Do you all know who Katie Gallagher is?  Katie was the local Mercedian who was on Survivor.  She came in second to New York Firefighter Tom Westman - the ultimate survivor.  Westman got the $1 million prize.  Gallagher - for being #2 - got $100,000.

Imagine this - a group of people from all kinds of backgrounds - from all over the place - trying to survive together and yet at the same time they’re competing against each other.  After each round of competition they do what?  They vote to see who gets kicked out.  For whatever reason - you’re lazy - you cheated - you’re too old - your mother wears army boots - whatever.

The ultimate goal is what?  To not to get voted out.  To survive.  Survival is by using people.  Making alliances.  Breaking alliances.  There’s betrayal and suspicion.  Nobody trusts anybody.  The winner is the person who’s able to use the others more ruthlessly - more hurtfully - at whatever cost to ensure their own survival.

Sounds kind of like life.  Doesn’t it?

We live in a world where survival depends on us.  Success doesn’t involve character.  Climb over anyone on the way to the top.  Cheat - lie - steal - be an adulterer - fornicate - do what it takes.  And, its all okay as long as you don’t get caught - as long as you’re moving up.  More wealth - more toys - more power - more control over others.

This morning I’d like for us to take some time to consider how wonderful it is that God offers us something tremendously different.

To begin - I’d like to have you stretch your imaginations a bit.  Try to imagine with me that you’re sitting by a lake.  We’ve come out a ways from the nearby town.  Around us are fields - some for growing things - most just for grazing.  Grassy fields - some hills - and a lake.  Can you picture that?

That’s the setting for the passage we want to share this morning.  If you would, please turn with me to Matthew 5:1-12 - or you’ll find it on your sermon notes.

Jesus was at the height of his popularity.  Crowds were coming to Him from all over.  Wherever Jesus went the crowds went.  One day, Jesus looked at these crowds of people - and in an area just north of the Sea of Galilee - an area like this here - Jesus sits down and begins to teach these thousands of people what it means to live within the will of God - to know God’s presence in our lives - in contrast to the world we live in - to live being blessed by God.

Jesus’ teaching begins here in Matthew 5 - starting at verse 1.  Let’s read it out loud together so we have it fresh in minds.  Starting at verse 1:  When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down His disciples came to Him.  He opened His mouth and began to teach them saying,  “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.  Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.  Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Jesus’ bottom line:  “When life stinks.  Remember God’s blessing.”  Try that with me, “When life stinks.  Remember God’s blessing.”

We need to remember that God blesses us.  Because when life stinks - and let’s be honest it often does - when life stinks we’re tempted to feel alone - that God really isn’t there - or He’s turned against us - and that somehow we have to do what it takes to survive.

But life with God isn’t like that.  In this teaching Jesus shares a number of truths about God’s blessing that we need to remember.

Jesus begins His teaching:  “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”  

Jesus is talking to a crowd of diverse thousands - multi-ethnic - multi-cultural - from every economic strata - the suffering and sick - average people just trying to get by - people from different religious backgrounds - religious leaders proud of their piety and traditions.

To Jesus’ listeners - life with God meant sacrifices - regulations - traditions - impossible standards of holiness - condemnation and ostracism for failure - hundreds of laws imposed by the Pharisees and Sadducees.

Who’s Jesus talking to?  He’s talking to the “poor in spirit” who’ve been told all their lives - that spiritually - you don’t have what it takes.  You’ll never measure up.  You stink.  Ever feel that way.  And yet, Jesus says they’re blessed by God.

Some versions of the Bible render Jesus’ teaching like this:  “Happy are those who are spiritually poor.” (GNB, TLB)  That sounds harsh.  Just think happy thoughts and it’ll be okay.

I did a online search for “happiness.”  Did you know that eBay has happiness for sale?  Find happiness at Amazon.com.  There was this one site that advertised a technique called Holographic Creation.  That only cost $90 for the first hour of instruction - to learn the 6 easy steps to enter the holographic domain of pure thought energy - the path to happiness. 

We crave happiness.  We crave God’s blessing.

But, how can we be happy if we never measure up.  No matter what we do - whatever we achieve or fill our lives with - even the pursuit of God - how can we know God’s blessing if deep down we know we fail.    

Jesus goes on - verse 4:  “Blessed are those who mourn - those who cry and weep over their sins - for they shall be comforted.”

Jesus enters into Jerusalem on what we celebrate as Palm Sunday.  At some point - in the midst of all the confusion - Jesus comes to a place where He can see the whole city laid out in front of Him.  Luke writes, “When Jesus saw the city He wept over it.”  He mourned. (Luke 19:41)

In one instant of time Jesus is confronted with the sin of Jerusalem.  He sees all the sins the people have committed - the spiritual poverty of the people - their coming judgment because of sin - His crucifixion and carrying of their sin - and ours - and Jesus mourns over the city.

That’s what Jesus means - feeling the depth of our own spiritual bankruptcy - mourning the cost and depth of our sin.  Feeling the spiritual poverty of those we live with - those around us - who like us are crying out - in the same ways that we cry out.  Who have the same needs and struggles - and who sin as we sin - and desperately need to know God’s comfort and healing - His blessing.

Jesus says, God blesses those who mourn - who realize their need and are open and ready and crying out to God for His comfort.  That’s not harsh and its not a bunch of spiritual happy thoughts.

God has answered our cry with the comfort of salvation and life in Jesus Christ.  In Isaiah 61:3, Isaiah writes that Jesus comes to give “the oil of gladness instead of mourning and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”  In Jesus, God Himself comforts us. (see also Matthew 11:4-6; Luke 4:18-21; 7:22)  Even when life stinks - all is not lost.

Hear this:  Jesus isn’t talking about how to be blessed - how to earn God’s blessing.  He’s talking about being blessed - not matter who we are - no matter how we’ve failed - no matter how ugly and stunk up with sin we are - we’ve been blessed by God.

That’s revolutionary.  Life transforming.

Jesus’ teaching is this:  We’re powerless to free ourselves from our failure and sin.  But God is not.  And, God has already blessed us by dealing with our failure and sin through Jesus Christ.

Jesus goes on - His next teaching about God’s blessing - verse 5:  “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

There’s a story about J. Upton Dickson who wrote a book entitled, “Cower Power” - who founded an organization for submissive people called DOORMATS - an acronym for Dependent Organization Of Really Meek And Timed Souls.  Their motto is:  “The meek shall inherit the earth - if that’s okay with everybody.”

When we think of meekness we often think of weakness.  Like being a doormat that says “STEP HERE.”  People who just sort of lay there and let the world wipe their feet all over them.

But, meekness is not weakness.  Jesus is talking about those who’ve figured out who they are before God.  The meek recognize that they’re poor in spirit - they mourn over their sin.  That takes courage - strength.  To look deeply at who we really are.  Not to try cover our sin - or hide where we fall short.  But honesty before God and others. 

Jesus goes on verse 6:  “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Picture the scene of starving people in a Third World country.  Children - dying with swollen stomachs.  People are desperate - without hope.  Day after day the only task is survival.

When the trucks arrive with water and bags of grain how do the people respond?  Indifferent?  Like they don’t really need what’s on the truck?  Politely?  “May I please have a sack of grain and some water.  If its not too much trouble.”

These people are desperate - starving - hungering and thirsting.  Can you see them surging towards the truck - jostling with each other.  Nothing will keep them back from what they desperately need.

Jesus’ teaching is this:  Let the pain of our spiritual hunger - the truth of our circumstances - drive us to do away with any obstacle - any pretense - any pride - any habit - any sin - that keeps us from what God desires to bless us with.  Put your life in God’s care and control and He will bless you.  He will satisfy your need - no matter how deep or how great.

Jesus’ goes on - another blessing - verse 7:  “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”

Peter comes to Jesus and asks Him, “Lord, how may times can my brother sin against me before I don’t have to forgive him any more?”  Jesus answers Peter, “You should forgive your brother” - what?  “70 times 7”  490 times - a limitless amount of times.

Why?  Because our example of mercy is God.  We sinners deserve the wrath of God - to be leveled by God forever and ever amen.  But God is merciful towards us.  Do we deserve mercy?  No.  Can we earn God’s mercy?  No.

Be careful.  Since we can’t earn God’s mercy by being merciful what Jesus is saying is this:  There are times when we’d really like to level somebody.  Probably be justified in doing so.  Be honest.  But we demonstrate that we understand - to a point - the vastness of God’s mercy towards us when we demonstrate mercy towards others.

Jesus is talking to people who probably never had received mercy from those who were over them.  He’s saying that they’ve been blessed because God has shown them mercy.  They need to live as those to whom God has shown mercy.

Jesus goes on with this in verse 8:  “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

A boy and a girl look at each other and love passes between them.  They see each other - not only with their eyes - but with their hearts.  When Jesus looked at people he saw their hearts - not the outside stuff that we tend to focus on - but the core of who they were - their feelings and desires and thoughts and passions - their will - even where they were spiritually in their relationship with God.

There are so many things that we’re tempted to offer God - outside stuff.  Our beliefs - our religious acts - our possessions - the stuff we do to make up for our failure and sin.  We’re posers.  But God still sees our hearts.  He knows us.  He wants our hearts. 

A pure heart is a heart that’s 100% sold out to God.  Not 50% - not 70% - not 90% - but 100%.  There’s nothing else in there but God.  Nothing is held back.  That’s scary.  What will God do with my heart - my life? 

But, isn’t that the blessing?  God knows us and shows us mercy.  Its God who stands ready to purify our heart - even to allow us to see Him - to know His heart and live in a pure relationship with Him.  We can trust God with our heart because we know that whatever He sees in there - He will be merciful - He will purify - and comfort and clean and heal and restore.

Jesus says, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.”

We become peacemakers when we no longer are trying to defend ourselves - or hide behind walls of what we want people to see about us - living in fear that someone will discover who we really are.  We stop being posers because our confidence is in the God of mercy - not in earning our own survival.  Peacemakers - those who really are the sons and daughters of God - are those who have learned to trust this merciful - purifying - God with their lives.  They bring His peace into every situation because they are at peace.

Is peace in our hearts a blessing of God?  Oh, yes.

Then verses 10 to 12.  Jesus applies His teaching to the reality of life that stinks:  “Blessed are who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” 

Is there anyone here who enjoys being insulted?  Slandered?  Speaking up for Jesus and being ridiculed and mocked?  Put down - attacked - persecuted for doing the right thing?  That stinks.

What was it Jesus said?  “When life stinks.  Remember God’s blessing.”  “Rejoice!”

None of these stand up when life stinks.  Trying to go it alone only makes life stink worse.

Being blessed means that you and I have been approved by God.  He’s pleased with us.  Try this with me:  “God approves of me.”

To be in the arms of God is to experience His blessing - right now - in the midst of whatever is going on in your life.

Doesn’t your heart long for that?  To walk with God through life?  To get as close to Him as you can?  The One who sees you as you are and loves you deeply - mercifully?  Who longs to comfort and heal you?  To fill you with His peace?  To care for you and take you through life?

Let me encourage you with this.  If you’ve come to the point in your life when you’ve given your life to God then rejoice because you are blessed.  When life stinks remember His blessing.

If you’ve haven’t yet come that point in your life when you’ve given your life to God - the whole of God’s blessing - all that He desires for you - is right in front of you.  Its there for the receiving.  Be honest and open with Him.  We all sin.  We all need His mercy.  Accept what He’s done for you in Jesus Christ - His forgiveness - His healing.  Give your life to Him.

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