Page 6 - Demo

• The Merciful – Mercy means not receiving a bad thing that you do deserve. We all need it. We all have done things that we wish we could undo. No matter how hard we try or how much we want
to, we can’t undo them. When God forgives our sin, one of the things He does for us is to show us mercy. Part of living in the kingdom means showing that mercy to others. The way we do that starts with not rubbing people’s nose in or beating people up with their bad past decisions.
• Pure in heart – This one is not about righteousness. We are called to be righteous. But that is not what Jesus is talking about there. “Pure in heart” means “single-minded in purpose at the core of our being.” If you want to see God you have to want it most of all. Jeremiah 33:13 says, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Following Jesus isn’t one of a long list of hobbies and attributes in our lives. It should be the defining characteristic of it. AW Tozer once said, “There are only two kinds of people in the world: those who seek God and those who seek to avoid God...and both will be successful in the end.” If you seek God with single-minded devotion, with your whole heart, you will find Him.
• Peacemakers – The world is broken by sin, and sin divides. God came to reconcile and entrust us with the ministry of reconciliation. In 2 Corinthians 5:18 Paul writes, “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” We are called not to divide and to avoid the easy divisions that the world likes to chunk us into. If we want to be called children of God, we have to do what God does: bring people together, not divide them.
Kingdom Persecution vv.10-11
The life Jesus came to give us, the kingdom He came to invite us into, starts with a change in our perspec- tive and encourages us to reimagine what it means to be truly blessed. It is important to realize that this new life is not going to make sense to the world. Some will be fascinated, others repulsed by it. Some may hate it so much that you will be attacked. That’s the bad news. The good news is that when this happens, you can be glad. Persecution is a sign that you are living in the kingdom and are making a difference. You’ve found the battle line and are on the frontline where the Kingdom of God meets the Kingdom of this world. The even better news is that we know how the battle ends. As Revelation 11:15 says, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.”
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What does it mean that salvation is more than just forgiveness? What is the Kingdom of God? What does it mean to seek the kingdom?
2. How does our society define blessedness? How would it fill in the phrase “Blessed are the ______”? How would you?
3. How can we learn to change our perspective to align with kingdom priorities?
4. Which one of the Beatitudes is the hardest for you? Which do you find most encouraging?
5. What is persecution? What does it look like in our life? How are we supposed to respond?
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