Welcome to The MHB Podcast. This is Michael Baun. And welcome to my 185th episode. In this episode we are going to begin our study of Matthew chapter 5. This chapter begins the Sermon on the Mount which is colloquially called the Constitution of Christianity. This sermon is the longest piece of dialogue from Jesus ever recorded. The Sermon on the Mount reads less like a doctrinal creed and more like a set of practical instructions. Jesus wants you to live out and act out your Christian faith. Belief motivates and often predicates action so I think being established in proper belief is the most important thing for your spirit. But it’s also the case that actions supply necessary feedback which will then allow you to modify your belief. This cyclical process of belief inspiring action and the feedback of those actions informing your belief is called praxis – and it’s one of the three necessary facets of a proper Bible interpretation. If your belief causes you to act in a way that is more like Jesus, and the feedback of your actions confirms this Christlikeness, then you know you’re on the right track. That is essentially what Christ is encouraging us to do in the Sermon on the Mount: act out your faith and see whether your faith is of God.
The first part of Christ’s sermon will show us the beatitudes. The beatitudes are like paradoxes which reveal how a person is blessed from the perspective of Heaven. The beatitudes are paradoxical because they run counter to what we would observe if we put them to the test in our world of vanity. I love the beatitudes because they demonstrate Christ’s sovereignty over our broken world. His declarations give insight to the notion that Jesus is not from this world and the spiritual realm which characterizes Heaven is actually superordinate to the reality we experience now.
The beatitudes show us different conditions which result in blessedness and these conditions are a consequence of duty. In this sermon Jesus reminds His disciples that they are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Christ ratifies the moral law and instructs us that if we allow ourselves to be governed by it through faith in Him then we will become the kind of people who can guide the world. In His sermon Jesus rebukes the willful corruption which the scribes and Pharisees introduced into their exposition of the law.
Lastly, Jesus clarifies parts of the law which became popularly misunderstood either by incompetence or willful blindness. He puts a finer point on the sixth commandment which forbids murder. He also explicates the seventh commandment which forbids adultery. There is discussion of the third commandment and further admonition against taking the Lord’s name in vain. Also the law of retaliation effectively gets turned upside-down by Christ’s explanation. The law of brotherly love or neighborly love becomes extended to one’s own enemies – which was no doubt a radical claim for the time and very difficult for us to put into practice ourselves today. Ultimately what Jesus is doing here is He’s showing us that the law in its essence is spiritual. It’s designed to reflect our broken condition, our need for a Savior, and gives us a way forward in terms of our sanctification and the hope for a better tomorrow. Let’s begin by reading verses 1-12:
Mat 5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.
Mat 5:2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,
Mat 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
Mat 5:5 “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.
Mat 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Mat 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
Mat 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
Mat 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
Mat 5:10 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.
Mat 5:12 “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus Christ is the king of all preachers. He is the greatest among the prophets of His Church. He came into the world to be the Light of the world – to preserve what is good and to guide our steps into eternity. The prophets of the Old Testament and also John the Baptist had accomplished valiant work in their own preaching – but the work of Jesus exceeded them all. This is not to say that Christ’s words in Scripture are to be taken more seriously than the rest of Scripture – which is sometimes a temptation and part of the reason we have red letter Bibles which present the words of Jesus in red ink. It’s not a bad thing if you use a red letter Bible – just keep in mind the verbal plenary inspiration of Scripture. Verbal plenary inspiration means the Bible in its entirety, as well as every part, is the written word of God.
Jesus Christ is the Logos which means He is the Spirit of truth and the eternal Word made flesh. He is the Wisdom of God which was resident in the Father before anything was created. Jesus knows the will of the Father perfectly. In the previous chapter we watched Jesus perform all manner of healings and miracles across Galilee. These miracles were meant to prepare the people for hearing this sermon. They were given a glimpse of Christ’s divine power and this preview added credibility to the instructions He needed to give them now. Most likely Christ had already been preaching this content in the synagogues of Galilee. John the Baptist, as well as Jesus, called on people to repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. The Sermon on the Mount expands on what it means to repent. Jesus instructs us further on what it means to reform (or be sanctified) both in spirit and in practice.
Notice how this brilliant sermon is preached from a mountain in Galilee. Much the same as in the rest of His life, the world would not afford Jesus proper accommodations. He had no place to rest His head and no place to preach His sermon. The religious elite – the scribes and Pharisees – had the seat of Moses and all the highest honors which came with being the clergy. It is from this place of praise that the Jewish leaders corrupted the doctrines of God’s law. Meanwhile Jesus, who is the Spirit of truth Himself, was driven out into the desert to speak His message. The same thing happens today when a society becomes corrupt. Wicked deceivers and ideologically possessed proselytes employ means of censorship in their efforts to push the truth out of the public square.
The mountain from which Jesus delivered this sermon was not one of the holy mountains like Zion – it was just an average mountain. By preaching His sermon from a common mountain, Jesus shows us that under the gospel there is no longer holiness bound up in any kind of location. We can pray and preach the word of God from anywhere – and indeed we should aspire to do it everywhere. There is a theme to mountains though and it might be as simple as convenience since they didn’t have microphones or there may be symbolic significance since mountains reach up into the heavens. The Mosaic law was given by God from Mount Sinai long ago, and now Christ has given exposition of that law from another mountain.
Despite similarities in terms of mountains there are some key differences between this scene and the scene where Moses was given the law. With Moses God came down upon the mountain, with Christ God went up. With Moses God spoke in thunder and lightning, with Christ God spoke in a still small voice. With Moses the people were ordered to keep their distance, with Christ they are invited to draw near. God’s grace and goodness are His glory and Jesus Christ brought grace and truth into the world.
Those who were closest to Jesus when He gave this sermon were His disciples whom He had called to come unto Him. One reason they were granted close proximity was because they followed Jesus for love and learning, while others followed Him for His miracles and for His healings. As a general rule, you will be brought closer to Christ if you pray for Him to make you better so that you might serve the kingdom better – rather than Him making you better for your own sake. The first step in being a disciple of Christ is the willingness to be taught. Humility is necessary if you wish to cultivate a willingness to be taught. But once you have this willingness, you will be led to understand the things which God wants to teach you. If you lack faith and humility then the things of God will appear to you as foolishness. But if you earnestly seek the Spirit of truth He will open your eyes to reality itself.
The disciples needed to be taught because they themselves would become teachers. They would be charged with teaching others to perform the duties prescribed by Christ in this sermon. These are duties which all Christians should take upon themselves to carefully perform in their efforts to advance the kingdom of God on earth. The disciples were closest to Him but the multitudes were also within earshot as Christ delivered this message – and they were astonished at what they heard. The strict boundaries which characterized the Mosaic scene on Mount Sinai simply did not exist for this sermon. It’s because of Jesus that we are able to freely approach God to speak to Him and to hear from Him.
The miracles of Jesus made Him sufficiently famous that a great multitude had formed to hear His sermon. The Sermon on the Mount is often used as a proof-text in support of mega-church ministries. The reasoning suggests we shouldn’t be ashamed to speak to massive crowds because Jesus had a massive crowd for His teaching. I think there is wisdom in this but we must be extraordinarily careful to discern whether our excitement over a big crowd stems from a love for the gospel or whether is stems from a love for our own praise.
Jesus provides us with examples of different ways to spread the gospel whether it be through teaching, through acts of service, or through His miracles. It’s interesting to notice that two of His major ways are in conversation and in formal preaching. The Sermon on the Mount falls into the category of formal preaching – whereas the Olivet Discourse is much less formal. Both modes of expression have their rightful place and every church would do well to ensure both are competently delivered. There is a bit more solemnity to the Sermon on the Mount because of its formal nature – we get a sense that what Jesus is about to say is incredibly important because of how He positions Himself to say it. It’s kind of like when you tell someone to sit down before you give them important news.
Jesus didn’t run up and down the mountain shouting and trying to stir emotions in the crowd – rather He positioned Himself calmly as a Judge or a Lawgiver. This level-headedness shows us that the things of God should be spoken of and heard with a kind of sedateness as well as a composed mind. Jesus taking up His position as Judge was fitting since He was about to purge away the bad teaching of the religious leaders. But it wasn’t merely about correcting bad teaching – His words would also serve to convict the hearts of those who heard Him.
Throughout history God opened the mouths of His prophets to speak through them to His people Israel. But in this sermon God opens His own mouth and speaks freely – teaching as One who has all the authority. Jesus taught us a lot through His exemplary life and His actions and He even remained silent during pivotal moments like when He was being led to crucifixion. But Proverbs chapter 8 tells us about wisdom speaking out for all to hear and it prophecies this moment when Jesus will open His mouth to speak right things.
Jesus taught so that we might understand the difference between good and evil. This is a sober project which really doesn’t require much speculation. The Christian faith renews our minds and stabilizes our lives so that we can become a picture of the firm foundation which is found in Jesus. When Jesus speaks we who know His voice are invited into a time of reformation. We are invited to be made better. As Christians we should never stop seeking the truth according to godliness and this truth is only found in Jesus.
The Sermon on the Mount opens with Jesus pronouncing blessings. The scriptures say Jesus came into the world to bless us by turning us away from our wicked ways. Seeing Christ declare blessings in this way shows us that He has the authority to command such things and make them happen. He is the Ruler of blessings, perhaps the greatest of which is His free gift of eternal life.
The condition of being blessed is a consequence of God blessing you. That statement may seem redundant, but it actually means if God blesses you then you are in fact blessed whether you realize it or not. Understanding that our blessings come from God also gives us motivation to pray to God in appeal for blessings. The Old Testament ended with a curse in Malachi chapter 4, but the New Testament opens with a blessing. The blessings enumerated in the beatitudes reveal two things: they show us what kind of people are to be blessed and what their character is like. And they also show us the promises of God the performance of which will bring authentic joy.
It’s important to pay attention to the beatitudes because it’s possible you are searching for the wrong kind of blessing. If your perspective on blessing doesn’t match God’s actual blessings then it’s possible your heart’s desire has led you astray. If your end goal for blessing is a form of ungodliness then it’s likely you’re merely courting your own delusions. A good example is the misunderstanding that wealthy, powerful people are blessed by God through such things as wealth and power.
A worldly perspective on blessing might suggest the goal is to live a life of mirth and pleasure. But this kind of bounty does not align itself with what Christ teaches concerning blessing. Some of the conditions Christ claims result in blessedness are so preposterous that they seem paradoxical. This is why it’s so important to understand God’s view of blessing because His view is so antithetical to the world’s view that pursuing God’s blessing will likely take you in the opposite direction of those who are pursuing the world’s blessing.
The beatitudes also remind the destitute of the hope they will find when they receive the gospel. Often we think blessings are reserved for people who are naturally gifted or who seem more valuable than others. But Jesus reveals that even the least in the kingdom of heaven whose hearts are upright with God are eligible to receive the full honors and privilege of His kingdom.
You cannot please God without faith, and faithful obedience is the most precious of currencies when it comes to being favored with God’s blessings. That doesn’t mean the faithful will be rewarded with prosperity in this life. In fact the opposite is often true and Christians are persecuted because of their faith. But they will be rewarded with blessings in the kingdom of heaven which transcend the good things of this world in both permanence and value.
Back in the book of Deuteronomy there were blessings and curses declared in correspondence to mount Gerizim and mount Ebal. This was a way of explicating the consequences of obedience versus disobedience. Jesus presents the beatitudes at the beginning of His sermon rather than at the end because He wants to invite the lost to come to Him and hear His teachings.
The difference between blessings and curses given in Deuteronomy and the beatitudes is that the presentation in Deuteronomy was more focused on warning Israel against sin – whereas the beatitudes are more focused on inviting all people to Jesus. The compassion of the beatitudes was perfectly in keeping with Christ’s compassion as a healer and miracle-worker. The final analysis is the same in that faithfulness leads to godliness, but the reason the focus is flipped here is because Jesus is sending the message that godliness isn’t even possible without first being in relationship with Him.
The beatitudes function further to settle and summarize the agreement between God and man. He’s establishing both His expectations of us and His promises to us line-by-line in a succinct deliverance of grace. Faith in its most fundamental essence is a voluntary conformity to the character descriptions made in these verses with a trust that God’s promises will be made good for you. Thousands of volumes have been written on the subject of finding happiness – but Jesus articulates the most certain pathway to everlasting joy right in these verses. Whatever else is true of life, we can be certain that becoming the opposite of these character descriptions will not lead to joy or happiness. Jesus is the key to unlocking the power we need to live out these ideals and Jesus is the source of the blessings which will come upon us when we do.
If you want to know which people around you are walking in the joy of the Lord – Jesus gives eight descriptions in these beatitudes. According to Jesus, the people who fit these eight descriptions are blessed right now and will be blessed even more in the future. The first description of a blessed person is one who is poor in spirit. When you think about poor in spirit try not to equate this condition with misery. Misery would be more like a person who is constantly overcome by cowardice and an enslavement to the base desires of the flesh. When Jesus mentions the poor in spirit He means those who have emptied themselves in a sacrificial manner and are thereby primed to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The less selfish you are, the more readily you can accept God’s spiritual provision.
Being poor in spirit is a condition which may also be associated with material poverty. There are many people who are contentedly poor. A person who has given up their opportunities at worldly wealth so they might better pursue God is likely poor in spirit. Being impoverished is not in itself a virtue, however, because there are also many people who are materially poor and also full of resentment, bitterness, and pride. These are the kinds of people who are always complaining and blaming others – and sometimes blaming God Himself – for their lot in life. They also tend to be the ones who hate the rich and believe themselves to be naturally more altruistic than wealthy people simply because they are poor.
A person who is poor in spirit would view material poverty with patience and gratitude. They recognize God’s wisdom in appointing their path in life and they demonstrate patience when dealing with the inconvenience of it. The poor in spirit exercise gratitude by making the best of what they have and being thankful for all the ways God has provided – even though by comparison they remain poor. But maybe most importantly the poor in spirit do not set their hearts on wealth. They don’t love money the way they love God. In this way it’s possible for a wealthy person to simultaneously be poor in spirit. You may have great wealth and so long as you hold to it loosely while never turning it into your idol – you can still remain poor in spirit.
There’s nothing virtuous about disposing of God’s provision in an effort to show yourself poor to others. It’s good to be generous and to give to charity, but you must always maintain proper discernment when you do so. If your generosity stems from a desire to uplift and glorify yourself then you are not poor in spirit and it’s very likely God rejects your supposed sacrifice. People who give in order to glorify themselves are often far less careful about who they give to. If you’re not careful about what exactly your generosity is funding, it’s possible your giving is not only failing to produce goodness but may even be making the world worse. A wealthy person who is poor in spirit will be a cheerful giver who is motivated by obedience to God and compassion for the poor who suffer privation and infirmity.
The poor in spirit, whether financially rich or not, are always prepared to lose their wealth and embrace poverty – especially if doing so is the consequence of maintaining one’s obedience to God. Throughout history obedience to God has come at a cost and we may be entering into a world where being obedient Jesus will cost you your money in the form of lawsuits and punitive actions. The poor in spirit do not fear such things because they recognize their immutable treasures are in heaven and true wealth comes from the grace of God. Job is an excellent example of this because he went from being extremely wealthy to absolutely poor and then back to extremely wealthy. Throughout his ups and downs he always praised God – he worshiped God for what God had given him and he worshiped God when it was taken away.
To be poor in spirit also means to be humble and lowly in our own eyes. I’ve said this many times but true humility is not thinking less of yourself – it’s thinking of yourself less often. The goal here is to maintain an accurate view of yourself. One of the best ways to resist pride is to continuously understand the fragile nature of your mortal frame. As a human being living in a fallen world you are weak, foolish, and insignificant. Understanding the plight of the human condition is not thinking less of yourself – it’s seeing yourself accurately and truthfully and thereby recognizing your need for a savior. Jesus said that whoever humbles himself like a child becomes the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
The apostle Paul was an extraordinarily well-educated and gifted man. But even one such as him, in order to view himself accurately, had to see himself as the least of the apostles and the least of the saints. This attitude kept his pride in check and equipped him with a healthy humility which allowed him to do great things in his ministry. Paul’s humility allowed him to practice a kind of plasticity when it came to evangelizing and making disciples. He didn’t get stuck believing he had some kind of perfect process or perfect style and if others didn’t resonate with him it must be their fault and they need to change. He was willing to adapt in the small things in service to the most important things. In one instance Paul’s humility drove him to become a tentmaker so he didn’t put undue financial pressure on the people he was trying to reach with the gospel. Abasing himself and doing that kind of work was considered lower than the office of an apostle but that abasement didn’t stop Paul.
To be poor in spirit means to maintain an awareness that God is great and we are nothing apart from Him. We can do nothing without Jesus. But it’s worse than that: if we decide to force our way without Jesus not only will we produce nothing of value but our lives will likely have a negative impact on the world. You don’t want your life to be the wicked thing God redeems your community from. It’s scary to think what it would feel like to be left behind in such a way – but avoiding that trap is both simple and guaranteed. All you need to do is humble yourself before God and depend entirely on the righteousness of Jesus as opposed to your own righteousness. The righteousness of Jesus justifies you and the Spirit of God sanctifies you – your faithfulness means that you’re just along for the ride and you get to see the miraculous work God will do in your heart. The poor in spirit are forever grateful for this process and are always in want of God’s grace and God’s mercy.
It’s no accident that humility and being poor in spirit is listed as the first virtue among the Christian graces. To become a Christian you must learn self-denial and humility as the founding principle for the other moral virtues. You have to learn humility first because pride will corrupt your efforts at learning the rest of it. Humility is the best preparation for the entrance of gospel-grace into the soul. The people who are referred to as “good soil” for the planting of the gospel are characterized predominantly by humility. If you want to be able to rest in the peace of Jesus then you must first practice humility. Those who find rest in Jesus are called the weary and heavy-laden, and that’s what it means to be poor in spirit.
The humble person is blessed by God. They actually live more comfortable lives than the proud. That’s because they are afforded more grace, the people around them are more likely to love them, and they’re not beset by the anxiety which attends needing to uphold a false image born of arrogant boasting. In addition to being more comfortable, Jesus also says they shall inherit the kingdom of Heaven. God values humility so much that He exalts those who humble themselves. People who search for great worldly power will lose it when they lose the world. But those who have mild and yielding souls will obtain glory in God’s eternal kingdom.
You might raise an objection concerning talent or ability. We don’t want to live in a world made up entirely of unskilled or incompetent people even if they are humble. It’s true that authentic faith-based works which promote well-being in the Church and in the world are works which honor God. This is in part what it means to advance the kingdom of God. So a wealthy person who is also generous and humble would be accomplishing God-honoring work. But even the person who doesn’t have any money but whose heart’s desire is to do good unto others is a person who honors God. God’s judgment is concerned less about your capacity and more about your simple obedience and your motivation for why you do the things you do.
In verse four Christ declares blessed are those who mourn. This is another claim which stands in stark contradistinction to what worldly wisdom might say. As human beings we tend to think mourning is one of the worst experiences in life – and there’s no question that it’s among the most painful. But Jesus Himself was a significant mourner. Mourning in a Christlike sense is not falling into despair or bitterness – that kind of mourning rapidly becomes sinful because it is used as justification for disobedience.
The mourning Christ refers to is the natural and inescapable mourning which comes with living in a broken world. Much of this kind of mourning is associated with recognition of one’s own sinful condition. It causes you to subordinate mindless mirth to a seriousness of thought. There’s nothing inherently wrong with comedy and laughter – but it is wrong to take shelter in such things and refuse to face the gravity of your existence. In Zechariah 12:10 God describes the sense of mourning which attends recognition of our own sins and realization of what it cost everyone including Jesus when He says:
10 “I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.
It’s hard to look at the world and really see it. Not because reality is illusory so much as it is tragic. We often wonder why people suffer from maladies like anxiety and depression – but when taking an honest inventory of life and the human condition the curiosity should not be the presence of despair – the curiosity should be the presence of joy and why we’re not all depressed all the time. Depression is not a virtue and remember Christ isn’t talking about that here. Rather He’s encouraging us to see the world for what it is – to see ourselves for what we are – and to mourn the broken condition from which we require salvation.
We mourn the abominable sins of ourselves and others. We have a sympathetic mourning for the afflictions of others. We look with solemnity and sadness upon the souls of the lost in the same way Christ wept over Jerusalem. Some of the greatest comedians in the world are deeply damaged people. There is a kind of vanity which comes with using laughter as a form of escape. Again I’m not indicting comedy or laughter itself – rather the misuse of it. In the midst of vain and sinful laughter the heart is often sorrowful. In the midst of gracious, Christlike mourning the heart contains an immovable sense of joy. This is the peace which goes beyond comprehension and often goes unnoticed by passersby.
So why is there joy in mourning? Jesus was a man of sorrows and the Scripture never records Him laughing although it records Him weeping multiple times. The joy comes from squaring up with the stark realization of your condition and discovering that the Spirit of God Himself resident in you is all you actually need. Once you discover that the Holy Spirit – the divine Comforter Himself – is the everlasting source of your joy then everything looks up from there. When a person should feel despair, resentment, and misery but instead is filled with a sense of peace, that experience is perhaps the closest you’ll come to standing in the presence of God in this life.
None of this is to take away from the pain of grief and the reality of loss. It’s true that your comfort may not be felt immediately. And it’s possible your worldly circumstances may never get better. But if you are in Christ then plentiful provision has already been made for your comfort. The story of the rich man and Lazarus in the New Testament documents the tragic existence of the impoverished Lazarus. His comfort doesn’t come until he dies and goes to Heaven – but it does come and it lasts forever. In Heaven God will wipe away the tears of suffering and we will enter into a fullness of joy and pleasure which is never extinguished. And those who mourned after the fashion of Christ will be blessed because this joy will be all the sweeter.
Next Jesus says blessed are the meek. When we think of meekness we want to be careful not to conflate it with weakness or cowardice. A meek person is one who willfully submits himself to God’s word, God’s direction, and God’s design. A meek person is gentle toward others not because they are incapable of violence but because they choose to love other people.
A meek person can endure provocation without losing his or her temper. Meekness means you’re able to stand up for yourself in a measured way without allowing yourself to be carried away into sinful action. The meek person is able to remain calm when others are stirred up. This kind of person maintains a comfortable rule of his or her own spirit even when it seems like everything else has spun out of control. Meekness allows you to forgive being wronged instead of seeking revenge for it.
Christ calls the meek blessed and suggests they can be happy even in this world. The meek are similar to Jesus in that God is the Lord of His own wrath. God never loses control of Himself. These people are blessed because their lives are characterized by undisturbed comfort and enjoyment of themselves, of God, and of others. A person who has mastered meekness is fit for nearly any condition because the character of their soul is not shifted and swayed by external circumstances. In this manner they are fit both to live and to die. These are the people in your life who feel like rocks of stability or anchors which help you remain safe in the midst of chaotic storms.
What’s interesting about this particular blessing is that it’s one of the few in the entire New Testament which is bound to temporal existence. When Jesus says the meek shall inherit the earth He isn’t saying the meek shall become conquerors who possess land. He’s saying that meekness is the pathway which has the real tendency to promote our health, wealth, comfort, and safety. People who are meek and quiet tend to live the easier life compared to provocateurs or hot-tempered and turbulent people. You hear often that panicking only makes everything worse – well meekness is something like an opposite condition of panic – and meekness makes everything better.
Next Jesus says blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness because they will be satisfied. This condition is another consequence of enduring privation and a poor status in this world. Following Christ means you will be vulnerable to injury at the hands of those who wield earthly power. Often this injury will be unjust and undeserved much like it was with our Lord’s crucifixion. You may not have an opportunity to experience justice in this world and you may be left hungering and thirsting for it. But Jesus said this is a blessed condition because you are called to have faith and in the end justice will be served.
And this kind of thing is not always associated with wrongdoing inflicted on yourself by others. Sometimes it’s the pain which comes from watching someone else suffer unjustly. The world is full of wicked people who neither fear God nor regard the well-being of their fellow humans. Part of living in such a place means we’re going to see people get hurt and traumatized by evil. If we’re not vigilant we ourselves can become the source of this evil. Observing the broken things of this world makes a person hunger and thirst for righteousness and Jesus says this reaction is both normal and desirable. He’s steadfastly acknowledging the tragic nature of our lives – and He’s saying despite all of that we will be satisfied in the end. Psalm 103:6 says:
Psa 103:6 The LORD performs righteous deeds And judgments for all who are oppressed.
Those who bear oppression with a quiet contentment while keeping their hope in God will be satisfied. When we talk about this kind of satisfaction it’s important that we distinguish between worldly satisfaction and spiritual satisfaction. No one is promising here that the scales of righteousness will be balanced in this world. But you don’t have to wait for Heaven to experience the gifts of divine favor and one of them is the satisfaction of this righteousness. It becomes manifest at the level of the spirit when you understand and accept the wisdom and kindness of God.
The best and only pathway to encountering such righteousness in a broken world is by focusing on the righteousness of Christ. Divine favor is purchased for us by His righteousness and His righteousness is imputed onto us. This means despite the severity of your circumstances you’re actually capable of being a conduit for real righteousness in this space. Notice I’m saying conduit and not source. The Spirit of God works righteousness through you – you don’t work it yourself. You’re too ignorant and malevolent to effect lasting righteousness in life, and so whatever good you end up accomplishing in your life should be a reminder that God is working through you and you should honor Him for it.
By the power of God’s Spirit you are sanctified and renewed so that the image of God becomes the characteristic which defines you. If you want the blessing conveyed by this beatitude then you should hunger and thirst for righteousness in the same way you hunger and thirst for food or drink. If you’re hungry enough then having food becomes satisfying even if you have almost nothing else. Also hunger and thirst are appetites which return frequently and require continual satisfaction. The same should be true of your desire for righteousness.
Earnestly desiring for God to transform your heart is the orientation toward sanctification. It’s not about building up the motive force of your own willpower – it’s about desiring God, waiting on God, and trusting Him that He will work in you at the right time. There are many parts of life where you feel stressed or concerned in a moment and then years later you look back and wonder why you ever worried at all. Sanctification is one of those things – if your faith is in Jesus then God is working in you right now even if it’s in ways which are hard to notice.
In the same way you hunger for food each day, you should also hunger for righteousness and the grace it takes to be a godly person while focusing on today. You should act on this hunger each day in the same way you take action when you are hungry for food. The hunger for righteousness leads to a satisfaction which sustains you. The thirst for righteousness is slightly different because it leads to satisfaction which refreshes you. The hunger for righteousness represents the desire for sanctification. The thirst for righteousness represents the relief which comes with knowing your sins are pardoned. Both of these elements are indispensable and you can’t go with one and not the other any more than you can go without food or water.
The desire for righteousness is a consequence of your design which is the work of God’s own hands – and He will not forsake His work. You are blessed and satisfied when you desire righteousness because righteousness is among the noble things which God wants you to desire. This is different than if you were to desire worldly wealth. The desire for righteousness comes with a recognition of one’s own emptiness and a need for God’s fullness. God is the only One who can fill a soul and bring it to a sense of satisfaction. Often people pursue earthly material because they don’t realize what’s missing in them is God’s grace. The prophet Amos says that they pant after the dust of the earth. The prophet Isaiah asks why you would spend money for that which is not bread and wages for that which does not satisfy. So much of being satisfied in this life is about aligning your desires with that which is blessed by God – and that’s one of the major lessons of these beatitudes.
Next Jesus blesses the merciful and declares that they shall receive mercy. Being naive is not the same thing as being merciful but often a merciful person will appear naive. This kind of person might get taken advantage of and it’s very unlikely that a merciful person will be willing to do what it takes to become rich. Yet even so Christ says the merciful are blessed. Part of being merciful means extending kindness and compassion to those who are in the midst of suffering. A lot of this comes down to effort. Mercy is about putting effort into educating the ignorant. It’s about putting effort into helping the helpless. It’s about warning the careless and interceding for those who are embattled by sin. In all things we should endeavor to comfort the sorrowful, supply the impoverished, and be gentle with those who are subject to our authority.
The psalmist says, blessed is he that considers the poor. We must be merciful because God is merciful. God’s glory is bound up in His goodness and a feature of His goodness is His mercy. The extent to which you demonstrate mercy is evidence of the authenticity of your love for God. As a Christian it should satisfy you when you can be instrumental in the benefit of others. When you do good things in this world you help preserve it against the pervasive corruption which characterizes sin and evil. One of the most effective ways to combat wickedness is through unrequited acts of kindness. Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive.
One reason to extend kindness to others is because you don’t know how long it will be before you stand in need of kindness. This is true temporally when it comes to your relationships with other human beings but it’s especially true eternally when it comes to your relationship with God. The psalmist says that God will show Himself merciful to those who practice mercy. If you forgive others of their transgressions then your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. Proverbs says that when you are gracious to a poor man you are lending to God, and that God will repay you for your good deed. The merciful will inherit the kingdom which has been prepared for them by God since before the foundation of the world, but the unmerciful will inherit judgment.
We’ve gone over several specific characteristics of those who are blessed according to Jesus. Next He shows us what these characteristics become when they are found together in a person. He says blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. To be pure in heart means to allow the word of God to sanctify and transform you. The aim of the Bible is to transform the inner person – also referred to as the spirit, the soul, the heart, and the mind. The Scriptures are sufficient for this aim. Not only are they free from error, but they are perfect in the sense that they lack nothing for the project of transforming the inner person. If all you have is the Bible you have exactly what you need to take on the mind of Christ. As you continue to understand and live out the Scriptures you begin to develop all of the characteristics described in these beatitudes – and this leads to a pure heart.
I don’t think it’s possible for any person to be completely pure this side of Heaven – but the continual transformation of sanctification is the process which culminates in a pure heart. Having a pure heart means letting go of defiled lusts and aiming entirely at God. The heart is purified by faith and repeated exposure to the word of God. If you had to distill all of the reasons for reading the Bible into one it is exactly this: you read the Bible to purify your heart so that you take on the mind of Christ and see God. That is what the Scriptures are meant to do.
In the same way that a pure heart is the culmination of the other beatific characteristics, the ability to see God is the culmination of all the other blessings. To see God and to be in His presence is the perfection of the soul’s happiness. By faith we can be with God in the present moment as a form of heaven on Earth. When we pass away and stand in His presence we will see Him in perfection and this will be heaven itself. In the present moment we can only see God dimly as through a darkened glass. But in heaven we will see Him clearly and be able to enjoy His company fully. We will see Him and we will be like Him – and this likeness will satisfy our spirits. To be glorified in heaven is to see God and to never again lose sight of Him.
At this point in our progression we will have hearts which are perfected in purity. It’s not possible for the impure human heart to stand before a holy and perfect God. We would not be able to endure it. Those who will see God are those who are truly sanctified and whose hearts have been transformed such that they are in perfect alignment with His. We desire what God desires, and by His grace He will not leave those desires unsatisfied.
Next Jesus declares that the peacemakers are blessed because they shall be called sons of God. You might say a peacemaker is someone who is characterized by wisdom which comes from God. Such wisdom is both pure and peaceable. Heavenly wisdom (which comes from Scripture) is pure toward God and peaceable toward fellow human beings. A true peacemaker is one who keeps a clean conscience in regards to both God and man. The peacemaker is calm, cool, and collected. He or she desires peace as a priority – and is willing to work for it. A peacemaker is in his element when life is quiet. One of the great motivators of sin is simple boredom. If you want to be a peacemaker you must learn to be content in the quiet moments of life and resist ill-advised action merely to break up the monotony.
When trying to define a concept it’s sometimes useful to look at its opposite. The opposite of a peacemaker is a person who is given over to gossip and slander. The person who loves bearing bad news is the opposite of a peacemaker. By way of contrast, a peacemaker is careful in how he resolves conflict. A person who loves peace will make every effort at authentic conversation before resorting to hostilities. Even in situations where neighbors are quite divided, the peacemaker will look for ways to repair the breach. This kind of person also labors to preserve peace when we are so fortunate to have it. A peacemaker is humble enough to accept peace when it is offered with honesty. Many times the person who is working for peace will end up taking blows from both sides of a conflict. The broken part of our nature enjoys outrage and demonizing those who are against us. But the peacemaker should keep the restoration of Christian love at the center of his aim when trying to navigate these issues. This is usually a thankless occupation.
Even though violent people won’t appreciate you, as a peacemaker you will have the satisfaction of enjoying stability yourself and being of service to those who need it. God honors those who work for peace by calling them His own children. When you work for peace you work jointly with the Lord Jesus because in the future He is going to proclaim peace on earth once and for all. One of the names given to Jesus in the Scriptures is the Prince of Peace. To become a peacemaker means to resemble Jesus Christ. Since God has taken the first move to make humanity reconcilable to Himself, He will not forever tolerate those who refuse peace and stir up violence. Historical violence committed in the name of the Church is incongruent with what Jesus says about peacemakers. Christianity was never meant to be evangelized by swords and soldiers. The children of God are not brutal imperialists, rather they are the meek and the quiet of the land.
The final blessing Christ declares in these beatitudes is also the greatest paradox of all. He says blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. Notice how He doubles the blessing and there are three verses dedicated to it rather than the single verses for each preceding blessing. Jesus is putting extra emphasis on the fact that if you follow Him you will endure hardship because of it. Throughout history Christians have been persecuted, hunted, imprisoned, fined, banished, tortured, and have endured many other things which would darken your imagination.
Those who follow Christ have traditionally been like sheep to the slaughter – which is odd when you really think about it because the main feature of a Christian’s life is to love his or her neighbor. It’s not normal for a person to repay love with persecution – but it is the consequence of the ancient serpent corrupting history with his indelible imprint. Christians aren’t persecuted because they love people and do good things, Christians are persecuted because a world without God hates Jesus Christ.
If we are to believe the Bible then Christians should be prepared to face persecution in this world perhaps more than any other kind of treatment. As a Christian you will be slandered, reviled, and wicked people will rise up to bear false testimony concerning you. I’m convinced the western Church hasn’t experienced much of this yet because western society has for so long been predominantly Christian. But the more corrupt a culture becomes the more odious righteous people will appear to the wicked. False testimony is a big one here. Lying is the natural speech of the godless – and those who aren’t able to physically persecute you are going to lie about you. Your more powerful enemies who are able to directly attack you will use falsehoods to justify their abuse of you.
These kinds of verbal attacks will happen both in your presence and behind your back. The saints of Christ have been mocked and derided ever since Christ Himself faced such treatment 2,000 years ago. The godless will call good evil and evil good. In this way they will aspire to convince the culture that Christ-followers are a dangerous embodiment of evil and must be imprisoned or destroyed. Why would anyone do such things? The Scriptures tell us the persecution comes because of righteousness. The wicked hate the righteous and view them as judges. Again it’s not because they hate you per se, it’s because they can see Christ in you and they hate Christ.
We must be careful to note the blessing promised to the persecuted is only afforded on the basis of righteousness. If you do evil things and then suffer persecution as a consequence of those things you are not included in this blessing. The reason it hinges upon righteousness is because enemies of righteousness are enemies of Jesus.
So how are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness blessed? First is because of their unique opportunity to glorify Jesus. To suffer for the sake of righteousness is to glorify God. It also opens the door for many visitations of God’s comfort and grace in your life. Many, many Christians experience conversion during the most broken moments of their lives and this is because God’s grace is more visible during these times. The first chapter of 2 Corinthians makes the juxtaposition between an abundance of suffering and an abundance of God’s comfort. Jesus also promises that the persecuted have a great reward in heaven. This is not to say that suffering earns your entry into the kingdom of God – because even the most saintly of martyrs have committed sins deserving of damnation. It’s just to say that Christ is counting the cost of your righteousness alongside you and He will not forget what you’ve suffered for His name.
As a Christian there is no amount of suffering you can experience which will not be fully recompensed by the satisfaction of heaven. The prophets, and even the Lord Jesus Himself, are given to us as examples of how to properly endure persecution. And maybe more than examples, we have these heroes of the faith and we have our Savior Jesus Christ to show us that we are not alone in this suffering. The pathway of suffering which leads to the kingdom of heaven is a well-worn path. Many have walked before us and many will walk after us. And maybe what brings hope to your spirit more than anything is that we know God’s grace was sufficient for them and so it will not fail us in this moment either. We’re going to make it. Jesus, in His perfect demonstration of meekness, has accepted the abuse and slander of entire generations. But He is still King Jesus. His power is unstoppable. His will is inevitable. And no matter what enemies stand in the way of the faithful, the Lord of Lords is the One who stands behind them – and that’s all that really matters in the end.
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