I'd like to start off with a question.
So if someone asked you to define what it means to be a Christian, what would you say?
Maybe you'd think of some Bible verses about having faith in Jesus Christ and believing that he died on the cross to forgive sins.
Maybe you'd think about repenting and believing in Jesus.
Or maybe you'd speak about someone going to church because they want to know God more and show them, show him their devotion to him and their love for other people.
But I wonder how many of us would talk firstly about some of our actions and some of our attitudes.
Tonight we're going to be looking at the Beatitudes and what we see in them is God's blueprint for the Christian life.
God's blueprint for the Christian life.
So if you're here this evening and you are a Christian, then these things should be the attitudes and actions that characterize who you are.
Now this passage is very well known and we'll read it in a moment as we go through.
But familiarity should not stop us from reading it and being amazed.
Absolutely blown away by the greatness of God who freely grants these wonderful blessings to his people.
But we must understand that this is not a list of good works that will get us into heaven.
This is not a list of things that we can do to earn salvation, but this is a list of characteristics for the Christian.
If we are followers of Jesus, this is how we should be living.
Martin Luther said this about the Sermon on the Mount.
Christ is saying nothing in this sermon about how we become Christians,
but only about the works and fruits that no one can do unless he is already a Christian and in a state of grace.
I, for one, this week found this passage very challenging.
And the question I've been asking myself is, am I really living this lifestyle for the glory of Christ?
You'll see in your Bibles that verses 3 to 11 all start with that same word, blessed.
Blessed. Now, blessed is an interesting word that has been changed by our world, hasn't it?
Blessed. People use the word blessed today when they feel exceptionally prosperous.
When they're experiencing happiness or joy.
People say they're blessed when they get married, when they have a child, when they get a promotion, when they get a new job.
But all of these things are finite.
All of them are temporary like everything else in this world.
That understanding of blessed is man-made and it is man-focused.
Blessed means to be in God's favor.
And the word here in the Beatitudes is actually maybe better translated as happy.
But this happiness is not a temporary feeling that is there one second and gone the next.
This happiness is the unchangeable state that a Christian has before God.
He has favor.
They have favor in his sight.
And this is important to know as we look at the Beatitudes.
Because this happiness or status as Christian.
And the Beatitudes are God's pattern for happiness.
As the slide says behind me.
This is God's blueprint for the Christian life.
The only way that we can do these eight things listed in this passage.
Is if we have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us.
Helping us to live obediently.
Otherwise, we are simply living moral lives.
And we're sellotaping fake fruit to the dead trees that are living contrary to God.
The only way we can live the Beatitudes is by the power of God in us.
Who has taken us from being dead in our sins to being alive in Christ.
So I think generally the Beatitudes can split into three sections.
Verses 3 to 6 are a Christian's attitude or response to God.
That flow out of our relationship with Jesus.
Verses 7 to 9 are a Christian's attitude or response to other people.
That flow out of our relationship with Jesus.
And verses 10 to 12 are people's response to Christians.
That flow out of our relationship with Jesus.
So let's walk through these verses and we'll read them as we go.
And be blown away by the privilege that it is to be a Christian.
The privilege of being given that status of blessed or eternally happy in Christ.
And if you're not a Christian this evening, think about these things.
Think about these promises that are being worked out in the life of every Christian.
And the promises of future reward.
And consider where you stand before a holy God this evening.
So verse 3 says,
Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Now there is no coincidence that this is the first Beatitude.
Because this is the starting point from which every other Beatitude flows.
This is the starting point for every person when they become a Christian.
Why?
Well because only when we are poor in spirit do we cry out to God for help.
Now this isn't talking about financial poverty.
Jesus isn't saying that all of his disciples and followers must be poor.
But think about the consequences of being poor.
In the time that this was written it would have meant a life of begging.
And being dependent on others to provide for you.
Is that what Jesus is calling Christians to?
Well in a sense yes.
When you hear the call of Jesus on your life from Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 where it says,
Repent for the kingdom of God has come near.
It leads you to the point where you realize that you as a person are sinful.
Broken.
Corrupt.
And that you can do absolutely nothing to earn your salvation.
It is at that point when people are poor in spirit and then they are spiritually bankrupt before God.
And it is at that point that we realize that we can do nothing.
And we come before God and confess our insufficiency.
But we don't leave the place spiritually bankrupt.
Those who have come to the end of themselves recognize their own sinfulness.
They turn to God and repent.
And what do they find?
Everlasting happiness.
Because as the end of verse 3 says,
Theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
What state is your soul in this evening?
Have you become proud that you're a Christian?
Have we started to become numb to our own sinfulness?
Or are we still in that place of spiritual bankruptcy and we rely wholeheartedly on God to save us?
Being poor in spirit is not just the starting place of every Christian.
But it should be the identity that characterizes our entire life.
Because we should never think that we contribute anything to being saved.
But our lives should be marked by absolute dependence on God.
As the old hymn says,
Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to thy cross I cling.
Naked come to thee for dress.
Helpless look to thee for grace.
Foul I to the fountain fly.
Wash me, Savior, or I die.
That is the cry of someone who is poor in spirit.
And theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The next beatitude.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Do you see how logical this is?
What do you expect people to do when they realize their weakness,
their inability to save themselves?
Clap and sing for joy?
Jump up and down for excitement?
No.
We expect them to mourn.
Now when people mourn, they want to be comforted, don't they?
When a loved one dies, all you want is a hug
and someone to tell you that everything is going to be okay.
When the doctor's given you that bad news,
you want to be comforted.
When you've had your whole world taken away from you,
you want comfort.
And the wonderful news about verse 4 is that not only is this a good kind of mourning,
but that the comfort that we receive is not temporary,
but it is everlasting.
The reason for the mourning is because of what we've just seen in verse 3.
The Christian mourns over their sinfulness.
We lament over our broken and rebellious hearts.
We should be sorrowful and we should weep at the sin in our life before a holy God,
but we are not left hopeless.
Because God comforts his people and that word doesn't quite grasp the immensity of the comfort that we receive.
Jesus doesn't just come alongside and pat us on the back and give us a pep talk.
He doesn't look at our pain from a distance and act like a comforting cheerleader.
But Jesus gets on his hands and knees in the misery that we feel.
And he weeps with us because of our sin,
but he takes the burden on himself and he gifts us his righteousness.
As Christians, we are comforted because our sin,
the thing that made us rebel against God,
has been deemed powerless by Christ on the cross.
That is the comfort that will never, ever grow faint.
A truth that will never grow old and an inheritance that will never perish.
Our comfort is everlasting because our comforter, our savior is everlasting.
Verse 5.
Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth.
Now meekness is not weakness, but it is power under control.
The word for meek could be translated as gentle.
That doesn't mean that Christians are to be, as we say in Scotland, a softy.
Or that we are to be a doormat for the world.
But it means that as Christians, we should be humble
and fully submit to serve God, to his will for our lives.
It means that we humbly serve and have courage and conviction
as we live our lives obediently for Christ.
The world tells us that we can do anything, whatever we want.
That you need to look after number one.
That you're the only one that really matters.
And sure, living that way might make you feel good.
It might grant you some success in this life.
But what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and yet forfeit his soul?
Those who humbly, submissively and meekly serve God
with every single area of their lives will inherit the earth.
Now sadly, I don't have time to go into everything that that means,
but I'd encourage you later on to go home
and read Genesis chapter 12 verses 1 to 3
and Genesis 13 verses 14 to 17.
Because verse 5 of Matthew 5 is a fulfillment of the Old Testament covenant promises
where God's people will live in God's place under God's rule.
And we know that glorious future to be the new creation that we see
in Revelation chapter 21 and 22.
Blessed are those who hunger and who thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
So if you're a Christian, then your deep desire should be to become more and more like Jesus Christ
every single day and by God's grace,
through the power of the Holy Spirit living within us, that happens.
It is a process that is lifelong.
But we are not to be passive in this process.
We are to hunger and thirst for righteousness.
So this is not a casual sense of wanting,
maybe like you feel now as you're thinking,
when I get home, I want a curry or I want a pizza.
But this is a deep set sense of hunger and thirst.
Imagine you've just hiked up a mountain on a hot day
and you cannot wait to pick up that water bottle or that plate of food.
But when that happens,
you're not going to look at those things and go towards them calmly, are you?
That water bottle will be empty in seconds
and woe to anyone who tries to touch that plate of food.
Your body has a deep longing and need for nourishment
and you'll do anything to get it.
And that is the attitude that Christians should have
when it comes to our desire to be holy,
to have more and more of God's righteousness.
And the wonderful news is that we've been given it.
As Christians, we have been declared righteous when we came to Christ.
Jesus took our sinfulness and gave us his righteousness.
And so as we continue in that deep hunger and thirst
for more and more of that holiness and righteousness in our lives,
Jesus says at the end of verse six,
you will be satisfied.
So that's the first little section.
And in verses seven to nine,
Jesus speaks about three attitudes or responses to other people
that should result from our relationship with him.
Look at verse seven.
Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.
Now as Christians, we have been shown the ultimate mercy
because God will not give the Christians the punishment
that we deserve for a life of rebellion and rejection of God.
All of those who put their trust in Jesus have been forgiven
and that mercy is evident because he bore,
Jesus bore God's wrath and judgment,
meaning that we can be free to serve him.
And therefore,
because we have been shown the greatest mercy
that ever has been known and ever will be known in this,
world,
we too are called to be merciful.
Jesus is calling us to have compassion on other people,
but he doesn't give us particular situations
that we're to be merciful in
or particular people groups that we're to be merciful to
because we are to be merciful to all people
in all circumstances.
Think to the well-known parable of the good Samaritan,
the Samaritan who cared for the beaten and injured Israelite,
even though in the world's standards,
they were complete enemies.
He is the one who is shown to be merciful.
He is the one that we should be like.
We should be merciful.
And we recognize that we are recipients of God's mercy.
Therefore,
therefore,
we should be merciful and we will be shown mercy.
This doesn't mean that we can earn our salvation,
but it means that as we live out our Christian life
before the eyes of a watching world,
as we are merciful to people,
God will be merciful to us
and show us the ultimate mercy
and take us to be in his presence for an eternity.
Blessed are those,
blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Or a fun little paraphrase,
happy are the holy.
This means that as Christians,
our heart,
our whole being,
our mind,
our will,
our emotions
should be pursuing holiness
and purity
in every single area of our lives.
The desire of our heart,
of our life,
should be to obediently serve God
in the way he has called us to
and in full view of the world.
We are not to hide.
The inward holiness
that we have been given by Jesus
should be exemplified
by an outward holiness
that is on display for the world to see.
And if we live according to the Bible,
that will happen naturally.
People will realize that we are different.
Our friends,
our families,
our colleagues,
our employers
and our employees
should all be able to tell
that we are followers of Jesus
because we are pure in heart
and because we tell people
why we're different.
If that is the case,
then the wonderful promise is
that we will see God.
Meaning that as Jesus returns
and every eye sees him,
we will go to be with him
for an eternity.
Revelation 22 verse 4 says,
we will see God.
Verse 9,
blessed are the peacemakers
for they will be called
children of God.
We live in a world
that is constantly fighting.
The message is climb
and promote yourself
above everybody else.
Don't care about other people.
Politicians make fun of each other
and they argue on live television
for the whole nation and world
to laugh at them.
Work colleagues stab each other
in the back
to look good
in front of the boss.
Family members
quarrel over meaningless things.
And it is into that setting
that Jesus calls his followers
to be peacemakers.
Peacemakers in the community
and in the church.
We should be peacemakers
because Jesus
is the ultimate peacemaker.
Colossians 1 verses 19 to 20
says this,
through him
to reconcile,
so this is God speaking
about saving
his people,
through him
to reconcile
to himself
all things
whether things on earth
or things in heaven.
How?
By making peace
through his blood
shed on the cross.
We make peace
because Jesus
made the ultimate peace
between us and God.
When was the last time
you were a peacemaker?
When was the last time
you promoted peace?
This should characterize
our everyday lives,
how we respond at work,
how we respond to criticism,
to slander,
and how we interact
with people online
and on social media.
Are we peacemakers?
Now again,
being a peacemaker
doesn't mean
that we become
people's doormats
or that we sit back
and let anything happen
simply because
we want to keep the peace.
we are still to be
pure in heart
and live holy lives.
So when we see
that things are wrong,
when we see people
are teaching wrong things
about God
or promoting
a false gospel,
we need to speak up.
But the attitude
that should characterize
everything
and govern
everything that we do,
even when we confront people,
should be peace.
we should be confronting
to reconcile people.
So those are three
attitudes or responses
that all Christians
should have
to other people
that result
from our relationship
with Jesus.
And Jesus now
moves on to speak
about people's response
to Christians
because of their relationship
with Jesus
in verses 10 to 12.
Blessed are those
who are persecuted
because of righteousness
for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you
when people insult you,
persecute you
and falsely say
all kinds of evil
against you
because of me.
Rejoice and be glad
because great
is your reward
in heaven
for in the same way
they persecuted
the prophets
who were before you.
Now this is all
one beatitude
not two separate ones
and we might think
that there's two
because the word blessed
is in there twice
but it is just one thing
and they are speaking
about suffering
for Jesus.
Jesus is saying
that all of his followers
if they live
according to his teaching
and if they act
in a holy
and righteous way
if they live
according to everything
we've been thinking
about this evening
then they will be persecuted.
They will be opposed.
We will be persecuted
because we're different
from the world.
We believe in truth.
We live in the light.
but the world
is in darkness
and is deceived
and lives the lie
that there is no God.
Therefore
anyone who stands firm
and stands up
for their faith
will be persecuted.
And so when
we are persecuted
insulted
ridiculed
mocked
we can rejoice
and be glad
because we know
that God is watching
and that one day
every single wrong
will be made right
and we will have
our reward in heaven.
So this whole world
might seem to be
crushing around us
and Christianity
might seem to be
pushed to the fringes
but we know
that there will be
a day
when Jesus
will return
and every eye
will see him
and praise him
for who he is.
Holy, holy, holy
is the Lord God
almighty.
So let me ask us
a very challenging
question this evening
as a whole church
but also as individuals.
Are we being persecuted?
Are we being opposed?
Our tendency
is to think
that if we aren't
being persecuted
or facing opposition
then we're doing
something right.
But that's not true.
That's not what we see
in scripture.
The message
that we see
in the Bible
is that Jesus' followers
will face opposition.
We will suffer.
We will be persecuted
for our faith.
And if we aren't
we need to ask
ourselves the question
are we really
being faithful?
So these 12 verses
tell us about
God's blueprint
for the Christian life.
And they are full
of wonderful promises
that we have just
skimmed over this evening.
Go away,
study them
for the next
eight weeks
and see
how much
your hunger
and thirst
for God grows.
but will we
listen
and will we
obey?
Will we live
according to
God's blueprint
and share the
good news of
Jesus with people?
We need to
always remember
that we do
none of this
in our own strength
but we do it
for God's glory
by God's strength
because he enables
to do these things
by the Holy Spirit
dwelling within us.
let's pray together.
Heavenly Father
we thank you
that in your word
you have given us
a blueprint
you've given us
a plan
of what it looks
like to be a Christian.
Father
forgive us
for the times
that we have
fallen short.
Forgive us
for the times
where we glibly
walk through
or float
through the Christian
life without
thinking
without being
devoted
and Father
we pray
that you would
help us live
obedient lives
for your glory
for your kingdom
until the end
of time
when you return
and draw your people
to yourself.
We ask this
in Jesus name
and for your glory.
Amen.