Happy People || Behind the Beatitudes || Week 1

Series Overview

Welcome to a brand-new series that has been intriguing to me for a little bit. After doing a deeper dive into the blessings that Jacob gave his children, I wanted to dive deep into another section. The Beatitudes have been a study focus for me off and on for a bit, so I figured that it was time to bring this study to life. During the next 9 weeks, we look deeper into what He meant about the Beatitudes He preached on during the Sermon on the Mount. If you would like to read about the Beatitudes before continuing this series, reading Matthew 5:3-11. Without further ado, let’s dive into the series. 

Message Overview

This week, we dive into the first Beatitude. It’s Matthew 5:3, and it says this from the Easy-to-Read translation of the Bible (which I will be using throughout the series). 

3 “Great blessings belong to those who know they are spiritually in need. God’s kingdom belongs to them.

At face value to me, this reads that those will be really blessed when they acknowledge that they can’t go through life without Jesus guiding their way. When they recognize that, they will be able to receive the blessings that God’s kingdom provides. I’m here to tell you that through my studies, it means a lot more than that. There are 3 parts of this Beatitude that we are going to look at in detail today. So enough talking, Marc, let’s dive into it. 

(A quick preface before we get into the details of all this. My study Bible is based on the ESV translation. I chose to use the ERV translation because it’s easier to read *go figure*. I will do my best to make sure I keep alignment between the translations. Still, there may be instances throughout the series where the phrasing and discussion of Scripture get mistranslated. Bear with me regarding that.)

What Does it Mean to Be Blessed?

At the start of this Beatitude, Jesus says: “Great blessings belong to // Blessed are…” To be blessed means to be happy or fortunate, focusing more on the surface emotion of being blessed. Jesus was talking about the divine aura that comes with those who are faithful to God. It’s that feeling you get when you feel that God has been with you throughout your life and has granted you the abundant blessings that come with being a Christian. I know that may be an inadequate explanation of that, but it simplifies to the thought of: “I wouldn’t be where I am or have what I do without Yahweh guiding my path through life.”

The Beatitudes demonstrate that the way to heavenly blessedness is directly opposed to the worldly path typically followed to gain happiness. You may have heard a classic Christian sentiment not following what the world tells you but instead what God tells you. I agree with this sentiment a lot, but I always feel like it gets taken out of context. While I agree that you should follow what God tells you to do, I believe you should have the right mindset behind what you do regardless. I feel like what we consider to be “of this earth” is stuff that automatically connects to a harmful/sinful nature. I agree that that sentiment is true about 90% of the time, but things that the world teaches are not inherently wrong. There are things that the world can teach you that have benefits to your life, but it’s about the why behind it all. It’s about applying the correct mindset behind what you do, and that mindset should be God’s overall goal for your life.

How Does One be “Poor in Spirit”?

This Beatitude mentions those who are “spiritually in need // poor in spirit”. This refers to the opposite of self-sufficiency. Before we discuss this more, we need to jump back to Isaiah 61:1. It says this: 

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is on me. The Lord has chosen me to tell the good news to the poor and to comfort those who are sad. He sent me to tell the captives and prisoners that they have been set free. 

This shows us that the three persons of the Holy Trinity function together. All parts of God being with us would be functioning high enough to accomplish goals similar to what Isaiah mentions here. So for one to be “poor in spirit,” one would feel utterly bankrupt from feeling the Spirit of God. 

This Beatitude shows that acknowledging this feeling of emptiness is a positive reaction because it shows humility to God. It shows that you can’t function through life on your own. It shows that you need God’s guidance to get through the day-to-day functionalities of life. To dive into this point further, I want to head over to the Gospel of Luke really quick. Join me in Luke 18:13, which says this:

13 “The tax collector stood alone too. But when he prayed, he would not even look up to heaven. He felt very humble before God. He said, ‘O God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner!’

This tax collector’s humility is notable in everything about his posture and behavior. This was a man who was forced to face the reality of his own sin, and his only response was to showcase humility and repentance. He calls out to God to be merciful towards him. He had nothing else to cling to except the mercy of God. He’s acknowledged that feeling of lostness and hopelessness and knows that he needs to go to God and ask for forgiveness to atone for these feelings. Doing this is a way to seek the blessings that God brings to our lives.

New Owners of the Kingdom of Heaven

Before we dive into how we claim the deed to the kingdom of heaven, I want to talk about a couple pieces of Scripture. First, join me in Matthew 3:2.

2 John said, “Change your hearts and lives, because God’s kingdom is now very near.”

This concept of God’s kingdom is unique to Matthew’s gospel. Matthew uses the word “heaven” as a euphemism for God’s name to accommodate his Jewish readers’ sensitivities. Throughout the rest of Scripture, the kingdom is called “the kingdom of God.” Both expressions refer to the sphere of God’s dominion over those who belong to him. The kingdom is now manifest in heaven’s spiritual rule over believers’ hearts. One day, it will be established in a literal earthly kingdom. 

Now, join me in Luke 12:32. It says the following: 

32 “Don’t fear, little flock. Your Father wants to share his kingdom with you.

Jesus stressed the Father’s tender care over his little flock as an antidote to anxiety. The peace that God gives as a gift to those who are the objects of his pleasure. So what do these two pieces of Scripture mean overall?

Jesus taught that the kingdom is a gift to those who sense their own poorness of the Spirit. The earlier Matthew teaching shows this by reaffirming that God takes care of His creation. There is a power that God holds over his creation that will lift us up when we feel weak. That’s why the Luke 12 teaching is essential here. If you read more of that story, it talks about the same concept that God takes care of each of us as if we were his sheep.

Summary and Preview

I hope you really enjoyed this deep-dive discussion on the first Beatitude. I really hope that you feel happy for what God has gifted you. I hope that you can acknowledge that life is WAY more difficult without God guiding you. I hope you understand that the gift of God’s kingdom is a sign that God will continue to take care of you even when you feel weak. 

Next week, we focus on Matthew 5:4 and talk about those that grieve. Until then, stay blessed!