OCT 20
BEATITUDES
THE SUMMARY OUTLINE
There are 8 Beatitudes
Found in the New Testament
Succinct teaching of Jesus
Each Be attitude starts with “Blessed are…”
In the Old Testament Moses covers the Blessings and Curses - Deuteronomy 28
If you obey God you will be blessed
If you disobey God you will be cursed - you will bring curses upon yourself
In the New testament we have Jesus sharing about the Blessings and the woes.
#Blessed
Back to the word Blessed…
We hear it so often - Be Blessed .. Bless you, God Bless,
Here in the south every time you sneeze someone says “Bless you”. Some say that dates back to the Black plague .. Remember the nursery rhyme “ring a ring a roses, a pocket full of posies, A tissue, A tissue, we all fall down”. The Black plague typically started with a rosey red rash, the posies of herbs was to ward off the disease, Not long after the sneezing began the person died. Hence the “Bless you” was a shortened prayer “God Bless you”.
Then we have the Southern American habit of saying Bless your heart, Bless you…
The word Blessed is thrown around so much we really have lost its full meaning. To be blessed is to be happy, be favored, feel the pleasure of God and acceptance of God on our lives. If we have asked Christ into our lives and are living in obedience to His voice as we walk in His word each day we will not only feel blessed but we will be blessed, we are blessed!
God’s blessing flows out of our obedience. Think about it from the point of view of a parent. A good parent will reward a child’s obedience and not affirm disobedience. Generally, children want to please their parents and do what they are being asked to do, born out of trust. However, foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child
IN many cases this if for the child’s best interests. God too, has our best interests at heart. The obedience God is looking for is not based on fear “Do as you are told or else”. It is based on His desire for a working relationship with us.
Our obedience should flows out of our relationship with God. As our love for God grows, and the working relationship flows, then we discover that God will give us more and greater opportunity to show initiative.
Be attitude breakdown
Be attitudes is a heading in the Bible a description. We believe it is a great description because attitudes are a reflection of what we are and not just what we do. In Christ what we are is defined by God. In Christ we are a new being, in our foundations course it outlines the various things that we are – in Christ.
"Beatitude is a possession of all things held to be good, Blessed, to be happy, to be envied
The opposite of beatitude is misery.
The Be attitudes / God’s promises of Blessings are primarily addressing our heart attitude – our state of being
THE EIGHT BEATITUDES OF JESUS
"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure of heart,
for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Gospel of Matthew 5:3-10 and Luke 6
1st Step: Acknowledge your sin
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
"Poor in spirit" means to be humble. Humility is the realization that all your gifts and blessings come from the grace of God. To have poverty of spirit means to be completely empty and open to the Word of God. When we are an empty cup and devoid of pride, we are humble. Humility brings an openness and an inner peace, allowing one to do the will of God. He who humbles himself is able to accept our frail nature, to repent, and to allow the grace of God to lead us to conversion.
It is pride, the opposite of humility, that brings misery. For pride brings anger , independence, I can do this on my own seeking of revenge, especially when one is offended.
Prov16:18 Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
How to not be proud - collaborate, seek counsel of others, listen, be teachable
Matt 19: 23 - It is not easy for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven
1 Peter 5: 5 God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble
James 2: 5 Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
2nd Step: Repent of your ways
"Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
If we are humble and appreciate that all of our gifts and blessings come from God, we grow in love and gratitude for Jesus Christ our Savior. True repentance causes us to mourn over our own past sins and the sins of this world, for we have hurt the one who has been so good to us. And often our past sins have caused suffering of others – family members, unfaithfulness by one marriage partner hurts not just him or herself, but the spouse, children (if they have any) and extended family relations, friends and society…
Mourning in this context is a blessing, because mourning our fallen nature creates in us a desire to improve ourselves and to do what is right!
2 Cor 7 - Godly sorrow
Ephesians 5:18 Be filled with the Spirit
John 14: 16 - Holy Spirit is our comforter
Galatians 5:22 lets Pray for the fruit of the Holy Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Mourning for sin does NOT mean getting on a guilt trip. But where we get a heart of hatred for the sin so that we can work to put things right. We turn away from sin.
Become an intercessor- Jesus interceded to the point of laying down His life.
Once we have put aside our initial sins, then we can become more like Jesus. We will grow in taking on other people’s burdens and pray for others.
3rd Step: Stay humble
"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."
Jesus was "meek and humble of heart" (Matthew 11:29). A person that is meek is one that exhibits self-control.
Moses of all men was most meek. Like Paul they were so motivated as such they were prepared to forego their own salvation if it meant their nation would be saved.
Psalm 22: 26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.
Psalm 37:1 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
Psalm 147:6 The Lord lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.
4th Step: Go through the process of sanctification / purification
"Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."
Righteousness is basically “living right”, doing the right thing, making the right choices even when you don’t want to. Living with integrity It is not mere observance of the law - doing things out of ‘duty’ or because someone is watching
Matthew 5:20 20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
But rather Righteousness can be measured in our lives by how we act, what we do when no one is watching. Have a think about that one for a minute. Are there things you do when no one is watching that you know you shouldn’t? If the answer is ‘YES’ then bring these things in confession to Jesus at the altar.
Jeremiah 23: 6 The Lord our righteousness,
Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
In a soldiers’ uniform the breastplate covers the area of the heart. IN New testament righteousness,
Romans 10.
2 types of righteousness
Our own efforts to keep the law
God’s efforts by His Holy Spirit outworking what Jesus did on the Cross for us which includes both covering our old sinful nature and related sins AND releasing the promise of the father so we can live in obedience,
5th Step: Show mercy to others
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."
"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). Mercy is the loving disposition towards those who suffer distress. Love, compassion, and forgiveness unmerited favor
Giving grace where it is not deserved, with holding punishment or reducing the level of deserved punishment “have mercy on me”
Matthew 25:31-46 - Jesus reminds us that whatever "you did to the least of my brethren, you did it to me"
Isaiah 58 :5 – end of Chapter
Physical acts of mercy we can do:
1 Feed the Hungry
2 Give drink to the thirsty
3 Clothe the naked
4 Shelter the homeless
5 Comfort the imprisoned
6 Visit the sick
Spiritual acts of Mercy
1 Admonish sinners
2 Instruct the uninformed
3 Counsel the doubtful
4 Comfort the sorrowful
5 Be patient with those in error
6 Forgive offenses
7 Pray for the living
We need the Holy Spirit and His gifts in our lives to achieve these things and move in them.
6th Step: Keep your heart pure
"Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God."
We see places in the Bible where it plainly states no one can see God’s face:
God Said to Moses in Exodus 33:20 20 Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
John 1:18 - 18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
I Timothy 6:16 – 16 who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.
But Jesus says the pure of heart shall see God! To be pure of heart – confess our sins and received the covering of the blood of Jesus. This isn’t just a one off experience. It is great when we come to Jesus the first time and ask Him to forgive our sins. It is a daily , hourly maybe experience of confessing and bringing our sins to Christ and seeking that covering by His righteousness.
Lets get on with living life for God – walking in the word, and by His Spirit God refines and purifies. I believe God reveals Himself to us in this world and we shall meet God face to face in the next world !
7th Step: Make peace with you wherever you go
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God."
Jesus is the Prince of Peace.
Philippians 4:7 – The peace of God that surpasses all understanding, shall keep you.
John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you"
Galatians 5:22 - Peace is also a fruit of the Spirit. Peacemakers not only live peaceful lives but also try to bring peace and friendship to others and to preserve peace between God and man.
But one cannot give another what one does not possess oneself. If you don’t have peace within, this is an indicator by God’s Spirit that you don’t have things right with Him. That is there is some sin that is causing that lack of peace – that “Irk” within your heart. The Lord wants you first to be filled with the blessings of peace and then to pass it on to those who have need of it.
Have peace with God - Romans 5 you have to repent, change, stop doing the bad stuff. Here at Mega we encourage people to see that sins are a symptom of a sinful nature.
Once you get over your own struggles with peace then, you are in a good position to bring peace into situations around you. Let’s become peacemakers!!
8th Step: Expect opposition as you go out to stand up for Christ, preach the gospel of Christ
"Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven."
Matthew 5:11-12 - "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before you"
John 15:20-21. Jesus said many times that those who follow Him will be persecuted. "If they persecute me, they will persecute you" Before his Conversion, Saul persecuted the early Church in Jerusalem, which scattered the Christians throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria
Acts 8:1 Peter advised "Whoever is made to suffer as a Christian should not be ashamed but glorify God because of the name"
The Lord promised those that suffer for his sake will be rewarded with the Kingdom of Heaven!
B.I.D
1) Are you on a guilt trip or a gift trip?
2) Do you want more of being #Blessed?