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"Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness" (Matt. 5:10). If you don’t experience persecution, people probably don’t know you’re a Christian. I heard of a man who was fearful because he was starting a new job with a group of unbelievers whom he thought might give him a bad time if they found out he was a Christian. After his first day at work his wife asked him how he got along with them. "We got along just fine," he said. "They never found out I'm a Christian." Silence is one way to avoid persecution....

"Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness" (Matt. 5:10). There is a price to pay for being a Kingdom citizen. Unlike many today who try to make the gospel palatable for reluctant sinners, Jesus made it clear that following Him had its price. Rather than acceptance, fame, prestige, and prosperity, you can expect rejection and persecution. That's not a popular approach to evangelism, but it's honest. Also it insures that no one will try to enter the kingdom on the wrong basis. Jesus wanted His hearers to count the cost of discipleship. He knew that...

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). You are a messenger of peace! When Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9), He was referring to a special group of people whom God called to restore the peace that was forfeited because of sin. They may not be politicians, statesmen, diplomats, kings, presidents, or Nobel Prize winners, but they hold the key to true and lasting peace. As a Christian, you are among that select group of peacemakers. As such you have two primary responsibilities....

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). Christ’s atonement made it possible for man to be at peace with God. After World War II the United Nations was created to promote world peace. But since its inception in 1945 there has not been a single day of global peace. That's a sad commentary on man's inability to make peace. In fact, someone once quipped that Washington D.C. has so many peace monuments because they build one after every war! It hasn't always been that way. Prior to the Fall of man peace reigned...

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). Sin and falsehood hinder true peace. Just as righteousness and truth are the noble companions of peace, so sin and falsehood are its great hindrances. The prophet Jeremiah said, "The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately [evil]; who can understand it?" (Jer. 17:9). Jesus said, "Out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and...

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). True peace exists only where truth reigns. People often define peace as the absence of conflict, but God sees it differently. The absence of conflict is merely a truce, which might end overt hostilities but doesn't resolve the underlying issues. A truce simply introduces a cold war, which often drives the conflict underground, where it smolders until erupting in physical or emotional disaster. James 3:17 says, "The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable." Godly wisdom, purity, and peace go hand- in-hand. Peace is wisdom...

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God" (Matt. 5:9). God’s peace cushions the soul during difficult times. I remember reading about what is called "the cushion of the sea." The ocean surface is often greatly agitated, but as you descend, the water becomes increasingly calm. At its greatest depths the ocean is virtually still. Oceanographers dredging ocean bottoms have found animal and plant remains that appear to have been undisturbed for hundreds of years. Similarly, Christians can experience a cushion of peace in their souls regardless of their troubled surroundings. That's because they belong to...

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). You have a part to play in becoming pure in heart. Purifying a heart is the gracious and miraculous work of the Holy Spirit, but there are some things we must do in response to His prompting. First, we must admit we can't purify our own hearts. Proverbs 20:9 says, "Who can say, 'I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin?'" The implied answer: no one! Next, we must put our faith in Jesus Christ, whose sacrifice on the cross is the basis for...

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). The way you think determines the way you behave. God is concerned about the way you think. That's why Paul said, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect" (Rom. 12:2). In Philippians 4:8 he instructs us to think about that which is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellent, and praiseworthy. When Jesus spoke of a pure heart...

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). There are basically only two kinds of religion in the world: those based on human achievement and those based on divine accomplishment. Religion comes in many forms. Almost every conceivable belief or behavior has been incorporated into some religious system at some point in time. But really there are only two kinds of religion: one says you can earn your way to heaven; the other says you must trust in Jesus Christ alone. One is the religion of human achievement; the other is the religion of divine...

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" (Matt. 5:8). Legalism can’t produce a pure heart. By the time Jesus arrived, Israel was in a desperate condition spiritually. The Jewish people were in bondage to the oppressive legalism of the Pharisees, who had developed a system of laws that were impossible to keep. Consequently, the people lacked security and were longing for a savior to free them from guilt and frustration. They knew God had promised a redeemer who would forgive their sins and cleanse their hearts (Ezek. 36:25-27), but they weren't sure when He was coming...

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matt. 5:7). God commends merciful people but condemns the merciless. Scripture shows that those whom God blessed most abundantly were abundantly merciful to others. Abraham, for example, helped rescue his nephew Lot even after Lot had wronged him. Joseph was merciful to his brothers after they sold him into slavery. Twice David spared Saul's life after Saul tried to kill him. But just as sure as God's commendation is upon those who show mercy, His condemnation is upon those who are merciless. Psalm 109:14-16 says, "Let the iniquity of [the merciless...

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matt. 5:7). There are many ways to show mercy. God delights in mercy, and as a believer you have the privilege of showing mercy in many ways. In the physical realm you can give money to the poor, food to the hungry, or a bed to the homeless. God has always wanted His people to be that way. Deuteronomy 15 says, "If there is a poor man with you . . . you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from [him]; but you shall freely open your hand...

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matt. 5:7). Mercy is compassion in action. Mercy is not a human attribute. It is God's gift to those who seek Him. Psalm 103:11 says, "As the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him" (KJV). The verb form of "merciful" appears many times in Scripture and means "to have mercy on," "aid the afflicted," "give help to the wretched," or "rescue the miserable." In general it refers to anything you do to benefit someone in need. The noun form is used only...

"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matt. 5:7). Mercy is a characteristic of true believers. Like the other beatitudes, Matthew 5:7 contains a twofold message: to enter the kingdom you must seek mercy. Once there, you must show mercy to others. The thought of showing mercy probably surprised Christ's audience because both the Jews and the Romans tended to be merciless. The Romans exalted justice, courage, discipline, and power. To them mercy was a sign of weakness. For example, if a Roman father wanted his newborn child to live, he simply held his thumb up; if he...

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied" (Matt. 5:6). Your relationship with God is the measure of your righteousness. Righteousness means "to be right with God." When you hunger and thirst for righteousness, you passionately desire an ongoing and ever-maturing relationship with God Himself. Righteousness begins with salvation and continues in sanctification. Only after you abandon all self- righteousness and hunger for salvation, will you be cleansed from sin and made righteous in Christ. Then you embark on a lifelong process of becoming as righteous as Christ—a process that will culminate when you...

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied" (Matt. 5:6). Your appetite for righteousness should equal your appetite for food and water. David was a man after God's own heart. In Psalm 63:1 he writes, "O God, Thou art my God; I shall seek Thee earnestly; my soul thirsts for Thee, my flesh yearns for Thee, in a dry and weary land where there is no water." He communed with God and knew the blessings of His sufficiency: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. . . . He leads me beside...

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied" (Matt. 5:6). Only Christ can satisfy your deepest needs. Within every man and woman is a hunger and thirst only God can satisfy. That's why Jesus said, "I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst" (John 6:35). Sadly, most people search for happiness in the wrong places. The prodigal son in Luke 15 is one example. He turned from God to pursue sinful pleasures, but soon discovered that sin cannot satisfy...

"Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth" (Matt. 5:5). Someday God will reverse the curse and return the earth to His people. God said to Adam and Eve, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth" (Gen. 1:28). But their sin cost them their sovereignty and brought a curse upon the earth (Gen. 3:17-18). The apostle Paul said, "The anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing...

"Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth" (Matt. 5:5). Gentleness is power under control. The Greek word translated "gentle" in Matthew 5:5 speaks of humility, meekness, and non-retaliation—traits that in our proud society are often equated with weakness or cowardice. But in reality they are virtues that identify kingdom citizens. The same word was used by the Greeks to describe a gentle breeze, a soothing medicine, or a domesticated colt. Those are examples of power under control: a gentle breeze brings pleasure, but a hurricane brings destruction; a soothing medicine brings healing, but an overdose can kill;...