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Breaking Open the Word

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Jesus begins His sermon with words that contradict each other. God’s way of living often contradicts the worlds. If you want to live for God, you must be ready to say and do what seems strange to the world. You must give when others take, love when others hate, help when others abuse. By giving up your own rights in order to serve others, you will one day receive everything God has in store for you. The Beatitudes can be understood in four ways: a code of ethics for disciples and a standard of conduct for all followers of Jesus; eternal kingdom values vs. temporary worldly values; superficial faith vs. the real faith Christ wants; revelation of how Old Testament expectations will be fulfilled in the new kingdom. The Beatitudes are not multiple choice, picking the ones you like and leaving the rest. They must be taken as a whole. Each beatitude reveals how to be blessed. “Blessed” means more than happiness. It implies the fortunate and enviable status of those who are in God’s kingdom. To Jesus, “blessed” means experiencing hope and joy, regardless of outward circumstances. In the kingdom of heaven, wealth, power and authority are unimportant. Kingdom people seek different blessings and benefits and have different attitudes. If the Beatitudes are the conditions for gaining entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven, then verses 10-12 put these spiritual precepts of the New Covenant Law into practice. Jesus's job description for a disciple is short-term trials followed by very long-term rewards. The world can be unforgiving when we stand against it for God. Jesus teaches that the faithful will receive the eternal blessings of the righteous but will also experience the temporary hatred of the wicked.

November 1

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November 29

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