By Ray Luck
Pastor, Oak Grove Baptist Church, Athens
Focal Passage: Matthew 5:1-16
Evangelist Jay Strack tells a story about Chippy the smart mouthed Parakeet who was always an embarrassment to his owner. One day Chippy was accidentally sucked into a Wet-Dri Vac. His owner retrieved Chippy, washed him up, blow dried him and sat him back on his perch. A friend came over and noticed that Chippy was unusually quiet and asked why, to which the owner replied that he had been sucked in, washed up and blown away. At times we all feel that the world has sucked us into its worldly ways, washed us up in its backsplash, and blown us away by a whirlwind of activities. How then do we cope? In the sermon on the Mount Jesus taught us God’s standards and if we follow them we will be able to stand strong against the ways of the world. Professional tennis player Andre Aggassi once said, “Image is everything.” But Jesus said, “Godliness is everything.” In Philippians 2:5 Paul said, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Therefore, to be able to have a godly attitude that characterizes our life we must continually focus on the “Mind of Christ in us.”
The first 12 verses of Matthew 5 are called the Beatitudes because each verse begins with “blessed.” The Greek word for “blessed” is often translated “happy” (which is my least favorite translation). Again a word from Jay Strack who said this of the word “blessed,” “Congratulations you are already a winner because you have the attitude of Christ in you.”
The first two verses of Matthew 5 describe the setting of the sermon. It was on a mountain, His disciples gathered around Him as did the multitudes that were there. After He was seated He began to teach them beginning with the Beatitudes. Blessed are the poor in spirit refers to being spiritually bankrupt, acknowledging that “without God I can do nothing.” Blessed are those who mourn refers to those who are broken because of their sin-sick condition (refer to Psalm 51). Blessed are the meek refers to power under control. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness. This refers to those who have a driving passion for God (Psalm 42:1). Blessed are the merciful refers to those who show mercy intentionally, not randomly. Blessed are the pure in heart means to be totally focused on Jesus and His ways, not the ways of the world (Psalm 51:10). Blessed are the peacemakers refers to one who abides in the peace only God can give and makes it a lifestyle toward others. Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness and reviled falsely like the prophets were. The message is to stand strong for our reward is in heaven, not on this earth.
Jesus concludes this section of the sermon by reminding us that we are to be salt and light to the world. Salt seasons and preserves and light dispels darkness. May we ever live our lives by these standards as we daily walk through this sin-infested world. May the light of Christ shine through us always.
