Daily Bread 1-10-18

The Sermon on the mount (cont'd)

Matthew 5:2,3

2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,

3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

ref. - Ps 51:17 - The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, wilt thou not despise.

Is 57:15 - For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Lk 6:20 - And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.

We went over in the previous lesson the fact that we didn't choose him, he chose us. And what he wants from us is almost too simple for us to comprehend. Perhaps this is why the scripture speaks of "The simplicity that is in Christ Jesus(2 Cor 11:3)." When he had the audience that he had called, he began to instruct them. His instruction was not one of complication or confusion, but of a simple manner. Easy to be understood by those who were in front of him. His first instruction is that if we want to experience the kingdom of heaven and have it in our grasp we must have our spirit broken down and be willing to allow him to build it back up. As inhabitants of the world we pick up worldly things from birth and they are only magnified as we grow older. Habits, traditions, pride, knowledge, etc. are many of those things. In a way, we have been programmed wrong by the world, and we must be deprogrammed and reprogrammed to experience the things that God has to offer. He does not want someone to co-rule with him, nor does he want someone to take the load off of his shoulders. What he wants is someone who will submit to him and become obedient and builded up in the strength and faith that is given to us by Jesus Christ. Let us put it in this simple example; Two cars drive into a gas station. One driver says, "My tank is half full, I'd better fill up so that I can make it there." The other says, "I still have a half of a tank, if I drive conservatively I can make it to where I am going with the fuel I have." So, the first driver admitted he could not get there without the fuel that the station had. He filled up and went on his way. The second driver did not fill up and thought he didn't need the fuel so he left without filling. Both cars came upon many obstacles on the way to their destination and the one who had filled up made it to his destination and had a pleasant, peaceful visit. The second driver however, the stubborn one, the one who didn't need any help, ran into the same obstacles and they slowed his journey to a point that he ran out of gas. Chaos followed and he had to walk to the next town for gas and so on and so forth and when he finally got to his destination the weekend was over, he was tired, and it was already time to go home. He had a miserable weekend all because he would not humble himself and listen to reason. This is, in many ways, how many people approach God. There are two types that go to God; Those that have everything and want to help out, and those who realize that they have nothing and need help. Who is going to get God's guidance and who is going to benefit from the things of God? If we already have everything then nothing will be provided right? So we must first realize that we need to have our stubbornness and our spirits to be broken so that he can fix them the way that only He can! Today we learn that He is in the lead and we are the followers, completely dependent on him to lead us and guide towards, and into, the kingdom of heaven!! Peace, tranquility, and rest will meet us there!!! Have a great day!!!