GOSPEL OF MATTHEW - THE HEART GOD BLESSES -

THE BLESSED LIFE PT 2 - MATTHEW 5:6-8

Last week we started looking at the longest of Jesus’ teachings the great Sermon on the Mount. 

Jesus starts with 9 Blessed are the statements which are referred to as the Beatitudes.  We looked at the first 3

– Blessed are the poor in spirit which are those who realize they are spiritually bankrupt and recognize their need for God.   Blessed are those who mourn and they find comfort in being in God’s presence.  And we closed with blessed are the meek and we defined meek as strength under control or an unassuming humility that rests in God and are the ones that surrender their strength, will, desires and wants to God’s control.

Sermon Title: The Heart God Blesses

Scripture Text: Matthew 5:6-8 – “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

1. Hunger and Thirst for Righteousness: (Matthew 5:6)

Illustration: Imagine you’re stranded in the desert, parched and desperate for water. Nothing else matters but quenching your thirst. This is the kind of intensity Jesus speaks of—a desperate longing for righteousness. Just as water satisfies physical thirst, God satisfies spiritual hunger.

Think of an Olympic athlete training for gold. They sacrifice everything—time, comfort, and pleasure—to pursue their goal. Their hunger for victory drives their every action.

Similarly, we are called to pursue God’s righteousness with the same intensity, allowing nothing else to distract us.

Key Idea: Righteousness – attaining right behavior before God, right standing befOre God.  “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

HUNGER AND THIRST – strong desire.  True satisfaction comes from an intense longing for us to be in right standing before God which means we are desiring God’s will to be done in our lives and in the world.  In Matthew 6:33 which we will get to later this year Jesus tells us how “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Jesus calls us to desire God’s righteousness as intensely as we crave food and drink for survival. True righteousness comes from complete obedience, live a sincere life trusting God while pursuing God’s will above all else.

Supporting Scripture: We see throughout Scripture this idea of intense hunger and thirst

Psalm 42:1 – "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God."

Psalm 63:1 – "You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you."

John 6:35 – "Then Jesus declared, 'I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'"

Seek Him and His presence and that should be enough in our life –

That deep hunger can only be tamed with His presence, His Word -

His presence should be enough in our life – remember He told satan the same thing in the desert.

Matthew 4:4 – But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”

He told satan that, He told His disciples that, He is telling us that – the Word of God should be the substance that we hunger and long for

Application Questions:

1.   What do you hunger and thirst for most in your life?

2.   How can you develop a deeper desire to seek God’s Word and live by His standards?

3.   What steps can you take to prioritize pursuing God’s righteousness this week?

BIG IDEA: Appetite for God's Will

2. Being Merciful: (Matthew 5:7)

Illustration: In the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), the Samaritan shows mercy by helping a man left for dead, even though others ignored him. Mercy means stepping out of our way to show compassion, even when it’s inconvenient or costly. Similarly, God’s mercy toward us should inspire us to extend mercy to others.

A story is told of a soldier in Napoleon’s army who committed a serious offense. The soldier’s mother begged Napoleon for mercy, but Napoleon said, “He doesn’t deserve mercy.” The mother replied, “If he deserved it, it wouldn’t be mercy.” Moved by her plea, Napoleon pardoned the soldier. God’s mercy toward us is undeserved, and we are called to extend that same mercy to others.

Key Idea: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” Mercy involves both forgiveness and compassion in action—helping those in need, forgiving others, and reflecting God’s own mercy toward us.

Mercy, like Love is reciprocal in nature

Psalm 18:25-26 – With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless; with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.

Mercy – it is a fundamental if not the fundamental characteristic or attribute of God and is a core aspect of the Gospel message

The mercy of God is displayed on the cross

As a disciple of Christ – which means as a Christian we are required to show mercy –

Supporting Scripture: Micah 6:8 – "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

Colossians 3:12-13 – "Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and Patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another... Forgive as the Lord forgave you."

Application Questions:

1.    Who is someone in your life you need to forgive or show compassion to?

2. How can you actively live out God’s mercy in your relationships this week?

3.   How can you be intentional about showing mercy to someone this week?

BIG IDEA: Compassion In Action

3. Pure in Heart: (Matthew 5:8)

Illustration: Picture a glass of clear water compared to one filled with dirt and grime. Which one would you ant to drink? A pure heart is like the clear glass of water—free from impurities and ready to reflect God’s light.

Imagine a window covered in dirt and grime. The light outside can’t shine through clearly. When the window is cleaned, everything becomes visible. Similarly, a pure heart removes the “grime” of sin and distraction, allowing us to see God clearly and walk closely with Him.

Key Idea:

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Pure in heart is a moral uprightness

Purity of heart means wholehearted, single-minded devotion to God, free from hypocrisy, hidden sin and divided loyalties.  Such purity enables us to experience God more fully.

David Turner’s definition resonated with me – pure in heart is an internal integrity that transparently manifest itself in our outward behaviors

Supporting Scripture:

Psalm 24:3-4 – "Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? ... The one who has clean hands and a pure heart."

James 4:8 – "Come near to God and He will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded."

Psalm 51:10 – Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

We need to follow what Moses wrote in Deuteronomy and Jesus echoed – love the Lord your God with your heart, all your soul, and all your might.

How do we see Him?  On this side we get glimpses of Him or prophetic visions but mostly we see Him in His Blessings and Work as He continues His work in us and in creation.

Application Questions:

1.   What areas in your does heart struggle with hidden sin or divided loyalties?

2.   How can you focus on cultivating a pure heart through prayer and God’s Word this week?

BIG IDEA: A Clear Vision of God & Pursuing Holiness

Conclusion and Call to Action

Key Takeaway: Jesus invites us to live a life blessed by God by hungering for His righteousness, showing mercy to others, and maintaining purity of heart. These Attitudes bring us closer to God and allow us to reflect His kingdom to the world. Jesus calls us to pursue righteousness, reflect God’s mercy, and live with pure hearts – live an internal integrity that manifests itself in outward behaviors

Challenge: This week, focus on one beatitude: cultivate hunger for righteousness, extend mercy to someone in need, or purify your heart before God.

Deepen your hunger for righteousness by dedicating more time to prayer and scripture.

Show mercy by forgiving someone or helping someone in need.

Ask God to purify your heart and remove any distractions or hidden sins.

Closing Scripture: James 3:17-18 – "But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness."

Some of those outward behaviors is being the His hands and feet in this hurting world –

James 1:27 – "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

As we leave today – let us meditate and pray on how we can develop and live an internal integrity that manifests itself in outward behaviors