The Life of Christ (16)

1. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • Introduction (Matthew 5:1-2) • This is a Bible class taught by Jesus to Jews somewhere in the hill country of Galilee. • The audience is the crowd that followed Jesus around Galilee mentioned in Matthew 4:23-25. • The word disciple means a learner or student and is not used exclusively of the 12 apostles but also includes other positive believers. • These disciples were interested in Jesus’ teaching, but had not left everything to follow Him as the twelve apostles had. • This crowd was made up of the 12 disciples (apostles), a larger number of other disciples, and a multitude of other people who followed Jesus for various reasons of their own. Lk. 6:17. • Jesus goes up on a mountain to teach so He can be heard by a larger number of people. The Life of Christ (16)

2. The Life of Christ (16) The Sermon on the Mount The Life of Christ (16)

3. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • Introduction (Matthew 5:1-2) • In verse 1, notice that those disciples (students) move up the mountain so they can hear the teaching; this is a Bible class without a Bible. • Remember, in those days there was no printing press, no books, and no New Testament. • What we have in the Old Testament in the Bible was then contained on large scrolls. • These scrolls were very expensive and only available to the wealthy; they were also found in synagogues. • The Bible Doctrine in the class was the spoken words of Jesus Christ. The Life of Christ (16)

4. The Life of Christ (16) The Sermon on the Mount Scrolls The Life of Christ (16)

5. The Life of Christ (16) • When one considers this section of scripture, it is evident that Isaiah 61:1-3 forms part of the background. Jesus had cited this scripture not long before in Nazareth. Lk. 4:16-21 • The first beatitudes describe the character traits of the godly man as opposed to the fleshly man. • The term “blessed”describes the man singularly favored by God; the Greek term is maka,rioj(makarios--blessed, fortunate, happy, to be congratulated). • The term deals with the inner peace and joy that one has when he recognizes that he is right with God. The Sermon on the Mount The Life of Christ (16)

6. The Life of Christ (16) Isaiah 61:1–3 (NASB95) 1The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, Because the Lord has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners; 2To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3To grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes, The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified. The Sermon on the Mount The Life of Christ (16)

7. The Life of Christ (16) Luke 4:16–21 (NASB95) 16And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. 17And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, 19To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.” 20And He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” The Sermon on the Mount The Life of Christ (16)

8. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (Matthew 5:3-9) • “Poor in spirit”means one who is conscious of his own shortcomings and weaknesses, one who is conscious of his own spiritual need. • People tend to think of the poor primarily in terms of finances or possessions. That is part of it, but there is a spiritual side to it too. • The word Isaiah uses describes the people who had been taken into exile, who had lost their land and possessions. • They were of course poor (lost possessions), but they were also afflicted and oppressed, they were powerless, desperate for help, and without hope. • One in this state lacks arrogance since he knows he has nothing to offer God, he recognizes that he is not sufficient to meet his own spiritual needs. • Jesus says that such people, who know their own need and must rely on God for deliverance/salvation are part of the kingdom now! The Life of Christ (16)

9. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • “Those who mourn”are people that have suffered the pain, sadness, and grief, which normally comes as the result of some loss. • The loss can be the loss of possessions, the loss of money, status, health, or the loss that comes from the death of loved ones. • In times of mourning, people look for hope, which is often lacking in the Devil’s world. • Mourning then deals with the attitude of one who recognizes his loss and lack of righteousness (Rom. 3:23), which should cause him to turn to God, who is the source of all comfort and hope. IICor. 1:3-4 • The promise in this beatitude is that God will comfort those that come to Him in faith by providing the righteousness they lack. Rom. 3:22 The Life of Christ (16)

10. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • “The gentle”or meekare those who are not harsh, aggressive, clever, manipulative or ruthless; they are not impressed with themselves or how important they are. • This beatitude seems to be taken from the language found in Psalm 37:9-11. • The gentle are considerate and do not exploit and oppress others for their own purposes; they do not resort to revenge tactics when wronged. • Since they do not try to advance themselves at the expense of others so they do not engage in violence or other inappropriate activities to get their way. • This is the attitude that characterized Jesus and one that he desires in His children. Matt. 11:29 • While the original promise in Psalms likely referred to the land of Israel, further New Testament revelation indicates that this whole world will one day belong to believers. Rom. 4:13 We are Abraham’s descendants by faith. The Life of Christ (16)

11. The Life of Christ (16) The Sermon on the Mount The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • Hunger and Thirst is the next beautitude has roots in the Psalms as well. Ps. 63:1, 107:9 • Hunger and thirst are the most basic of human needs, which must be satisfied if life is to continue. • The desire to eat and drink are desires that must be satisfied; to hunger and thirst for something is a way of indicating what one is passionate about, what satisfies one. • This describes the person that is passionate about what is right; he desires to do right himself, to please God and walk in His directive will. Isa. 51:1 • Out of this desire for personal righteousness comes the desire for righteousness in the world around us, the desire to see righteousness and justice done. • The promise is that those that strongly desire what is right will be blessed with righteousness (imputed righteousness of God). When Jesus establishes His kingdom at the Second Advent (Second Coming), the world will become a righteous place, injustice and oppression will be removed. Ps. 9:8, 96:13 • While the believer should continue to seek the Lord (pursue righteousness), this promise will finally be fulfilled in Christ’s kingdom. The Life of Christ (16)

12. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • “Merciful”describes those who are concerned about others and their needs; it encompasses the ideas of a tender heart, sympathy, empathy, and compassion. • Mercy is a function of love and deals with the way in which one deals with others, particularly others in need; mercy is grace in action. • Since God has extended mercy to those who have come to Him in faith, He desires that His children extend mercy and kindness to those around them. • This beatitude is a good example of the law of sowing and reaping (Gal. 6:7-8) and the golden rule. Lk. 6:31 • As one demonstrates grace and mercy toward others, he will find that others will extend the same courtesy to him. • However, the ultimate mercy comes from God, both at salvation and finally when the believer receives mercy in the day of judgment. Rom. 2:6-10 The Life of Christ (16)

13. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • The “pure in heart”uses a term that actually means to be clean; how does one get a clean heart? • The pure in heart refers to those that are single-minded in their pursuit of God, they do not place their own selfish interests above God and His plan. • When one believes the gospel he is cleansed from all his past sins; this is likened to taking a bath. Jn. 13:10-11Judas was an unbeliever and not clean. • It is the word of God that cleanses a person, first in the gospel and then in an ongoing sense during one’s Christian life. Jn. 15:3; Eph. 5:26 • When the believer sins, he gets dirty again; rebound is the way God cleanses His children after salvation. IJn. 1:9 The Life of Christ (16)

14. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • The “pure in heart”uses a term that actually means to be clean; how does one get a clean heart? (cont.) • To be pure in heart is to be in fellowship with God and to pursue His plan as one’s first priority, even when it conflicts with one’s own plans. • This type of person will be given the great blessing of seeing God! • In the present time, the pure in heart will see God through faith as he observes God working in the smallest details (and large details) of his life; he will have a special relationship with the Lord that others do not. Jn. 14:21 disclose Myself to him; Jn. 14:23 will come to him and live with him. • In the final kingdom period, people will see God in the resurrection body. Job 19:25-27; ICor. 13:12; IJn. 3.2; Rev. 21:3, 22:3-4 The Life of Christ (16)

15. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • “Peacemakers”are those who try to minimize conflict and strife; they seek to bring peace (harmony) to situations in which conflict exists. • When there are conflicts (as there have always been and will continue to be), this type of person seeks to bring the adversaries together and reconcile them. • Conflict is a result of life under the sin nature, the world is full of it on a personal (one on one), national (groups with a nation) and global level (war). • People have conflicts because they are selfish and want their own way; the peacemaker encourages people to think of others, to see things from the other person’s side, and restore harmony in a situation. • Peace means the absence of conflict, so the peacemaker attempts to reconcile problems with others rather than just seeking his own selfish goals. The Life of Christ (16)

16. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) (5:3-9) • “Peacemakers”are those who try to minimize conflict and strife; they seek to bring peace (harmony) to situations in which conflict exists. (cont.) • Since harmony and reconciliation (bringing two conflicting parties to an agreement) are the results of peace, reconciliation is a synonym for peace. • One must recognize that true peace does not exist apart from having peace with God. Isa. 48:22 • However, one cannot enjoy external peace without having internal peace; this begins at salvation when the believer makes peace with God (Rom. 5:1), which allows him to seek to live in peace with others. • Living in peace with others and helping them to live in peace with each other is one of the Royal Imperatives. IICor. 13:11; IThess. 5:13 • The promise here is that the peacemaker is given the highest title that one can have; he is worthy to be called God’s own son. Jn. 1:12; IJn 3:1 The Life of Christ (16)

17. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) • Matthew 5:10–16 (NASB95) • 10“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. • 11“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. • 12“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. • 13“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. • 14“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; • 15nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. • 16“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. The Life of Christ (16)

18. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) • Persecution of believers as lights of the world (Matthew 5:10-16) • The final category of the blessed (spiritually prosperous) are those who are persecuted for the faith in Christ. • Believers are told to rejoice at the types of persecution that will come to them in the Devil’s world since it means they will receive extra blessing in Phase 3. • Believers are called the “salt of the earth.”; in the ancient world salt was used both as preservative and to enhance flavor. • The presence of believers in this world is what preserves the world from the full expression of God’s wrath. • Although salt does not become less salty, in the ancient world the salt they used was less pure than that we know today. The Life of Christ (16)

19. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) • Persecution of believers as lights of the world (Matthew 5:10-16) cont. • Sometimes, if not properly cared for, the salt would leech out, leaving mostly the impurities, becoming less “salty.” • Another characteristic of salt is that it is an irritant (rubbing salt in the wound); believers must recognize that they will irritate the unbelievers around them because of their stand for Christ. • Therefore, believers should not be surprised by the reality of persecutions about which Jesus speaks here since the children of the Devil (unbelievers) will often not like or accept the truth. Jn. 8:38,41,44 The Life of Christ (16)

20. The Life of Christ (16) • The Sermon on the Mount • The Beatitudes (Blessings) • Persecution of believers as lights of the world (Matthew 5:10-16) cont. • John 8:38, 41, 44 (NASB95) • 38“I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” • 41“You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.” • 44“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He (the devil) was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. The Life of Christ (16)