The Beatitudes

Today on Renewing Your Mind lists the sum of the Moncton Matthew 516. Seven this is Christian living. One all one. It is Jesus teaching us the most fundamental principles of what it means to be a Christian, a child of the kingdom, and a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ Christian living one on one sermon on the Mount by Dr. Sue Ferguson as he leads us in the study of these principles to keep in mind that Jesus didn't just preach the sermon. He lived. The Bible tells us we basically health to problem.

The first is the problem of our guilt before God on the second is the problem of our bondage not only on bondage and soon but on bondage to Satan on through Matthew's Gospel. He presents us with the way in which right from the beginning of his ministry, Jesus steps forward in order to deal with both of these problems and notified Jonathan, she is in essence & baptized into our sins.

It's almost as though pictorially the waters into which people had washed away their sins symbolically those waters are not poured over Jesus and he has a symbolic baptism that he will fulfill input he called the baptism with which he was to be baptized on the cross. So Jesus has come to deal with the guilt of arson so that we may have a relationship of children to the heavenly father. But Jesus is also come to deal with our bondage and so once Jesus is baptized.

Matthew tells us the spirit leads him into the wilderness to be tempted. Temptation comes to us doesn't.

But Jesus went to temptation. He went does God's son as the king in order to overcome the evil one in the wilderness. You remember the special temptation led him to Jesus, if you will just bow down to me. I will give you the kingdoms of this world from one point of view. You might think that's not really much of temptation is a if you bow down to me I will give you the kingdoms of this world, but actually that's what Jesus had come into the world to gain. That's what Jesus did gain we are told through his death and resurrection. Now who Matthew 28 says all authority in heaven and earth has been given to me, but he refuses to be dive factored from the one way in which he can recover those kingdom and doctors the way of the cross across the resurrection through which she overcomes the evil one so symbolically Jesus has indicated to us that he's going to deal with on guilt. He has begun to deal with our enemy and our bondage and this defeated him in the wilderness, and now he is bringing in the new powers of the kingdom of God. You probably know that in Matthew's gospel that are five teaching blocks. Punctuate the gospel and Jesus teachers throughout the gospel about what the kingdom is how the kingdom walks and how the kingdom will eventually come and how the people of the kingdom lived within the kingdom. And this is the sum of the Moncton Matthew 516 seven is the first of Laura's teaching blocks that we might see that this is Christian living.

One or one, it is Jesus teaching us the most fundamental principles of what it means to be a Christian, a child of the kingdom, a son of the heavenly father and a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ so quick. As he began you'll notice the sound of the modern does not begin by telling us what we are to do is Christian's and a sense of the same begin with telling us what we are to be as Christians.

It begins by telling us the blessedness of what we actually are as Christians. This is such an important basic principle isn't. But in the Christian life being is the foundation for doing. It's not the other way around. And so you'll notice that the Beatitudes, as we call them the openness, and the mind are all telling us what we are.

Sometimes they are rare, Dante as though Jesus were saying no you need to be this is actually saying to the disciples is if you're in my kingdom. This is what you are and I want to tell you explain to you what a blessed life that is on so he begins Blessed are the poor in spirit. Why because varus is the kingdom of heaven. We might put it the other way around.

If you are in the kingdom of heaven. Then you enjoy the blessing of the poor, and so on through all of these Beatitudes no.

I want us to think first of all, about some of the characteristics of this description, Jesus gives of the citizens in his kingdom. The first thing to notice actually is.

But these descriptions Jesus gives actually descriptions of God's people that we find in various parts of the Old Testament. So these are not novelties that Jesus is as it were plucking out of the air.

What Jesus is saying is the kingdom must come the gospel is fulfilled, and those promises that we find scattered throughout the Old Testament Scriptures are all now being brought together in the new life of the citizens of the kingdom, when, for example, as we see in a moment. He says Blessed are the meat because they will inherently is really just quoting from the pages of the Old Testament Scriptures, but what he is promising is fulfillment. Remember how he puts it in John chapter 10 I have come that they might have life and that they might have that life in all its fullness, but you notice that these Beatitudes are characterized first of all by contrasts strange contrasts the basic contrast is this, but in this kingdom you need to be tempted before your final. The gospel does not just add something to what you already have what the gospel does is it. First of all, and tissue of all that you are and then it fills you with all that he is, it deconstructs you in order to reconstruct you on the problem actually is. This paradoxically but by nature. We are to fool to be filled, and we need to be tempted in order to be filled as a second characteristic of these Beatitudes and renters without exception they reverse the values of the world. They are profoundly countercultural in that sentence. It is the poor who are blessed because the meek who inherit it is those who mourn, who are comforted that is this radical reversal of the values of the world. Because the values of the world. The value the values of God and so we need to be amputated in order to be filled and there's 1/3 characteristic that slips because these are contour cultural transformations that take place in our lives, although they transformers and begin to express something of the beauty of the Lord Jesus in our lives, they bring us into a world in which there is conflict and sometimes there is persecution in some of the Beatitudes and on that note, indeed, that is a is a little postscript doesn't birth to the Beatitudes where Jesus emphasizes no I do want you to understand that this new way of life is so countercultural it will bring you into conflict with the world in which you live and you are going to experience suffering as a result, I think that made a huge impact on Peter right from the very beginning because as you read about him in the gospel narratives something. He struggled with wasn't her but wasn't thinking he wanted to avoid.

He wanted to of Christ without a cross and a Christian life without opposition, persecution, and paying them yet. Near the end of his life in his first letter he writes to other Christians who are correctly. I got about two really going through suffering.

At that very time and he says don't don't be surprised by the fiery trial that is coming upon you as though something strange were happening to and at last he got to the text being in the kingdom means belonging to Jesus Christ, then we should expect that Christians will experience some of the same opposition, but the Lord Jesus himself experienced. So this is the first thing it said description of citizens who are in the kingdom. Of course this is an ongoing war that none of this is as yet complete but in all these little details of the Beatitudes. What Jesus is doing is think about who at the end of the day.

Do they really describe the end of the day they really describe Jesus don't think he was the one who mourn, he was the one who was poor in spirit. He was the one who was meat, he was the one who was persecuted for righteousness sake.

And so when we see them as a whole, the releasing, this is what it means to become like Jesus Christ. He is the blessed one, and in him you will experience every spiritual blessing, even if it comes with suffering and trials, and opposition on the second floor to these Beatitudes is number we need to become poor in spirit, in order to enter the kingdom and so the poor in spirit possess the kingdom. And in my kingdom.

When we learn to be sorry for our sins we become sensitive to them. And Jesus says Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. And when we mourn something does Ontiveros and are trying need is demolished and so Jesus says that's a blessed condition because it is the meek who inherit the once God has worked in our lives and in that way, we begin to have a bit of new ambitions, new tastes, new affections, we find ourselves strange. It doesn't we make an effort to do this, but we we find that we love different things we love different people we love the church her friend was a minister when they welcomed the young man until there church and the elders were interviewing him this this young man was just slightly brash and and a little confident but genuinely converted surgeon. The strangest thing has happened in this church since I started coming to it. When I came to the sermons friend. The minister was service sermons work with some of dollars to be quite honest and un-difficult to understand, and the hymns which we were singing on the prayers were so long says everything your sermons are just totally different and were singing the great him and I don't know who I don't know what is happened to you all well. Of course something that happened to him until he had been transformed and as a result of like he was not hungering and thirsting for righteousness. Whereas before it was perfectly satisfied with himself and with his life. Isn't it interesting that we sometimes make the mistake of thinking that people on Christians think they are not satisfied.

The tragedy is there become satisfied with the wrong thing and so you see there is a kind of rhythm to this, and what happens when when we long for this righteousness does not decide because metallic and angular difficult, alas.

Sometimes Christians can be like notices Jesus. The reverse is true, we become merciful.

We know what it is to have received mercy and so we express mercy and hearts of purified and when our hearts are purified, we begin to love the right things and see more clearly and he says it's those who are pure in heart. Those who have their focus on the Lord who will know what it is to see God and when we have seen God in this sense, by faith, who describes himself in Scripture is that God of peace who brought again from the day the Lord Jesus, that is to say he really is the Lord Jesus in order to give us peace and when we experience that piece we want to see that piece spread throughout God's people and we want those who are not yet in the fellowship of Christ. We want to see them brought into that true peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I wonder if you experience this at the Lord's supper.

I frequently experience lesser the Lord's supper. I don't think it's a strange Scottish Celtic emotion, but because of the Lord's supper. We have these physical expressions but through Jesus Christ we have peace with God.

We have been reconciled to him what I would like to do the end of the service would be just about on the congregation hugging everybody and saying to them, let's live in this piece.

If you have anything against me. Pardon me if I find anything against you, I freely forgive you with tasted this piece and so says Jesus. We instinctively want to become peacemakers and then here's the paradox, you know every Christmas, at least where I live, they'll send out a young television interviewer to interview famous people and they say what's your what's your wish list persons of the same old thing.

Just one world peace.

It's amazing what this integration and disharmony lies in many people's lives who say that they don't want peace in the family piece with the wife but they want this delusion, while peace and here Jesus is saying there is a piece that is not illusory, but is finding the kingdom of heaven under however, the result is that many people who serve a one world peace, who spend our lives defending themselves against God's desire that they should have peace with him and the result that photo of being these new people. Jesus describes is a huge paradox and so he ends these Beatitudes by saying, Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my accountant know I can understand that this would be true.

The big thing for us to understand those. How can we experience that and say to ourselves. Amazingly, I should be such a blessed man are such a blessed woman is what Jesus is teaching somebody opposes your Christian faith persecutes the Christian faith. What your instinctive response unnatural response is to stand under attack by" Jesus is saying is the first language of thinkers. I am a blessed man. I'm a blessed woman member how the disciples regardless. Member in the hourly charge when they were persecuted member when they were beaten Monday went back to the other disciples and they rejoice that they had been counted worthy to suffer for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. It was it was amazing really the office. They made the connection. But if these families want to want to make us suffer and are persecuting us for the name of Jesus there really must be something about those that reminds them of cheese and there's another sense in which we are blessed by think it's the sense that we are able to experience these persecutions opposition and to quietly say to the Lord, Lord, I know this is really good, almost nothing to do with me. This is really about you so Lord to help me to stand you give me parties that you take the pardon from me. Just let me spend a moment or two on one of these Beatitudes. In particular, because I think it may just be the central one member the end of the gospel. Jesus inherits Leah the central beatitude Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth. No meekness was one of those characteristics that was actually despised in the ancient world, but Jesus places a huge premium on doesn't mean think about where this wonderful beatitude lies in this list of Beatitudes here. I mourn for my son's life.

I've been increasingly emptied of myself and changes taking place in my life so that I find myself dealing with difficult people, but time amplitude of irritation because when Jesus found me. I was a difficult person, and he assured me grace. I find myself dealing with difficult and irritating circumstances.

But I understand this every circumstance in my life is sovereignly superintended by my heavenly father on the floor in every circumstance. I'm able to borrow to him and know that he will work everything together for my good.

Even through this pain and so I can I continue with our spirit of meekness difficult people difficult circumstances, and yet there's a sense in which my responses is also wildly really striking the verses, the aspect of Jesus on character to which he drew special attention. I find this very fascinating. He he really refers to what you would call his his personal characteristics they shine in the Gospels don't return.

He doesn't refer to them, but when he mixes a great gospel invitation come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, my, my yoke is easy and my burden is light which is the ground on which Jesus appeals to us to come meet and globally, and you shall find rest for your soul's to see what he saying I think one of the things he saying here and it's really very beautiful is that when the Beatitudes are true offers that are characteristics brought into our lives that other people see on today. There will come times in their life they will say I think I can go to and ask him the way to the one in the sermon of the amount we learn what it would like to practice righteousness even as we follow the one who fulfills all righteousness.

Thank you for joining us for the Tuesday edition of Renewing Your Mind as we continue Dr. Sinclair Ferguson series on the sermon on the amount we find it in Matthew chapters 5, six and seven and it is the best-known and greatest sermon ever preached. Dr. Ferguson series which closely at the themes and principles that we find there were 12 messages in all and would like to send them to you on two DVDs is contact us today with a donation of any about our number is 800-435-4343 or you can make a request and give your gift online@renewingyourmind.org if you've downloaded a free app to your phone or tablet that here's an opportunity to use a feature you may not have noticed once you complete your request for Dr. Ferguson series go to the my learning library tab all 12 videos will be available for you to watch at any time right away so request sermon on the mount when you call us at 800-435-4343 or when you go online to Renewing Your Mind.org. I do hope you're enjoying and appreciating Dr. Ferguson series on the sermon on the Mount. We have one more message to feature tomorrow and here's a preview. Jesus is the one who fulfills all things Old Testament pictures client took them to how their sins would eventually be forgiven through one great sacrifice made by a high priest, that's tomorrow here on Renewing Your Mind