Welcome to Reign of Grace. This
program is brought to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries,
an outreach ministry of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany,
Georgia. It is our pleasure and privilege
to present to you the gospel message of the sovereign grace
and glory of God in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray that today's program
will be a blessing to you. Thank you for listening and now
for today's program. I'd like to welcome you to our
program today. I'm glad you could join us for
the message. Today, I'll be preaching from the book of Matthew, chapter
five. And the title of the message
is Truly Blessed of God. And of course, in the book of
Matthew, chapter five, this is the beginning of what is commonly
called the Sermon on the Mount. It's where the Lord Jesus Christ
sat down on a mount and had his disciples and others who were
there to listen to what he was going to say. He preached this
sermon. It's sometimes referred to as
the greatest sermon ever preached, and certainly it is a great sermon. The whole Bible is a sermon,
in essence, of God's word to his people. And so it's all a
sermon, it's all truth. And sometimes, you know, we are
touched by certain passages of Scripture more than others. And
at other times, you know, that may change. But it's all God's
truth. And the Sermon on the Mount is
a gospel sermon. But a lot of people misinterpret
it, misunderstand it for several reasons. First of all, the Sermon
on the Mount is in no way promoting any idea of salvation by the
works of men. A lot of people think that it
does because Christ does, he does make some commandments here
and he sets forth some evidences of salvation. He also sets forth
the commands of the law. But if you understand what he's
doing at the beginning, I believe if you see it in that context,
you'll be able to understand this sermon more. And here's
what we have to know from the beginning. His audience is a
Jewish audience, mainly consisting of unbelieving Jews who had been
taught wrongly by the Pharisees concerning the law of Moses.
They had been taught that the law of Moses was a system of
law that they were to adhere to and follow in order to be
made right with God, in order to be made righteous, in order
to be forgiven of their sins. And that was a false way. So
the main thing that Christ is doing here, the Lord is doing
here, is he's setting forth the true meaning and purpose of the
law to these unbelieving Jews who had been taught wrongly by
the Pharisees. Pharisees were legalists. Now
a legalist is somebody who believes that salvation, or some part
of it, is conditioned on them in some way, at some stage, to
some degree, conditioned on their law keeping. And so when he sat
down here, it says in verse one of Matthew chapter five, seeing
the multitudes, he went up into a mountain, and when he was set,
his disciples came unto him. And verse two, he opened his
mouth and taught them saying. Now he begins with what is commonly
called the Beatitudes. And the Beatitudes always start
with the word blessed. Now what does that word blessed
mean? You know, a lot of translations, modern translations, translate
the word blessed as happy. Years ago, a popular preacher
wrote a book called The Be Happy Attitudes. When I read, when
I see something like that today, I always think of that silly
song, Don't Worry, Be Happy. And that's the way a lot of people
see Christianity. Don't worry, be happy. Well,
certainly, A believer, a true Christian, is not to worry with
anxious worry. And we're to strive, we're all
looking for happiness, all of that. But the word happy doesn't
really define what it means to be blessed of God, truly blessed
of God. Christ puts it in perspective
here. When he gives the blessing, he says blessed, and then he
describes the ones who are blessed, And then he shows what they possess,
the reward of being blessed. That's not a reward you earn
now, but it's a reward that God gives you by His grace. But to
be blessed of God is not necessarily to be happy here on earth. Now,
it's good to be happy in the things of God. We rejoice, the
Bible says rejoice, to have joy, rejoice forevermore. But that's
as we, as believers, look at the things of God and the things
that we have by virtue of the merits of Christ in salvation,
being justified through His blood based on His righteousness imputed,
being born again by the Spirit, we have life from God. We look
to Him, we trust Him, and we see all the inheritance, the
treasures of eternal life and glory, and that's something to
rejoice in and be happy. But in this life, it's not always
happiness. Some of the most blessed people
on earth are not happy as far as their situation here on earth.
So don't think about it as being blessed, but think about it as
being graced, being a sinner saved by the grace of God through
the Lord Jesus Christ. That's who's blessed of God.
Unbelievers receive good things from God, but those good things
from God that they receive are not necessarily blessings for
their situation. The Bible says, for example,
it rains on the just, the just are the righteous, sinners saved
by grace, true believers, and it rains on the just, but it
also rains on the unjust, So the unjust, those who are unrighteous,
those who are unbelievers, may receive the blessing of rain,
physical rain. An unbelieving farmer can get
enough rain to grow great crops, you see. But at the same time,
a believer, a just person, a sinner saved by grace, may participate
in a disastrous event, like a tornado or a hurricane, just like the
unjust. So you can't judge these things by outward circumstances.
But let me show you another thing that can put it in perspective
for you, is that the opposite, and if you'll look over in Galatians
chapter three, the opposite of being blessed of God is to be
cursed. cursed of God. And over in Galatians
3, the Apostle Paul, as he was inspired by the Holy Spirit,
is seeking to expose the false gospels of legalism and work
salvation promoted by unbelieving Jews within the church. And he
says in Galatians 3 in verse 10, now listen to this. He says,
for as many as are of the works of the law, Now who's of the
works of law? People who are trying to be saved,
trying to gain God's favor by their law keeping. Now recall
now that's who Christ is speaking to in the Sermon on the Mount
mainly. To people who had been taught
wrongly by the Pharisees to be of the works of the law. How
are you seeking salvation? By your works. Well salvation
is not by your works. Salvation is by the grace of
God through the work of Christ. And so as many as are of the
works of the law, here in Galatians 3, 10, are under the curse, the
curse of the law. The law curses and condemns any
sinner who is trying to establish their own righteousness before
God in order to be saved. in order to be justified, in
order to have a right relationship with God. You see, you cannot
earn salvation from God. You cannot work your way to God.
It's a matter of salvation by grace, and all who are saved
by the grace of God are blessed. No matter what their situation,
they may be like Lazarus. You remember the one, the parable,
the rich man and Lazarus? The rich man, he fared sumptuously. He was cursed. Lazarus, he was
outside the gate laying there sick with sores, the dog licking
his sores, hungry. He was blessed. You say, well,
that just boggles your mind. Well, it should. But he says,
for as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse,
for it is written, cursed is everyone that continueth not
in all things which are written in the book of the law to do
them. And then verse 11 says of Galatians 3, but that no man
is justified, declared not guilty, made righteous by the law in
the sight of God, it is evident for the just shall live by faith. That is by looking to Christ
for salvation, for righteousness. And then look at verse 12 of
Galatians 3. The law is not of faith, but the man that doeth
them shall live in them. What does that mean? Well, listen,
if you're trying to be saved by your law keeping, the law
doesn't require you to believe, the law requires you to do, and
do perfectly. Several weeks ago, I preached
a message from Matthew 5 down in verse 20 called The Righteousness
We Need. What righteousness do I need
in order to be saved, justified? Yeah, perfect righteousness.
The perfection of obedience and satisfaction to justice. Where
am I going to find such a righteousness? Well, look at Galatians 3 in
verse 13. It says, Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of
the law, being made a curse for us, for it is written, cursed
is everyone that hangeth on a tree. The only way I can find the righteousness
that I need, the perfect righteousness that God requires, is to find
it in Christ, who was on that cross as my surety and my substitute. who satisfied the justice of
God in my stead, drank damnation dry. He went on, listen, my sins,
my debt was imputed, charged to him. And so he went under
the curse. He went under the wrath of God
justly. And by his obedience unto death,
the shedding of his blood, He washed my sins away. That means
He satisfied the dead. He paid the dead in full. Jesus
paid it all, all the debt I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain.
He washed it white as snow. And He did that as my surety,
as my substitute. And how do I know? Look back
there at Galatians 3 one more time. Look at verse 14. How do
I know that He did that for me? Now preachers all up and down
this country will just blankly say, well, he did that for you.
You don't know that until, look here in verse 14, it says, that
the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through
Jesus Christ that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through
faith. The way that we know that he
did that for me is when the Holy Spirit brings me, like he did
Abraham, to faith in Christ and true repentance of my works.
I repent of my works. Listen, every believer ought
to be the best that they can be in every way. There's no question
about that. We ought to do our best to be
obedient servants of God, but our best will not make us righteous
in God's sight. The only way we can have righteousness
in God's sight is to stand before Him in Christ, washed in His
blood, clothed in His righteousness, having His righteousness imputed,
charged, accounted to me. And from His righteousness, what
do I have? I have life from God. the resurrection
life of Christ. He's given me a new heart, new
eyes, eyes to see, ears to hear, and a desire to obey Him, not
in order to be saved, but because I already am saved. You see the
difference? You see, that establishes in
the hearts of God's people the motives of grace and love and
gratitude. I'm not a mercenary. I'm not
out for hire with God. I'm not trying to earn my way
with Him. I'm not a legalist doing this because I'm afraid
to go to hell. I'm a child of God, a loving
son of God, you see? And that makes all the difference.
Well, back here in Matthew chapter five, now that's the context
of this. These people had been taught
legalism. Salvation by their connection
with Abraham, salvation by their circumcision, salvation by their
law keeping. And so he starts off with the
Beatitudes. Look at verse three of Matthew
chapter five. Who are the ones who are truly
blessed of God and who are the ones who are under the curse
of the law? Well, he says in verse three.
Now, notice in each one of these, I'm not gonna be able to finish
all of them in one message, but in each one of these Beatitudes,
think about this. First of all, he starts off in
verse three, blessed. Now, we've already talked about
that. One who is blessed is a sinner saved by God's grace in Christ. A blessed person is one whom
God chose, according to the Bible now. A blessed person is one
whom God chose before the foundation of the world and placed in Christ,
made Christ their surety, imputed their sins to Christ. This salvation
that was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, that's
blessed. One who's blessed is one whom God has justified. To be blessed of God is to be
justified. Who shall lay anything to the
charge of God's elect? It's God that justifies. Who
can condemn us? It's Christ that died. Yea, rather
is risen again and seated at the right hand of the Father,
ever living to make intercession for us. One who is blessed of
God is one who is redeemed by the blood of Christ. My sin debt has been totally,
fully, completely, eternally, unchangeably paid by the Lord
Jesus Christ. By His one offering, He has perfected
forever them that are sanctified, cleansed by the blood. What can
wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. A blessed person is one who has
been born again by the Spirit. That means they've been literally
spiritually resurrected from the dead. The resurrection life
of Christ has been imparted to them. They have a new heart,
a new mind, a cleansed conscience. The defiled conscience is guilty.
that their conscience is cleansed. Now, how's it cleansed? As the
spirit applies to their minds, their hearts, the blood of Jesus
Christ, washing away my sins. He paid the debt in full. I'm
righteous in Christ. I have a righteousness, a perfect
righteousness that equals and answers the demands of God's
law and justice. I didn't have anything to do
with it. You understand that? I didn't have anything to do
with contributing any part to that. It's totally what Christ
has done for me on the cross in his obedience unto death.
And I'm kept and preserved by the power of God. So blessed,
now blessed are who? He says the poor in spirit. That's the first one. Poverty
of spirit. Now anytime I go to that passage,
I make this distinction. What we have to understand, number
one, is this. Every fallen son and daughter
of Adam is spiritually poor, spiritually bankrupt. But not
everyone is poor in spirit. Now, what do I mean by that?
To say that every son and daughter, fallen son and daughter of Adam
is spiritually poor means this, we have all sinned and come short
of the glory of God. We have no works, no goodness,
no will to recommend us unto God. We are totally without righteousness. We have no righteousness. There
is none righteous, no not one. We have no goodness in God's
sight. Now think about this. I'm not
talking about goodness as man sees it on this vertical plane. You see what I'm saying? I mean,
we all know people who in our view, as we view individuals,
we know people who are better than others as far as their morality,
as far as their sincerity, as far as their charity. You know,
I often use the example of in John chapter three and John chapter
four. Here's Nicodemus in John chapter
three, a moral, religious, sincere Pharisee who appeared righteous
unto men. And then in John chapter four,
here's an adulterous woman who'd been married five times and living
with a man then. And she appeared immoral to men.
But what did they have in common? Nicodemus and the woman at the
well, they were both spiritually bankrupt. Nicodemus, in spite
of all of his morality and in spite of all of his religion,
he was no closer to being righteous before God or good in God's sight
by his works than that immoral woman at the well. Do you see
that? My friend, that is a biblical
concept that most people don't understand. You know, most people,
I've been going back and forth on the internet with people and
they'll bring up Adolf Hitler. Adolf Hitler was an infamous,
immoral sinner. And then you look at somebody
like Mother Teresa, they call her, and what all that she did. Here's what the Bible says, both
Adolf Hitler and Mother Teresa, based on their works, were both
spiritually bankrupt, spiritually poor. But the problem is this. We refuse, by nature now, as
we're naturally born and as we naturally see, we refuse to admit
that. We refuse to see it. Man is spiritually
bankrupt. There's none righteous, no not
one. There's none good, no not one. There's none that seeketh
after God. But he doesn't want to admit that. He doesn't want
to be humbled to the point of saying, I don't have anything
to recommend me unto God. I haven't done anything that
would recommend me unto God. I have some goodness. I have
some righteousness whereby I can make the difference between heaven
and hell. If that's what you believe, You're spiritually bankrupt,
but you're not poor in spirit. Those who are poor in spirit
are those who have been brought by God the Holy Spirit to see
and admit their spiritual poverty. I'm a sinner and nothing at all. And here's the point. That's
what the Holy Spirit does. He convicts us of sin. to show
us that if God, now think about this, and I don't care who you
are, where you come from, I don't care what your ancestors have
done, whether it be Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, or whether it be
old mother Israel, whoever it is, except you come to see that
if God were to judge you, even today, based on your best efforts
to obey him, you would deserve and earn nothing but condemnation
and eternal death. That's poor in spirit. Lord,
if thou Lord shouldest mark iniquities, who would stand? Now my friend,
that's Psalm 130 in verse three. If God were to charge me with
sin, The sins that I've committed, even today, I would not stand
in his sight, I would fall. I'm a poor sinner. I am in need
of God's mercy. Mercy cannot be deserved or earned,
or it's not mercy. I am in need of God's grace.
Grace cannot be earned or deserved. That's what grace is. I am in
need of the forgiveness of my sins. Now what is the cost of
forgiveness? I heard a preacher say one time,
he said the cost of forgiveness is your repentance. Oh no. If
you want to see the cost of forgiveness of all our sins and the price
that was paid, don't look to your repentance, look to the
cross. That's the cost, and that's the
price being paid. The blood of Jesus cleanses me
from all my sins. And where that offering has been
given, there is no more offering for sin. You see, those who are
forgiven, and when the Holy Spirit brings them to see that forgiveness
through the blood of Christ, they will repent, but the repentance
is not their payment for forgiveness. That's not the cause, it's the
blood of Christ. I need forgiveness of my sins.
I need a righteousness before God that I cannot produce. I cannot contribute to it. I
need the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel, the imputed
righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. And if I don't have that
forgiveness by his blood, if I don't have his righteousness
imputed, then I'm spiritually bankrupt. Man by nature is born
dead in trespasses and sins. He has no hope. He doesn't have
eyes to see, ears to hear. He walks in darkness and deception
and blindness. He has no desire to come to God,
God's way. He wants it his own way. But
God, the Holy Spirit, by the word of God in the gospel, shows
us the absolute holiness of God, the justice of God against sin,
and shows us that we have nothing to recommend us unto God, but
he doesn't leave us there. He drives us to Christ for salvation,
for all the riches of God's glory and God's grace, for by grace
are you saved. through faith, and that's not
of yourself. I can't even claim the faith
that I have to believe. I can't even claim that from
myself. You see, that's what it is to
be poor in spirit, is to know that, listen, if I believe in
Christ, it wasn't the product of some preacher standing at
the end of the aisle persuading me. It wasn't the product of
my own free will choice. No, I'm spiritually bankrupt.
It's a gift from God. That not of yourselves, for it's
the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should
boast. A sinner saved by grace, who's
poor in spirit, is one who knows that salvation and every part
of it, every blessing of it, is of the Lord. And it says,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. They possess the kingdom
of heaven. They're poor in spirit in themselves,
but in Christ they have the riches of the kingdom of heaven, the
riches of salvation, the riches of God's glory, the riches of
God's grace, an inheritance that's incorruptible and reserved in
heaven for them. They are citizens of the kingdom
of heaven because realizing their poverty of spirit, they come
to Christ, the king of that kingdom. Well, I hope you'll join us next
week for another message from God's word. We are glad you could join us
for another edition of Reign of Grace. This program is brought
to you by Reign of Grace Media Ministries, an outreach ministry
of Eager Avenue Grace Church in Albany, Georgia. To receive
a copy of today's program or to learn more about Reign of
Grace Media Ministries or Eager Avenue Grace Church, write us
at 1-1-0-2 Eager Drive, Albany, Georgia. Contact us by phone at 229-432-6969
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today and may the Lord be with you.