A Lamp Unto My Feet Bible Study Website
Matthew 5:1-12
Lesson #09
THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT AND THE BEATITUDES
- Memory verse: Psalms 1:1
- Matthew 5-7 is called the Sermon on the Mount because it occurs on a hillside. This is Jesus’ first teaching. He has chosen the 12 disciples and now begins to teach them.
- All of the Sermon on the Mount (Mat 5-7) probably does not occur at one time.
- This is probably more than one sermon put together by Matthew to give us a whole picture of the basic principles of the kingdom of God. We will study it in sections.
- The Greek verb taught used here (Mat 5:2) means = a repeated, continual action.
- Read Mat 5:1-12 The Beatitudes
- Verses 1 and 2 tells us he sat down to teach them. When a Jewish rabbi taught officially, he sat down. It also tells us he “opened his mouth“. That means in Greek that what He said was very solemn and important. It also means in Greek that He spoke from an open heart and mind.
- The structure:
- The structure of each entity is the same. They are arranged like this to make it easy for people to memorize.
- Jesus spoke the Beatitudes in Aramaic, not in Greek.
- In Aramaic, there is no verb used after “blessed”.
- That means they are exclamations and not simple sentences. For example: “Oh the blessedness of the poor in spirit!”
- The significance:
- They are not just pious hopes of what shall be in a future eternity. They are not just future prophecies (though they are the code of Law for the millennial kingdom of Christ on earth.)
- They are also congratulations on what is the reality of today.
- There are 8 of them. The number 8 in the Bible is the number of new beginnings.
- “Blessed” (makarios) means = to experience true hope and joy.
The greek word, (makarios), means = to have an inward joy that is serene and untouchable which is independent of all the changes of life no matter what happens to you. (Joh 16:22)
The English word, happiness, is not a sufficient translation because the root “hap” means “a chance happening”. Human happiness is dependent on chance and pleasant changes in life. The blessedness of God is not a chance happening.
-
- Beatitude #1
- “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.”
- The Greek word, poor:
- There are 2 Greek words for poor:
- =1= (penes) describes a working man who is neither rich nor is he destitute.
- =2= (ptochos) which means absolute abject poverty.
- The second word is the word used in this beatitude.
- The Jews used this word to mean one who had no influence or power, no help or prestige, completely down-trodden and oppressed, and having no earthly resources.
- Oh the joy of the man who has realized his own utter helplessness, and who has put his whole trust in God!
- There are 2 Greek words for poor:
- If a man does this, two things enter his life:
- =1= He will become completely detached from things because he will know that they will not bring him true joy. This teaching does not say that material poverty is a good thing.
- =2= He will become completely attached to God and the things of God.
- The deeper meaning:
- Oh, the joy of the man who has realized his own utter helplessness, and who has put his whole trust in God, for then can he give to God a perfect obedience which will make him a citizen of the kingdom of heaven!
- This is our condition when we first come to know the Lord as our Savior. We realize our life is poor and worthless, and we need Him.
- To gain a poor spirit attitude:
- Give God his rightful place at the center of your life.
- The evidence of violation of this attitude: Pride
- Beatitude #2
- “Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
- The Greek word for mourn is the strongest word for mourning in the Greek language. It is used for mourning someone who has died. When they mourned someone who died, they wailed and cried loudly with deep sorrow.
- The beatitude can mean:
- Blessed is the man who has endured the deepest sorrow that life can bring, for God will comfort him.
- Blessed is the man who is desperately sorry for the sorrow and suffering in the world.
- The deeper meaning:
- The joy of the man whose heart is utterly broken for his own sin, for out of his sorrow he will find the joy of God!
- The man who is desperately sorry for his own sin and his own unworthiness has an attitude of penitence. He therefore, mourns his life because it is dead in sin.
- This, too, is the condition in which we find ourselves when we first come to Jesus as our Savior.
- To gain an attitude of mourning:
- Allow God to break your heart with the things that break His heart and you will gain His goals for your life.
- The evidence of violation of this attitude: Lack of purpose, lack of goals, and ineffective prayer life.
- Beatitude #3
- “Blessed are the meek (praus), for they shall inherit the earth.”
- In modern English, the word meek is not an honorable word but instead means = submissive, subservient, and spineless.
- As a result, this beatitude is often misunderstood. There is no adequate word in the English language that displays the accurate Greek meaning of the word (praus), though perhaps the word gentle comes the closest.
- There are two Greek ideas pictured in the word meek (praus):
- =1= Meek is the half way point between excessive anger and the total lack of any anger. Therefore, blessed is the man who is always angry at the right time for a godly reason, and never angry at the wrong time for a personally selfish reason.
- =2= Meek is used for an animal which has been domesticated and trained to obey the command of his master. He has learned to accept being controlled.
- The deeper meaning:
- Oh the joy of the man who realizes his own ignorance and weakness and, therefore, has every instinct, impulse, and passion under the control of God, for he shall be a king among men! (Pro 16:32)
- Moses is the model of meekness. Num 12:3. This should be our attitude after we come to know Jesus as our Savior in order to see Him work through our lives.
- To gain a meek attitude:
- Yield all personal rights and possessions to God.
- The evidence of violation of this attitude: Anger or greed
- Beatitude #4
- “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.”
- This describes a very great hunger and thirst beyond what we have ever experienced in this country. It is the hunger of the man who is starving to death.
- Desperately, he will do anything he can to get food to save his life.
- The hunger in this beatitude is for righteousness, not food.
- The blessing is not necessarily to the man who has achieved righteousness, but to the one who desires complete righteousness with his whole heart.
- He will not be satisfied until he has it.
- The deeper meaning:
- Oh, the joy of the man who longs for total righteousness as a starving man longs for food, and a man perishing of thirst longs for water, for that man will be truly satisfied!
- This attitude is necessary once we receive Jesus as our Savior because without it we do not grow in our spiritual relationship with Him.
- It includes a hunger for fellowship with Him, a hunger for His word, and a hunger for His perfecting grace.
- Oh, the joy of the man who longs for total righteousness as a starving man longs for food, and a man perishing of thirst longs for water, for that man will be truly satisfied!
- To gain a hunger and thirst for righteousness:
- Develop an interest in the word of God and commit yourself to study it.
- The evidence of violation of this attitude:
- Lack of spiritual interest and irregular devotional life.
- Develop an interest in the word of God and commit yourself to study it.
- Beatitude #1
Homework
Matthew 5
- Memory verse: Psalms 34:8
