Pray

Context

What has happened so far in the narrative?

Jesus just go ready to teach.

What part of the sermon is this?

The Beatitudes are an introduction to the whole sermon

Is there an Old Testament passage that this text refers to?

Blessed – Gen and Psalms and more

Poor in spirit - Isaiah 57:15

Kingdom of Heaven - Daniel

Observations

Opening Question

In your groups describe someone who lives a charmed life. They are lucky. They live a blessed life. Describe that person. You could even name a person you know like that.

What does "poor in Spirit" mean

What is this sequence of lines? They all look the same.

Contrite and Lowly

“I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

(Isaiah 57:15 ESV)

People that need good news.

Here are

some extra assets :

These are the “Beatitudes.” They summarize the whole sermon.

Jesus is illustrating the kind of person who is of the Kingdom of God, which everyone wanted to be.

Are there key words (connecting words for logic, repeated words for emphasis, etc)

Poor – impoverished, empty, needy, contrite, humble

Spirit – true inner person,

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor;

(Isaiah 61:1 ESV)

FEEL FREE TO COPY & PASTE THEM!

What is the Kingdom

of Heaven?

What is the word "FOR"

doing there?

NO THEY DON’T!!!

Lucky are the homeless

FOR

they have unimaginable

wealth

Pray

Read the text through

What if I said,

Daniel 2:36–45

It was what everyone was waiting for ever since Genesis 3. It is the reign of God WITH his people.

The word “for” drives the problem in the sentence.

BECAUSE the poor in spirit have the Kingdom of Heaven THEREFORE they are blessed.

Already-not yet

What does Blessed mean?

In Genesis 30:13 Leah says, "Happy am I." That is actually the word, "blessed."

Psalm 84:4–5 The dwell in God’s house and are strengthened by him (so much more to say about blessed)

[4] Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! Selah

[5] Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.  

(Psalms 84:4-5 ESV)

Blessed is filled up with God, his/her satisfaction comes from God, who is near God

Christ as greatest example – Philippians 2:7 emptied himself, John 14:10 operated in the power of the Father in him, not his own.

ENGAGE

How does this passage challenge your understanding?

The people around me who are poor or rich, doesn’t matter. What is the state of their heart? Are they poor in spirit? Have they been filled up with Christ?

Being a disciple of Jesus is not a culture.

It is not about looking a certain way, or

knowing certain answers, or knowing how to behave at Church.

It is a certain state of your heart.

I need to entrust the biggest things in my life to God, since I have nothing.

Is there an attitude you need to change or a truth that you need to believe?

What does this passage teach you about being a disciple of Jesus?

I can be so full of myself, so proud.

My wife and sons know that.

But God is emptying me to fill me.

How is your own situation similar or different from what was described?

I have nothing to offer.

It is an empty vessel that God fills.

YES!

Suprises? Changes?

It is unexpected – I would expect that the poor in spirit lose out. A blessed person is not empty. A blessed person who gets the kingdom of heaven is not empty. They are full, beautiful, strong, smart, rich. They have stuff to offer.

This tells me “NOPE, they have nothing to offer.”

Is the text giving a command, telling us the way that something is, or asking a question (or something else)?

This text is telling us the way something is.

When we hear a truth, something that explains reality, we do have a question put to us.

Is this me?

Like Daniel says, it will dash other kingdoms to pieces. We can see what it has done in Paul’s life:

Philippians 3:4–11 Loss of all things, gain of Christ, not righteousness of his own, but only that which is in Christ =

Kingdom of God/heaven has come in Paul's life

Meaning

God’s Kingdom is not like man’s kingdom

What does this passage teach us about God, his people, and life in this world?

God’s people are contrite, humble and empty

God’s world feels upside down. People walk about full and don’t realize that emptiness is what will be filled.

Does this teaching help you understand Jesus any better? How?

Jesus came to make this possible.

Empty yourself, humble yourself.

Don’t say to God that you don’t have sin.

Christ came and died for your sin.

How does this text relate to other parts of the Sermon on the Mount, or the book of Matthew?

We are building a definition of “blessed.”

Main Point

Those who are filled up with God, who God calls his (blessed) are humble and empty and the world sees as poor and needy.

Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven

Matthew 5:3