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The Sermon on the Mount

Adult Class-Spring 2004

Lesson 3

            Our world is full of the cult of celebrity-people who are famous for being famous. Everyone seems to think those people have the good life-clothes, cars, parties, money, luxury and fun every minute. But is that really the good life? If it is, why are so many of the "beautiful people" drug addicts, suicidal, homicidal or just narcissistic whiners? Plainly it's not the good life!

            So, what is the good life? Who is blessed on this earth? What kind of people actually enters the kingdom of heaven?

            The section of Matthew 5:1-12 has its context in the end of chapter four. There, Jesus is teaching all kinds of people and healing the sick. It is these people who are following Him from all over the country, north, south, east and west. And as Jesus surveys the crowd, He begins to teach this unemployed bunch about the kingdom of God. He begins by pointing out that those who can enter the kingdom, who can be changed by the presence of Jesus and gain God's blessing are the most unlikely from a human point of view. These people are not "respectable" in their hometowns.

            The beatitudes (from beatitudo, which is Latin for "blessed"!) are not new laws laid down about Christian conduct. Although this has been the accepted explanation for these sayings for generations, it is very hard to twist these sayings around to make them fit as new commands! How exactly should we become "poor in spirit" or "mournful"? Jesus intended His words to be understood. In these remarkable sayings, He is describing the kinds of people that are free to enter the kingdom with Him:

• "Poor in spirit" are "spiritual zeroes." They have not a bit of religious feeling to them and have never been pious types. Yet even they can be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven. (Luke 5:8)
• "Mourn" describes the weepers. These are the rejected spouses, those who are chronically sick, or who have suffered the death of their loved ones. But in the kingdom of God, they will experience new family, new acceptance and new life. (Mark 5:34)
• "Meek" describes those we might call "suffering low self-esteem." These are people who don't look you in the eye, who always step aside, who constantly apologize for putting you to the trouble. But in the kingdom, the whole world is theirs as they need it. (Mark 9:22-24)
• "Hunger and thirst for righteousness" are those who torment themselves with guilt over their failures-or else those who are forced to see terrible injustice. Yet with God, in His kingdom, they can be filled with righteousness. (Luke 13:1-3)
• "Merciful" are blessed even though they are often taken advantage of. People who are merciful typically help those who plead for assistance, then when that help is wasted, listen again to the urgent pleas and help again. Then again. And yet again, even though the help is never enough. Yet such people will be shown mercy by God-again and again and again. (Luke 10:36-37)
• "Pure in heart" are those for whom nothing is ever good enough-not even themselves. They see problems with your teaching, your Bible version and your worship style. But in Christ, they will finally see one thing that is perfect in every way and that satisfies their hearts-God! (John 19:38-39)
• "Peacemakers" are hated in life but loved after death. These are those who get in the middle of disputes and are hated by all sides. The police officer called out on a domestic dispute is most in danger then. But in the kingdom, peacemakers imitate God. (Acts 9:26-28)
• "Persecuted for righteousness' sake" describes those people whose integrity brings down punishment. They are often made more than uncomfortable. Sometimes they're fired for refusing to lie, cheat and steal. Sometimes they're destroyed personally for upholding the law. Sometimes they're even killed for their integrity. Yet they have perfect security in the kingdom of heaven. (Acts 7:55-58)
• "Persecuted and insulted for following Jesus" is a condition that still happens. Families and friends can be threatened and insulting when someone becomes a Christian. Sometimes the new Christian is actually accused of opposing God! (We've always gone to the ______________ Church! How could you despise your grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. by saying you have to go to the church of Christ?) Yet that's how people who are totally sold out to God always look to the "cool," and the "in" crowd. (Acts 5:40)

            So, who really has the good life? As Jesus surveyed the multitude, His answer was, "Everybody who wants it. The kingdom of God is for the down-and-out, the no-account, the shiftless, aimless, unmotivated, lazy, ignorant and witless bums. All these, and more besides, can enter into the kingdom of heaven-because it doesn't depend on personal worthiness." Entrance into the kingdom of God depends on faithful allegiance to Jesus Christ.

            These conditions listed in the beatitudes do not secure God's blessing. But, in contrast to the thinking of the day, neither do they rule out entrance into the kingdom of heaven! It's not about what we do to deserve God's favor, but what Jesus has already done to secure our entrance into the good life-the kingdom of God.

Discussion Questions:

1. If so many celebrities are so miserable, why do so many people envy them? How many fawned-over actors and actresses would you refuse to let inside your house? What is the good life?
2. What is the result of trying to make the beatitudes a new set of commands to be followed? Do you think people welcomed Jesus' words that day, or were they insulted by His descriptions of them? What did they think the kingdom of God was about?
3. How would you describe the poor in spirit? How about those who mourn? Or are meek? Do these conditions qualify someone for entrance into the kingdom of heaven?
4. Who are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness? Why are they so difficult to be around? Who seeks to be persecuted for following Jesus?
5. What will it take for us to enter the kingdom of heaven? What will we find when we arrive there? Who will we be? What effect will we have on those around us?