Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+5&version=ESV

 

 

Introduction

 

Sermon on the Mount seems to be the most popular among the teaching of Jesus but it is also the least understood, not to mention about doing it. Sermon on the Mount was Jesus’ instruction to His followers, teaching them what type of people they should be and what they should do. In the next few days, we will reflect our spiritual life through the Sermon on the Mount, preparing ourselves for the Advent and celebrating the birth of Jesus.

 

Sermon on the Mount – Christian Character

Matt 5：1-12 (ESV）

 

¹ Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.

 

The Beatitudes

² And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

 

Meditation:

If you heard about Jesus and understand His teachings, you will be familiar with the Beatitudes. The eight blessings are simple but meaningful, and attracts Christians and people of every generation. If we dig down the meaning, we will find its deep meanings. The Beatitudes is a treasure we could never exhausted. Study the Beatitudes, even though we may not reach the deep level of understanding, we will be closer to God’s Kingdom.

 

The Beatitudes reveal a balanced while diversified Christian character. It is not that there are eight different types of disciples – some are meek, merciful or called to be persecuted. In fact, all these characters could belong to the same group of people. They are meek, merciful, poor in spirit and pure in heart.

 

People with these character may not belong to upper class in society, nor spiritual elite above normal Christians. In contrast, the Beatitudes is the standard Jesus set for every Christian. Every Christian should have these characters as they are the standard for the ideal children of God.

 

• Read Matt 5:1-12. Try to compare the people we regard as blessed or fortunate to what Jesus described. What are the differences?
• Bonhoeffer was killed by German Nazi because of his Christian faith. He once said, “Every teaching of the Beatitudes widened the gap between a disciple and the world.” How do the promises in the Beatitudes encourage you to be a person different than others?
• As you read the Sermon on the Mount, pray that God will help you to attain once of the blessings in the Beatitudes.