1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:06,680 If you have your Bibles, Matthew chapter 5 is where we're going to be. 2 00:00:06,680 --> 00:00:11,760 We're going to start walking through the Sermon on the Mount together, so hopefully we'll 3 00:00:11,760 --> 00:00:13,320 get to be familiar with it. 4 00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:18,240 I encourage you to find that as we read that here in just a minute. 5 00:00:18,240 --> 00:00:25,720 There was a preacher by the name of Wilbur Reis, no relation that I know of, but he once 6 00:00:25,720 --> 00:00:32,000 preached a message in which he presented a listener's guide to sermons. 7 00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:39,120 He stated that sermons ought to be rated in much the same way that we rate movies today. 8 00:00:39,120 --> 00:00:44,800 So he said, G-rated sermons are those that are generally acceptable to everyone. 9 00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:51,880 They contain phrases such as going into all the world and smile, or what the world needs 10 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:56,040 is peace and they need you to live your best life. 11 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:01,720 Sermons such as these are often greeted with a response of, oh, wasn't that wonderful? 12 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:02,720 Wasn't that marvelous? 13 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:08,280 I mean, everyone loves a good G-rated sermon, and they will never offend anyone. 14 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:14,400 Then he gets PG sermons, and they're for more mature congregations, and they have mild 15 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:20,720 suggestions for change, but they're subtle enough to allow the preacher to backpedal 16 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:26,320 or change the meaning if he finds that he has inadvertently offended someone. 17 00:01:26,320 --> 00:01:33,920 You know that someone has preached a message like this when people walk away in wonderment, 18 00:01:33,920 --> 00:01:40,000 shaking their heads and saying things like, that was so deep, very, very thought-provoking. 19 00:01:40,000 --> 00:01:45,480 Of course, if you've done a PG sermon really, really well, nobody actually knows what you 20 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:50,520 said, but nobody's really usually willing to admit it. 21 00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:52,560 Then there's R-rated sermons. 22 00:01:52,560 --> 00:01:55,000 This is when the preacher tells it like it is. 23 00:01:55,000 --> 00:01:59,440 They usually indicate that the preacher has some sort of outside source of income, has 24 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:03,000 a pretty good, healthy self-image. 25 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:06,280 These sermons aren't intended for everyone. 26 00:02:06,280 --> 00:02:12,640 They're just really for those who wish to be challenged in their spiritual walk. 27 00:02:12,640 --> 00:02:14,760 And then you get to the X-rated sermons. 28 00:02:14,760 --> 00:02:22,080 These are the explosive ideas of the kind that got the prophet Amos ran out of town, 29 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:25,440 got the prophet Jeremiah thrown into a well. 30 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:32,120 When you preach an X-rated sermon, you have a moving van ready. 31 00:02:32,120 --> 00:02:38,000 Jesus was the master of the X-rated sermon, and the sermon on the mount was the mother 32 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:40,720 of all X-rated sermons. 33 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:44,760 You might object to that, and you might say that, well, that isn't true. 34 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:48,520 The sermon on the mount is one of my favorite passages of scripture. 35 00:02:48,520 --> 00:02:50,840 I don't find it the least bit shocking. 36 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:53,080 It's not offensive to me. 37 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:56,880 And the reason for that is because you're not reading it in the way that Jesus preached 38 00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:58,640 it. 39 00:02:58,640 --> 00:03:04,040 We try to rationalize the sermon on the mount, or we try to explain it. 40 00:03:04,040 --> 00:03:05,040 Explain it away. 41 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:09,120 But when the rubber meets the road, and you take a look at the sermon on the mount at 42 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:15,000 its face value, it would not only change our church, it would change the world. 43 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:19,600 And after all, it was preaching like this in Matthew chapter 5 through 7 that got Christ 44 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:21,960 crucified. 45 00:03:21,960 --> 00:03:27,000 But we try to soften the blows, and we try to turn the sermon on the mount into a GPG 46 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:30,320 or even an R-rated sermon. 47 00:03:30,320 --> 00:03:36,040 Today, some believe that the sermon on the mount can't really be, shouldn't be taken 48 00:03:36,040 --> 00:03:40,360 serious by those who function in today's world. 49 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:45,360 This can't really apply to our political and economic and social realities of the world 50 00:03:45,360 --> 00:03:46,920 we live in. 51 00:03:46,920 --> 00:03:47,920 What do we do with terror? 52 00:03:47,920 --> 00:03:49,640 What do we do with nations like Iran? 53 00:03:49,640 --> 00:03:54,720 Surely we don't take it seriously where Jesus tells us to resist our enemies. 54 00:03:54,720 --> 00:04:00,080 And I'm sure it was a lot easier not to lust after women back in Jesus' day when women 55 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:02,600 are covered from head to toe in robes. 56 00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:07,880 I mean, it was hard to say what was underneath all that stuff, right? 57 00:04:07,880 --> 00:04:11,440 And then you hear things like, well, maybe it's not the sermon on the mount, it isn't 58 00:04:11,440 --> 00:04:14,640 so much for the past, but it's more for the future. 59 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:21,800 You know, a glorious new time when God establishes the new Jerusalem. 60 00:04:21,800 --> 00:04:28,680 Now although all of these views are presented by sincere Christian men and women, they were 61 00:04:28,680 --> 00:04:31,480 formulated for one reason only. 62 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:38,040 And that was to take the sting out of the words of Jesus and to soothe our guilty conscience 63 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:44,840 for neglecting to implement in our lifestyle the words that are in the sermon on the mount. 64 00:04:44,840 --> 00:04:51,000 You see, the sermon on the mount can be a GPG or R rated sermon, but when you begin 65 00:04:51,000 --> 00:05:01,960 to view it as commands for your life today in this world, in your context, and it very 66 00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:04,600 quickly becomes an X rated sermon. 67 00:05:04,600 --> 00:05:13,760 I wonder what would happen if we took the sermon on the mount as not a set of quaint, 68 00:05:13,760 --> 00:05:18,880 antiquated teachings, but we actually put the words of Christ into action. 69 00:05:18,880 --> 00:05:22,040 What would that look like on a daily basis? 70 00:05:22,040 --> 00:05:29,640 I wonder what would happen if we sought to make the words of Christ come to life in all 71 00:05:29,640 --> 00:05:35,680 of our relationships from personal to international, political, economic. 72 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:37,400 I can't answer that. 73 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:41,720 I can't answer that because since the time that we've had the sermon on the mount, we 74 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:50,000 have failed as believers to take serious the ideas that are contained in this passage. 75 00:05:50,000 --> 00:05:57,040 And because we have failed to implement the basics that Christ laid out for us, we have 76 00:05:57,040 --> 00:05:59,840 ended up as a pretty messed up society. 77 00:05:59,840 --> 00:06:02,680 We've ended up as a pretty messed up church. 78 00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:04,960 And so we're going to dive into the sermon on the mount. 79 00:06:04,960 --> 00:06:06,440 I'm going to invite Jackson up here. 80 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:07,960 He's going to read our passage this morning. 81 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:11,840 He's going to read the first 12 verses of chapter five if you're able. 82 00:06:11,840 --> 00:06:15,400 I'd encourage you to stand as we honor the Lord's word together. 83 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:16,760 Again even more stuff of me. 84 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:25,000 So that's what Jesus said on the third day. 85 00:06:25,000 --> 00:06:29,600 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain and when he sat down, his disciples came to 86 00:06:29,600 --> 00:06:34,560 him, and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, blessed are the poor in spirit, for 87 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:37,000 theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 88 00:06:37,000 --> 00:06:40,280 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 89 00:06:40,280 --> 00:06:43,560 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 90 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:48,960 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 91 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:53,380 Blessed are those who are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 92 00:06:53,380 --> 00:06:56,500 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 93 00:06:56,500 --> 00:07:00,060 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 94 00:07:00,060 --> 00:07:04,240 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom 95 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:05,960 of heaven. 96 00:07:05,960 --> 00:07:11,360 are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you 97 00:07:11,360 --> 00:07:17,200 falsely on my account? Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven, for so 98 00:07:17,200 --> 00:07:20,040 they persecuted the prophets who were before you." 99 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:24,200 Amen. Let's pray. Father, thank you for Jackson. Thank you for his willingness to serve our 100 00:07:24,200 --> 00:07:28,880 church today. Thank you for giving him a desire to read your word. I pray that you bless him 101 00:07:28,880 --> 00:07:34,280 for it. I pray, Father, that as we look at this familiar text, that we will see it in 102 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:38,280 the way you presented it, that we will be challenged by it and convicted by it. We ask 103 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:43,200 all these things in your name. Amen. Thanks, Jackson. 104 00:07:43,200 --> 00:07:49,640 So before we get started, let's set some guidelines about the Sermon on the Mount. Number one, 105 00:07:49,640 --> 00:07:56,760 the Sermon on the Mount does not contain everything that Jesus taught. The Gospel of Matthew contains 106 00:07:56,760 --> 00:08:02,360 five major teachings of Christ. The Sermon on the Mount is the first of them, and that 107 00:08:02,360 --> 00:08:09,440 means that several of Christ's major teachings are not in this sermon. Instead, it is the 108 00:08:09,440 --> 00:08:16,080 meaning of everyday discipleship. And so up until now, Matthew has covered the birth of 109 00:08:16,080 --> 00:08:23,140 Christ. He's introduced us to John the Baptist. He's narrated the count of Jesus' baptism 110 00:08:23,140 --> 00:08:28,640 and his temptation. We've watched the first four disciples be called, and we've kind 111 00:08:28,640 --> 00:08:34,760 of followed Christ through his preaching and healing ministry in Galilee. So this is not 112 00:08:34,760 --> 00:08:40,880 the whole thing. The second thing is this is not a full-blown theology of Christ. Instead, 113 00:08:40,880 --> 00:08:47,360 the Sermon on the Mount is practical instructions to those of us who dare to be his disciple, 114 00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:55,040 realistic and literal, not an ivory tower fantasy. Those who dare to take the message 115 00:08:55,040 --> 00:09:03,120 of the Sermon on the Mount serious will change the world. The third thing is the Sermon on 116 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:12,080 the Mount is not a system of laws for the Christian. Christ didn't plan on his followers 117 00:09:12,080 --> 00:09:19,840 to simply exchange one set of rules for another. His mission here was for us to be free, for 118 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:26,720 us to function in how he designed for us to look like, and that is to look like Christ. 119 00:09:26,720 --> 00:09:32,440 When we start any series, any new series or any new book, we have to look at the context. 120 00:09:32,440 --> 00:09:36,720 We need to understand the context. And the question I always ask is, who was this written 121 00:09:36,720 --> 00:09:43,320 for? Thankfully, this one's easy because Matthew tells us in the first verse, this Sermon was 122 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:48,080 for his disciples. Now, there might have been a whole bunch of people on the mountain that 123 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:54,720 day, but they were just overhearing what Jesus is telling those who have decided to follow him. 124 00:09:54,720 --> 00:09:59,920 Because it says, when he saw the crowds, he left and he went up to the mountain side. It was the 125 00:09:59,920 --> 00:10:08,000 disciples that he was teaching. The words of the Sermon were for them, not the crowds. The Sermon 126 00:10:08,000 --> 00:10:15,040 on the Mount was not rules by which you get into the kingdom of God. Instead, it was guidelines 127 00:10:15,040 --> 00:10:21,520 to be followed once you're in relationship with him. Now, Christ is about to embark on a voyage 128 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:28,720 today into a subject that is just as relevant today as it was when he preached it. And that 129 00:10:28,720 --> 00:10:35,680 question, that topic is, what is happiness? That term that Christ uses in his teaching, 130 00:10:35,680 --> 00:10:42,240 which we commonly refer to as Beatitudes, is blessed. And then the original language, it 131 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:49,440 literally meant supremely blessed, well off. It means fortunate or happy. But the question still 132 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:59,040 begs to be asked, what is happy? Now, thankfully, the editors of Psychology Today did a big study on it. 133 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:03,920 Thousands and thousands of people were interviewed. And the problem is, they couldn't 134 00:11:03,920 --> 00:11:10,640 pin down happiness in a study. But they did discover what unhappiness is. Listen to this. 135 00:11:10,640 --> 00:11:20,000 It says, unhappiness is what I don't have, but think you do have. And so they use, the stay-at-home 136 00:11:20,000 --> 00:11:28,080 mom thinks that she is deprived of the independence that the woman who works outside enjoys. While 137 00:11:28,080 --> 00:11:33,520 the working mom figures that the stay-at-home mom gets the freedom to do what she wants all day long. 138 00:11:33,520 --> 00:11:41,520 And so we gauge our happiness by what we perceive somebody else's happiness to be. Another source 139 00:11:41,520 --> 00:11:49,040 of unhappiness is wanting what I can't have. For example, if I were to think that my happiness 140 00:11:49,040 --> 00:11:54,560 depends on me having a lake house, I'm going to be severely disappointed for a long time, 141 00:11:54,560 --> 00:12:00,240 because it's not practical or reasonable for me to have a lake house at this point in my life. 142 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:08,960 Unless one of you wants to gift it. Just going that out there. Unhappiness is also not wanting 143 00:12:08,960 --> 00:12:16,640 what I can't have. And so in attempt to find this elusive state, we read books on how to be happy. 144 00:12:17,120 --> 00:12:26,080 We take happy pills. We wear happy faces. We go to happy hour. Without any real success, we have 145 00:12:26,080 --> 00:12:32,080 allowed the advertisements to tell us what happiness is. Jesus states his views on happiness 146 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:38,560 in these eight poetic sayings that we call the Beatitudes. They are rated X because they have 147 00:12:38,560 --> 00:12:44,080 little to do with the pursuit of happiness as we know it. And so let's understand a couple things. 148 00:12:44,080 --> 00:12:51,280 Number one, happiness is a result, not a goal. It's not something we search for and find. 149 00:12:51,280 --> 00:12:56,960 Instead, it is something we find while we are searching for something else. That something else 150 00:12:57,520 --> 00:13:03,520 that we are supposed to be searching for is the kingdom of God. Matthew tells us in Matthew 6, 151 00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:09,200 but seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all of these things will be given to you as 152 00:13:09,200 --> 00:13:18,480 well. Christ is not telling us to pursue happiness. And if that's why we embrace God, then you have 153 00:13:18,480 --> 00:13:25,200 come to God for the wrong reasons. We tend to forget that the pursuit of happiness is just as 154 00:13:25,200 --> 00:13:31,920 idolatrous as the pursuit of a new career or lots of money or a bigger house. And so Christ begins 155 00:13:31,920 --> 00:13:39,200 the Beatitude, which by the way means a state of blessedness by making this remarkable statement 156 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:46,560 that's found in verse three. He says blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the poor in spirit. 157 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:52,000 Blessed are the poor in spirit. Now, it's kind of strange way in my opinion to start off a series 158 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:58,640 about happiness, talking about the poor in spirit. A more accurate translation might be those who are 159 00:13:58,640 --> 00:14:06,720 not inflated in spirit. And so Christ says happy are those. Blessed are those who are unspoiled, 160 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:14,720 who don't get ruined by delusions of deserving the kingdom of God. Happiness will never find any of 161 00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:22,000 us as long as we see ourselves as good enough to make it on our own. All of our lives we are told 162 00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:27,600 how great we are. We tell our kids how great they are, how special they are. If a man or a woman will 163 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:34,480 realize his own helplessness, then he can put his whole trust in God. And when he does that, 164 00:14:34,480 --> 00:14:39,920 two things are going to happen. The first is that he will be completely detached from things, 165 00:14:39,920 --> 00:14:45,200 and then he will become completely attached to God. And so Christ says blessed are the poor in 166 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:53,520 spirit. Why? For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Now, until we 167 00:14:53,520 --> 00:15:01,920 become poor in spirit, we can't accept Christ. And until we accept Christ, we can't gain knowledge 168 00:15:01,920 --> 00:15:12,000 of the kingdom. Until we understand our sinfulness and the futility of our works, we will never see 169 00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:17,440 the need for salvation. I mean Christ spelled it out for us in Luke chapter 19. He says for the son 170 00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:24,080 of man came to seek and to save what was lost. Is that because those who aren't lost don't need to 171 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:31,280 be saved? No, the Bible is clear that everyone is lost. But until you admit that you're lost, 172 00:15:31,280 --> 00:15:37,440 you aren't going to ask for help. Christ's next statement seems almost as absurd as his last one 173 00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:44,640 in verse four. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. The word that Christ 174 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:53,520 uses here is the strongest possible word in the Greek language for mourning. A few years ago, 175 00:15:53,520 --> 00:16:02,800 I was at a meeting and I met this couple that had just experienced four miscarriages. And they 176 00:16:02,800 --> 00:16:10,080 were talking about that grief and everything that goes along with that situation. They talked about 177 00:16:10,080 --> 00:16:16,080 how it made them even more grateful for the children that they did have. They talked about how 178 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:23,360 grateful they were that they still had strong faith in Jesus. A few days later, seeing an I 179 00:16:24,000 --> 00:16:30,720 are in the same position for the first time. That's the type of grief that Jesus is talking about. 180 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:38,640 And so is Christ saying that the true path to happiness is through grief? I believe so. 181 00:16:38,640 --> 00:16:45,680 And anyone who has ever lost a loved one through death or divorce or rejection knows that there is 182 00:16:45,680 --> 00:16:54,480 no greater unhappiness. In our minds, happiness and grief are at the far ends of the human emotion 183 00:16:54,480 --> 00:17:02,000 spectrum. They don't go together. And we spend most of our adult lives trying to insulate ourselves 184 00:17:02,000 --> 00:17:09,440 from grief. And yet Jesus definitely links our happiness and our grief. Someone said that the 185 00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:15,920 second beatitude is linked to the first. And so Christ begins by saying, happy are those, 186 00:17:15,920 --> 00:17:22,560 blessed are those who know they are sinners. And then he continues by saying, and happier those 187 00:17:22,560 --> 00:17:30,400 who grieve for their sinfulness. Now, while the concept of grief over our sinfulness may be a 188 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:35,760 part of what Christ is saying, I really don't accept it as the total sum of what Christ is trying 189 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:43,600 to get at. But here's what I know. Number one, we never fully live until we experience grief and 190 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:54,720 overcoming. Part of being human is conquering grief in such a way that we come out of it as a better 191 00:17:54,720 --> 00:18:03,120 person, not a bitter person. What would what would we be as people if we never experience grief? 192 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:13,680 A rock, a robot. It's been said that all sunshine makes a desert. And that's true. The ground upon 193 00:18:13,680 --> 00:18:21,200 which the sun is always shining becomes arid and barren. Without grief, you can never ever fully 194 00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:27,200 comprehend joy. Without grief, there would be a no way to tell the difference between good and bad, 195 00:18:27,200 --> 00:18:34,480 between worse and better. Until we grieve, we won't be able to relate to others who grieve. 196 00:18:34,480 --> 00:18:42,640 The couple I met at that conference was able to minister to me as Sina and I were dealing with 197 00:18:42,640 --> 00:18:49,920 our first miscarriage. Was it because of their great theological knowledge? No. Was it because of 198 00:18:49,920 --> 00:18:57,600 their great counseling techniques? No. It was because they had experienced what we were going 199 00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:04,080 through. The truth of the matter is that God never promised us a sorrow-free environment. 200 00:19:05,040 --> 00:19:10,640 Also, when you grieve, make sure you grieve over the right things. I've discovered that unhappiness 201 00:19:10,640 --> 00:19:17,360 doesn't come from grieving as much as it comes from grieving over the wrong things. Happiness 202 00:19:17,360 --> 00:19:24,640 happens when we grieve over the right things. That's Jesus' message for us. But what are the 203 00:19:24,640 --> 00:19:33,360 right things? Jesus gives us a clue in Luke 22, 23. As he's carrying the cross up to Calvary, 204 00:19:33,360 --> 00:19:40,480 he notices these women crying over him and he says, Jesus, turn and said to them, daughters of Jerusalem, 205 00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:47,280 do not weep for me. Weep for yourselves and for your children. I think the message is this. 206 00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:54,400 If you're going to weep, if you're going to grieve, weep for the things that God weeps over. 207 00:19:56,400 --> 00:20:03,120 Happier are those who mourn for what mourns God. And what does God mourn? He mourns the 208 00:20:03,120 --> 00:20:10,480 lostness and the brokenness, the confusion of the world that he created, so full of beauty, so full 209 00:20:10,480 --> 00:20:16,720 of love. God weeps over those who refuse to acknowledge their sin and die and end up going to 210 00:20:16,720 --> 00:20:22,640 hell. God weeps over those who ignore the plights of their fellow man and their fellow Christians. 211 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:28,800 God weeps over the things that stand in the way of the kingdom of God. And so Christ doesn't say 212 00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:36,160 that we will always be comforted when we grieve, but that we will always be comforted when we 213 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:44,880 grieve for the right things. For as we learn to grieve, we also learn how to lean on him. And as we 214 00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:51,040 cry, we find that there is a God who can wipe away every tear. Jesus continues in verse five, 215 00:20:51,040 --> 00:20:56,880 blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Now, that's a radical question. 216 00:20:56,880 --> 00:21:08,240 Now, that's a radical concept, isn't it? Blessed are the meek. That statement is totally contradictory 217 00:21:08,240 --> 00:21:15,280 to our entire way of thinking. If we were to develop a Western beatitude, it would be, 218 00:21:16,000 --> 00:21:22,560 blessed is the aggressor. Happy is the aggressor. We are aggressive in everything that we do, 219 00:21:22,560 --> 00:21:29,120 from business to sports to finding a parking spot at North Scott. We are aggressive in everything 220 00:21:29,120 --> 00:21:35,360 we do. And if you're not aggressive, if you're more laid back, you can take aggressive training, 221 00:21:35,360 --> 00:21:40,720 and you can learn how to be aggressive so that you can tell people what you want and how you want 222 00:21:40,720 --> 00:21:49,120 it and when you want it, and you can start getting your own way. For most of us, meek means weak, 223 00:21:49,120 --> 00:21:55,360 and none of us wants to be thought of as weak. You probably won't find a pile of people lined up 224 00:21:55,360 --> 00:22:02,320 for meekness training. Our experience has shown that the meek don't inherit the earth. 225 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:09,360 You got the multinational corporations, you got the slick politicians, you got the multi-married 226 00:22:09,360 --> 00:22:15,680 movie stars, military dictators. It seems that those are the ones who inherit the earth. So, 227 00:22:15,680 --> 00:22:21,760 there doesn't seem to be much hope that that will hear, let alone heed, Christ's third suggestion 228 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:30,800 for happiness. What Christ is saying with this virtue is, happy is the man, happy is the woman 229 00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:38,240 who gets angry at the right time and doesn't get angry at the wrong time. If we see this in the 230 00:22:38,240 --> 00:22:43,040 context of the rest of Christ's teachings, it would say that it is never right to be angry 231 00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:51,520 over a wrong done to ourselves, but it's often right to be angry at injury done to others. 232 00:22:52,080 --> 00:23:00,320 Selfish anger is always a sin, but selfless anger can be one of the great moral dynamics of our time. 233 00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:07,280 It is this type of anger that changes the world when it sees injustices done, 234 00:23:07,280 --> 00:23:13,040 and there's a lot to be angry about out there, isn't there? Christ goes on to say, 235 00:23:13,040 --> 00:23:19,120 for they shall inherit the world. So, the world belongs to the gentle, not to the conqueror. 236 00:23:20,160 --> 00:23:26,080 The world belongs to the saviors, not the conquerors. Remember holidays, remember who they're 237 00:23:26,080 --> 00:23:32,720 usually for. We continually honor those who have sought to make the world a better place to live. 238 00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:41,680 We honor Lincoln, not Napoleon. We honor FDR, not Hitler. If we look beyond today, 239 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:48,720 beyond the immediate, we discovered that the world doesn't belong to the aggressor, but to the me. 240 00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:53,120 Verse 6, bless it to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 241 00:23:55,360 --> 00:24:01,520 Now, every single one of us in this room, every single one of us on this planet was created 242 00:24:01,520 --> 00:24:07,920 with a different personality, a different set of fingerprints, a different DNA makeup, 243 00:24:07,920 --> 00:24:16,640 known only to us. God created each of us in His image, but yet we are so uniquely different. 244 00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:24,480 No two of us are the same. It has been estimated that 106 billion people have been born and have 245 00:24:24,480 --> 00:24:31,680 walked on this earth since the beginning. I mean, can you imagine that? 106 billion different sets 246 00:24:31,680 --> 00:24:39,040 of fingerprints. While all different in many ways, there are at least two things that we share in 247 00:24:39,040 --> 00:24:46,480 common with one another. We hunger and we thirst. Now, most of us have no problem eating, 248 00:24:48,560 --> 00:24:54,160 but the thirsting part for most of us leads for improvement. Because if you ask anyone, 249 00:24:54,160 --> 00:24:58,720 how much water they drink, hardly anyone ever says the right amount they're supposed to. 250 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:06,720 Something so important for our well-being, something so vital to our health, we eat so little 251 00:25:06,720 --> 00:25:12,960 importance to partake of. Do you know how important water is to our physical bodies? 252 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:18,480 When our bodies fail to retain the right amount of water, dehydration sets in. 253 00:25:18,480 --> 00:25:26,800 It is the water in our body that determines our vitality and strength and energy that's associated 254 00:25:26,800 --> 00:25:31,440 with daily living. Think about these facts associated with our bodies and water. You know most of these. 255 00:25:32,080 --> 00:25:38,320 The human body is two-thirds water. The body absorbs cold water faster than hot water. 256 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:42,560 By the time you are 70 years old, some of you, 257 00:25:42,560 --> 00:25:49,200 some of you, you will have required one and a half million gallons of water. 258 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:54,640 Studies show that increasing water consumption can decrease fat deposits. 259 00:25:55,440 --> 00:26:01,840 Water is a natural appetite suppressant. If you lose two percent of your body's water supply, 260 00:26:01,840 --> 00:26:07,840 your energy will decrease by 20 percent. A 10 percent decrease in your water supply, 261 00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:13,760 you will be unable to walk. A 20 percent decrease in your water supply, you're dead. 262 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:22,400 And so what is true of the physical is also true of the spiritual because God has made you 263 00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:31,520 with a spirit and soul that get thirsty. If you fail to satisfy that thirst, your spirit, 264 00:26:31,520 --> 00:26:39,360 soul, your body become dehydrated. And so I got the thinking what is our thirst level? 265 00:26:40,400 --> 00:26:44,720 What's our thirst level when it comes to the things of God? I mean sure we all have a thirst 266 00:26:44,720 --> 00:26:49,920 for God at salvation, right? We have lots of questions. There's lots of passion, but as we, 267 00:26:49,920 --> 00:26:55,680 our relationship grows, how much do you truly thirst and hunger for the things of God? Because our 268 00:26:55,680 --> 00:27:03,200 text indicates, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 269 00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:11,920 So the degree of our desire indicates how much of God's righteousness we have in the gas tank. 270 00:27:13,200 --> 00:27:18,800 The degree of our desire indicates how much we have of God's righteousness. 271 00:27:18,800 --> 00:27:29,120 Are you one of those people like my wife who can drive around on empty and not be bothered by it? 272 00:27:33,760 --> 00:27:37,680 Or do you like it better when the gauge reads more full? 273 00:27:40,240 --> 00:27:45,040 And then the question needs to be asked is the tank half full or half empty? 274 00:27:45,040 --> 00:27:52,160 Isn't it interesting that God leaves it up to us to decide how much righteousness we could have in 275 00:27:52,160 --> 00:27:58,560 our tanks in our lives at any given time? God leaves it up to us to decide that. When I think 276 00:27:58,560 --> 00:28:06,720 about the word thirsty, I wonder about the different degrees of that word. When we are sick, 277 00:28:07,440 --> 00:28:12,240 what do doctors tell us that we should be doing? Drink liquids. 278 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:21,680 Drink liquids. But when I'm sick or I have the flu, the last thing I want to do is eat or drink anything. 279 00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,400 Because you're taking a risk if you do that, right? 280 00:28:27,600 --> 00:28:39,680 If you find that you're not desiring the things of God, I would suggest that you're spiritually sick. 281 00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:44,880 And the problem with that is that many of us find ourselves content with that. 282 00:28:46,560 --> 00:28:51,680 You go from week to week, never considering Him, never pursuing Him. You show up on Sundays and 283 00:28:51,680 --> 00:28:57,200 call it good. What is your thirst level for the things of God? Is it dangerously low or running 284 00:28:57,200 --> 00:29:04,400 over like springs of living water? David knew where to find God. It wasn't out in the world in the 285 00:29:04,400 --> 00:29:11,520 dry, thirsty land. It was in the intimacy of worship where he found Him. That His soul was nourished. 286 00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:17,920 That God's power and glory, He could experience firsthand. It's the same thing for you and I. 287 00:29:17,920 --> 00:29:23,120 It's the same thing. That's what praise and worship is for. That's what hearing the word of God is 288 00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:32,320 for. David spent his life desperately thirsty. He was in that category, constantly speaking, 289 00:29:32,320 --> 00:29:39,600 after the things of God. It's no wonder to me that God wanted the world to know the kind of 290 00:29:39,600 --> 00:29:46,160 relationship that he had with David, that he was a man after his own heart. We should all strive to 291 00:29:46,160 --> 00:29:52,640 have that. We should all pursue that, that we can have a relationship with our maker. We have the 292 00:29:52,640 --> 00:29:59,360 same opportunity that David did. What he did for David, he will do for anyone who desperately 293 00:29:59,360 --> 00:30:08,880 seeks after him. How desperate are you to have your needs met? There's a story of a young salesman 294 00:30:08,880 --> 00:30:14,640 and he lost his big sale and so he goes to his sales manager and he lamented. He goes, I guess 295 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:22,960 you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. The manager replied, take my advice. 296 00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:32,080 You can't make him drink. Your job is not to make him drink. Your job is to make him thirsty. 297 00:30:34,080 --> 00:30:40,640 So it is with evangelism. Our lives should be filled with Christ that it makes others thirst 298 00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:48,720 for the gospel. I'll lead us to verse 7. 299 00:30:48,720 --> 00:30:55,760 Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy. Mercy is the way you treat someone who 300 00:30:55,760 --> 00:31:01,520 has done you wrong when suddenly you find yourself in a position where you have some power over them. 301 00:31:02,720 --> 00:31:06,320 It's the attitude that Stephen had toward people who were pumbling him with stones. 302 00:31:07,520 --> 00:31:10,880 Since then he fell on his knees and cried out, Lord do not hold this sin against them. 303 00:31:11,520 --> 00:31:17,440 When he had said this he fell asleep. It's the attitude Jesus had on the cross in Luke 23. 304 00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:22,240 He said, Jesus, he said, Father forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. 305 00:31:24,400 --> 00:31:30,240 I just wanted the truest test of Christian character to give mercy to a person even when 306 00:31:30,240 --> 00:31:39,200 they don't deserve it. Even when we feel wronged. Being merciful is recognizing the mercy that has 307 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:48,240 been given to us and extending it to others. Don't ever say, I can't forgive that person they don't 308 00:31:48,240 --> 00:31:56,400 deserve. You can do anything you choose to do especially with the Lord's help. If that's you 309 00:31:56,400 --> 00:32:01,120 just be honest and say I won't forgive you. Not going to forgive you. Not going to let it go. 310 00:32:02,560 --> 00:32:08,160 Be better if you choose in hopes that somehow you'll get even but in the end you'll see that 311 00:32:08,160 --> 00:32:15,520 you're only punishing yourself. Mercy is an outward characteristic but then in verse 8 Jesus 312 00:32:15,520 --> 00:32:20,480 addresses an inward characteristic. This is blessed are the pure heart for they shall see God. 313 00:32:22,640 --> 00:32:28,480 Biblically speaking what is the heart? It's the sin of a person's being. It's the fountain of who 314 00:32:28,480 --> 00:32:34,080 they are. It's also the source of a lot of trouble. Jesus says in Matthew 15, for out of the heart 315 00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:40,400 proceed evil thoughts and murders and adulteries and fornications and thefts, false witness, 316 00:32:40,400 --> 00:32:47,200 blasphemies, all these things. One of the biggest lies these days is the thinking that man is in 317 00:32:47,200 --> 00:32:53,520 trouble because of the environment around him. May I remind you that when Adam and Eve sinned, 318 00:32:54,400 --> 00:33:00,720 they were in the perfect environment. They could choose not to sin but they chose poorly. 319 00:33:00,720 --> 00:33:11,280 Man will sin even in paradise. Pure in heart means sincere. That means being without hypocrisy. 320 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:18,800 That means nothing hidden. No doubt this was for the Pharisees. This is for the religious leaders 321 00:33:18,800 --> 00:33:24,320 who are only concerned about their outward appearance. Pure in heart means what you see 322 00:33:24,320 --> 00:33:33,360 is what you get. Don't hold things in. Be forthright. Be honest. Ask questions. Don't let your 323 00:33:33,360 --> 00:33:40,160 imagination run wild with things. This is really doing yourself a favor. You're keeping a clean 324 00:33:40,160 --> 00:33:46,480 slate. You're making things right with God. You're making things right with others. When you've done 325 00:33:46,480 --> 00:33:51,840 wrong, it helps make your vision clear. It's kind of like windshield wipers on your windshield. 326 00:33:51,840 --> 00:33:58,880 Notice the promise. The pure in heart. They're going to see God. We know this is true as a 327 00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:06,640 future event but I also believe it applies now. Jesus said that we are to remove the plank, 328 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:13,120 remove the 2 by 4 from our own eye and when we do that, we will be able to see clearly. 329 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:21,360 And then we can sense his presence like never before and we can see him in more reality than 330 00:34:21,360 --> 00:34:27,040 we ever could through the muddy waters of our impure heart. Then we get to verse 9. 331 00:34:28,480 --> 00:34:34,800 Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God. Notice it says peacemaker, 332 00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:44,480 not peacekeeper. There's a major difference there. I hear this all the time and I'm just trying to 333 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:51,120 keep the peace. Just trying not to offend anybody. Those words haven't come out of my mouth but I've 334 00:34:51,120 --> 00:35:03,360 heard it. Maybe the peace doesn't need to be kept. Sometimes the best way for peace 335 00:35:06,080 --> 00:35:13,280 is through conflict. Sometimes it's to hash things out so that bitterness and anger don't 336 00:35:13,280 --> 00:35:21,280 happen so justice can happen. There are times in my home that I don't want the peace to be kept. 337 00:35:21,440 --> 00:35:27,280 Because I see some behaviors that need to be addressed and if we just sit back and keep the 338 00:35:27,280 --> 00:35:32,080 peace and just make sure everybody's happy, we're not doing anybody any sort of good. 339 00:35:33,280 --> 00:35:39,360 We are to be peacemakers. Sometimes that means that we call out sin. Sometimes that means in order 340 00:35:39,360 --> 00:35:45,600 for us to be of pure heart, we do our best to eliminate conflict in our lives with others. 341 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:50,720 What would this world look like if we didn't engage in World War II with Hitler? 342 00:35:52,560 --> 00:35:55,840 What if we had to let's just keep the peace mentality? Well, he's powerful. 343 00:35:58,080 --> 00:36:04,480 I don't want to upset him. So let's just kind of sit back and keep the peace and just make 344 00:36:04,480 --> 00:36:12,240 sure he's happy with us. Treaties of peace are signed after there is conflict, not usually before. 345 00:36:13,600 --> 00:36:19,120 Now we do it in a way that honors the Lord. We love people with love and grace, but sometimes 346 00:36:19,120 --> 00:36:25,840 we fail to love others because we fail to be a peacemaker. We're just acting as peace keepers. 347 00:36:26,960 --> 00:36:30,640 Then Jesus ends the Beatitudes by addressing persecution in verses 10 through 11. 348 00:36:30,640 --> 00:36:37,280 Now the chances of us facing the type of persecution that his disciples face is slim, 349 00:36:38,480 --> 00:36:43,840 but there's still going to be times where we have to stand up and do what is right in the 350 00:36:43,840 --> 00:36:49,680 eyes of the Lord and not man. And when you do that, you will more than likely face some sort 351 00:36:49,680 --> 00:36:54,880 of difficulty. You will lose relationships. You will be mocked. You will be questioned because 352 00:36:54,880 --> 00:37:00,880 your line of thinking does not line up with what the world tells you it should. In those moments, 353 00:37:00,880 --> 00:37:10,720 when that happens, Jesus says, remember your reward. Remember where your home is. Rejoice in 354 00:37:10,720 --> 00:37:18,320 the fact that he found you worthy enough to be persecuted for himself. Celebrate that this world 355 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:22,400 is temporary and one day we're going to be with him and his kingdom forever. 356 00:37:22,400 --> 00:37:29,280 I'd be willing to bet that we have never dared to take the Sermon on the Mount serious, 357 00:37:30,560 --> 00:37:35,440 but have pondered off some sort of dated and practical idealistic teaching. 358 00:37:37,440 --> 00:37:43,600 Instead of using them to change culture, we have allowed culture to change them. 359 00:37:45,040 --> 00:37:50,640 We have to hear Jesus' Sermon one more time. This time the way he preached it. 360 00:37:50,640 --> 00:37:56,560 And during the next few months, we're going to do exactly that. We're going to look at the Sermon 361 00:37:56,560 --> 00:38:01,440 on the Mount. And during that time, I trust that you will read it several times. I'd encourage 362 00:38:01,440 --> 00:38:08,560 you to read it multiple times, multiple translations, and perhaps, like me, you will discover that 363 00:38:08,560 --> 00:38:17,280 your impressions of what the Sermon on the Mount says and what it really says are two different 364 00:38:17,280 --> 00:38:24,320 things. So I'm going to invite our worship team up here and we're going to have time to respond. 365 00:38:24,320 --> 00:38:32,080 And I don't know what that looks like for you, but I'd be willing to bet a few words to take the 366 00:38:32,080 --> 00:38:42,880 beatitudes. And you were to line yourself up with where you are. There are some things that we need 367 00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:48,800 to do better. There are some places that we're pursuing happiness where we shouldn't. 368 00:38:53,200 --> 00:39:01,280 Are you poor in spirit? Do you realize that you have no shot without them? You can't do this on 369 00:39:01,280 --> 00:39:14,640 your own. Are you hungry and thirsty for righteousness? Is your tank empty? It can be filled, it can be 370 00:39:14,640 --> 00:39:22,000 filled, but it's up to you. Have you been keeping the peace instead of making the peace? 371 00:39:22,000 --> 00:39:33,440 I don't know. It's up to you. Am I going to pray for us and we're going to respond however the Lord 372 00:39:33,440 --> 00:39:47,360 leads? I'm hoping some of us are offended today. I'm hoping you've been challenged today by the 373 00:39:47,360 --> 00:39:56,640 words that Jesus preached. I pray right now that as we close out the service, 374 00:39:57,920 --> 00:40:03,040 as we close out another week of church, as we sing in response, I pray, Father, that you'll speak to 375 00:40:03,040 --> 00:40:14,640 our hearts. I pray that you'll bring conviction. I pray that you'll bring healing. I pray that you 376 00:40:14,640 --> 00:40:27,920 will be heard. Help us understand that it's only because of you. So Father, fill this place with 377 00:40:27,920 --> 00:40:46,560 your presence. Speak to our hearts and change us. Ask all these things in your name. Amen.