Matthew 5:5 Blessed are the Meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Psalm 37:11 But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
What does it mean to be meek?
A meek person has a humble and gentle heart. He is a person who is kind and considerate to others, even to those who oppose him. He is easily approachable, not prideful or resentful, not temperamental, moody or harsh. Meekness is an outward expression of inward humility, strength and spiritual poise. It is the ultimate exercise of integrity. While others may act aggressively, the meek walks in godly peace, others may claim their rights, the meek focuses on his duties, while others may seek revenge, the meek gives way for the judgment of God. Meekness does not imply weakness or sadness. It does not mean that the person is subdued or given false modesty. But it portrays a person who willfully and joyfully considers his own life worth nothing, when compared to the greatness of God, he has experienced. The words of Paul have similar expression in Phil 3:7-11. A person is not meek because he announces he is meek. A meek person treats everyone fairly and with consistency. He does not prefer some and humiliate or embarrass others. It is easy to spot a meek person because he is usually not part of the crowd--he is set apart for the Master's use. Meekness is controlled strength and requires one to give up his ways in preference for God's ways.
Meekness in Bible
Meekness is often commended in the bible. The word meek is used about 22 times in the bible. It is one of the fruit of Holy Spirit. (Galatians 5:22 – ‘gentleness’). It is the character, Jesus himself associated with. Matthew 11:29 – “For I am gentle and humble in heart…” It is the mark of the disciples of Jesus. (Eph 4:2). Christian leaders are to be meek. (2 Timothy 2:25)
The Promise: Inheritance
What an amazing promise and reward, God gives to those who are meek! – They will inherit the earth. There are more than 200 instances of the word ‘inherit’ or its derivatives in old testament. The patriarchs and the prophets looked forward to the ‘Promise land’ as a fulfillment of great blessings. Inheritance comes as a legacy and gift. The meek will be the heirs and partakers of the Kingdom of God.
Reference: www.bibleseo.com
Monday, September 20, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Blessed are they that mourn
Matthew 5: 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Who are Those who mourn?
At first this scripture text seems to contradict itself. To be blessed means to be happy. How can someone who is mourning be happy? Jesus meant for this attitude to be viewed in a spiritual way. Isaiah 61:1-3 helps us to understand the context of this beatitude.
1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
When we become Christians we are endowed with weapons that help us learn to stand against the wiles of the devil, to be a witness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, to take the kingdom of God by force, to take authority in our lives and in the lives of those around us, to resist the enemy, to tear down strongholds, and to watch, pray and worship.
The weapons of this warfare are not carnal and sometimes because they are not carnal it is difficult to recognize what they are and what they should be used to achieve. Like David's five smooth stones our weapons often seem small in our hands, but when the power of the almighty is added each accomplishes awesome and impossible feats, which prove God's love for us. We need to recognize our weapons, but that's a blog for another day. The weapons that are applicable to those that mourn are joy and peace. Our joy can lift us out of terrible situations going on all around us and our peace, which passes understanding, can bring us to a place in God that no one can pluck us from.
So although we may mourn we understand that weeping may endure for a night, but JOY comes in the morning (mourning). We may be saddened by something that has happened, but we recognize that God meant it for our good and that all things work together for the good of those who love Him and who are the called according to His purpose! We trust that God can and will carry us through every situation that we come to and on the other side we become overcommers with a testimony! That testimony will allow us to go into the enemy's camp with confidence so that we can take back our families, take back all that the enemy has stolen--we can recover all!
The reward is Comfort – Calling Near
The Greek word for comforted is parakaleo which means ‘to call to the side of’, ‘to call near’. The comfort which God offers, is not just consoling or soothing, but it is much more than that. When we turn to God in our suffering, God calls us to His side. We are able to enter beyond the veil. He is touched by the feelings of our infirmities. He comforts us and come to our rescue.
People often complain about God’s silence in our time of need or suffering. But this beatitude gives very different picture. God is calling us near, ready to comfort us, all we need to do is to respond to Him. As a matter of fact He promised to never leave nor forsake us. So in our time of trouble He is truly right there! This idea is fully realized in the Words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28-30, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
This beatitude, at its core, brings the message of hope for those who mourn or are hurt. You can try to ignore it, or escape it, but you can only find true comfort and rest in Jesus. When we learn to turn it over to Jesus, whatever "IT" is He gives us comfort in return. He promised that the comforter would come. The comforter is here.
References: www.bibleseo.com and www.bible.com
Who are Those who mourn?
At first this scripture text seems to contradict itself. To be blessed means to be happy. How can someone who is mourning be happy? Jesus meant for this attitude to be viewed in a spiritual way. Isaiah 61:1-3 helps us to understand the context of this beatitude.
1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; 3To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
When we become Christians we are endowed with weapons that help us learn to stand against the wiles of the devil, to be a witness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, to take the kingdom of God by force, to take authority in our lives and in the lives of those around us, to resist the enemy, to tear down strongholds, and to watch, pray and worship.
The weapons of this warfare are not carnal and sometimes because they are not carnal it is difficult to recognize what they are and what they should be used to achieve. Like David's five smooth stones our weapons often seem small in our hands, but when the power of the almighty is added each accomplishes awesome and impossible feats, which prove God's love for us. We need to recognize our weapons, but that's a blog for another day. The weapons that are applicable to those that mourn are joy and peace. Our joy can lift us out of terrible situations going on all around us and our peace, which passes understanding, can bring us to a place in God that no one can pluck us from.
So although we may mourn we understand that weeping may endure for a night, but JOY comes in the morning (mourning). We may be saddened by something that has happened, but we recognize that God meant it for our good and that all things work together for the good of those who love Him and who are the called according to His purpose! We trust that God can and will carry us through every situation that we come to and on the other side we become overcommers with a testimony! That testimony will allow us to go into the enemy's camp with confidence so that we can take back our families, take back all that the enemy has stolen--we can recover all!
The reward is Comfort – Calling Near
The Greek word for comforted is parakaleo which means ‘to call to the side of’, ‘to call near’. The comfort which God offers, is not just consoling or soothing, but it is much more than that. When we turn to God in our suffering, God calls us to His side. We are able to enter beyond the veil. He is touched by the feelings of our infirmities. He comforts us and come to our rescue.
People often complain about God’s silence in our time of need or suffering. But this beatitude gives very different picture. God is calling us near, ready to comfort us, all we need to do is to respond to Him. As a matter of fact He promised to never leave nor forsake us. So in our time of trouble He is truly right there! This idea is fully realized in the Words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28-30, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
This beatitude, at its core, brings the message of hope for those who mourn or are hurt. You can try to ignore it, or escape it, but you can only find true comfort and rest in Jesus. When we learn to turn it over to Jesus, whatever "IT" is He gives us comfort in return. He promised that the comforter would come. The comforter is here.
References: www.bibleseo.com and www.bible.com
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Blessed are the Poor in spirit
Beatitude 1 : Poor In Spirit
Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The term poor in spirit seems odd, but other scripture references help to determine the true meaning that Jesus wanted us to get. First the word for poor in Greek Ptochos literally means having nothing, reduced to begging, like a beggar, totally broke. Jesus mixes the term for having nothing with spirit so that now we understand that He meant the text to convey that we need to begin our Christian journey with a broken and contrite spirit. This is born out through scripture reference. Psalms 34:18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psalms 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. King David further asks God to create within him a clean heart and to renew a right spirit within him.
Having a broken heart and a contrite spirit means simply being humble and submissive. This happens when we realize that what we have or do not have monetarily isn't going to supply our needs, but rather God is our ultimate source and resource for everything. When we look to the hills because our help comes from them then we can understand that without Him we could do nothing, but because of Him we live move and have our being. We must give everything over to Him and fall on the rock and be broken and humbled.
Isaiah 66:1-2: “Thus says the LORD, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? “For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,” declares the LORD. “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.”
Isaiah 57:15: “For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the contrite.”
The opposite of poor in spirit is proud in spirit. The pride of life is one of the three roots of sin and independence from God--First Lady Woods discussed this with us at Bible Study on September 1st. (1 John 2:16)
Being humble, broken and contrite is the root of all virtues. It is the state of heart; it is how you view yourself in light of God. It is how you engage yourself with His people. It is how you handle yourself in this world. Humility is the root from which all other beatitudes grow. Without submitting to God first taking on a spirit of meekness, learning to make for peace, accepting unwarranted persecution and the other beatitudes are quite impossible to accept and practice.
The Promise: Kingdom of Heaven
The Kingdom of Heaven is a peculiar title only found in the gospel of Matthew. This term is used interchangeably with Kingdom of God in other gospels. Kingdom of Heaven is the messianic kingdom promised in old testament, to be established by Messiah. (Daniel 2:44) Matthew represents Jesus as the savior and king prophesied in old testament.
Kingdom of God (Heaven) is in twofold:
1. Already Here: Luke 17:20-21: Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you."
2. Yet to Come: Kingdom of Heaven will be fully realized and established when Christ will come as a King and Ruler over all earth. (Daniel 7: 13,14,27)
Practical Applications:
■How do you view yourself in light of this beatitude?
■How do you view others?
■Do your attitudes reflect your beliefs?
References: www.bibleseo.com and www.bible.com
Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The term poor in spirit seems odd, but other scripture references help to determine the true meaning that Jesus wanted us to get. First the word for poor in Greek Ptochos literally means having nothing, reduced to begging, like a beggar, totally broke. Jesus mixes the term for having nothing with spirit so that now we understand that He meant the text to convey that we need to begin our Christian journey with a broken and contrite spirit. This is born out through scripture reference. Psalms 34:18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psalms 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. King David further asks God to create within him a clean heart and to renew a right spirit within him.
Having a broken heart and a contrite spirit means simply being humble and submissive. This happens when we realize that what we have or do not have monetarily isn't going to supply our needs, but rather God is our ultimate source and resource for everything. When we look to the hills because our help comes from them then we can understand that without Him we could do nothing, but because of Him we live move and have our being. We must give everything over to Him and fall on the rock and be broken and humbled.
Isaiah 66:1-2: “Thus says the LORD, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? “For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,” declares the LORD. “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.”
Isaiah 57:15: “For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the contrite.”
The opposite of poor in spirit is proud in spirit. The pride of life is one of the three roots of sin and independence from God--First Lady Woods discussed this with us at Bible Study on September 1st. (1 John 2:16)
Being humble, broken and contrite is the root of all virtues. It is the state of heart; it is how you view yourself in light of God. It is how you engage yourself with His people. It is how you handle yourself in this world. Humility is the root from which all other beatitudes grow. Without submitting to God first taking on a spirit of meekness, learning to make for peace, accepting unwarranted persecution and the other beatitudes are quite impossible to accept and practice.
The Promise: Kingdom of Heaven
The Kingdom of Heaven is a peculiar title only found in the gospel of Matthew. This term is used interchangeably with Kingdom of God in other gospels. Kingdom of Heaven is the messianic kingdom promised in old testament, to be established by Messiah. (Daniel 2:44) Matthew represents Jesus as the savior and king prophesied in old testament.
Kingdom of God (Heaven) is in twofold:
1. Already Here: Luke 17:20-21: Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you."
2. Yet to Come: Kingdom of Heaven will be fully realized and established when Christ will come as a King and Ruler over all earth. (Daniel 7: 13,14,27)
Practical Applications:
■How do you view yourself in light of this beatitude?
■How do you view others?
■Do your attitudes reflect your beliefs?
References: www.bibleseo.com and www.bible.com
Monday, September 13, 2010
Beattitudes: Part 1 The Sermon on the Mount
The next blogs will be about Jesus' famed Sermon on the Mount--specifically about the beatitudes. Many people refer to the first portion of the sermon as the beatitudes because Jesus begins the text with the term blessed and then espouses a reward for a specific character attribute.
The backdrop is that there were expectations on Jesus that he had come to "rescue" the Jews. He was being heralded by some as a military leader so this sermon was probably quite frustrating and confusing to those who saw him in that capacity.
In this sermon Jesus talks about being humble, about being empathetic and meek, about longing for righteousness, being merciful and making for peace, about being being pure in heart and being persecuted. The sermon talks about being an example and a light and not breaking away from the law but fulfilling it. He talks about loving your enemies and blessing those who curse you as the reward is in loving those that do not love you. Chapters 6 and 7 show Jesus sharing how to pray and how to not be judgmental but to show compassion and mercy. Jesus instructs not to worry but to seek the kingdom of God first. It is especially notable in Chapter 7 that Jesus takes the time to thoroughly explain the importance of relying on God and to beware of false prophets.
One can see that this sermon is Jesus pouring out of himself and into us the very reason that He came and principles to adopt and to live on. To accept teachings from this sermon begins to make us disciples in deed as we take on the mind of Christ and put away our own way of dealing with these practical and day to day real life situations. These lessons are an important piece of understanding Christianity as a philosophy and as a way of living naturally and spiritually. If we write this word on the tables of our hearts and refresh this word in our minds it will help guide us in our Christian journey.
For the present we are only covering the Beatitudes portion of the sermon. However, Chapters 5, 6 and 7 should be read and studied in their entirety to enjoy the complete Sermon on the Mount. The sermon is encouraging, uplifting, refreshing and renewing. We will begin tomorrow with Chapter 5 verse 3.
The backdrop is that there were expectations on Jesus that he had come to "rescue" the Jews. He was being heralded by some as a military leader so this sermon was probably quite frustrating and confusing to those who saw him in that capacity.
In this sermon Jesus talks about being humble, about being empathetic and meek, about longing for righteousness, being merciful and making for peace, about being being pure in heart and being persecuted. The sermon talks about being an example and a light and not breaking away from the law but fulfilling it. He talks about loving your enemies and blessing those who curse you as the reward is in loving those that do not love you. Chapters 6 and 7 show Jesus sharing how to pray and how to not be judgmental but to show compassion and mercy. Jesus instructs not to worry but to seek the kingdom of God first. It is especially notable in Chapter 7 that Jesus takes the time to thoroughly explain the importance of relying on God and to beware of false prophets.
One can see that this sermon is Jesus pouring out of himself and into us the very reason that He came and principles to adopt and to live on. To accept teachings from this sermon begins to make us disciples in deed as we take on the mind of Christ and put away our own way of dealing with these practical and day to day real life situations. These lessons are an important piece of understanding Christianity as a philosophy and as a way of living naturally and spiritually. If we write this word on the tables of our hearts and refresh this word in our minds it will help guide us in our Christian journey.
For the present we are only covering the Beatitudes portion of the sermon. However, Chapters 5, 6 and 7 should be read and studied in their entirety to enjoy the complete Sermon on the Mount. The sermon is encouraging, uplifting, refreshing and renewing. We will begin tomorrow with Chapter 5 verse 3.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Fill Up! Follow Up and Completion
Many a Christian song writer has used the line after all that I have been through, I still have joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit of God that is vitally necessary for the health and well being of my heart, mind, body spirit and soul. It pulls all of these things together and keeps me motivated and focused on the fact that neither my past or my current situation dictate my future outcome!
That is why it is important--no--imperative for us to submit to and accept the Joy of the Lord. We must allow His joy to remain with us so that our joy might be full. It is His joy that keeps me stretching past my breaking point, past my comfort zone, into a new place in my spiritual advancement. It is His joy that reminds me that He meant it for my good. It keeps me from seeing negative things negatively. As a matter of fact I like the way Brother Bryan Rankin put it on Sunday. He said he was complaining to God about his car being broken down and some repairs that he had to make to his home, but after careful consideration he had to stop and give God thanks because he remembered when he didn't have a car that could break down and he didn't have a home that needed repairs. It is that JOY of the Lord that causes us to see our lives and our circumstances differently and this process matures us and takes us to those higher heights and deeper depths that we want to reach in our relationship with God.
So we should be excited about the Word of God that shows us the following points:
1. Was provided yesterday.
2. Verses 4&5 tells us that God grants us an opportunity to be still and receive the pruning, care and the discipline required to grow beyond our own expectations and the expectations of others. People may have counted you out, but God picked you up, grafted you in, gave you new life and allowed you to begin again. Not only are you productive, but you are a miracle! Not only are you fruitful, but you are doing more than even you imagined or anyone who knew you imagined!
3. Verse 7 explains that as we learn to reach into the vine and into the very root through our worship we are in fact using our spirit to worship God in spirit and in truth. This allows us to truly touch God and to speak to Him in a faith language that He will respond to. It is not emotionally driven. It is not driven by manipulation, but it is pure faith and as with any language it must be learned through practice. You want to learn French go to France! You want to grow in faith have your faith tested--your joy will keep you motivated while you learn the faith language.
4. Verse 8 shows us that when we opt to do things the way that God commands--for His Word states that if we love Him we will keep His commandments--God is glorified and magnified through our faithful obedience. We need to become oblivious to the physical outcomes and trust that God will do what He said He will do. We are representatives of Christ. For us to obey Him and for Him not to respond to that is not His character--He is not a man that He should lie.
5. Verse 9 cuts to the crux of the matter and here is where your joy becomes full. God provided the ultimate example of love through sacrifice--the sacrifice of His son. Now we ought to continue to walk in that example.
We arrive at verse 11, which is our focus. Here is where every Christian ought to greedily take their fill. These Words are the words of Jesus and he says I've shared all of this with you so that my joy might remain with you and that your joy might be full. So when I just think of the goodness and then on top of that alllllllllll that He has done for me, but add on top of that who He is, then my joy is full. I know that the situation is going to turn around just for me. He's going to work it out for me no matter what it looks like. He's working behind the scenes on my behalf no matter what people say. My joy fully holds me up, picks me up, keeps me up and allows me to restore somebody else in their time of need freely knowing that that ember that I received from God will never go out.
That is why it is important--no--imperative for us to submit to and accept the Joy of the Lord. We must allow His joy to remain with us so that our joy might be full. It is His joy that keeps me stretching past my breaking point, past my comfort zone, into a new place in my spiritual advancement. It is His joy that reminds me that He meant it for my good. It keeps me from seeing negative things negatively. As a matter of fact I like the way Brother Bryan Rankin put it on Sunday. He said he was complaining to God about his car being broken down and some repairs that he had to make to his home, but after careful consideration he had to stop and give God thanks because he remembered when he didn't have a car that could break down and he didn't have a home that needed repairs. It is that JOY of the Lord that causes us to see our lives and our circumstances differently and this process matures us and takes us to those higher heights and deeper depths that we want to reach in our relationship with God.
So we should be excited about the Word of God that shows us the following points:
1. Was provided yesterday.
2. Verses 4&5 tells us that God grants us an opportunity to be still and receive the pruning, care and the discipline required to grow beyond our own expectations and the expectations of others. People may have counted you out, but God picked you up, grafted you in, gave you new life and allowed you to begin again. Not only are you productive, but you are a miracle! Not only are you fruitful, but you are doing more than even you imagined or anyone who knew you imagined!
3. Verse 7 explains that as we learn to reach into the vine and into the very root through our worship we are in fact using our spirit to worship God in spirit and in truth. This allows us to truly touch God and to speak to Him in a faith language that He will respond to. It is not emotionally driven. It is not driven by manipulation, but it is pure faith and as with any language it must be learned through practice. You want to learn French go to France! You want to grow in faith have your faith tested--your joy will keep you motivated while you learn the faith language.
4. Verse 8 shows us that when we opt to do things the way that God commands--for His Word states that if we love Him we will keep His commandments--God is glorified and magnified through our faithful obedience. We need to become oblivious to the physical outcomes and trust that God will do what He said He will do. We are representatives of Christ. For us to obey Him and for Him not to respond to that is not His character--He is not a man that He should lie.
5. Verse 9 cuts to the crux of the matter and here is where your joy becomes full. God provided the ultimate example of love through sacrifice--the sacrifice of His son. Now we ought to continue to walk in that example.
We arrive at verse 11, which is our focus. Here is where every Christian ought to greedily take their fill. These Words are the words of Jesus and he says I've shared all of this with you so that my joy might remain with you and that your joy might be full. So when I just think of the goodness and then on top of that alllllllllll that He has done for me, but add on top of that who He is, then my joy is full. I know that the situation is going to turn around just for me. He's going to work it out for me no matter what it looks like. He's working behind the scenes on my behalf no matter what people say. My joy fully holds me up, picks me up, keeps me up and allows me to restore somebody else in their time of need freely knowing that that ember that I received from God will never go out.
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