“QUALIFICATIONS FOR KINGDOM CANDIDATES”[1]
MATTHEW 5:1-5
INTRODUCTION
J. B. Phillips, in his book When God Was Man, gives this version of the Beatitudes:
Happy are the pushers, for they get on in the world.
Happy are the hard-boiled, for they never let life hurt them.
Happy are they who complain, for they get their own way in the end.
Happy are the blasé, for they never worry over their sins.
Happy are the slave drivers, for they get results.
Happy are the knowledgeable men of the world, for they know their way around.
Happy are the troublemakers, for they make people take notice of them.
I would like to share with you on the topic: “Qualifications for Kingdom Candidates.”
Background
The first half of this year, I am presenting a theme, which I call “Back to the Basics.” My reason is for every one of you to search your heart whether you are a true follower of Jesus Christ. In other words, I don’t want anybody to pretend to be a Christian. I want you to be hundred percent positive that indeed you have been saved and if Jesus were coming today you won't be left behind. These series would solidify the faith of those who are saved and would also help the seekers to find authentic faith in Jesus Christ.
Matthew 5-7 is popularly known as the Sermon on the Mount. The Gospel of Matthew was written primarily for the Jewish people to show them that Jesus is in fact the Son of God, the Promised Messiah. So in the Gospel, Matthew under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit compares and contrasts the nation of Israel and some of their finest prophets with Jesus, the Messiah, and the Redeemer of the world. As God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai, so does Jesus the God-Man inaugurate His public ministry by addressing His disciples and the crowd from a mountain near Capernaum. This “Sermon” probably covered several days of preaching. In it Jesus proclaimed His attitude toward the law. Jesus states that position, authority, and money are not the most important things in His kingdom. Rather, what matters is faithful obedience from the heart. The Sermon on the Mount challenged the proud and legalistic religious leaders of the day. It called them back to the messages of the Old Testament prophets, who, like Jesus, taught that heartfelt obedience is more important than legalistic observance.
This brings me to the first two verses of our text. Crowds of people are following Jesus. He has just come to the scene after a brief introduction by John the Baptist. Jesus was the talk of the town, and everyone wanted to see Him. The people are tired of hearing from the Pharisees and scribes quoting one another. They want to hear a new breath of wisdom and see the demonstration of power. The disciples, who were the closest associates of this popular man, were certainly tempted to feel important, proud, and possessive. Being with Jesus gave them not only prestige, but also opportunity for money and power. Someone has said that many people do better when they don’t have anything and any power, but the temptation comes when they become wealthy and powerful.
The crowds are gathering once again, but before speaking to them, Jesus pulls His disciples aside and warns them about the temptations they will face as His followers. Jesus says to them don’t expect fame and fortune, but mourning, hunger, and persecution. Nevertheless, Jesus assures His disciples that they will be rewarded, but perhaps not complete reward in this life. There may be times when following Jesus will bring us great popularity. If we don’t live by Jesus’ words in this sermon, we will find ourselves using God’s message only to promote our personal interests. Instead of advancing His Kingdom, we would be building our own kingdom on the sand. Therefore, let us listen to Jesus’ instructions for us as they are set in what is called the Beatitudes.
I. SPIRITUAL INADEQUACY (V. 3)
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This statement is not made primarily for the poor in pocket but the poor in spirit. However, material poverty is implied because financial and material wealth can make you self-sufficient. There is no virtue in poverty per se; it is certainly not an automatic blessing. In the Greek language there are two words for poor. One means someone who has nothing superfluous, overflow, or extravagant. The second one means one who has nothing at all, one who is bankrupt, and has no resources. The person who is to be envied is the one who is conscious of his spiritual bankruptcy as such he casts himself on God’s abundance and draws on God’s limitless resources. In His earthly ministry Jesus encountered people who were self-sufficient and those who admitted their spiritual inadequacy. Let me give you some examples in the New Testament. The first person that is far from understanding his spiritual bankruptcy is the rich young ruler (Luke 18). Till this man met Jesus, life for him has been a smooth cruise down a neon avenue. But today he has a question: A casual concern or a genuine fear? We don’t know. All we know is that he has come to Jesus for some advice. For a person so used to calling the shots, calling on the carpenter’s son for help must be awkward. For a man of his caliber to seek the counsel of a countryside rabbi is not standard procedure. But this is no standard question. He inquires, “Teacher, what good things must I do to get eternal life?” The wording of his question betrays his misunderstanding. He thinks he can get eternal life as he gets everything else—by his own strength. “What must I do?”
“What are the requirements, Jesus? What is the break-even point? No need for chitchat; go straight to the bottom line. How much do I need to invest to be certain of my return? Jesus’ answer is intended to make him wince. “If you want to enter life, obey the commandments.” A person with half a conscience would have thrown up his hands at that point. “Keep the commandments? Keep the commandments! Do you know how many commandments there are? Have you read the Law lately? I’ve tried—honestly, I have tried—but I can’t.” That is what the ruler should have said, but confession is the farthest thing from his mind. Instead of asking for help, he grabs a pencil and paper and asks for the list. “Which ones?” He licks his pencil and arches an eyebrow. Jesus indulges him, “Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.” The rich young ruler grins and says to himself, “a piece of cake.” I have done all of these. In fact, I have done them since I was a kid.” He is self-confident and asks Jesus, “Got any other commandments you want to run past me?”
How Jesus keeps from laughing or crying is beyond my comprehension. The question that is intended to show the ruler how he falls short only convinces him that he stands tall. He is like a child dripping water on the floor while he is telling his mom he hasn’t been in the rain. Jesus gets the point. “If you want to be perfect, then go sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.” The statement leaves the rich young man distraught and the disciples bewildered. Their question could be ours: “Who then can be saved?” Then Jesus’ answer shocks His listeners, “With man this is impossible.” Jesus solves the disciples’ dilemma in this verse, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” That is the problem with many people. All your life you have been rewarded according to your performance. You get grades according to your study. You get commendations according to your success. You get money in response to your work. That is why the rich young ruler thought heaven was a payment away. The opposite of the rich young ruler is Zacchaeus. He is also rich, but he is a crook. He has an encounter with Jesus and Jesus asks him to come down from the tree. I want to spend time with you in your house. Everyone around who knows him is protesting. He is a crook, he is a fraud, he is bootlegged, and he takes what does not belong to him. What kind of Messiah would spend time with such a crook? Zacchaeus does not defend himself, rather he says, “If I have defrauded any person I am willing to pay him back four times what I took away from him.” Zacchaeus in the presence of Jesus admits his spiritual and moral bankruptcy. Jesus sees the brokenness of Zacchaeus’ heart and says to him “Today salvation has come to your house.” So we have two people who could have a stake in the kingdom of God, but the rich young ruler leaves with a sad countenance because the price to pay is too dear to his heart. What the rich man wants costs more than what he can pay. You don’t need a system; you need a Savior. You don’t need a resume; you need a Redeemer. Zacchaeus the crook is welcomed to the kingdom because Jesus sees the sincerity of his heart and his brokenness before Him. “What is impossible before man is possible with God.” The thrust of this verse is that you cannot save yourself. Not through the right ritual; not by attending church or Bible study or Sunday school. Not through the right doctrine. Not through the right devotion. It wasn’t the money that hindered the rich man; it was self-sufficiency. It was the possessions; it was the pomp. It wasn’t the big bucks; it was the big head. It is not only the rich who have difficulty. So do the educated, the strong, the good-looking, the famous, and the religious. So do you if you think your piety or power qualifies you as a kingdom candidate. Kingdom seekers do not come to Jesus with an outstretched chest; they come on bended knees.
II. SPIRITUAL CONTRITION (V. 4)
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. This is another paradox. It is as if Jesus is saying, “How happy are the unhappy!” This quality is the product of the poverty of spirit of the first beatitude. It is not bereavement that is primarily in view, although that need not be excluded. The word mourn conveys the idea of grief of the deepest kind. It is mourning over sin and failure, over the slowness of our growth in the likeness to Christ—mourning over our spiritual bankruptcy. There are two mistakes that you may make as a disciple of Christ. One is to believe that Christians must never be happy and laughing; the other, that Christians must always be happy and laughing. The book of Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4 says “There is time for everything . . . a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.” Nobody attains full maturity without the experience of sorrow. There is room for you to mourn over the slowness of your growth and the inadequacy of your spiritual attainment apart from any specific sin in your life. Mourning and bliss are not incompatible, for Jesus said, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh" (Luke 6:21). The blessing is in the comfort God gives, not in the mourning itself. “They will be comforted.” Those who don’t mourn have confined themselves in the prison of pride. The prison of pride is filled with self-made men and women determined to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. What matters to them is not what they did or to whom they did or where they would end up; it only matters that “I did it my way.” You have seen the prisoners. You have seen the alcoholic who won't admit his drinking problem. You have seen the wife who refuses to tell anybody about her fears. You have seen the businessman who adamantly refuses help, even when his dreams are falling apart. Perhaps to see such a prisoner all that you need to do is to look in the mirror. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just . . . But confessing sins—admitting failure is exactly what prisoners of pride refuse to do. You know the lingo: Well, I may not be perfect, but I am better than Hitler and certainly kinder than Idi Amin! So you play the game of justification, rationalization, and comparison. Prisoners of pride are good at that. A life that is wrapped up in itself makes a very small package. Pride is like a beard. It just keeps growing. The solution? Shave it every day. Someone has said that many Christians are like the woodpecker that was pecking on the trunk of a dead tree. Suddenly lightning struck the tree and splintered it. The woodpecker flew away unharmed. Looking back to where the dead tree had stood, the proud bird exclaimed, “Look what I did!”
Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn.” To mourn for your sins is a natural outflow of poverty of spirit. The problem with many people is that they put up a front so they deny their weakness. Many know they are wrong, yet they pretend they are right. As a result they do not taste the sorrow of repentance. “Blessed are those who know they are in trouble and have enough sense to admit it.”
III. SPIRITUAL HUMILITY (V. 5). Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Humility is an exotic flower in our sooty and smoggy world. Humility is no native of earth and it is little esteemed by humans in general. The word meek is more than amicability or mere mildness of disposition. The children’s song “Jesus, meek and mild” has weakened the word meek. The impression the hymn leaves is that Jesus was rather weak and ineffective. Yes, Jesus was meek but He was not mild. In fact, He was the very opposite of weak (When He stormed the Temple). The word meek was used of a horse that had been broken and domesticated. So the word meek conveys the idea of power under control, and this perfectly describes the life of Jesus. The question is are you meek or are you robust?
*If the messages from this blog have been a blessing to you and you want to give to support this ministry, you can write your check to:
KENADARKWA LLC
Kennedy A. Adarkwa, PhD
6402 Redding Court
Arlington, TX 76001
*If the messages from this blog have been a blessing to you and you want to give to support this ministry, you can write your check to:
KENADARKWA LLC
Kennedy A. Adarkwa, PhD
6402 Redding Court
Arlington, TX 76001
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