Daily Devotional For Wednesday, September 4, 2024
Well, here we are at “Hump Day” – Wednesday and we have come to the last and the longest of The Beatitudes found in Matthew 5:3-12. If you have been reading these devotionals for the last several weeks, you know we have been looking at the greatest and best sermon ever – Jesus’ Sermon On The Mount. This sermon begins with what are called The Beatitudes. They are not the Me-Attitudes, but the BE-Attitudes – emphasis on being. Today, we start looking at the last Beatitude. This last Beatitude is found in verses Matthew 5:10-12:
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (11) Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. (12) Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (NASB).
As pastor and author John MacArthur writes:
“Of all the beatitudes, this last one seems the most contrary to human thinking and experience. The world does not associate happiness with humility, mourning over sin, gentleness, righteousness, mercy, purity of heart, or peacemaking holiness. Even less does it associate happiness with persecution.
Some years ago a popular national magazine took a survey to determine the things that make people happy. According to the responses they received, happy people enjoy other people but are not self-sacrificing; they refuse to participate in any negative feelings or emotions; and they have a sense of accomplishment based on their own self-sufficiency. The person described by those principles is completely contrary to the kind of person the Lord says will be authentically happy” (Source: John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, “Matthew,” p. 219.
As we have already seen, Jesus says the person who is “Blessed” is not the self-sufficient person, but the person who knows that without Christ, they are nothing and can do nothing. God does not bless the arrogant or the proud, but the humble. The ones who mourn over their sin and how it damages everything in their lives. They come to God as a beggar, knowing they are powerless and do not have the means in themselves. They understand as we have already seen, that they must be gentle, and merciful to those who do not deserve it. They know they just seek God’s righteousness first and then they can seek peace on God’s terms – even if it causes that person to suffer for it.
So, why does this eighth Beatitude come last? Because Jesus knows that the person who does the first seven will experience the eighth one. If you live righteously, you will be mocked, persecuted and made fun of for it. Godliness and holiness always generates hatred, hostility and antagonism from our world. Holy, godly and righteous people are blessed, but at a price.
If you read this eighth and final Beatitude, you probably can tell it is what I call a “two-fer” – two in one. It is really a single Beatitude that is repeated and developed. Notice that the word “Blessed” is repeated twice but only in the context of the one persecuted, which is mentioned 3 times in this Beatitude. So, doubly-blessed are people who are persecuted. What is that blessing? “For theirs is the kingdom.” Over the next few days we are going to break this last Beatitude down.
If you choose to live out the first seven Beatitudes, you will be persecuted. That is a given. The Apostle Paul confirms this in 2 Timothy 3:12, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (NASB). If you are not being persecuted or mocked for living out the first seven Beatitudes in your life, that should tell you why your life is not blessed by God. It should tell you that your life is marked more by conformity to this world, disobedience to Jesus Christ, and self-reliance, self-centeredness and self-righteousness.
If you read the context of Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 3:12, you will notice that prior to verse 12, Paul had mentioned his own persecutions and sufferings that had happened to him in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra (vs. 11). Think of it this way: Let’s say you work with people who use foul and crude language and you are asked, “How do you do it?" And your response is, “Well, they never make fun of me because I don’t live out my Christian faith at work.” That is the way to avoid persecution and being mocked, but it is also the way to betray and deny Jesus Christ.
To live a Christlike life is to live in opposition to the devil, his demons and the evil in this world and if you choose to live like Christ you will experience their attacks against you. Why? When the devil and his demons see you, they see Christ. Just like they came after Him, they will come after you also. A righteous life is confrontational even if it never says anything. A good example is how Abel’s righteous life triggered a violent reaction from his brother, Cain. Read the words of Puritan Thomas Watson below:
““Though they be never so meek, merciful, pure in heart, their piety will not shield them from sufferings. They must hang their harp on the willows and take the cross. The way to heaven is by way of thorns and blood.... Set it down as a maxim, if you will follow Christ you must see the swords and staves” (Source: Thomas Watson, The Banner of Truth, pp. 259-260).
One final historical example of living out the first seven beatitudes and experiencing the eighth is given by pastor and author John MacArthur:
“Savonarola was one of the greatest reformers in the history of the church. In his powerful condemnation of personal sin and ecclesiastical corruption, that Italian preacher paved the way for the Protestant Reformation, which began a few years after his death. “His preaching was a voice of thunder,” writes one biographer, “and his denunciation of sin was so terrible that the people who listened to him went about the streets half-dazed, bewildered and speechless. His congregations were so often in tears that the whole building resounded with their sobs and their weeping.” But the people and the church could not long abide such a witness, and for preaching uncompromised righteousness Savonarola was convicted of “heresy,” he was hanged, and his body was burned” (Source: John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, “Matthew,” p. 221).
This means that persecution is one of the convincing experiences that you are genuinely saved. Persecution is the tangible evidence of salvation and Christlike living. Looking at 1 Thessalonians 3:3-4, the Apostle Paul wrote these words to the Thessalonicans: “So that no one would be disturbed by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we have been destined for this. (4) For indeed when we were with you, we kept telling you in advance that we were going to suffer affliction; and so it came to pass, as you know” (NASB).
The Apostle Paul and the Bible affirms that suffering persecution, mocking, and ridicule is normal for genuinely living out the Christian faith. Look at Romans 8:16-17, “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, (17) and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him” (NASB). If you want to avoid persecution, then live like and with the world. If you do, it is a good indicator you are probably not saved no matter what decision you supposedly made for Christ in the past. Take heed to Jesus’ warning about such arrogant pride on Judgment Day in Matthew 7:21-23:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. (22) Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ (23) And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (NASB).
When we experience genuine persecution, ridicule or mocking for our faith, consider Philippians 1:28-30, “In no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and that too, from God. (29) For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake, (30) experiencing the same conflict which you saw in me, and now hear to be in me” (NASB). Notice here that Paul says that just as persecution for your faith is a sign of your salvation it is also a sign of their damnation.
I close with the words of pastor and author John MacArthur again (Source: John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, “Matthew,” p. 221):
“Whether Christians live in a relatively protected and tolerant society or whether they live under a godless, totalitarian regime, the world will find ways to persecute Christ’s church. To live a redeemed life to its fullest is to invite and to expect resentment and reaction from the world.
The fact that many professed believers are popular and praised by the world does not indicate that the world has raised its standards but that many who call themselves by Christ’s name have lowered theirs. As the time for Christ’s appearance grows closer we can expect opposition from the world to increase, not decrease. When Christians are not persecuted in some way by society it means that they are reflecting rather than confronting that society. And when we please the world we can be sure that we grieve the Lord: See . . .
- James 4:4, “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (NASB).
- 1 John 2:15–17, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. (16) For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. (17) The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever” (NASB).
Questions To Consider
- Have you ever been mocked, ridiculed or persecuted for your Christlike character? How did you deal with it? If you say, “No,” what should that tell you and why?
- Girolamo Savonarola (September 21, 1452 – May 23, 1498) was a committed disciple of Jesus Christ who was persecuted and eventually killed by hanging. After he died, they burned his dead body for simply preaching repentance of sin and following Jesus in righteous living. Though this will probably never happen to us here in America, persecution is coming. How are you prepared for it? What is the proof or evidence you consider it an honor to be persecuted, or ridiculed or mocked for your faith?
- How does the survey in the first quote by John MacArthur relate to you? Does it describe you or not? How?
- If persecution, being ridiculed or mocked for your Christian faith is evidence of your salvation, what does this tell you about your assurance of salvation?
- Would you say you are a “friend of the world” as James 4:4 says? Why or why? Do you love the world as 1 John 2:15-17 says? Why or why not?
Scripture To Meditate On: Romans 12:2, “Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you” (MSG).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Jesus, I do not want to experience your warning in Matthew 7:21-23. I want my light to shine and Christ to be seen by others. I do not want to be known as “a friend of the world” or a “lover of the world.” I want to be known as a friend of God and one who loves You with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside!--Pastor Kelly