I like being happy. Who doesn’t want to be happy? But happiness is so elusive for so many. I’m not talking about a state of giddiness or hilarity. I think of happiness as a state of well-being, being blessed. The Greek word for blessed used 49 times in the New Testament is makarios, meaning happy, and is used in Jesus’ teachings beginning with the “Blessed are…” statements.
The teachings of Jesus Matthew 5 and Luke 6 concerning attitudes that yield blessing that could be acquired by followers of Christ are commonly referred to as “The Beatitudes.” For the sake of clarity, the word “beatitude” is not in Scripture per se, but that does not disqualify it from being used as a reference title. A beatitude is a statement about those who are blessed, highly favored, and happy, and so we use it as a collective category of the teaching found in Matthew 5 and Luke 6.
Be Poor in Spirit
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matt.5:3).” This corresponds to Luke 6:20, “And turning toward His disciples, He began to say, ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God’.” The two together fill in details of focusing on the poor. The word poor used in both is the Greek word ptochos, meaning beggar, pauper, or to crouch as in falling down. It gives us the idea of lack of the necessities for life. So, how could a beggar devoid of basic living conditions be blessed—happy? Is Jesus talking about food, clothing, or shelter shortage?
Matthew qualifies Jesus’ Words by saying poor in spirit, not in the flesh. Spirit here is the word pneuma, the spirit of man, as opposed to pseuche, referring to the soul (rationality, will, emotions). When a person’s spirit is emptied of self, dead and separated from the Kingdom of God, low and desperate for God, he is in the best possible position to receive new life from the only One Who can give new life. He is made new as an inheritor of the Kingdom of God (being born again), the emptiness is filled with the Holy Spirit, and he is in fact blessed—happy. He has access to the Kingdom of God now and forever.
If we remain full of ourselves, we don’t give place to receive what God has for us. It may seem to be a paradox, but only a pauper of the spirit without any other resources, has the capacity to receive of the Kingdom of Heaven and be filled with what God offers.
Hunger and Thirst
Related to this is Luke 6:21, “Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now for you shall laugh.” In Matthew 5:4 and 5:6, we see the same. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted (Matt. 5:4)” and “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Matt. 5:6).” These also seem paradoxical. How is it that weeping, hunger, and mourning results in blessing? The key here is the target of weeping, hunger and mourning—righteousness.
Simply put, righteousness is right standing with God. Righteousness is imputed by faith. Genesis 15:6 says about Abraham, “Then he believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.” The same is true for New Testament believers. Righteousness is not a reward for good behavior. It is a gift given by God to those who by faith receive it as is stated in Romans 10:10,11. “For with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.’”
Happy is the one who believes and receives righteousness leading to eternal life. Happy also is the one who continually hungers and thirsts after God, for he shall be satisfied with the joy of the Lord, our strength. “For He has satisfied the thirsty soul, And the hungry soul He has filled with what is good” (Psalm 107:9).
Be Gentle and Meek
The beatitude regarding the meek has much to think about. Matthew 5:5 says, “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.” Some translations read gentle as meek, meaning teachable. The word meek in Greek is praus, meaning mild or humble. It speaks of the attitude of heart in one’s dealings with one another.
We have all experienced the difficultly in dealing with people who are arrogant or bullies in the marketplace or personal relationships. It never ends well. Such dealings are fraught with aggravation, pain and suffering not only on the receiving end, but also in the heart of the bully. People who are not teachable don’t start out that way. It is usually the result of deep feelings of inadequacy over many years that are mitigated and fed by self-aggrandizement.
This is not to be confused with confidence and assertiveness. Being gentle, humble, or meek (teachable) does not mean lacking strength. In fact, the opposite is true. A confident and secure individual does not have a need to be belligerent. They are self-actualized enough to hear, listen, and glean from others. They have the ability and reasonableness of mind to pursue what is ethically and morally right, and consequently, win more agreement from their relationships than someone who is contentious. Indeed, they inherit the earth.
Be Peacemakers
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Let’s drill into this one. Man’s unregenerated nature is at enmity with God and peace between humanity and God requires the ultimate intercessor—the blood of Jesus. Jesus was born as the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Even the angels declared the intentions of peace on earth at his birth. As born again “sons of God,” we are peacemakers. As we boldly tell other of God’s plan of salvation, we are peacemakers, helping fellow mankind make peace with God. The Holy Spirit draws humanity, but He uses believers to speak the message of reconciliation so that they may believe.
Beyond salvation, we also need to be peacemakers among one another. Second Timothy 2:22 says, “Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” Hebrews 12:14 says, “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord,” and finally, James 3:18 says, “And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” Peacemaking within the Body of Christ is about ministering the Word of God (being good news bringers) to individuals who are experiencing strife and helping them to see that God’s ways bring about peace and fulfillment in their lives, ones that are happy.
Be Merciful
In the same vein of building godly relationships, Jesus says, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy (Matt. 5:7),” and in Luke 6:36, He says, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” Mercy, the Greek word eleeo, means having compassion by word or deed. This compassion has nothing to do with deservedness. In fact, mercy acts in compassion where it is not deserved. That is the nature and character of God, our Father. He is merciful toward us in providing salvation when we definitely did not deserve it. He is merciful to forgive our transgressions when we act ugly and clearly do not deserve compassion.
God is moved with compassion toward His creation in that He provided the path of redemption and resurrection life for those who choose to believe Him. In seeking to be more like Him, acting mercifully toward others, especially when they do not deserve it, is not only planting seeds of life, but positions you to live in abundant mercy from the Father. By meting out mercy, we become so much more aware of the continuous mercy of God granted to us. Our ultimate goal in this life is to be like the Master (conformed to His image), full of compassion, love and grace.
Be Pure in Heart
Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” This statement sums up the relationship of a believer and God. It is a statement of assurance. If your heart is pure, the destination is being with God. Heart in this context is clearly not the flesh, nor the soul. The mind (soul) needs to be continually renewed by the Word of God and it is where growth in the knowledge of God takes place. The heart, however, in this context, is the spirit of man. Being filled with the Holy Spirit as a disciple of Jesus Christ, the only pure heart (spirit) because God dwells there, positions you to be assured of your heavenly destination. It also assures us of seeing God in our daily lives until we reach those heavenly shores. That is something to be happy about!
When Persecuted, Insulted, Hated, Ostracized, and Scorned
The remainder of the beatitudes has to do with how to handle conflict and harassment that comes against the believers because of their faith. Matthew 5:10–12 reads, “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven in great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.” Luke 6:22–23 reads, “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets.”
It seems like a pretty heavy deal to be happy when you are being treated unjustly and even cruelly because of your beliefs. Are the victims of these atrocities happy? The survival instinct of the flesh would scream out a big NO.
Did Jesus have something else in mind in making these difficult statements? The short answer is yes, not for their suffering, but for the privilege of suffering for a heavenly cause as Christ did. Think about Christians around the world in our day who suffer inhumane attacks and martyrdom for the sake of the gospel. I’m pretty sure they do not enjoy the pain, but there is grace to see beyond suffering into the glory that awaits the one who perseveres to the end as is exemplified by the story of Stephen’s martyrdom.
Paul said in Romans 8:18, that the sufferings he endures are not comparable to the glory revealed in him. The reward for their suffering is great in heaven and ultimately to be out of the body is to be present with the Lord for eternity for all believers. That knowledge without reservation gives the committed believer the strength to endure, and the compassionate heart to forgive their oppressors and say as Jesus did, “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do.”
Persecution is not necessarily from the unsaved world. Sadly, the history of Christianity in which conflicts over doctrinal beliefs have been the impetus for some nasty behavior has not always exemplified the principles given in the Word of God. Nevertheless, we are responsible for our own day and we have the opportunity to be different. Hearing of persecution puts our own petty differences into perspective and brings us to our knees in prayer for our fellow believers in Christ. Our responsibilities toward each other in the universal Body of Christ require us to speak out for justice (righteous, ethical and moral behavior) and help where we can. Jesus has much to say about law, lawlessness, liberty, and righteous behavior and so should we.
To sum up the heart of the matter in the beatitudes, we see Jesus addressing the central issue of the restoration of relationship between God and humanity as well as humanity within itself. It is God’s desire to bless and make His creation happy. Because of His nature of love, He gives mercy (compassion) and grace (unmerited favor) for us to be His for all eternity. He welcomes us to partner with Him in His ways through the power of the Holy Spirit. He has provided the motive, the means, and the method, for this to happen—seven ways. Oh, happy day!
Copyright 2016 by Eva S. Benevento. All rights reserved.