|
|
Lesson
Eighty |
 |
The Constitution of the Kingdom is a series of attitudes not laws
In Your Bible Read This
Matthew chapter 5
Here Is Your Memory Verse
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and
falsely say
all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad,
because great
is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted
the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5, 11-12.
Afterwards Talk About
This
How do you feel when people get upset with you because you
follow Jesus
and go to church? If you displayed the attitudes of the kingdom
do you think they would treat you differently?
Something To Do Before
Next Time
Ask God for opportunities to display kingdom be-attitudes and
take
them when they come. Be ready to give a testimony next time you
meet.
Written Diploma Work
Draw a mountain from earth to high above, showing the stages
of ascent to the peak, giving the scriptures and outline.
Meditate Word By Word On
This Verse
2 Timothy 3.12
- Spend a Minute to Change the World
- Pray For Sri Lanka - 18,000,000 Sinhalese and Tamils
- 70% Buddhists, 7% Christians, Only 0.45% evangelicals
- Long civil war and suffering
- Be sure to teach this lesson to others.
- Always pray and prepare well adding your own verses and stories to bring it to life.
According to the Amplified Bible to be blessed means, "to be happy, envied, spiritually prosperous, with life, joy and satisfaction in God’s favour and salvation, regardless of outward conditions." One of the first lessons that Jesus taught the crowds was how to be blessed. Most of them were poor, working people in an oppressed nation so he taught them how to blessed regardless of outward conditions. Matthew 5, 3-10, Matthew ch. 5 to 7.29.
1. The Beatitudes Are Be - Attitudes.
Jesus showed us how to approach life and how to be in that right attitude that leads to blessing. They are his own attitudes and we should have the same attitude. Philippians 2.5.
Mountain Climbing In The Kingdom
The be-attitudes are eight upward steps to the peak of a blessed life.
- Be humble, living in constant need of God and his help, Matthew 5.3.
- Be penitent, mourning for your sin, and the sins of others, Matthew 5.4.
- Be meek, that quietness of a soul at rest in God, Matthew 5.5.
- Be hungry, a spiritual appetite, shows you are growing, Mat. 5.6.
- Be merciful, like God himself, shows further advance, 5.7.
- Be pure in heart, the high altitude where you see God, Matthew 5.8.
- Be a peacemaker, calming storms in the lives of others, Mat. 5.9.
- Be ready to suffer, the peak with the Prophets and Martyrs, Matthew 5, 10-12.
2. Being Poor In Spirit Is To Be Blessed.
Theirs is the kingdom of heaven, but who are they? Poor is ptochos which means someone lowly, afflicted and destitute of wealth, influence, position, honour, virtues and eternal riches; helpless, powerless, a beggar lacking learning and totally dependent on others. Matthew 5.3. To be poor in spirit is to know that we have no resources of our own and being in great need of all things, God alone becomes our only source of supply. It is to lose our independence and become totally dependent on God and upon one another. Jesus only did what he saw his Father doing. This was true poverty of spirit. John 5.19.
3. Being Mournful Is To Be Blessed.
They will be comforted, but what does it mean to mourn? Matthew 5. 4. Jesus made sure that the people understood, so he used the same word we would use at a funeral. In many cultures mourning means weeping and loud wailing, deep groaning, going without food, bending low, walking bare footed and bare headed. But Jesus was not referring to natural death but to an attitude of sorrow for the personal and national sin that brings death. Jesus was a man of sorrows, yet was anointed with the oil of joy above his companions. Isaiah 53.3; Ezra 10.6; Nehemiah 1.3; James 4, 9-10.
4. Being Meek Is To Be Blessed.
The meek will inherit the earth, but what does it mean to be meek? Matthew 5. 5. The modern Greek word for ‘meekness’ is prautes which describes when a young horse is broken and harnessed for service. Someone has to gain control of its life and establish a relationship, then the horse submits to authority and serves its master, wearing a bridle for direction. In meekness it yields not weakness but controlled strength, and becomes useful. Likewise a meek person chooses to waive all rights and self interests, yielding his or her strength for God and others.
5. Being Hungry Is To Be Blessed.
If you hunger and thirst for righteousness, you will be filled. Mat. 5 6; Psalm 42, 1-2. Food and drink are real needs of the body without which we will die. Even more we need an intense hunger and thirst for God, seeking first his kingdom and his righteousness. Jesus said that his food was to do the will of God and to finish his work. So we are to truly hunger and thirst after the righteous-ness which is the everlasting consitit-ution of God’s Kingdom, Matthew 5 to 7. Matthew 6. 33; John 4. 34; Mark 8. 8.
6. Being Merciful Is To Be Blessed.
Do you want to be shown mercy? God is rich in mercy, and as we receive his mercy so we are able to show mercy, just as our Father is merciful - and be blessed! Matthew 5.7; Ephesians 2. 4; Luke 6. 36. Being merciful is not just feeling sorry for people and letting them off when they are caught, but it’s intentional kind-ness, forgiveness and the offer of help.
7. Be Pure In Heart And Be Blessed.
To be pure in heart means that you have no mixed motives, hidden agendas or double standards. The word katharos means unalloyed metal, unmixed wine, an army purged of cowards and dissidents. People with pure hearts know God and his purposes because their motives are pure. Matthew 5. 8; James 4.8; Psalm 86.11; Proverbs 4.23.
8. Be A Peacemaker And Be Blessed.
It is not just anything for a quiet life but an active pursuit and involvement that confronts problems and brings them to a satisfactory conclusion. Psalm 34.14. Peace is eirene or shalom, harmony, prosperity and the favour of God. Only sons of God can bring that. Matthew 5.9.
9. Being Persecuted Is Also A Blessing!
Persecution is a result of a clash between the kingdoms of God and of Satan which oppose each other spiritually, morally, ethically, and in beliefs and behaviour. True kingdom people feel the heat of battle in discrimination, insults, pers-cutions and in evil accusations of all kinds. Jesus said that it will happen but to rejoice and be glad for the same thing happened to the prophets. Great is your reward in heaven. Mat. 5.10. 11; 2 Tim. 3.12; John 15.20; 1 Pet. 4,13-14.
- To Close Pray For The
- World's Most Unreached Peoples By Name
- Taken from the Joshua Project 2000 Unreached Peoples List
- at www.ad2000.org these people have no church and as yet
- no cell, church or mission has committed themselves
- to prayer, adoption or church planting among this people.
Uzbekistan |
||
| People Name | Language | Population |
| Persian (Irani) | Farsi, Western | 26,000 |
| Uzbek, Southern (Afghan Uzbek) | Uzbek, Southern | 15,000 |
Permission is granted to provide copies at cost price for study purposes