City on a Hill - Blessed
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Last week, I shared God’s vision for his church from Matt. 5:14 that says, “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden.”
Georgetown Baptist Church is a city on a hill, set apart to revive, equip, and empower.
READ (MATTHEW 5:1-12)
READ (MATTHEW 5:1-12)
Matthew 5-7 is known as the Sermon on the Mount.
Jesus explained what God’s kingdom is, how it works, and what it ought to look like.
He started his sermon with the Beatitudes.
Each beatitude includes a blessing.
The good old days.... How would you define living a “blessed” life?
Jesus loved his disciples, the true recipients of this sermon.
Jesus wants every disciple to have a mind focused on God’s kingdom.
The crowds present for this sermon are seen in chapter 4:23-25.
“Sat down” - Rabbis sat while giving instructions.
“a mountain” - We don’t know which” mountain. Called the “Mount of Beatitudes”
“The Sinai of the New Testament.” Ex. 19…
A regular feature in his ministry was a retreat to the hills for prayer and fasting.
Verses 3-10 are based on a common form of expression in the poetical books of the Old Testament.
“How happy is the one who does not walk in the advice of the wicked or stand in the pathway with sinners or sit in the company of mockers.” - (Psalm 1:1)
The balance of verses is how Jesus taught scripture to His followers. (Helped them memorize.)
What did Jesus mean when he said, “Blessed are?”
1. Being “blessed” is not outwardly focused.
1. Being “blessed” is not outwardly focused.
“Blessed” (makarios)
Its root is supposed to mean “great”, meaning outward prosperity. Used synonymously with “rich”.
Also applied to Grecian gods.
Blessed because of their power and dignity, not because of holiness.
Also applied to “prosperity of thought.”
They recognized a prosperity that came from the moral observance of the law.
Stoicism - Taught that virtue, the highest good is based on knowledge.
Divine reason is a god.
In modern day, being “blessed” for many people can be founded upon what we own, who we are with, and where we live.
Misery is possible no matter what the economic situation is for the individual. Job. He struggled with losing the ability to help his community.
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing to us.” - A.W. Tozer
When we think of earthly blessings as the end of God’s plan for us, we do not understand His blessings. Instead, we have created an idol for worship.
To have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ is the blessing of all blessings.
2. The “blessed” life is the happy life.
2. The “blessed” life is the happy life.
“Blessed” - fortunate, someone who is to be congratulated, someone whose place in life is an enviable one.
The word Jesus is referring to is “happy”.
The happy life is the outliner of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.
To the one who has accepted the demands of God’s kingdom.
The reward is spent in the 2nd half of each verse. When God’s kingdom is finally established, its subjects will enter their inheritance.
Discipleship will not be in vain.
The Christian word “blessed” is full of the full of the light of heaven.
It throws itself away from sin and thrives on trial and presentation.
It conquers and gains a crown.
“The difference between the blesses person and ungodly person is that the blessed person walks according to the course of heaven and not according to the course of this world.” - RC Sproul
READ Psalm 24:3-5 out loud… (Clean hands and pure heart)
People feel sorry for Christians but we know the difference.
The inward blessing, we have in Jesus is the reminder that we are living a “blessed” life.
“May the Lord bless you and protect you; May the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. May the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.”