He Sat Down to Teach
We’ve come to the “Sermon on the Mount.” It begins with what is known as the “Beatitudes,” or the supreme blessings of Jesus spoken to the people who had gathered on the mountain to hear Him. Don’t ask which mountain in Israel…we forget what we had for breakfast the previous day…besides the words of Jesus are what matter-not where He spoke them. “Do ask, are the Beatitudes for me?”
Our answer comes in this question: Did Jesus have you and me in mind when He sat on that mountain to teach that day? The answer to this question comes from another question. Can all knowing God know about us long before we are alive? Read these words from Psalm 139:16
“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
The answer is YES! YES! God knew about us when Jesus created the universe! Can you fathom that? I can’t!
Back to our topic. The Beatitudes are the rich blessings of God…and they are for us. The word blessed in the context of these Beatitudes refers to the “ultimate well-being and distinctive spiritual joy of those who share in the salvation of the kingdom of God.” (Quote from Study Bible)
Read the Beatitudes of Jesus, the first 6 verses:
The Sermon on the Mount, which begins with the Beatitudes, is God’s call to “moral and ethical living. It is such a high call that some have dismissed it as being completely unrealistic.” (Another quote from Study Bible) Fact: the Beatitudes and the rest of the Sermon ARE impossible for any human to fulfill. This begs the question: Why did Jesus speak these words? Please read the first 6 verses again…
Now some quick questions regarding these verses starting at verse 3.
3. Are you poor in spirit…or proud? (I am…you are…proud)
4. Do you mourn for the neighbors who don’t know Jesus? Yourself? (I don’t. Pretty sure you don’t.)
5. Are you always submissive…? (Are you serious? I’m sure you aren’t either.)
6. Do you hunger and thirst for righteousness? (Not my first pick…and not yours either.)
Now for a sobering truth. If we fail in one of these - we fail in all. Neither of us can fulfill the requirements of the Beatitudes. Because of this NONE of the BLESSINGS Jesus speaks of can be ours. This is because being right with God is not something anyone can earn by good works. The Kingdom of God is a gift.
HOWEVER
The gift has a name: Jesus. The blessings of the Beatitudes are met and given through believing in Him.
Please…sit on the mountain with me. Listen to Jesus teach.
Believe.
We’ve just begun this sermon.