Deeper Still

Who was Jesus speaking to when he delivered the Sermon on the Mount? What if I told you it included the fence-sitters?

What is Summer Sermon Series?

A collection of messages given at various New England Churches by Alyssa in the Summer of 2022.

Welcome back as we continue our Summer Sermon Series with a focus on the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, which I titled, “Deeper Still”, presented in Cape Cod a few weeks ago. Let’s begin in:

• Matthew 5:1-5- “And seeing the multitudes, he went into a mountain; and when he was set, his disciples came to him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth”.

• I recently moved officially into a promotion that had been in transition for a bit of time. My predecessor became upset one day as we were moving closer to the switch, and she said she was so close- only 60 files away from 1,000. She was hoping to reach 1,000 files before she turned the position over to me. As you can imagine, I wondered why anyone would need 1,000 files. And how would I find anything I needed? I would need to open one file, to open another within that, and another within that, and keep going until something made sense. There was so much information to work through.

We deal with this every day. So much information around us. It is so difficult to weed through all of it, to figure out what is true, what is important. Luckily, we have a Savior who clearly gives us what we need, and gives us instant access to the truth. This is what he is about to do.

• Let’s dig a little deeper into this portion of scripture to see what is going on.

• First, let’s think about where Jesus had been before this. In Matthew Chapter 4- he had his experience in the wilderness where he was tempted by Satan. He had experienced the fullness of humanity even as he was sinless and perfect. Later in chapter 4, he calls his first disciples. The disciples who left everything behind- their very life- and chose to follow Jesus.

• Jesus- begins working miracles, teaching, there are people who have not given up their life like the disciples, but they are drawn to him because they have seen what he can do. People who are sick, in pain, paralyzed. People are curious. Intrigued. That curiosity- when people see something different, something real, can draw people from anywhere.

• We see that multitudes followed him up the mountain. We know that he was teaching his disciples, but he had not forgotten the multitudes.

• In Matthew 7: 28- it says, “ And when Jesus is finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching”. Jesus was teaching to everyone. His disciples, who were already full in- they didn’t sign up for a club membership or develop a back up plan in case this didn’t work out. They were committed. 100%. He was also teaching to the fence-sitters. Those who were curious and maybe surprised, wanting to know more but not entirely at the point of full commitment.

• We can be fence sitters too- did you know that? We can go to church every Sunday, spend time in his presence daily, and not be completely in? We see that when we are prideful and stubborn and selfish and flesh driven. This can be a back and forth process- moving from the fence to his feet, and then starting to drift back to the fence where it feels a little more comfortable. Jesus is speaking to everyone, no matter where they are in the process.

• Then it says he opened his mouth- He has everyone gathered and he opens his mouth. I love the picture of this- if you have ever taught a class of young children or tried to get their attention but the kids were loud and need to say something important, we have tricks. We raise our hand or put our finger to our lips. As if to say ‘Sshhh, I have something important to say”. I can picture a pause after Jesus opens his mouth. Nothing is written by accident.- of course he opened his mouth to speak.But, I Imagine a pause- indicating he is waiting for full attention to be given. “Hey- slow down. Stop talking. I am about to say something important. Something Life changing”

• He begins with talking about who is blessed. According to the KJV dictionary- blessed is “to make happy. Pronounced happy. Enjoying spiritual happiness.” So who is filled with joy? With peace?

• Blessed are the poor in spirit- This could be poor in the worldly sense also, but Jesus is talking about being spiritually poor. Desperate for God. The worldly value- is to be independent- self-sufficient, proving that we are enough and that we deserve better and more. But there’s a reason that Paul had a thorn in his side and that Jacob had a limp in his step after he wrestled with God- there’s a reason why God only provided daily manna…these cause a dependence on God. A desperation for him because we know we are NOT enough without him.

• The ultimate surrender is giving up self as enough. Why is this a blessing? Because HE is the blessing. Poor in spirit means we recognize our weakness, that we must be close to him to be fulfilled- to be happy. HE is the blessing. He is joy. He is love.

• Blessed are those who mourn- Having a broken heart over our rebellion. Over our past selves. Having grief or sorrow because we used to be ruled by the world.

• Blessed are the meek- In the old testament- the word for meek was “anaw” which meant someone who is afflicted or bearing a heavy burden. Jesus is teaching us in this moment to be patient during offenses, To carry a sense of gentleness even in the midst of chaos. To have a humble attitude. Be submissive to his divine will. Have an active and deliberate acceptance of undesirable circumstances that are wisely seen by the individual as only a part of a bigger picture.

• Together, this includes surrendering our full self and our circumstances to God. In order to surrender fully, have no choice but to sit at the feet of Jesus. That’s the ONLY way. THAT’s how we get our blessing because HE is our blessing.

• And then there’s Grace- Thankfully, He is making his lessons known even to those who are hanging out by the fence. Even those who are on the other side of the fence peering over or who are sitting mostly on the other side with a toe dangling over here. Have you been to the ocean when it is so hot out, and the water is so cold. There is a shock if we dive right in- so sometimes we start with feet. Then calves. Then knees. For some, it is a very slow process.

• Luckily- The Grace of God says no matter how far over the fence you are, no matter how long you have lingered there or even if you are still on the other side. No matter how many times you have left the feet of Jesus and begun your walk back to the fence. You are always welcome back at his feet. He delights in you, and wants you there. But he’s still teaching you, speaking to you, praying for you, loving you, no matter where you are.

• To gain the full blessing, we need to empty our hands, re-align our hearts with his will, humble ourselves and realize we are not enough, and that’s ok, and we must recognize our desperation for Jesus.

• So get excited - when you find your thorn, your limp, when you find yourself needing to depend on him, to handle attacks or persecution with gentleness and patience, when you have a broken heart for the things that breaks his heart- get excited- because this is what brings us to the feet of Christ, where we find our blessing, because HE is our blessing.
• Continue going deeper still.

Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for truth. For loving us enough to make the truth known, so that we would not continue to live in darkness. Thank you for your grace, as we struggle to leave the fence and come to rest at your feet. Thank you for your message, that is given to each of us, no matter where we are today. In Jesus name. Amen.

Thank you for joining me today. I will see you next week for another episode!
God Bless