A lamp is placed on a stand where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
I want to live that way, don’t you? And the question is, how do you live like that? It’s so comforting to me that the followers of Jesus asked him, Lord, teach us to pray. The next time you’re in a situation where you’re finding it hard to love your enemy or shine your light, or do the right thing, pull out the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew chapter 6… It’s your rescue prayer!
I’m getting ahead of myself! Let’s kick things off in Matthew chapter 5!
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Transcription:
Hey, come with me today. Let’s sit on a beautiful hill surrounded by flowers and listen to a really good sermon. What do you say? Hi I’m Erica, welcoming you to the Bible for Busy People. We are on a tour of the holy land. My daughter is actually there in Israel right now walking in the footsteps of Jesus and experiencing these things. So, I thought, why don’t we come with, virtually speaking. Today, we’re stopping at the Mount of Beatitudes. Now, this mountain is really more like a big hill with a gorgeous view of the Sea of Galilee. Last time I was mentioning how the Sea of Galilee is often referred to as harp shaped, like the instrument, and how some people believe it’s heart shaped like the human heart. My husband’s like I see the instrument, not so much the organ. I’m still sticking by heart, because I feel like that has so much meaning behind it.
Jesus spent so much time in this area around the Sea of Galilee, so what must it be like to sit in the grass and imagine that once he was there in that location, sharing some of the most meaningful words ever spoken. You and I are going to read them together in moments. But before we spread our picnic blanket on the Mount of Beatitudes, let’s talk about the word for a second. Because when you hear beatitudes, maybe you’re like me and you go, okay, blessed are the… but what exactly is a beatitude? I looked it up. The noun beatitude refers to a state of great joy of being blessed or at least feeling blessed. Now, the beatitudes as a proper name as you will are the actual blessings that Jesus lists off. Like blessed are the poor, except we’re not going to read the King James version, but you know what I mean?
We’re going to get into all of this in a moment. But first, I’m picturing my daughter sitting on the side of this big hill and imagining what the voice of God would sound like. Ezekiel was a prophet in the Old Testament, and in chapter 43 of his book in the Bible, he writes this, suddenly the glory of the God of Israel appeared from the east. The sound of his coming was like the roar of rushing waters and the whole landscape shown with his glory. The sound of many waters, the roar of rushing waters. That’s how the prophet Ezekiel described God’s voice. I wonder what Jesus’s voice was like, the son of God. Oh my goodness, Do you realize one day, because we believe and we have placed our faith in the Lord Jesus, that we will hear the voice of Jesus? The voice of God our Father? Woo, gives me the good chills. Okay, here we go. We are going to be diving into the Sermon on the Mount today in Matthew chapter five, beginning in verse one. We can’t cover the whole sermon because this is the Bible for Busy People, but we are going to cover all of the beatitudes. So join me now in verse one.
One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him and he began to teach them. God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him. For the kingdom of heaven is theirs. God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! for a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way. You are the salt of the earth, but what good is salt if it is lost its flavor, can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world,
Imagine the people sitting on this hill taking in these words. You are the light of the world. These words are for you too.
…like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
I want to live that way, don’t you? And the question is, how do you live like that? It’s so comforting to me that the followers of Jesus asked him, Lord, teach us to pray. And Jesus gave them a beautiful prayer. We find it in Matthew chapter six. It’s the Lord’s Prayer. I know you’ve heard it before, but let’s pray it together today. This is a way of us saying, Lord, we want to live out the beatitudes. We crave your blessing. So, join me in Matthew chapter six.
Our Father in heaven. May your name be kept holy. May your kingdom come soon, may will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need and forgive us our sins as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.
Oh, let it be so. Lord, we pray in Jesus name. Amen. I love that prayer so much. You’ve heard of a rescue inhaler, right? If you have asthma, and I do, you need an inhaler in case you’re in a situation where you need help breathing. That prayer that you and I just prayed, that can be our rescue prayer. So, the next time you’re in a situation where you’re finding it hard to love your enemy or shine your light, or do the right thing, pull that prayer out. It’s your rescue prayer. All right, until next time, you are loved.
Thank you so much for listening to the Bible for Busy People. If you need prayer or you’re ready to go a little deeper in your faith, we’ve posted some resources for you in our show notes. We’d love for you to share this podcast with a friend and leave us a review. It helps us reach even more people with the hope of Jesus. This podcast is part of Purposely, a podcast network designed with practical podcasts to help you find and live in God’s purpose for your life.
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