08/28/2023 and Revised 10/16/23

Matthew 5, as in the 5th chapter of the book of Matthew in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, is renown for containing the record of one of the most famous sermons ever given by any person, and Jesus delivered it, and the heading of those verses Matthew 5:3-12, is often referred to as Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount”. I am fascinated because when I read it, and I’ve read it many times now, there is always something new that wasn’t there the last time I looked, and I’m blessed to see how gentle God’s Son really is, and yet also how holy! How lowly we must be in comparison to His goodness (Psalms 62:9)! God who gave us this world to walk on and live off of its fruits, the same God who gave us His Son, this same God is gentle with us. There’s truly no other Lord like our Lord. What other God would give so much, and humbly approach us to accept the gift with our free will!? The answer is obvious: Our God is Holy! No other God but Jehovah would do that!

I find verses that remind me that Jesus is like God, gentle, but also is the image of our God, loving and strong. I liked this version of the verse Psalms 62:11-12, because I remember hearing that our God was loving and strong. This is the phrase I remembered hearing: something alone the lines of this verbage, as “I have learned that you O God, are loving; and that you O God, are strong.” I quote that one to myself in my mind because that’s how I heard it before, but here is that wordage I found on a Berean website (see pic):

Recently, when reading Matthew 5, I realized it had been since a while since I had done so, and recalled that this passage of verses 3 thru 12 has helped me through many times, and I ruminate or meditate on these verses a lot, the “be-attitudes” – Beautitudes in Matthew 5:3-12. I would like to do so more often. It is good to reflect on how the Lord Jesus is portrayed, how he was viewed, his behavior around the disciples, followers, skeptics, devout and unconvèrted, and those who were just altogether curious and listening to pass the time.

I could see clearly upon reading the passage, Matthew 5 and verses 3 thru 12, that Jesus seemed to almost be trying to make any excuse to describe every single one of us in some way. He was trying to bring comfort to the mourning (Matt 5:4), grace to the forgiving (Matt 5:7), endurance to the persevering (Matt 5:9), and honor to those who might consider themselves Not blessed if they were being persecuted so hardly (Matt 5:10-12). The Old Covenant sometimes portrayed those holy patriachs, Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, blessed of our God, as wealthy, prosperous, influential, but Jesus also emphasized that we are prosperous because we have Him! He overcame death, and Hell and no offense against the forefathers or Moses, but none of them can light a candle to overcoming death and the grave. We have assurity that all the victory is won, the curse is broken, and the written code that testified against us has been cancelled! I often picture Jesus laughing POSITIVELY, and I think it could be because everything Has been overcome already, so I think in His view, it could be maybe he finds us comical if we have troubles at all. Jesus spends 3 verses to reASSURE the listening that they are indeed blessed while persecuted, and mighty in carrying God’s power, and should even expect persecution as the prophets who came before them endured.

Our Jesus that makes the blind see, and reaches out to the poor, and doesn’t outcast the adulteress, and He is the one who died to save this world, and He also made it a point, to those who took the time to listen; the point that he wanted us to know that He Sees Us in our plight, in our adverse circumstances, and we all could fit into those verses somewhere.

Right now, I feel like I’m in Matthew 5:3 verse, wanting satisifaction and filling up with God, and so hungry and thirsty, and needing Him closely as if He were my diet. But other days, I may be in a strong character verse like Matthew 5:9, or dare I say, have a pure thought and inclination of good that could have only come from God (Matthew 5:8). God is working with us, more than we know, and we should not be afraid to approach someone who wants to give us gifts so very badly.

Image by 4222320 from Pixabay

But we should fear Him who is able to forgive (Psalms 130:4), because He does know us all the way through, and knows that we can be with God if we’ll give Him/Jesus a chance to bridge us there! ~Bless God and live~, and know that if we fill up with His praises, and declare His wonders, and humbly accept our brethren’s love and bearing with us, there’s nothing the body of Christ cannot accomplish for Jesus!