Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Matthew 5:4
This series of sermons is on Vintage Faith. The basic principles of faith taught to us by Jesus Christ were nowhere better taught to us than by His sermon on the mount. Christ was not just speaking to the multitudes that had gathered there, his words still have merit in today's society, and all you really need to know to follow in Christ's footsteps are in these words. For me, I could not take my eyes off of the words above. If you have been reading the papers in the last couple of weeks you could not avoid seeing that three young women from Columbia county have died in severe car collisions in the last week. I myself was personally stricken by one of the deaths, and I know there are people in this church who knew the other two. In times like these, for me especially, I feel the need as a Christian to have the answers to all the questions that arise when a tragedy strikes. The one question that I could not escape was, "Why?" I asked a person who is much more biblically knowledgeable what an appropriate answer would be to one of the biggest little questions there is, why? I received an answer that I was not expecting, but it was the most honest answer to such a question I think I could have ever gotten, and it really hit home. The answer was, "I don't know." I related it to, if you are a parent, and you tell your children that it is time for bed, or time for their bath, and they look at you and ask you why. Your answer to them, without an explanation, is, "Because I said so, that's why." Now God is not quite so cold when we discover that the answer to the why's is because it is his will, and that we may live the rest of our lives in this world and never truly know why. But as we are people who pray, we pray for peace, and we ask the Lord to comfort us in our times of sorrow. We must remember that even in times of grief that we must still seek Christ's teachings, and be good servants to the Lord. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6) We have to remember that God answers all prayers, and sometimes the answer is no. It is alright to grieve, the more you grieve and the heavier your heart during times of loss is significant of one thing, that you loved that person very much. The more grief you feel, the more love you have for them. It is difficult to be weighed down by the burden of sadness when you realize that it comes from love. We must remember that death is not a goodbye, it is simply a farewell. I have been to many funerals for those that I have loved, and I always say to them, I will see you later, and look forward to seeing you again. And now that I am a Christian being I still pray, pray with the families and pray to myself. I pray for peace, comfort, and to help me celebrate the life of those who have gone before me. The Lord tells us, 'when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.' Matthew 6:6 For your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Matthew 6:8 We just have to remember to ask. May our hearts go out to the families of those here on earth who mourn those who have gone on before us, because one day, it will be our family.

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Righteousness. Mercy. What do these words mean to us in our day to day lives? I have to admit that the word "righteous" causes an immediate negative "gut" reaction when I hear it. I think this is because I have witnessed (and experienced in my own behavior) self-righteousness dressed up as righteousness. The term righteousness can also sound as if we are following a set of rules for our life as a way of seeking God's favor. I don't even know if the word "righteous" is useful in today's world, since it has been co-opted by the surf culture ("That was one righteous wave, dude"). After thinking about these issues, the best way I can understand righteousness is captured by something like "aligning my intentions and actions with the path Jesus walked."

Mercy is also a difficult word for me to define. I looked it up and Webster's says "compassionate rather than severe behavior towards someone in one's power." Who is in my "power"? I think this means all the people who are affected by my intentions and actions...my children, my spouse, my coworkers, my friends, my church. Often we think of being merciful to someone who we feel has wronged us. THAT can be very hard to do. I often find myself spending time justifying my anger at someone rather than allowing Jesus' many examples of mercy to take hold and flow out of me.
What does it mean to be "blessed" for hungering after righteousness and being merciful? Sometimes it feels like more of a curse than a blessing to pursue a righteous and merciful path. This feeling is a signal, I believe, that the surrender is not yet complete, that there is a separate self not yet "denied" and left behind. At other times, the blessing is seen immediately in the experience of basic human connection with others that can come from righteous and merciful behavior. Either way, the pursuit of righteous and merciful action in the world is worthwhile until the surrender is complete.

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I am glad that Jesus was merciful, even on the cross. He asks His father to "forgive them, for they know not what they are doing" (Luke 23:34). After being ridiculed by two thieves that are crucified with him, one of them realizes that Jesus is the Son of God and asks for forgiveness. Jesus tells him, "Today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43).

Matthew 5:6-7 reminds us that we need to desire to live our lives in a righteous manner. If we strive for a just and moral life, scripture says that we will be satisfied. Matthew 5:6 also tells us that we should be merciful, and then we too will be granted mercy. I struggle with being merciful. I admit that I sometimes have a hard time being merciful to people who I feel are undeserving of mercy, mainly the criminal element. I wonder if it is possible to be merciful by being non-judgmental. How can I temper mercy with the need for justice?

There are things that I do to show mercy. I try to help people who are hungry. If people are down on their luck, I try to encourage them. If someone is in need of a sympathetic shoulder, I try to comfort that person. I do struggle with forgiving someone who "hurts" me. I strive to be better in that area, but it is very difficult. I have feelings of guilt because I remember Luke 23:34....Jesus asks God to forgive those who have just beat, mocked, and crucified Him, yet I harbor ill will to those who cross me.

The 4th and 5th Beatitudes seem easy enough to live by, but there are so many temptations that block my desire to live a righteous life. There are so many barriers that keep me from being as merciful as I should be. I ask that Jesus would open my heart and mind and keep me ever mindful of the life He lived and the mercy He granted to those who crucified Him.

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Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6)

Hunger and thirst are two of the most basic of our human needs. We require food and water to live, and when we are short on those things, we feel it. We grow faint, feel sick, and might even become unpleasant to be around. When we experience the sensations of hunger and thirst, they are our signal that something is not right and we need to do something about it.

A hunger and thirst for righteousness, though not felt in our physical bodies, is much the same way. Thirsting for righteousness (or holiness and a clean slate before God) shows us that we are not where we want or need to be in our lives, and effort needs to be made to reach that point. Something is not right, and we need to do something about it. We are not hungry for food to eat or thirsty for water to drink; no, our hunger is for the Bread of Life, and our thirst will only be quenched by the Living Water.

Sometimes, though, we aren't where we need to be in our relationships with God...but we can't tell. We don't feel that hunger and are unaware of our thirst. We might realize that something isn't right, and we might be aware that something is missing, but without those pressing sensations of "hunger" and "thirst," is doesn't seem very urgent. We don't have anything moving us toward God. We don't have anything showing us how badly we need to change something.

In my life, it is at those times--when I know I am parched but cannot necessarily feel it--that I have to pray for God to give me that thirst. "Make me hungry, God, and don't allow me to feel full until I'm filled by You. Don't allow me to fill this void in my life with anything else. Give me a need that will only be satisfied by You. I am a human, living in the flesh, and until I feel it, this need won't be real to me. Make it real. Make me hungry and thirsty and create a deep desire for You."

God is faithful, and if we want to be thirsty, He'll allow it so that He can be the One to satisfy us.

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Father,

You are so merciful to me. You love me and continue to reach out to me even though I have turned away countless times and don't look back.

You love me in a way that I cannot comprehend, and are merciful beyond anything I have earned.

You are so good, so loving, so kind...

I confess to You that at times it is overwhelming. I confess that at times, You are overwhelming to me. I cannot understand You or what You're doing. I cannot grasp how big You are, and though I try, I cannot know You as well as I want to know You.

I confess, too, that I find it so hard to do the things that You want me to do. It is so hard for me to love people like You do, and to extend mercy to other people the way I have experienced You extend it to me. People hurt me, God, and I confess that I do not love them the way I should. I do not always want to love them, and I don't always want to try for mercy.

I'm sorry, God. I want to be merciful. I want to do right. I want to make You proud of your servant. I want to experience the blessing of being the person You want me to be.

Make that desire even deeper. Make it powerful. Make it overwhelming.

Overwhelm me with the desire to be the person You want me to be, and show me what it means to do right. Show me what it takes to be merciful to people.

Change my heart, God, so that I can be like You.

Teach me and grow me.

Amen

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Matthew 5:9-- Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called children of God.

This may seem strange, but when I think about this passage, the first thing that comes to my mind is the musical group U2. U2 is one of my favorite bands not only for their music but also their attitude. They have taken their fame and used it to bring attention to what they feel are injustices around the world. They don't propose violence as a means of action, but they do encourage everyone to get involved--from leaders of nations, to celebrities, to the common man.

What did Christ mean when He made this statement? I think He meant that we shouldn't figuratively bury our heads in the sand when we see disparity. This can be extremely difficult considering we are often taught to mind our own business. Getting involved with certain unpleasant situations can be messy and can force us to become involved in something for more than 5 minutes. How much time and effort are we really willing to put into something that may not affect us personally? I am convicted by this. I know that I like to keep my distance and remain aloof when it comes to life outside my own personal bubble.

I read a passage in which the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes are compared to the Ten Commandments. They are a "Christian How to Guide." We should be using the Beatitudes as a guideline for how we live. My prayer is that I, as well as all Christians, will be more proactive in our faith and be the peacemakers Christ desires.

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Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. (Matt. 5:9).

This is one of my favorite verses, because I feel like it speaks about me. I spend most of my days trying to make peace. It's what I do for a living. I walk around feeling that since I am a peacemaker; I am special, that I am a son of God!

When I really delve into the meaning of this verse though, I am convicted to wonder if I really am a peacemaker. To truly be a peacemaker, I need to build more harmonious relationships with others because of the relationship that I have with Jesus. Too many times I get involved in harboring anger and grudges against others who I feel have wronged me. This hostility and bitterness hardly makes me a peacemaker.

It is easier to hide behind a veil that hides my faults and pretend that I am truly searching for peace in relationships with others. If I cannot find peace in relationships, how can I project peace to others? I am sure that Jesus got disappointed, and even mad, during His lifetime, but I cannot find scripture that states that He held grudges.

In today's society, we are a world at war with each other. People kill others in the name of their God. Families break up because of spouses cannot get along. Children run away because they cannot get along with their parents. Or society needs to stop tearing each other down and realize that words and actions can, and do, destroy others. It creates hostility that causes turmoil.

Being a peacemaker is more than just mediating a dispute or reconciling a relationship. Being a peacemaker not only means that we are absent of conflict, but that we are righteous. To be a peacemaker, we must have an inner peace. We cannot begin to make peace if we don't possess a sense of peace within ourselves.

While I am, at least outwardly, a peacemaker, I realize that I am not a peacemaker in the truest sense. My flaws, weaknesses, and my desire to "one up" someone all hold me back from being a true "peacemaker." I am willing to walk into a stranger's life and play the role, yet I am unable to do so in my own life. I pray that God would open my heart and let his grace come over me so that I can be mindful of the peace and mercy that He has shown me. I really desire to be an instrument of peace and not conflict, and to project the image of a real peacemaker to others.

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For a long time, I thought that being a peacemaker meant that I should smile a lot, be easygoing, and try to appease whenever I could. When I was growing up I took it upon myself to be the one that kept everyone in my family happy. When I married I stayed right in that role with my spouse. Staying "nice" and submissive, and letting myself be manipulated by others-all in the name of keeping the peace.

Was I blessed by that? I don't know. Was I a blessing to those around me? Maybe. Was I a blessing to God? I think I was, because He knew what was in my heart. In recent years I have been trying to lose my "peace at all costs" mindset, because I saw that the cost I was paying was my own free will. Is it truly peace if I deny my own emotions, my own opinions, my own confidence?

Slowly I have begun to really understand what God is trying to say to me. When I really listen, and quiet my mind, I hear His message for my life.

I am a peacemaker when I try to establish a right relationship based on Truth and Righteousness.

Peacemaking does not mean seeking peace at any cost, for peace at any price will usually end up in complete destruction.

Dear God,
Please keep working with me on this. I am finally receptive to Your path for me- help me to stay the course. Let me learn that I can make peace without destroying myself. I can build harmony, without tearing down my own character. Let peace be something I make, not something that consumes me.
~Let peace begin with me, let this be the moment now. With every breath I take, let this be my solemn vow--to take each moment, and live each moment, in peace, eternally.~
Amen

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Heavenly Father,

I've been thinking a lot about peace this week, and I pray that I get it. I pray that when I say the word "peace," I envision the same things you envision. I hope that my life radiates the kind of peace You want us to have.

Teach me more and more what it means to walk in peace, God. Show me how to do it. Show me how to live as a peacemaker when there is so much conflict--so much anger--so much to be offended by. Show me how to allow your mercy to flow through me to other people, especially in times of turmoil and pain. Help me to be a vessel of Your peace.

More than anything, God, show me what it means to be a follower of the Prince of Peace. Show me the parts of Your character that warrant such a name, and teach me how to live like that.

Thank you for caring about my struggles, and for wanting more for me than what I am so willing to settle for. You are so good to me, and I am grateful.

I love You,

Amen

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