Walking the Christian life,

1. Here are eight characters of
blessings!
THE BEATITUDES of
MATTHEW 5:1-12

2. 1st Description and Blessing: Verse Three.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom
of heaven.”
The poor in spirit are happy.
They see their want, weep with guilt, and thirst
after Jesus their Redeemer. The kingdom of grace and
mercy is for such; the kingdom of heaven is for them.
“Blessed.”
Happy, Oh! The blessedness of those; the Psalmist
says: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of
the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in
the seat of the scornful” Psalm 1:1.

3. “The Poor.”
Not the poor in purse, the kingdom of heaven cannot be
said to belong to them; but such that are poor in a spiritual sense.
For all mankind are spiritually poor; and in such a condition, and
cannot help themselves.
The greater part of mankind are not aware of their
condition; but think themselves rich, and increased with goods:
but, there are some who are aware of it, who see their poverty and
want, and mourn over it, and acknowledge, that all they have, or
hope to have, is own to the free grace of God.
The “humble,” are those who are deeply convinced of their own
sinfulness in the Lord’s sight. They are not “rich and increased with
goods;” and do not fancy they “need nothing;” The Revelation
church thought the same way. But, they regard themselves as
“wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.”

4. “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The poor in spirit not only shall have - but
they already have - the Kingdom. The poor in
spirit are rich in the knowledge of God, while
others walk in darkness, without light. Men who
know their spiritual poverty are the only ones
who by faith can lay hold of the true riches of
grace.
“The poor have the Gospel preached:”
It not only reaches their ears, but it reaches
their hearts; it enters into them, and is applied
unto them, they receive and embrace it with joy
and gladness.

5. 2nd Description and Blessing:
Verse Four.
“Blessed are those who mourn. For they shall be
comforted.”
Genesis 12:2
“I will make you a great nation;
I will bless you
And make your name great;
And you shall be a blessing.”
In parting of Blessing in Revival blessing!

6. “Those who mourn.” “Mourning.”
It is that feeling which is wrung from men under pressure
of the ills of life? Or the sorrow on account of committed sins. It
is the poverty of spirit that says, “I am undone.” These people are
more concerned about sin than about anything on else; the
remembrance of it is grievous to them; the burden of it is
intolerable.
Blessed are such! Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a
broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart--These, O God, You
will not despise.” We need a bit more brokenness before a Holy
God. One day they shall weep no more; “for they shall be
comforted.”
For sin, their own sins; indwelling sin, which is always
working in us, is a continual grief of mind to us; the unbelief of
our hearts, because we are committed to a God of love, grace,
mercy and holiness, and sin grieves the Holy Spirit, and brings
dishonour to the Gospel of Christ.

7. “For they shall be comforted.”
The mourners shall be “comforted.” Even
now they get “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for
mourning, the garments of praise for the spirit of
heaviness.” Sowing in tears, they reap even here
in joy. Here in this life, by the God of all comfort,
by Christ the comforter; by the Spirit of God,
whose work and office it is to comfort.
But the days of our mourning shall soon be
ended, and then God shall wipe away all tears
from our eyes. The Holy Spirit is our Comforter.

8. 3rd Description and Blessing: Verse Five.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit
the earth.”
The meek are happy.
The meek are those who quietly submit
to God; who can bear insult; yet are silent,
or return a soft answer; who, in their
patience, keep possession of their own
souls. These meek ones are happy, even in
this world.

9. “Blessed are the meek.”
The Lord calls those “blessed” who are meek. He
means those who are of a patient and of a contented
spirit. They that are willing to put up with little honour
here below; they can bear injuries without resentment;
they are not ready to take offence.
They are ready in every good work, to speak evil
of no man. Jesus said in, Matthew 11:29 “For I am
gentle and lowly in heart.” The Apostle Paul besought
one of the churches “by the meekness and gentleness
of Christ” 2 Corinthians 10:1.
Meekness, or humility, is very valuable and
commendable. Here meekness is to be considered, as a
Christian grace, a fruit of the Spirit of God; which was
greatly seen in Christ.

10. “For they shall inherit the earth.”
A. “Inherit.”
The word “inherit” implies membership of God’s family. When they
delight themselves in the Lord, He gives them the desires of their heart; when
they commit their ways to Him. All things, in short, are theirs, of those rights
which belong to them as the children of God.
God shall supply all our needs, when we seek first the Kingdom of
God.
B. “The Earth.”
The word “earth and land,” is the same in both Hebrew and Greek, so
that prophecies in the Old Testament about the land may be fulfilled in the
“new earth.”
The “new earth,” which will be after this “old” is burnt up; in which only such
persons as are here described shall dwell; and inherit it, by virtue of being
heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ.

11. 4th Description and Blessing: Verse Six.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness,
For they shall be filled.”
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
righteousness.”
The Lord Jesus calls those “blessed” who hunger
and thirst after righteousness. He means those who
desire above all things to be entirely conformed to the
mind and will of God. Those that have the appetites of
the new life. As hunger and thirst are the keenest of our
appetites, “Taste and see” says the Psalmist. God’s
perfect will and purpose for our lives.

12. “For they shall be filled.”
The word here used denotes the
amplest satisfaction “completely
satisfied.” Psalm 17:15 “As for me, I will
see Your face in righteousness; I shall be
satisfied when I awake in You.” They
shall be satisfied, they shall never seek
for any other righteousness, in the sight
of God; for this righteousness is full,
perfect, complete, and entirely whole.

13. 5th Description and Blessing: Verse Seven.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain
mercy.”
Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”

14. “Blessed are the merciful.”
Who show mercy to men, to those that
are poor, distressed, and miserable, in their
outward circumstances; and inward sin, we
need to show mercy to the souls of men.
To show mercy is very refreshing to,
and desirable by God; it is what He requires,
and it is desirable of a child of God, and
what makes him more like to his Heavenly
Father. The happiness of such persons is
that;

15. “For they shall obtain mercy.”
Mercy from God, through Christ Jesus;
which is free, sovereign, abundant, and
eternal. Men are said to obtain mercy,
when they are regenerated, and called by
grace. Which merciful persons may expect
to find and obtain, at the throne of grace, to
help them in time of need; and who shall
not only obtain mercy of God in this life, but
in the world to come.

16. 6th Description and Blessing: Verse Eight.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
shall see God.”
For they shall see God. Here holiness
and happiness are fully described and put
together. The heart must be purified by
faith, and kept for God. “Create in me such
a clean heart, O God.” None but the pure
are capable of seeing God.

17. “Blessed are the pure in heart.”
The heart of man is naturally
unclean; nor is it in the power of man
to make it clean, or to be pure from his
sin. Though they have sin dwelling in
them, are justified from all sin, by the
righteousness of Christ, and are “clean
through the word.” And happy are
they!

18. “For they shall see God.”
In this life, enjoying communion with Him,
both in private and public, in the home and in the
House of God; where they often behold His
beauty, see His power and His glory, and taste,
and know that He is good and gracious. Where
they shall see God in Christ, with the eyes of their
understanding; for Christ is God. Taste and see
that God is good, God is good, and all the time
God is good!
O! To see, walk and talk with God like Adam did in
the Garden of Eden.

19. 7th Description and Blessing: Verse Nine.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called
sons of God.”
Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”
First called Christians – Christ-I-am. The Disciples of
Christ where so much like Christ in their walk and talk,
that people said, You are like Christ, Christians.

20. The peace-makers are happy.
They love, and desire, and delight in peace; and
study to be quiet. They keep the peace that it be not
broken, and recover it when it is broken.
“Blessed are the peacemakers.”
Not between God and man, for no man can make
his own peace with God; nor can any mere creature,
angels, or men, make it for him; Christ, in this sense, is
the only peace maker.
“Peace, peace, but there is no peace.” But
between men and men. To live peaceably with all men,
and with one another. Making peace between their
fellow creatures and fellow Christians. This is a true gift
and calling, to be a peace maker. Now of such persons it
is said, that;

21. “For they shall be called sons of God.”
That is, they are the children of
God by adopting grace, which is made
manifest in their regeneration; and
that is evidenced by the fruits of it,
which is wrought in them by the Spirit
of God; and so are truly sons of peace.
Man again in the image of God,
once lost by sin, yet renewed by grace.

22. 8th Description and Blessing: Verses Ten and Eleven and
Twelve.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for
righteousness' sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and
say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward
in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who
were before you.”
There is nothing in our sufferings that can gain any merit
from God; but God will provide that those who lose for
Him, though life itself shall not lose by Him in the end.
Jesus was killed as a criminal at Calvary, and He was the
holy God without sin, men will not think highly of us
that follow Him.

23. “For righteousness' sake.”
On account of their righteous life and godly
conversation, which brings upon them the hatred of
evil men of this world: for saints, by living righteously,
separate themselves from them? By quot;righteousnessquot;
may be meant, a righteous cause, the cause of Christ
and His Gospel; and they are persecuted for preaching,
maintaining, or embracing, the doctrine of justification
by the righteousness of Christ.
“For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The same blessedness is predicated of these as of
the poor in spirit, in verse 3. China pastor story, after
years in prison, said in interview, “I never thought I was
worthy to suffer for His Name.”

24. “Blessed are you when they revile you.”
These words are particularly directed to the Disciples of
Christ, all died in a cruel way by the hands of men for Christ’s
sake, and are designed to inform them, that they should not be
exempted from reproach and persecution, but to endure for
Christ's sake.
“And persecute you.”
From place to place, by ill means of all sorts.
“And say all kinds of evil against you for My sake.”
The worst things they could think of and invent, they were
quot;falselyquot; laid; there was not a word of truth in them.
But all were the wicked lies of men, invented on purpose
to bring them and Christianity into disgrace: for His name's sake.

25. “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad.”
Because of the honour put upon them, the glory
they bring to Christ and His cause, by cheerfully suffering
for it.
“For great is your reward in heaven.”
Saints must not expect their reward here, but
hereafter, when God himself will be their reward; he will
be all in all.
“For so they persecuted the prophets who were before
you.”
As Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others; which shows, what
should befall them was no new and strange thing, but
what had been the destiny of the most well-known
servants of God in former ages.

26. Now you should know:
The kind of people Christians should be?
The character to which Christians should
aim at?
The outward walk and inward spirit which
becomes a follower of Christ the Lord?
By living the “EIGHTFOLD” character of a
Christian. For none will find happiness in
this world or the next, who do not seek it
from Christ the Lord.