Today’s Podcast
Today’s Bible reading plan:
Read it in a year – Job 1-2
see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)
Today’s Devotional
Matthew 5:3-12
Jesus: Blessed are the spiritually poor—the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
Blessed are those who mourn—they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek and gentle—they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness—they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful—they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are those who are pure in heart—they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers—they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness—the kingdom of heaven is theirs.
And blessed are you, blessed are all of you, when people persecute you or denigrate you or despise you or tell lies about you on My account. But when this happens, rejoice. Be glad. Remember that God’s prophets have been persecuted in the past. And know that in heaven, you have a great reward.
What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?
We call the first part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, recorded in Matthew, the Beatitudes. I sometimes refer to them as the Be Attitudes, though. I think, Jesus really wants us to get past what we usually want from the definition we give this portion of the sermon. You see, the word beatitude means supreme blessedness; exalted happiness. It’s one of those “what’s in it for me” kind of words.
Sure, that’s the end result of the life of those who follow the pattern Jesus gives to those who listened to Him on the mountainside that day, but He wants to convey so much more to us if we will listen to His words. What Jesus tells us in this short sermonette gives us insight into the transformed spirit He puts within us as we let Him take charge of our life. He changes our attitude toward life and toward others so that we can truly have that supreme blessedness and exalted happiness we talk about in the beatitudes.
The secret to the happy life, Jesus tells us, is not in the outcome of these verses, but in the input. We get the blessing by changing our attitude toward life. When we demonstrate the characteristics He outlines in these verses, we begin to reap the rewards, but not before. So as we recognize we are poor in spirit, as we mourn our condition, as we walk through life with a meek and gentle spirit, then, God begins to bless us with the rewards He talks about in these verses. We inherit heaven, comfort, and the earth. We begin to experience real joy. We understand as our character changes what blessings and exalted happiness is all about.
We don’t understand happiness in this life because too often we chase the wrong things. Sometimes we buy into the world’s lie that things we see will bring us happiness so we accumulate things. It might be houses, cars, big boy (or girl) toys that glitter and shine in the sunlight. People will ooh and ahh over them. Many will express their envy over the toys you collect. But the problem with toys of whatever shape or size, however expensive or at a bargain price, they will never satisfy.
Things bring momentary happiness and last until the next model comes out. Think about how the commercial world works. Apple is a great example. I admit I bought the first model iPhone when it came out. Steve Jobs had me hooked. I loved it because of all it could do for me. But guess what, my original iPhone didn’t last long. It’s not even supported anymore. I now own an iPhone 6 plus and it’s my fourth iPhone. I’m trying to avoid getting a 6s and waiting until at least the 7 or 8 comes out. Not sure I’ll be able to make it since I do a lot of my business on my phone. The iPhone only made me happy for a little while, now every generation of iPhone frustrates me because I know a new one will be out next year and I’ll have to get it because my old one won’t be supported much longer.
That’s what happens with every material thing. It all breaks, wears out, becomes obsolete. No matter what it is. Even silver or gold or land that all the speculators tell you will never lose value, loses value. None of it really means anything in the end. You can’t take any of it with you and what you have someone will always be trying to take from you so you’ll just worry about all that stuff anyway. Your happiness from things will always be short-lived.
Maybe you think power or prestige will make you happy. Nope. Someone will always be more powerful than you. Someone will always scheme to take your place. Someone will always attack you if you are in a place of power and leadership whether you are a great leader or a poor leader. You’ll always be looking over your back. You’ll always be watching for your enemies. You’ll always expect opposition if you chase power and prestige.
But when you work with God to let Him transform your character. When you let Him change your attitude and you live those “Be Attitudes of the Beatitudes”, you’ll find the supreme blessings, the exalted happiness, the beatitudes that come with living for the Almighty Creator of the universe. You’ll understand that things are temporal, but your changed spirit because of His spirit in you is eternal. You’ll find indescribable joy that comes from living within the kingdom of heaven even as you abide on earth.
You can be the person you were created to be with transformed attitudes shaped by the one who created all things. All it takes is letting go of yourself and following in the footsteps of the One who loves you most, Jesus, the Savior of all humankind.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.