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Introduction

The author of the Letter to the Messianic Jews (Hebrews) wrote, For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (4:12). Nowhere is this truth more evident than in Yeshua’s amazing Sermon on the Mount.

The Sermon on the Mount is arguably the loftiest, the purest instruction ever given. But for that same reason, it is also the most difficult and potentially disconcerting instruction ever given. These renowned words of Yeshua comfort, reassure and strengthen us, but alternately convict, challenge and alarm us. When asked what part of the Bible they like best, politicians typically say they admire the ‘Sermon on the Mount’. But humanly-speaking, it is far and away the most unattainable teaching ever given.

And yet, there it is; unavoidably confronting us.

Across Jewish history, certain rabbis have been known for their distinctive teachings; notable perhaps for emphasis on a particular aspect of the Torah or a unique interpretation on an historical event. The disciples of these rabbis have always been expected to be able to articulate their rabbi’s teaching. More than that; their lives are supposed to reflect that teaching. The Sermon on the Mount is that particular body of teaching attributed to Yeshua.

Understand that Yeshua spoke these truths more than once. From what we know of First-Century rabbinical practices, He would have taught one or several of them on multiple occasions, as a situation called for it. It’s possible that Yeshua gave this extended sermon all at one time, or it may be that Matthew, guided by the Holy Spirit, chose to assemble them and record them as an extended sermon given at one time. In either case, what we have in Matthew chapters 5-7 are Messiah’s signature teachings. These are the teachings that all of His disciples are expected to have committed to memory and to put into practice daily.

Overview of the seven-part series:

1. Blessed are they… (The Beatitudes, part 1) (5:1-9)
2. Blessed are YOU… (The Beatitudes, part 2) (5:10-12)

III.     Who we are and who we aren’t (5:13-20)

1. You have heard… But I say (Yeshua’s Torah) (5:21-48)
2. Whenever you… (give, pray, fast) (6:1-18)
3. The futility of materialism (6:19-34)

VII.   Things that could keep you out of Heaven (hypocrisy, following the crowd, false teachers, refusing to act on Yeshua’s teaching) (7:1-29)

Today we will consider the first of this seven-part series. My prayer is that the Lord God of Israel will give us the insight and the courage to take what we hear and put it into practice, so that we may be wise and not foolish, and that our lives in this world and in the World-To-Come will be fruitful and secure.

1. Blessed are those… (The Beatitudes) (5:1-9)

Given the number of books sold on the topic of success, there must be a lot of people wishing there was a simple formula they could follow that would guarantee a successful life! In order to test my thesis I went… where else… to Google, and upon typing the words “How to be a success,” received 74,000,000 results!

Perhaps success seems so elusive because, for one thing, we don’t have an agreed-upon definition for it. But maybe we’ve missed the mark entirely. Maybe instead of making success our goal, we make faithfulness to Messiah our goal, and let success be the by-product.

One thing is certain: each one of these “beatitudes” goes completely against our natural inclinations, and each one illustrates how the Kingdom of Heaven, ideologically, stands in direct opposition to life in this fallen, satanically-controlled world. This morning, let’s learn how to be blessed – happy – successful, according to the instruction, the Torah of Messiah Yeshua, our Lord and soon-coming King.

Verses 1-2

When Yeshua saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. He opened His mouth and began to teach them, (saying)…

Messiah didn’t go up the mountain to get away from the crowds. The hill on the western slope of the Galilee where it is thought this took place is perfect for accommodating a large crowd, and the acoustics are remarkable. He sat down, which was the customary posture of rabbis teaching their talmidim, who would gather around him. It is possible that the multitude sat down as well, since this took place on a hill.

The word ‘disciples’ here has reference to a much larger group than just the twelve. In fact, Matthew hasn’t yet identified the twelve as a distinct group. This is a multitude of what you might think of as ‘potential disciples’.

Does the wording here seem unusually formal and even a bit redundant?  He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying… Why didn’t Matthew write, “Yeshua said…”? The formality suggests that we are meant to take it as much more than just an ordinary gathering, but rather that this instruction is to be considered exceptionally significant. And it’s true; these three chapters form Messiah Yeshua’s Torah – the corpus of His instruction.

Verse 3

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

The word ‘blessed’ in Greek is makarios which, like the Hebrew word ashrei in Proverbs 1:1, conveys the idea of happiness, good fortune – a truly enviable state of affairs; not in the shallow, worldly sense of being comfortable and entertained. It has a godly connotation of knowing that you are favored and well-positioned relative to His Kingdom.

So happy, blessed, truly enviable are those who are ‘poor in spirit’. Really? How is it blessed to be spiritually impoverished? The word ptokos actually can mean inferior and pitiable. How are we supposed to understand this?

Here’s a hint: What does it make you think when someone says, “I’m a spiritual person” As opposed to what? What does that even mean? That they like to talk about deep stuff? That they’re really philosophical and wonder about the universe? So do a lot of people. Can I make a confession? Before Yeshua came into my life, I used to say things like that. And I really thought I was ‘deeper’ than most people. It was narcissism – ugly pride, pure and simple.

It’s a sign that a person has no idea who God is, and that they are far from Him. Because the nearer you draw to an infinitely holy God, the less spiritual you’re going to feel. The Jewish prophet Isaiah, one of the most righteous men ever to walk this earth – do you remember what he said when he stood in the presence of Adonai? “Woe is me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips…!” Rabbi Paul, also one of the greatest men who ever lived, when he contemplated his own sinfulness as against a holy and righteous God, said, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?” It wasn’t false humility – Isaiah and Paul were just being honest in their self-assessment. For someone to assert how spiritual they are is to be arrogant.

Moishe Rosen used to put it this way: Blessed are the unspiritual.

To be poor in spirit means to know your own spiritual poverty. It is the opposite of arrogance. Those who say, “I’m a good person!” don’t get it. What do they mean by that, anyway?  That they haven’t murdered or committed adultery, or stolen (lately) or been caught in a lie? Mazel tov! The absence of bad doesn’t make a person good. Moral neutrality isn’t the same as goodness.

The fact is, fallen, sinful human beings aren’t good. We might, from time to time, do good things, but that isn’t the same as being good. Our very nature was broken, twisted and polluted when we joined the fallen angels in their rebellion against God. To be poor in spirit is to have an honest and accurate assessment of oneself; that we are desperately in need of God’s grace. The words of Avinu Malkaynu are so true: chonaynu va’anaynu, kee ayn banu ma’asim “…be gracious to us and answer us, for we have no merits”. It doesn’t mean you beat yourself up and say terrible things about yourself. It isn’t false humility. To be poor in spirit means you’re honest with yourself, with others and with God about your need of His forgiveness and mercy.

If you know that you’re spiritually impoverished, that you have a propensity to screw up, and that you need more of Messiah’s grace, I have good news for you: Messiah Yeshua says that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to you!

Verse 4

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

It goes without saying that Adonai is very near to those who grieve the loss of a dear friend or family member. The Eternal God is a dwelling place, and underneath are the Everlasting Arms (Deut. 33:27). But this teaching means so much more than just the idea of mourning a person’s death.

If we connect it to the previous verse, then this is about mourning our own sinful condition. We often say foolish things; sometimes we fail to say the right thing, things He’s prompted us to say. We sin, and confess it, and determine not to commit that sin again, only to find ourselves back on our knees in confession.

To be mournful is the opposite of being cavalier or indifferent. This is about allowing ourselves to feel the pain, along with God, of the brokenness of this once-perfect world; and to grieve our own contributions to all that is wrong with it. “At this present hour,” Rabbi Paul reminds us, “all of Creation is groaning as in the pain of childbirth” (Romans 8:22). Are you willing to feel the sorrow along with it? Do you yearn for and look for the Day of Redemption?

Blessed are those who mourn the ‘lostness’ of mankind and how it has brought endless generations of death and grief and disease and perpetual lies and ruthless, murderous greed and callous indifference to people’s suffering.  To be confronted with an endless news cycle of all that is wrong in the world, to recognize that at the root of all of it is sin, and to allow yourself to grieve and to long for Messiah’s Tikkun Olam – restoration of the world, is to be blessed, because it means your heart is beating in concert with God’s. And you will be comforted, because He has promised to restore shalom to this world, and in that day we will rejoice with Him.

Verse 5

Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are the gentle; not “blessed are the aggressive and the belligerent.” Unfortunately, as it stands right now, those who employ violence, who are selfishly aggressive and ambitious, who ruthlessly monopolize others and who have utter disregard for human life are the ones who wield most of the power in this world. It reminds me of the 80’s song by Tears For Fears “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”.

But Messiah Yeshua promises us that better days are coming. Much better days! Just as you wouldn’t think that the impoverished and mournful would be blessed, who would imagine that being gentle is the pathway to power? But it is those who understand and know and imitate the character of God; showing kindness and compassion even toward those who don’t deserve it; who deal with others gently and mercifully rather than vindictively, that will be entrusted with great authority and high position in the days of Messiah’s rule over the earth.

Yeshua may actually have been quoting Psalm 37. Verses 7-11 reads as follows: Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; do not fret; it leads only to evildoing. For evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land. Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more; and you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there. But the humble will inherit the land, and will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.

In that context, the humble will inherit ‘the Land’ – as in Eretz Yisrael. I bring this up, because Messiah’s Kingdom will have a ‘headquarters’ as it were, and it will be Jerusalem,Israel. Most English translations render the Greek word gh as ‘earth’ which is completely legitimate, since it is the NT equivalent of the Hebrew word eretz, and can mean either ‘land’ or ‘earth’ depending on the context. I don’t think we have to choose between the two, since it is evident from Scripture that Yeshua will indeed reign over all the earth, but that the ‘home office’ will be Israel.

But back to Messiah’s teaching here: Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. As with the previous ‘Beatitudes’ there is a dichotomy, and a choice to be made on our part. Things are a certain way now, but they will be quite different later on. File this under ‘delayed gratification’. If your ultimate goal is to acquire riches and power in this life, plan to be miserable on the other side. But if you want to prosper during those days, then deal charitably and gently with others in this life.

Verse 6

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

When you’re hungry, your body is telling you that it’s depleted of nutrients. When you’re thirsty, your body is telling you that it’s dehydrated. And when you’re really hungry or thirsty, it’s hard to concentrate on anything else.

It’s miserable to be thirsty on a hot, dry day, and you’re working outside and you forgot to bring a water bottle with you, and there’s no water fountain in sight. Whether hunger or thirst, the implication is that you lack; that you are in need, and you know it.

Consequently, blessed, happy, fortunate are those who are experiencing a dearth of righteousness and they know it, and yearn for more of it; because God will satisfy that yearning. As the prophets foretold, He Himself, in the person of Messiah Yeshua, will be our righteousness.

The opposite of hungering and thirsting for righteousness, I suppose, would be complacency; those who are satisfied with spiritual mediocrity. I say ‘mediocrity’ not because such people lack the ability to grow in godliness, but because they are indifferent – they just couldn’t care less about the state of their soul.

Let me remind you of Yeshua’s words to the congregation in Laodicea: “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other. So, because you are lukewarm – neither cold nor hot – I am about to spit you out of My mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked…” And He went on to say, “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.”

If you find yourself in such a place, thank the Lord that He let you realize it. Run to Him right now and confess your former indifference, and ask Him to fill you again with His Holy Spirit.

Verse 7

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Blessed are the merciful; not, “blessed are the ruthless and vindictive.” Maybe someone has wronged you, even intentionally, and you are reserving the right to withhold forgiveness from them. It’s your prerogative, but know this: if you choose to hold a grudge, you are acting contrary to God’s nature, which is itself merciful; and acting contrary to Yeshua’s instruction:

“If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins”(Matthew 6:14-15).

By now it should be evident that these teachings stand 180° in opposition to the philosophy of this present world. What is so disconcerting is that they also cut across our own natural tendencies. Even some people who pride themselves on their sense of compassion, who advocate for more leniency for convicted criminals, change their tune when they become the victims of crime. Mercy doesn’t come naturally to fallen, sinful human beings. We want to see people get what’s coming to them; and we’d really appreciate it if they got it right away. I become infuriated by people wantonly driving through red lights, and I always wish there was a cop there to catch them.

But unlike us, God is merciful. He forgives when forgiveness is undeserved. He doesn’t turn a blind eye to sin, but He understands our weakness and desires our repentance and not our destruction. And I think the idea is that we who are called to be merciful are already recipients of mercy. Listen to the words of James:

Judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment (James 2:13).

Corrie Ten Boom told this story from post-World War II Germany:

“It was in a church in Munich that I saw him—a balding, heavyset man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken. It was 1947 and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives. It was the truth they needed most to hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite mental picture. ‘When we confess our sins,’ I said, ‘God casts them into the deepest ocean, gone forever…’

The solemn faces stared back at me, not quite daring to believe. There were never questions after a talk in Germany in 1947. People stood up in silence, in silence collected their wraps, in silence left the room.

And that’s when I saw him, working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights; the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor; the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister’s frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie and I had been arrested for concealing Jews in our home during the Nazi occupation of Holland; this man had been a guard at Ravensbruck concentration camp where we were sent.

Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: ‘A fine message, Fräulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!’ And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand. He would not remember me, of course—how could he remember one prisoner among those thousands of women? But I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt. I was face-to-face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze.

‘You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk,’ he was saying, ‘I was a guard there.’ No, he did not remember me. ‘But since that time,’ he went on, ‘I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein,’ again the hand came out—’will you forgive me?’

And I stood there—I whose sins had again and again to be forgiven—and could not forgive. Betsie had died in that place—could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking? It could not have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do. For I had to do it—I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. ‘If you do not forgive men their trespasses,’ Jesus says, ‘neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.’

I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality. Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were able also to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. Those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and as horrible as that.

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion—I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. ‘… Help!’ I prayed silently. ‘I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.’

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. ‘I forgive you, brother!’ I cried. ‘With all my heart!’ For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then.

Verse 8

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

The Greek word for ‘pure’ is katharos. It can also be translated ‘innocent’ or ‘clean’. The underlying idea is to be morally upright, and in fact Yeshua is referring to what is underlying. “Blessed are the pure in heart”. This isn’t about the outward appearance of purity. It’s about our true inner condition. Yeah, that’s a little uncomfortable.

King David understood the human condition, and pleaded, “Create in me a pure heart, O God! – lev tahor b’rah lee.” For something to be pure, it means there can be no admixture, there can’t be a second element blended in. And to be made pure, to be refined, anything that isn’t part of the desired substance must be systematically purged away. It’s definitely a process.

One thing is certain: we didn’t come into this world pure. We came into the world thoroughly saturated in sin. It’s a deadly spiritual virus we inherited from Adam and Eve. The good news is that if we will just surrender our lives to Messiah Yeshua, not only will our sins be forgiven and our citizenship transferred to God’s kingdom, but we will enter His ‘treatment program’. We need serious purification, and it has to happen from the inside out. “First clean the inside of the cup.” Yeshua said. God can do this in us, and He is willing, and we need it. And aren’t you glad Yeshua didn’t say “Blessed are the perfect”? Let’s just make sure our loyalties aren’t divided. A pure heart is a heart that serves one Master.

Verse 9

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

The Greek is eirinopoeios – a compound word that appears only in this one place in the entire New Covenant. It isn’t describing those who live peacefully, it describes those whomake peace happen.

Yeshua said that blessed, happy, truly enviable, are those who work to bring peace between adversaries. To do so is to imitate God, who took the initiative to reconcile a spiritually depraved and hostile humanity to Himself.

If you’re ever in the mood for a bit of irony, go to Google images and type in the word “peacemaker”. What you will see are several pictures of a 45-caliber revolver manufactured by Colt. Why did they name it “Peacemaker”? Because they understood that in a fallen, satanically-dominated world, peace usually comes at a steep price, and must be guarded with vigilance. It never just happens, nor does it just continue on effortlessly. Sadly, there are times when force, or at least the potential for force, is a necessary deterrent to preserve peace. And that is because in every generation there are wicked men whose avarice leads them to oppress people and wage war.

But please don’t misunderstand. I am not suggesting that to be a peacemaker means to be naïve or passive, or allow oneself to be used like a doormat. Yet to be a peacemaker, to attempt to reconcile two aggrieved parties is, by definition, to be vulnerable.

So how are we to be peacemakers? What does that actually look like? I suggest a good example would be Joseph the Levite from Cyprus, a.k.a., Barnabas. When Saul of Tarsus, who had just recently become a follower of Yeshua, came to Jerusalem, the community of Messianic Jews was afraid. After all, this was the guy who had been arresting and persecuting believers, and having some put to death. It was Barnabas who brought Saul, now Paul, into their midst and introduced him around. Barnabas bridged a very awkward gap, and the rest of all that Paul meant to the New Covenant Community is history. Barnabas was a genuine peacemaker.

David Guzik, a pastor and outstanding biblical commentator writes, “We commonly think of this peacemaking work as being the job of one person who stands between two fighting parties… but one can also end a conflict and be a peacemaker when they are party to a conflict; when they are the injured or the offending party.”[1]

The devil is a trouble-maker. God wants you to be a peacemaker.  We need to humble ourselves and work to reconcile others or to be reconciled to others. It’s the harder path, but it’s the path Yeshua has marked out for us.

Let me conclude by saying that I consider the Sermon on the Mount to be the greatest, the loftiest and purest teaching ever spoken on Earth. We’ve only touched on the first nine verses this morning, and yet I wonder if already you are beginning to feel as I do: that it seems almost unattainable. Did Yeshua mean for us to have all our religious pretense stripped away, and to be confronted with our desperate need of God’s grace? Maybe so. In any case, this is my Master’s Instruction, and as a disciple, I am expected to learn it, live it, and disseminate it.

God willing, we will study Matthew 5:10-12 in a few weeks. Let me give you fair warning: it doesn’t get easier. The life of a disciple has never been easy. A disciple of Yeshua has the added hardship of following the One who was (and is) despised by the very nation to which He belongs. A servant is not greater than his Master. Those who hate Him will hate you, too. If you’re hoping to get through this life without suffering scorn or derision , you may not be cut out for this.

G.K. Chesterton wrote: “Christianity hasn’t been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and not tried.” These ‘Beatitudes’ may be simple to understand, but to live them out – that’s another thing altogether. May the Lord God give us grace and strength and courage to embrace Yeshua’s instruction completely; without excuse and without compromise.