Beatitudes

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Someone emailed me a great question today. I thought others might have the same question, so I am sharing it here:

Question: Please put the nine beatitudes into simple terms. Example- 1. Admitting spiritual poverty 2. Mourning those deficiencies 3. In meekness, receiving the increases of the Spirit 4. Developing a hunger and thirst for righteousness

* this is where I get lost...please fill in 5 through 9:

My answer:

5. Blessed are the merciful – as you grow in hunger, its easy to see those closest to you with a more critical eye. Hard problems suddenly seem obvious to solve. Worries you used to have go away and its easy to think they should just go away for others too. Be merciful. Remember where you were. Walk in the light you have, but be merciful towards those who aren’t in the same amount of light.

6. Blessed are the pure in heart – This mercy will begin to unlock places in your heart that are darkened. As you fight the tendency to control your own quick judgments and mouth, you start to realize just how dark you are. This leads to more light. It is a painful process, what keeps us in it is fixing our eyes on the prize: seeing Jesus. We suddenly go to whole new levels of encounter, and that makes holiness seem like the most valuable exercise.

7. Blessed are the peacemakers – when we get the encounter and vision of #6, we can’t just hold it to ourselves. The expression of this “loving God with the whole heart” must overflow into “loving others as ourselves.” This results in peacemaking between others as an intercessor… this can be helping people to make peace with God, or between people, in the relationships around us. This is what Jesus did: in perfect holiness, gave up his own greatness and satisfied existence to come, take on trouble and animosity, to make peace between God and man, and between man and man. This is what a “Son of God” does.

8. Blessed are those persecuted for righteousness sake – peacemaking usually turns the people you are trying to help against you, just like Jesus. He says when this happens, know that you are like me and will own the kingdom WITH me. If you live like Jesus lived on earth, you will live very CLOSE to where Jesus lives in His kingdom. Greatness forever is the reward.

9. The pinnacle…or top of God’s holy mountain, gets you an identity like Jesus. I guarantee if you go after all the beatitudes, you will find that people treat you like this:

"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Matthew 5:11-12

Great question!

Here are the beattitudes:

Matthew 5:2-13 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for 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 sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.

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