Blessed Attitudes

A familiar passage - Matthew 5:1-8

This passage is a very familiar passage to Christians. We know the first 12 verse of Matthew 5 as the beatitudes.

Growing up in the church I have heard many sermons from the text

Never though in the context of Lent, this being the first Sunday of the Lenten season.

In this season we are preparing. We are on a journey to the cross, which is the focus of Easter Sunday.

Matthew 5:1–8 NASB 2020

1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 And He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying, 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 “Blessed are the gentle, for they will inherit the earth. 6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. 7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

If we were to make a list of what it would take to succeed in life, we would probably find the list is different that what we see in this passage.

In fact many Christians find this list unattainable in our world and their lives.

This is true if you are doing it all on your own. The target audience of this passage is not that different than us.

They struggled with:

Wealth inequality

An empire that was easy to worship and obey

Selfish desires

Self security at the expense of others

When think of the culture Jews in Jesus day we find that these things were counter-cultural

In our world today it is still difficult to consider what Jesus is teaching because what is politically correct our the norm in society is opposed to everything in this passage.

So are you ready to hear what Jesus says? Let’s dig in!

What is blessed in this passage?

What comes to mind when you think of “blessed”?

Maybe prosperity or wealth?

A blessed person how an abundance?

The word translated blessed is characterized by happiness and being highly favored.

Jesus is not talking about prosperity or material wealth.

Jesus is interpreting the word in a new way, as blessed or happy!

Imagine the shock of those listening to Jesus.

To hear blessed followed by poor in spirit. Shouldn’t it be rich in spirit?

Jesus is ignoring what how the world defines blessed and teaching what is the reality of a truly blessed person.

The Qualities of a Blessed Person

A look at the list provided by Jesus doesn’t fit with cultural norms of any day.

I we could make a list of what society would say are those who are blessed:

Blessed are those who have high paying jobs

Blessed are those who social media influencers

Blessed are those who have power and influence

Blessed are those with big houses, expensive cars, and fancy things

Blessed are the rich and famous

Yet the list provided by Jesus is completely different. His list did not included anything that the leaders of his day would consider as blessed

It’s not the wealthy but the poor in spirit who are blessed

It’s not those in comfort but those who morn that are blessed

It’s not the arrogant but meek who are blessed

It’s not the violent but the gentle who are blessed

It’s not the cruel but the merciful who are blessed

Being like Christ in the ways He laid down which will often lead to persecution are blessed

What the blessed are blessed with

Jesus didn't leave us wondering about these blessed attitudes, but that these blessed attitudes carry a promise of being blessed

however they are not blessed with wealth, health, land, and other things, but note what they are blessed with

Poor in spirit are blessed with the kingdom of heaven