Blessed Are the Meek (The Beatitudes Part 2)

Thank you for listening to this message from the ministry of Morse Corner Church in Leverett, Massachusetts. Morse Corner is a non-denominational church that is committed to the preaching and teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our church was founded in 1896 by two students of the famous evangelist D .L. Moody. We seek to encourage and edify the body of Christ through the proclamation of God's word through the ministries of the local church.

If you'd like more information, visit our website, morsecornerchurch .com. We hope you enjoy the message. Jesus says, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. So it all starts by recognizing your need for God's grace.

The next statement, blessed are those who mourn. So remember, Jesus is taking them step by step. So if poor in spirit means that, what are they mourning over? Well, the mourning would be a mourning over sin, that we have offended a holy God.

And this godly sorrow, you know, some people are sorry because they got caught, right? That's one reason people are sorry. Others recognize that I have sinned, I have offended a holy God, and that godly sorrow is what leads to genuine repentance.

And all who seek the Lord in this way, the promise is that they shall be comforted. Why? Because God forgives all those who come to him in humility and faith. And don't you know that Jesus deals with people, he dealt with people in the most gentle of ways.

You know, I don't think there was ever a man who was as gentle as Christ. Now Christ could be hard too. Those people that were proud, right, the religious leaders. Jesus was not only hard, I would say he was harsh with them.

But to the lowly, to the humble, Jesus was very kind. He was very compassionate, even to the worst of sinners. So Christ deals with such people in the most gentle of ways. Matthew chapter 12 verse 12 says,.

A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoking flax he will not quench. Now that doesn't really translate well in our modern day. What does that mean? One commentator says this, The bruised reed that he will not break, these represent people who are deemed useless by the world.

Christ's work was to restore and rekindle such people, not to break them or to quench them. And this speaks of his tender compassion toward the lowliest of the lost. You know, the world would just discard people that they don't really matter.

They're not going to benefit me in any way. The world doesn't care about people like that. But Jesus cares, the Lord cares. So Jesus was very kind to those who showed humility. So blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Okay, the next verse, verse five, Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. When you hear the word meek, what's the first other word that pops into your head? Weak, right? That's the way a lot of people think, that meekness is weakness.

Now we kind of know that's not true. Weakness is one thing. Meekness is not weakness. It's subdued strength. That's one way people describe it. Being meek doesn't mean you just roll over and give up all your rights and you're weak and you're cowardly and all the rest.

No, being meek means that you are a person who, you know, you're in control of your emotions. You have strength, but you don't necessarily show it. You're in control. A meek person is patient. Someone who is meek is long-suffering.

Someone who is meek has a forgiving disposition. Someone who is not meek, you know, they fly off the handle. They insist on having their way. A meek person is slow to anger, not easily provoked. A meek person is one who doesn't return evil for evil.

A meek person, and this really should be our goal, to overcome evil with what?

Good.

When somebody does something to us, we're not offended. Now, being upset when somebody is speaking against God or offending God, it's good to have zeal for God. But when someone speaks against you, it's best just let it go.

Don't insist on your own way. Don't strike back when someone offends you. Blessed are the meek. Happy are the meek.

Why?

Because according to Jesus, the meek shall do what? The meek shall inherit the earth. So when Jesus comes, the kingdom comes to this earth when Jesus comes. So when Jesus comes, the meek inherit the earth.

Do you realize Christians, another way to put this, is that one day Christians will rule the world. Christians will rule and reign on the earth. Now, as far as, and I don't want to get too much into this, but the people that are in control of the world right now typically are not meek people.

You know, selfish, ambition, that's how you get to the top. You know, it's kind of cutthroat, and many of them are corrupt. Obviously, many are cruel. But Jesus says, in the end, the first will be last in the last first.

So the kingdom of heaven, when it comes to this earth, it will overturn this world system. So this world system, to the believer, to the one who has the Holy Spirit, we're kind of grieved by what we see around us every day.

And the good news, it's not always going to be like that.

Why?

Because the meek shall inherit the earth. And this is tied in closely with that, verse 6. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Does it bother you to see the violence, and the corruption, and just the lawlessness that abounds, and the insanity that's happening in the culture?

Well, it should, because the believers should hunger and thirst, not for that stuff, we should hunger and thirst for what? For righteousness, for God's standard to be upheld. So those who hunger and thirst, Jesus says, they will be filled.

You might not be fulfilled today. You might not receive that fulfillment. Things probably aren't going to change tomorrow. But those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, they shall be filled. So let me ask you, is this what you are hungering and thirsting for?

See, every person in the world wants certain things. The normal selfish inclination is, I want all this stuff for me. You know, I have all these things that I want, things that I think will make me happy.

Well, I mean, that's human nature, I guess. But what we really should be thirsting for is what? God's righteousness. We need to be hungry for God's righteousness. And if we are, the promise is, we shall be filled.

Isn't it good news to know that things are not always going to be like this? So this is the hope that Jesus is giving them in the Sermon on the Mount. So first, God puts into the hearts of His people a mourning over sin.

Then you're comforted as a child of God. The promise is that God's people shall inherit the earth. Jesus is kind of going through this, leading them along point by point. We desire righteousness and mercy.

He says in verse 7, blessed are the merciful.

For what?

They shall obtain mercy. Why should we be merciful to other people? One way mercy is translated or defined as a loving kindness. Why should you be merciful to others? As a Christian, why should you be merciful to others?

Because God has been merciful to us. So mercy is the compassion and loving kindness of God upon those who are admittedly undeserving. And because God has been merciful to us, we should show mercy to others.

You say, yeah, but they did this. You don't realize they don't deserve it, right? They don't deserve it, but neither do we. But we show mercy to others because God has shown mercy to us. The Greek word, elieo, translated mercy, means benevolence.

It's the compassionate treatment of those in need or in distress. So blessed are the merciful. And then verse 8, such a wonderful verse. You know, it's kind of hard to pick, you know, which one is your favorite?

I don't know.

Do you have a favorite?

I was thinking about this. Which one's the best? Well, it's kind of like a package deal, really. But I like this. This is hard to beat, and I'll explain why. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Think about that for a moment. You, if you trust in Christ, if you are following Christ, He has given us a new heart, right? So the pure in heart is not somebody who's perfect and never does anything wrong.

The pure in heart are the people who have received Christ as their Savior. He has given us a clean, a new heart. So the promise is, you shall see God. You realize what that means?

Well, I don't know.

I have no, I don't know what that, I mean, how do you even begin to explain what that means or what that looks like? In Revelation 22, verse 4, it talks about how in the new heaven and in the new earth, we shall see God's face.

Not the face of Jesus. We shall see God's, like God the Father's face, which, again, it's hard to even contemplate what that means. But this, understand, this is the ultimate reward of man. Some of you were brought up in a church that had a catechism.

Some churches have them, some don't. But the first question is, really, any catechism is this. What is the chief end of man? And do you know what the answer is? What is the chief end of man? It is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.

You realize that's the reward of the believer. That when we are in glory, when we see God, we will be with Him forever. A lot of us think that eternal life is the reward. Being forgiven of sin, well, that is a reward, I guess.

Eternal life, though, we think of as the reward. That's not actually the reward. Because there are others who have eternal existence, but they are eternally existing, conscious, without God. That's not heaven.

That's not something we want. So eternal life really is not the reward. Eternal life with God is the reward. God Himself, better put this way, God Himself is the reward. You remember what God told Abraham in Genesis 15, 1?

He said to Abram, I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward. That's my favorite. If I had to pick one beatitude, this is it. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. This is the Christian's greatest reward.

Verses 44 and 45, just skip ahead and look at it. Verses 44 and 45 further expand on the beatitude in verse 9, which says, Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. You know what the world's version of a peacemaker is?

You know what the United Nations calls peacemakers? There's these guys with machine guns standing there. They're peacemakers. That's the world's version of a peacemaker. It's not God's version of a peacemaker.

I realize that's necessary in the world we live in. I'm not saying that, but this is God's version of a peacemaker. Verses 44 and 45 expand on this. Jesus says, But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.

See, if you're not convinced that the Sermon on the Mount is about showing people like the deeper implications of the law, like you can't keep it, you're not keeping God's commandments. If you haven't realized it up until this point, you realize it now.

You know how hard this is? Loving your enemies, blessing those who curse you, doing good to people that hate you. We usually want to do good to the people that love us. We want to do good to the people that do good to us.

Or if I do something good for a person, they'll pay me back. That's the way we are naturally. But this is a higher ethic. Bless those who curse you. How many of us are doing this perfectly? Zero, probably.

Now, if you are perfect in this, you come and talk to me. Maybe we'll make you the pastor of the church.

I don't know.

But I think there's only one person who did this perfectly. And that was Jesus, who on the cross, while people were mocking him and spitting at him and reviling him, what did he say? Father, forgive them.

They know not what they do. Thanks for listening. I'm Pastor Michael Grant from Morris Cornick Church. If you'd like to listen to the complete message, or if you'd like more information about the ministry, visit our website, MorrisCornickChurch .com.

And we'd love to have you join us some Sunday morning here in Leverett. Until next time, may the grace of God be with you.