Part #5 - Outline

• Today– Review:

• Life or death (Versus Right or Wrong)• Nature of Sin (Sin separates, God doesn’t)• Realm of the Kingdom – Spirit, Soul & Body (Past, Present & Future)• Big Picture – God’s Purpose (More glory from being right, or enduring

wrong? Being loving?)• Invitation to greatness & reward

– Blessed are the poor in spirit….

• Coming Weeks– Beatitudes & Practical Applications

Living Kingdom LIFE – Now!

The crown of King Christian IV of Denmark…

Behold…the humble King!!!

Life by the Spirit or Death by the flesh!

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.” (Romans 8:2)

Garden Hose Illustration

Water = SpiritHose = ‘Flesh’

Jesus is Grace, Grace is Jesus

• “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’ ” For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” (John 1:14–18, NASB95)

• “…grace and truth were realized through Jesus”• 1096 γίνομαι [ginomai /ghin·om·ahee/] v. 678

occurrences; AV translates as “be” 255 times, “come to pass” 82 times, “be made” 69 times, “be done” 63 times, “come” 52 times, “become” 47 times, “arise” 13 times, “have” five times, “be fulfilled” three times, “be married to” three times, “be preferred” three times.

• 1 to become, i.e. to come into existence, begin to be, receive being. 2 to become, i.e. to come to pass, happen. 2a of events. 3 to arise, appear in history, come upon the stage. 3a of men appearing in public. 4 to be made, finished. 4a of miracles, to be performed, wrought. 5 to become, be made.– James Strong, Enhanced Strongs Lexicon (Bellingham,

WA: Logos Bible Software, 2001).

Jesus Appeared!!!!

• Grace IS, exists, appears, manifests, and is finished in the person or essence of Jesus!

• Grace is the love of God with skin on!• Grace is love acting, it is the love of God as a

verb and person!• “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing

salvation to all men,” (Titus 2:11, NASB95)

“For the Law was given

through Moses; grace and truth were realized

through Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17,

NASB95)

Change our Proclamation!

• ““The Law and the Prophets [right vs. wrong] were proclaimed until John; since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached….” (Luke 16:16, NASB95)

• We must be faithful to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom [life], with signs and wonders following! (Beware of proclaiming the law & the prophets with condemnation/death following)

The Gospel

• The Gospel is Good News, because it is God…His nature, essence and heart toward us is love and grace displayed, personified and manifested through Jesus – Immanuel, God with us, Yeshua – ‘The Lord Saves’, the Prince of Peace, friend of sinners….

• “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?” (Romans 8:31, NASB95)

Sermon on the Mount – Part #5

Pursuing Kingdom Life

Contextualize the SOM

• The Sermon on the Mount is not something we must do in order to be right or to attain unto life (Sequence & Motive)

• These are pathways or corridors of grace that enable us to receive the life and fullness of God

• We walk in them because we’ve been made right and have been given eternal life

• We are working out what He has worked in us

Legalist & Gracist

• WHAT? Agreement• WHY? Do to become, or do because we are… (Ex…if you

give, you’re a Christian. Because you’re a Christian, you give.)

• HOW? Try harder or rest more (believe in His finished work)

• “For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:17, NLT)

Beatitude #1

• ““Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3, NASB95)

• Blessed: Gk Makarios – blessed and happy (read joyful, rich, prosperous, great, etc)

• Poor in Spirit: Hebrew idiom for repentant, as opposed to those who are rich/arrogant in spirit [attitude]

Self

It’s not worm theology…..

• “for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,” (Philippians 3:3)

• “And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9, NASB95)

• “…no man may boast before God.” (1 Cor 1:29)

• The teaching of the Sermon on the Mount produces despair in the natural man—the very thing Jesus means it to do.

• ‘Blessed are the paupers in spirit,’ that is the first principle in the kingdom of God.

• The bedrock in Jesus Christ’s kingdom is poverty, not possession; not decisions for Jesus Christ, but a sense of absolute futility—‘I cannot begin to do it.’

• Then Jesus says—‘Blessed are you.’…The knowledge of our own poverty is the threshold or entrance unto grace

• Chambers, O. (1986). My utmost for his highest: Selections for the year. Grand Rapids, MI: Oswald Chambers Publications; Marshall Pickering.

Confidence: Where?

• “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13)

• “Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.” (2 Corinthians 3:4, NASB95)

• “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.” (1 John 5:14, NASB95)

Confidence: Where?

• “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16, NASB95)

• “Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,” (Hebrews 10:19, NASB95)

• “Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God;” (1 John 3:21, NASB95)

Poor in Spirit

• NEED: To be poor in spirit is to be aware that we are in great need of experiencing more of God’s grace in our heart, ministry, church, and society.

• GAP: It includes seeing ourselves as spiritually poor in terms of our experience in light of all that God has freely made available to us (legal position vs. living condition, spirit vs. soul, creation vs. cultivation)

• FOCUS: We see that we do not have the strength to walk in godliness or to inspire it in others without the Spirit’s continual help. Thus, we look to Jesus…

Supply Chain Breakdown?

Summary: Poor in spirit….

• Absolutely, completely dependent on God• We realize our NEED!!!!

• As opposed to independent, self-reliant, self-effort, self-determination & oblivious to our need….

• “But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.”” (James 4:6, NASB95)

Beatitude #1 in Reverse

• “Cursed [tormented and depressed] are the rich in spirit [attitude], for theirs is the kingdom(s) of the earth.”

• “Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full…” (Matt 6:2b)

Beware of Rich people!!!

• Because you say, “I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing” and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked…19As many as I love, I rebuke…be zealous and repent…21To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne. (Rev. 3:17-21)

• Jesus addressed this as the root problem in the church of Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-21). When a ministry (individual or corporate) becomes rich in attitude, finances, popularity, and influence they are tempted with spiritual passivity &/or independence. This is a problem in the church in the West.

Be in the right Realm!

• Is Jesus warning us against having wealth?

• Or is he warning us to see our true condition and realize our need?

• Historically, people, movements and the church has shunned wealth, even taking vows of poverty

God gives POWER to create wealth

• “You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.” (Deuteronomy 8:17–18, NIV84)

• A spirit of poverty is different than being poor in spirit!

• “Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, “but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 24:12-13)

• “This will happen to His people. He does not say that it will happen to some, or even many, but most. To literally interpret this text, which is the only safe way to interpret it, means that more than half of all Christians we know are likely to be excluded from the kingdom of heaven. Take a moment to think about that….

• Studies now show that there is no longer a distinguishable difference in…those who claim to be born-again Christians and unbelievers. Christians are just as likely to lie, cheat, and have illicit sexual relationships as non-believers. The divorce rate for evangelical Christians is now about the same as for non-believers. True disciples not only behave different—they are different” – Rick Joyner

Urgency & Vigilance Required

• Whether you agree with Joyner’s conclusion, you’ll agree that we must be vigilant and guard against the prevailing sense of lethargy (self reliance, self justification, self satisfaction, etc)

• “Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”Rev 16:15

Beware Church!!!

• Emergent church – tolerance, equality, relativism, universal salvation, etc…

• Self-help - There is a fine line between growing in Christ by the Spirit and bolstering our soulish efforts for success, controlling others and manipulating situations

• Many believers are unknowingly practicing soulish (pyschic) powers, withcraft &/or following the doctrines of demons

God’s desire is LIFE (Zoe)• Two different words for life are used in the New

Testament: the word psuche (soul) life & the word for God’s supernatural life—zoe.

It is the Spirit who gives life [zoe]; the flesh profits nothing. (Jn. 6:63)

• Paul said that no good thing was in him apart from God’s grace. To be poor in spirit includes seeing ourselves rightly, specifically with regard to our natural abilities and dedication being unable to produce spiritual life….

• 18For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; [Paul was poor in spirit] (Rom. 7:18)

A vision for fullness…

• We grow in this by seeing what the Scripture says about how much God will do in and through us, by reading biographies of what He did through others, or by receiving teaching that strengthens our vision to live for the fullness of the Spirit in our love, obedience, power, and wisdom. Expose yourself to teaching, writings, singing, and fellowship that presses in for God’s fullness.

The Laodecian Solution

• Repent (become dependent)• Buy Gold refined in the fire from Christ• Open the door to Christ who’s knocking• Sup with Him• If we overcome being rich in spirit, Jesus will

grant us to sit down with Him on His throne• “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the

kingdom…”

Repentance…new understanding

• Repentance is not groveling, begging…nor is it rooted in fear

• Repenting here is: turning from self effort, self reliance, self determination, self righteousness, self exaltation, self excoriation..

• Rich in spirit: proud, arrogant, self-confident, independent, self-reliant, self righteous

• Poor in spirit: humble, Christ-confident, dependent/partnering, working to rest, trusting...

Is Repentance necessary?

• Yes, but Why? • A) We’ll go to hell if we have any unconfessed

sin?• B) To restore relationship, cleanse our

conscience, and receive grace to overcome? Place ourselves in dependency & partnership with God?

Solutions….

• Solution to sin: A) Try harder? B) Let Jesus answer the door the next time sin knocks!

• We must rightly perceive! • Our orientation and understanding of

repentance needs to change • Our need to repent doesn’t change!!!!

The Promise or Blessing…

• ““Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3, NASB95)

• Why or how are they blessed?

Theirs is the kingdom….

• This is the promise of Jesus!• Theirs “is” the kingdom, not “shall be.” Jesus

promised that any who live poor in spirit would experience and possess kingdom realities now! (love, power, authority, etc)

• If we overcome being rich in spirit, Jesus will grant us to sit down with Him on His throne

• Two stages, a present & future fulfillment, an initial and consummate stage, a partial and perfect, now and then…

“He who believes in me….from his innermost being will flow rivers of living water!!!!”

Poor in Spirit…

Great in the Kingdom!

The End