The Beatitudes - Part 1.

Beatitude means The Blessings listed by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5:3-12.

Jesus teaches us that if we live according to the Beatitudes, we will live a happy Christian life. The Beatitudes describe the rewards that will be ours as loyal followers of Christ.

THE Beatitudes in - Matthew 5:3-12 RSV.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.

“Amazing grace! How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!”

The world we live believes, in man-made truths, and which is constantly changing. 

We will find the Beatitude way of life difficult, but we have to always remember, Jesus lived what He spoke. 

We need Jesus’s guidelines to know how to live like Jesus, and when we do, this will surely be Heaven.

IT IS...

JOY in the midst of suffering. 

PEACE in the midst of suffering.

This is the Presence of JESUS CHRIST in our lives. 

‘The Beatitudes’ is the right way to the full blessings of the Kingdom of Heaven.   

Let's understand the Meaning of the Beatitudes​

1. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

We must be humble(poor) in our spirits.

Humbleness is accepting God is in Charge. We have to learn to accept our faults-our sins in humbleness. I need God’s constant love and forgiveness. It is a knowing that i am nothing without God and accepting this truth with love.

In truth it should not matter what people think of me or how little they think of me or for that matter if they disregard me completely. Let nothing trouble you. When you know and understand this, you will be at Peace because you know who you are in God?

We pray for His Grace to fill us each day to make us better people to be worthy of His Kingdom. Only in true humbleness will we find the contentment and that inner Peace that surpasses the worldly understanding.    

2. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

We ought to be sensitive, tender-hearted, and alert to the needs of others, but also aware of our own sin and lack of obedience to the Lord.

We need to feel sorry for the many sins we have committed. The Holy Spirit will convict us of our sins and helps us understand how we hurt God through our deeds. We are nothing and completely lost without Jesus Christ.

And we know when we sin, we hurt the heart of God. We need to remember sin blocks our path to God. And remember, God hurts when we do the things that displease Him. For God’s Heart is ever so gentle.

When i repent of the sins i have committed, surely God will help me. God will strengthen us. When we truly understand what sin does to our soul, we will never want to sin again. But we need to remember we can do so only in God’s Grace.

When we truly repent over our sins as guided by the Holy Spirit and we cry out to God, saying “Lord, have mercy on me a wretched sinner, you know how horrible I am, but save me Lord, for I need You. Please don’t leave me.”

And God will take you in His Care and He will comfort your heart like only a Father can and He will.

3. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Meekness is a humbleness that expresses itself in the patient endurance of suffering offenses.

It is only in humbling oneself to the Holy Mighty Will of God, will one learn what it is to be like Jesus, Meek and Humble.

Jesus Christ, the Son of The Living God, being God, humbled Himself to a death on the Cross.

How must we be?

Jesus, though innocent, stood before His accusers and did not defend Himself. He was betrayed, tormented, mocked, spat upon and sentenced to death. Dying on the CROSS, He prayed for those who crucified Him, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34

The meek submit themselves to God’s Word and speak no evil of others and are gentle towards all. Jesus lived by the WORD!

The meek have their eyes, fixed only on God.

Jesus meek and humble of heart make my heart like unto Thine.

4. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

We are called to be Just every day. We could fail in our attempts to achieve justice, but we will be blessed because of the deep longing for justice that is set in the heart of a person. The thought to do good to everyone, the hurt that is experienced when watching others in pain, the cry for others when unable to achieve justice for them. God sees and knows the heart!

Jesus points to a deeper yearning for righteousness in the eyes of God.

In the words of St Augustine: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

In everything we do, we must desire the approval of God! In today’s world we are more focused on what people think or say. We work hard for people’s approval.

Being Righteous, means doing what is right in the Eyes of God. But we fall short for we do right by people and we leave God in the distance.

We must have a passion to do what is right.

“Zeal for thy house will consume me.” John 2:17. This means that Jesus' passion - His food was to do the will of His Father.

We must pray, asking God to give us a deeper hunger for Himself and a deeper desire for His fellowship.

5. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

We must always forgive, being merciful towards everyone who wronged us. God is mercy, and we ought to be merciful every day to everybody.

We are miserable sinners, and we are all in need of God's mercy every single day.

Mercy means – When a person has treated you cruelly and it is your time to respond, do not reply to them with cruelty but treat them with love and respect. They may fail to understand you, but God is always watching.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.”

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and when he saw him, he had compassion, 34 and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed mercy on him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:25-37

In Luke 10:25-37, when asked, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus directed the teacher of the Law to the two great commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27.

The teacher wanted to justify himself and so he asked, Luke 10:29 - “And who is my neighbour?”

This is when Jesus told the Parable of the Good Samaritan (ABOVE Luke 10:25-37).

In the Parable, Jesus uses the example of the Jew and the Samaritan, who would not ordinarily have been friends. But of all the people, who helped, the wounded man, only the Samaritan came to his aid.

Jesus tells of a man who was travelling from Jerusalem to Jericho and was attacked by robbers on the way. He was badly beaten and left for dead.

The first person a Priest passed the injured man. He crossed the road and continued walking. The second person a Levite too passed by the injured man.

The Samaritan took pity on the man and went up to him and helped at the expense of his own time, comfort and safety. He bandaged him and cleaned his wounds. He then put him on the back of his donkey and took him to an inn, where he paid to have the wounded man looked after. He did all this expecting nothing in return.

The parable ends with Jesus asking, who is the neighbour to the man who fell among the robbers.

And the reply is, the one who showed mercy on him. And Jesus says, “Go and do likewise.”

CONCLUSION:

It is difficult to love our enemies and even more so, to truly love everybody as Christ did.

Jesus used the Parable of the Good Samaritan as an example of loving people who may not be our friends.

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, — Matthew 5:43-47

Jesus did that on the Cross, when He prayed for His persecutors, Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Jesus taught His followers: You shall love your neighbour as yourself. — Matthew 22:39

Jesus’ Mercy is boundless. It cannot be measured. Jesus came to earth, in human flesh. He chose to die a death He didn’t deserve, so that you and I can be FORGIVEN. God’s mercy is limitless!

i am a wretched sinner, i have hurt the heart of God, with my foolish ways.

But this is what Abba Father said, your slate is clean. It took me time to understand the significance of the slate. I understood what Abba Father meant, but I forgot what the slate meant to me.

When I was a kid, I had a small slate that I loved writing on. As I grew up and on holidays, I would open that beautiful bag of mine and I always felt happy looking at that slate. And I would wipe it clean.

Abba Father reached my heart, only as a Father can and He wiped me clean.

Jesus always says, ‘I won’t let sin touch you.’

I am undeserving. I am not worthy. It is God’s Abundant Mercy on me. For what am i?

When God is supremely merciful to me, how must I be to others?

6. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

When our hearts genuinely desire to please God, then our lives will reflect that desire.

A pure heart: desires to be with God.

When we truly follow Jesus, we will deny ourselves and carry our cross daily.

Seeing God and being with Him forever in heaven is God's plan for our eternal well-being. We learn that this purity is required if we are to approach God.

The first of the Love Commandment is To love God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength. Jesus added that we must also love our neighbour as our self.

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to the happiness that comes from a clean and undivided heart.

We must pursue Holiness with unwavering devotion.

Psalm 51:10, Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.

7. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Peace is not the absence of war. In spite of problems, we can still be at peace. Peace is a choice we make. Peace is not achieved through threats or violence.

Our Peace comes through Christ. 

God is a God of Peace. As children of God, we must seek Peace, in our communities, in our homes, and in the world.

8. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.

Jesus Directs: We are to Rejoice and be Glad!

Jesus endured the greatest persecution.

3 He was despised and rejected by men;

a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces

he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

5 But he was wounded for our transgressions,

he was bruised for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that made us whole,

and with his stripes we are healed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray;

we have turned every one to his own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,

yet he opened not his mouth;

like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,

and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb,

so he opened not his mouth.

-Isaiah 53:3-7

Jesus was betrayed by one of His own Apostles.
Jesus was falsely accused by the Jewish leaders.
The Roman soldiers mocked, abused and spat on Jesus.
Jesus was nailed to the Cross as a hardened criminal.

Jesus willingly died on the Cross, while being innocent.
2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. 

Hebrews 12:2-3

Jesus endured brutal persecution even unto death and He did it willingly, looking to the Joy of redeeming the world from sin and death.

We must set our hearts, our deepest longings on Christ. Only then can we be able to “rejoice and be glad” through the sorrows, pain, difficulty, persecution, and loss we experience on this Earth.

1717ccc The Beatitudes depict the countenance of Jesus Christ and portray his charity. They express the vocation of the faithful associated with the glory of his Passion and Resurrection; they shed light on the actions and attitudes characteristic of the Christian life; they are the paradoxical promises that sustain hope in the midst of tribulations; they proclaim the blessings and rewards already secured, however dimly, for Christ's disciples; they have begun in the lives of the Virgin Mary and all the saints.

And THE Beatitudes in - Luke 6:20-23 RSV.

Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.

Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh.

Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.

Please continue to read The Beatitudes - Part 2. ccc