THE HEART THAT MANKIND SO DESPERATELY NEEDS IS EXPOUNDED
The Greatest sermon that builds upon the wonderful foundation given to Moses expounds and expands the love of God. Note Deut. 6:1-6. The beatitudes as given in Mathew Five, are the prerequisites as given by our Savior. We believe that it is the most meaningful message ever given to mankind by a loving God. Jesus prepares the audience for the message.
Matthew 5:3 NKJV 3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The poor in spirit are contrasted to those who are spiritually proud and self righteous.
Proverbs 16:19-20 NKJV 19 Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud. 20 He who heeds the word wisely will find good, And whoever trusts in the LORD, happy is he.
Jesus is starting by saying never forget how much we need God and do not rely upon ourselves.
THE BEATITUDES AND THE NEED TO BE SALT AND LIGHT
What are the attitudes that God requires of His people? Those who wish to be blessed by God and happy must exhibit certain traits. These traits follow the introductory remarks given by Christ. They are:
Matthew 5:4-6 NKJV 4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.
What was God's adversary's significant MONUMENTAL, CRUCIAL mistake? He lost his perspective with regard to God and became overly proud of his beauty and talents.
Ezekiel 28:16-17 NKJV 16 "By the abundance...O covering cherub, From the midst of the fiery stones. 17 "Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;...
Satan was the first rebel back stabber, and principle purveyor of evil because of his pride. God wisely will not tolerate such attitudes and spirits in His family for all eternity. We must learn to mourn all the evil that exists and try to reject it in our lives, this is the Messiah's message.
Ez 9:4 And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.
Similar things will happen to identify the righteous in the end of this age period. Note Rev. 7:3-4.
Matthew 5:7-9 NKJV 7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
The pure in heart have a mind that is not scheming and full of evil plots. Their emotions are not bursting with hatred and vengeance. The apostle James elaborates :
James 3:17-18 NKJV 17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. 18 Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
In addition to all these lofty traits God demands courage and fidelity to Him. If persecuted for standing up for Christ, or his high standards we must not falter. Thereby we must be like the heroic Prophets of the past, like Jeremiah and Elijah.
Matthew 5:11-12 NKJV 11 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 "Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
We are blessed when we are persecuted. The persecution drives us even closer to God. The dedication to God we display makes others uncomfortable. The truth is too close for comfort so they criticize us. God loves our courage and further, it puts us in the company of heroic prophets. One of the more shocking statements in the book of Revelation regarding those who will not be in God's family, ultimately are the cowardly. They are lumped with terrible perverts.
8 "But the COWARDLY, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
God will not test us beyond our means but may at times demand courage and fidelity.
ARE THE MORAL GOALS SO LOFTY THAT THEY ARE UNREALISTIC?
Jesus in the sermon was basically using hyperbole some writers claim. He did not expect people to achieve such high moral and lofty goals, maybe He just wants us try and be a little better? The answer based on the author of most of the New Testament is an emphatic, No! Christ wants us to really strive for this high mark.
Philippians 3:13-14 KJV 13 Brethren I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
There is no doubt that Christ gave these standards for all believers to meet realizing that we cannot do it alone. We all need help from God. When Jesus left his disciples He promised that after His resurrection, He would direct the Holy Spirit to come and help us.
John 14:15-16 NKJV 15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever--
Further Jesus wants us to be the SALT AND LIGHT of the world based on our conduct.
Matthew 5:13-16 NKJV 13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
God needs the presence (taste) of us converted humble, believers on the Earth to make it worth His saving. The light we shine is vital and important to God. Even if we have weaknesses, we are still fighting for our improvement and ultimate victory as lights to the world. Note I Cor.1:27.
Matthew 24:22 KJV 22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
Therefore God saves planet Earth from human made nuclear and other types of destruction.
14 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
We need to let our good deeds and Godly hearts be seen by others like a shining city on a hill top and remember God gets the credit.
Next week in part two we will cover the deepest moral lessons of all time.
ISSUES
HOW CAN WE BE A LIGHT TO CHURCH GOERS WHO THINK THEY ARE OK? ARGUING WON'T WORK.
