Jesus and Financial Planning

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19-21

Intro: I apologize for being repetitive

However, there is much in the Sermon On the Mount that is new to us
– and much that contradicts our assumptions and cultural values
• the initial message of Jesus was, “The kingdom of heaven at hand” (Mt. 4:17; 23)
◦ but now, in the fine print of his sermon he adds:

For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven (Mt. 5:20)

• he is referring to a superior righteousness (not doing more of the same)
◦ inferior righteousness: follow the letter of the law, but ignore the spirit behind it
◦ superior righteousness: find the deeper level of the law and live it from deeper place in one’s self
– from Matthew 5:21 to 6:18, Jesus explained and expanded this truth
• his illustrations and examples help us to see how it works out in real life
• what is he doing now in these verses that we will go over?
◦ we could say that he teaches us how the superior righteousness affects financial planning

First, what are your investments and where are they stored?

Some of our “treasures” have monetary value and others do not
– there are the tangibles, such as family photographs and heirlooms
• and intangibles that we hold in our hearts
◦ for example, we “treasure” certain memories

After the shepherds found their way to manger and told their story of angels announcing Jesus’ birth, we read that Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart (Lk. 2:19)

• in the first half of this chapter, “hypocrites” treasured the reward of being known for their piety
– Jesus separates our treasures into two categories:
• those that can be stored for safe keeping on earth
• those that can be stored in heaven
◦ the difference is that those stored on earth can be lost
◦ those stored in heaven cannot be lost

As a matter of fact, those stored on earth will be lost!
– I have discovered that as we age we reach a point, biologically,
• where we mark each year not by our gains, but by our losses
◦ all the junk mail these days that targets me are advertisements for
◦ hearing aids, vision tests, medicare supplemental insurance, and mortuaries
• Francis Schaeffer argued that we live city dump lives
◦ that all we own will eventually find its way to a dump site
– so, what do we treasure?
• notice how this parallels what Jesus has said about “rewards”
• we can receive a reward for our good deeds from other people or our Father in heaven
◦ in a similar way, our treasures can be saved up on earth or in heaven

Jesus’ concern here is not simply about wasted investments Continue reading →

“Watch Me, Daddy!”

Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:16-18

Intro: Saturday night I had dreamed I was with group of young guys

We were talking about travel plans when a small plastic cup hit back of my head
– it was one of them clowning around, so I grabbed it and tossed it back
• it happened again and then be came a steady tap, tap, tap
◦ it was no longer funny, but annoying
• that is when I woke up to my five year old grandson patting the back of my head
◦ and I heard him whispering, “Grandpa, wake up”
– contemplative spirituality is the ongoing practice of waking up
• waking up to the present moment – and to God in this moment

According to Anthony de Mello, “Spirituality means waking up. Most people, even though they don’t know it are asleep. They’re born asleep, they live asleep . . . and they die in their sleep without ever waking up. They never understand the loveliness and beauty of this thing that we call human existence.”

◦ that was exactly the problem Jesus faced
◦ his disciples and the crowd did not know they could be religiously active and asleep

de Mello again, “… you’ll never understand a word of what the scriptures are saying until you wake up. Sleeping people read the scriptures and crucify the Messiah on the basis of them.”

• sometimes we need a tap on the head

“Whenever you fast”

Fasting was not optional in their situation as it is for us
– it was built into their culture – everyone would fast at some time
• there were collective fasts on annual holidays
• many religious people observed regular fasts–e.g., weekly
– the two most common fasts for ordinary people:

1. An expression of grief – usually over a loss
   • the death of a a loved one
   • the conquest of their nation and temple during Israel’s exile
   • the loss of their independence
   ◦ Jesus was asked why his disciples did not fast
   ◦ he indicated that fasting was for grieving and not celebration (Mt. 9:14-15)
2. A forced fast
   • perhaps due to illness or a scarcity of food–e.g., in times of famine
   ◦ starvation was never thought to have spiritual benefit
   ◦ instead, it was a problem to be solved

The first thing Jesus has to say about fasting is how not to do it
– two things to avoid:
1.) don’t go around with a sad expression
2.) don’t disfigure your face (the same Greek translated “neglect” in NASB is translated “destroy” in vv. 19 & 20)
• it is not as easy for people to see we are fasting as it is giving to charity or prayer
◦ so you have to drop pretty big clues
• that they will be noticed (shine) so others cannot help but notice
◦ both facial masks, sad and disfigured, beg others to ask, “Are you okay?”
◦ the second (disfigured) is an intensification of the first (sad)
◦ so, if the “sad face” doesn’t work, ramp it up
– some people long to be known, others want to be unknown
• often the difference is, those who long to be know do not want others to know their inner self
◦ i.e., who they really are, but for the best image they project of themselves
◦ it is because the others do not want their inner selves to be known that they prefer anonymity
◦ “If you knew me, you wouldn’t like me. You would reject me like everyone else has”
• I think Jesus stresses hypocrisy, because we all go through phases of it
◦ we want others to have a positive opinion of us, whether or not it is true

As the hypocrites; the were not hypocrites because they pretended to be religious
– that is not what made them hypocrites
• they were truly religious – and thought others should know that they were
◦ this was not same as a grieving widow wearing black
◦ culture provided multiple ways to express grief publicly
• this was more like wearing their fast as a badge of their holiness Continue reading →

“Take Words With You and Return To the Lord”

Pray, then, in this way:
Our Father who is in heaven
Hallowed be Your name. Matthew 6:9

Intro: We learned in Matthew 5:20 that Jesus requires a superior righteousness

His teaching is now focused on how that works in everyday life
– it involves a deepening of the inner life and then fusing it with outward behavior
• a summary of Jesus’ message could be Paul’s statement:

Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men (Col. 3:23)

• everything in our hearts and actions is concentrated on God
– the first part of chapter six consists in three negative examples
• they illustrate how we are not to practice our righteousness
◦ how not to give charity, how not to pray and how not to fast
◦ each example includes an illustration of the superior way to give, pray and fast
• with the example of prayer, Jesus’ breaks the pattern and adds two extras:
◦ do not pile up words like those who do not know God
◦ adopt the simplicity and directness of the words he provides

The Lord’s prayer (aka: the Our Father) can be prayed anywhere

Helmut Thielicke, “It can be spoken at the cradle and the grave. It can rise from the altars of great cathedrals and from the dark hovels of those who “eat their bread with tears.” It can be prayed at weddings and on the gallows. And the fact is that it has been prayed in all these places. All seven of the colors of our life are contained in it, and so never is there a time when we are left alone.”

– we need to learn some things to properly interpret this prayer
• however, I do not want to leave you with information so much as an impression
• that we feel this prayer and the way it moves in us as we pray through it
◦ this is more important than what we learn about its interpretation

V. 9, First, make the connection (to begin the conversation)

Imagine calling your parents and when one of them answers, you being, “Hi Mom”
– because she recognizes your voice, the conversation can begin
• that you know each other and share a host of memories deepens the communication
◦ our connection with God is prayer, not the words
(they are the contents of our thoughts in prayer)
◦ do I have a here-and-now awareness of God?
• I’ve found that burning a lot of mental energy striving for this awareness is not helpful
◦ it’s like trying to force myself to fall asleep
– however, if I relax my body, my mind relaxes too
• then I am not trying to make God present, but I allow him to be present
• similar to the way I allow myself to fall asleep

Jesus tells us to address God as our Father
– it should not be said of us, You worship what you do not know (Jn. 4:22)
• rather, like Paul, we can say, I know whom I have believed (2 Tim. 1:12)
◦ from the first words, our prayer is personal and intimate
• we are to own him – he is our Father
– the opening Our reminds us that God has other children
• we share him with all these brothers and sisters
◦ God does not want them to ever be out of our thoughts
• as we’ve seen before, Father who is in heaven distinguishes him from every other father

Insight into the background of the third line is helpful

Hallowed be Your name
– hallowed is “to make holy” or treat something as holy or with reverence
• how do we show reverence for God’s name? And why do we pray that it will be reverenced?
◦ does this mean we don’t say God in a string of profanities?
◦ that we never type OMG in our emails or social media sites? Continue reading →

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 →