This past Sunday, I completed a series of sermons on the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:1-12. Each passing week’s message was used by God in some of the most providentially challenging ways in my life. My heart has been exposed and, I pray, helped in so many ways.
I titled the series, “Values for Ultimate Satisfaction.” These are characteristics that people who are genuinely a part of Christ’s kingdom value and display as a result of the work of the gospel in our hearts.
You can listen to the series HERE.
Below is a summary of how I defined each value (beatitude) and then steps, by God’s grace, you can cultivate each one. Essentially, cultivating these values is simply applying the gospel to your heart:
Be Broken – 5:1-3
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
What is this value? Poor in spirit is a radical dependence upon God from a thorough understanding of yourself before a holy God.
How can you cultivate it?
- Meditate continually on the gospel, its message, cost, and application to you personally.
- Meditate consistently in God’s Word.
- Fellowship consistently with God’s people.
- Pray continually.
- Confess sin consistently and thoroughly.
- Avoid those things that cultivate circumstantial happiness and immerse yourself in the sorts of things that cultivate a concentration on your spiritual position in Christ.
- Evaluate what tends to make you a satisfied person.
Be Sad – 5:4
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
What is this value? Biblical mourning is a continual, internal sorrow over those things that grieve God.
How can you cultivate it?
- Be aware of what hinders a sensitivity to sinfulness.
- Elevate your meditation on the character of God.
- Deepen your consideration of the cost of the cross.
- Intentionally rehearse and acknowledge specific person sin.
- Read the newspaper with a gospel consciousness.
- Pray constantly for the lost.
- Meditate on the horrors of hell and the glories of heaven.
- Weep for those who weep.
- Continually pray for and anticipate the Lord’s return.
- Don’t expect perfect comfort until eternity.
Be Gentle – 5:5
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
What is this value? Biblical gentleness is a kind-hearted self-control motivated by God’s goodness expressed to you and others through the gospel.
How can you cultivate it?
- See life within the sphere of God’s good sovereignty.
- Get rid of personal defensiveness.
- Develop a default response of forgiveness.
- Kill thoughts that savor bitterness.
- Develop a heart that readily submits to Scripture.
- Study the Gospel’s description of Jesus.
Be Hungry – 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
What is this value? Biblical hunger for righteousness is a fundamental, all consuming, comprehensive, constant starvation for holiness in the totality of your life – a craving for God in the details of life.
How can you cultivate it?
- Starve the sinful flesh to ignite the soul’s longing for holiness.
- Increase habits that increase aspirations for God.
- Grow your prayerful meditation on the Scripture
- Deepen your reading of biblically rich books
- Listen to and sing music that not only expresses, but expands your understanding and enjoyment of God being all satisfying.
- Increase your time spent with spiritually hungry people.
- Learn to live independently of being satisfied by external things.
- Consider your current passions.
Be Holy – 5:7
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
What is this value? A pure heart is an internal loyalty to God that displays itself through external holiness.
How can you cultivate it?
- Guard and take time for personal reflection and meditation.
- Meditate on the Sermon on the Mount.
- Consider and challenge what you love and why you love it.
- Examine your actions, they will mirror your heart.
- Scrutinize your loyalties to Christ.
Be Merciful – 5:8
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
What is this value? Mercy is a Christ-motivated, kind-hearted, patient, practical generosity that seeks to lavishly relieve someone’s miseries.
How can you cultivate it?
- Consistently cultivate the first four beatitudes within your own heart.
- Assist others in understanding and apply the Bible to their hearts.
- Plan to be most merciful to the most difficult people.
- Attack every area of impatience in your heart, from your voice, and in your behavior.
Be Peacemakers – 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
What is this value? A peacemaker is one who pursues gospel reconciliation with God and others.
How can you cultivate it?
- Study the specifics in God’s peacemaking with you.
- Hunt down and kill expressions of personal pride.
- Eliminate excuses for relational discord.
- Target obvious relationships that need God’s peace.
Be Persecuted – 5:10-12
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you, and persecute you, and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
What is this value? Eagerly and joyfully embracing oppression for a clearly Christ-motivated lifestyle.
How can you cultivate it?
- Confront any tendency for moderating your personal pursuit of holiness.
- Meditate more regularly on the ultimate reign of Christ.
- Consider the good purposes of persecution:
- Persecution severs affection for the world above affection for God.
- Persecution makes the saints more soberly focused on what is most important.
- Persecution helps us to be less trivial, lazy, temporal, and more serious, active, and eternal.
- Persecution will realign what brings you the most joy in life.
- Persecution will purify your present holiness.
- Persecution strengthens your bold resolve and loyalty to Christ.
- Read about and pray for those being persecuted now (and pray for those who are doing the persecuting).
