Matthew 5:1-12 - #blessed

Thank you for having me here this morning.

As Chad said, my name is Matt Terrell, and I am the RUF campus minister down the road

about an hour and a half at Samford University.

Some of you may recognize me.

I was actually here a year ago on this very same Sunday for Senior Sunday.

You are in danger of creating a tradition that every Senior Sunday you have to have me here,

so you might want to talk to Chad about that if that's not something you're interested in.

I'm especially excited for you seniors.

You did it.

You graduated high school, or maybe you're about to graduate high school.

Maybe you have a couple more tests to go.

I'm excited for you.

That's a big deal.

College is a big deal.

Phil, you have a lot of exciting things on your horizon.

I'm reminded of Phil Dunphy.

For any of you Modern Family fans out there, Phil Dunphy is the goofy dad, father of three,

in the television show Modern Family.

And when his oldest daughter is getting ready to go off to college,

he creates a book of words to live by, a book of wisdom for her.

His name is Phil, and he calls it Phil's Ossophy.

And it is a bunch of pithy sayings, wise words for her to live by that she can sort of take with her

to give her direction while she is away at college, away from home for the first time.

I'm just going to read you a couple of these.

Phil's Ossophy.

He says, the most amazing things that can happen to a human being will happen to you if you just lower your expectations.

Another thing, another bit of advice from Phil Dunphy.

He says, if you love something, set it free unless it's a tiger.

Words to live by from Phil Dunphy.

And really what he's trying to do, this is a father's attempt to give his daughter direction,

to give her something, a compass, words to live by as she heads off to college.

Jesus is doing something similar here in this passage.

That right here in the words that we're about to read, these are words to live by for the Christian.

This is the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount.

This is the longest stretch of teaching uninterrupted that we have from Jesus in the Bible.

And where he begins here is he's giving direction.

He's giving a compass.

He's giving us true north, something to know for certain.

I think this is particularly important for us to look at this morning for you seniors

because you have a lot of exciting things in your future.

You have a lot of change in your future.

And what comes with that is a lot of upheaval.

Oftentimes.

A lot of new things, new people, new ideas, new experiences, new places.

And what comes with that is a lot of upheaval and confusion and frustration and disorientation.

And what Jesus is doing here in this passage is he is reorienting us around what is true.

He's giving us a compass.

Words to live by.

So let's look together at Matthew chapter 5 beginning in verse 1.

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

Verse 1.

Verse 1.

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 God's word and not mine.

So let's pray and ask for his help as we look at it this morning.

Our Father in heaven.

Our Father in heaven, you are good and you are faithful.

We thank you that you do not leave us lost.

And disoriented.

And disoriented.

And disoriented.

But you give us your word.

You give us your truth.

You give us your son.

That we might know what is real and what is true.

Holy Spirit as we study your word this morning.

Would you come and do what only you can do.

Would you bring us out of darkness and into light.

Would you bring the dead to life in us.

It's in the name of Jesus that we pray.

Amen.

You may have noticed as we read through this passage that the word blessed or blessed shows up a bunch.

In fact, nine times in these 12 verses, Jesus says the word blessed.

It's a key concept here in this text.

And what Jesus means here by the word blessed is basically this.

He means happy.

Happy are those.

Happy are those.

Now when Jesus says happy, he doesn't mean happy in a shallow way.

Like just sort of put on a smiling face and everything is going to be okay.

He means happy in a much deeper, a much more lasting way.

When Jesus says the word blessed here, he means a deep assurance of being cared for.

There's a television character by the name of Don Draper.

He's the main character in a TV show called Mad Men that's set in the 1960s.

He is an advertising executive just sort of at the very beginning of the advertising industry in New York in the 1960s.

And he is in the business of happy.

What he does is he studies happy and he learns how to sell happiness to people.

That's his job is to sell happiness.

This is what he says in the very first episode of the very first season.

This is what he says.

He says,

Do you know what happiness is?

Happiness is the smell of a new car.

It's freedom from fear.

It's a billboard on the side of the road that screams with reassurance that whatever you are doing is okay.

You are okay.

That's actually a decent description of what Jesus means by the word blessed here.

That when Jesus is pronouncing blessing, what he's saying is,

You are okay.

I've got you.

I'm caring for you.

It carries with it this idea of validation.

What Jesus is saying is,

You are beloved.

You are cared for.

You can be certain of that.

That's what Jesus means by blessedness here in this passage.

So what we're going to do for the next few minutes is unpack this idea of blessedness from this text.

We're going to look at three things.

If you're an outlined person, this is your outline for the morning.

We're going to look at three different aspects of this blessedness.

The priority of blessedness,

the character of the blessed,

and the source of blessing.

So the priority, the character,

and the source.

So first, the priority of blessing.

It's really easy, particularly because this is a familiar passage to us,

to breeze on by this.

But it's important to note that Jesus begins this teaching by pronouncing blessing.

That as he is starting his teaching ministry here in Matthew chapter 5,

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

in this long Sermon on the Mount,

that he doesn't begin with something to do.

He begins with blessing.

And he has really challenging words for us

and for the people that he's speaking to later on in the Sermon on the Mount

about how we should conduct ourselves

and what our lives should look like as followers of Jesus.

But he starts with blessing.

Not with what to do,

but with pronouncing blessing.

This is actually the way that God has always worked.

Way back in the Garden of Eden,

before Adam and Eve,

before sin even entered into the world,

God creates Adam and Eve

and before he sends them out and commissions them,

the creation mandate,

be fruitful and multiply,

fill the earth and subdue it.

All these great things.

Before that, it says,

he created them.

And he blessed them.

Before he sent them out to do anything,

it says,

he blessed them.

The same thing with the people of Israel.

God rescues them out of slavery in Egypt.

And he's getting ready to constitute for himself

a new people.

And in Exodus,

he's about to give them the Ten Commandments

and the law

and the instructions for the tabernacle

and all this stuff.

And he's basically saying,

this is what it looks like

to be my people in the world.

Before he does any of that,

what does he say?

In Exodus chapter 20, verse 2,

Exodus 20:2

he says,

I am the Lord your God

who brought you out of slavery in Egypt.

See, before he asks anything of us,

he says,

I bless you.

He pronounces his grace upon his people.

This is the way that God works.

Now, here's why this is important.

Because we often don't see

or experience God in this way.

We often see and experience God

as, you know,

he's disappointed in us

or he's at least waiting

to be disappointed in us

or he's angry with us

or he's at least waiting

for us to screw up

so that he can be angry with us.

And, you know,

he may be okay with you this morning

because you're sitting in church

and that's the right thing to do

on a Sunday morning

is to come to church.

It's just a matter of time

before you mess things up

and you're back in the doghouse

with God.

And we often think

that the real stuff of Christianity

is our obedience,

is the stuff that we do for God.

Now, don't hear what I'm not saying.

I'm not saying that our obedience

is irrelevant.

Again, Jesus has some really

challenging things to say

later on in the Sermon on the Mount

about how we should conduct ourselves.

But he's saying

that's not his priority.

By beginning here,

what he's telling us

is that the real stuff

of Christianity

is not what we do for God,

but what God does for us.

By beginning the Sermon on the Mount here,

Jesus is showing us

that the whole of the Christian life

is bathed in God's grace,

is baptized,

is washed in God's grace,

is lived in light of his blessing.

That Jesus is blessing you,

is blessing me

before we do anything.

Here's why this matters.

This matters because you have a list.

Particularly you seniors,

you're about to graduate,

you have a list.

You have a list of the things

that you want to accomplish

when you're in college.

The ways in which you want to grow.

You know, you have a list of clubs

and organizations

that you're going to be involved in,

of Bible studies

and campus ministries,

of the kinds of grades

that you want to get,

the friendships that you want to build,

the relationships

that you want to cultivate,

the kind of jobs

that you're going to get,

and how you're going to grow spiritually

while you're in college.

You have a list.

You don't have to be a senior

about to head off to college

to have a list.

I have a list.

You have a list this morning

of things that you think,

if I can do these things,

I just need to get my act together

and then God can really bless me

and be happy with me.

If I can defeat this sin

or if I can get this person

to convert to Christianity

or if I can organize this church event

or fix this relationship,

you have a list.

And when Jesus begins

the Sermon on the Mount

by pronouncing blessing,

what He is telling us,

what He is communicating to us

is that before we lift a finger

on that list,

before we even write the list down

or think of the items

on that list,

Jesus is saying,

I love you.

You are blessed.

You are beloved.

Now this matters because

some of you will complete your list.

Some of you will check off

all the items on your list

and then you will wonder,

why do I feel so cold

and empty?

I've done everything

that I think God wants me to do

and I am still

not where I want to be.

And some of you

will fail miserably

at checking off the items

on your list

and you will wonder,

can God love someone like me?

Am I really worthy of blessing?

Is Jesus talking about me

here in this passage?

And what Jesus is saying here

at the beginning

of the Sermon on the Mount

is He's saying,

before you lift a finger

at succeeding at your list

or at failing at your list,

you are blessed.

His priority is not

on your obedience

or your achievements

or your spiritual resume.

His priority

is His blessing over you.

He is determined

to bless.

Secondly,

the character

of the blessed.

We're familiar

with this passage.

It's often referred to

as the Beatitudes

and they fall out

into two major categories.

And what Jesus is doing

is He's actually describing,

okay,

what do the people of God,

those who are blessed

by Jesus,

how do they conduct

themselves in the world?

And it really falls out

into two categories.

And the first category

is that the character

of the blessed

is humble.

They're humble.

Look at what He says

in verse 3.

He said,

blessed are the poor

in spirit.

Now,

poor in spirit,

what does that mean?

Basically,

what Jesus is getting at here

is blessed are

the spiritually bankrupt,

those who know

that they have

no spiritual resources

in and of themselves.

These are people

who don't say,

you know,

well,

at least I'm not as bad

as so-and-so.

At least I can count

on that in myself.

Now,

what Jesus is saying

is the poor in spirit

are people who know

they've got no leg

to stand on.

That all this blessing

that Jesus is pronouncing

comes to me,

comes to you,

in spite of us,

not because of us.

Secondly,

not just poor in spirit,

but blessed are those

who mourn,

verse 4.

These are,

those who mourn,

he doesn't just mean

they grieve

like when somebody dies.

He's tying this idea

to poverty of spirit,

to being poor in spirit.

Somebody,

blessed are those

who mourn.

These are the people

who don't just acknowledge

their spiritual poverty

in an intellectual sense,

but they feel it.

They experience it.

That their sin

grieves them

deeply.

Blessed are those

who mourn.

Verse 5,

blessed are the meek.

We tend to think of meekness

as weakness

or timidness,

but that's not

what Jesus means.

By meekness,

what Jesus means

is confident

and bold humility,

a lack of self-assertion

that these people

who are meek

don't need to parade

their good accomplishments

in front of other people

because they know

that they're taken care of.

It's a bold humility.

Fourth,

in verse 6,

he says,

blessed are those

who hunger

and thirst

for righteousness.

What Jesus is saying

is these are the people

who long for righteousness,

for goodness,

for justice,

to characterize

the world.

and they know

that that starts

with them.

They know

that that doesn't start

with other people

getting their act together.

It starts with them.

It starts with Jesus'

work of righteousness

beginning in their own life.

What Jesus is describing here

in these first few beatitudes

is he's saying,

look,

the community of people

who I am blessing

are a needy people.

We sang about this

just a few minutes ago.

I need thee.

Oh,

I need thee.

Every hour,

I need thee.

It's a humble people.

Jesus is describing

the island of misfit toys.

Do you guys remember

the island of misfit toys

from the old Burl Ives,

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,

claymation version?

They come upon this island

and it's all these

rejected toys

because they're not,

they're just something

not quite right

about all the toys

on the island of misfit toys.

So there's a,

there's a Charlie in the box

instead of a Jack in the box.

There's a,

there's a cowboy

who rides an ostrich

instead of a horse.

There's a train

with square wheels.

None of them

quite fit together.

None of them

are quite the way

that they were supposed to be.

It's an,

it's an island of misfits.

And what Jesus is describing here

is the same.

It's a community

of broken,

messed up people

who aren't quite

the way that they are

supposed to be.

but they know it

and they understand it.

It's a needy,

humble community

of people.

What I would encourage you,

especially you seniors,

to do

is to look for that

when you get to your college.

Look for that

in your local church.

Look for that

in your campus ministry.

Don't look for the campus ministry

that's going to take over

the world for Jesus.

Don't look for the campus ministry

that has all the right answers.

Look for the campus ministry.

Look for the church

that knows

we need Jesus.

Badly.

A humble community.

It's not just a humble community.

It's also a loving community.

Jesus continues in verse 7.

He says,

Blessed are the merciful.

Blessed are those

who move towards others in love.

They give their time

and their energy

and their money

and their love

to meet the needs

of other people.

They're merciful.

Verse 8.

He says,

Blessed are the pure in heart.

When Jesus says pure in heart,

it doesn't mean

inner moral purity here.

What he means is that

they have a heart

that is pure,

a heart that is undivided

in its allegiance.

A heart that is undivided

in what it loves.

Those who are pure in heart

are becoming more and more,

learning more and more

to love what Jesus loves

and to hate what Jesus hates.

To be shaped by him.

The pure in heart.

Verse 9.

Blessed are the peacemakers.

This is a great word,

the peacemakers.

It's this great Hebrew word

for shalom,

which means universal,

wholehearted flourishing.

And what Jesus is saying

is that those who are shaped

by my grace,

by my blessing,

move out into the world

to pursue flourishing,

not just for themselves,

but for everyone around them.

Blessed are those

who make peace holistically.

Spiritual peace,

physical peace,

social peace,

relational peace.

Blessed are those

who are peacemakers.

Then in verse 10,

he says,

blessed are the persecuted.

Because what Jesus understands

is that as we,

as Jesus' people,

move out into the world

in love,

we will face opposition.

You will face opposition.

Sometimes when you move out

into the world in love,

it will be beautiful

to the people around you.

Sometimes it will be confusing

and ugly

and offensive to people.

And Jesus is saying,

blessed are those

who are persecuted.

And what he's doing

in all of these beatitudes

is he's painting a picture

of a humble

and a loving community.

An island of misfit toys

that moves out

into the world in love.

That is what it means

to begin to be shaped

by his grace,

by his blessing.

The language that I use

over and over

with our students

that are involved

in RUF at Sanford

is that we are

a beautiful mess.

A beautiful mess.

This church

is a beautiful mess.

RUF at Sanford

is a beautiful mess.

It's beautiful

because Jesus

is blessing it

and loves it

and loves you.

But it's a mess

because I'm part of it.

And it's a mess

because you're part of it.

And there's a tension here

in what Jesus

is describing.

And the tension

is that Jesus

is showing us

his priority

to bless,

to love,

to bestow honor

upon his people.

But he's also

emphasizing

the profound neediness,

the profound unworthiness

of the people

that he's blessing.

He chooses

to bless those people

who seem to be

the least worthy

of being blessed.

He chooses

to bless people

who struggle

to recognize

their own neediness

or who do not

rightly appreciate

his blessing

in their life

or who fail

often

to move

towards other people

in love.

How does Jesus

reconcile

that tension?

Lastly,

let's look at

the source

of blessing.

What is it?

I mean,

clearly,

it's not my worthiness

to be blessed.

It's not your worthiness

to be blessed.

Jesus is not describing

an all-star roster here

when he's going

through the Beatitudes.

He's not describing

people who have it

all together.

So what is it?

How can Jesus

bless

when we are

so unworthy of it?

So far,

we've only looked

at the front half

of each of the Beatitudes

that describes

the character

of the blessed.

Let's look together

at the back half

of what Jesus

is promising

that the blessed

will receive

or what they

will become.

In verse 3,

he says,

they'll receive

the kingdom of heaven.

In verse 4,

he says,

they will be comforted.

In verse 5,

he says,

they will inherit

the earth.

Verse 6 says,

they will be satisfied.

Verse 7,

they will receive mercy.

Verse 8,

they will see God.

Verse 9,

they will be called

sons of God.

These are lofty promises

that Jesus is making.

And he can promise

these things

precisely because

he knows where

he is going.

He can promise

these things

precisely because

of what he

will accomplish

on the cross.

What's happening

on the cross

is that what is

true of us

in our unworthiness

to be blessed

becomes true of Jesus.

And what is true

of him

in all of his worthiness

to receive the blessing

of the Father

becomes true of us.

that's what happens

on the cross

that it is God

securing blessing

for the people

who are unworthy

of it.

Our neediness,

our sinfulness

is put on Jesus

and everything

that he has earned

is given to us.

So Jesus can say,

blessed are those

who mourn.

They will be comforted

because he mourned

so much

that he sweat blood.

And he can say,

you will inherit

the earth

because he lost

everything

on the cross.

And he can say

that you will be filled,

that you will be satisfied

because he was stripped

and he was emptied.

And he can say,

you will receive mercy

because he received

no mercy

on the cross

in your place.

And he can say,

you will see God

because Jesus lost

God's face

on the cross.

He cried out,

my God,

my God.

Why have you forsaken me?

Where are you?

See,

what Jesus is doing

is he's saying,

you receive blessing

because I receive curse.

You receive love.

You receive blessing

because I receive curse.

Jesus is bridging

the gap

between his determination

to bless

and our unworthiness

of that very same blessing.

And why does this matter?

This matters

because whether you are

a senior in high school

or a senior citizen

or somewhere in between,

there is nothing

that can sustain you,

nothing that can give you

direction,

nothing that can give you

hope

or joy

or life,

nothing that can help you

keep your bearings

and keep you sane

in this world

other than

the blessing

and the grace

of Jesus.

So the question is this,

will you trust him

when he says,

blessed are you?

Let's pray.

Father in heaven,

you are the giver

of many good gifts,

many blessings,

some of which

we are aware of,

many of which

we are not.

I pray that you would

help us to

to lay our deadly

doing down,

not because obedience

doesn't matter,

not because what we do

doesn't matter,

because it does,

but that all of our doing

and all of our obedience

would be bathed in,

would be resting in

your blessing.

Your blessing.

Your blessing.