Matthew 5:1-11 "One day as He saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around Him, He began to teach them.3 'God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for Him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.4God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted.5God blesses those who humble, for they will inherit the whole earth.6God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.7God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.8God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God.9God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.10God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.11God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers.12Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.'"Instead of these being called the beatitudes, they could be called "My attitudes". This is such a beautiful picture for me. Here Jesus is and He sees people coming, crowds of people. They are following Him. They want to hear what He has to say. As He sees them coming can you imagine what He is thinking? What a blessing for our Lord to have those follow Him and really want to hear His words. More so, can you imagine what the people are thinking? We get so excited about things we are about to do and be part of, but this group of people gathering were about to see Jesus! They were about to hear Him speak! Can we really fathom that?
So, Jesus begins speaking and He shares the beatitudes with them. He is speaking of being poor, mourning, humbleness, justice,mercy, pureness, peace, and persecution. Think these are things Jesus knows about? Jesus never had an earthy home of His own. He never owned property. He never held anything of material value. Jesus also knew about mourning. He mourned for the loss and He also mourned for His friend Lazarus. Jesus mourned with those who came to Him. Jesus was humble. He was never proud and pious. Jesus wanted Justice. He walked in righteousness. Jesus was mercy. He was our mercy. Jesus was pure in all He was. Jesus walked in peace. Jesus was also persecuted. He was persecuted during His ministry until His time upon the cross. We could even state that His name is still persecuted today. Jesus knew of the things He was speaking of. He lived them. He wasn't asking any more of us than of what He was willing to give Himself. These are attitudes we should carry as Christians. These are attitudes our Savior carried.
Jesus doesn't just share these are qualities we should hold, He goes on to share how those who carry them will be blessed. Those who are poor will realize their need for Him. Those who are hurting will find comfort in Jesus. Those who are humble, they will inherit the whole earth. When we walk in justice we will be satisfied. When we show mercy we will be given mercy. When our hearts are pure we will see the face of God. When we live in peace we will be called His children. And when others mock and persecute us we will inherit heaven. Heaven! Is there anything better than receiving heaven? Jesus is showing us that it is all worth it! There is nothing here on this earth that can take away what we will one day inherit in Him, heaven!
Then Jesus not only is sharing how we should live in this way, and what our reward will be for doing so, but He tells us to be happy about it! And also that those who were here before us went through the same things. They too knew this path, but they knew walking in this way would not only bring great reward it would bring glory and honor to God. When we walk in this way others see something different in us, they do not see the world, they see Jesus.
Our walk will not be an easy one. Jesus never tells us this, but he does say we will be blessed. He is there for us. He walked the road before us and it is paved with His grace and honor. It is paved with His love. And with His presence. It is the road that leads to Heaven and on this journey we walk, He will forever be there leading the way. So, put on those Beatitudes today. Make them My Attitudes and wear them well!
