Finishing the Beatitudes

I am preaching through the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) on Wednesday nights. Last night, I complete the introductory section - The Beatitudes of Jesus (Matt. 5:3-12).

The next section of the passage in Matthew 5:13-16, where Jesus describes the influence his disciples should have on the world for the kingdom of heaven. Using to gripping and dynamic word pictures, Jesus declares, "You are the salt of the earth" (5:13) and "You are the light of the world" (5:14-16).

Following this paragraph, I will be venturing into new ground in my exposition. Over the past two months, I have taken a fresh look at the beatitudes. But I have benefited from study notes that I already had on file. But I am now at a place in the text where I must study each text from scratch. I am looking forward to digging into portions of scripture that I have never studied or taught before. But it will require a lot more work. So please remember my study time in your prayers and my sequential exposition of Philippians on Sundays and the Sermon on the Mount on Wednesdays.

I preached last night from the final beatitude recorded in Matthew 5:10-12, in which Jesus blesses those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake. I entitled the message, "In the Line of Fire." It was very hard work. But the Lord is faithful. Here is the sermon skeleton from last night's message:

Title: "In the Line of Fire"

Text: Matthew 5:10-12

Series: The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)

Theme: The blessing of Christian persecution

Point: The Lord blesses those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake.

Outline:

I. The reality of Christian persecution (5:10-11)

A. You will be reviled (v. 11)

B. You will be persecuted (v. 11)

C. You will be slandered (v. 11)

II. The reason for Christian persecution (5:10-11)

A. You will be persecuted for righteousness' sake (v. 10)

B. You will be persecuted for Christ's sake (v. 11)

III. The response to Christian persecution (5:12)

A. Look up and rejoice: "for your reward is great in heaven"

B. Look back and rejoice: "for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you"

You Are What You Eat

I resumed my study of the Sermon on the Mount tonight in our midweek worship service. I am still in the beatitudes. My text was Matthew 5:6: "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied" (ESV). I entitled the message, "How Is Your Appetite?"

I addressed three aspects of this beatitude tonight:

1. The Menu for True Satisfaction: "righteousness"  


2. The Appetite for True Satisfaction: "hunger and thirst"


3. The Blessing of True Satisfaction: "they shall be satisfied"

There was a section of the first point that I failed to cover. But I thought it was important. I wanted to explain the different ways scripture speak of righteousness and what I believe Jesus is referring to in this beatitude. Here is the section of the manuscript:

            Scripture speaks of righteousness several different ways. First of all, there is positional or forensic righteousness, which is the sovereign act by which God declares sinners righteous through faith in Jesus’ blood and righteousness. This is not what Jesus is talking about in our text. Unsaved or unconverted people do not desire to be justified unless or until God changes their heart and leads them to saving faith in Christ. And those who have declared righteous need not hunger and thirst for it. Likewise, there is what you call social righteousness, which involves caring for widows and orphans, providing for those in need, and seeking justice for those who have been wronged. As important as social righteousness is, this is not what Jesus is talking about in our text. He is not saying that all who desire to see the world become a better place are blessed and will have their desires fulfilled. What Jesus is speaking of here is what is called personal or progressive righteousness. That is, those who have been justified by God through faith in Christ demonstrate their righteous standing by a sincere and strong desire to have their daily life be conformed to the righteous position. This is what Jesus blesses in this beatitude. He affirms the citizen of the kingdom of heaven who desires his or her life on earth to be marked by continual and increasing conformity to the will of God.

I was moved today as I thought about a line from Ray Pritchard's book, He's God and We're Not. Commenting on this beatitude, Pritchard writes: "Whatever righteous thing you desire in the spiritual realm, you can have if you want it badly enough." Wow! If this statement is true, that means we should live without excuses. We can blame nothing or no one else for our spiritual condition. If this beatitude is true, we can be as close to God as we want to be.

I was glad to be home and in my own pulpit tonight. I was encouraged those who told me that they missed me. It is good to be missed.

Next Wednesday's Message: "A Conspiracy of Kindness" (Matthew 5:7).

Power Under Control

I continued my new study of the Sermon on the Mount. I am presently through the Beatitudes of Jesus in Matthew 5:3-12. What a challenge it is to wrestle with the demands of Jesus. My soul is being stretched and my mind is being renewed. I pray the congregation of SMBC is being blessed by the study so far.

Here is the sermon skeleton from last night's message:

Title: "Strength Through Meekness"

Text: Matthew 5:5

Series: The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)

Theme: The blessedness of meekness

Point: God blesses the person who lives with confidence that God is in control.

Outline:

I. What is meekness?

- Meekness is not weakness.

- Meekness is power under control.

- Meekness is self-control rooted in confidence that God is in control.

II. What is the blessing of meekness?

- Jesus calls the meek blessed because of their inheritance.

- Jesus promises that the meek will inherit the earth.

* This is a promise for tomorrow

* This is a promise for today

The Blessing of Brokenness

Last week I started a study of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) in our midweek services at Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church.

The first section of the message records the Beatitudes of Jesus (Matt. 5:3-12), in which Jesus announces those who exhibit certain kingdom attributes blessed.

Last week, we studied the first beatitude on “the poor in spirit” (Matt. 5:3). Last night, the blessing Jesus announces on those who “mourn” (Matt. 5:4).

Here is the sermon skeleton from last night’s message.

TITLE: “The Blessing of Brokenness”

TEXT: Matthew 5:4

SERMON SERIES: The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)

THEME: The blessedness of godly sorrow

POINT: God blesses those who mourn.

OUTLINE:

Consider what Jesus teaches in Matthew 5:4 about the sorrow and the comfort of the mourners.

I. The sorrow of the mourners (5:4a)

A. The place of natural sorrow

1. Natural sorrow can be evil.

2. Natural sorrow can be beneficial.

B. The priority of spiritual sorrow

II. The comfort of the mourners (5:4b)

A. God comforts the mourners through repentance of sin.

B. God comforts the mourners through faith in Jesus Christ.

1. Christ comforts believers by his atoning blood.

2. Christ comforts believers by his Holy Spirit.

Tonight, I began a new Wednesday night sermon series through Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).

I had planned on doing another series, on "Total-Life Stewardship." It was very eager to get that study going. But I just could not get a green light to start it. I trust that the Lord will allow me to get to it at another time.

For the meantime, I will be in the Sermon on the Mount for a while. I plan to cover the entire passage. And I do not intend to rush through it. I need to spend this time studying the radical, exacting, and counter-cultural principles of the kingdom that Jesus teaches in Matthew 5-7. My congregation needs these encounter with Jesus, as well.

Please pray for us.

I began tonight with the opening section of the Sermon on the Mount, known as the "Beatitudes" (Matthew 5:3-12). God willing, I will go through each of them individually.

Here is the sermon skeleton from tonight's message:

Title: "Good Credit for the Spiritually Bankrupt"

Text: Matthew 5:3

Sermon Series: "The Sermon on the Mount"

Theme: The blessed paradox of human depravity.

Point: God blesses the poor in spirit.

Outline:

I. What does it mean to be blessed?

A. True blessedness cannot be measured in man-centered terms.

A. It is not about emotional happiness.

B. It is not about favorable circumstances.

C. It is not about material prosperity.

B. True blessedness must be measured in God-centered terms.

II. What does it mean to be poor in spirit?

A. To be poor in spirit is to have a high view of God.

B. To be poor in spirit is to have a low view of self.

1. Spiritual poverty is necessary for salvation.

2. Spiritual poverty is necessary for spiritual growth.

III. What does it mean to have the kingdom of heaven?

A. The kingdom of heaven belongs to the poor in spirit exclusively.

B. The kingdom of heaven belongs to the poor in spirit presently.