Blessed Are Those Who Are Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake, for Theirs Is The Kingdom of Heaven

 

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. There is a popular “church” teaching that when we become followers of Christ, we have a rosy path before us. That we can expect material goods and wealth because we are now “Christian”. But, do you know that Jesus says just the opposite to those who would follow Him? ¹⁸“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹ If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19) This hatred may look like name calling, denial of certain provisions or kindness, verbal assaults and threats, even physical assaults and attack on property. (I have personally experienced a number of these; on one occasion, when I and some high schoolers from church were sharing the Gospel on Good Friday, we came under verbal attack!) It may be direct persecution on our bodies by satan in an attempt to limit our ability to praise and worship God and to distract us from our mission. 

Do we withhold our identity as a follower of Christ because we are embarrassed, or think we will be called names? Look at what Jesus tells us in Mark 8:38: “Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.” 

Zowie! God implores us to turn to Him in times of trouble – look at what the Bible says about praying to God when we are facing trials: Psalm 56:1-4, Psalm 57:1-3, Psalm119:84-87, Psalm 142:6, John 15:20; there are many more!  God has given us not just His Spirit, but also spiritual armor to protect our souls, because the devil and his agents are seeking to destroy our faith and relationship with Jesus. As a follower of Christ indwelt by God’s Holy Spirit, we are already walking in eternity with God; we are already experiencing in a very tangible way, the kingdom of heaven because the Spirit of God, at work in us to build God’s kingdom, fills us, protects our souls, hearts and minds, we are sharing with Christ in our sufferings, and draws us closer to Jesus. Jesus, knowing in advance that we all face some version of suffering for His name, passionately prayed to His Father to protect us, most importantly to protect our faith and trust in Him, so that we may endure. As those who suffer for His namesake, we then fully identify with God’s kingdom, knowing we are secure in His grace and power. 

Therefore, though we will face difficulties because we follow Christ, we do not shrink back from being a Christ follower because we know we have already been saved for an inexplicable life beyond our humanity. No one can take that reality from us. The persecution can have the purpose of building our faith and trust in God, in rejoicing because we become enjoined in a remarkable and special way to Christ and His sufferings. We will find and know God in a unique way through suffering! And in the midst of our suffering, we can bow before God in grateful thanksgiving because we have the confirmation that we are Christ’s and in Christ.

 

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This beatitude and the last one are tough to deal with because very few, if any, of us want to be taken out of our comfort zone. We want people to like us, and treat us fairly. We don’t want anything ‘negative’ to happen to us just because we are Christian. Consider these things:

·        For right now - and only God knows how long this will continue, the U.S. is one of few countries where you can live and not experience the kind of harsh persecution that our fellow brothers and sisters in over 85% of the countries of the world are experiencing because they name the name of Christ. Our trials are more subtle – just like they were for the Israelites when Balaam enticed them with sexual immorality and idolatry. Many who profess belief in Christ in the ‘western’ world are succumbing to the enticement; many Christians obey culture instead of God, breaking the first commandment. They call good what God has called sinful. Have you found that to be true; if so, in what ways? If you do not think that is true, why?

·        In this paper’s opening it says that “There is a popular “church” teaching that when we become followers of Christ, we have a rosy path before us. That we can expect material goods and wealth because we are now “Christian”. What do you think about that?

 

·        Have you been made aware of the harsh persecutions taking place around the world? How do you feel when you hear about, read, or see reports of such persecutions?  

·        What is it about God’s kingdom that would make you desire to endure pain and trials for Christ’s name? How easy would that be for you? (hint, re-read the Psalms above that David prayed to God)



Bonus: "Guilty"  -- Newsboys  (theme song from movie God's Not Dead 2); "Even If" - Mercy Me; "Don't Wait Til the Battle is Over - Shout Now!" - Walter Hawkins and the Love Center Choir

Blessed Are the Poor In Spirit, for Theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Some commentators interpret this passage as ‘the poor are blessed people.’ It is true that many people in Jesus’ day were poor; those who listened to Jesus’ sermon were mostly the common, ordinary and often poor persons who had been oppressed by taxes, stringent laws and regulations, and low wages. Jesus, in His humanity, grew up in a poor village; He even speaks about Himself as being homeless!


Yet, this is not the poverty that the first beatitude refers to.

This blessing relates to an impoverishment of spirit -- being spiritually poor before God.

What does “spiritually poor” mean? It means we don’t know what we think we know about God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit; our knowledge and awareness of God are so limited that we have a skewed vision of who He is. We are impoverished or spiritually poor when we do not have the right relationship with God. (Compare Romans 1:20-22,28)

So, what does a right relationship with God look like? It begins when God speaks to us through His Holy Spirit: through His Spirit-authored Word the Bible, through prayer, and other ways (this calling is an individualized call unique for that person; only God knows how, when, where His Spirit will initiate the call). When we truly listen to and receive the Spirit’s call or prompting, we must respond to God, humbly surrendering mind, heart, and soul to Christ. We repent, i.e., turn away from our sinful attitudes, behaviors and from rejecting Jesus and His rightful Lordship over us. We seek, we beg God’s forgiveness. When our hearts are submitted to God and the Lord Jesus Christ, God pours out His grace on us; we are “cleansed” by the Word and Blood of the Lamb, and we receive God’s salvation and His Holy Spirit in us to enable us to follow Christ (see at verse 13 in the Ephesians link). As Ephesians 1:3-14 tells us, we become spiritually rich when we receive a father-child relationship with God.

As Christ followers who are spiritually rich, ours is the kingdom of heaven; we have been rescued from the kingdom of darkness, and transferred to the kingdom of God’s Son, which is the kingdom of heaven (Colossians 1:12-14). What is the kingdom of heaven, this kingdom of God’s Son? This kingdom, God's seat of authority, emanates from heaven where God dwells – Christ is its King. God’s kingdom of heaven is invisible in that it does not have a geographic location, a physical building or estate on earth; God’s throne is not visible to the human eye. God’s kingdom is the place of relationship with God, built on the richness of His love and grace, His justice and character, His mercies, His salvation. It is the rule or reign of God as Sovereign in our lives. It is visibly the universal Body of Christ, the True Church (those called out of satan’s kingdom of darkness – the 'ekklesia') in whose hearts Christ reigns – true disciples of Christ still living on earth and those who have been translated into the heavenly home (2 Corinthians 5:1) who represent God’s ways and authority. They belong to the light, to the kingdom and the kingdom is theirs; they are Citizens of God’s kingdom through the work of the Spirit, people who are obeying the commands of Christ and worshiping Him alone and sharing this good news with others, inviting them to enter the way of the Light of Life. (for further reference, see Jesus' preaching on what the kingdom of heaven is in Matthew 13:1-53, which He taught via parables)

Jesus does not want us to continue poor in spirit; He desires us all to come into a saving relationship with Him and to inherit the spiritual riches God has stored up for us. (John 3:16-17; Matthew 25:34)   When we are finally awakened in our desires, in our heart and spirit to our desperate need for Christ and pursue it -- and God transfers us to His kingdom of light, we receive not just a single blessing, but continual blessings for an eternity!

 

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·       Imagine that you receive a notice that a bank account has been set up in your name and that each year $300,000 would be deposited into it tax-free, along with a home for life, the best education, and authority to live your life honorably and with purpose. What would be your response to the donor?


How is this illustration similar to this beatitude? How may it be different?

 

·       Which one do you think is worse: being spiritually poor or being financially poor? Why did you give that answer? 

·       If you become spiritually rich, what would you do with your riches?

Bonus: "You Know My Name" - Tasha Cobbs Leonard; "I'd Rather Have Jesus", Kevin Smith and Day III Chorale; "Who Am I", Casting Crowns

[view an overview of why the Beatitudes here]