Matthew chapters 5 ~ 7 are the famous Sermon on the Mount. The Sermon starts with the 8 beatitudes, which are declarations of who the blessed are.
"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
These beatitudes certainly describe the blessed. But I think they describe the blessed people as they grow to the likeness and fullness of Jesus (Ephesians 4:13), since Jesus himself is the prototype of the blessed. Jesus came down from Heaven, humbly taking on the very nature of a servant (Philippians 2:7). He suffered on the cross for his people, but were victorious in the end. He is gentle and humble as well as merciful. No one is purer than him and, as the Son of God, he reconciled us to God and made peace, so that we can partake in the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven.
When we follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, we will likewise be blessed. We will be poor in spirit, meek, humble, pure, peace-making, and persecuted because of righteousness, but will inherit the kingdom of heaven as children of God.
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ReplyDeleteanother question not related to your entry: there are lots of advertisements on your blogs. does every hit on your website bring whatever amount of cents into your pocket? i know that some blogs do that by putting ads on their site; in case that was the case, i tried publicizing your blogs on my twitter too. at least 100 hits should happen hahah
Maybe, but that is not the reason. I have made 0 cents from the ads so far.
ReplyDeleteLOL (acronym for laugh out loud).
ReplyDeleteif you want, i can get rid of the ads for you; it'll make it more appealing to read for passerbys.
You have a point. Go ahead and get rid of the ads.
ReplyDeletei can't do that when i don't have your password or anything; i'll do it over winter break.
ReplyDelete