The King's Church in Ilford
The following is the text of the talk given on 17th January 2010 by Georges Kisombola
"Being Jesus' Climbing Companion"
- Matthew 5:3-12
Two weeks ago I gave a brief introduction to the book of Matthew through the genealogy of Jesus. We learnt that Jesus came to be the Lord of all; Poor and rich, tall and short, Jews and gentiles and sinners. I said that in the coming weeks we will draw our attention on what was the message of Jesus in Matthew. It can be summarized in one sentence: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand"
Today I will approach the blessings on the Sermon on the Mount carefully. The Preacher of this sermon was our Lord Jesus who came into the world, to be the Light of the world. The prophets and John had done very well in preaching, but Christ excelled them all. This sermon was the summary of what he had preached up and down in the synagogues of Galilee. His text was, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. In other word: "Have a new beginning". As I said, I will not preach on repentance, but Stephen Moore will next Sunday.
Follow me as we observe the difference between the event of promulgation of the 10 commandments by Moses and what Jesus proclaimed on the Mount.
MOSES
The Lord came down upon the mountain
He spoke in thunder and lightning
the people were ordered to keep their distance
JESUS
Now the Lord went up
Now He spoke in a still small voice
Now people are invited to draw near
Jesus' ministry was drawing huge crowds. This time He climbed a mountain. Those who were His disciples, the committed to Him, climbed the mountain with him. When He arrived at a quiet place, he sat down and preached. There was a large crowd because of his two-fold ministry to them: DOING and TEACHING.
Acts 1:1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach.
DOING refers to His miracle-working power, while TEACHING refers to His doctrine. Jesus did not work miracles just for miracles' sake, but He used them to teach doctrine (i.e. healed blind man and taught "I am the light of the world," fed 5000 and taught "I am the bread of life"). He also did not teach just for teaching's sake, but "he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." (Matthew 7:29)
But in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is teaching His disciples, and at the same time preaching to sinners. People thought that by doing what was commended even though it did not come from their hearts was enough to please God. So Jesus here breaks the news to them. The good news about what the Father is after: A heart that seeks him. As Jesus "climbs higher" with His disciples, instead of Jesus telling us what HE wants to do for US (salvation), He now tells us what He wants US to do for HIM (discipleship).
The Sermon on the Mount is all about a New Beginning, becoming a "climbing companion" of Jesus, moving ever higher and deeper in our Christian life. It is not just about knowing doctrine, but about applying doctrine. It is about New Beginning, Getting real with God, with ourselves, and with others.
NEW BEGINNING IN HOW YOU LIVE: Matthew 5:3-12
Jesus begins His sermon by covering subjects that are crucial to the curriculum of discipleship! The word "blessed" means more than "happy" because happiness is an emotion often dependent on outward circumstances. But "Blessed" here refers to divinely bestowed well-being, which the Bible calls "joy" … and Jesus teaches that we get it by doing exactly the opposite of what the world does to attain happiness!
My intention to preach on the Sermon on the Mount is not to beat you up by uncovering areas of your weakness, not at all. My intention is to build your Faith up, to encourage you and myself to give all to Jesus as we follow Him. My Intention is to cheer you up so that together we may have a New Beginning and moving ever higher and deeper in our Christian life. My Intention is to bless you in all ways and pray that God blesses you with His Word of Life this year.
In his sermon Jesus gives us eight characters of blessed people; which represent to us the principal grace of a Christian. On each of them a present blessing is pronounced; Blessed are they; and to each a future blessing is promised, which is expressed to suit the nature of the grace.
These are not commandments, but a description of how His followers ought to live in order to be "Salt" of the earth and "Light" of the world. Jesus starts off and says:
- Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven; This poverty of spirit is a gracious disposition of soul by which we are emptied of self, in order to be filled with Jesus Christ. It is to acknowledge that God is great, and we are mean; that he is holy and we are sinful; that he is all and we are nothing. It is to come off from all confidence in our own righteousness and strength that we may depend only upon the merit of Christ for our justification. Jesus says for those living this way, "Theirs is the kingdom of heaven". It is a Heart state not appearance. A change. A renewal of mind.
- Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. This is about mourning for our own sins; this is godly sorrow, sorrow for sin, with an eye to Christ, Zec 12:10. Those who live a life of repentance, who lament the corruption of their nature, who mourn also for the sins of others, (Psa 137:1), Jesus says those who are gracious mourners are blessed because they shall be comforted. Again it is all about the heart.
- Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. They are those who quietly submit themselves to God, who follow his directions and are gentle towards all men (Tit 3:2); they can bear provocation without being inflamed by it. They are blessed because they shall inherit the earth. The promise of life that is now. Again, meekness comes from inside you. Meekness is not a weakness, but power under control.
- Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be satisfied. Our desires of spiritual blessings must be earnest. Hunger and thirst are appetites that return frequently, and call for fresh satisfactions; so these holy desires do not rest in any thing attained, but are carried out toward renewed forgiveness, and daily fresh supplies of grace. Those who hunger and thirst after spiritual blessings, are blessed in those desires, and shall be filled with those blessings. It is God only who can fill a soul and he will fill those with grace for grace.
- Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Those who are charitably inclined to pity, and help people in misery. We must not only bear our own afflictions patiently, but also the afflictions of others. We must have compassion on the souls of others, and help them; pity the ignorant, and instruct them; pity the careless, and warn them; pity those who are in a state of sin, and snatch them as brands out of the burning. Being merciful must be birthed from the inside and not a show off act.
- Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Here is the most comprehensive character of the blessed: they are pure in heart. True worship consists in heart-purity. Those who are inwardly pure, show themselves to be under the power of pure and undefiled God. True Christianity lies in the heart, in the purity of heart; the washing of sin. The heart must be purified by faith, and entire for God.
- Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. The wisdom that is from above is first pure, and then peaceable; the blessed ones are pure toward God, and peaceable toward men; It is to love, and desire, and delight in peace. Such persons are blessed; for they are working together with Christ, who came into the world to slay all enmities, and to proclaim peace on earth. They shall be called the children of God;
- Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. To be a climbing companion of Jesus is not easy. Persecution will be experienced from one level to another, but we are to endure all following our commander Jesus Christ.
So the Sermon on the Mount calls us to examine ourselves daily, to ensure that our intentions and motives are pure as Jesus' climbing companions.
We need to remember that we cannot make ourselves pure. But as Paul wrote in Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me".
You may feel inadequate because you struggle to live pure in heart, and you struggle to have pure intentions and motives, remember this: None is righteousness but through Christ we are counted righteous before God.
My question would instead be: How far am I on that Mountain, Climbing high with Jesus Christ my savior?
We are called to Come up to Him. Let us read Revelation 4: start with Revelation 3:19
It is when we go higher with Christ that we see Him in His full glory. To go higher with Him will mean to abandon self and give it all to Him and then we will know who He really is: King of King's, Lord of Lords.
You may say: "Georges, you do not understand. I tried, but all the time I have failed.". Friend, Jesus gives you a second chance. Come to Him and start afresh.
But you may be here this morning and think: "Georges, I have not started the Journey yet. How can I? Friend, you can start this journey today. All you need to do is to take a step of faith and say:" Jesus, I want to start this Journey with you. I want you to be my savior and Lord, I want to follow you" and let Jesus give you a fresh start. A New Beginning!
