THE UPSIDE KINGDOM - Part IV

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied…Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” Matthew 5: 6 & 8

These two beatitudes build on each other, as well as on the other beatitudes, especially the first two. The poor in spirit who understands how desperately he needs God, and the one who mourns over his own sinful heart hunger and thirst for the righteousness that can only be found in God. As Paul tells us in Romans 3:10, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless, no one does good, not even one.” 

It is a miracle of God’s grace that any of us are saved. In our natural, fallen state we do not seek God, we give no thought to our deplorable condition, lost in sin, wandering far from Him. I still vividly remember the moment that I first realized that I was lost. It was as though a curtain was pulled open and in a moment I saw it all – a holy God, my Creator, Jesus, my Savior crucified and risen, heaven and hell. What had been just religious jargon, I heard all my childhood became more real than the chair I was sitting on. I desperately needed the righteousness that comes by faith, and in finding it I was satisfied, and at peace.

From that time I have been secure as God’s child, confident in the gift of righteousness that is mine in Christ. However, even after decades of walking with God, purity of heart eludes me. As Paul confessed in Romans 7:17, sin dwells within me. Just when I think I’m doing well, ugly thoughts pop up to ruin my day. Shall I ever know true purity of heart and the blessing of seeing God? There are glimpses, as though through a glass darkly, but I the blessing of seeing God face to face will only come to us in the resurrection. (I Corinthians 13:12) It is a hope that will be fulfilled. I shall, in that day, look upon the face of the One who loves me and who died for me. 

THE UPSIDE KINGDOM - Part III

“Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” – Matthew 5:5

Again Jesus’ words fly in the face of conventional worldly wisdom: “Nice guys (the meek or gentle) finish last. “ In this dog eat dog world, it is the top dog who gets the bone.

To be truly meek is to be like Jesus, who called Himself gentle and lowly of heart (Matthew 11:29). Godly gentleness does not arise out to weakness. Jesus was not a doormat. He was secure in who He was as the Son of God, and He was strong. This strength and security, blended with infinite love, made Him truly gentle. Oh to be more like Jesus, settled and secure as a child of God, loved by God, loving Him in return, and free to love all those around me.

The blessed Inheritance of the meek is the earth. Note that Jesus does not say, “the meek shall inherit heaven”. He was talking about planet Earth. But I also don’t think Jesus was saying that the gentle would inherit the earth now, as it is, amassing wealth and possessions. The truly meek care little for these things. No, I think Jesus was looking forward to the Earth as it was meant to be and will be when “the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ.” (Revelation 11:15)

I love the beauty I see in all that God has made. Yes, it is marred by sin and it is subject to futility, but that makes me anticipate all the more what it shall be when,
“creation itself will be set free from its bondage of corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the sons of God.”  (Romans 8:21)

This is the inheritance of the meek, a world set free from sin and corruption, a world as it was meant to be: a world of peace and harmony under the reign of King Jesus.

THE UPSIDE DOWN KINGDOM - Part II

“Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted.” – Matthew 5:4

I like funerals. No, I don’t enjoy seeing people suffer grief at the loss of a loved one. God created us to live and death is our enemy. But loss and grief can be our friends if they bring us to face the reality of our own mortality. Those who morn are uniquely positioned to be comforted if they let grief turn their hearts to God. I love seeing this happen.

The world, in general, does everything possible to avoid the whole subject of mourning. Most people live as if death were not the fate of us all. Death is ignored. We fill our lives so full of activity that we have no time to think about eternity. We run here and there after the latest thing, we party and pretend to be happy – anything but allowing ourselves to think about our true condition.

But I think Jesus was also speaking of mourning in the broader sense of mourning over mankind’s condition. God created this world a place of beauty and peace, and he declared it to be good, very good. Sin entered the world through man’s disobedience and the world, all life, was marred. Strife, abuse, war, death, sickness, hunger, and injustice replaced the harmony and fullness of Eden. So much that was beautiful was lost. Do I care? Do I see it? Do I mourn mankind’s loss?

Regularly I find that I am closing my eyes to the destruction caused by sin all around me. I let my heart become hardened to the plight of others. But blessing comes in being touched by the pain that others endure, and reaching out to them in love. When we comfort others, when we reach out to a neighbor, a friend, a stranger who is hurting, we ourselves are comforted. We find a blessing.