City Life Starter

Written by Paul Lane

The Word

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

Matthew 5:3-4 (NASB)

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 4:7 (NASB)

“And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh.”

Ezekiel 11:19 (ESV)

“How blessed are those whose way is blameless, Who walk in the law of the Lord.”

Psalm 119:1 (ESV)

Commentary

For the beatitudes, I find that the thought happiness carries much of the melody of what Jesus is saying to us.  For what would be the point of following His call if we do not end up happy?  In the Preamble to the U. S. constitution, the founding father included the phase “the pursuit of happiness” because it was something that they know that no human government could provide to its citizenry.  But the happiness I talk about here is not the feeling that one gets when hearing a joke, eating a nice meal, or watching a really good movie. 

This is a happiness often expressed in some time ago.  A general may tell his officers to fight a battle to bring their position to “some happy circumstance.” Or disputing friends might settle their dispute to “some happy arrangement.”  This is not a happiness of feeling, but a happiness of being.

When I was younger, I spent years pining away, hoping that I would be married one day.  Family is such an important thing to me that I felt incomplete without it, and it seemed that I would never marry.  Yes, it was a long time, for I did not marry until I was in my late 30’s.  But a few years after getting married, while being up half the night walking with the baby, I realized that I was happy.  Not because of something that I had reached for, but because the Lord had so completely met the desire of my heart.  God had provided, He had contented, and He had aligned my life.

Application

One could see the Beatitudes as a listing of the exchange rates in God’s economy.  If you bring a poor spirit to Him, He will give you the riches of His kingdom.  Or you could mourn for a bit and got some comfort.  But know that this would be the truest comfort you would ever receive. 

• Receive: As a first step, think about things in your life that you could bring to the Lord and what you would receive in exchange.

The Bible says, taste and see that the Lord is good.  So, we are not to just exchange our junk for God’s goodies.  We are to come, participate in God’s kingdom and find out what it means to truly belong to Him.

• Be contented: The second step is very easy.  Think about a time when you were just going along in life and you realized that you were happy.  Then ask yourself how that happened.

Finally, align.  If you only make it to blessing, you will end up with a room full of junk that meant something to you long ago.  If you make it to happiness or contentment, fantastic!  But it will not endure if you do not abide in the Lord, for it is the Lord who makes glad the heart of man.

• Abide aligned:  Read the Bible, slowly.  Pay attention to what it is really saying.  And work out your faith before the Lord.

Prayer

Dear Lord, You are the light of my salvation, no others will I fear.  You provide for me, may all else fall away.  You heal my heart, that I might enjoy You more completely.  You attend my life, that it might be ordered according to Your will.  You boldly ascribe to me more than I would allow myself.  Turn my heart to You always, that I may enjoy the beauty of You and the courts of Your kingdom forever.  In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.