Study the Bible with Me | Kim Howard
What are the Beatitudes?
The Beatitudes are the opening statements of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:3–12). Each one begins with “Blessed are…”, meaning deeply joyful, favored, or approved by God. They describe the characteristics of people who belong to God’s kingdom and the blessings God gives to them.
· They describe the heart of a true believer. This is what the citizens of God’s kingdom look like - not outward religion, but inner transformation.
· They show the difference between God’s values and the world’s values. The world celebrates pride, power, wealth, and self-promotion.
Jesus celebrates humility, purity, mercy, and righteousness.
· They teach what spiritual maturity looks like. This is the character Christ wants to form in us.
· They reveal the blessings that come from following Jesus. Every Beatitude carries a promise: comfort, mercy, inheritance, seeing God, and the kingdom of heaven.
· They prepare believers for suffering. Jesus makes it clear that following Him brings both blessing and opposition - but the eternal reward is worth it.
The Beatitudes show us what kind of people God blesses and how His kingdom works.
They call us to:
· Humility
· Repentance
· Gentleness
· Holiness
· Mercy
· Purity
· Peace
· Faithfulness
And they reassure us that God sees, God knows, and God rewards the heart that follows Him. People whose hearts have been changed. People walking in surrender. People who look like Jesus because they know Jesus.
They are the character traits of a true disciple—someone in a relationship with Jesus Christ.
The Beatitudes
Matthew 5:3-12
Jesus’ sermon begins with the blessings that come with being a child of God. The Beatitudes help us better understand the blessings God has in store for us and what it means to be a follower of Jesus.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus Christ taught His gospel and outlined how to be a disciple. In it, He also gave eight important teachings called the Beatitudes. The word beatitude means “supreme blessedness” or “exalted happiness.” The Beatitudes highlight the amazing promised blessings that come when we submit ourselves to (God’s Government) the Kingdom of Heaven and follow Jesus Christ.
As followers of Jesus Christ this is what we are to be, in one word, different. As one walks through the beatitudes, they will see that Christians are to be different from the world. There should be a notable difference, a distinction.
Matthew 5:3, 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The one who is blessed is not dependent upon circumstances. The one who is poor in spirit is blessed regardless of their life, their circumstances may change or remain the same, they may be better or worse, but the state of being blessed does not change. To be poor in spirit is to be in a needy condition spiritually and see that need. The poor in spirit understand their poorness, their nakedness, their complete and utter lack, and it is only God’s grace to them that they see their true condition, and act upon it. They have a humble and teachable spirit, one that humbly acknowledges their need for Jesus.
When one prays and seeks the kingdom of heaven, they are also praying for the rule and reign of the kingdom of God in their lives. The kingdom of God is a spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority. THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
Matthew 5:4, 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Ever since the fall of man in the garden of Eden, mourning was the sad legacy of every child of Adam. Deterioration, disease, death, and decay ravaged the body and spoiled the beautiful world God had created.
However, the mourning in this verse is primarily connected with the inner spiritual grieving of a broken and contrite heart. It is the innermost garment of a sinner, separated from God who made them. It is the acknowledgment of a person’s sin that will cause them to grieve and mourn over the sorrowful state of their sinful heart. BLESSED ARE THOSE FOR THEY SHALL RECEIVE COMFORT FROM THE LORD.
Matthew 5:5, 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Meekness from a Christian perspective, is about faith. It is about trusting God to win the battle in the end instead of going to extremes to win the battle on their own. The concept is often referred to as “strength under control,” rather than “strength seeking control.”
To be gentle and meek while standing firmly on the truth requires great strength. But it also requires an attitude of service. The gentle or meek, who are directing their energies into service to their Master, in service to others, are blessed. They are happy and fulfilled.
Meekness is not a requirement for becoming a true Christian, but meekness is something which naturally comes from having a saving knowledge of Christ. THEY SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH.
Matthew 5:6, 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
We were born with a sin nature through Adam, and the only One that is righteous is the Lord Jesus. But to those that believe, Christ Jesus is our righteousness, and His righteousness comes to us from God on the basis of faith. He is the God of righteousness, and those who are clothed in Christ are clothed in His righteousness. Through the power of the Holy Ghost, one can be changed into His likeness and conformed more and more to His image. HOW BLESSED ARE THOSE THAT HUNGER AND THIRST FOR THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD, FOR THEY SHALL BE FILLED.
Matthew 5:7, 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
In His mercy, God withheld the punishment that we so justly deserved. Even though we have repeatedly proved unfaithful and undependable, both individually and as a group, God has been gracious and merciful. He has repeatedly offered forgiveness, help, redemption, and salvation when we least deserved it. Rather than dealing with us strictly as the law would demand, God has dealt with us as a loving father does with his children. This unconditional love must show up in us also. How can we claim to be a child of God and not be merciful? How can we call for retribution against our brothers and sisters, when fairness would demand we pay a great penalty for our sin? In the kingdom family, mercy rules. WE ARE TRULY BLESSED WHEN WE SHOW MERCY FOR WE SHALL OBTAIN MERCY.
Matthew 5:8, 8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
When we receive God’s great free gift for salvation we are given a new, Christ-like nature. We receive a pure heart. The moment that we are saved by grace through faith we will see God. The pure in heart are focused from the inside out on one thing - pleasing God. THOSE WHO ARE PURE IN THEIR DEVOTION TO GOD ARE BLESSED FOR THEY SHALL SEE GOD.
Matthew 5:9, 9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Simply put a peacemaker is one who makes peace. There is a blessing that is pronounced on peacemakers. True peace is brought about by salvation. True peace is knowing and loving God. True peace is having faith in God. Godly peacemakers are indeed blessed when they seek to live peaceably with all men. As God directs, they follow after peace without any spiritual compromise, while binding up the broken peace of others, which is caused by depression, disease, divorce, and distress. Peacemakers show God’s peace everywhere they go. THEY ARE TRULY BLESSED FOR THEY ARE CALLED THE CHILDREN OF GOD.
Matthew 5:10, 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Here Jesus includes the possibility of “persecution for righteousness’ sake.” This arises because we live in a fallen world, and the forces that oppose God’s ways still hold power in the world.
Note: Persecution arising from unrighteous behavior is not blessed. If we fail through our own fault, we should expect to suffer negative consequences.
Jesus is talking about the BLESSING OF BEING PERSECUTED FOR DOING RIGHT. The reality in a fallen world is that if we demonstrate genuine righteousness, many will reject us. WE ARE TRULY BLESSED BECAUSE WE CAN CALL HEAVEN OUR HOME.
Matthew 5:11-12, 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceedingly glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Jesus elaborates by pointing out that the prophets, who like Him announced God’s kingdom, were persecuted. Notice the basis for persecution. Those who belong to the kingdom of heaven will be persecuted for righteousness’ sake. People will utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on Jesus’ account. That persecution is not only torture or physical opposition, but insults and malice. Jesus is teaching the need to expect suffering for right living and for godly teaching.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you... One proof of being blessed is the willingness to endure unfair treatment on account of faithfully following Jesus (1 Peter 4:12-14).
Rejoice... real joy is not the absence of troubles or trials, joy his knowing God! When you have faith and trust in God you can rejoice in the midst of troubles (James 1:2-3).
Be exceedingly glad... because of the glory and happiness that shall follow upon your suffering, for great is your reward in heaven. Christians must not expect their reward here, but hereafter, when all the riches of heaven and God Himself will be their reward. THEIRS SHALL BE THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
Purpose of the Beatitudes
With each beatitude, another nail is driven into a coffin. Inside the coffin lies the corpse of a false understanding of salvation. The false understanding that says a person can be saved without being changed. Or, that a person can inherit eternal life even if their attitudes and actions are like the attitudes and actions of the world.
One after the other, the Beatitudes tell us that the blessings of eternity will be given only to those who have become new creatures. For example, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy... Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God... Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.”
If we don’t obtain mercy, we receive judgement. If we don’t see God, we are not in heaven. If we aren’t called the children of God, we are outside the family. These are all descriptions of final salvation, brought about by a relationship with God, and promised only to the merciful, the pure in heart, and the peacemakers.
From beginning to end, the Sermon on the Mount cries out, “Get a new heart! Become a new person!”
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