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Click here to recommend this sermon. [A new window will open.]If you appreciate this sermon ministry then help spread the Word and recommend it to others by casting your vote...it's a proven system that keeps this ministry free!Gospel of Jesus Series HomepageGrace Notes Ministry: When God Shows Thru [The Beatitudes] The Gospel of Jesus Matthew 5:1-5 One Sunday as they drove
home from church, a little girl turned to her mother and said, "Mommy,
there’s something about the preacher’s message this morning that I don’t
understand." The mother said, "Oh? What is it?" The little girl replied,
"Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. He said God is so big that He
could hold the world in His hand. Is that true?" The mother replied, "Yes,
that's true, honey." "But Mommy, he also said that God comes to live inside
of us when we believe in Jesus as our Savior. Is that true, too?" Again, the
mother assured the little girl that what the pastor had said was true. With
a puzzled look on her face the little girl then asked, "If God is bigger
than us and He lives in us, wouldn't He show through?" That is what the beatitudes
are about – God showing through. It has always been God’s purpose that when
He entered our lives, He would be allowed to so fill and control us that He
would "show through" – that He would be visible in our attitudes and
actions. Not that we would just imitate Christ, or try to do the things that
Jesus would do, but that Christ Himself would be allowed to live through us.
The beatitudes are like a light bulb
inside…that only shines when plugged into
God’s power! Don’t try to 'act' this
way. One preacher said the
beatitudes are supposed to ‘be’ your ‘attitude’.
No…you can’t pretend.
Humans aren’t able to keep the beatitudes, no matter how hard they try.
Nobody can be
like Jesus like Jesus can. By the Holy Spirit, He has come to
live IN us that He might live THROUGH us to meet the needs of hurting
humanity. And when He does, others see the image of Christ shining through
this veil of flesh. Let me ask you a question:
How would life be different if
Jesus were to
come take your place? What if He took your place in the home? What if He
performed your work on the job? Teenager, what if He sat in your desk at
school? What if He filled my place
in the pulpit? Yet, that is exactly
what He wants to do. He
came to live within
me to mortify the carnal works of this body, master the
circumstances of my life, manifest His character, and minister
to others whom my life touches every day. Knowing that makes me
wonder, does anyone ever see God showing through me? Well, if they did, I
know what He would look like, for the beatitudes are a portrait of Christ.
·
He was poor in
spirit. Although He was Almighty God with all the rights and privileges of
deity, He made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Himself the form of a
servant, and was made in the likeness of men. He humbled Himself and became
obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
·
He mourned. He
wept for Lazarus. He wept over
·
He was meek.
He hungered and thirsted after righteousness. He was merciful. Measure the
life of Christ by these qualities, and you will find that He modeled them
all. I am convinced that this is not a description of the Christian man, but
of the God-man, Christ. And as He shone while on this earth, so we can glow
as we yield our lives to Him. So, why should we study
this today? The answer is the
first word of the first verse:
‘Blessed’
Joke—the
forgetful preacher: went to
conference to glean good things to bring home to his ministry / heard them
say that the first thing you say in your message should be attention
grabbing / then he heard a preacher stand up and give an example, saying, ‘I
spent many years of my life in the arms of another man’s wife.’ [the people
gasped] He continued ‘…she was
my mother!’ / the forgetful preacher said, oh, I’ve gotta remember that one.
He got home and couldn’t wait to grab their attention Sunday morning.
He said, ‘I spent many years of my life in the arms of another man’s
wife.’ [dramatic pause] ‘…for
the life of me I can’t remember who she was!’
Well, at least he got their attention! So, why should we study
this today? The answer is the
first word of the first verse, and almost every verse:
‘Blessed’. Jesus got our
attention from the get-go. We
want to be blessed! Here is
what others will see
when God shows thru:
I. A Happy
Person This is the first sermon
recorded in the New Testament as having been preached by Jesus Christ. It
begins with a promise of happiness. Nine times the voice of Jesus reached
out to the multitudes seated on that hillside – people who were oppressed
politically, socially, and economically – with the offer of genuine joy.
A.
Happiness – the
uncommon feeling
1. The word translated "blessed" is makarios. Typically, it was used to
describe: • The wealthy, because they enjoyed
a standard of living that appeared to put them out of reach of the cares of
this life. (Money can buy happiness.) • The Greek gods because they had
the power to gratify their every desire.
It described a state of contentment and delight that was reserved for
a very privileged minority.
2. This world gives us their definition of happiness.
a. Blessed are the rich
b. Blessed are the famous
c. Blessed are the gifted
d. Blessed are the powerful Happiness is a common
desire. Yet, so few people seem to have it that we put it in the same
category as four-leaf clovers and the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow
– the elusive, the unattainable. Problem: • If happiness is linked with
power, not every one can have it. • If happiness is linked with
prosperity… “” • If happiness is linked with
popularity… “”
B.
Happiness – the
unexpected offer Chuck Swindoll, in his book
Simple Faith, made the following
observation. After noting that Jesus used nine, back-to-back announcements
of blessing, he remarked, “Having endured a lifetime of verbal assaults by
the scribes and Pharisees, the multitude on the mount must have thought they
had died and gone to heaven.” For some reason, many
people look at the Bible and all they can see is the negative. They
emphasize the prohibitions, the curses, and the judgments and leave people
with the impression that God has the disposition of a dill pickle. They seem
to see God as the “cosmic killjoy” who spends His time trying to think up
new ways to make people miserable. Jesus painted a different
picture. He showed them a God who wanted them to have joy – who wanted to
fill their life with satisfaction, contentment, and delight, even through
the ups and downs and trials...not to become sad victims for everyone to
feel sorry for.
The same word 'blessed' is
used in 1 Tim. 1:11
According to the
glorious gospel of the blessed God, which was committed to my trust. I’m so glad I serve a happy
God, a joyful God. Don’t ever
let someone criticize you for having fun at church.
It’s a wonderful life, a natural high, and you don’t have to wake up
tomorrow feeling guilty! The same word is also in
Titus 2:13
Looking for that
blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ; It also has the meaning of
“congratulations!”
So, are you poor in spirit?
Congratulations! [mourn?] Now, are you really gonna wear that on your
sleeve for attention? You've
been chosen to know some of His sufferings in this life.
Congrats! Are you really
gonna see it as a negative and allow yourself to be defined in that way, or
will you rise above, and let Jesus shine thru you, and let 'this mind' be in
you and 'be' your attitude?! Are you happy? Too many
people spend their lives thinking, "I could be happy if..." They are looking
for happiness in the wrong places, associating it with the wrong things.
They never have enough and I promise you...you can't do enough for them. And
I would suggest that though they like to be seen and people often give them
attention, these same people seldom see God showing through them.
When God shows thru, the world will see not
only a happy person, for
happiness is often based on happenstance or circumstances, but they’ll see
something deeper…
II. A Whole Person The beatitudes are a
portrait of Christ – that which we would see if God were living in the body
of a man. And God’s purpose, according to Romans
·
The beatitudes
describe qualities that EVERY CHRISTIAN should exhibit. (They don’t describe
a special class of "Super Christians.")
·
Every
Christian should exhibit ALL of them.
A.
They are not guidelines
for Christian character. A guideline suggests a
standard that you and I should strive to measure up to. Men do not have what
it takes to reach the standard set by the beatitudes.
Instead, we have sin in us.
·
Sin at work in
the heart of man makes them proud.
·
Sin at work in
the heart of man makes them pushy.
·
It’s the
presence of sin that produces a hunger and thirst for that which is unholy.
·
Sin is a
spiritual problem requiring a spiritual solution.
B.
The beatitudes describe
the evidence of a yielded life. They are not to be produced
BY the Christian, but IN the Christian. They tell us what men will see in a
life that is surrendered to the Lord.
1. The beatitudes do not represent individual qualities, but a
complete picture of a human mastered by God…a complete package. The Beatitudes are the
same. Are we seeing a work of God in a person if they appear to be "poor in
Spirit" but still hunger and thirst for the things of this world? Will God
make me meek, but allow me to lack purity? What kind of impression would
people have of God if He worked that way? He doesn't do things half way.
If you are really saved and truly filled with the Spirit then these
fruits...these attitudes will show thru you! It is impossible to
genuinely display one of these qualities as the work of God without
displaying them all. True, because of circumstances, one or more will at
times be more prominent, but the Holy Spirit will not manifest one with a
disregard for the others. If that is the case in my life, it is a sure sign
that what people are seeing is a fleshly counterfeit, not a genuine,
spiritual work of God.
2. The beatitudes are not a standard for me to achieve, but a
yardstick by which to measure my submission to the Holy Spirit. I do not spend my time
worrying about whether or not I am poor in spirit, meek, merciful, etc. My
focus is on walking in the Spirit - being submissive to the Holy Spirit –
because I know that if the Holy Spirit is in control of my life, He will
manifest these qualities.
However, the beatitudes let
me know that if I am being hateful and vindictive then it is a sure sign
that I am not walking in the Spirit. If I am driven by selfish ambition,
then my life is not yielded to Christ.
v. 3 Poor in spirit = emptiness. Having a humble / sober /
right self-image.
This is about our
self. Some Christians
are all about ego [how I want to feel about me] or reputation [what others
say about me.] But we should
strive to be about character. [what God knows about me!]
We all want to feel good
about ourselves, but Biblically, you cannot feel good about yourself until
you feel bad about yourself. Seeing ourselves accurately
comes by seeing the Lord in His glory!
·
Isaiah saw the
Lord and said “Woe is me!”
·
Peter saw the
Lord and said “Depart from me, I am a sinful man”
·
Saul, before
he became Paul, felt very spiritually wealthy, and had the attitude that if
anybody’s going to heaven I am…but on the road to
v. 4 Mourn = brokenness.
This is about
our sin. This is
when we realize our sin breaks God’s heart, and then our heart breaks over
it, too!
v. 5 Meek = submissiveness.
This is about
our Savior. It’s
power under control. It’s the
picture of a horse that has been broken.
Is that horse weak? No!
Meekness isn’t weakness.
It’s us being under God’s control. CONCLUSION: The happiest people in the
world are those who yield themselves to experience the Spirit of God every
day. Why? Because theirs is the kingdom of heaven, they are comforted, they
inherit the earth, they are filled, they obtain mercy, they see God – and
others see God in them, for they are called "the children of God."
They also lead the most fulfilling lives – because God makes them
into a complete person. I want you to do something
right now with eyes closed. Mentally, reach into your hip pocket or your
purse and pull out a little mirror. Now, look into it. Are you allowing God
to so control and fill your life that He "shows through?" You know what He
looks like. His portrait is in the beatitudes. If not, why not take the
first step and yield yourself to the Holy Spirit of God. It’s the only way
that you can experience these qualities and the happy, joy-filled
blessedness that goes with them. Please come back every week
as we continue on in our study of the beatitudes from the sermon on the
mount: “The greatest sermon ever
preached by the greatest preacher Who ever lived!”
Please help keep this free by honoring our system:
Click here to recommend this sermon. [A new window will open.]
When God Shows Thru The Gospel of Jesus Matthew 5:1-5
“Nobody can be like Jesus like J can.”
Jesus came to live within me to m the carnal works of this body, m the circumstances of my life, m His character, and m to others.
What others will see when God shows thru:
I. A H Person
A. Happiness – the u feeling B. Happiness – the u offer
II. A W Person
A. Poor in spirit = e . · This is about our s .
B. Mourn = b . · This is about our s .
C. Meek = s . · This is about our S .
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