Blessed Are - Week 4

Blessed Are 

Week 4

Meek/Hungerers/Merciful

One scholar referred to the first 4 Beatitudes as “the beatitudes of need.“

“Blessed is the one who thinks enough of themselves to know they shouldn’t think much of themselves.”  -Ortlund

“Put differently, you are poor in spirit if you know there is nothing in you– not family ties, respect in the community, occupation, or so call “good” works or personal “holiness” that is valuable enough to commend you to God.” -DA Carson 

Matthew 5:5

5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”

“Self-righteousness is never meek; the man who is proud of himself will be quite sure to be hardhearted in his dealings with others. To reach this rung of the ladder of light, he must first set his feet upon the other two. There must be poverty of spirit and mourning of heart before there will come that gracious meekness of which our text speaks.”  -CH Spurgeon

“Meekness is not weakness, but rather strength under control.”  -Chuck Swindoll

Psalm 37:1-11 (Meekness personified) 

1 “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! 2 For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. 3 Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. 7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! 8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. 9 For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land. 10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. 11 But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.”

Matthew 5:6

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

Mark 4:19

19 “but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.”

2 Timothy 2:4-7

4 “No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.”

Luke 10:41-42

41 “But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Luke 2:25-32

25 “Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, 29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”