Jesus' Teachings 2

The Beatitudes (part 1)

Continuing through Matthew we arrive at chapter 5, the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount. The first part of the sermon is commonly called the "beatitudes." It is a series of nine pronouncements of blessings upon people with particular traits. The blessings are spoken difinativly, but the corresponding promise for each blessing is to come in the future. The beatitudes call for a radically different set of traits for people than those considered normal in the world. What is more surprising, each of these traits is to be rewarded by God. This type of discourse is very similar to the Kingdom teachings found in the Latter Prophets of the Old Testament. These teachings describe an "upside-down" world where the natural and social "laws" of this world are overturned and a better world is granted as a replacement. With this in mind, the beatitudes should be viewed two ways; as an ethical teachings for right behaviors and traits; and as a promise of the coming Kingdom of God that will completely change the world we know. So on to the beatitudes...

Matthew 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

To be "poor" is to be needy. The poor cannot rely on their own work or ability to gain more in life. They are completely dependent on the grace of those who can help them. To be "spiritually poor" is to recognize one's total dependence upon God for salvation. Jesus tells these people that those who see their utter need for God will be in the Kingdom of God.

Contemporary Expression
To be poor is spirit is the opposite of being spiritually prideful. We must always recognize that we have no standing before God apart from what he was given us gracefully. We do not stand before God because of our own merit, to do so would make us spiritually wealthy. We should never act as though we have "earned" a place before God, rather we should be humble to all, those who know God and those who don't. To believe that we do not have a total need for God is to completely miss the Kingdom of God, a place in the universe totally governed by God.

Matthew 5:4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

What type of mourning is Jesus speaking of here? Building on the previous blessing, Jesus here speaks of those who mourn over their own inability to reach spiritual achievement. Those who despair over their own spiritual shortcomings will comforted when they see the grace of God.

Contemporary Expression
It is not enough to recognize our spiritual shortcomings, we must mourn over that fact. Knowing our true state should be emotionally and even physically distressing to us. However, when we reach this point we must lose ourselves in hopeless despair, but look to the hope in Christ we have and the assurance that our spiritual debts have been repaid by him, enabling us to rise above our former state.

Matthew 5:5 "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Spiritual humility to should lead to total humility. The irony here is that those who are meek, who act as though they are the most insignificant, will eventually have dominion over the who earth.

Contemporary Expression
As stated earlier, there are many Christians who are prideful, arrogant, and boastful. A quick survey of the "Christian" TV personalities proves this. These people tend to speak big about taking the world for Christ, envisioning themselves as co-regents with him over the whole world. This behavior is completely antithetical to what Jesus teaches his followers, and according to this text, will leave them in the lurch when God takes the earth back.

Matthew 5:6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Hunger and thirst are the primary human drives. Therefore they are indicative of our most basic desires. Jesus is here telling us to make our primary drive righteousness. Righteousness is the same as holiness, it means set apart for the service of God and to be more like him. If we are not naturally righteous, we must ask God for it. God will make us righteous through his grace by conditioning us over time to become more like him. If we hunger for righteousness, if it is our main drive in life, God will grant it over time.

Contemporary Expression
Righteousness is not normally a theme of contemporary church teaching, however Jesus tells us it should be our main priority. Our main drive in life should not be intellectual achievement, wealth, prosperity, "success" by any definition, or anything but the righteousness of God. Do you hunger for righteousness above all else?