Matthew 5:1-4 (NKJV)

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

SERMON ON THE MOUNT:POOR & SORROWFUL

Matthew 5:1-4

SOM: Poor & Sorrowful

Tonight begins a new Sunday night Sermon Series

We want to begin a series of sermons designed to take a closer look at Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount

The Sermon on the Mount is the most famous sermon ever preached

SOM: Poor & Sorrowful

We see this sermon in it’s entirety in Matthew chapters 5-7

There is so much that Jesus covers in this one sermon

We will certainly take our time to go through the scriptures and think about all that Jesus spoke

SOM: Intro

The Bible records that Jesus went up on a mountain to preach this sermon

The mountain spoken of here is located about seven miles southwest of Capernaum

It is known as the Horns of Hattin (Mount of Beatitudes)

SOM: Intro

Jesus went up in altitude because it would be easier to speak to a multitude of people from there

He was seated to speak, which was a custom of teaching among the Jews

The teacher would be seated while all who listened would stand

SOM: Intro

Jesus begins this sermon with what we commonly refer to as the Beatitudes

The term Beatitude means “happy”, “fortunate”, or “blissful”

We see the word “Blessed” repeated over and over

We might substitute “happy” for “blessed”

SOM: Poor

Jesus begins in verse 3 by saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”

There are a couple of different ideas that are suggested here

One is poor in spirit being those who view their spiritual state as lacking

SOM: Poor

The idea here is a humility towards the way one sees himself spiritually

Do you see yourself as a sinner who needs a savior or as a righteous person who can do it all on your own?

The way we approach our spiritual condition is important!

SOM: Poor

The contrast here is between one who has an attitude of humility vs. one of pride

There is perhaps no better example than the one found in Luke 18:9-14

Here is the familiar story of the Pharisee and the tax collector praying about their spiritual state

SOM: Poor

It’s not the proud who stand to enter the kingdom of heaven, but the humble

It’s is for those who recognize their need for God and the salvation He so freely gives

However, there is also another thought given here…

SOM: Poor

That thought is one of having the spirit of poverty

This is the man who, whether he has money or not, does not trust in or depend upon his riches in life

Instead he sees that his dependency is upon God and God alone

SOM: Poor

Jesus was once asked by a rich young ruler what he must do to be saved

Jesus spoke of keeping the commandments, of which the young man certainly had

However, Jesus then went a step further with that young man (Luke 18:22)

SOM: Poor

This young man did not have a spirit of poverty

Perhaps he did not see how he could live his life apart from his riches

However, he seemed to think that he could live that same life apart from Christ as he went away sorrowful

SOM: Sorrowful

The next verse says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted”

Those of that time knew about mourning

We all have things we mourn over

Those of that day even had professional mourners whose job it was to mourn at a funeral

SOM: Sorrowful

Jesus here is not speaking about mourning over a funeral

The meaning behind this is more of a spiritual one

The first thing we should mourn over is our own sin

Do we still mourn over our own sins?

SOM: Sorrowful

Anytime we sin and cause God grief and sorrow, we too should mourn over that sin

We cannot become desensitized to the things of the world

Remember that it is godly sorrow that leads us to true repentance, which is turning from sin (II Cor. 7:10)

SOM: Sorrowful

Our sorrow should also be for the sins of the world

Again, have we become desensitized to what we see in the world around us?

Is apathy our problem?

Those who mourn over the sinful state of the world shall be comforted