Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
[Matthew 5:3-10]
Notice what kinds of people are not mentioned here. Not those who memorize their Bibles or who pray every day. Not those who give away their money or who keep their chastity. Not those who honor their parents or who help the sick.
Sure, happy consequences can result from doing the above things—and we should do them—but Jesus isn’t going there, at least not yet.
Jesus begins his sermon by intentionally distancing himself from any talk about external prerequisites for getting God’s blessing. Instead, he goes straight to the heart. He focuses on the humble characteristics of a heart that is truly blessed by God.
Why? There were those in Jesus’ day who wore the outer garment of godliness and obedience but who lacked any real humility of heart. They did “holy” things not from a sincere love for God or for others, but from a proud desire to justify themselves, a motive exemplified in the scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5:20).
So Jesus spoke the Beatitudes, and Matthew wrote them here, because the same temptation that corrupted the scribes and Pharisees threatens God’s people in every age.
We must beware of thinking that God’s blessing will come to us because of how well we obey the rest of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus puts the Beatitudes at the beginning of his message to make it clear that the descriptions of righteousness that follow can only be lived out as the natural expressions of a heart that has already been humbled—and, in that sense, already blessed—by God.
January 21, 2010 at 11:25 am
wow. wow. deep. deep.
January 21, 2010 at 2:33 pm
I never thought about that. God always speaks to the heart..this is true. That is why Jesus didn’t always heal right away, he wanted to deal with the sinful heart first. Thanks for the good word.
January 21, 2010 at 4:42 pm
Very intresting information. God really takes pleasure in the spiritual realm of the heart.
January 21, 2010 at 5:43 pm
Humility. Again I hear Him call for and bless humility… And I’m humbled by His loving gracious blessing.
January 22, 2010 at 3:32 am
And don’t we so often desire those outer garments of godliness much more than caring about inner godliness
January 25, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Well, this has made me think about stopping what I am working on and learning the Beatitudes before moving on–first things first, and hopefully remember this in everything else that follows…
January 25, 2010 at 4:00 pm
So refreshing to read especially the last sentence. Locally all I hear in response to the Beatitudes is, “Do this and you will be blessed”; instead of something more like, “Those who have been graciously and eternally blessed are able to do and be this.” I see the promise of Christ in every “shall”.