Shine in the Darkness (MSU BSU BASIC #1)

Introduction

Matthew 5:1–16 ESV

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “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. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

I know that most of you are freshmen in this room today. You are ready to make your mark on the world. You have left your homes, hometowns, families, and friends.

You can do whatever you want. You can study whatever you want. You can have a career that you choose so long as you study hard.

Explanation

“Blessed”

We use this word SO much, but I don’t know if we really know what it means.

We most often use it to tell others that God has given us what we want.

“I have a nice vehicle.”

“I am dating the person that I want to date.”

“I had good grades this semester.”

We see it in a lot of different forms.

#blessed

“too blessed to be stressed”

“Bless you” when someone sneezes.

We ask God to bless the food before we eat.

What does it actually mean?

It doesn’t mean that everything goes well for them, and the perfect life falls into their lap. After all, poor in spirit, mourners, and those who are persecuted for righteousness sake aren’t who we would look at and say, “Wow, they are blessed.”

It is a difficult word to define. Happy, fortunate, and Craig Blomberg would say, “to be congratulated.”

Invitation