Gospel of Matthew Chapter 5 Part 1-- John Karmelich

1. If you asked me to take you to the chapter(s) of the bible that best describes what God expects of you as a believer in Jesus, I would take you to Chapters 5-7 of the Gospel of Matthew.

a) This section is all one speech given by Jesus.

i) Some argue it is a collection of speeches. That is not what the text says. I believe Matthew, being a Roman tax collector, understood Roman shorthand, so he could write quickly. Either that, or Jesus filled him in on the speech later.

b) It is commonly known as the “Sermon on the Mount”.

i) That title does not appear in the Bible. It is a nickname for this section given as Jesus went up on the side of a hillside and spoke.

c) One of the great secrets to understanding the Sermon on the Mount is to understand the impossibility of accomplishing anything on this list without the help of God himself.

i) Chapter 5 ends with the statement “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Well now, try living that one for a while. J

ii) The secret to understanding the Sermon on the Mount is that we are only perfect because we accept Jesus perfect sacrifice as payment for our sins. That is only how we are perfect in God’s eyes.

iii) There are two verses that come later in Matthew that apply here as well:

a) When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and asked, “Who then can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:25-26, NIV)

b) When you start reading the Sermon on the Mount, you begin to understand God’s requirements to get into heaven are impossible to live by. These impossible standards should drive people to Jesus.

c) Jesus taught these as a common misconception among the religious Jews was that it was possible to keep the law. They lightened the interpretation of the law. We’ll get to that as we go through the text.

d) The other big-picture idea to get out of the Sermon on the Mount is that once you comprehend your need for Jesus, and turn your life over to him, there are practical aspects to this speech that apply to us once we become followers of Jesus.

i) One of the great secrets of the Christian life has to do with the repetitive idea of “letting go, and trusting God”. The great mistake all Christians make is to trust in their own self-discipline.

ii) We read passages out of the Sermon on the Mount and try to live them through our own strength. Through self-discipline, we are giving the glory to ourselves and not to God.

a) Jesus is saying the problems of the world as well as the blessings of God begin with our internal attitude. The Sermon on the Mount teaches it is a sin to think a bad thought as well as to act upon it.

b) Jesus focuses on the root-problem of sin being on the inside. We can’t control our behavior based on self-discipline. Therefore, we need to deal with our attitudes in order to control our behavior.

iii) It is only by trusting God and praying for the Spirit of God to work through you that you are capable of living any single aspect or command taught in the Bible.

iv) That is the secret of Christianity. Letting God work through you to glory Him.

a) The rest is just the details. J

2. Let me leave you with some final overview thoughts on the Sermon on the Mount:

a) One can preach wonderful sermons on every single one of these verses.

b) I have written two lessons on Chapter 5. These two lessons are by no means a complete, comprehensive study of this chapter.

c) If you see personal applications I may have missed, you may be right. I try to limit my studies to 10-12 pages, so we won’t get it all. Hopefully, I cover what is most important.

3. Verse 1: Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, ² and he began to teach them, saying:

a) In the last part of Chapter 4, Jesus went around the area near the Sea of Galilee performing miracles. He was drawing a large crowd from all over the area, as his reputation as a miracle worker was spreading far and wide. Now Jesus is using this opportunity to teach.

b) Notice Verse 1 says Jesus is teaching “them”. Is it referring to the disciples or the crowds?

i) I would argue it is the disciples. Let’s face it, many in the crowd will turn away from Jesus’ teaching. Miracles are not enough to get people to accept Jesus, as we will see later in Matthew. Many just came to see Jesus’ miracles. This speech is given to believers, which includes the disciples and those who became followers.

c) From Verse 3 through the end of Chapter 7, we have one speech by Jesus.

4. Verse 3: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

a) From here to Verse 11 we have what is called the “Beatitudes”.

i) You won’t find that word in the bible as it comes from the Latin.

ii) The next set of verses all begin with “Blessed are…”

a) The word describes joy from within. It does not refer to happiness as derived from any circumstances of your life at the moment.

b) You can read this as, “You will be blessed in this way if you do this…”

c) The secret to understanding this section is to compare the actual rewards for each of the blessings with the blessings themselves.

iii) Let’s begin with this statement in Verse 3. It says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit”.

iv) That sounds a like a contradiction to the Christian life.

a) Aren’t we full of the Holy Spirit as believers? (See Ephesians 5:18)

b) One must see this verse in context. Jesus is speaking to unbelievers.

v) The word for “poor” means destitute. It means you have nothing. Think of a beggar who depends upon others for daily survival.

vi) One must realize that apart from Christ, we have nothing spiritually.

a) It is that realization of how poor (destitute) we are spiritually that drives us to Jesus. Our reward is the “kingdom of heaven”. That expression used by Matthew refers to eternal salvation.

vii) As a believer, this verse is a constant reminder that we are nothing without God.

a) It is a reminder to constantly “empty” ourselves of our egos, our sins and our faults and our dependency on God. Jesus says blessed are those who are poor (as in destitute) in Spirit. It is a continual action for believers.

5. Verse 4: Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

a) This verse sounds like a catchall for anybody who is mourning over any pain.

b) This verse should be read in context of the surrounding verses.

i) The issue is our relationship to God.

ii) In Verse 3, Jesus talks about being “spiritually poor”, which is our condition when we ignore God or we refuse to ask forgiveness of our sins.

iii) Our mourning is the realization of our sinful nature and our need for forgiveness.

a) The reward for our mourning is stated in this Verse. We will be comforted.

iv) This is a continual action. Our mourning comes from the realization of our sinfulness and our need to bring those faults to God. The comfort comes from the fact we accept God’s forgiveness upon confession and repentance.

c) The second beatitude (Verse 4) is a natural progression from the previous one (Verse 3).

i) It starts with the realization of how poor you are spiritually without God.

ii) That pain of being spiritually poor causes us to mourn.

iii) The good news is God is aware of that pain, and if we seek God in that realization, we can be assured that He will comfort us.

iv) A God that loves you is a God that cares about your well being. The practical application to the Christian is that one can turn to God during our times of pain and be assured that He loves us, cares for us, listens and wants to help.

6. Verse 5: Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

a) The word “meek” is one of the most misunderstood words in the English language.

i) People think it means “wimpy” or “weak”, or being a pacifist.

ii) Meek refers to someone who is full of power and strength, and doesn’t need to show it off to know he has it.

iii) Think of a martial arts expert who walks away from an insult. He or she doesn’t have to beat up the one who insulted them as the martial arts expert knows he or she is more powerful than the one who insulted them.

iv) It may help to understand the opposite of “meek” is “vengeful”. A person who is not meek is one who seeks revenge on those who do them harm.

b) The attitude of meekness refers to all believers in Jesus.

i) We as believers will inherit the earth. We will live forever and have blessings more powerful than one can imagine.

a) What is that in comparison to riches? What is that in comparison to power? The point of being meek is that we don’t have to seek revenge on those who hurt us. We have far more power and riches than anything the world has to offer.

b) I should state that this is not an argument against seeking power as to be a leader. Somebody has to lead. This is not an argument against earning a living and supporting one’s family. It is about taking vengeance on those who have hurt us.

ii) We can, and should act meek to all the things the world has to offer, because we already own them. The world will eventually be handed over to Jesus (Revelation Chapter 5) and we will be adopted sons of God (Ephesians 1:5). We get to share in that benefit.

iii) Once you are saved by faith in Jesus, you now get everything. We are comforted with God’s love in Verse 4, and our reaction is to act in meekness.

7. Verse 6: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

a) If you are really hungry or thirsty, do you care about anything else?

i) When I go to bed very hungry I even dream about food!

b) The next beatitude (Verse 6) now focuses on our new relationship with God.

i) Once we are saved, our life gets blessed by continually seeking God.

ii) God wants us to seek Him as if we are really really hungry or thirsty for Him.

c) The blessing of Verse 6 is that God satisfies that spiritual appetite.

i) If our desire is to serve God, God rewards that desire and comforts us.

ii) This verse requires balance. On one hand, if we seek God as if one is really hungry and thirsty, He satisfies completely that desire for worship.

iii) The balance is to continually and regularly seek God. God does fully satisfy that desire. It does not mean, “I just worshipped God, I’m now done for the year.” Our love and gratitude to God should constantly drive us to Him.

d) I should also add that this verse does not teach to ignore your physical needs, just to put them in perspective. There are false teachers that say we should deny our needs for food or money in order to be “more spiritual”. That is not what this verse, nor the bible teaches. It is about perspective and priority. Jesus teaches to seek first the kingdom of God and then God will take care of all of your other needs (Paraphrase of Matthew 6:33).

8. Verse 7: Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

a) Remember that this is a progression of thought here about salvation and action.

i) To be “merciful” is to ask God for mercy in our sinful actions.

ii) The promise by Jesus that we will be shown mercy. That is the word to underline.

b) If God shows mercy to us by forgiving our sins, God expects us to show mercy to others.

i) Think of the line from the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (Matthew 6:10, NIV). It is a similar thought.

9. Verse 8: Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

a) “Pure in heart” does not refer to any sort of self-discipline of being a good person.

b) It refers to eternal forgiveness of our sins. Our reward is we will see God. We will live for eternity as we have a pure-heart by accepting Jesus payment of our sins.

c) The progression is we seek God’s mercy (Verse 7) and our eternally forgiven (Verse 8).

10. Verse 9: Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

a) The term “Sons of God” as it is used here refers to adoption into God’s eternal family.

b) “Peacemakers” as it is used here, is not referring to someone trying to break up a fight between two people, but it is a reference to seeking peace with God.

i) Again, look at this verse in context of the surrounding verses. The context is about salvation and everlasting life.

c) “Peacemakers” are those who are trying to make peace between themselves and God.

i) They do that not by their own effort, but by asking God for forgiveness.

ii) That is what is meant by the “merciful” of Verse 7”.

d) Jesus is teaching here that if we seek peace with God (i.e., “peacemakers”) through Jesus, the guarantee is that we will be adopted into God’s family. Again, the key word is “will”.

e) One can also see peacemakers as making an effort to bring others to Jesus.

i) One has to know Jesus in order to have peace. Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27 NIV)

f) It can also apply to healing of our relationships. When we get into an argument with our spouse or a Christian friend, often it takes mutual prayer to heal that relationship. We have brought peace to that relationship. We have become the “peacemaker”.

11. Verse 10: Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

a) OK, we’ve now finished with the good news. Here comes the bad news. J

b) Does the non-believer say, “Well now, you’ve changed your life and become one of those “born-again Christian types”. Good for you, I wish you well””? No, and here’s why: When others see you actually changing, there is a sense of guilt in their hearts placed there by God. They know that living for God is the right thing to do. Out of guilt, you will be persecuted by man if you are witness for God. That is a promise made by Jesus.

c) Verse 10 and Verse 11-12 sound like they are talking about the same thing, but they’re not.

i) Verse 10 says we are blessed when we are persecuted for righteousness sake.

ii) The reward of Verse 10 is the same as Verse 3. Both times we are promised eternal salvation for being “Poor in spirit” (Verse 3) and being “persecuted” (Verse 10).

iii) I believe Verse 10 focuses more on the internal struggle. Verses 11-12 are external.

iv) Verse 10 is about when we sin and realize it, and thus we struggle with ourselves, as our hearts want to do better. Those struggles to be a better person, to want to please God, is what drives us to Jesus, and thus, by grace, get eternal life.

d) Another reason for persecution is satanic attacks. I have stated many times in these studies that Satan’s goal is to prevent or delay God’s redemptive plan for mankind.

i) To persecute you as a believer is to prevent you from being a good witness to others. Persecution makes you want to run and hide. Therefore, you are not being a witness to other people for Jesus.

ii) As I stated last week, if you don’t think Satan is real, try opposing him for a while.

e) Let’s get back to Verse 10. Notice why you are persecuted. Jesus says blessed are you who are persecuted because of righteousness.

i) This is not a catchall for anybody who is persecuted for any reason.

ii) It says we will have eternal life because we are persecuted for right standing before God (i.e., “righteousness”).

iii) That change of heart, that change of life, will automatically get evil spiritual forces to work against you, mostly through non-believers.

iv) You also have to remember you don’t have to panic. J God is more powerful than these enemies:

a) “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
(1^st John 4:4, NIV)

f) Now that I’ve given you the bad news, let’s go on to the good news of these verses.

i) Reread the verses and notice the words “blessed”, rejoice and be glad”.

a) You may think you are suffering for your belief. Around the world, as we speak, millions are suffering just to be a Christian. Many give their life.

b) What they don’t see at the moment is that their eternal rewards will far outweigh their temporary suffering.

c) Jesus is saying in effect, “Jump up and down with joy right now”. You may think you are suffering, but you can’t imagine the eternal reward you will get in exchange for what you have to put up with in this lifetime.

d) Do you think there are people in heaven thinking, “You know, heaven wasn’t worth all of that suffering I went through in life. I should of cared more about my personal needs and stopped focusing of God”

(1) I’m being flippant. God wants you to trust in the fact that

(a) 1) You will be persecuted if you take a stand for Jesus.

(b) 2) Your rewards in heaven will far outweigh any and all suffering that will occur here on earth. Have joy in that fact.

g) Thus ends the beatitude section. We now move on to how to be a witness for God.

h) If we are thankful for God, we should naturally want to live our lives in gratitude to God.

i) That is what leads to this persecution, as we become witnesses for God.

ii) This leads us to the next section.

12. Verse 13: "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

a) In that culture, salt is first and foremost thought as a preservative.

i) Remember they didn’t have refrigerators. Food was salted to prevent spoiling.

ii) If salt becomes corroded, it is no good and cannot serve its purpose.

b) So just exactly how are Christians suppose to be “preservatives”? Glad you asked! J

i) We are being preserved from eternal damnation by God. By abiding in the things God asks us to do (pray, study, time with other Christians), we are spiritually “preserving” ourselves from the sinful nature and temptations of the world.

a) One of my favorite quotes about the bible is, “Sin will keep you from this book, and this book will keep you from sin”. The bible is being described as a preservative to keep you from spoiling.

ii) One can also see this as a bigger picture on our influence in the world. Being a public witness for Christian values and lifestyles is a preservation of our society becoming corrupt. If you study the fall of any civilization, it usually begins with moral corruption. God expects us to be a witness for him to help people to turn from the corruption of sin. God uses us as a preservative for others for eternity.

c) Personally, I also like the image and purpose of salt as making one thirsty.

i) If one eats salt, one gets thirsty. Our lives as witnesses for God should naturally make others thirsty for God. If people see your life and don’t want to emulate it, then stop and pray how I can live to be a better witness for God.

ii) I don’t know if that is what Jesus meant by “salt”, but I like this illustration. J

d) This verse is not teaching that if we lose our “saltiness” we lose our salvation. It is about being a good witness for Jesus. If we run and hide from persecution, we fail to be a good witness for Jesus and God can’t “use us”. The issue is witness and not salvation. This will become clearer over the next few verses.

13. Verse 14: "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

a) One can read these three verse and realize the topics of “salt and light” refer to witness and not salvation. Verse 16 makes that clear.

b) Jesus states in the Gospel of John that He is the light of the world. (John 8:12, 9:5)

i) Yet in Verse 14 here, its says “You (us!) are the light of the world.”

ii) Think of it as sunlight and moonlight. The moon does not give light, but reflects the sun’s light on the earth. That is what we are to be as well.

iii) We are to be reflection of God’s love and light. God works within us to change us. God expects us to be witnesses to the world.

c) These verses also argue against us living in a “Christian-only” world.

i) Sometimes we think, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everybody was a Christian,
or if I can work for a company where everybody was saved”?

a) That is contrary to what Jesus teaches. He wants us to be witnesses to the world. That means living among nonbelievers.

b) That does not mean there shouldn’t be a time of separation. Going to church with fellow believers is a requirement and a time to “recharge your spiritual batteries” so that we can be a more effective witness to the world.

ii) These verses argue that we should let “our light” shine before non-believers.

d) Salt and light together are a picture of God working in us and through us.

i) We are light, as we reflect God’s love. It is a word-picture of our exterior influence on others. Salt is mostly an interior-influence. When you “salt” food, you can’t see it. It works from the inside as a preservative. Together, you get a visual picture of God working on the inside (maturity) and outside (influence to others).

14. Verse 17: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. ¹⁸ I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

a) If you want a good summary verse of the purpose