Beautiful Attitudes, Part 1

“The poor in spirit are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.“

Matthew 5:3

Holy Bible Holman Christian Standard Bible, Black/Burgundy, Leathertouch, Personal Size Bible. Holman Bible Pub, 2014.

AND

“Then looking up at [Then lifting up His eyes to] His disciples He said: ‘You who are poor are blessed, because the kingdom of God is yours.‘”

Luke 6:20

Holy Bible Holman Christian Standard Bible, Black/Burgundy, Leathertouch, Personal Size Bible. Holman Bible Pub, 2014.

In this series we will be looking at both sets of benedictions spoken by Jesus. The Beatitudes are blessings delivered by Jesus in the New Testament books Matthew and Luke. Matthew’s account includes the blessings in the famous Sermon on the Mount. Luke’s account records them as being spoken on the less memorable Sermon on the Plain or “level place”. Luke’s Gospel contains several sayings of “woe” that follow Jesus’ blessings. We will not be looking at those in this series. Rest assured that if we look at the Sermon on the Plain, we will take time to discuss both the positive and negative statements.

In Matthew, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is begun in response to the large crowds that gathered around Him in the land beyond the Jordan River. This is the first day of class for His newly recruited disciples and followers. This would be the first exposition delivered by Jesus to describe the kingdom of God which He had been proclaiming since he arrived in Galilee. This feature is consistent in Luke’s account. In fact, Luke records the selection of the twelve disciples just prior to the preaching of the beatitudes. Matthew and Luke want us to understand the inseparable reality of true Jesus-follower and the beatitudes. Jesus-followers take on certain beautiful attitudes.

“‘God raised up His Servant [Jesus] and sent Him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your evil ways.‘”

Acts 3:26

Holy Bible Holman Christian Standard Bible, Black/Burgundy, Leathertouch, Personal Size Bible. Holman Bible Pub, 2014.

Peter, Jesus’ rock who demonstrated that mustard seed faith which would serve as the common currency of the kingdom of God, preached these words in Solomon’s Colonnade. He speaks boldly of God’s active blessing. Strong’s Concordance helps the reader understand that the Greek “eulogeō”  used here in Acts can mean “to praise” or “to bless” but most precisely it means “to bestow blessings on”. In turning us away from our pursuit of anger and wickedness, Jesus blesses us through a connected relationship with Him.

What then is this state of blessing? What should the experience of the Jesus-follower be as a rule of thumb? The Scriptures use the word “makarios” which means “happy”. Imagine living to hear your eulogy spoken. Now imagine it is being spoken by Jesus Himself. That is the blessing we have received. Would you not be overjoyed at the sound of His voice? The beatitudes should bring to our heart the assurance and blessing evoked when, in Matthew, Jesus exclaims “Well done, good and faithful slave!” This is the happiness portioned out in the beatitudes. This is the happiness available to every follower of Jesus.

“The Beatitudes of Matthew 5 will forever redefine the identities of the followers of Jesus; they are the poor, mourning, gentle, hungry, merciful peacemaking ones who, above all, are persecuted. According to this radical new identity, they will possess the new kingdom of which Jesus is the king. The unclean leper, the bleeding woman, the blind and the lame will all discover a new healed identity in Jesus. The Twelve will be redefined as ‘apostles’ when they are sent out on mission, bearing Jesus’ authority.“

(Card, p. 21)

Card, Michael. Matthew – The Gospel of Identity, InterVarsity Press, 2013.

Singer and author, Michael Card puts special emphasis on the Christian imagination. For that he has earned my appreciation. He helps us not only logically grip scripture but to understand the stories, images and colloquialisms with our hearts and all our creative faculties. The “healed identity” is the crux of Jesus’ message. His followers walked onto the mountain and out across the plain with one identity, but they will descend the mountain and walk off the plain as totally new people. In Luke – The Gospel of Amazement, Card notes that Jesus’ beatitudes are “radically reversed blessings”. In worldly logic, these circumstances never function as a standard for praise or happiness.

The blessings of Jesus instate a new benchmark for happiness. These blessings are inverse of the world’s blessings. The kingdom of God turns the kingdom of man on its head. What is foolishness with men is righteousness with God (Mt. 11:25, 1 Co. 1:27). God has at all times excelled in taking what would be a failure in every aspect of the word in the eyes of men and reversing that reality for His glory and the blessing of those who serve Him. It will always be better to lack in the eyes of the world and be wealthy in the eyes of God. This is the basis of all righteousness.

“The LORD is near the brokenhearted; He saves those crushed in spirit.“

Psalm 34:18

Holy Bible Holman Christian Standard Bible, Black/Burgundy, Leathertouch, Personal Size Bible. Holman Bible Pub, 2014.

Jesus’ words are not original. Nothing is original about Jesus except for the fact that He is God. Other men had spoken these truths on behalf of God, but in the mouths of fallible men the truths of God became damning law. David spoke the truth that the LORD was near the one with a heart shattered to pieces. David knew that it was God’s character to actively be salvation for the one with a spirit ground to dust. It was Jesus’ words that brought happiness. Because Jesus locked eyes with His followers and spoke happiness over the lives of the outcast band before Him, we can live in that happiness today. The God that David knew was mighty to save currently blesses us with happiness when we identify with Him in His rejected state.

We must completely hold to Jesus. Jesus endured ultimate social distancing. He was utterly cast outside of respected community. His own family had a hard time knowing what to make of Him (Mk. 3:21). How much more will the world raise its eyebrows at us if they were willing to crucify God Himself. We must humble our hearts. We must become contrite and selfless. If God could take on human flesh and complete all righteousness, living without sin, we should strive to live lives set-apart by their conformity to the will of Jesus. We must sacrifice our hearts and lives to the supremacy of Jesus, and rejoice in the happiness He speaks to us. God will never despise this but will be pleased with such a sacrifice (Ps. 51:17).

“The poor in spirit need not be poor in worldly possessions, but they must be moderate in their desires. The man who is poor in spirit is an humble man. God gives ear to the sighs of the humble, and does not despise their petitions. So, when the Lord delivered his Discourse, he based its very beginning on humility, which means poverty. You could find a godly man who has an abundance of worldly wealth, but such a man is not puffed up with pride.“

(Saint Augustine, p. 358)

Augustine, Saint. Commentary on the Lord’s Sermon on the Mount with Seventeen Related Sermons, Catholic University of America Press, 1951.

St. Augustine made a clear point. The person poor in spirit is humble. Humble sighs catch the Lord’s ear. Worldly wealth does not negate the faith of the Jesus-follower. Acknowledging the fact that Jesus makes plain statements against opulence (Mt. 19:24; Mk.10:25), we must also note that all wealth is a blessing from God. He gives to each as much as He wishes (Mt. 20:1-16). All wealth is given so that we can give to others for the glory of God. This should be practiced in accordance with the generosity placed in each heart by the Holy Spirit of God.

So it is the condition of the spirit which is the true measure of swaggering and penitence. Humble hearts walk into the kingdom of God. Proud hearts lead the vanguard down to death. Oswald Chambers marks this truth in My Utmost for His Highest when he states:

“The underlying foundation of Jesus Christ’s kingdom is poverty, not possessions; not making decisions for Jesus, but having such a sense of absolute futility that we finally admit ‘Lord, I cannot even begin to do it.’… This is the doorway to the kingdom… The knowledge of our own poverty is what brings us to the proper place where Jesus Christ accomplishes His works.“

(Chambers, July 21st)

Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest: an Updated Edition in Todays Language: the Golden Book of Oswald Chambers. Discovery House Publishers, 1992.

Jesus will not work salvation in the heart of the proud. One must be humble and repent. Rebirth will not come and reign while vanity occupies the throne of our hearts. We must kneel to God above. We must reach out to Jesus who reaches out to us, nailed on the cross and risen from the grave. When Jesus walks into our hearts He can begin to gut and refurbish our interior, setting up beautiful attitudes in the place of evil inclinations. Nonconformist, Matthew Henry, called the beatitudes “eight characteristics of blessed hope.” Once humbled to God, we will surely be known by Jesus inside of us.

“The great, high spirits go away with the glory of the kingdoms of the earth; but the humble, mild, and yielding souls obtain the glory of the kingdom of heaven. The same happiness is promised to those who are contentedly poor, as to those who are usefully rich. If I am not able to spend cheerfully for his sake, if I can but lack cheerfully for his sake, even that shall be recompensed.“

(Henry, p. 19)

Henry, Matthew, et al. The NIV Matthew Henry Commentary in One Volume: Based on the Broad Oak Edition. Zondervan Pub. House, 1992.

The humbled person filled with Jesus can find contentment in the hope and purposes of God. If hope of the kingdom was not enough, the poor and lowly are witnesses to the downfall of the high spirits around them. They have a front row seat to the devolution of men consumed by greed and lust for wealth. The Jesus-follower is therefore inclined to lack in good spirits and walk boldly into the twilight of life. Those found trusting in Jesus have reason for full faith in His provision. God is sure to revive their hearts and spirits to new life (Is. 57:15).

We see that these beautiful attitudes are the defining marker of the Jesus-follower. We have not been given a list of rules to follow. These are not a set of commandments. These are a set of realities about life reborn. In the Family Worship Bible Guide, pastor and theologian Joel R. Beeke defined the beatitudes as being “a concise description of the character of those blessed by God.” Oswald Chambers puts it quite poetically when He describes the beatitudes as “a picture of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.” The beautiful attitudes let us and the world around us know that the old person is gone and the new person has come to stay. Have you been made new? Say yes to Jesus and be made new today!

“Remember, God is as Great as He is Good!”

Noah R. Hunt