“Sermon on the Mount, with its calls for peacemaking, helping the poor and working for justice . . . .” There is nothing in the Beatitudes on helping the poor.
The Beatitudes
1And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3”Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11”Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus is talking about the Kingdom of Heaven not earth.
Okay,so using your argument that the beatitudes are about the Kingdom of Heaven and it isn’t about earth, are you sayng God does not comfort us here on earth (vs.4), that we cannot receive God’s mercy until heaven? (vs.7). How about verse 11, that we will be reviled and persecuted because of following Christ here on earth. I can’t imagine that this verse is referring to heaven, could you? I believe this particular verse is there to encourage us to hang in there and keep on spreading the gospel despite reaction from others.
I’m not sure how this Pastor will deliver the message. I just know he said he was going to be talking about change. (see website link) Since we have a clear picture from the beautitudes about the type of people that will inherit the Kingdom, than one can determine to use this scripture as an examination of our own hearts. Could you agree with that?
Do you still believe by a church advertising their sermon series “Jesus for President” in some way demeans Christ or Christianity, I would like to know how?