The principles of the kingdom This well known section sets out all the basic principles or premises that are the foundation of what Jesus teaches. These principles continue as themes through the rest of his sermon. For this reason I have numbered each saying so that you can make a note of where you see that principle surfacing again. In this way we will see that this sermon is not a random collection of teachings. But in fact is very carefully woven sermon based upon themes.
What is true spirituality? Please consider that question as a theme from beginning to end of this sermon. As each culture and religion has different values each has their own presumptions about what is considered the highest form of spirituality. Jesus speaks from within a cultural context but also transcends that culture to present a spirituality that is universal. The term blessed is not to be understood as simply happiness, but should be seen as a deep satisfaction. These attitudes are often called the beatitudes-because they are based on being, not doing. Doing comes as the result of being according to the spirituality of Jesus. In fact I use the term principles reluctantly because these principles actually lead us into relationship with God which transcends principles. The defining characteristic of the Jesus’ spirituality would be relationship.
(Matthew 5:3-10 NRSV)
1- “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
2- “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
3- “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
4- “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
5- “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
6- “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
7- “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
8- “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven: If I were writing my own religion I would start by saying “Blessed are the righteous for they deserve to go to heaven”. If this were a religion of natural selection we would say, “Blessed are the strong for they will be selected”. But Jesus goes opposite of all that. It is like he is saying, “lucky are those who don’t deserve heaven because they easily recognize their need- and then get in!” The poor in spirit are the beggars. The poor in spirit do not approach God telling how good they are, we are saying; “God have mercy! Please forgive me. I can do nothing to reach up to you!” This is rule #1 for the kingdom of God. And rule #2 is, don’t forget rule #1. This saying comes at the beginning of the sermon because it is the basic premise of all that will follow. And in this sermon this is the salvation verse. It is why we sing Amazing Grace!
Those who mourn will be comforted: There is a progression here because those who truly receive God’s salvation as a gift also truly repent of their sin. True mourning is not jail house repentance. It is not being sorry that I got caught but wishing I could get away with it. True mourning is deep knowledge that God’s way is right and grieving deeply over the wrong that I see within myself. It is knowledge that my offences have hurt others sometimes in ways that can never be undone. Salvation grace and repentance always go together. If these two verses are seen as a couplet then together they seem to form a quality of their own. This quality might be characterized as; turning to God, receiving his kingdom or being born again.
The meek will inherit the earth; notice it does not say “conquer” the earth. Inherit is to receive from God’s hand. And meekness is a very strange concept for us. We don’t even use the word anymore. But I think that there is something happening in this progression of qualities. It is where our attitude about God affects our attitude towards life, the meek look at life as a gift from God. This attitude will profoundly affect all aspects of life in this world. They will see possessions as a gift, relationships as a gift and their work as a gift. This verse has its roots in Psalm 37 and here is the heart of it:
“Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the LORD, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.” (NASB).
Hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled: people hunger and thirst for many things in this life; money, fame, power, beauty, new cars, fine things, religious status, but we are left empty. America is a perfect testimony to this because we have more than anyone and we are not that happy! We are a mess! So God gives us a promise; seek him and we will be filled, because there is plenty of him to fill us all! There is plenty to go around and plenty left over to share. These two verses also seem to be a couplet.
Blessed are the merciful for they will receive mercy: Hmm this is a paradox because it seems like he is asking something of us first before he gives. But actually in the first quality, the poor in spirit he has shown us mercy. He is the one who started the mercy process and now he expects us to continue. Jesus tells a great story about this. He tells of a guy who owed about a billion dollars to a very wealthy person. He couldn’t pay and begged for mercy from the creditor. The creditor forgave the debt completely. Then this first man went and found someone who owed him about $50-. He grabbed him and beat him and threatened him horribly. When the wealthy man heard about it he called the first man back in saying, “hey I forgave you a huge debt, can’t you show the same kindness to others now?” The principle here is essential to those who know the saving love of God. When God loves and forgives me, he expects me to do the same for others.
The pure in heart will see God: is he talking about physically seeing God? I don’t think so because he is talking about attitudes of the heart so it is implied that the seeing is with the heart. And the heart is the issue. How much of life stems from attitudes of the heart? All! And you may not think that purity of heart is a desirable thing; but as you get to know God and behold his beauty you will discover how good purity is. This connection between purity and beholding God becomes an essential principle of how our lives are transformed. In 2 Corinthians 3:18 it is stated as a highlight of the New Covenant in Christ, “And we who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory”
The peacemakers will be called children of God: suddenly these attitudes take a turn. This one is pointing us out to the world. This verse is the first great commission. But does that mean pacifist? We will let Jesus and his followers define it for us as we continue our study. But for now say that it must mean something powerful! Also let’s keep in mind the historical context of religious wars. Israel had come into their land as a promise from God but there was great violence along with that era. At this point we should ask if this new kingdom of Jesus is really in keeping with the Jewish tradition. But we should see the profound implications here that if Jesus is the Jewish Messiah what kind of kingdom will this be? As we go deeper into this study we will consider the prophecies of the Messiah and the end times. But for now it is more important to stay focused. For me, there is a verse from Paul during a time of persecution, “be not overcome with evil but overcome evil with good”. I believe the Christian calling is to be an over comer; that we are to be a bold confident force for good in this world.
Persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven: this is really an odd because we would naturally think that with all of those great attitudes people would love us and life would be great. So what’s this about persecution? It really has something to do with the basic view of the Bible; that conflict has been around since God separated darkness from light, (Genesis 1:2). This verse can be a great warning to us that think that our Christian faith will spare us from the difficulties of life, including persecution.
So what do you think of these qualities so far? Do you see these as natural human qualities and so some people more endowed than others? Do you see these as principles or ethics that can be observed independently from God? Do you see these all pointing towards relationship with God?
The phrase “kingdom of heaven” was used in the first attitude and is repeated here. When a phrase is used in this manner it forms a completion of the section. While this verse concludes the previous section it also very skillfully introduces the next.
