The Beatitudes Part 7

"Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God."   Matthew 5:9.  NKJV

God is the supreme peacemaker and as His sons and daughters, we need to follow in His example. There's a lot of unrest about, therefore we need to establish peace wherever we are.

David Guzik says: 'This verse does not describe those who live in peace but those who actually bring about peace, overcoming evil with good.'

One way that we can do this is through evangelism - the ministry of reconciliation - 
(2 Corinthians 5:18). We help bring peace between people who have never known God and of whom they have hurt and rejected. The Hebrew word for peace is shalom. The meaning is that peace always means everything which makes for a person's highest good.

When you're out and about, take a look around you and note the unrest; the lack of peace and the aggression and violence that is on the increase around every corner. It may be unwise for us to stand up in the middle of all this and try to bring about reconciliation, unless God tells you to do this. We need to be wise. However, we can be on the lookout for people who want to offload and are willing to speak with us. We may not be counsellors but we have the Counsellor within us - The Holy Spirit, and He will guide us and give us the words to say. Often, people just want to pour out their frustration and it is helpful to allow them to do this - to vent their pent up frustration and unwind a little.  As we just sit and listen to them, hopefully they will notice that there is something different about us - and that is Jesus. 

Many people ridicule Jesus and openly curse Him but when the chips are down - when they have hit rock bottom and are in a situation they cannot get out of easily, who is that many call on in prayer? The same one they have persecuted - Jesus. He is the main peacemaker and has lots of experience in bringing people's lives back together and He wants to use YOU to let this happen. YOU are His chosen vessel. YOU are His peacemaker. YOU carry the words of Eternal life and can bring salvation to the desolate and hurting crowd. 

So that is what He is calling you to do, each and every day. Are you willing?

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

The Beatitudes Part 6

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."                          Matthew 5:8.  NKJV

William Barclay writes some strong words on this beatitude:

"Here is the beatitude which demands that all who read it should stop and think and examine themselves.
Jesus says it is only the pure in heart who shall see God. It is a warning thing to remember that, as by God's grace we keep our heart clean or as by human lust we soil them, we are either fitting or unfitting ourselves some day to see God. "
                                                                                            Copyright 1956 William Barclay

These are very serious words and may cause us to sit up and take notice and perhaps we need that because salvation is serious stuff, it's not a Santa Claus kind of fairy tale. It determines where we will spend eternity. The choice is down to us. We need to live our lives in such a way that we don't disqualify ourselves of the prize (Heaven), 'But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.' 1 Corinthians 9:27)

The Greek word for pure is katharos which actually means without blemish. Jesus has actually redeemed us 'with His precious blood as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.' (1 Peter 1:19). We're redeemed but we need to remain in this condition by walking with Jesus on a daily basis and not veering off the path.
Katharos means clean, undefiled and pure. The word describes physical cleanliness and inner purity. Sin pollutes and defiles but the blood of Jesus washes the stains away.

Katharos is regularly used for corn which has been winnowed or sifted and cleansed of all chaff. Do you get the idea? David Guzik says, 'Ultimately, this intimate relationship with God must become our greatest motivation for purity.'

So, we need to aim for purity. We'll never be perfect until we're standing before Jesus, but we can become close. There is no pressure or stress to perform this. Jesus has done it all for us and declared us not guilty. But we still need to do our part and that is by way of honouring Him, giving Him all the glory and totally living for Him. There really is no other way!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

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The Beatitudes Part 5

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."            Matthew 5:7.  NKJV

The word 'Merciful,' in the Greek is a word called eleemon. It demonstrates active compassion, especially to the poor. It is kind, compassionate, sympathetic, merciful and sensitive. A person with these qualities finds outlets for their merciful nature.

Usually, the one who gives out this type of mercy is one who has received it. They know just how it feels to receive mercy just when they need it, when all is lost and suddenly, someone shows them mercy. The merciful one will be forgiving to others, always thinking the best of them wherever possible. To receive mercy ourselves, we need to show mercy to others. It is rather like forgiveness. If we forgive people we in return are forgiven. If we don't forgive people, neither will we be forgiven. (Matthew 6:14-15).

William Barclay describes how Queen Victoria was a close friend of Principal John Tulloch of St Andrews. When Prince Albert died Victoria was left all alone. Around the same time, Principal Tulloch died also. Therefore, Mrs Tulloch was also left all alone. Totally unannounced, Queen Victoria went to call on Mrs Tulloch. When she arrived Mrs Tulloch was resting on a couch. When she saw the Queen, she struggles to get up and curtsey, but Queen Victoria said, 'Don't rise. I'm not coming to you today as the Queen to a subject but as a woman who has lost her husband too.'   (William Barclay 1956 The Gospel of Matthew).

God showed us mercy also. He came to us in the form of Jesus. He showed each one of us love and mercy; forgiveness and friendship. This is how He expects us to be with all we meet. Yes, people hurt us but don't we hurt Jesus just the same? Yet He still shows us His love and mercy. Let us go and show that mercy to all we may meet today.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

The Beatitudes Part 4

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled."
                                                                                                                Matthew 5:6.  NKJV

The term here, hunger and thirst, is the same feeling as starving for natural food and drink but with a spiritual tense. There is an ongoing passion which is never satisfied. It is extremely intense. It is a hunger and thirst for God and all He stands for and it is never quenched; and it won't be until we see Him face to face.

Many Christians seek, hunger and thirst for the things of this world - power, authority, success, comfort and happiness but the hunger and thirst here in this verse is for righteousness.

King David had a dream within his heart to build a temple for God. However, it was denied him and his son Solomon, was the one who built it. David could have thrown a wobbly and been totally angry and upset about all of this. But David was a warrior; a man of God and he accepted this. Solomon was God's choice to build the temple but God said to David, 

'Whereas it was in your heart to build a temple for My name, you did well that it was in your heart.' 
                                                                                                   1 Kings 8:17-19   NKJV

You also may have been holding a dream within your heart to do something special for God but you've not been able to. You have had to watch someone else fulfilling your dream and it has hurt quite a lot. Don't be sad or crestfallen. Be encouraged because God wants to say to you, 'You did well that it was in your heart.' Your intentions were good and God is pleased and He has noted your intentions. You will be rewarded.

The Ancient Greek had an interpretation for hungering and thirsting. If they needed bread, they were happy to settle for just a piece, not the whole. It was the same for water and really anything else. They settled for a portion not the whole.

William Barclay writes:

'This Beatitude says that it is not enough to be satisfied with a partial goodness. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for the goodness which is total.'

God does not want you settling for second best. He doesn't want you settling for a piece of righteous and blessing. He wants you to have it all: 'For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.'  2 Corinthians 5:21.

Therefore, you righteous person of God, rise up in Jesus because you're blessed and your hunger and thirst for Him will be satisfied.

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

The Beatitudes Part 3

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."                       Matthew 5:5.  NKJV

The Ancient Greek word for 'meek,' is praus. The word carries the ideas of humility and self-discipline. It is not a sign of weakness or being spineless but rather having a controlled strength.   
It gives the idea of one not easily pushed around but in control enough to be humble. 
David Guzik comments:
'It has the idea of the proper balance between anger and indifference, of a powerful personality properly controlled and of humility.'

God always loves humility. He hates the proud and opposes it (James 4:6). James further comments on this in James 4:10: 'Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up.' A meek person can be angry but not sin (Ephesians 4:26). Suffering wrong without bitterness or a desire for revenge is characteristic of a meek person, as is having a willingness to submit and work under authority. This confidence is from having a deep trust in Jesus to perform on their behalf should they be wronged. God watches over the lives of the meek person; He watches over their cause and he will not let His meek ones be taken for a ride. 

Moses was possibly the greatest leader that ever lived. He wasn't weak at all, he was meek and so was able to control his temper when the Israelites were doing everything but what they should have been doing. He was humble and God was there to help him.

Proverbs 16:31 says it all: 'He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.' 

This is the perfect description of a meek person. When we take control of our temper and seek humility and the willingness to serve, we are not showing weakness at all. We are showing the world meekness and God likes this and therefore acts on our behalf if we are wronged in anyway. This is the meaning of, 'they shall inherit the earth.' By living the life of a meek person. we submit to Our Heavenly Father and to all He shows us and directs us to do. In return, he watches our back. I don't know about you, but that sounds like a good deal to me. Don't you think?

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com

The Beatitudes Part 2

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."                    Matthew 5:4.  NKJV

William Barclay says of this Beatitude:

'It's true meaning is, 'Blessed are those who are desperately sorry for their own sin and their own unworthiness.'

Many may say that the meaning was to do with bereavement and grief - the loss of someone very close to us. And they would be right. The word to mourn has a very strong meaning and that meaning was included in Jesus' mention of it. However, here it was referring to our sin. Don't let us forget that initially Jesus had set out and begun preaching, 'Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.' (Matthew 4:1). We can't repent unless we are sorry for our sins - convicted. When the full realisation of the cross hits us and we see how Jesus suffered on it so that we could be declared 'Not Guilty,' we see how powerful and deadly is the sin we carried around and how close we were to going to hell when we die. Strong words I know but true all the same. This is why we need to repent each and every time that we become involved with sin.

As I mentioned earlier, the meaning of mourning here, is the same as when we are in grief when someone we love dies. The pain felt is the same type of pain mentioned in the Beatitude. Even though Jesus' first thought for teaching it, was for the weight of sin, He wouldn't have dismissed the feelings bereavement causes. After-all, Jesus knew the pain of losing someone close to Him. When He stood outside Lazarus' tomb, He wept. (John 11:36) Even though Jesus knew He was going to raise him back to life, when He saw the pain of Lazarus' family and friends, He hurt and His emotions erupted. And this is how He is with all people who are in grief.

Maybe this is you. You may be in mourning at this time. Grief takes time to heal. People in your neighbourhood move on much quicker than you because they were not that closely linked. You are still suffering and this is normal. Don't be hurt when the people you know in the street, either make a quick exit from you or just don't feel like you do. Life's busy and often they just don't know what to say so they may ignore the situation you're in, but they still care.

But accept this, Jesus still cares. He was with you when it happened and will be with you all the way through. The One who is mourning with you is saying, 'Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.' So let Him!

Copyright 2019 Grahame Howard

dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com