Is Saying Prayers the Same As Prayer?

When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward. Matthew 6:5

Intro: Prayer is the vital function of our life in God

It is our heartbeat and respiration
– break this connection and the lights go out
• like unplugging an appliance–it simply will not work
• God did not call the temple a school house, but his “house of prayer”
◦ whatever else took place there, people were to meet with him
– it is possible to construct a religious lifestyle without prayer
• but it is an empty shell – it will not be filled with God

Even when people pray, their prayer can go wrong
– under certain conditions God refuses to listen
• for example, God told Jeremiah the prophet regarding the people of Judah:

They have turned back to the iniquities of their ancestors who refused to hear My words, and . . . have broken My covnenant which I made with their fathers.  . . . though they will cry to Me, yet I will not listen to them (Jer. 11:10-11)

• in our passage, Jesus tells us two ways that prayer can go wrong
◦ these are prayers that never reach God
– this is his second negative example of inferior righteousness
• it begins like first, When you give and now, When you pray

V. 5, The first way prayer can go wrong

This way of prayer we learn from the “hypocrites”
– I mentioned last week, the Greek word was used of stage actors
• but for these hypocrites, it wasn’t an act–they were not pretending
• they were devout and their prayers were sincere
◦ but still, there was a disconnect – a contradiction
◦ something between their hearts and action did not add up
– remember, the spiritual life Jesus describes is a whole person

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind (Mt. 22:37)

• the complete devotion of a united internal and external life
• hypocrites engaged in godly activity with ungodly hearts

What was in their hearts? They love to stand and pray . . .
– the driving force of these public prayers was not prayer itself
• but to be seen or “to shine” – to make people notice
– they love doing this – it wasn’t only a religious practice
• or an unconscious attempt to meet an emotional need or ego need
◦ they loved the attention they got from these theatrics
◦ that was what motivated them; to be known for their piety Continue reading →

It’s Okay to Keep Secrets

Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 6:1

Intro: Jesus continues to work his theme of surpassing righteousness (Mt. 5:20)

At first this sounded terrifying
– no one gave more effort to righteousness than the scribes and Pharisees
• but we are beginning to understand what Jesus was getting at
◦ superior may come closer to his thought than surpassing
• Jesus did not mean do the same things the Pharisees did, but more of it
◦ he wanted a different kind of righteousness — a different quality
– Jesus provided six examples of superior righteousness
• each one had to do with a deeper level of the Law reaching a deeper place in us
• when that happens, our actions will not contradict what we hold in our hearts
◦ for example, we will not only abstain from murder,
◦ but we will not hold murder in our hearts

In this next section, Jesus provides three more examples
• these do not come directly from the Law, but from our spiritual practices
◦ these are different also in another way — they are negative examples
◦ they show us what the superior righteousness is not
• we learn from these examples how not to do right things in wrong ways

Jesus begins with “Beware”

The most familiar use of this word may be a “Beware of dog” sign
– this is a message I refuse to ignore
• I won’t walk past that sign unannounced or uninvited
◦ to keep going is to risk a real danger–e.g., an ill-tempered Doberman
• Beware tells us someone cares about our safety
◦ what is the danger Jesus warns us to avoid?
practicing your righteousness
◦ who knew this could be a problem?
– there is no question that we do this or that we are supposed to
• but the danger is that we could lose whatever value lies in the doing
◦ the good can be drained from our good works
• what is the wrong way to practice our righteousness?
◦ to perform to acts in front of others to be noticed by them
◦ this is the monkey wrench in machinery of our righteousness,
the weakness in the foundation that could cause the whole structure to collapse

There is a potential problem here that has a simple solution
– in Matthew 5:16, Jesus said,

Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven

• he explicitly states that our good works should shine so that others can see them
◦ does Jesus contradict himself?
• the whole issue is whether attention is drawn to the good works or me doing the good works
◦ the point is not whether people see me do some good thing, but whether that is my motive

My first thought when I read this:

“I’ve done that!” I have performed a kind or generous act for someone and hoped that somehow it gets noticed, caught on camera and put on Youtube or written up in local paper. If I donate money to a charitable organization I want may name on a plaque so people know about it.

My second thought:

“But where’s the danger in other people discovering what a good person I am? Why should they not know how much I give? or how eloquently I pray? or how many people I’ve converted? If people see me do something charitable or deeply devout, it will set them a good example. What’s the danger in that?”

◦ the danger lies in the fact that what others think about us is infinitely less important than what God thinks
◦ we are compromised when it can be said of us, . . . they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God (Jn. 12:43)

Jesus further explains, you will have no reward with Father who is in heaven
– notice, he does not say “from” your Father, but “with”
• practicing righteousness is a participation with God and his work
• God shares with us both his work and reward
◦ worldly honors and rewards are not even in the same category

In the sermon, Jesus repeatedly refers to God your Father who is in heaven
– or the Father or heavenly Father
• this is a particular way of thinking about God; namely, that: Continue reading →

The Truth Within

Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:17-20

Intro: When I began our current series, I intended to cover only the Beatitudes

I have been trying to move on, but find myself returning to Jesus’ complete sermon
– the connections between the Beatitudes and remainder of the sermon are remarkable
• this week I received an email from a friend
◦ he also has been teaching Jesus’ Sermon On the Mount
◦ he wanted me to know that he appreciated finding my notes online
• this is his observation regarding Jesus’ sermon:

Mike Hensler, “We started some months ago with the ‘Happinesses’ [Blessed] and have since seen that they are connected at the hip to the entire Sermon and so will continue through chapter 7.  . . . I am seeing the entire sermon as an indivisible whole.”

• the both of us have been in the Scriptures for many years
◦ but it is just now that we are discovering the remarkable coherence of Jesus’ sermon
• that cinched it for me — and so on we go

Jesus has described his ideal follower and kingdome citizen in the Beatitudes
– he still has much more to say about this new way of being in God
• he is unveiling a closer relationship with the Father
• showing us how to live truer to God, truer to others and truer to ourselves

Last week we ended with, You are the salt and light (vv. 13-16)

In verse 13, Jesus made an odd remark about the salt becoming “tasteless”
– tasteless (or lost his savor in KJV) translates the Greek word for foolish
(the sermon will end with a form of this same Greek word; Mt. 7:26)
• in scripture, and especially the OT, foolish is whatever goes against wisdom
◦ it is not so much a matter of ignorance or being simple-minded
◦ it is a purposeful departure from what is right, good, holy, healthy, etc.
• in what way can salt be foolish?
◦ by not doing what it’s supposed to do or being want it’s supposed to be
◦ Jesus personified salt to remind us it is an analogy

All a tree has to do is be what it was created to be
– if a tree were to lose it’s tree-ness, what is it then? Nothing!
• people walk over it and they do not see it, because it’s not there
• it is impossible for salt not to be salty – saltiness it what defines salt
– as far as we know, we are only creatures in the universe that can fail to be what we were created to be
• if a follower of Jesus does not shine God’s light into the world through good works,
◦ that person is not merely “fruitless,”
◦ but as far as being a Christian goes, non-existence
• Christians bring truth and goodness to the world — we were created to be salt and light
◦ the kingdom of heaven is very much an inner experience,
◦ but it also has very outward manifestations (cf. Mt. 10:7-8)

Vv. 17-48 Jesus maintains a continuous thread of thought

For the remainder of the chapter, Jesus illustrates aspects of the Beatitudes Continue reading →

Intro: We’ve been in the Beatitudes for two months, looking closely at each one

So I think it is time to put them all together
– Jesus’ concern was the formation of a person’s character

G. Campbell Morgan observed that “a characteristic is always a smaller matter than a character. Character is the sum and substance of characteristics.”

• the Beatitudes are specific character traits
– somehow these traits are integrated in one whole person
• this person’s character is consistent with a follower of Jesus
• and citizen of the kingdom of heaven

Remember that in Jesus’ world these his beatitudes were negatives
– and they re negatives in our world too
• they are the things that embarrass us about ourselves
◦ that make us feel weak, vulnerable and needy
◦ they are unappealing and somewhat threatening
• Jesus treated them as positives
– another surprise: Jesus’ did not make a list of typical religious values
• you must have great faith, pray daily, fast regularly, read scripture, go to synagogue
◦ before all those things, there had to be something else
◦ we cannot jump over that something else and “get religion”
• a person thinking, “I can do this religion thing” is not poor in spirit
◦ but just the opposite
◦ Peter after Jesus resurrection was a different man than before the resurrection

Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers (Peter followed this with the bravado of his allegiance and Jesus responded with his prediction of the rooster; Lk. 22:31-34)

To begin, the word that links the Beatitudes together: Blessed

The English word bless can refer to: a gift — praise — a state of being
– the Greek word here, however, specifically refers to a state or fortunate condition
• “happy” does not quite cut it – “prosperous” creates the wrong impression
• in our everyday language, we would say “The good life”
◦ when a person is healthy and thriving

I am going to paraphrase the Beatitudes 

Hopefully reading through them we will feel their cumulative effect

Blessed are those who recognize their deficiency, who are so broken and weak they cannot deny it. Unlike those who do not think they need a Savior, the broken know they need help and welcome it, and so they are welcomed into the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who know the pain of a broken heart and those sorrows that are shared by most of the world; people who have experienced this part of their humanness, for there is an end to it and they will find the only true comfort, that which is given them by God’s Holy Spirit.

Blessed are those whose ego has been subdued and tamed, whose hot tempers have been dowsed and whose claws and fangs have been pulled so there’s no more fight in them and they are not a threat to anyone, but can let others go first and be happy for them, for one day they will own the promised land.

Blessed are those who are discontent with the way things are; who no longer fantasize justice for others and mercy for themselves; who long to see people act less like animals and more like a loving human family, because their dream will come true. Continue reading →

The Ultimate Disciple

Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:10-12

Intro: You deserve to know that I feel incompetent to teach this passage

It is not because there is no information for research
– from the earliest period of recorded history,
• human ingenuity has invented ways for us to torment each other
◦ and to guarantee that a person died in misery and terror
• we might assume the world has become more civilized, so there’s less persecution today
◦ but more Christians were persecuted and martyred in 20th century Russia and China
◦ than in any other century
– so my difficulty in taking on these words of Jesus is not for lack of examples,
• but because it is so foreign to me personally–i.e., to my experience

That’s the first reason I would like to skip these verses – there are 2 more:
2. The nature of the horrible and degrading tortures to which Christians have been subjected
• the acts of brutality and barbarity are too disturbing to mention
• in Hebrews 11, the writer provides examples of how faith worked in the lives of saints
◦ in verse 32, he says he would run out of time to list all the heroic victories of faith
◦ but then the tone changes mid-sentence in verse 35

others were tortured … experienced mockings and scourgings … chains and imprisonment … they were stoned … sawn in two … put to death with the sword … afflicted, ill-treated … wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground (Heb. 11:35-39)

3. That Jesus would include persecution in his list of beatitudes
• aren’t beatitudes supposed to be bright, cheery and inspiring platitudes?
◦ the previous beatitudes may be challenging, but they’re palatable
• I cannot think of a worse advertisement for Christianity than, Blessed are those who have been persecuted

How I intend to handle this: First, to enter slowly

The safest way to approach scripture is through Bible study
– coming at it with our rational minds is less risky than reading with an open heart
– what do we learn by simply digging into the text?

First, we notice that Jesus says same thing twice with small variations

Verse 10, Blessed are those ———————— Verse 11, Blessed are you
Verse 10, who have been ————————— Verse 11, when
Verse 10, persecuted ——————————— Verse 11, insulted, persecuted, slandered
Verse 10, for the sake of righteousness —— Verse 11, because of Me

Secondly, we have to ask, Are there two beatitudes here or only one?
– if the criterion is the word Blessed, then there are two
• the second one is a reiteration of the first

Third, Bible scholars indentified an “ancient literary custom” in this arrangement
– by placing an item last on a list and then elaborating on it, gives it pride of place
• also, it was a practice of rabbinic tradition and the Hebrew Scriptures
◦ to add force to a word or phrase by repeating it exactly
◦ e.g., Awake, awake (see Isa. 51:9, 17; 52:1, 11; etc.)

Fourth, two key terms recur here Continue reading →

Islands of Peace

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God Matthew 5:9

Intro: Early on in church history, an issue emerged that troubled theologians

There seemed to be two ways Christians were dedicat themselves to God
1. The contemplative life: for example, the theologian or monk
2. The active life: the missions, evangelism, ministry, hospitality, etc.
• almost every discussion was illustrated by two sisters:
◦ Martha (active) and Mary (contemplative) (Lk. 10:38-42)
• St. Augustine addressed this concern in the 4th century
(and Thomas Aquinas was still working on it in the 13th century)
◦ to this day, some people assume they refer to two different lifestyles
◦ but usually these people do not know much about contemplative spirituality
– there is only one way of being in God and it is both contemplative and active

St. Augustine observed, “Two virtues are set before the human soul, the one active, the other contemplative; the former shows the path, the latter shows the goal . . . .”

And through Isaiah, God said,
In returning and rest you will be saved,
In quietness and trust is your strength (Isa. 30:15)
. . . those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary (Isa. 40:31)

• we silently wait on God and are refreshed in peace
• then, moving from there into the world, we promote peace
◦ if we listen to the Spirit and our bodies, we’ll know
◦ when it is time to return to God’s presence
◦ and when to return to our work in the world

The first book I wrote was on the Holy Spirit

It went for several hundred pages and was never published
– one editor did show interest, I was on to my next great book (that was also never published)
• something the editor said unlocked something in my mind
◦ in fact, it became a defining moment for me and for my ministry
◦ regarding the manuscript, she said, “I see this as a bridge-builder”
• I had not thought of it in those specific terms
◦ but it was exactly what I was attempting to do
◦ I wanted to provide a middle ground for Evangelicals and Charismatics
– this reminded me of something that happened a few years earlier
• during a week-long summer camp, we were randomly placed in small groups
◦ on the third day, the topic of speaking in tongues somehow came up
◦ the impression I got from the group was they found it disturbing and weird
• after some discussion, I volunteered, “I speak in tongues”
◦ previously, I had mostly contributed reflections on the Scriptures

After my admission, one a girl immediately responded, “I would have never guessed that you spoke in tongues. You had said anything about it until now, did not try to sell us on it or talk us into it. That’s how it ought to be! If it is important to people, they should keep it to themselves unless they are asked or the subject comes up naturally. Now that I know you speak in tongues, I feel like I can think about it more positively.”

◦ without trying, I had built a bridge
(not a very important one, perhaps, but a bridge nonetheless) Continue reading →

A Healthy Heart

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

Intro: This verse stands out from the previous beatitudes

It serves the same purpose–i.e., to reveal the blessed state of Jesus’ follower
(Jesus himself is the one who makes each condition such that it is blessed)
– my goal is to find in the beatitudes a path in Christian spirituality
• to that end, this is the most explicit beatitude so far
• for they shall see God
– to see God has always been aspiration of every godly person
• this is the spiritual longing expressed in several of the Psalms

One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I may seek:
That I might dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD
And to meditate in his temple (Ps. 27:4)

• seek the LORD is a familiar Old Testament phrase
◦ more specifically we find seek His face

Let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.
Seek the LORD and His strength;
Seek His face continually (Ps. 105:3-4)

◦ we learn from this beatitude how to seek the face of God

Blessed are the pure in heart

To hear what Jesus is saying, we have to get behind these words
– in ancient times it was commonly believed that the world inhabited by spirits
• so every tree had its spirit, as did every river, the sky, the weather, etc.
• how people treated living things and natural forces was important
◦ the spirit of a thing could act for or against a person or community
◦ rules and rituals were created so as not to offend spirits or to appease them
– a related idea: certain objects contained an uncanny power
• that power could be released through contact with the object
• it would then attach itself to the person

Negative power: taboo, curse, bad juju
◦ in the language of the Old Testament: defiled, unclean, unholy
◦ the law provided rules to help people avoid contamination
◦ if contaminated, purification rituals were available to remove it
(Israel’s “purity code” primarily found in Leviticus)
◦ the mixing of certain items caused impurity (e.g., Lev. 19:19)
◦ something showing up where it did not belong (e.g., blood outside the body)
◦ contact with birth, death, blood, and having sexual
Positive power: holiness, blessings, purification
◦ this was released through contact with God or anything belonging to him
◦ the sanctuary, the altar, even touching a sacrifice
◦ cleansing through water or by fire

The Pharisees were radically devoted to the purity code

The Pharisees and scribes . . . had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed. (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders; and when they come from the market place, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots.) (Mk. 7:2-4)

– both Jesus and Paul minimized the purity code Continue reading →

Do Justice, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Matthew 5:7

Intro: There are two big words in the New Testament that are often confused

Grace and mercy

God is the source of both and both do for us something we cannot do for ourselves. Explaining the difference between them, Dad would say, “Grace is getting what you do not deserve; mercy is not getting what you do deserve.”

Grace is a gift, something unearned
– our access to God through Jesus is through grace (Ro. 5:1-2)
• and we are saved by grace (Ep. 2:8-9)
• grace also supplies us with what we need to live for God
Mercy is a pardon, an instance of salvation
• punishment is suspended, the guilty party is forgiven
• through the generosity of another person, someone is rescued
◦ from an illness, or disability, from suffering or an immediate need

Blessed are the merciful
– unlike the other beatitudes, which could be considered negative conditions,
• this one is taught and highly esteemed throughout the Scriptures
• hosever, that does not mean it is easily put into practice
– like the previous beatitudes:
• the person who has entered the kingdom of heaven demonstrates mercy
• mercy is both an internal trait and an external lifestyle

After “righteousness” we might have expected something else

A religious mind could think,

“Yes, Justice! And it’s about time. For the oppressive tycoons who hoard their wealth and the slackers who think the world owes them a living. Time for godless empires to topple, for gangsters, liars and cheaters to get what they deserve. It’s time for sinners to feel the searing pain of God’s righteous wrath.”

– but Jesus says, “No, that is not what I mean. If you condemn the world, how can you save it?”

For God did not send the Son into the world to judge [condemn] the world, but that the world might be saved through him (Jn. 3:17; cf. Ro. 8:34)

• judgment can be merciless and is always destructive
◦ it destroyed the entire world by a flood in the days of Noah
◦ it destroyed several desert cities by fire and brimstone in the days of Lot

We might be tempted to think that mercy undermines justice
(it does not)
– mercy is not blind, or stupid, or uncaring
• mercy protects a child from harm by putting knives and matches out of reach
• it can also be mercy that holds people accountable for their actions
◦ a woman with the sentence of death hanging over her head was brought to Jesus
◦ his response to her was merciful, but it also held her accountable for her actions

I do not condemn you, either, he said, Go. From now on sin no more. (Jn. 8:11)

– sometimes the merciful action is also righteous one
• God does not consider justice to be opposed by mercy
• he knows how the two can work together Continue reading →

Troubled Souls In A Troubled World

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Matthew 5:6

Intro: This sermon is very different from Jesus’ parables

Here he does not rely on analogies to get his point across
– he uses straight talk and real life examples
• prior to the sermon, Jesus had:
◦ announced that the kingdom of heaven was arriving
◦ demonstrated its supernatural presence (healing and excorcisms)
– now, in the sermon, he reveals how a person is shaped by kingdom of heaven
• in it we learn the practice that is essential to Christian spirituality
• the Beatitudes are a picture of the ideal citizen of the kingdom of heaven
◦ they are heavy with mystery
◦ this is, in part, because they are so contradictory to the values of society

The fundamental truth we must understand about righteousness

Righteousness is relational 
– the Greek word referred to a person’s obligations to God and others
• specific expectations were attached to every relationship
◦ there were “right” things to do in any given relationship

Paul gives us a flavor of this when he tells the Romans, Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor (Ro. 13:7). There is some sort of obligation inherent in every human interaction. Paul goes on to say, Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves the other has fulfilled the law (Ro. 13:7-8). Here is the ultimate righteous standard, to bring love into every interaction allowing it to guide our speech and actions. Love is the obligation that never goes away.

• in the Hebrew Scriptures, righteousness is often paired with justice
◦ the role that righteousness plays between two people is the role justice plays in society
• righteousness and justice are not only God’s will
◦ but he delights in seeing them practiced universally (Jer. 9:24)
– it would be difficult for us to feel the shock Jesus audience felt when he said,

For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. (v. 20)

• the scribes devoted their lives to copying, studying and interpreting the torah (law)
◦ the Pharisees devoted their lives to following the law and oral tradition
• Jesus is not saying his followers had to be more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees
◦ it was not a matter of quantity, but the nature of their righteousness
◦ their problem was that righteousness is relational, but they made it moral and legal

In the first six verses of chapter (and all of chapter 23), Jesus provided clear examples of the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. For example:
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness (Mt. 23:27-28)

◦ a moral righteousness keeps me concerned with myself and my actions
◦ a relational righteousness turns my attention to others and how I treat them

The kingdom of heaven is all about righteousness (cf. Mt. 6:33)
– Matthew’s entire gospel is a development of these combined themes
• the climax is near the end of the book, when Jesus describes the day of judgment

Then the righteous will answer Him, “Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty, and give you something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?” The King will answer and say to them, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me” (Mt. 25:37-38)

– if I were to identify the focal point of my life, it would be–me
• what problem is upsetting me? How can I solve it?
◦ but it is possible to shift my focal point
◦ what problems do others have? How can I be a part of the solution to their struggles? Continue reading →

Why Choose to Be Meek?

Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5

Intro: I’ve told you this story before, but it applies so well I must tell it again

We were in Caesarea Maritime the first day of our Israel tour. The guide had delivered his spiel, we had our Bible study and were heading back to the bus. A young man came up behind myself and the two people walking with me. He was really upset and said, “Would you look at this!” With thumb and index finger he was holding his shirt gingerly away from his skin. His shoulder had been targeted, which by the look of what he left behind, must have been a very large seagull.
Just then another tour guide was passing us and in her strong Hebrew accent said, “It’s a blessing.” The young man looked up with a doubtful expression and said, “It’s a blessing?!” Without turning back to look at us, the guide said over her shoulder, “It’s a blessing cows don’t fly.”

Two different Hebrew and Greek words are translated into English by the one word, blessing
– one word refers to  God-given blessings
• promote a person’s welfare — shalom
• in ancient Israel, blessings included health, a large family, crops and livestock, and a long life
◦ every good thing that made for a rich and full life
– the other word refers to a state of thriving
• this was the condition of a person who had received blessings
◦ who fit the description of a rich and full life

1. berakah (Heb. Ps. 84:5) eulogetos (Grk. Ep. 1:3): God’s gracious gifts
2. esher (Heb. cf. Ps. 84:6) makarios (Grk. Mt. 5:5): to thrive, flourish
   – the gifts (berakah) produce the condition (esher)

• what this means is that the Beatitudes are not “if-then” statements
(that is, “If you do this, then God will bless you”)
◦ when people find themselves in the Beatitudes, they are thriving

The Beatitudes have a definite form or pattern
– we see it first in the Hebrew Scriptures; for example:

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in his law he meditates day and night. (Ps. 1:1)

• here “Blessed” (esher) describes a state
• this person is flourishing “like a tree / Planted by the rivers of water” (Ps. 1:3)
– the Beatitudes  are statements of fact, but also insights and invitations

Jonathon Pennington, “Jesus is offering and inviting his hearers into the way of being in the world that will result in their true and full flourishing now and in the age to come.“

Now we notice something strange about Jesus’ beatitudes

They present a shocking contradiction to our common sense view of life
– and not just our way of life, but the teaching found in The Proverbs as well
• poverty, grief, hunger and thirst do not look like a blessed state
◦ this is not a picture of prosperity, prestige or prominence
• instead, this looks like a description of losers, the down and out, the pathetic
– the word translated “gentle” also means mild or humble
• it was used in reference to an animal that had been tamed
◦ the wild stallion, now saddled and subject to the will of its rider
• in Greek translation of the Old Testament, it was used of a person who did not own property and so became a servant
◦ humility in the Roman world, a virtue, but within limits
◦ any loss of honor was detrimental to a person’s social standing

We do not associate a mild temperament and humility with success
– a “gentle” football team would not win many games Continue reading →