12/28/2023 – How You can be Truly Blessed
Matthew 5: Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them. He said: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The Lord began His teaching ministry with prophetic promises of blessing from God. In these beatitudes, the Lord Jesus reveals the character and the conditions that enable a person to receive God’s blessings.
Everything the Lord did was amazing. But this revelation from the lips of Jesus of the type of person that will be blessed by God is one of the most amazing and surprising of His ministry. Blessings can never be achieved by the means the world teaches. The world tries to convince us that the way to success is a mix of power, shrewdness, and luck. But Jesus said: Blessed are the meek because they will inherit the earth. The character and conditions that lead to true blessing are the complete opposite from what the world teaches. When you think you are weak, when the world tells you that you are a loser, when the world rejects you and persecutes you, you are fulfilling the conditions God uses to pour out His blessings upon you.
The fifth beatitude states: Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. In this prophetic sermon, the Lord Jesus revealed that the key to God’s blessing, the reason, and the way that we receive the goodness of God is His mercy. There is no human quality, no human effort that can achieve God’s blessing, that can achieve salvation. Despite all our efforts, all our works, as good as they may seem to us, in His justice, God would be obligated to execute judgement for our sins which would rightfully lead to our eternal punishment. But God, because of His love for us, not because of anything good in us, despite all our sin and our rebellion, He decided to have mercy on us! This is the reason that you are alive today, this is the reason you have been saved, this is the assurance you will be blessed, because God is merciful, and He has decided to be merciful to you! The key to success, to blessing, to joy is the mercy of God- the mercy we receive and the mercy we give to others!