WEBVTT 00:00:01.500 --> 00:00:02.399 Good morning. 00:00:02.399 --> 00:00:03.899 It's great to be with you. 00:00:03.899 --> 00:00:07.099 Awesome morning to start by celebrating baptisms. 00:00:07.099 --> 00:00:07.932 Love that. 00:00:07.932 --> 00:00:13.333 As we're going into a new series we started last week on the Sermon on the Mount. 00:00:13.333 --> 00:00:17.300 We get to experience new life that the Sermon on the Mount talks about. 00:00:17.300 --> 00:00:19.865 So we're going to continue working our way in. 00:00:19.865 --> 00:00:22.300 We'll be in this first section of the Beatitudes. 00:00:22.300 --> 00:00:24.600 If you want to turn to Matthew chapter five. 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:27.600 We'll look at that in just a second. 00:00:27.800 --> 00:00:34.932 And as I was thinking about what this passage is trying to drive at today, I was thinking just about the world. 00:00:35.066 --> 00:00:45.265 If you've traveled anywhere in the world, you've seen all different kinds of people, all different kinds of cultures, buildings, the way people act, what they value. 00:00:45.265 --> 00:00:51.000 There's just such a wide diversity of personalities and food and culture all over the world. 00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:57.700 Anywhere you've gone, you experience these new things and oftentimes their eye opening and shocking and and you just wonder, oh, that's not how they do it at home. 00:00:57.700 --> 00:00:59.200 That's not how my mom did it. 00:00:59.200 --> 00:01:00.500 And so they're wrong. 00:01:00.500 --> 00:01:05.099 And so you wrestle with all that and you wonder how can there be so many different people in this world? 00:01:06.465 --> 00:01:15.165 One thing that's interesting, no matter where you go, there's there's one constant among all of humanity, whether they believe in any religion or not. 00:01:15.165 --> 00:01:20.266 There's one thing everybody is searching after, and everybody just wants to be happy. 00:01:20.465 --> 00:01:24.099 Everybody, even if they do things we would consider evil. 00:01:24.099 --> 00:01:26.766 It's their way of trying to find happiness somehow. 00:01:26.766 --> 00:01:28.665 Find significance, find purpose. 00:01:28.665 --> 00:01:31.665 Everybody is searching after that. 00:01:32.165 --> 00:01:36.766 This is what the Beatitudes are going to address today. 00:01:36.766 --> 00:01:44.465 There's a lot of different ways you can pursue happiness, and the world gives you a lot of methods for that. 00:01:44.465 --> 00:01:48.500 The problem is they don't really know-- they're taking their best guess. 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:54.099 And so they'll say, get money, get pretty, get accomplishment. 00:01:54.099 --> 00:01:54.965 That'll make you happy. 00:01:54.965 --> 00:01:56.900 You'll find significance in that. 00:01:57.933 --> 00:02:00.933 I saw an interview with Tom Brady. 00:02:01.200 --> 00:02:05.865 This was years ago, I saw it, I can't remember exactly when it was or who it was with. 00:02:05.865 --> 00:02:07.266 I just remember the gist of it. 00:02:07.266 --> 00:02:10.932 Here's Tom Brady just won his first Super Bowl, married to a supermodel. 00:02:10.932 --> 00:02:17.400 And of course, now, as accomplished of an athlete as you can possibly be, very wealthy, well known. 00:02:17.400 --> 00:02:22.000 And he said, and I don't remember the exact time frame, but it was very short. 00:02:22.000 --> 00:02:22.300 He said. 00:02:22.300 --> 00:02:27.265 I was happy for about a day after winning the Super Bowl. 00:02:27.265 --> 00:02:27.966 It was about a day. 00:02:27.966 --> 00:02:31.099 And then I thought, this is it. 00:02:32.099 --> 00:02:35.099 This is where significance is found. 00:02:35.300 --> 00:02:36.532 This is it. 00:02:36.532 --> 00:02:39.866 All this I've been striving for, this is the finish line. Really. 00:02:39.866 --> 00:02:41.332 It didn't satisfy. 00:02:43.165 --> 00:02:45.900 Where do we find happiness? 00:02:45.900 --> 00:02:47.466 Where do we find joy? 00:02:47.466 --> 00:02:50.566 If you want to know where it is, we're going to look at where it is. 00:02:50.566 --> 00:02:58.300 We're going to look at what the Scripture says about what it means to have true joy and true happiness. 00:02:58.300 --> 00:03:04.932 So if you would turn to Matthew five and stand while I read the verses we're going to look at today, we're going to look at the Beatitudes. 00:03:04.932 --> 00:03:07.699 We're going to focus on the first half. 00:03:07.699 --> 00:03:12.133 I'm going to read Matthew five, verses one through 12. 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:13.900 Here we go. 00:03:13.900 --> 00:03:15.699 Matthew five, verse one. 00:03:15.699 --> 00:03:17.466 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain. 00:03:17.466 --> 00:03:20.733 And when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 00:03:20.733 --> 00:03:29.000 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:03:29.000 --> 00:03:33.765 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:03:33.765 --> 00:03:37.566 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 00:03:37.566 --> 00:03:43.500 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 00:03:43.500 --> 00:03:46.566 Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 00:03:46.566 --> 00:03:50.532 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 00:03:50.532 --> 00:03:56.000 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 00:03:56.599 --> 00:04:02.733 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:04:02.733 --> 00:04:09.665 Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you, and order all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 00:04:09.665 --> 00:04:13.265 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven. 00:04:14.199 --> 00:04:18.533 For so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 00:04:18.533 --> 00:04:21.533 You can be seated. 00:04:22.800 --> 00:04:24.199 Famous section. 00:04:24.199 --> 00:04:28.399 Well known section of Scripture referred to as the Beatitudes. 00:04:28.399 --> 00:04:33.300 And I thought growing up that was just the combination of the word be and attitude. 00:04:33.300 --> 00:04:33.932 Makes sense. 00:04:33.932 --> 00:04:36.266 These are the kind of attitudes you should be. 00:04:36.266 --> 00:04:36.766 You should have. 00:04:36.766 --> 00:04:39.533 And I think that's partly, partly at play. 00:04:39.533 --> 00:04:42.199 But that's not why they're called Beatitudes. 00:04:42.199 --> 00:04:48.333 I've listed in your notes this verse or verse three in Latin. 00:04:48.365 --> 00:04:53.300 Of course, the New Testament was written in Greek, not Latin, but it was translated to Latin. 00:04:53.300 --> 00:05:03.266 And that was the dominant Bible of the Catholic Church for 1500 years, I think still the official Bible of the Catholic Church today. 00:05:03.266 --> 00:05:12.966 And the first word there of that translation of verse three into Latin, from the Latin Vulgate is the word beati, or be-a-tie. 00:05:13.000 --> 00:05:21.065 And of course, that's where we get the word beatitudes, beati would have been the Latin word for what we translate as blessed. 00:05:21.065 --> 00:05:24.199 And don't worry, I know you see some other foreign languages there. 00:05:24.199 --> 00:05:26.632 I'm not going to spend a ton of time on this today. 00:05:26.632 --> 00:05:29.266 We'll get to why I put that in there. 00:05:29.266 --> 00:05:34.365 But this is why these are called the Beatitudes, the blessings. 00:05:36.100 --> 00:05:44.932 Now many when they look at this list, even though we read down through verse 12, most say this is probably just a group of eight main beatitudes. 00:05:45.365 --> 00:05:46.800 There's a couple of clues to that. 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:53.199 And this is important part of the part of how you understand the meaning of something is to understand how it's grouped together. 00:05:53.199 --> 00:05:56.165 Why are certain verses put together and others aren't? 00:05:56.165 --> 00:06:02.699 And the way they're grouped together often tells us some about what the intended meaning is of them. 00:06:02.699 --> 00:06:08.399 First thing to notice is it's interesting that Jesus, in starting his Sermon on the Mount, isn't starting with action. 00:06:08.399 --> 00:06:09.766 Here's what you're supposed to do. 00:06:09.766 --> 00:06:12.665 Here's the things you're supposed to make sure to carry out. 00:06:12.665 --> 00:06:13.533 Here's how to act. 00:06:13.533 --> 00:06:16.000 Instead, he starts with, here's who you are. 00:06:17.665 --> 00:06:18.899 This we saw in the epistles. 00:06:18.899 --> 00:06:22.500 We saw with Paul, we saw in Ephesians the first half of the book of Ephesians all about be. 00:06:22.500 --> 00:06:23.699 Here's who you are. 00:06:23.699 --> 00:06:27.500 Over and over again in Christ, in Christ, in Christ, you got to start with who you are. 00:06:27.500 --> 00:06:28.665 So then you know how to act. 00:06:28.665 --> 00:06:31.100 You act out of who you are. 00:06:31.100 --> 00:06:32.100 Then he follows it up. 00:06:32.100 --> 00:06:36.766 The second half of the book is 40 commands, and we're going to see a lot of direction, a lot of action. 00:06:36.766 --> 00:06:39.766 But he starts here with who you are. 00:06:40.365 --> 00:06:47.300 And most believe that there are just eight beatitudes, even though there's ten, 11 verses that we read through. 00:06:47.300 --> 00:06:48.699 And here's the clues we get to that. 00:06:48.699 --> 00:06:50.966 Look back at verse three. 00:06:50.966 --> 00:06:54.065 Each blessing follows with a promise. 00:06:55.300 --> 00:07:00.966 You know, it starts with, here's who you are and those who are this way, here's the reward that follows. 00:07:00.966 --> 00:07:02.266 And in verse three he said. 00:07:02.266 --> 00:07:06.533 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:07:07.800 --> 00:07:09.733 Theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:07:09.733 --> 00:07:14.065 Only in verse three and only in verse ten do we see that phrase. 00:07:14.065 --> 00:07:15.533 Theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:07:15.533 --> 00:07:19.500 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven in verse ten. 00:07:19.500 --> 00:07:22.665 And so you have those two phrases as bookends. 00:07:22.665 --> 00:07:24.333 You want to know what the kingdom of heaven looks like. 00:07:24.333 --> 00:07:24.800 Here it is. 00:07:24.800 --> 00:07:28.065 This is an envelope around the ideas that are the kingdom of heaven. 00:07:28.065 --> 00:07:31.300 And notice that both of those are in the present tense. 00:07:31.300 --> 00:07:41.165 This theirs is the kingdom of heaven, whereas all the verses in between are future future tense just scan down through them. 00:07:41.165 --> 00:07:41.533 Verse four. 00:07:41.533 --> 00:07:44.699 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:07:44.699 --> 00:07:47.699 Each of them in between. 00:07:48.065 --> 00:07:54.466 The beautiful part of that is this reminds us that the kingdom of heaven is both present and future. 00:07:54.466 --> 00:08:02.266 Jesus announced this in chapter four, verse 17, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 00:08:02.266 --> 00:08:03.966 It's here. 00:08:03.966 --> 00:08:08.399 So we're not waiting fully for some, hoping that someday the kingdom will come. 00:08:08.399 --> 00:08:09.899 The kingdom is here now. 00:08:09.899 --> 00:08:13.733 Yet there will be a future when it's here in full. 00:08:13.733 --> 00:08:15.000 It's been started. 00:08:15.000 --> 00:08:15.865 It's begun. 00:08:15.865 --> 00:08:19.000 When Jesus showed up, he launched us into the kingdom of heaven. 00:08:19.000 --> 00:08:23.165 It is here you can experience the realities and the joys of living in the Kingdom of heaven. 00:08:23.165 --> 00:08:26.800 Now we don't have to wait, but yet it is fullest. 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:32.100 When sin is cast out and death shall be no more, neither will they be mourning or crying or pain anymore. 00:08:32.100 --> 00:08:33.500 For the old is gone. The new has come. 00:08:33.500 --> 00:08:36.299 There will be a day where everything, all sin is cast out. 00:08:36.299 --> 00:08:36.899 Death is gone. 00:08:36.899 --> 00:08:39.533 Everything will be made right in its fullest. 00:08:40.932 --> 00:08:45.932 But now, in this present reality, the kingdom is here, but it's also in the future. 00:08:45.932 --> 00:08:48.166 This tells us we have these eight verses together. 00:08:48.166 --> 00:08:52.600 The other interesting dynamic of these is that they really can be broken into two halves. 00:08:52.600 --> 00:08:56.066 That's why we're going to focus on the first four today. 00:08:56.066 --> 00:08:59.865 And that's the reason why I put those Greek words in your notes. 00:08:59.865 --> 00:09:00.966 You don't have to know Greek. 00:09:00.966 --> 00:09:09.500 The only thing I did here was to highlight or bold the first letter of each of those words that come after after blessed. 00:09:09.500 --> 00:09:16.666 I don't know if those ended up on the screen or not, but if you have your notes, you'll see verse three, verse four, verse five, verse six, the third word listed there. 00:09:16.666 --> 00:09:18.899 They all start with the letter pi. 00:09:18.899 --> 00:09:25.399 You know that letter pi that is used in math to describe how many times the radius of a circle can go around the circumference? 00:09:25.399 --> 00:09:26.600 I hope I got that right. 00:09:26.600 --> 00:09:29.066 I did take a lot of math in college. 00:09:29.066 --> 00:09:30.865 You've heard that letter Pi. 00:09:30.865 --> 00:09:34.299 It makes the same piece sound we use for the letter P. 00:09:34.299 --> 00:09:36.133 Each of those start with that letter. 00:09:36.133 --> 00:09:37.533 And that's a common way. 00:09:37.533 --> 00:09:39.566 I mean, Baptist preacher, do it all the time. 00:09:39.566 --> 00:09:47.765 Let me start every main point with the same first letter to make it memorable, to group them together, to hopefully say, these go together. 00:09:47.765 --> 00:09:48.332 There's a point. 00:09:48.332 --> 00:09:50.566 There's why I am listing these this way. 00:09:52.133 --> 00:09:58.765 And the reason he does that here is this mimics the structure of the Ten Commandments. 00:09:59.100 --> 00:10:03.399 First half of the Ten Commandments are all about our relationship with God. 00:10:03.399 --> 00:10:05.799 You shall have no other God before me. 00:10:05.799 --> 00:10:08.700 No idols worship God alone. 00:10:08.700 --> 00:10:15.100 And then the first four beatitudes are heavily focused on our relationship with God. 00:10:15.200 --> 00:10:18.100 The second, second half more in our relationship with others. 00:10:18.100 --> 00:10:19.466 Second half of the Ten Commandments. 00:10:19.466 --> 00:10:22.865 More on our relationship with others. 00:10:23.133 --> 00:10:30.600 And there's just a subtle nuance here of saying, you already know what this looks like in the Ten Commandments. 00:10:30.600 --> 00:10:32.865 You already know that our first priority is. 00:10:32.865 --> 00:10:34.332 And I've listed in your notes 00:10:34.332 --> 00:10:38.633 36 first commandment love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, strength. 00:10:38.633 --> 00:10:40.133 Second, love your neighbor as yourself. 00:10:40.133 --> 00:10:44.600 You already know that those sum up what it means to know God. 00:10:45.600 --> 00:10:48.299 And so he's taking us back there by doing that. 00:10:48.299 --> 00:10:55.666 And so today, as we look at these first four beatitudes, we're going to see, and I'm using the phrase a descent to delight. 00:10:55.666 --> 00:10:57.066 You want to find true joy. 00:10:57.066 --> 00:10:58.966 You want to find true happiness. 00:10:58.966 --> 00:11:01.466 There is a descent to delight. 00:11:01.466 --> 00:11:04.533 We're going to see four steps down to the Descent of Delight. 00:11:04.533 --> 00:11:06.899 I'm going to talk about why I call it a descent here. 00:11:06.899 --> 00:11:09.732 In a minute we'll get to that. 00:11:09.732 --> 00:11:15.265 Well, let's look at this first one in your notes. We've said what is the first step towards the descent to delight? 00:11:15.265 --> 00:11:16.899 How do we find joy? 00:11:16.899 --> 00:11:20.600 How do we live out fully the kingdom of heaven on earth? 00:11:20.600 --> 00:11:22.500 Here's the first one. 00:11:22.500 --> 00:11:30.533 You must come to the end of yourself if you want to find true joy, true happiness. 00:11:30.533 --> 00:11:33.899 If you want to know what it means to be blessed, you must come to the end of yourself. 00:11:33.899 --> 00:11:36.732 Let's look back at verse three and we can talk about what that means. 00:11:36.732 --> 00:11:42.732 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:11:42.732 --> 00:11:47.066 Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 00:11:47.066 --> 00:11:48.932 Who is blessed in the kingdom of heaven? 00:11:48.932 --> 00:11:50.265 It's the poor in spirit. 00:11:50.265 --> 00:11:53.166 Now what does that phrase poor in spirit mean? 00:11:53.166 --> 00:11:57.200 Some of the Beatitudes have parallel versions in the book of Luke. 00:11:57.200 --> 00:11:59.666 In the book of Luke would get what's called the Sermon on the Plain. 00:11:59.666 --> 00:12:01.133 This is called the Sermon on the Mount. 00:12:01.133 --> 00:12:03.299 Jesus there is teaching on an open plain. 00:12:03.299 --> 00:12:04.133 It's a lot shorter. 00:12:04.133 --> 00:12:08.365 And so we don't get all the beatitudes, but some of them, they have parallel versions here. 00:12:08.365 --> 00:12:09.500 This is one of them. 00:12:09.500 --> 00:12:11.966 In Luke six it said, blessed are the poor. 00:12:13.332 --> 00:12:16.332 He leaves out the in spirit part in Luke. 00:12:16.500 --> 00:12:19.332 Keep in mind Luke and Matthew are both talking to different crowds. 00:12:19.332 --> 00:12:22.200 I'm going to talk more about that next week. 00:12:22.200 --> 00:12:25.466 Matthew makes clear the intent of both Luke and Matthew. 00:12:25.466 --> 00:12:30.066 We're not just talking about money poor in spirit. 00:12:30.066 --> 00:12:36.799 This is really important because it's not your bank account that determines whether you get into heaven or not. 00:12:36.799 --> 00:12:39.666 It that has no bearing, actually. 00:12:39.666 --> 00:12:43.166 Now Jesus makes it clear it might be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. 00:12:43.166 --> 00:12:44.500 Money can be a stumbling block. 00:12:44.500 --> 00:12:47.100 But look, there are rich people who are very close to God. 00:12:47.100 --> 00:12:49.332 There are poor people who are very close to God. 00:12:49.332 --> 00:12:51.166 There are rich people who are very far from God. 00:12:51.166 --> 00:12:55.000 There are poor people who are very far from God. 00:12:55.000 --> 00:12:58.500 Money doesn't inherently determine your relationship with God. 00:12:58.500 --> 00:13:02.066 In fact, there are rich people who take a lot of pride in their money. 00:13:02.066 --> 00:13:04.166 Look how great I am to make all this money. 00:13:04.166 --> 00:13:05.700 Look at my self-reliance. 00:13:05.700 --> 00:13:06.899 But you want to know what's weird? 00:13:06.899 --> 00:13:10.166 There are a lot of poor people who take great pride in their poverty. 00:13:10.166 --> 00:13:11.765 Look how spiritual I am. 00:13:11.765 --> 00:13:14.200 I have so little I don't need much to get by. 00:13:14.200 --> 00:13:15.666 Like like them. 00:13:15.666 --> 00:13:17.533 Look how self-sufficient I am. 00:13:18.932 --> 00:13:21.932 In both cases, the issue is pride. 00:13:22.066 --> 00:13:30.966 In both cases, they need to come to the end of themselves, come to the end of self-reliance. 00:13:31.732 --> 00:13:33.932 That's what this is talking about. 00:13:33.932 --> 00:13:36.066 Poor in spirit. 00:13:36.066 --> 00:13:37.966 I'm not just dependent on me. 00:13:37.966 --> 00:13:41.533 By the way, do all you can to be a good steward of your money. 00:13:41.533 --> 00:13:42.899 Scripture is clear about that. 00:13:42.899 --> 00:13:51.399 On Wednesday night, everybody, everybody should at some point go through Financial Peace University, and the younger you are, the better. 00:13:51.399 --> 00:14:00.399 Julie and I went through something like that early on and it, even though we made very little money serving in ministry, it made such a huge difference in our lives. 00:14:00.399 --> 00:14:03.399 We don't have to become a slave to debt. 00:14:04.100 --> 00:14:05.799 Side note that's offered on Wednesday nights. 00:14:05.799 --> 00:14:07.466 By the way, you can sign up out in the hallway. 00:14:07.466 --> 00:14:08.200 We're going through that. 00:14:08.200 --> 00:14:09.566 We're going to start it in September. 00:14:09.566 --> 00:14:11.299 Financial Peace University. 00:14:11.299 --> 00:14:16.966 Fantastic material on how to be a good steward of the resources God does give you. 00:14:16.966 --> 00:14:18.700 But this isn't talking about money. 00:14:18.700 --> 00:14:19.732 Poor in spirit. 00:14:19.732 --> 00:14:21.732 What does poor in spirit mean? 00:14:21.732 --> 00:14:25.932 Let's just talk about that word poor, because it's an interesting word. 00:14:25.932 --> 00:14:30.000 Behind it is the idea of being in a lowly position. 00:14:31.265 --> 00:14:34.799 Kind of the posture of a beggar is behind that idea. 00:14:34.799 --> 00:14:41.466 In fact, the word it, it's even pronounced like the word, the sound you make when you spit on someone. 00:14:41.466 --> 00:14:43.899 It's Patoka, so it's you. 00:14:43.899 --> 00:14:44.732 Just almost. 00:14:44.732 --> 00:14:47.732 This idea of someone is so below me. 00:14:47.732 --> 00:14:51.600 Someone that just is worthless to society. 00:14:52.666 --> 00:14:58.966 So the position of spiritually poor in spirit, that same idea attaches to that. 00:14:58.966 --> 00:15:01.666 What does it mean to be poor in spirit? 00:15:01.666 --> 00:15:04.399 I captured this quote from a theologian. 00:15:04.399 --> 00:15:09.899 He says, those who stand or we could say kneel before God as poor in spirit. 00:15:11.265 --> 00:15:19.966 They are those without pretense before God, stripped of all self-sufficiency, self security and self-righteousness. 00:15:21.865 --> 00:15:24.600 You see the picture there of someone who's poor in spirit. 00:15:24.600 --> 00:15:26.600 They're saying, God, I'm before you, and it's not about me. 00:15:26.600 --> 00:15:27.700 I've got nothing to give. 00:15:27.700 --> 00:15:28.765 I've got nothing to offer. 00:15:28.765 --> 00:15:30.200 I'm empty before you. 00:15:31.732 --> 00:15:38.365 This is in great contrast, by the way, when we were studying Revelation, the churches in Revelation, you remember Laodicea. 00:15:38.365 --> 00:15:42.765 You think you are rich and are in need of nothing. 00:15:42.765 --> 00:15:43.600 That's what you think. 00:15:43.600 --> 00:15:45.732 You think because you have money, you're in need of nothing. 00:15:45.732 --> 00:15:50.666 But I'm telling you, you're poor, destitute. 00:15:51.100 --> 00:15:53.865 Poor in spirit says God. 00:15:53.865 --> 00:15:55.799 I'm empty before you. 00:15:55.799 --> 00:15:57.932 I'm dependent on you completely. 00:15:57.932 --> 00:16:02.265 I need you, and I've got nothing to offer. 00:16:03.666 --> 00:16:07.600 That's what we're driving at when we talk about poor in spirit. 00:16:07.700 --> 00:16:15.000 If you've been involved in the recovery addiction community, there's a phrase you'll hear about someone. 00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:23.399 When someone isn't quite ready to give up everything they maybe think they are, I got this, I'm managing this. 00:16:23.399 --> 00:16:23.799 Well. 00:16:23.799 --> 00:16:25.799 It doesn't have control over me. 00:16:25.799 --> 00:16:27.600 I'm good. 00:16:27.600 --> 00:16:30.200 And you'll hear this phrase of that kind of person. 00:16:31.299 --> 00:16:34.299 They haven't yet hit rock bottom. 00:16:34.899 --> 00:16:36.100 They haven't gotten there yet. 00:16:36.100 --> 00:16:37.533 They think they got it under control. 00:16:37.533 --> 00:16:44.500 But they they don't they haven't gotten to the place where they say, I don't care what anyone else thinks, I don't care. 00:16:44.500 --> 00:16:46.932 All I want is freedom. 00:16:46.932 --> 00:16:48.332 They haven't gotten there. 00:16:48.332 --> 00:16:49.799 They still think I got this. 00:16:49.799 --> 00:16:50.899 I can do it on my own. 00:16:50.899 --> 00:16:52.265 I don't need anybody else. 00:16:52.265 --> 00:16:56.666 I'm not so weak that I gotta have help to get over something. 00:16:56.666 --> 00:17:03.932 Okay, listen, if you want to be poor in spirit, you gotta hit rock bottom spiritually. 00:17:04.133 --> 00:17:06.099 That doesn't mean your whole life has to fall apart. 00:17:06.099 --> 00:17:07.799 That means you have to get to the place where you go. 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:08.766 I don't got this. 00:17:08.766 --> 00:17:11.066 And, God, I desperately need you. 00:17:11.066 --> 00:17:12.665 I can't do it. 00:17:16.333 --> 00:17:19.566 That's a hint of what it means to be poor in spirit. 00:17:19.566 --> 00:17:21.566 And this is where it starts. 00:17:21.566 --> 00:17:30.599 And this is why we're using this word descent to delight, by the way, because the first step towards moving towards God is moving downward, away from self. 00:17:31.465 --> 00:17:33.566 And it starts downward. 00:17:33.566 --> 00:17:36.365 It feels like I'm going backwards here. 00:17:36.365 --> 00:17:45.566 I've worked so hard to build up my image and my abilities and my self-esteem, and those things aren't wrong, by the way. 00:17:45.566 --> 00:17:47.665 If we do, we do need to grow. 00:17:47.665 --> 00:17:49.333 We do need to develop our skills. 00:17:49.333 --> 00:17:51.266 We do need to become strong people. 00:17:51.266 --> 00:17:54.799 But yet also ultimately our dependence is on Christ. 00:17:54.799 --> 00:17:55.500 That's number one. 00:17:55.500 --> 00:17:57.133 Now look at number two. 00:17:57.133 --> 00:18:03.932 The second step down in the descent to delight is there must be genuine sorrow for sin in your life. 00:18:06.532 --> 00:18:10.799 There must be genuine sorrow for your sin. 00:18:11.732 --> 00:18:17.932 I know plenty of people who carry a lot of sorrow around for the sin of others, everyone out there, and all the sin they do. 00:18:17.932 --> 00:18:19.365 But we're talking about your sin. 00:18:19.365 --> 00:18:23.000 There must be genuine sorrow for your own sin. 00:18:23.000 --> 00:18:30.799 Look at verse four, blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:18:30.799 --> 00:18:32.500 That seems like a contradiction. 00:18:32.500 --> 00:18:39.165 Some I've seen, some translate this happy are those who mourn, for they shall be. 00:18:39.165 --> 00:18:40.299 Wait a second. 00:18:40.299 --> 00:18:41.732 How have I seen this? 00:18:41.732 --> 00:18:44.732 Happy are those who are hurting. 00:18:45.133 --> 00:18:50.099 Is the way I've seen some worded. Happy are those who are hurting. 00:18:50.099 --> 00:18:50.732 And you go. 00:18:50.732 --> 00:18:51.200 How can that be? 00:18:51.200 --> 00:18:53.000 That didn't make any sense at all. 00:18:53.000 --> 00:18:54.333 You're right. It's very confusing. 00:18:54.333 --> 00:18:56.266 We need to understand some of these words. 00:18:56.266 --> 00:18:58.299 This word blessed. 00:18:58.299 --> 00:18:59.465 We keep repeating it. 00:18:59.465 --> 00:19:02.200 We love to use that word in Christian circles. 00:19:02.200 --> 00:19:06.133 Be blessed now live a blessed life full of blessing. 00:19:06.365 --> 00:19:09.066 A lot of times we don't even know what that means, but we love to throw it around. 00:19:09.066 --> 00:19:11.400 I think it's good overall. 00:19:11.400 --> 00:19:12.200 It's interesting. 00:19:12.200 --> 00:19:15.365 When I looked at all kind of the major translations, 15 or 20 of them. 00:19:15.365 --> 00:19:17.532 Almost every one of them use the word blessed. 00:19:19.732 --> 00:19:30.732 When you look in the Greek dictionaries, you start to look at what's the word behind this word, one of the translations listed as very legitimate, as legitimate as blessed is just the word happy. 00:19:30.732 --> 00:19:34.932 Happier though you could use that in place and blessed all throughout here. 00:19:34.932 --> 00:19:45.266 Now, there's a challenge with that for us as Christians, because we've kind of developed this competition or we've put against the word happy against the word joy. 00:19:45.266 --> 00:19:46.665 You may have heard this. 00:19:46.665 --> 00:19:47.200 You know, you don't. 00:19:47.200 --> 00:19:48.566 You don't want just happiness. 00:19:48.566 --> 00:19:49.700 You want joy. 00:19:49.700 --> 00:19:53.700 You don't want just to be happy temporarily in the moment, temporarily. 00:19:53.700 --> 00:19:57.700 You want full, abiding, long lasting, everlasting joy. 00:19:57.766 --> 00:20:00.266 And I agree, by the way, I agree with that idea. 00:20:00.266 --> 00:20:12.500 But we can't always slice it that finely, there's plenty of times where you talk about being happy and you also are full of joy, and there's times where you talk about joy and realize it's it's passing, it's fleeting. 00:20:12.500 --> 00:20:14.200 Sometimes there's overlap in those words. 00:20:14.200 --> 00:20:15.465 The ideas are true. 00:20:16.865 --> 00:20:19.365 So some have said even blessed, even happy. 00:20:19.365 --> 00:20:22.599 Neither of those words really get at what is going on here. 00:20:22.599 --> 00:20:28.266 Some have used the word like favored but-- or fortunate. 00:20:28.266 --> 00:20:31.400 Both of those words maybe feel like a bit of luck. 00:20:31.400 --> 00:20:35.500 Like like you got lucky, stumbled into it somehow. 00:20:35.965 --> 00:20:37.066 That's not true. 00:20:37.066 --> 00:20:38.865 Jesus knew who you were. 00:20:38.865 --> 00:20:40.099 He didn't just suddenly appear. 00:20:40.099 --> 00:20:41.165 He had forgotten about you. 00:20:41.165 --> 00:20:43.200 Oh, there they are. 00:20:43.200 --> 00:20:46.200 No, he knows your name. 00:20:46.299 --> 00:20:47.566 He knows who you are. 00:20:47.566 --> 00:20:49.133 He knows every hair on your head. 00:20:49.133 --> 00:20:51.865 You're not escaping him. 00:20:51.865 --> 00:20:54.865 He didn't forget about you. 00:20:55.400 --> 00:21:02.599 I think a word I've seen some use that I like the best is the word flourishing. 00:21:02.599 --> 00:21:03.965 Flourishing. 00:21:03.965 --> 00:21:06.732 Fulfilled. 00:21:06.732 --> 00:21:07.599 Experiencing. 00:21:07.599 --> 00:21:13.165 10 the abundant life, life to the full, life flourishing. 00:21:13.299 --> 00:21:15.200 This is what this is talking about. 00:21:15.200 --> 00:21:19.566 And so the person who is full, flourished, abundant, and yet they mourn. 00:21:21.500 --> 00:21:24.099 How can that be? 00:21:24.099 --> 00:21:26.400 We tend to see those in American culture. 00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:29.400 We do everything we can to avoid being unhappy. 00:21:29.400 --> 00:21:36.066 Do all you can to avoid that, whether it's a substance or social media or whatever, you start to feel a little unhappy. 00:21:36.066 --> 00:21:37.766 Find something to numb that pain quickly. 00:21:37.766 --> 00:21:40.766 We can't stay there. 00:21:40.965 --> 00:21:41.400 I think. 00:21:41.400 --> 00:21:45.865 A side note for us, before I really get into this idea of blessed are those who mourn. 00:21:45.865 --> 00:21:51.333 I think a side note is just the reality that as Christians, it is okay to be unhappy at times. 00:21:52.532 --> 00:21:55.500 It is okay to be sad. 00:21:55.500 --> 00:21:58.500 It is okay to cry. 00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:03.000 What's the shortest verse in the Bible? 00:22:03.599 --> 00:22:05.299 Jesus wept. 00:22:05.299 --> 00:22:06.799 Where does it say Jesus laughed? 00:22:06.799 --> 00:22:09.799 Did you remember that verse? 00:22:10.133 --> 00:22:11.532 It's not in there. 00:22:13.465 --> 00:22:16.566 That doesn't mean he didn't laugh, okay? 00:22:16.566 --> 00:22:23.133 But he is often described as, in fact, a man of sorrows. 00:22:24.266 --> 00:22:30.099 Point being, it is okay for you to have grief, to be sad, to cry, to have moments of sorrow. 00:22:30.099 --> 00:22:31.865 It is okay as Christians. 00:22:31.865 --> 00:22:36.099 But 1 Thessalonians four, they’re quoted in funerals all the time. 00:22:36.099 --> 00:22:39.099 We do not grieve as those without hope. 00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:40.200 We grieve differently. 00:22:40.200 --> 00:22:41.099 It's okay to grieve. 00:22:41.099 --> 00:22:45.732 We grieve differently because we have hope in him. 00:22:45.766 --> 00:22:51.865 And this is some of what this is driving at when it says, blessed are those who mourn. 00:22:51.865 --> 00:22:56.865 We know the context of the Beatitudes is a spiritual context. 00:22:56.865 --> 00:23:00.465 And so the mourning here is primarily spiritual. 00:23:00.465 --> 00:23:04.799 If you get to the end of yourself, there should be grief for your sin. 00:23:07.500 --> 00:23:10.500 And look, I can look back on my life. 00:23:10.865 --> 00:23:21.165 Sometimes I don't have to look back very far and be very full of sadness and remorse for the ways I acted, for the ways I treated people. 00:23:21.165 --> 00:23:24.365 I wish I could go back and change some of that and treat them differently. 00:23:24.365 --> 00:23:25.900 That's not the person I am now. 00:23:25.900 --> 00:23:28.932 I hope in general, and it's not the person I want to be. 00:23:28.932 --> 00:23:30.400 You know, you've been there. 00:23:30.400 --> 00:23:36.099 There should be genuine mourning for that sorrow for your personal sin. 00:23:37.066 --> 00:23:42.566 And yet, what's the promise here? 00:23:42.566 --> 00:23:48.766 Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 00:23:48.865 --> 00:23:51.865 This is the difference for the Christian. 00:23:51.865 --> 00:23:57.266 We mourn, we grieve, but we are not beat down by our sin. 00:23:57.299 --> 00:23:59.400 The comforter comes and comforts us. 00:23:59.400 --> 00:24:02.500 The Holy Spirit in me. 00:24:02.500 --> 00:24:03.400 You have hope. 00:24:03.400 --> 00:24:04.566 You have eternal life. 00:24:04.566 --> 00:24:06.799 Come to me. 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:10.965 So that's the second step down to the descent into delight. 00:24:13.133 --> 00:24:14.865 Blessed are those who mourn. 00:24:14.865 --> 00:24:19.900 Number three, the third step in the descent to delight. 00:24:20.400 --> 00:24:25.766 It is the humble that find their true inheritance. 00:24:25.865 --> 00:24:29.799 It is the humble that find their true inheritance. Look at verse five. 00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:33.333 Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 00:24:33.333 --> 00:24:40.000 Blessed are the meek, for they shall-- this is the word inheritance-- inherit the earth. 00:24:41.400 --> 00:24:49.599 The challenge, the big challenge with this verse, I don't ever use the word meek positively. 00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:51.799 I don't ever hear anyone else use it positively. 00:24:51.799 --> 00:24:55.165 If you call someone meek, it's not a compliment. 00:24:56.133 --> 00:25:02.299 And if someone called me meek and someone called you meek, you probably wouldn't think, oh man, I'm so glad they called me that. 00:25:02.299 --> 00:25:03.766 I feel so honored. 00:25:03.766 --> 00:25:06.566 It would probably not be a compliment. 00:25:06.566 --> 00:25:10.400 In our American culture, we're not meant to be meek and mild. 00:25:10.400 --> 00:25:13.165 You're supposed to be the go getter, the one out front. 00:25:13.165 --> 00:25:14.500 You don't wait around for others. 00:25:14.500 --> 00:25:15.766 You go and get it done. 00:25:15.766 --> 00:25:18.133 We don't let someone push us over. 00:25:18.133 --> 00:25:19.732 What are you talking about, meek? 00:25:22.165 --> 00:25:24.333 Isn't it interesting, though? 00:25:24.333 --> 00:25:28.465 Guess who described themselves as meek in scripture? 00:25:28.465 --> 00:25:30.799 Take a wild guess. 00:25:30.799 --> 00:25:32.165 Jesus. 00:25:32.165 --> 00:25:34.000 Jesus referred to himself that way. 00:25:34.000 --> 00:25:35.465 I've listed in your notes 00:25:35.465 --> 00:25:40.099 29, come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, I will give you rest. 00:25:40.099 --> 00:25:41.900 Take my yoke upon you, for my yoke is easy. 00:25:41.900 --> 00:25:46.965 My burden is light, for I am gentle and lowly of heart. 00:25:47.500 --> 00:25:51.133 Where gentle is the same word translated here as meek. 00:25:51.133 --> 00:25:53.900 So who's wrong about the word meek? 00:25:53.900 --> 00:25:57.365 Is Jesus wrong about the word meek, or are we? 00:25:58.266 --> 00:26:01.500 Not a trick question, by the way, should be pretty clear. 00:26:01.500 --> 00:26:06.599 We don't understand what that means. 00:26:06.599 --> 00:26:08.566 That's why I'm using the word humble here. 00:26:08.566 --> 00:26:10.900 There's too much baggage on the word meek. 00:26:10.900 --> 00:26:16.566 We can't get our minds around it, but I think someone can speak of someone having humility. 00:26:16.566 --> 00:26:19.066 And we can go. Yes, that's it. 00:26:19.066 --> 00:26:20.066 I know I need that. 00:26:20.066 --> 00:26:21.532 I don't know how to get there. 00:26:21.532 --> 00:26:24.700 I'm scared to pray for it because I don't want to be humbled. 00:26:24.700 --> 00:26:26.133 But I want humility. 00:26:29.665 --> 00:26:35.532 Now, what does it mean that that person is the person, the meek are the ones who inherit the land, inherit the earth? 00:26:35.532 --> 00:26:37.333 Most believe, and it's pretty clear, 00:26:37.333 --> 00:26:40.333 11. 00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:41.500 I've listed it in your notes. 00:26:41.500 --> 00:26:43.365 You don't have to turn there right now. 00:26:43.365 --> 00:26:53.099 The context of Psalm 37 is all about how do the righteous endure persecution from the wicked and still depend on God through the midst of that? 00:26:53.099 --> 00:26:54.400 How do you get through that? 00:26:54.400 --> 00:26:57.400 How do you navigate that? 00:26:58.066 --> 00:27:00.532 11, he says this. 00:27:00.532 --> 00:27:09.599 It's almost a direct quote the meek shall inherit the earth or the land, and delight themselves in abundant peace. 00:27:11.665 --> 00:27:18.200 It's the meek shall that inherit the land in the Old Testament, a sign of God's favor and blessing. 00:27:18.200 --> 00:27:27.200 In fact, knowing you were under his rule was to be in his land, to be in the land, to have the land as an inheritance. 00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:36.400 Part of the challenge is that there were moments where his people took it upon themselves to get themselves into the land, instead of waiting on the Lord. 00:27:36.400 --> 00:27:39.000 That word wait shows up over and over again in Psalm 37. 00:27:39.000 --> 00:27:42.400 Wait, wait, I got this. 00:27:43.133 --> 00:27:44.865 But they don't always wait. 00:27:44.865 --> 00:27:47.200 Moses strikes the rock instead of speaking to it. 00:27:47.200 --> 00:27:48.932 Moses doesn't get in. 00:27:48.932 --> 00:27:50.932 The spies said, no, no, no, it's too scary. 00:27:50.932 --> 00:27:52.766 We can't go. 00:27:52.766 --> 00:27:55.200 They don't get in. 00:27:55.200 --> 00:27:57.566 You can't do it your own way. 00:27:57.566 --> 00:28:01.133 You can't get into the kingdom in your own way. 00:28:02.099 --> 00:28:05.766 It's the meek that inherit the land. 00:28:05.766 --> 00:28:08.232 The picture we have of that in the Old Testament is Gideon. 00:28:08.232 --> 00:28:11.000 He came with 32,000 troops. 00:28:11.000 --> 00:28:12.965 And God said, that's too many. 00:28:12.965 --> 00:28:14.865 You'll get all the credit. 00:28:14.865 --> 00:28:17.333 Okay. What about 10,000? Still too many. 00:28:18.333 --> 00:28:20.965 300. 00:28:20.965 --> 00:28:27.400 There's no way anybody but God is getting the credit when your army is whittled down to 300. 00:28:30.365 --> 00:28:31.900 Blessed are the meek. 00:28:31.900 --> 00:28:33.299 They shall inherit the earth. 00:28:33.299 --> 00:28:35.900 Here's the inheritance that we're looking for. 00:28:35.900 --> 00:28:38.532 It's not the land. 00:28:38.532 --> 00:28:40.965 It's the spiritual land. 00:28:40.965 --> 00:28:46.865 We want to be in the kingdom for all eternity with him. 00:28:47.000 --> 00:28:52.365 And so it's those who say, I don't have this. 00:28:52.700 --> 00:28:53.865 You do. 00:28:53.865 --> 00:28:55.365 I'm depending on you. 00:28:55.365 --> 00:28:57.700 That's the picture of meekness here that we see. 00:28:57.700 --> 00:28:58.766 I'm depending on you. 00:28:58.766 --> 00:29:04.165 In fact, the only thing I have to do to get the inheritance is just to be a child. 00:29:06.532 --> 00:29:13.066 That's the only thing you can do to get an inheritance is to be a child of the king. 00:29:13.066 --> 00:29:16.365 It's not about how great a child you are, though. We want great children. 00:29:19.365 --> 00:29:22.465 Of course, on the earth, people mess up inheritances and they fight about that. 00:29:22.465 --> 00:29:23.965 And there is all that going on. 00:29:23.965 --> 00:29:33.865 But in the spiritual realm, you are my child and you are in the kingdom is what God says to those who know him. 00:29:35.665 --> 00:29:39.865 Lastly, number four, in the Descent to Delight, here's where it all comes together. 00:29:39.865 --> 00:29:42.900 The first three steps were really downward away from self. 00:29:42.900 --> 00:29:46.599 This is the first hint upward pointing back now to God. 00:29:46.599 --> 00:29:49.599 We're going to look up to him. 00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:51.732 We're going to read the verse first. 00:29:51.732 --> 00:29:52.333 Verse six. 00:29:52.333 --> 00:29:59.099 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 00:30:00.066 --> 00:30:01.900 Here's the idea we're going to unpack. 00:30:01.900 --> 00:30:06.066 You will find happiness by pursuing, not happiness. 00:30:06.066 --> 00:30:08.099 But what is greater than happiness? 00:30:09.333 --> 00:30:11.066 It's a little bit of a conundrum. 00:30:11.066 --> 00:30:16.133 It's a little bit confusing, but the pursuit of happiness itself for itself doesn't lead to happiness. 00:30:16.133 --> 00:30:19.566 It reminds me of there was this girl in high school. 00:30:19.566 --> 00:30:22.965 Teenager always had to have a boyfriend. 00:30:23.465 --> 00:30:24.700 Always. 00:30:24.700 --> 00:30:25.965 And for her. 00:30:25.965 --> 00:30:29.133 And, you know, looking back, I couldn't see this. 00:30:29.133 --> 00:30:30.232 You couldn't see it at the time. 00:30:30.232 --> 00:30:31.766 And I doubt she did either. 00:30:31.766 --> 00:30:34.665 She didn't care about the boys. 00:30:34.665 --> 00:30:35.965 She just wanted a boyfriend. 00:30:35.965 --> 00:30:38.500 She was in love with the idea of having a boyfriend. 00:30:38.500 --> 00:30:41.700 She was in love with love, not with the people. 00:30:41.700 --> 00:30:44.099 And you've seen that? 00:30:44.099 --> 00:30:50.232 I mean, some adults end up there, rush into a relationship because I don't want to be alone, and this person will finally make me happy. 00:30:50.232 --> 00:30:52.732 That's what they're there for, to make me happy. 00:30:52.732 --> 00:30:56.000 That's a bad formula for starting a relationship. 00:30:56.000 --> 00:31:01.000 I hope they do make you happy, but if you put all that weight on them, that is too much for anyone to carry. 00:31:02.465 --> 00:31:07.299 Instead of pursuing happiness for happiness sake, you pursue something greater than happiness. 00:31:07.299 --> 00:31:10.566 And happiness becomes a byproduct. 00:31:12.000 --> 00:31:18.865 And what we see here is blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 00:31:19.932 --> 00:31:22.133 Righteousness. 00:31:22.133 --> 00:31:26.165 We're going to see that word a lot in the Sermon on the Mount. 00:31:27.000 --> 00:31:34.333 I think for our purposes, we can talk about the pursuit of holiness, the pursuit of what honors God, the pursuit of him. 00:31:34.833 --> 00:31:37.865 I want you to just think about it for a second. 00:31:37.865 --> 00:31:45.200 The time in your life when you were hungriest and most thirsty. 00:31:45.200 --> 00:31:52.066 When was that time when you felt like, if I don't get something to eat or drink, I don't know if I can go on. 00:31:52.066 --> 00:31:53.066 Do you remember? 00:31:53.066 --> 00:31:54.665 Can you picture that time in your life? 00:31:54.665 --> 00:31:57.532 I remember just a few years ago I was so sick. 00:31:57.532 --> 00:32:00.099 It was like for a day and a half, I couldn't put anything in me. 00:32:00.099 --> 00:32:00.900 And the food wasn't. 00:32:00.900 --> 00:32:01.766 The issue was the water. 00:32:01.766 --> 00:32:02.766 I was so thirsty. 00:32:02.766 --> 00:32:06.732 My mouth was so dry, felt like it was getting glued shut. 00:32:06.732 --> 00:32:12.333 When I finally got just that little thimble full of water in my mouth, it was like drinking electricity. 00:32:13.333 --> 00:32:19.299 I mean, it was like all the flavors of the world, all put together in one tiny drop of water. 00:32:19.299 --> 00:32:20.932 And it was unbelievable. 00:32:20.932 --> 00:32:22.333 I couldn't believe it. 00:32:22.333 --> 00:32:23.566 How amazing it was. 00:32:23.566 --> 00:32:30.465 I've never tasted anything as good before or since, and I was desperate for water. 00:32:32.532 --> 00:32:39.365 Blessed are those who are desperate for righteousness. 00:32:40.299 --> 00:32:42.000 We're going to do a little self-evaluation. 00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:48.165 Do you find yourself, on a regular basis, desperate for righteousness? 00:32:50.566 --> 00:32:53.532 None of us do it perfectly. 00:32:53.532 --> 00:33:01.900 But in general, do you find yourself hungry for the things of God, longing for the things of him? 00:33:01.900 --> 00:33:08.365 The Christian should have a healthy appetite for the things of Christ. 00:33:10.700 --> 00:33:14.365 Here's the challenge I want to give you this week. 00:33:15.700 --> 00:33:19.299 Most of us wake up in the morning hungry physically. 00:33:19.700 --> 00:33:20.566 Some of us wake up. 00:33:20.566 --> 00:33:26.165 You can't even think about anything else to get that piece of toast down, or that donut or whatever. 00:33:28.133 --> 00:33:29.532 Here's what I want to ask you this week. 00:33:29.532 --> 00:33:30.200 This week. 00:33:30.200 --> 00:33:37.965 The challenge is, before you feed yourself physically, feed yourself spiritually. 00:33:39.365 --> 00:33:45.566 Before you satisfy the hunger of your body, satisfy the hunger of your soul. 00:33:45.566 --> 00:33:47.133 Start your day every day this week. 00:33:47.133 --> 00:33:48.333 And I get it. 00:33:48.333 --> 00:33:49.465 Maybe I've medication. 00:33:49.465 --> 00:33:53.400 Maybe you have health needs, I get I get all of that. Okay. 00:33:53.400 --> 00:33:56.099 You do what you have to do to adjust. 00:33:56.099 --> 00:34:02.365 But for the person who just gets up and mindlessly eats and maybe forgets about reading the Bible or prayer. 00:34:02.365 --> 00:34:04.865 This is the week to make a change. 00:34:04.865 --> 00:34:07.000 When you get up and you feel that hunger pain. 00:34:07.000 --> 00:34:10.000 You know I first got to feed my soul. 00:34:10.465 --> 00:34:13.465 That's where I'm going first. 00:34:14.400 --> 00:34:18.099 I'm going to pray that God gives you the strength to do that all week. 00:34:18.099 --> 00:34:20.766 Because here is where this all comes together. 00:34:22.565 --> 00:34:25.166 The Beatitudes start with these four. 00:34:25.166 --> 00:34:29.666 The Beatitudes starts with this idea that you better get your relationship with God right first. 00:34:29.666 --> 00:34:35.300 If you want to find happiness and joy and blessing and life fulfilled, you can do everything else seemingly right. 00:34:35.300 --> 00:34:39.132 And if you miss that, you've missed it all. 00:34:39.132 --> 00:34:47.199 This is why we are going down to delight and looking up to Christ, to find true joy and true happiness in all we do. 00:34:47.199 --> 00:34:50.199 Let's pray. 00:34:51.365 --> 00:34:55.166 God, I thank you for your word that guides us. 00:34:55.666 --> 00:34:57.532 Thank you that we can turn to it. 00:34:57.532 --> 00:35:06.132 And as you preach to us, we can see what it really means to live fulfilled in the kingdom of heaven. 00:35:06.132 --> 00:35:10.733 And we have our own ideas, and this world offers ideas and we take lots of guesses. 00:35:10.733 --> 00:35:16.565 But you tell us, and so help us to listen. 00:35:16.565 --> 00:35:19.565 Give us ears to hear. 00:35:19.733 --> 00:35:22.733 Give us hearts that want to obey. 00:35:24.132 --> 00:35:32.065 And I pray this week, every day, every single morning that we would wake up more hungry to meet with you. 00:35:32.065 --> 00:35:38.333 More hungry to satisfy our souls than to satisfy our stomachs. 00:35:39.500 --> 00:35:43.065 Would you give us the courage to put you first every day? 00:35:43.065 --> 00:35:46.000 I pray that your presence would be so overwhelming. 00:35:46.000 --> 00:35:52.900 This week, every morning we would wake up and know you're there with us and it would bring comfort and delight. 00:35:53.400 --> 00:35:55.166 Thank you for your word that guides us. 00:35:55.166 --> 00:35:57.666 Jesus, we love you. 00:35:57.666 --> 00:35:58.333 Amen.