Audio version of this sermon here
Rev. Brian North Westminster Presbyterian Chehalis, WA April 11th, 2010
Matthew 5:1-12 The World’s Greatest Talk
Be-Attitudes
Today we begin a new journey through what is arguably Jesus’ most famous teaching, what is often called, “The Sermon on the Mount.” In it, Jesus teaches on a variety of subjects that give us wise counsel on many facets of faith and living.
I want to make one comment about the Sermon on the Mount as a whole before getting into this morning’s passage. What Jesus says in these three chapters from Matthew is great. People throughout history, of all religious stripes, have pointed to this teaching of Jesus’ as great – even ground-breaking. And we can soak it up like a sponge, which is also great. But Jesus’ never taught with the idea that people would just listen to him and go away unchanged in their living. Jesus is totally uninterested in his students simply being able to give the right answers. He doesn’t teach so we can just regurgitate the answers on an exam a few days after he teaches. Rather, Jesus’ expectation is that what he says will become a part of us and change us. That who he is, what he said, and what he did, will become a part of the very fabric of who we are, and therefore will impact how we live.
We see this most graphically at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. After all this teaching, Jesus says at the end, “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice, is like a wise person who built their house on the rock…but everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish person who built their house on the sand” (Matthew 7:24, 26). And in the story that goes with those two verses, you may recall that the person who built their house on the sand saw their house get washed away in the heavy rains, while the house built on the rock, when the same storm comes, is able to withstand the storm – because they acted on Jesus’ word.
It’s not enough just to hear what Jesus says…it’s not enough to like what Jesus says…it’s not enough to agree with what Jesus says. What is enough is to: Allow his word to become our way of living. He makes that clear at the end, as well as at other points along the way, including at the start, which we’re looking at this morning. So join me in reading Matthew 5:1-12, as we dive into Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, and allow his words to influence our living:
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: (Matthew 5:1-2)
Let’s actually pause there. Matthew tells us that Jesus went up on a hillside to teach. He sat down, which was the customary position of a Jewish rabbi or teacher. The word that Matthew uses to say that Jesus spoke to them is written in a way that it doesn’t mean Jesus spoke to them one time. It’s in the past-tense, but it has a sense that it’s on-going. We don’t really have this in our language, at least not in one word. If several years from now I say, “I changed Elliott’s diaper,” we can’t know just from the word “changed” whether that’s a one-time thing, or if it was an on-going thing that I did. I have to make it clear with other words that I changed Elliott’s diaper more than once, over the course of many months, even a few years. For instance, to make it clear that I was a good father who changed his diaper on more than one occasion, I might say “I changed Elliott’s diapers two times over the course of three years,” or “I changed Elliott’s diaper countless times over the course of a few years.” Without extra words, we don’t always know whether something that happened in the past happened just once, or if it was an on-going occurrence.
Not so with the Greek. And the past-tense that’s used has a sense that this is on-going. Maybe we should translate it, “This is what Jesus used to teach them.” So what we have here in this Sermon on the Mount was something that Jesus taught multiple times – maybe not these exact words over and over, as if he had a written copy of this sermon that he pulled out and preached several times…but the same principles, the same meaning of the teachings. And so Matthew shares it with us because it’s important. This is weighty, important teaching that Jesus impressed upon them multiple times, and we need to hear this.
So, Jesus dives into this talk, and here’s how he begins:
‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
‘Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
‘Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
‘Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely* on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you (Matthew 5:3-12).
Now, Jesus begins with what we call the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are misunderstood by many. They are not something that we do in order to achieve God’s favor. These aren’t a series of life equations that Jesus is giving where A+B=C, as in: if you do this, then you will get God’s blessing of that. You see, we read, “blessed are those who…” and we think, “God gives this to us when we are this way.” But that’s not what Jesus is saying.
Rather, the beatitudes are presented by Jesus as a way of knowing God’s presence that flows out of a relationship with Him, regardless of our circumstances. In fact, “Blessed” comes from the Greek word, “makarios” which has a meaning of deep, abiding joy and peace. It’s not a fickle feeling that comes and goes with the tides of life. Rather, it’s a deep, immoveable, rock-solid sense of peace, contentment, and joy that is there through thick and thin. So these are declarations – almost a congratulation – of what already is for those who follow Jesus Christ.
William Barclay says of the beatitudes and this word, “Blessed,” “The greatness of the beatitudes is that they are not wistful glimpses of some future beauty; they are not even golden promises of some distant glory; they are triumphant shouts of bliss for a permanent joy that nothing in the world can ever take away” (William Barclay). These are not conditional statements – if “this” then “that” – rather, these are proclamations of a present reality.
And so who is it that can presently experience this immovable blessing, or joy? It’s the people who are poor in spirit, who mourn, who are meek, who hunger and thirst for righteousness. It’s those who are merciful, who are pure in heart, are peacemakers, who are persecuted because of righteousness and who are persecuted because of their devotion to Jesus. Those are the people who are blessed. Kind of backwards, don’t you think?
In our day in age, we think the people who are blessed are the people who have it all together, who work their way to the top, who make the most money, who are universally liked, and so forth. There’s a certain amount of applause for people who bring peace and show mercy…Mother Teresa is a great example of that…but they’re usually relegated to the back pages of the newspaper, or the last piece on the newscast. The headline-making people are movers and shakers who seem anything but poor in spirit, meek, or pure in heart.
But the people Jesus says are blessed…the people who have a rock-solid sense of peace and joy in their lives are not necessarily those people – they can be those people, but it’s not exclusively theirs. And so these beatitudes become ours by the grace of God when we know God in our life. When the grace and truth of God are so much a part of the very fabric of our being that these beatitudes simply describe who we are and how we live.
Let’s look at a couple of the beatitudes to see if I can explain it more clearly. Take, for example, the first one: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). This is the person who has reached rock bottom. They have nowhere else to turn. Their spirits are in the dumps. In The Message, which is Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase of the Bible, he translates this beatitude into these words: “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.” When we’re at a dead end, we realize we can’t do it, and we need God. There’s a blessings and a joy to be found in that, and it sticks with us from that point forward.
Or how about the next one: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Jesus isn’t saying that mourning is good. We shouldn’t go out and find ways to make ourselves said and grievous. But when that happens, when we come to a place of brokenness and grief – either because of an event in our lives, or because of our compassion for others, or for any other reason – the Lord will comfort us. In other words, God’s presence isn’t just with those who are happy. There is a peace and a joy that goes with us when we know God, even in the midst of our grieving, and we will find comfort in it.
We also read, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.” In other words, just because you’re not on the list of who’s who, or the Fortune 500, and you don’t have a lot of power in the world, that’s ok. You’re not left out of God’s blessing. So, Congratulations! God is with you, too!
We don’t have time to go through all of them, but on it goes with the rest of the beatitudes, that: God’s presence, his blessing, his peace…is with us even in the most unexpected of people, places, and times. If you’re in a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ, God is with you; his blessing is upon you, regardless of your situation or your circumstances.
And isn’t that Good News indeed? You don’t have to be something or someone in particular to be blessed by the presence of God. God’s grace is there for everyone, even those who don’t amount to much in the world’s eyes.
If Jesus were walking the earth today, he’d probably say, “Blessed are the anxious. Blessed are the unemployed. Blessed are the homeless. Blessed are the drop-outs. Blessed are the angry. Blessed are the depressed. Blessed are the addicts and the junkies. Blessed are the parents who failed. Blessed are the dysfunctional families. Blessed are the nerds, the un-athletic, the unmusical, the wimpy and the weak…for God is with you, his kingdom is not far from you, you will be comforted by God, and you will see God. God is with us, not because of those situations…but in the midst of them. God’s peace and joy – his blessing – is with us regardless of our position in life, when we let him into our hearts. You and I can know the blessings of God in our lives, in the midst of wherever we find ourselves. That promise is there for you today.
And that gets us back to what we began with: that Jesus didn’t teach just so we would have our heads crammed with knowledge. Jesus taught so that we would live differently, and rightly, and walk closely with God. How are we going to respond to God’s blessing? How is God changing us and transforming us? There’s an invitation in these beatitudes to a transformational relationship with God.
In his presence in our lives, there is an assurance, a blessing, a joy, and a peace that cannot be taken away from us. As Jesus says in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27). That’s a blessing that goes with us everywhere, and I pray it’s a blessing we all know in our lives, no matter what we’re going through. Let’s Pray…Amen.
