The Sermon on the Mount has been called “The Magna Carta of the Gospel.” It contains the foundational teaching of Jesus Christ concerning life within the kingdom. We should understand that it does not contain instructions as to how to enter the kingdom. The instructions are intended to help the disciples live according to kingdom principles. These instructions were intended to help those living under the law and those who later entered the kingdom through the door that Peter opened on that Pentecost Sunday as recorded in Acts chapter 2. There are nine areas in which Jesus expounds the principles of kingdom living to his audience.
The first area is called The Beatitudes by many and in this area, Jesus discusses eight areas in which we find the foundation and source of joy. Before looking at the eight areas, we should look at the word blessed. It comes from a Greek word that means a joy that is independent of external circumstances. The Greeks used the term to describe the island of Cypress, which they believed, because of its mild climate and fertile soil, possessed all that was necessary for a fulfilling and happy life. So, what Jesus describes in the beatitudes is the person whose life is characterized by an internal joy that cannot be removed by outward circumstance. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus uses a specific term to describe the poverty of spirit in this passage. The term here describes the person who is totally helpless to provide even the most basic needs of survival. Other terms described the person who was dependent day-by-day upon his or her ability to make a living.
In this case, however, the term used describes a person unable to help themselves in any way. That person is completely at the mercy of those around him or her. Only the generosity of strangers keeps that person from starvation. That is how he says we should see our spiritual life – totally and completely dependent upon God’s mercy for our spirituality. God gave us our world and our savior, but he also gave us His message and the world in which we live.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” There are many things over which to mourn – the shortness of life, man’s cruelty to man in both war and peace and the reality of human suffering.
Such mourning should and has led many to action in order to improve the lives of the suffering. Advances in medicine and nutrition as well as laws to protect the innocent have been the result of mourning over the pain of others.
Most of all, however, Jesus taught his disciples to mourn the spiritually lost around them. Jhe came to seek and save the lost. His disciples should do the same and take comfort from the change in both lives and eternal destinies of those converted.
“Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” Meekness has been wrongly described as weakness by many. It is more adequately understood as strength under control – “a strong person, doing a difficult job, without complaint.”
Keep in mind that Moses is described as a man who was “meek above all others.” No one who has actually read the Exodus account would describe Moses as weak. It is those who are meek by the Biblical definition who often live the best lives of any.
They are free of the constant want and grasping lifestyle of greed. They are free as well of the paranoia of those who have obtained wealth and power through nefarious means and as a result are surrounded by those who would stab them in the back (figuratively or literally) to gain the upper hand.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” There is a missing definite article in the original language of this passage that is instructive to us.
Instead of being hungry or thirsty for a specific kind of righteousness, this passage speaks of those who desire all of the righteousness available.
The person described here isn’t satisfied with the righteousness of the society in which he or she lives. Nor is that person satisfied even with the righteousness of Biblical heroes.
The person described in this passage desires all of the righteousness available through Almighty God. It is not as though that person wants to be as powerful, or as all-knowing as God. Rather he or she wants to be as righteous as God. That individual is bothered by his or her own sinful behavior as much or more than the behavior of the world in which he or she lives. The fulfillment of that kind of righteousness is not seen in this life, but the preparation for that event comes while we live in this mortal coil. The followers of Christ are not being taught to make themselves “good enough” to get to heaven, but rather to prepare themselves for the joy that eternal righteousness will bring to those who seek it. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” Mercy is foundational to Christ’s teaching. Those who seek mercy should be the first to extend it, but they should also be the first to understand it. Mercy is not simply overlooking harmful actions. Forgiveness in the Bible always have a redemptive quality. If one is seeking to be truly merciful, they must forgive with a view toward righting both their relationship and the relationship of the one being forgiving with God. It is no different for the one asking for mercy. To seek forgiveness from someone one has harmed is to seek forgiveness from God. Too often forgiveness is given grudgingly or sought without repentance. If we are to be forgiven by God, we must seek to learn to forgive like God. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” This is one of those passages that is perhaps seen in its fullest measure after we go to meet Jesus, but there is, as with all of these beatitudes, a temporal aspect as well. When we seek purity of heart, we look at things differently. People are no longer seen in ungodly ways. We see others as God sees them – his creation and deserving of the respect that comes with that. We no longer see the drug dealer, the prostitute or the thief. We see the child of God. That is not to say there is no room in a Godly society for order and discipline. In fact, the very opposite is true.
When, however, we seek a pure heart, we also seek to mold society into a place where the innocent are protected and where people are encouraged to be the best version of themselves possible.
We also treat God’s creation with the respect it deserves. We understand that man is not an equal partner with the earth, but that he has been given dominion over the earth as a steward of resources to be used for God’s work.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” This is an interesting statement in light of Christ’s later claims that he came to bring discord among families. The two statements are not, however, incompatible.
In fact, they complement each other. Jesus did not bless peacekeepers. He blessed peacemakers. Those whose work, while not always peaceful at the beginning, make for peace in the family, in the society and in the world.
The first place that peace must be made, however, is in the individual. If we are not at peace with ourselves, we cannot be at peace with others and without peace with God, no one can be at peace with himself.
“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.”
The final reminder is that the followers of Christ are not of this world. Americans (and westerners in general) have lived in a historical anomaly. The world has been ruled by nations who generally followed Biblical principles for the last 400 years or so.
The fact is that even during that time, governments and societies have not been the drivers of Biblical behavior. It is and has always been the individual, struggling against the hateful and divisive desires of the flesh to live a life worthy of the sacrifice of Jesus that has been the agent of change in the world.