Lesson for April 28, 2021
The Life of Christ
Lesson 19
The Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 5:1-8:1; Luke 6:20-49
After Jesus had given the Pharisees His fourfold testimony to prove His deity, He departed with His disciples. There were many that followed Him, and many were healed. Two more incidents of violating the “Pharisees’ Sabbath” are recorded in the Gospels – one for the disciples picking grain and the other for Jesus healing a man. Of course, we know that Jesus and the disciples were not violating the Sabbath. The Pharisees had a distorted, legalistic interpretation of the Sabbath, which they accused the disciples and Jesus of violating.
One of the next chronological events in the life of Jesus is commonly called The Sermon on the Mount. Jesus once again withdrew to the sea and it was at this location that He began to teach His followers. We are not told the exact number of people that followed Him, only that it was “a great multitude.”
The Sermon on the Mount contains what is commonly called The Beatitudes. Beatitude simply means blessing or happiness. Jesus opens his “sermon” with the first beatitude, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” In modern English we might say, “Those who are poor in spirit are happy because they are part of the kingdom of Heaven.” We know from other Scriptures that only believers in Christ are part of the Kingdom of Heaven. Therefore, it must be concluded that the poor in spirit are believers. Being “poor in spirit” is a metaphor for being helpless or without merit. The believer in Christ is without merit before God and yet he possesses eternal life. This is God’s grace in action – redeeming a person who is helpless to help himself with regard to entering the kingdom of Heaven.
The second beatitude says, “Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Once again, this was addressed to believers. The Bible is clear that God is a God of comfort. Mourning can be in many forms and for many reasons. Whatever the reason for mourning, God is able to comfort His children. Happiness for the believer comes as a result of God’s comfort. God’s comfort comes only by means of knowledge of Bible doctrine resident in the soul. This is the source that is uses to comfort believers in time of mourning.
The third beatitude says, “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” Meek is another word for humble. The Greek word for “meek” is prautes and denotes a person of great inner strength or strength of character. A humble believer is a believer is teachable. This believer knows who they are and what they have as a result of faith in Christ.
The fourth beatitude says, “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled.” The righteousness that Jesus spoke about in this verse is not the imputed righteousness that the believer receives at salvation. This is the practical righteousness that is developed in the soul of the believer through the study of God’s Word (II Timothy 3:16).
Only believers who are “hungry and thirsty” for the Word of God (Bible doctrine) will be happy and they will be “filled.” Filled is used metaphorically in this verse, as are hunger and thirst. In other words, the believer’s hunger and thirst for God’s practical righteousness will be satisfied. If a believer possesses positive volition, and desires to know how to live a righteous life, God will make available the accurate teaching of Bible doctrine (John 7:17). Living a righteous life means your life will line up with God’s plan, purpose and will. Therefore, the believer who “hungers and thirsts after righteousness” will have a strong desire to learn and apply accurate Bible doctrine.
The fifth beatitude says, “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” One of the many ways of producing divine good and thus being eternally rewarded is by showing compassion for others. One of the spiritual gifts in the Church Age is showing mercy. Jesus was a merciful person, showing compassion on all whom He met. What Jesus was teaching is a simply divine principle – if you show mercy to others, others will show mercy to you.
The sixth beatitude says, “Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.” If a person wants to see God, they must be as pure as God. We know that this is impossible by any form of human merit. Pure in heart means that a person has accepted God’s salvation solution by placing their faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. This is true of Old Testament and New Testament, alike. Both are made pure by the imputed righteousness of Christ. Upon faith in Christ a person becomes pure in the sight of God because they possess Christ’s righteousness, which has been credited to his account by God the Father. It is therefore these “pure in heart’ who will see God face to face.
The seventh beatitude says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the sons of God.” One of the many divine characteristics that we see exhibited in the life of Christ is that of making peace. Jesus did not come with a sword to make war on the Romans as the nation of Israel had hoped. Jesus came to bring peace – peace with God by faith in Him and the peace of God by the execution of God’s plan, purpose and will. As God’s representatives on earth, whether in this age or the previous one, all believers are to be peacemakers. It is also our privilege to live a peaceable life, which can be observed by others. One of the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22 is peace.
The eighth beatitude says, “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.” Persecution means believers will experience undeserved suffering because they are pursuing the righteousness of God. Suffering comes in many forms. Undeserved suffering for the believer leads to great reward in Heaven, so we should rejoice in it. Matthew 5:11-12 expands upon the subject of undeserved suffering by the believer. The words that are used to describe this suffering such as “revile” and “persecute” show the nature of the abuse. With this abuse comes false accusations and all manner of evil speaking against you. Jesus says to rejoice because of the great reward that awaits you in Heaven.
The nineth beatitude says, “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.” For advancing believers who is in fellowship with God, all suffering that they experience is undeserved. Deserved suffering comes as a result of our failure to execute the Christian Way of Life. Deserved suffering may be divine discipline or the result of carnality. Undeserved suffering is a test to see if we can apply the Bible doctrine that we have learned. Passing the suffering test brings glory to God. The following are reasons why God allows a spiritually mature or maturing believer to suffer undeservedly.
- To develop the believer’s faith – I Peter 1:6-7; Romans 5:3; II Corinthians 10:13
- To glorify God – Job 42:1-2
- As a witness for Christ – II Corinthians 4:8-11; II Timothy 2:8-10
- To manifest the fruit of the Holy Spirit – II Corinthians 2:4; Galatians 5:22-23
- To teach us patience – Romans 5:3
- To learn obedience as Christ did – Hebrews 5:8
- To give attention to our spiritual health – I Peter 4:12-14
- To demonstrate the power of God – II Corinthians 11:24-33; 12:7-10
- So that we can be a comfort to others – II Corinthians 1:3-6
- Gives us a hunger for Heaven- II Corinthians 5:1-6
- As a result of other believers being disciplined by God – I Corinthians 12:12,13,26