonor to his name. And this dishonor of God's very name brings great mourning to the true believer. The true believer mourns when he sins because he knows that the sin just committed brings great pain and sorrow to God.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth. A meek man is not a weak man. He is not wishy-washy, effeminate or timid. He is not someone who you can walk all over. A meek man is not passive and spineless. In fact the meek man is just the opposite. The one who has put their faith and their trust in Jesus Christ will be meek before God, but mighty and bold before the world and before satan. A meek man is patient. He has a long view of life, knowing in the end it is not the wicked who win, but the meek. How can he be sure of this? The meek person knows that in the end God wins, and if God wins then the meek win. God himself tells us that the meek, not the wicked, will inherit the earth. The wicked may indeed possess the earth for a short time today, but the Lord tells us that when he comes back, the meek shall possess this earth. Psalms 76:9 "Then God arose to judgment, To save all the humble of the earth".
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Hunger and thirst are appetites that return frequently and they require that they be met often during the day. Similarly the true believer calls for constant meals of righteousness to do his daily Godly work, just as the living body calls for its daily food. When a believer hungers and thirsts after righteousness he becomes a new man and this new man now bears the image of God. This new man greatly desires to do the will of God for he now has great interest in Christ and all that Christ said and promised.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. The merciful are indeed those special people who love all men as themselves: The merciful truly believe that whatever mercy they desire from God, they in turn will show to all men everywhere. The merciful are the ones who realize that our Heavenly Father demands that we be merciful, and they also realize that our acts of mercy will be repaid a thousand fold. Mercy is extremely important to Jesus Christ and much of the Bible either directly or indirectly deals in some way with mercy and kindness shown to others. This one goes along with the Golden Rule, Matthew 7:12 So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. The path to a pure heart begins with the realization that we have impure hearts. The entire Bible revolves around the central theme that the Lord looks at the heart of the person and not at their external appearance, their behavior, or their achievements. The Lord does not acclaim education, intellect, business success, or social position, as the world does. God alone is able to make rotten people pure in their imaginations, thoughts, words, deeds, and desires.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. The peacemakers are those children of God who not only have great love for God, but also have love for all of mankind and they attempt to do everything possible for the advancement of peace everywhere. The term "peacemakers" includes all who make peace between men, whether as individuals or as communities. It includes even those who endeavor to make peace even though they fail.
Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Persecution in the United States at this time, frequently comes verbally, usually in the form of cruel mocking and colorful language, or by deeds such as confiscation of goods, banishment from a group, or even in the workplace where one may be fired, demoted, or spoken against because of one's Christian faith. In today's society to tell others that you are a born again Christian who has put his entire faith and trust in Jesus Christ, is to bring on smirks and laughs, rude and disgusting comments, and alienation and retaliation.
These are simply stated, but are profound in meaning. They guide. They point. They teach. They show us the values that Christ cares about. These values if followed, can not only bring a believer into a state of peace and happiness, but also right into the Kingdom of God after our journey on this earth is over.
Peace...
totalheel
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons[a] of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
So, does all this mean God wants us to be wishy washy pansy followers? Au contraire mon frere. Jesus isn't asking us to cower and give up. My wife has an alter-ego she calls "Big Dog". When things get a little tough, Big Dog comes out and takes over. Jesus is asking us to be the same, unashamed and bold in our beliefs. He wants us to be good followers...disciples. If you look at each one, Jesus spells out what is required to be a follower.
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Only the poor in spirit will enter into the kingdom of God. Why? Because they come to God having full knowledge of their own lostness (is that a word?) and their own sinfulness. They readily confess that they are full of guilt and are totally unqualified to enter into the kingdom of God. The poor in spirit are the ones who have put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. The mourning of Christians referred to in this beatitude is not because of financial loss, terminal sickness, the death of loved ones, loneliness, a divorce, or some rejection being experienced. Christians mourn because they realize that they have sinned against a holy God and have brought dishonor to his name. And this dishonor of God's very name brings great mourning to the true believer. The true believer mourns when he sins because he knows that the sin just committed brings great pain and sorrow to God.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the Earth. A meek man is not a weak man. He is not wishy-washy, effeminate or timid. He is not someone who you can walk all over. A meek man is not passive and spineless. In fact the meek man is just the opposite. The one who has put their faith and their trust in Jesus Christ will be meek before God, but mighty and bold before the world and before satan. A meek man is patient. He has a long view of life, knowing in the end it is not the wicked who win, but the meek. How can he be sure of this? The meek person knows that in the end God wins, and if God wins then the meek win. God himself tells us that the meek, not the wicked, will inherit the earth. The wicked may indeed possess the earth for a short time today, but the Lord tells us that when he comes back, the meek shall possess this earth. Psalms 76:9 "Then God arose to judgment, To save all the humble of the earth".
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Hunger and thirst are appetites that return frequently and they require that they be met often during the day. Similarly the true believer calls for constant meals of righteousness to do his daily Godly work, just as the living body calls for its daily food. When a believer hungers and thirsts after righteousness he becomes a new man and this new man now bears the image of God. This new man greatly desires to do the will of God for he now has great interest in Christ and all that Christ said and promised.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. The merciful are indeed those special people who love all men as themselves: The merciful truly believe that whatever mercy they desire from God, they in turn will show to all men everywhere. The merciful are the ones who realize that our Heavenly Father demands that we be merciful, and they also realize that our acts of mercy will be repaid a thousand fold. Mercy is extremely important to Jesus Christ and much of the Bible either directly or indirectly deals in some way with mercy and kindness shown to others. This one goes along with the Golden Rule, Matthew 7:12 So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. The path to a pure heart begins with the realization that we have impure hearts. The entire Bible revolves around the central theme that the Lord looks at the heart of the person and not at their external appearance, their behavior, or their achievements. The Lord does not acclaim education, intellect, business success, or social position, as the world does. God alone is able to make rotten people pure in their imaginations, thoughts, words, deeds, and desires.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. The peacemakers are those children of God who not only have great love for God, but also have love for all of mankind and they attempt to do everything possible for the advancement of peace everywhere. The term "peacemakers" includes all who make peace between men, whether as individuals or as communities. It includes even those who endeavor to make peace even though they fail.
Blessed are they who suffer persecution for justice sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Persecution in the United States at this time, frequently comes verbally, usually in the form of cruel mocking and colorful language, or by deeds such as confiscation of goods, banishment from a group, or even in the workplace where one may be fired, demoted, or spoken against because of one's Christian faith. In today's society to tell others that you are a born again Christian who has put his entire faith and trust in Jesus Christ, is to bring on smirks and laughs, rude and disgusting comments, and alienation and retaliation.
These are simply stated, but are profound in meaning. They guide. They point. They teach. They show us the values that Christ cares about. These values if followed, can not only bring a believer into a state of peace and happiness, but also right into the Kingdom of God after our journey on this earth is over.
Peace...
totalheel
No comments:
Post a Comment