First, the word beatitude means the traits or characters of a blessed or happy person. It was not directly used by our Lord Jesus nor is it in the Holy Bible. However, it has been used by theological inference as a broad heading for the spiritual messages Jesus Christ delivered at the early stage of His earthly ministry. That is, He gave eight clear traits although the ninth is similar to the eighth, as the mannerisms or hallmarks of those who are of the Kingdom of God. What is the Kingdom of God? This is the Majestic domain or reign of God without walls or barriers. This Kingdom or domain is built on the highest level of power, perfection, holiness, and benevolent supervision. In this domain or reign, there are rules or commandments set by Almighty God, which would qualify any soul into this magnificent presence. These standards are for both the spiritual and physical living experiences because God is faultless, reliable or faithful and never baised. These standards are not different from who God is because they are all from His Sovereign Presence. Therefore, the two main reasons Jesus Christ gave these powerful statements was first, He wanted to distinguish reality from fake. God is reality and His ways are perfect and true. The second reason was to present to the world the new and living way that would uplift the human soul to the highest level of understanding and spiritual vitality or buoyancy and not the dumpsters of hopelessness that the people have been subjected to. He used the mountain because of the elevation, pulpit or platform it gave Him to speak clearly to the people. Also, the open field gave space for more people than in the synagogue or one restricted location.
Now, here are the listed traits He expounded to the people. The first is blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the Kingdom of God. To be poor in spirit means we accept God as our Lord and Father, but our level of commitment to Him or His standard in us is still below par or not up to the level He expects of us. To be poor in spirit means, we are still struggling with our faith walk and not putting enough efforts to grow more in Him. Regardless of our situation or low spiritual gauge or meter, God is saying we have passed the minimum requirement and because He is Love, He accepts and takes us in as His children into His presence or Kingdom. What is God revealing to us here? He is showing that He is going to use His everlasting love nature regardless of our slack to pick us up. That is, He is still going to shower the power of His love on us that would stimulate us to grow more into Him. Love conquers all things.
The second is blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. To mourn does not mean to lose someone, though it could be part of it. The real message Jesus was conveying here was that when we submit to God as our King, does not stop the problems or difficulties in our lives, but is the guarantee that those problems will definitely be solved, meaning comforted. Whatever challenges, issues, or things that make us disappointed, downcast, disheartened, or depressed, He would surely get us over them. He is Light, who will always bring His freshness and gracefulness into our situation for good. The message is to trust in Him with all our strength or might and the darkness in any form would turn to light in Jesus’ mighty name.
The third one is blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth. Meekness means humility, gentleness or decency of the soul. Now here is the sketch…this can be faked to either attract attention and get praises from people. However, true humility or decency is of the heart and the real display does not seek recognition nor makes an attempt to present itself in the open but gracefully comes out by itself like a good perfume. A genuinely humble heart is the reservoir of kindliness that spills or touches others with the intent to uplift, by giving gratitude to the situation for providing the opportunity to serve, without focusing on any payback. Therefore, those that are humble always give gratitude to God for all the benefits in their lives. They would inherit the earth because God sees through their hearts they are trusted vessels, who usher hope and purpose to the world without self-praise or being puffed up. The first and core lesson humility teaches us is never to look down on others because the breath in our lungs is a gift and not acquired or personally owned. The second lesson from humility is that doing good is a privilege that expands the wellness of the soul, not dramatic performances (Theatricals) or paid for shows.
The fourth is blessed are they, which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled. There is every sense of truth and humility to this promise. Yes, when we commit to God and acknowledge His ways are much higher than ours, we tend to want more of Him in us. This craving for more of His righteousness in our lives is the godly pull for spiritual nourishments, which is the perfect key that unlock doors of opportunities to us in the spiritual and physical realms. Righteousness means living right according to God’s promises or will. As we do, we get higher insight or rather, He gives us deeper things of His power and reign, which we then apply to our daily living experiences. This advantage gives us knowledge or information ahead of time along with its applications. The humble part of this message is that Jesus knew the magnitude of this promise but made it simple because He wanted us or whosoever to plunge into this quest first to really grasp the immeasurable blessings thereof. He said it modestly knowing that only those who would dare plunge in would receive the full impact. Remember, seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all other things would be added unto us? This was His message here.
The fifth is blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. God is all about kindness and order. He knows that kindness is not just an act born to stimulate human emotions, sentiments nor daydreaming, rather it is the active substance of courage mixed with happiness that makes the human soul always refreshed and grows in reliability. Mercy is the real meaning of active kindness to ourselves and by true extension to others. Therefore, the message God is promoting to us here is that with mercy or kindness in the human heart, true giving is no longer a debatable and tiring effort but the smooth release of goodwill to others with no string of bondage attached. Our hearts of mercy always give birth to mercy flowing back to us and on our loved ones because kindness or mercy is an aura that attracts or brings pleasantness into our presence.
The sixth point is very interesting though it is all within the realm of God’s Eternal Glory. That is, blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. This is mind blowing. When we say God is the Supreme Living Consciousness of Purity, Jesus Christ is giving us the confirmation to our definition here. That is, purity is the eternal status of God and this is the Presence of His Perfection. This is the eternal living presence of flawlessness. Hence, those who lean towards purity in the heart, according to Jesus Christ, who is the Perfect One, says they shall see God. To see God means as He is Spirit and Truth, when we attain purity in our souls, we become the full presence of His Spirit and Truth. His divine nature in us becomes active in the pulling down of every stronghold. Purity is another name for holiness where His Glory resides. Remember, in the Holy Scriptures, we are told to be holy as our Heavenly Father is Holy…right? That is exactly what this passage is conveying to us or giving us the confirmation to the word of God. Holiness is the presence and power of the miraculous.
The next is blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God. Why? God is Peace and not the author of confusion. The spiritual insight here is to always use every opportunity before us to put the stamp of God on our situations. That is, to always let the Spirit of God prevail in us and through us over situations. He is not telling us to accept every situation or to be weak when confronted with challenges or situations that want to demean who we are in Christ Jesus. The peace He is telling us here is to use every available means to promote true reconciliation but where it becomes obvious that your opponent is out for war, then use the weapon of peace to fight the war. How? By taking the side of truth and love by not backing down against the viciousness of lies and its cancerous attacks. Peacemakers are those standing on the side of God by using all means necessary to reconcile the souls of people to the glorious reign and presence of God. Peacemakers always promote harmony, fairness, dialogue, hope and forgiveness into situations but are not afraid of war when necessary.
The eight point is blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. The Kingdom of God and heaven means the same thing. However, Jesus chose to use heaven to convey both the spiritual and physical implications of being scolded, attacked and even censored because one dares to follow God. By using heaven, He was trying to draw the attention of all directly into the spiritual realm. That is, He was saying to our hearts that the ruthless enemy would challenge our relationship with God in Christ Jesus through a series of its hidden and diabolical means using human vessels and situations. However, the beauty of this promise is that those under these spiritual attacks have been engraved into the presence of the Glory of God forever because the test or measure of their faith is from those attacks. Hear us loud and clear here…God is forever in control and nothing can ever displace His reign and power into eternity. This is what creates anger in the enemy and whenever it sees anyone, who is spiritually awakened to the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, the shameless enemy will surely attack using every hidden trick. The good news, which is the Gospel of Christ Jesus, is that God has marked, inscribed or chiseled the victory sign on the names of those who refuse to back down from wholeheartedly embracing His righteousness.
The ninth one is very similar to the eighth. It reads, blessed are ye, when people shall revile you, persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven; for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. This last one speaks for itself as we have also dealt with it on the eighth. Do not forget that Jesus Himself was called names, scolded and even put to death because He chose to bring light, life, peace, love, happiness, and wellness to the world. However, with all they did to Him, He made a profound testament to what is really in His heart (Love), when He said “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” He was saying to the whole world, the agenda of wickedness, pride and other callous acts were not human driven but from the hidden spirit of error, who uses all excuses through humans to carry out its plans.
In summing-up, God gave us through these passages the divine characteristics, we should strive to inbide in to qualify as His own. These whole traits were all condensed or concentrated in the only perfect living One in Christ Jesus. That is, when He rose bodily from the dead and ascended bodily into Glory, these spoken spiritual traits (Rhema) became living or fulfilled life (Logos) in us by His Spirit.
Hence, let us shout Glory! Glory!! Glory!!! to our Heavenly Father as victors, winners, conquerors, and we powerfully declare the release of the fire of the Holy Ghost to destroy the heads of those diabolical, demonic, evil spirits fighting against the purpose and life of God in us and loved ones in Jesus mighty name …Amen!