The Christian Dream: Blessed are you when...; Build your Life #11, the 9th Beatitude

Intro: When was the last time you read “The Declaration of Independence”? I did again this past week… The Declaration states the principles on which our American government & ideals are based. The preamble may be the most widely known part of it- We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That’s the American Dream.

We are blessed to live in the United States of America. It is, I think, the greatest country on the face of the planet. You can hold that truth to be self-evident. There is a reason so many people want to emigrate to the United States. The American Dream- life, liberty, & the pursuit of happiness; is a wonderful ideal, but as a Christian, it doesn’t hold a candle to the Kingdom Reality of Jesus, Joy, & the practice of holiness.

The Beatitudes are the Christian’s Declaration of Independence from the world- a declaration of dependence upon Jesus. It’s where we find our identity in Christ the King and the Kingdom ideals that govern us.

Matthew 5:3–12, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. 7Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The 9th Beatitude is the culmination of the 8 that came before it- the product of being poor in spirit, mourning, meek, hungering & thirsting for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, & a peacemaker. You will be persecuted for righteousness’ sake. In vss. 11-12, Jesus elaborates on why persecution happens, what it looks like, & how to respond to it.

1. The REASON is JESUS- JESUS is the REASON for Persecution.

Jesus changes the formula in this beatitude. To this point He has used 3rd person language, but now it is in the 2nd- you. He makes it personal.

Jesus also makes a prediction- when. He presupposes that Christian persecution is going to happen, it’s just a matter of time. If it hasn’t happened yet, it will. He says “they” will persecute you. Who’s they?

“They” are the Jews, the Jewish religious-political-cultural leaders. These disciples of Jesus would be persecuted by their own countrymen. This is why I prefer the label “American Christian” rather than “Christian American”. To be American & Christian is not synonymous, one is an Identity, the other an Ideal. Being Christian should transcend being American. Eph 3:14-15, For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named. We have family all over the globe and enemies in our own country- & Christ will be the reason why. So, what will happen?

Jesus depicts a sliding scale of escalating persecution:

· revile-reproach, mock, harshly criticize, verbal abuse

· persecution- to pursue, cause to suffer, physical, emotional, mental abuse (personal)

· say all kinds of evil, speak evil- slander, words falsely spoken to damage a person’s reputation; lies to ruin someone’s life, societal, socio-economic, abuse; ILL: Christian Bakers

Later in Matthew, Jesus will encounter each form of persecution that He mentions here. Jesus taught His disciples that persecution will come because of Him, it will be for His sake. We need to realize that persecution for Jesus’ sake is not the same as the problems we create.

1 Peter 3:14-16 describes how to deal with persecution for Jesus’ sake. 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense(answer) to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. There is a right way to give an answer for Jesus.

So often Christians suffer harm, not for Christ’s sake, but because of their sin- b/c of their own wrong words & deeds. Sanctifying Christ as Lord in your heartmeans that He has your mind & mouth too. Following Jesus is not an excuse for being a jerk to people. The defense (answer) doesn’t mean getting defensive or being offensive. It means being prepared to tell people about your hope in Jesus with meekness, reverence, & a good conscience, so that if they have something bad to say about you, the only thing they can say is “that person is like Jesus.”

“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” - Mahatma Gandhi | What was Jesus like?

1 Peter 2:22–23, Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth”; 23who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously.

If we are going to go through persecution, let Jesus be the reason.

2. The RESPONSE is JOY. JOY is your RESPONSE to Persecution.

Rejoice- be glad; feel happiness or joy

‌Exceedingly glad: extreme happiness or joy, elation (overjoyed)

Luke 6:22–23, Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake. 23Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven…

1 Peter 4:12–13, Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.

E.g., Peter and the other Apostles are our example of a joyful response to persecution.Over & over again in the book of Acts, we see them doing good & preaching the Gospel, being persecuted for their good works & the Gospel message & expressing their joy because of it.

by Acts 5- People were getting saved left & right, being baptized, joining the church, & sharing with one another so that no one had any needs.

It was remarkable!The Apostles had the power of God to do many wonders & signs- the sick were made well, the handicapped were healed, the demon possessed were made whole; amazing things were happening, & the religious leaders took note of it, they were jealous.

Acts 5:40–42,...and when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. 42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

How can you rejoice when you’ve been arrested, interrogated, threatened, imprisoned, and beaten? You can rejoice when you’re hope is not in this world but the next, not on earth but in heaven, not in how people receive you but in how God rewards you.

There is a heavenly reward for doing earthly good.6 times in the SOM Jesus uses the word “reward”- Matt 5:12; 5:46, loving enemies; Matt 6:1-2, giving alms, Matt 6:5, prayer, Matt 6:16, fasting. If we do acts of righteousness to be seen by others, then being seen is our reward. But if the right we do, if the good we do, is for God, & we don’t care if it is in secret or not seen by anyone, then God who sees in secret will reward you openly. Colossians 3:23–24, And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

The response is joy because the reward is great. 2 Corinthians 4:17, For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory…

Romans 8:18, ...that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Revelation 2:10, Jesus promises a "victor's crown" for those who suffer persecution. “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer… Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

Philippians 4:4, Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!

Let Jesus be the reason for persecution and joy be our response. Lest we think, this is not going to happen to us, realize that it could.

3. The JEOPARDY is REAL; persecution is the RISK you run for the sake of Jesus.

Don’t believe me- listen to Jesus- “for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” 2 Chronicles 36:15–16, And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. 16 But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against His people, till there was no remedy.

Persecution is to be expected because it was the experience of the prophets & it will be the experience of every person who tries to live like Jesus. 2 Timothy 3:12, Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

E.g., Stephen, the first Christian Martyr, Acts 7:54-60,When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth... 57 Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; 58 and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. 59 And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

The OT prophets & NT saints serve the same Cause- the Kingdom, & the same King- Jesus.Jesus promised that both would suffer mistreatment & both would receive inexpressible rewards in heaven.

What do we need to do with that? James 5:10, My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience.

Unlike the American Dream, the Kingdom reality isn’t all life, liberty, & the pursuit of happiness. Jesus says the good life for the Christian is when you are reviled, persecuted, & slandered. That is a hard statement, there’s no two ways about it.

I want to encourage you that when it comes down to choosing the American Dream or the Christian reality- Choose Jesus, Choose Joy, and Choose the Jeopardy of living a truly righteous life.