Matthew 5 NIV, The Beatitudes.

 

 Matthew 5 New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes

He said:

3 ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit,

    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn,

    for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek,

    for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

    for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful,

    for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart,

    for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers,

    for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 ‘Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Salt and light

13 ‘You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 ‘You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

The fulfilment of the law

17 ‘Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practises and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Murder

21 ‘You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, “You shall not murder,[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.” 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister[b][c] will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, “Raca,”[d] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, “You fool!” will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23 ‘Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

25 ‘Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

Adultery

27 ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery.”[e] 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

Divorce

31 ‘It has been said, “Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.”[f] 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

Oaths

33 ‘Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, “Do not break your oath, but fulfil to the Lord the oaths you have made.” 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply “Yes,” or “No”; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.[g]

Eye for eye

38 ‘You have heard that it was said, “Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.”[h] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Love for enemies

43 ‘You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbour[i] and hate your enemy.” 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

The Bible Panorama

Matthew 5

V 1–12: DESCRIPTION The progressive blessings of a heart in fellowship with God are reflected in the inner qualities shown in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. These ‘blessed’ sayings are known as the Beatitudes.

V 13–16: DIFFERENCE The Christian should be to the world what salt is to food and what light is to darkness—much needed and distinctively different.

V 17–20: DESTRUCTION The whole of God’s Word, in the smallest detail, will endure after the destruction of the heavens and the earth as we know them. God’s law is our guide to entering the kingdom of heaven. The righteousness of mere religious observance, like that of the Pharisees, cannot give entry to it.

 V 21–26: DANGER Those whose sinful and unrepentant hearts reveal their anger and hatred for others, even for those who are close enough to be brothers, are in grave danger of judgement and hell. Bringing a gift to God is no substitute. Repentance will produce a desire to be reconciled to the person offended. Judgement is the only alternative to repentance.

 V 27–30: DRASTIC In our personal fight against sin, drastic action is called for, emphasised here through striking illustrations. This involves self-denial, and recognising that, in the eyes of God, hatred and anger in the heart count as murder, and lust counts as adultery.

 V 31–32: DIVORCE Jesus teaches the permanence of the marriage bond, which He teaches can only be broken in the case of marital unfaithfulness.

 V 33–37: DIRECTNESS Our language and conduct must be such that we need not invoke oaths to make people believe we are telling the truth.

 V 38–48: DOING A Christian must always do good to others, even when he can insist on an enforceable legal right and even when enemies oppose him. His generosity will evidence his desire to follow God’s directions, as far as possible. His perfect heavenly Father is his standard.

Dictionary of Bible Themes

1620 beatitudes, the

The blessings pronounced by Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount on those whose lives exhibit particular characteristics or qualities. These contrast sharply with popular values and outlooks.

The poor in spirit

Mt 5:3 pp Lk 6:20 See also Ps 69:32-33; Isa 61:1; Mt 23:12; Lk 18:9-14

Those who mourn

Mt 5:4 pp Lk 6:21 See also Ps 51:17; Isa 57:18-21; Isa 61:1-3; Jer 31:13; Rev 7:17; Rev 21:4

The meek

Mt 5:5 See also Ps 37:11; Zep 3:11-12; Mt 11:29

Those who hunger after righteousness

Mt 5:6 pp Lk 6:21 See also Isa 55:1-2; Mt 6:33; 2Ti 2:22; 1Pe 3:12

The merciful

Mt 5:7 See also Ex 34:6-7; Da 9:9; Mt 6:12 pp Lk 11:4; Mt 6:14-15; Mt 18:21-35; Lk 6:36; Jas 2:13

The pure in heart

Mt 5:8 See also Ps 24:3-5; Ps 51:10; Ps 73:1; 1Jn 3:2-3

The peacemakers

Mt 5:9 See also Ps 34:14; Mt 5:44-45; Ro 12:18; Ro 14:19; 2Ti 2:22; Jas 3:17-18

The righteous who suffer persecution

Mt 5:10-12 pp Lk 6:22 See also Jn 15:18-21; 2Ti 3:10-12; Jas 1:12; 1Pe 3:14,17; 1Pe 4:12-16

Question: What are the Beatitudes?

A Study of the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount

The beatitudes come from the opening verses of the famous Sermon on the Mount delivered by Jesus and recorded in Matthew 5:3-12. Here Jesus states several blessings, each beginning with the phrase, "Blessed are ..." (Similar declarations appear in Jesus' Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6:20-23.) Each saying speaks of a blessing or "divine favor" bestowed upon a person resulting from the possession of a certain character quality.

Answer:

The word "beatitude" comes from the Latin beatitudo, meaning "blessedness." The phrase "blessed are" in each of the beatitudes implies a current state of happiness or well-being. The expression held powerful meaning of "divine joy and perfect happiness" to the people of the day. In other words, Jesus was saying "divinely happy and fortunate are" those who possess these inward qualities. While speaking of a current "blessedness," each pronouncement also promises a future reward.

Am I Blessed Like This?

Blessed are . . . —Matthew 5:3-11

When we first read the statements of Jesus, they seem wonderfully simple and unstartling, and they sink unnoticed into our subconscious minds. For instance, the Beatitudes initially seem to be merely soothing and beautiful precepts for overly spiritual and seemingly useless people, but of very little practical use in the rigid, fast-paced workdays of the world in which we live. We soon find, however, that the Beatitudes contain the “dynamite” of the Holy Spirit. And they “explode” when the circumstances of our lives cause them to do so. When the Holy Spirit brings to our remembrance one of the Beatitudes, we say, “What a startling statement that is!” Then we must decide whether or not we will accept the tremendous spiritual upheaval that will be produced in our circumstances if we obey His words. That is the way the Spirit of God works. We do not need to be born again to apply the Sermon on the Mount literally. The literal interpretation of the Sermon on the Mount is as easy as child’s play. But the interpretation by the Spirit of God as He applies our Lord’s statements to our circumstances is the strict and difficult work of a saint.

The teachings of Jesus are all out of proportion when compared to our natural way of looking at things, and they come to us initially with astonishing discomfort. We gradually have to conform our walk and conversation to the precepts of Jesus Christ as the Holy Spirit applies them to our circumstances. The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of rules and regulations— it is a picture of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is having His unhindered way with us.

Oswald Chambers .  My Utmost for His Highest.

Going Through Spiritual Confusion, Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest

Jesus answered and said, ’You do not know what you ask’ —

Matthew 20:22

There are times in your spiritual life when there is confusion, and the way out of it is not simply to say that you should not be confused. It is not a matter of right and wrong, but a matter of God taking you through a way that you temporarily do not understand. And it is only by going through the spiritual confusion that you will come to the understanding of what God wants for you.

The Shrouding of His Friendship (see Luke 11:5-8). Jesus gave the illustration here of a man who appears not to care for his friend. He was saying, in effect, that is how the heavenly Father will appear to you at times. You will think that He is an unkind friend, but remember? He is not. The time will come when everything will be explained. There seems to be a cloud on the friendship of the heart, and often even love itself has to wait in pain and tears for the blessing of fuller fellowship and oneness. When God appears to be completely shrouded, will you hang on with confidence in Him?

Read more here:

Luke 11:1-13New International Version - UK (NIVUK)

Jesus’ teaching on prayer
11 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.’


 2 He said to them, ‘When you pray, say:

‘“Father,[a] hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.[b] 3 Give us each day our daily bread.4 Forgive us our sins,    for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.[c]And lead us not into temptation.”’[d]

5 Then Jesus said to them, ‘Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, “Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.” 7 And suppose the one inside answers, “Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.” 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity[e] he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.
9 ‘So I say to you: ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

11 ‘Which of you fathers, if your son asks for[f] a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’

My Uttermost for His Highest, I Indeed, Oswald Chambers, Daily Devotionals

“I Indeed . . . But He”

I indeed baptize you with water . . . but He . . . will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire —Matthew 3:11

Matthew 3 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Preaching of John the Baptist

3 Now in those days John the Baptist *[a]came, [b]preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven [c]is at hand.” 3 For this is the one referred to [d]by Isaiah the prophet when he said,

“The voice of one [e]crying in the wilderness,

‘Make ready the way of the Lord,

Make His paths straight!’”

4 Now John himself had [f]a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan; 6 and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance; 9 and do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father’; for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. 10 The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 “As for me, I baptize you [g]with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you [h]with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will gather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

Have I ever come to the point in my life where I can say, “I indeed . . . but He . . .”? Until that moment comes, I will never know what the baptism of the Holy Spirit means. I indeed am at the end, and I cannot do anything more— but He begins right there— He does the things that no one else can ever do. Am I prepared for His coming? Jesus cannot come and do His work in me as long as there is anything blocking the way, whether it is something good or bad. When He comes to me, am I prepared for Him to drag every wrong thing I have ever done into the light? That is exactly where He comes. Wherever I know I am unclean is where He will put His feet and stand, and wherever I think I am clean is where He will remove His feet and walk away.

Read more here:

My Uttermost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers, The Ministry of the Unnoticed

Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . —Matthew 5:3

Matthew 5 New Living Translation (NLT)

The Sermon on the Mount

5 One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, 2 and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes

3 “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,[a]

    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

4 God blesses those who mourn,

    for they will be comforted.

5 God blesses those who are humble,

    for they will inherit the whole earth.

6 God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,[b]

    for they will be satisfied.

7 God blesses those who are merciful,

    for they will be shown mercy.

8 God blesses those whose hearts are pure,

    for they will see God.

9 God blesses those who work for peace,

    for they will be called the children of God.

10 God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,

    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

The New Testament notices things that do not seem worthy of notice by our standards. “Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . .” This literally means, “Blessed are the paupers.” Paupers are remarkably commonplace! The preaching of today tends to point out a person’s strength of will or the beauty of his character— things that are easily noticed. The statement we so often hear, “Make a decision for Jesus Christ,” places the emphasis on something our Lord never trusted. He never asks us to decide for Him, but to yield to Him— something very different. At the foundation of Jesus Christ’s kingdom is the genuine loveliness of those who are commonplace.

Read the full article here:

Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest, Christ Awareness, Daily Devotionals

Christ-Awareness

. . . and I will give you rest —Matthew 11:28

Matthew 11:25-30 Nasb

Come to Me

²⁵ At that ^[y]time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. ²⁶ Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. ²⁷ All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

²⁸ “Come to Me, all ^[z]who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is ^[aa]easy and My burden is light.”

Whenever anything begins to disintegrate your life with Jesus Christ, turn to Him at once, asking Him to re-establish your rest. Never allow anything to remain in your life that is causing the unrest. Think of every detail of your life that is causing the disintegration as something to fight against, not as something you should allow to remain. Ask the Lord to put awareness of Himself in you, and your self-awareness will disappear. Then He will be your all in all. Beware of allowing your self-awareness to continue, because slowly but surely it will awaken self-pity, and self-pity is satanic. Don’t allow yourself to say, “Well, they have just misunderstood me, and this is something over which they should be apologizing to me; I’m sure I must have this cleared up with them already.” Learn to leave others alone regarding this. Simply ask the Lord to give you Christ-awareness, and He will steady you until your completeness in Him is absolute.

Read more here:

Oswald Chambers, My Uttermost for His Highest, Self Awareness

Self-Awareness

Come to Me . . . —Matthew 11:28

Matthew 11:28-30 The Voice (VOICE)

28 Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Put My yoke upon your shoulders—it might appear heavy at first, but it is perfectly fitted to your curves. Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. When you are yoked to Me, your weary souls will find rest. 30 For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.

God intends for us to live a well-rounded life in Christ Jesus, but there are times when that life is attacked from the outside. Then we tend to fall back into self-examination, a habit that we thought was gone. Self-awareness is the first thing that will upset the completeness of our life in God, and self-awareness continually produces a sense of struggling and turmoil in our lives. Self-awareness is not sin, and it can be produced by nervous emotions or by suddenly being dropped into a totally new set of circumstances.

Yet it is never God’s will that we should be anything less than absolutely complete in Him. Anything that disturbs our rest in Him must be rectified at once, and it is not rectified by being ignored but only by coming to Jesus Christ. If we will come to Him, asking Him to produce Christ-awareness in us, He will always do it, until we fully learn to abide in Him.

Read the full article here:

"The revelation of God's will has been brought down to us in words. The Bible is not a book containing communications from God; it is God's revelation of Himself, in the interests of grace; God's giving of Himself in the limitation of words. The Bible is not a faery romance to beguile us for a while from the sordid realities of life; it is the Divine complement of the laws of Nature, of Conscience and of Humanity; it introduces us to a new universe of revelation facts not known to unregenerate common sense. The only Exegete of these facts is the Holy Spirit, and in the degree of our reception, recognition, and reliance on the Holy Spirit will be our understanding." --Oswald Chambers, in God's Workmanship from The Quotable Oswald Chambers.

My Uttermost for His Highest, "Do not Quench the Spirit," Oswald Chambers Daily Devotionals

The voice of the Spirit of God is as gentle as a summer breeze— so gentle that unless you are living in complete fellowship and oneness with God, you will never hear it. The sense of warning and restraint that the Spirit gives comes to us in the most amazingly gentle ways. And if you are not sensitive enough to detect His voice, you will quench it, and your spiritual life will be impaired. This sense of restraint will always come as a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12), so faint that no one except a saint of God will notice it.

Read more here: