This time we'll hear from Brother Moore, who will be preaching for us this evening. Well, good evening. If you would, open your Bibles to Luke chapter 6. That's where we're going to be starting. Luke chapter 6. I have a title for the message if you want to write it down, if you're taking notes. It would be the blessings of the Beatitudes. But to be more precise, it would be the paradoxical blessings of the Beatitudes. And you'll see what I mean here in just a minute. We're just going to introduce this with Luke chapter 6 and verse 20 to begin. Give you time to get there. Luke chapter 6 and verse 20, Jesus speaking. And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said, blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. So why did I say paradoxical? And what is paradoxical? A paradox is something that appears to us to be backwards, upside down, or different than what we would normally consider or understand. And so, as we're looking at the teachings of Jesus here, this really occurs pretty early on in the ministry of Jesus Christ. We could say that they were among his early teachings. But I think as he presented them on that hillside some 2,000 years ago, he very well intended for these teachings to be challenging, revolutionary, or could we say transformational. And you know what? 2,000 years later today, they should still be that way for us. The Beatitudes, as they're commonly referred to, if you really look at them, they show us how backwards we naturally think. how backwards we naturally think. And especially, I would say, in our American culture, where we base happiness and success on winning, on reaping, on prosperity, popularity, and temporal pleasures. But these teachings show that if we go about living our life based on that philosophy or on those ideas, we are actually in danger of living a very carnal life. So when Jesus presented these teachings, it was, again, meant to be somewhat shocking to the listeners. And it's been said that the Beatitudes strike some people more as poetry than as theology. But I would challenge you that these are the inspired divine words of Jesus Christ himself. B, just considered some platitudes or quotes that tell us what we need to do in order to be blessed. This is not just some teachings to guide us into a happy and successful life, isn't it? And as we look at them a little bit closer, I think you're going to see these are not just instructions, advice, teachings, or helpful information. Really, they are commands given. And they are paradoxical commands. They are meant to become life-guiding principles that should shock us into action at certain times or events. Now, you're not going to apply these maybe every day of your life for sure. These are things that, especially where we're at today in America, we don't face a whole lot of persecution. And it may not be every day that you are in a situation of mourning or when people are speaking evil of you. there is going to come a time when these teachings will become very practical and very purposeful for your life. And I think about why did Jesus teach them at this point in his ministry. I said earlier it was early on in his ministry when he was at kind of we'd say the peak of his popularity. Large crowds and certainly they weren't facing persecution at this moment at least in very in any significant way. But think about this as well. I think that Jesus taught them these teachings to his disciples because I know he realized that they needed some time, some time to let these principles and this way of thinking actually get sunk in to their way of thinking. Because as I said, these truths that we're about to look at are so opposite to what we naturally are inclined to do, think, or feel. And so when we hear the phrase, blessed are, that's probably the most well-recognized phrase of the Beatitudes, isn't it? Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the peacemakers. What what strikes your mind when you hear that word blessed? well It's used throughout the Bible a lot in the New Testament though 44 times it is translated as blessed four times though it is actually translated as happy and Again as we're going to see in just a minute most of the teachings of the Beatitudes are The first word that we would correlate or think of when we think of these things is not happy or blessed in that sense. So let's just look at these a little bit. We're going to read Luke chapter 6 and verse 20. Right now I just want to cover down through verse 23. Luke 6 20. And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said Blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now, for ye shall be filled. Blessed are you that weep now, for ye shall laugh. Blessed are you when men shall hate you and when they shall separate you from their company and shall reproach you and cast out your name as evil for the son of man's sake. And again, look at these two words. What is he saying? What is he saying to do when you are poor, hungry, and men are speaking evil of you? He says, rejoice, she, in that day, and leap for joy. That's quite an expression, isn't it? Not just rejoice, but leap for joy. For behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets. So I guess as you see, these beatitudes or the blessings of the beatitudes are really quite opposite, aren't they, to our natural inclination. He's saying that we are going to be joyful and leap for joy when we're poor and hungry and weeping and mourning and men are speaking evil of us. These are quite opposite according to our natural way of thinking. And as we go through this, it's going to take a little bit of wisdom to really let this sink into our understanding. And really, again, you may not need to apply these today or tomorrow or this week, but there's going to come a day. And I think if we see the way this world is heading, even we here in Amerigo who've enjoyed such prosperity and comfort and convenience and freedom, liberty, I think may not be too far in the very distant future before we also begin to face some of these situations where we're going to have to make a choice. Are we going to pursue after being happy, the pleasures or comforts or Are we going to take a stand for what is good and right and for Christ? And so, these things are going to take a little bit of wisdom as we begin to decipher and begin to say to the Holy Spirit, you know, how should I apply this in my life? And I would begin to say that logic isn't the first rule to apply here. And I'll discuss that a little bit more in a minute. This is going to really take wisdom on a case-by-case basis, isn't it? For us to know how, and the when, and the why that we are applying some of these principles of the Beatitudes. And I would say that we definitely do need to learn to think on two levels. We definitely need to think, to plan, to observe. make and act decisions according to wisdom, best as we know at this understanding of time. But the decisions that the Beatitudes are calling for us to make, they go against our very grain. They defy all our natural reasoning and logic. And they're not instinctive for us to do these things. Example as he goes on through these teaching he says we're to love those that hate you we're to turn the other cheek We're not to seek revenge, but we're to seek what forgiveness we're to bless those that curse you and If and when the time comes again, it takes wisdom to know when to when and how to apply these things Well, we'll talk about that a little bit more in just a minute. But if we are honest, these Beatitudes, just a simple reading of them, should already begin to change our natural way of thinking. It should begin to turn upside down maybe some of our natural inclinations. And as we begin to look at our life the situations, maybe the decisions that we're facing and the situations we're facing, we began to realize that maybe much of the programming that we're hearing and receiving day by day maybe is not just always the best course of action. Let's pick up again in verse 24. And I picked out this passage in Luke, we're gonna look at a similar passage in Matthew in just a minute. Because this passage in Luke has something very distinctive that's not found in Matthew. Okay, remember in verses 20 through 23, he basically listed four things. You'll notice here in these next verses, 24 through 26, He actually goes back and revisits those very same four things. And you've heard the phrase doubles down? Okay. Look what he said at first. Blessed be ye poor. Now look in verse 24. What does he say? But woe unto you that are what? Rich. The same truth, he just kind of flipped it all around. And whereas before he said a blessing or happy, a fortunate are you when you're poor, now what does he say? Woe unto you that are rich, for ye have received your consolation. And now notice the correlation you're gonna see between the verses right above and now the verses right below. Woe unto you that are full, for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. Woe unto you when all men shall speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets. Okay, so he makes the contrast. He double emphasizes this. First he tells us that woe unto you that are rich. I mean, first he says blessed are the poor, then he says woe to you that are rich. First he said, blessed are you that hunger, now he says, woe unto you that are full. He said, blessed are you that weep, woe unto you that laugh. And blessed are you when men shall hate you, but woe unto you when all men shall speak well of you. So I see, you see that these teachings are quite shocking if we take them for the literal, actual meaning. It should be kind of revolutionary. And again, these are hard teachings. These are not something that, again, that thankfully or hopefully we don't have to make these kind of decisions every day. But these are things that just naturally go against the grain of so many things that we've been conditioned to. Again, I think that Christ is wanting us to stop and to think deeply and to give pause on our priorities. Because he's talking about decisions that, again, think about when he was preaching this to his disciples and to the other multitudes that were present there. The teachings that he was giving were for a future time, that they were really going to need these teachings on persecution, men speaking evil. I mean, again, they weren't in that in the moment, but he wanted this to give them some time for them to think about this, to meditate on it, and to know how to apply it. So I do say that these teachings are very difficult teachings. So easily, I want to default to, yeah, what do I want to pursue? Being rich? To being full? To being happy? Or for having others speak well of me? And if I find myself attracted to any of that, Christ is now wanting me to stop and think and take pause in my thinking. And again, this is not unique to simply the Beatitudes in the Bible. There's a number of other passages like James 1-2, very similar to this thought. My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into diverse temptations. Can it hold joy? And that's not how I naturally respond to temptations, is it? To trials, to difficulties. So, yes, these are hard sayings and they do require some discernment. They do require some wisdom and application. I think it should be obvious that if we kind of look at it from the other angle, our goal in life should not be to be as physically poor, to be as hungry, to just go about weeping and crying all the time, and have people talk bad about us. No, that's not what he's saying either. So again, this requires some discernment. These are principles that are guiding for specific times, circumstances, and events. And I think he's equipping his disciples in advance for them to kind of chew and meditate on those teachings. But let's just think of, I could give a couple other examples from the scripture that challenge our thinking in some ways that are not really natural or normal. First Thessalonians 5, 18. And again, this one is probably easier for us to do, but it says, in everything Give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. In everything, give thanks. So there are some things that are very easy to give thanks in, aren't they? We just came through Thanksgiving and certain seasons and times of life. It's very easy to give thanks. But it says, in everything, give thanks. But I want you to think a little deeper on that, and it does not say for everything give thanks, does it? The Bible is very specific. It says in, like in every situation, you are to give thanks. But it does not say like for every situation you are to give thanks. Why is that? And that is because some things, especially involving maybe even our sin or the sin of others, are not to really be, that's not to be thankful for when there are certain situations that are not, but it's not to be thankful for the sin or the sinful situation, but in that situation, in everything, you can give thanks. I don't know if you catch the distinction there. In everything, give thanks, not for every single thing. And again, this is where that takes a little bit of wisdom and discernment. Romans 8.28, and we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to his purpose. Notice it does not say that all things are good, does it? It says Not every single thing that happens in your life can or should be viewed as just good. This is just good, good, good. But it does say all things work together for good to them that love God. So sometimes it's okay when trials and difficulties to realize this is a bad situation. And especially certain situations that you realize you're not giving thanks for the situation itself. You give thanks to God for the grace he's going to give you, for the wisdom, for the healing, for the forgiveness, for the patience, for the restitution that's going to take place. And so the Beatitudes kind of fall into that kind of category. It takes a little bit of discernment, wisdom to look at these things. It does not teach that we're to just go around trying to be the poorest, hungriest, again, worst spoken about people in the world. Chapter 6 and verse 27, by I say unto you which hear, love your enemies. Do good to them which hate you. Bless them that curse you and pray for them which despitefully use you. And unto him that smiteth thee on one cheek, offer also the other. And him that taketh away thy cloak, forbid him not to take thy coat also. Give to every man that asketh of thee, and of him that taketh away thy goods, ask them not again. And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise." So I think we can see if we begin to look at these teachings, we have to know when to apply certain principles in certain situations and what Christ is really trying to communicate. And I think that last little phrase there really sums up the whole spirit or the idea of it all. He says, And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also then likewise. Again, another thing that's so difficult for us sometimes is just simply truly, really putting ourselves in somebody else's feet, in their footsteps, in their situation, and seeing things from their perspective. And if we would do that and kind of just look at things from their perspective, sometimes we would realize The way I'm reacting is not the way I would want to be reacted to. The way that I'm doing to them is not what I would want done to me, is what he's teaching there. And so, again, these are some difficult sayings. Let's look over at Matthew in the companion passage, Matthew chapter 5. Here in Luke chapter 6, we saw the contrast. He basically just focused on four different areas. But here in Matthew, he kind of expanded a little bit his teaching. Really, there's like nine different areas that he touches on in the Beatitudes listed here. Let's look at Matthew chapter 5. We're going to begin in verse 2 and go down through verse 12. Just kind of mentally take note of some of the things. And again, you have to, being honest with yourself or being honest with myself, I have to say that as we go down this list of things, these are not things that I just really consider blessings in my life, naturally. Matthew 5 verse 2, And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven. for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Well, again, if you look at these, some of them just go against our natural grain, especially when it talks about persecution. We've been so blessed with the liberty, peace, and prosperity here in this country, and may come a day when we're actually challenged with some of just taking a stand for our faith and we're gonna have to take a side and it's gonna actually cause real life consequences. But think about this, he's saying blessed, it's a blessing or fortunate, are the humble. I don't know about you, but humility comes hard sometimes, doesn't it? Sometimes it costs. It costs our pride. It costs our ego. It costs our desire to just be the one. Blessed are they that are humble. Blessed are those that mourn. Again, in those times when it seems the world is crashing in, it doesn't seem to be that blessing, does it? Blessed are the meek. Again, blessed are those that hunger and thirst after righteousness, the merciful, purity, peacemaking. As I look at those, humility and meekness, during the times which we have to actually apply them, they're not something that seem very blessed. Now, when other people apply them, that's really nice. But really, be honest. When you have to be humble, when you're the one that has to be meek, how much of a blessing is that? It's just really not normal. Number mourning and persecution. Again, things that we've been conditioned so much in this life, we don't consider that a blessing. So much that we don't add that to our bucket list, and we're not really something where But what if? Have you ever considered that what if? And I think it's good sometimes to consider that what if. What if I would have to lose my job for my stand for Christ? What if I would have to lose my house for my stand for Christ? And you know, if you kind of just make up your mind ahead of time, it's going to be hard, but God's grace will be sufficient. I'll be willing to do it. It's gonna help you if and never that day arises. What if somebody speaks evil of me and treats me horribly? How am I gonna respond in that moment? And if we think about the what if, again, my wife and I have talked about this a lot. A lot of it's not about, it's about willingness. Would I be willing if somebody did the worst thing imaginable to me to forgive them. Would it be difficult? Yes. Is it going to be challenging? By all means. But thinking about it in, I think that's what I'm saying. I think Christ was teaching his disciples because this thinking goes so contrary to what we naturally would respond. And we need some time to let these truths begin to sink in. And we need to purpose in our hearts we need to reflect and kind of be ready because one day it might catch us out of the blue and In that time of time of extreme mourning We're gonna have a tendency to say oh, this is horrible and fall into that what pit of depression But if we begin to go back and begin to look at the truth of the matter that for whatever reason God allowed this, and he's going to give the grace, and we can begin to see the silver lining, if you will. And if we have already kind of thought some of these things through, it will equip us for when the need arises. But the things he listed here, desiring after righteousness, showing mercy, purity, and peacemaking, again, if we're honest, These are all spiritual things that we know and realize are good. They're right, and they should be done, but they are not necessarily easy to live out. Let me throw something out there like on that peacemaker one. Blessed are what? The peacemakers. Got some notes here, yeah. Jesus didn't say the peacekeepers. the peace lovers, but the peacemakers. That maker part indicates an involvement. It involves actually getting down and dirty, willing. And I guess I would interpret it this way. There's a lot of peace lovers. It's easy to be peace lovers. We all love peace. Well, most of us. But a peacemaker. Those who are willing to suffer and even die for the cause of peace. Now that kind of puts it in a little different perspective. Being a peacemaker doesn't just mean that some idle bystander that just, let's have peace. And that's what I'm saying. I think the teachings of these kingdom principles, if you will. The teachings that Jesus was giving to his disciples are things that if we look at them, really, they're going to cost. Each one is going to come with a cost. What we, again, think traditionally as a sacrifice. But he's saying it's a blessing. Blessed are those that are pure. Blessed are those that suffer persecution. So I think, again, a lot of discretion, a lot of wisdom. And I just want to leave you with three things here that I think are factors that have to be weighed when you're considering these hard teachings. Because these are not just something you digest easily. Again, number one, you have to realize exactly what is being said. The motive and application for when it should be applied And I think that's, number one, I'd say the, I got three factors I think that really have to be considered when you're weighing these Beatitudes. Choice and motive. Choice and motive. Again, Jesus is not teaching that we should intentionally strive for poverty, pain, and persecution. But This is, and this is not just a situation where you just stumble into it. Not necessarily, okay, but what he is saying is that when you do find yourself in this situation, you're actually going to have to make a choice. You're going to know, the Holy Spirit's going to guide you, this is right, this is wrong, what am I going to do? You're going to know, there's going to be a cost involved with it. choice of right, wrong, good, evil. But when we do so for His sake, there is a blessedness. There is a peace and inner joy that will result. Yeah, when you are persecuted, falsely accused, and it's going to cost you your job or your home or your life, what decision are you going to make and then It's going to be a choice, isn't it? This is not just something, you're not going to be able to be just a passive observer or a bystander. And you'll have to make the right choice and with the right understanding and motive. Yes, I'm choosing to obey Christ and even though it may cause suffering, but this is, there's a reward, there's a benefit, there's a blessing that I'm gonna learn through this circumstances. So I think our choice and actually our motive certainly do come into play. But number two, all throughout the Beatitudes, you can see the whole teachings of the here and now and the future. Here and now, and basically most of the here and now is not as pretty. And especially back in the Luke, Luke passage, did you notice that? Woe unto you that are full, woe unto you that, oh no, go back up to that. Yeah, it says, woe unto you that are full, woe unto you that weep now. And then it goes on to say, for ye shall laugh. So you have the present, you're weeping, and then the future, you shall laugh. Again, in almost everything, you can see the contrast between the dirty, dirty, nasty here and now, and the future which is much better. And there's the promise of what? The kingdom of God. So that you have this contrast of there's a future in heaven, and let's just look at that real quick. He says in, kind of lost my place there, Matthew chapter 5 and verse 1, Matthew chapter 5 and verse 8 he's talking about what the kingdom of heaven Matthew 5 1 is that right that's not right Matthew 5 and verse 3 blessed are the poor in spirit that's what is that referring to more now for theirs is the kingdom of heaven verse 8 no verse Yeah, verse 5, 8. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. I just noticed a real contrast between the here and now and the promise of the future reward. So part of the paradox of these blessings is that it's not necessarily an instantaneous reward, is it? The reality of the now indicates a time of suffering, loss, hurt, Sorrow. Those who choose to obey for his sake, while they will have a grace and comfort, a peace that passes understanding, it doesn't negate the reality of the here and now. But again, these are commands and they are difficult teachings, but it's good for us to kind of weigh them out and see that it really, the choice is really a blessing It is blessed to obey. So a couple of things we've got to keep in mind is it's going to be a choice and we've got to analyze our motive. There's this contrast between the consequences of now or sacrifice of now and the future blessing and benefits to some degree. But lastly, he was teaching these mostly to whom? Matthew chapter 5, verse 1, and I'll just read that, and then I'll read Luke chapter 6 in verse 20, I believe it was. So Matthew chapter 5, verse 1, seeing the multitude, so there was a bunch of people there, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set, what, his disciples came unto him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, so primarily this was a message directed to him. his followers, his disciples. Luke chapter 6 verse 20, and he lifted up his eyes on his disciples and said, blessed be ye poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. These principles are primarily for who? Believers. Not to say that if a lost person were to apply them, there wouldn't be blessings involved or that. certainly being obedient to the Word of God, but these teachings were primarily for his followers, children of the kingdom. The subjects of this world were not the primary audience. So why did I, kind of unusual time of year, Christmas, Talk about pain and persecution, being poor and suffering, kind of a downer. What was the purpose of the message? But just kind of tied up with this. To sow a seed, we need to have our thinking, natural thinking, especially molded, shaped, and especially concerning the things that we see as good or great. versus the things that we see as bad or unfortunate. Sometimes we tend to see things reversed from what God actually sees them, the perspective that God has. So, and just like Jesus, I think sometimes these are difficult sayings and we need some time to kind of meditate on them and think about them before the situation actually arises where we have to put them into play. I hope that none of you go home tonight and face persecution, but pain, poverty, or suffering. But you know, the way this world is going, it may not be too distant in the future again when we have to make some more difficult choices. So I would hope we'd be prepared. We're going to dismiss