The Sermon on the Mount - Part 1

Matthew 5:1-12, Luke 6:20-26

The word "blessed" can be loosely translated as "happy" or "fortunate".  Here it is used in the sense of being favored by God.  This passage is commonly referred to as the "Beatitudes", also carrying the idea of a blessing.  The ancient formula of blessings that come with obeying God, and curses for disobedience, is a familiar one in scripture (see, for example, the blessings and curses outlined in Deuteronomy 27-30).  Matthew's account, the most complete presentation of Christ's classic sermon, recounts only blessings, but Luke, who gives a shorter version, also mentions curses in the form of "woes" that attend rebellion against God.

The phrase "poor in spirit" does not refer necessarily to those who are financially poor, but to all of those who recognize their spiritual poverty without God in their lives.  We are a needy people in the eyes of God, and those who recognize their need and want to remedy it are those who come to Christ.  The true riches of eternal life and salvation have a price that we cannot pay, but Christ has already paid the price.  This idea of the true riches available without cost to us from God is echoed in Isaiah (Isaiah 55:1-2), and in the letter to the Laodicean church (Revelation 3:17-18), among many other places.  Until we recognize our need for Christ, and acknowledge it by accepting him as Savior, we will never be saved out of our sins.  Luke contrasts the idea of being spiritually poor to those who seek happiness in material wealth; this could refer, not only to money, but to everything that the world offers as a substitute for a relationship with Christ.

Mourning is not just weeping over a loss, of a loved one, for example, but as used by Jesus it refers to an attitude of contrition for sin, both ours and those of others.  Our knowledge of sin and its penalty should cause us to have a burden, one that leads to our own confession and repentance, and to fervent witnessing and prayer for those still lost in their sins.  Our comfort comes from the promise that God will forgive us our sins when we confess them (1 John 1:9), and when those we witness to, and pray for, come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ in our own lives.  The ultimate fulfillment of this promise will come in Heaven, when God will wipe away all tears from our eyes (Isaiah 25:8, Revelation 7:17 and 21:4).  Luke pictures the contrast to mourning, of being comforted, as laughing; not only will we stop mourning, or weeping, but we will instead rejoice with joyous laughter.

Meekness does not equate to weakness, which is the popular idea of what the word means.  Instead, it conveys the idea of submission, in this case submission to God's will.  This phrase is a restatement of Psalms 37:11, which adds that the meek shall delight themselves with an abundance of peace.  In fact, meekness and peace go hand in hand, since peace is the consequence of being in a proper, or submitted relationship with God.  A meek person may well endure abuse and slander without striking back, as Jesus did in his trial and crucifixion.  at times, though, when confronted with gross abuse of God's will and way, the meek may react with power and conviction, as when Christ purged the temple, or confronted the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees.  Resisting evil by enduring pain and scorn itself requires a greater measure of strength than the world's way of retaliation and revenge.  Why will the meek inherit the earth?  Because the meek as described here are those who submit themselves to God's will, and who, by so doing, become joint-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17).

We can attain to righteousness in God's eyes only through faith (Romans 9:30, and others).  Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, then, are those who look to faith as the guiding force in their lives.  Just as we will never find forgiveness for our sins until we recognize the need, when we mourn because of it, we will never attain to godly righteousness until we recognize its lack in our lives.  Righteousness here refers to the idea of justification, of being found right, or innocent, in the eyes of God.  Though it certainly affects, and derives from, our relationship with God, righteousness has to do particularly with what we do, or don't do, in our relationship with other people.  It is the outward manifestation of godly love, and the fulfillment of the second great commandment, "Thou shat love thy neighbor as thyself".  Though it is difficult to separate the ideas of righteousness and holiness, since they are interrelated, holiness concerns particularly our relationship with God, including not only righteous behavior but spiritual purity, worship and the attitude of praise.  The two qualities go hand in hand; we cannot have righteousness without holiness, and vice versa.

The merciful are not just those who forgive wrongs committed against them, though that is certainly encompasses.  Mercy means compassion, and kindness; if righteousness is the outward manifestation of godly love, mercy is its vehicle.  When we see a human need, whether spiritual or physical, and are moved by it to respond in whatever way we can, we are being merciful.  The response itself is not enough; there are many reasons from helping people, from guilt to the hope of recognition or reward.  The source of mercy is the same kind of love that motivated Christ when he had compassion on the multitudes (Matthew 15:32), or healed the sick, or when he died for our sins on the cross.  Mercy looks beyond what someone deserves or earns to the reality of their need.  If we, as believers, do not have within us the capacity to care for others in the same way Christ cares for us, if never to the same degree, then our faith is a sham.  If Christ lives within us, then we will have compassion toward others.  There is no other way we can hope for God's mercy in forgiving our own sins, or in meeting our own needs.

Being "pure in heart" refers to holiness, as discussed above.  Something that is pure is not mixed with anything else.  If we are spiritually pure, our devotion and service to God is not mixed with motives and priorities of the world and the flesh.  As long as we are in this flesh, we will never obtain to this degree of purity or holiness, except in the same way we obtain righteousness, through faith in Jesus Christ.  When a chemical used for a specific reaction is mixed with other chemicals, the results will not be what is expected.  Similarly, if our lives retain influences of the flesh as well as those of the Spirit, the results of our behavior and actions will fall short of what God requires.  The process of becoming pure, of becoming instruments wholly fit for God's use, is called "sanctification", and is, or should be, a lifelong process for believers.  The pure in heart will see God because there will be nothing in their minds and hearts that will serve as barriers between them and him.  Each of the blessings in this passage is a promise; the ultimate realization of this one will come when we see Christ in glory; as Paul wrote, "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." (1 Corinthians 13:12)

"Peacemakers" aren't officers of the law, though officers of the law can certainly be peacemakers.  These, rather, are people who walk in an attitude of peace, for whom peace is a way of life derived from that inward contentment that comes only from being in a right relationship with God.  Again, they are those who exhibit meekness, or submission to God's will.  Peace that comes from God is not dependent on outward circumstances; we can be at peace in Christ even when everything around us is chaos and confusion.  Paul exhibited that kind of peace on the ship caught in a great storm (Acts 27:21-26), and Jesus himself when he calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee (Mark 4:39).  Like so much else in our Christian lives, peace comes out of faith, the confidence that God is in control.  That attitude that God is in control should extend in our relationship with the world, because there is no real peace apart from God.  To the extent that the Lord is in control of a particular situation, there will be peace.  Jesus is the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), and his ultimate goal is to bring the whole world under the Father's feet, so "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."  (Philippians 2:10-11)  To the extent that we are a part of that ministry of bringing the earth to the worship and praise of Christ, through witnessing and through pure and righteous lives, we are peacemakers, and God's peace will follow in us.

The last two "blessings" are very much connected.  Because the world hates Christ, who represents the judgment and condemnation of all it holds dear, it will hate us as well (John 15:18).  If our actions and words threaten what the lost hold dear, they will react, just as they did in condemning Christ to death.  Suffering is not just a consequence of being overzealous in the exercise of our faith, but it flows naturally out of serving Christ.  If we suffer with him, Paul wrote, we shall also reign with him.  (2 Timothy 2:12)  Luke, once more, looks at the reverse side of the coin; if the world speaks well of us, and approves what we are doing, then we are none of Christ's.  One of the great tragedies of our time is the compromising church, trying desperately to be accepted in the world, and using the world's methods and music in an effort to draw the world inside its doors.  Instead of being spirit-driven, our churches must be "purpose-driven", in a feel-good kind of philosophy that has more to do with modern psychology than the Word of God.

The beatitudes are a primer for the Christian life, and follow the progression from repentance, salvation, and faith to a life of righteousness and holiness.  That life begins and ends with our relationship to God in Christ, and puts God before comfort, worldly recognition and approval, and the threat of pain and death.  Everything else that the Bible teaches about the kind of lives we should live, and the kind of relationship we should have with both God and man, points directly back to this passage.  An effort to give a complete treatment of the Beatitudes would fill, and has filled, volumes, and involves nothing less than the study of the entire record of scripture.