How Fortunate are the Unfortunate

Well, welcome everybody. My name is Kevin, if you don't know, and we're going to have a time of praying now.

We pray every week for our city and our church, and this morning we're going to do something a little bit differently.

I just came back last night from Singapore. I was there with Jeremy and Julie. There should be a photo.

And a bunch of other pastors and church leaders from around Asia.

There were some of us from people from Singapore, from Tokyo, from Nagoya in Japan, from Thailand, from Australia.

And we're getting together for three days to talk about what would it look like for churches in Asia to strengthen each other, encourage each other, and work together.

And so there's a whole bunch of us that were in Singapore this week.

And so what I want us to do is every Sunday when we have our pastoral prayer, we normally pray for one other church in Hong Kong.

Whether it's community church, or Ireland, or DBICC, or whatever it is.

This morning I want us to pray for this guy on the second from the back.

Okay, here's another photo. His name is Ryuta, and there's his wife Paddy and their two daughters.

That's an old photo. Their daughters have grown up.

And Ryuta Kumira is from Tokyo, and they planted Double O Cross Church.

That's how you spell the church, Double O Cross.

And so we're going to pray for them this morning.

And so as we pray, why don't you join me as we pray for Ryuta, their church they planted five years ago.

And they're doing a great job in Tokyo City.

And so just to let you know why we're going to be praying for them.

Okay, we're going to pray for our friends in Tokyo.

So let's pray as a church together.

Now remember, we're all praying together.

This isn't just me. This is us praying.

And so will you join me as we pray together?

Heavenly Father, this morning as a church family, we've gathered to meet with you, the living God,

to pour out our praises and our worship to you, to declare that you are the one true God,

you are heaven and earth's true king.

And God, even though your kingdom has come in a small way on earth,

we've come to sing about and to proclaim and to declare that we believe you are the true king,

that your kingdom will come in finality one day.

And we long for that day, God.

We've come to say that you are God and you alone are good.

You alone are worthy of our worship and our devotion.

So often, Father, we get seduced by ideas and thoughts and the worldview of our city and our culture.

Father, this morning, God, won't you rightly align our hearts to truth?

Won't you shape our hearts with the gospel, Lord?

Won't you remind us of who you are and your ways, Lord God?

God, let your kingdom come.

Let your will be done in our hearts and in Hong Kong, we pray, God.

Father, thank you for this financial worship and the tide that has been given.

We really do thank you, Father, for the resources you've given each one of us.

We acknowledge that all of our resources come from you.

And, God, we want to steward them for your glory.

And so help us as a church and individually to do so.

Give us this day our daily bread, we pray, God.

Father, this morning, we want to pray for Ryuta and Paddy and all at Double O Cross Church in Tokyo.

Thank you, Father, for their love for the gospel,

their passion to see many Japanese men and women in Tokyo

coming to experience the life and the power and the freedom found in Jesus.

Father, thank you that Double O Cross is such a healthy church, such a wonderful church,

which loves your word and loves Jesus and loves the gospel and loves the city of Tokyo.

Father, we pray that they will continue to make disciples and disciple them in the gospel.

Fathers, they look for a venue.

Won't you provide a great venue for them?

They look to start an afternoon congregation.

Won't you give them leaders?

Father, we pray.

God, won't you bless their labors?

Anoint them.

Won't you give them fruit?

Father, we stand with our brothers and sisters across the waters and say,

God, won't you bless that church?

We pray, God.

Lead them as to where to go and when to start.

And won't you give them leaders for this new meeting?

We pray, God.

Fathers of church, we ask you to send us a youth pastor at Watermark

as we look for someone to lead and disciple our teenagers.

God, we bring this before you and we ask you for this, Lord.

We really do long, God, that our youth and our teenagers will be discipled in the gospel

and will come to know you, Lord, and love you

and be rock solid in the midst of a changing culture

and a culture that's telling them to be anything and do anything.

God, that they will know the truth and they'll build their lives upon you.

And so we ask you, God, won't you provide for us as a church in this regard?

God, we pray all these things in your wonderful name.

Amen.

Amen.

Let's listen to the reading of God's word as Arlene is going to come and read for us.

The scripture reading comes from Matthew chapters 4 and 5.

Matthew 4 · chapter mention

Please follow along in your bulletins or on the screen.

And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues

and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom

and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.

So his fame spread throughout all Syria.

And they brought him all the sick,

those afflicted with various diseases and pains,

those oppressed by demons,

those having seizures and paralytics.

And he held them.

And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis

and from Jerusalem and Judea

and from beyond the Jordan.

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain.

And when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,

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 receive 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 others 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.

For so they persecuted the prophets

who were before you.

This is the word of God.

Great. Thank you, Arlene.

Okay.

Well, if you are new to Watermark this morning,

we are working our way through the book of Matthew,

Matthew's Gospel.

And Matthew's Gospel is all about Jesus,

the fact that he is the king,

and he's come to bring a new kingdom.

But his kingdom is upside down.

It's often very different to the way that we would expect

and the kingdoms of this world.

And we're going to see this preeminently

as we go through the Sermon on the Mount,

which is where we find ourselves today.

Now, before this,

Chris preached last week

and showed how Jesus,

after his time of preparation in the wilderness,

he launches his ministry with an announcement.

And this is his announcement.

Turn from your sin and turn to God,

for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

And what does that mean?

Why is the kingdom of heaven at hand?

Well, it's at hand because the king has arrived,

because King Jesus has come.

And so Jesus then goes

and immediately he calls some people to follow him,

to give up their previous way of life

and to follow him in whatever he says

and where he calls him to.

And so right at the beginning of Jesus' ministry,

we hear this call.

It's the call of the gospel

to turn from our sin and to follow Jesus.

And then after that,

we get to this most famous

and wonderful passage of Scripture

in the New Testament,

the Sermon on the Mount.

Now, in order to understand the Sermon on the Mount,

let's just zoom back a little bit

and understand the context of what's going on here.

And so just before,

look at chapter four with me at verse 23.

It should be in your bulletins.

Look at the last paragraph in your Bible

before the Sermon on the Mount.

And verse 23 says this.

It says,

He, that's Jesus,

went throughout all Galilee

and doing three things,

or two things.

Teaching in their synagogues,

proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom,

and healing every disease

and every affliction amongst the people.

Okay, you see that?

Jesus went throughout doing these things.

Preaching, teaching,

and healing people of their diseases.

When we jump a few chapters later

in Matthew chapter nine and verse 35,

there's almost the exact same description,

almost word for word.

Look at what it says.

Jesus went throughout all the cities

and the villages,

teaching in their synagogues,

proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom,

and healing every disease and affliction.

You see that?

So here in these,

chapter four,

we've got this description of Jesus' ministry.

In chapter nine,

we've got this description.

And there's two kind of main things that he did.

He was preaching and teaching,

proclaiming,

explaining what does the kingdom of God look like,

and doing miraculous works of power,

demonstrating what does it look like

when the kingdom of God breaks into your life.

It changes you.

It comes with power.

And in between chapter four and chapter nine,

there are two bodies of teaching,

or two sections.

One is Matthew chapter five to seven,

the Sermon on the Mount,

which is a summary of everything

that he taught and preached and proclaimed.

And chapters eight and nine,

there's about eight or nine different stories

of miraculous healings.

Jesus casting out demons,

healing people from sickness,

raising the dead.

And do you see what Matthew's doing here?

He's showing us these two bookends.

Jesus' ministry consisted of preaching

and teaching the kingdom,

and miraculous signs and wonders.

And in between these two bookends,

he shows us what did that look like.

What did it look like?

It looked like the Sermon on the Mount,

and it looked like miraculous,

powerful acts of demonstration of his kingdom.

And so what is the Sermon on the Mount?

Well, Jesus didn't just stand up on a mountainside

and say, just listen to me,

and for 45 minutes,

you know, Matthew copied verbatim,

word for word, what Jesus said.

The Sermon on the Mount, in many ways,

is a summary teaching of what Jesus said

as he went throughout the villages

and the cities of Galilee,

proclaiming and teaching and preaching,

the kingdom of God has come,

and this is what life in the kingdom looks like.

Okay?

And so in many ways,

the Sermon on the Mount

isn't just this phenomenal moral teaching

about turning the other cheek

or taking the log out of your eye

or how to pray.

It's not just this one-hit wonder

where Jesus, you know,

the stars aligned,

the lights were on him,

and he just preached the best sermon of his life.

In many ways,

it's a collection of the things that Jesus taught

as he went throughout the villages

and the towns,

teaching what life as he purposed it,

life in the kingdom looks like.

But there's something else about the Sermon on the Mount.

It's also more than that.

In many ways,

the Sermon on the Mount

is an answer to one of humanity's

greatest and deepest and oldest questions.

The question that human beings have asked for centuries is,

how can I experience true human flourishing?

What is happiness?

What does it mean to live the blessed life?

What is a good life anyway?

How do I experience human flourishing

and how do I keep it?

How do I obtain it?

So it's not just a once-off experience,

but how do I experience a human flourishing ongoingly?

And in many ways,

the Sermon on the Mount

is an answer to that question.

Now, let's think about this question for a bit.

What is happiness?

What is blessedness?

What does the flourishing life look like?

I don't know what you would say,

but in our culture,

we've got many answers to that

on a superficial level.

For some of us,

maybe a flourishing life

means to be a person of great success,

to achieve success in our chosen field

or our career,

to be at the top of our game,

to be at the top of the class,

top of the list,

to achieve our goals in our vocations.

Maybe for some of us,

a flourishing, successful life

is to be well admired and well respected,

to get to the end of our days

and our family and our children

and our grandchildren

look up to us as somebody respectable,

somebody who's lived a good life.

Maybe for some of us,

it means no relational strife.

Everybody likes you.

Everybody gets on well with you.

Everybody admires you and likes you

and there's no relational tension.

You get on with everybody around you.

Maybe it means having your dreams fulfilled

or maybe it just means

living a contented and a comfortable life.

It is no heartache and no difficulties.

Whatever shape or form it is,

while there's many superficial forms,

all of us long for this flourishing,

this blessedness, this happy life,

which in many ways involves

having the difficulties

and the obstacles to happiness

removed from our lives

and going through life

without encountering too many difficulties.

It's what makes me happy

and what advances my life.

I get to do that.

And this isn't just a modern thing.

This is what we've believed throughout the ages.

There's interesting,

there's a Jewish rabbi and teacher

by the name of Basira.

I think that's how you say it.

Jesus Basira.

And he lived 150 years before Jesus.

He was one of the most respected

and well-loved Jewish rabbis of his time.

And Sarah came up with a list of blessings

of what a flourishing life looks like.

This is one of his most famous poems.

Look at what he says here.

He says,

There are nine that I would call blessed,

a tenth that my tongue would proclaim.

Blessed is the man who can rejoice with his children.

Blessed is the man who lives to see the downfall of his foes.

Blessed is the man who does not sin with his tongue.

Blessed is the one who does not serve an inferior.

Blessed is the man who finds a friend.

Blessed is the one who speaks to attentive listeners.

Greatest is the one who finds wisdom.

And none is superior to the one who fears the Lord.

Now, when we read that,

part of that feels like,

yeah, that sounds like my life.

That's what I would like, right?

Blessed is the man who can rejoice with his children.

Blessed is the man that finds a friend.

That sounds like the things that our culture would esteem.

There's some things in here that even sound a little bit like Jesus, right?

Stuff like the man who does not sin with his tongue,

or the one who finds wisdom or fears the Lord.

Yeah, there's some good things in there.

But then there's also a couple of lines that are a little bit interesting, right?

Things like the man who does not serve an inferior,

or the man who lives to see the downfall of his enemies.

Now, I think like Oscar was saying earlier,

these are the kind of things that we shouldn't really say, right?

It's not very politically correct to say,

I hope at the end of my life to have seen the downfall of my enemies.

I really got them under my foot, right?

But just like the musician who had a good front and came to church

and performed in front of many,

and yet would go back to his hotel room at night,

and the demons would come out.

If we're honest, there's a little bit of that inside each one of us.

Each one of us, at times, thinks,

yeah, I want to get to the top of the class.

And maybe I might need to stamp on a couple of others along the way.

Sometimes we might think,

this sounds just like the young people these days.

So individualistic.

ICF students.

I mean, I can't believe how self-centered and individualistic they are, right?

Young people these days.

They really don't make them like they're used to in the good old days, right?

But here, but hang on.

Here's a guy from 2,000 years ago.

One of the most respected leaders in a society, in a culture.

And what's he saying?

He's saying, blessed is one who doesn't serve an inferior.

Blessed is one that can see the downfall of his enemies.

Why?

Because at a deepest heart level, that's exactly what we think.

How do I experience human flourishing?

Well, the answer that our culture says is,

hey, find some friends.

Rejoice with your children.

Have a big growing family.

Try not to sin too much.

And make sure that you get on top.

Make sure that at the end of the day,

you're on top of your enemies.

You're on top of the class.

You succeed in your career.

Ray Ortlund is a pastor in Nashville, Tennessee.

And he wrote an amazing article about the Beatitudes.

And he says that there's a modern version as well.

He calls them the un-Beatitudes.

Look at what he says.

He says,

This is the Beatitudes of our day and age.

Congratulations to the entitled.

They will grab what they want.

Congratulations to the carefree.

They will be comfortable.

Congratulations to the pushy.

They will win in the end.

Congratulations to the greedy.

They will climb to the top.

Congratulations to the vengeful.

For they will be feared.

Congratulations to those who don't get caught.

They will look good.

Congratulations to the argumentative.

They will get the last word.

Congratulations to the popular.

For this world lies at their feet.

Ray Ortlund asks this penetrating question at the end.

He says,

Have you ever met one person

who believed and lived by the world's un-Beatitudes

and came to the end of their life

a satisfied, vibrant, radiant, wise human being?

Have you met even one?

And friends, that leads to the problem of this worldview.

It's a worldview.

It's a system of beliefs which cannot deliver on its promises.

It will promise you the world.

It will promise you satisfaction.

But it cannot deliver that.

It will promise you both power and purpose.

And yet it cannot deliver.

It will promise you peace and contentment.

And yet you'll end up anxious and worried all the time.

You might remember that famous commencement speech

by David Foster Wallace a few years ago in the U.S.

He said this.

He says,

If you worship beauty and good looks,

you'll spend your whole life worrying

that you're ugly and unattractive.

If you think that human flourishing and peace

are found in power and control,

you'll always feel insecure in your positions of authority.

If you strive for money and possessions,

if you think that's where human flourishing is found,

you'll never feel like you have enough

and always be anxious for more.

Friends, have we found one person

who believed and lived by the world's unbeatitudes

and got to the end of their life

a satisfied, radiant, wise human being?

Have you found even one?

Jesus answers this question.

How can we find human flourishing?

How can I be a salient, satisfied, radiant, wise person?

And Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount

gives a very simple and yet a very profound answer.

And his answer is this.

His answer is that it's not found in acquiring possessions.

A flourishing life is not found in accumulating many things.

It's not found in positions of authority or influence.

It's not even found in accessing opportunities and education.

Jesus answers that true human flourishing,

true human happiness,

the blessed life is really found in knowing the God who made you

through Jesus Christ who died on the cross

to secure that knowledge, that relationship,

empowered by the Holy Spirit.

And that this flourishing is only going to be experienced

through faithful, heart deep,

whole person following of Jesus as Christ the King

in a community of his followers.

In other words, Jesus says,

the way we get to experience true human flourishing

is as we come to Christ the King,

we get our hearts shaped by the gospel

and then we live out our lives in the kingdom of God

with the community of his followers.

And the Sermon on the Mount is his invitation

to come and experience that.

It's his invitation with a promise.

It's an unusual promise,

but it's his invitation to come and experience life in the kingdom

as we follow Jesus the King with all of our lives.

But it starts off, Jesus tells us,

with the most provocative description of the upside down nature of the kingdom.

And so let's see what Jesus says.

And so look at what he says here in Matthew chapter 5.

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

He says this,

Blessed are the poor in spirit.

Now, when Jesus used the word blessed,

he's not speaking a blessing.

He's kind of saying,

How blessed!

How fortunate!

It's almost like he's saying,

How lucky are those that are poor in spirit.

How lucky, how fortunate are those that are humble and unassuming.

To be poor means you don't have much resources, right?

Jesus is saying,

How fortunate are those that don't have much spiritual capital?

Right?

When they come to the table,

they aren't middle class with spiritual capital.

They don't have resources.

They come empty-handed to God and say,

Father, I've got nothing.

Oh, how fortunate are those that are poor in spirit.

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Oh, how fortunate are those who mourn.

Those who are disturbed or even broken

by the state of their own hearts and the state of the world.

How fortunate are those who mourn.

For they will be comforted.

Jesus says,

How blessed!

How fortunate are the meek.

Those that have found a way or chosen to be gentle

in their dealings with people around them.

They're not gentle by personality.

They might even be quite strong with personality.

But they've chosen a way of gentleness

in their dealings with those around them.

They're not pushy or self-asserting.

How fortunate are the meek, says Jesus.

For they will inherit the earth.

Oh, how blessed!

How fortunate are those that hunger for righteousness.

There's something in their hearts that is desperate

for the world to be the way that Jesus designed it

and made it.

And they long for things to be right again.

They look at the world around them

and they look at their own hearts

and they say,

There's something not right.

And then they hunger,

they long for the world to be

according to the way that God designed it.

They will be satisfied, says Jesus.

Oh, how blessed!

How lucky!

How fortunate are the merciful!

Those that don't hold on to grudges.

They're not vengeful,

but they dispense mercy and grace

to those that hurt them.

They will receive mercy, says Jesus.

Jesus says,

How fortunate are the pure in heart!

Those that are single-minded

in their devotion to Jesus.

They don't have a Sunday life

and then the rest of their life is something else.

There's a single-mindedness.

There's an integrity

between their spiritual life

and the rest of their life.

How blessed is Jesus

of those that are single-minded,

pure in heart,

for they will see God.

Oh, how fortunate are those

that are peacemakers,

those who love peace

and don't like conflict and arguments.

They deal with things properly

so that there's no relational tension.

For they will be called sons and daughters,

children of God.

Fortunate are those who are persecuted

for doing what's right, says Jesus.

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

And so what's Jesus saying in all of this?

This list of beatitudes.

What's Jesus really saying?

In many ways, he's saying,

How fortunate are the unfortunate!

Or how lucky are the unlucky!

Right?

How blessed are those

that the world looks down upon

as unfortunate and ill-fated.

How lucky are those!

Jesus is happy are those

that exhibit the qualities

that this world thinks is ridiculous

and those that the world pities

and carries in their heart

the brokenness of this world.

Oh, how blessed and fortunate

are they!

In a sense, Jesus is almost saying this.

He's almost saying,

If you had a choice before you,

am I going to get to the end of my life

being well-esteemed,

looked up to,

well-regarded,

and having conquered all the things

that the world offers,

or if I get to the end of my life

being pitied,

being thought of as

somebody that didn't quite

make it through life,

not that successful,

if you had to choose

between two of these,

think carefully

because the answer's not as obvious

as our world makes it out to be.

Jesus is almost saying,

It might be better

to get to the end of your life

being pitied,

poor,

and powerless

than having lots of possessions,

power,

and achieving all of the dreams

that society tells you to achieve.

Provocative, right?

Now,

why does Jesus say that?

Well, what's the reason behind this?

Well, I want to give us three reasons

why we should rather be people

to be wise for us to say,

God, I'd rather be poor in spirit,

meek and mournful,

and hungry for the things of God

than satisfied, esteemed,

and blessed in this world

apart from you.

Three reasons why we should do this, okay?

First thing,

let's look at this.

Because the king

and the kingdom have come.

When we look at the list of Beatitudes,

Matthew has deliberately structured them

to communicate

what Jesus was communicating.

So remember,

Jesus didn't just list off this,

rattle off this list of eight sayings

and then kind of move on

to the next section.

Jesus, over a couple of days

and months even,

would have gone

and he would have taught,

hey, rather,

blessed is this person,

even though our world says

this person is to be esteemed,

rather choose this way.

And so Matthew summarized

Jesus' teaching

and he structured it

so that we catch

what Jesus is trying to communicate.

And so how has Matthew structured it?

Well, as we look at it,

there's a pattern here.

And so notice the pattern.

The first Beatitude

and the last Beatitude,

in verse 3 and verse 10,

have the identical promise.

He says,

blessed are the poor in spirit,

verse 3,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

And then verse 10,

he says,

blessed are those that are persecuted,

why?

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Do you see that?

Okay.

What's Matthew trying to tell us here?

He's telling us

that this list

is not just

a promise box

of promises from Jesus

that you can take out

one at a time.

This is actually

a summary description

of what life in the kingdom

looks like.

Of those that have

encountered Christ the king

and live in the kingdom,

this is what their life

will look like.

Let me give you an example, okay?

Jesus is not saying

that

if you go through life

and you encounter

something difficult

and you go through

a time of mourning,

well,

don't worry,

blessed are you

because you go to

the promise box

and say,

blessed are those that mourn

for they will be comforted.

Or if you happen

to go through life

and somebody irritates you

and riles you

and you're tempted

to get them back

and you go to your promise box

in the Bible

and pull out and say,

blessed are those

that are merciful

for they will be shown mercy.

And you remember,

oh yes,

I should be merciful.

Okay,

let me give you an example.

In our family,

sometimes my girls

will come to me

and say,

dad,

can we have a chocolate

or a biscuit

or a candy

or something like that?

And I'll go

and I'll bring out a box

and say,

sure,

help yourself.

Now,

as I do that,

I know what they're thinking.

They're thinking,

how many of these

can I get away with?

Right?

And so what do I say?

Before they even say anything,

I first say,

Sierra,

just one.

Okay,

just one.

Shiloh,

just one.

I don't want them

to stuff their mouths.

Right?

Sometimes we can come

to the Beatitudes

and think that this is

a box of chocolates

of Jesus' promises.

Right?

Like we've got to choose.

Should I inherit the earth

or should I be called

a son of God?

Should I be,

should I rather choose mercy

or should I rather choose

to be in the kingdom?

Right?

But that's not what

Jesus is saying at all.

But by structuring it like this,

Matthew is telling us

this is a description

of what life in the kingdom

looks like.

Jesus is saying this.

The way of the king

is that,

the way of the king

is to mourn

and be grieved

by the brokenness

of the world

and what sin does

in the world

and in our own hearts.

And therefore,

such is his people

that they too

will mourn

for the brokenness

of the world.

But they'll be comforted

because they'll know

that Jesus came

to dismantle sin.

Jesus is saying

the way of the king

is to be meek,

not pushing his agenda,

not self-asserting,

but to be humble

and gracious.

And therefore,

his followers

are those who like him

aren't pushing their agenda

and trying to get

to the top of the pile,

but like Jesus

are gentle

and others serving,

not self-seeking,

not grasping

or self-entitled.

And they find themselves

empty-handed,

but yet full

of the kingdom of God.

Jesus says

that the way of the king

is to long

for what is right

and for justice

in the world.

And as such,

his followers

will be those

that because we've

got his heart,

we will be broken

by the injustice

and the unrighteousness

in the world

and we too

will hunger

and thirst

for righteousness,

for what is just

and right in the world.

And because we know

that Christ has come

to turn around the world

and to end all

injustice and wickedness,

we will be satisfied

when Christ returns.

Jesus is saying

that this is the way

of the kingdom.

But notice secondly,

there's something else

to notice.

These two

at the top

and the bottom

are the only two

that are in present tense.

All the others

are in future tense.

Blessed are those

that are poor

and spread

for theirs

is the kingdom

of heaven.

But then it goes on

to say,

those that mourn

they shall be comforted.

Those that are meek

they shall,

what does it say?

Inherit the earth.

Those that are hungry

will be satisfied.

So what's Matthew

telling us here?

He's telling us

that the kingdom of God

isn't just one day

in the future

like hold out

and suffer in this world

and I know it's terrible

and I know that

you've just got to suffer

because one day

when you get to heaven

you'll experience

the kingdom.

What's he saying?

Blessed are those

that are poor in spirit.

Blessed are those

that persecute

for theirs is

the kingdom of God.

Today,

this week,

as you go to work

this week

and you're tempted

to trample

on somebody else

to get in head

of the pile,

the kingdom of God

has come to your life

today and as you say

I will be meek,

I will follow

the way of my king,

today the kingdom of God

has come into your life

and you get to experience

what King Jesus

is doing

in your heart

and your life.

This afternoon

as I go home

and I feel

completely empty

and I feel like

I've got zero

spiritual credentials

and I come to God

and I say

God,

I've got no

spiritual capital.

I've got nothing

to commend myself to you.

I'm done.

Today,

not just in eternity,

the kingdom of God

comes to me.

Theirs is the kingdom

of heaven.

You see,

being a Christian

is not just a matter

of doing good things

or observing Jesus

teaching in the hope

that one day

we'll get to paradise

or one day

we'll get to experience

Nirvana.

No,

that's something else.

That's religion.

Jesus says,

I've come to bring you

the kingdom of God

today.

That right now

as you go to work

tomorrow

and as you go and

visit your family

over Chinese New Year

and as your kids

are sick

and as marriage

is hard

and as finances

are tight,

as you follow

the king,

you experience

the kingdom of heaven.

Theirs is the kingdom

of heaven

today.

Friends,

the day you become

a Christian,

you may not understand

a whole lot.

You may not know

your Bible at all.

You may have

a lot of questions.

You may still have

some doubts.

But the day you say,

Jesus,

take my life.

Jesus,

I want to follow you.

Jesus,

I'm all in.

That day

you get to experience

the kingdom of heaven

breaking into your life

and changing you

forever.

That's the day

you get to experience

human flourishing.

Irrespective of

your circumstances,

irrespective of

what's going on

in your life,

the kingdom of heaven

comes.

Jesus is saying

that human flourishing,

what it means

to be a human being

is not found

in happy circumstances,

but it's found

by participating

in the kingdom of God

by being in relationship

with him

through what Jesus did

on the cross.

Does that make sense?

Okay,

that's the first thing

because the king

and the kingdom

is here.

The second reason,

why does Jesus tell us

if you had to choose

the way of power,

prestige,

and honor

or the way of

mourning,

meekness,

and powerlessness,

choose this way?

Why does he tell us

to do that?

Well,

the second reason

is this,

because every other

kingdom is going

to steal your joy.

Steal your joy.

Jesus,

in the Sermon on the Mount,

throws us a challenge

and he asks us

a question.

He says,

where are you going

to find your joy

and what is going

to be the source

of your human flourishing?

What's going to be

the source of your flourishing?

Where are you going

to find your joy?

As we read through

the Gospels,

one of the things

we see again

and again

and again

is that Jesus

constantly is ignoring,

sometimes even

outright rejecting

the rich

and the powerful

and the leaders

of society

and he's always

welcoming into his midst

those that have got

no spiritual capital,

those that aren't

going to bring anything

and contribute

towards his kingdom,

right?

Remember Matthew

in Luke,

I think it's around

chapter 16 or so,

some children

come running to Jesus

and the disciples

are trying to push them away

and say,

Jesus doesn't have time

for you

and Jesus says,

bring the children,

bring the children

to such belongs

the kingdom of heaven

and then,

straight after the children

come to him,

in fact,

while the children

are with him,

a very rich,

very powerful,

young,

influential leader

of society

comes to Jesus

and he says,

Jesus,

I want to join

your party.

You can do good for me

and I can do good for you.

Let's talk.

How do I get

to heaven?

How do I get to be part

of what you're doing here?

And Jesus says,

he gives them

a whole lot of obstacles

and he rejects him

and eventually,

Jesus says,

listen,

if you really want

to join my kingdom,

do this.

Sell all your possessions,

get rid of all your wealth,

give it to the poor

and then come and follow me

just as you are

and this wealthy,

influential,

powerful man

walks away saddened.

Why does Jesus

welcome the children

that are going to

contribute nothing

to his campaign

and yet rejects

this influential,

powerful person?

Why is Jesus

constantly

shunning

those that have

got influence

and welcoming

the poor

and the marginalized?

Friends,

the reason why

he does it

is that to me

sorry,

I don't know

what I'm doing.

Okay,

let's just try that.

I think this will be right.

Why is Jesus doing this?

Why is he constantly

inversing and doing

the opposite

of what we'd expect?

The reason why

he constantly comes

into conflict

with the establishment

is not because

having money

is morally wrong,

not because being

influential is wrong,

not because having

power is wrong,

but it's because

it has the ability

to blind us

to what truly

gives life

and where true joy lies.

The reason Jesus

constantly is warning us

against finding

a joy

in the things

of the world

is because

while they promise

the world,

they actually steal

our joy.

Remember the unbeatitudes?

Congratulations

to the entitled.

They grab what they want.

Congratulations

to the pushy.

They will win

in the end.

Congratulations

to those who

don't get caught.

They will look good.

Ray Orton

asks this question.

He says,

well he actually

says this,

he says,

either way

we must live

by faith.

Both the promises

of Jesus

and the promise

of this world

promise a successful

and flourishing life.

Promise a good life.

But you have to choose

which one.

Which one

are you going to follow?

Either way

we have to live

by faith.

And who are we going

to trust?

Whose invitation

are we going to accept?

Friends,

here is a king

who offers us

an invitation

with a promise.

He says,

if you invest

your life

and your hopes

and your dreams

in me,

if you hand over

all of your life

to me,

it will cost you

no doubt.

You may not be esteemed,

you may not be loved,

you may not be adored.

Following him

will cost you

everything.

But if you trust him,

if you let your life

shaped by the gospel,

you will discover

a kind of human flourishing

that nothing

and no one

can take away

from you.

It's a kind of human flourishing

which both deeply satisfies

and will never

get taken

away from you.

In Luke chapter 7,

Luke 7 · chapter mention

there's a similar

account to the Beatitudes.

Jesus says,

blessed are these people

and not these people.

One of the old commentators

in Luke chapter 7

Luke 7 · chapter mention

writing on this,

he's got this little line

where he says,

the writings on the wall,

see Daniel chapter 5.

Daniel 5 · chapter mention

In the book of Daniel

in chapter 5,

what's happening is

there's a king

called Belshazzar

and he's the king

of Babylon.

But the Assyrian army,

I mean not the Assyrian,

the Persian army

is at the gates

and they're about to come

and overthrow

the Babylonian empire.

And so,

he knows it's kind of the end.

And so,

he throws this epic party.

He decides he's going to go out

in a blaze of glory.

And so,

he throws this massive party

for thousands of people.

There's wine,

there's beer,

everything's happening.

And he brings in

all their wives,

he brings in their concubines

and it's just this massive

hedonistic festival.

And at this party,

what happens is

in the middle of the party,

there's this handwriting

that starts to write

on the wall.

And essentially,

what the handwriting

is saying,

it's in the strange language

and no one can understand it.

And eventually,

Daniel comes in

and he interprets it.

And what he says is this,

Belshazzar,

your time is up.

And essentially,

the handwriting on the wall

is saying,

you've been king,

you've been doing

your own thing,

you've been living

for your own glory,

self-esteem,

you're at the top

of the pile,

but your time is up.

Friends,

that's what Jesus

is saying here

with the Sermon on the Mount.

He's saying,

the handwriting's on the wall.

The time is up.

Yeah, sure,

you can pursue a kingdom.

You can get to the top

of the pile,

you can advance,

you can get what you want,

you can be well-loved,

you will win in the end,

you grab what you want,

be entitled

and self-seeking,

sure,

but the handwriting's

on the wall.

That kingdom

will steal your joy

and it will never,

ever satisfy.

But if you want to experience

true human flourishing,

if you want to get

to the end of your life

and maybe your name

won't be in lights,

maybe nobody

will remember you,

you want to get

to the end of your days

a wise,

radiant,

satisfied person.

If you want to experience

true human flourishing,

there's a path to take

and it's not the most

popular path.

It's not the path

that's going to make you

rich and famous.

It may even be the path

that society mocks you for

and laughs at you

and thinks you're ridiculous.

Choose that path.

Blessed are the poor

in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom

of heaven.

Blessed are those

that mourn,

for they will be comforted,

both in this life

and the next.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit

the earth,

both in this life

and in the next.

Blessed are those

that are hungry,

they are desperate

for the world

to be made right again,

in their hearts

and in this lifetime too.

And while it seems

like it's never coming,

they will be satisfied.

They will come a day

where every longing

of their heart

will be satisfied.

Friends,

Jesus is blessed

with the pure in heart,

those that are single-minded

and devoted

to his cause

and his purposes.

For they will see God.

Friends,

human flourishing

is found in the fact

that everything

in this,

if human flourishing

is found

and the fact

that everything

in this life

fits perfectly together

and you never grieve

or mourn,

it's just a matter

of time

before some tragedy

strikes

and your whole world

comes to an end

and your whole kingdom

comes crashing down.

Jesus is those

that have followed him

because they have

entrusted their life to him.

They will discover

a contentment,

they will discover

a blessedness

that transcends

even these moments

of grief.

To be modest,

to grieve,

to be regarded

as a disappointment

and unfortunate

is better than being

prosperous,

powerful,

and well-esteemed

in the eyes of the world.

And the third

and final reason

is this,

because of who

this king is.

Friends,

this morning,

Jesus offers us

an invitation

and it's an invitation

with a promise

that life and happiness

are not found

in having all your problems

taken away.

They're found

in a person.

They're found

in the one

who is both king,

the one who

all the world

will one day bow before,

but the king

who ended up

on the cross.

And the invitation

is not to get your life

sorted out

so that you can come

into his kingdom.

The invitation

is not to do

a bunch of religious things

that Jesus will say,

okay,

you've done enough,

come to my kingdom.

The invitation

is not to try

and be extra religious

or to do certain things

that you can be qualified

for this kingdom.

It's an invitation

to come to the kingdom,

the king,

just as you are.

And why should he

accept you?

Why should he receive you

with all your brokenness,

as Oscar said,

with all your conflicting

and darkness

in your heart?

Why should he accept you?

Because of who this king is.

Because he's Jesus.

This week,

I was texting

a friend of mine

and I said,

hey bud,

why don't you come

to church on Sunday?

We'd love to see you.

And his response was,

he said,

I want to come to church,

but I want to have

a good spiritual image

before I come to church.

I want to have

my ducks in a row.

And I replied

and I said,

that's the very opposite.

You should come to church

as you are.

But as I thought about it,

I thought,

I'm just like him.

I love to come to church

with a good spiritual image.

I love to come here

with all my ducks in a row,

having had perfect

quiet times in the week,

coming having never

missed a beat,

having me and Jesus

just tight like this,

having come and feel

so good about myself.

But friends,

this king,

Jesus,

he says,

come as you are.

I won't leave you

as you are,

he says,

I'll change you,

I'll break into your life,

I'll align your heart

more like my life,

but come as you are.

Come as your brokenness.

Come in your sin.

Come and surrender.

Come and follow the king.

Friends,

you may say,

but I haven't done enough.

I don't deserve his kindness.

Of course you don't

deserve his kindness.

That's the whole point.

Only when you understand,

begin to understand

that you don't deserve

his kindness,

can you begin to come to him.

Come to him nevertheless.

Come as you are.

Come and he will

truly satisfy you.

You may say,

but I don't know enough.

I don't know the Bible.

Will he accept me as I am?

Friends,

come to the one

who rejected the rich

young ruler

and welcome children.

Come to him as you are.

You may not know the Bible,

you may not understand

all the spiritual laws,

come just as you are

and he will teach you.

You may say,

but I've sinned this week.

Well,

come and bring your sin

to his cross.

Bring it and leave it

at the foot of the cross.

Don't focus on your sin.

Bring it,

but don't focus on it.

Lift your eyes above the sin

and look to Jesus,

the one who nailed

your sin to the cross,

the one who went to the cross

that your sin

doesn't need to be held

against you.

Come to him this morning.

You may say,

but it will cost you too much.

I don't want to mourn.

I don't want to be poor in spirit.

I don't want to be merciful.

Friends,

of course it will cost you.

It will cost you everything,

but it will cost you nothing

compared to what

he's going to give you.

It's like holding on

to a $10 note

when he's offering you

a million dollars

and saying,

I don't want to let go of this.

Let go of it.

It will cost you,

but it's nothing compared

to what he's going to give you

as he gives you

the kingdom of heaven.

Friends,

you may say,

I don't feel worthy.

Friends,

come to Jesus,

the one who welcomes sinners,

the one who welcomes

the poor in spirit,

the one who welcomes

those that have no spiritual capital.

He promised that

yours is the kingdom of heaven.

Come to him.

Friends,

better to be those

who are poor in spirit,

those who mourn,

our brokenness,

those who are regarded

as a disappointment,

those who are regarded

as unfortunate

in the eyes of the world,

than to be rich

in our own eyes,

than to come to Jesus

with spiritual capital,

to come to the bargaining table

saying,

this is what I can bring,

than to be those

that are self-sufficient

and well-esteemed.

This is the way of the king.

This is the way of the kingdom.

It's a kingdom

which is here and now.

It's a kingdom

which will change your life

tomorrow as you go to work.

It's a kingdom

which will never end.

It's a kingdom

which will promise you

true joy.

Let's come to him

now.

Let's pray together.

Oh Lord Jesus,

God we confess

that

God our eyes

are so often

caught up

with the things around us.

God we've been seduced

by the message

of our world

and our culture.

God we've

we confess

Lord God

that we believe

the lie

and Father

so many of us

are sorry for it.

We've realized

that the world

cannot deliver

what it promises.

God won't you

give us faith

to trust you

won't you

open our eyes

to see you

Lord Jesus

as heaven and earth

true king.

God won't you

open our eyes

to see that

true flourishing

the blessed life

God

is found

as we come

to know you God

because of what

you did on the cross

Lord Jesus

by the power

of the Holy Spirit.

And so Holy Spirit

come and open our eyes

and draw us to you

we pray.

Father where we are

tempted to hold on

where

we acknowledge

that it will cost us

and we don't want

to give up our right

we don't want to

give up our throne.

Oh Jesus

help us to see

Lord

help us to see

everything you give us

God.

Jesus we pray

that you'll make us

more like you

we'll pray

Lord God

that we really

will be those

that experience

the life

of the kingdom.

God I pray

that this week

because we

go and visit

family

at Chinese New Year

and we

spend time

with loved ones

God may we be

agents for the kingdom

may we be those

that

in some ways

are ambassadors

for the kingdom of heaven

in the city

God we pray

these things

in your majestic name

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen