| The Christian Life | November 1942 |
Blessings for the Worthy—Woes for the Unworthy
“For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest He also spare not thee.”—Romans 11:21
THE natural descendants of Abraham, the nation of Israel, were God’s chosen people, destined to share the honors and glories of the Messianic Kingdom; but they lost this high position of favor with God because they proved to be unworthy of it. While God had promised them great things, He could, and did change His arrangements when their unfaithfulness made it necessary. See Jeremiah 18:6-10. The final manifestation of Israel’s unfaithfulness was when the nation, under the leadership of the scribes and Pharisees, rejected the Messiah and crucified Him. There a new company began to be selected to represent God in the earth, and thus to share in the blessings outlined in the Beatitudes, in marked contrast with the “woes” pronounced upon the rejected scribes and Pharisees. These remarkable Beatitudes clearly set forth the principles which must influence and guide those who wish to maintain their positions as ambassadors of Jesus and joint-heirs with him.
As the value of light is emphasized by darkness, so in these two lessons Jesus helps us the more clearly to discern the high principles of character required in His disciples, by contrasting them with the shortcomings and failures of those who were then being cast off from divine favor. Accordingly, the disciples were to be blessed if they attained and maintained the standards therein set forth, while the others were told of the dire and. serious consequences of their failure to properly learn and apply the lessons which had been given to them through the Law and the prophets. Paul’s warning in our text is that we, as Gentiles, who have taken the place of the Jews who were cast off, can also experience the “woe” that came upon those who sat in Moses’ seat at the first advent, should we, like they, fail to learn and apply our lessons properly.
THE BLESSINGS—Matthew 5:3-12
(1) The contrite enter the Kingdom.
(2) Those who mourn sympathetically are comforted.
(3) The meek inherit the earth.—Psa. 2:8; Rev. 2:26,27; 5:10
(4) True hunger for righteousness rewarded.
(5) Merciful obtain Mercy.—Matt. 18:21-35
(6) Pure in heart see God.
(7) Peacemakers honored as God’s children.
(8) The persecuted rewarded.
THE WOES—Matthew 23:13-33
(1) The arrogant shut up the Kingdom.
(2) Those who make a pretense of mourning are cast off.
(3) The worldly-wise encompass sea and land for converts to their futile and pernicious ways.
(4) Pharisees (self-righteous ones) fail to lean true righteousness.
(5) Pharisees, though chicanery, fail to lean mercy.
(6) Hypocritical lose God’s favor.
(7) The lawless are disqualified.—Isa. 32:17
(8) The persecutors condemned.
A glance at the two contrasting lessons noted foregoing will show that just as there are eight Beatitudes, or blessings, so there are eight “woes.” A little closer examination reveals that the first “woe” is in contrast with the first blessing, the second woe with the second blessing, and so on through to the eighth woe and the eighth blessing. This is so apparent that there is little doubt but that the Master designed it so. A study of each of these eight contrasting lessons helps to more clearly discern the truly high standard of righteousness set before those whom the Lord uses as the “light of the world.”—Matthew 5:14
In the 20th verse of Matthew 5 Jesus is quoted as saying, “Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of heaven.” By noting carefully the reason for each of the eight woes pronounced upon the scribes and Pharisees, we are given a very vivid cross-section view of their type of righteousness; and the Beatitude lessons show us how our righteousness must be different from and better than theirs.
“THE POOR IN SPIRIT”
The first Beatitude reads: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3) To be poor in spirit is to be contrite and humble, possessing a keen sense of one’s own unworthiness and great need of divine grace. In Psalm 51:17 we read of “a broken and a contrite heart” being highly regarded by God. In Isaiah 57:15 we are told that God, the “high and lofty One,” revives the “heart of the contrite ones,” and dwells with those of a “contrite and humble spirit.” In Luke 6:20 and 24 the “poor” are contrasted with the “rich.” These various references add up to mean that those whom the Lord can use must be so aware of their own insufficiency that they will gladly put their full dependence upon Him for both wisdom and strength.
The blessing for such humble ones is that “theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” This has reference to participating in the work of the Kingdom, both now and in the future, as joint-heirs with Jesus. Elsewhere in the Scriptures these are variously referred to as “ministers of reconciliation,” “ambassadors,” the “light of the world,” “epistles of Christ,” etc. When glorified and ready to participate in the future work of the Kingdom, they will be given “for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;” that they may say “to the prisoners, Go forth: to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves.”—Isaiah 49:8,9; II Cor. 6:2
Obviously the only ones that the Lord could use in a world-wide work of this kind, involving eventually the reconciling of mankind to Himself, are those who are humble, and are willing to serve as God wants them to serve. Being broken and contrite of heart they are glad to set aside their own plans and ambitions in favor of God’s. Inasmuch as the “Kingdom of heaven” is destined to establish God’s will throughout the whole earth, certainly those who participate in it must be humble enough to accept and do God’s will themselves. None others could be blessed with such a high position of divine favor.
SHUTTING UP THE KINGDOM
Now note how the first “woe” pronounced upon the scribes and Pharisees contrasts with the first Beatitude. We quote: “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the Kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.” (Matthew 23:13) The Kingdom of heaven was at hand at the time of Jesus’ first advent. The King had come, and the Jewish nation was offered the opportunity of joint-heirship with the Messiah. The common people of Israel—many, of them, at least—heard Jesus gladly, but under the leadership of the hypocritical Pharisees, they were finally induced to cry out for His death. Thus it was true that the scribes and Pharisees not only refused to accept Jesus themselves, but hindered the nation as a whole from entering into the Kingdom privileges then offered. Because of this, woe was pronounced upon them.
When we look to see what it was that prevented the scribes and Pharisees from entering the Kingdom of heaven, and thus preventing others from entering, we discover that it was their pride and the riches of their position of leadership in Israel. They were not “poor in spirit,” but arrogant, self-righteous, and self-sufficient. They had too exalted an opinion of their importance in the divine arrangements, hence were not prepared to accept the humble Nazarene and carpenter as their Messiah. Had Jesus come with a mighty army, having His presence announced with the fanfare of earthly splendor, inviting the scribes and Pharisees to positions of honor and power in His government, no doubt they would have entered into His Kingdom arrangements.
But Jesus didn’t do this, and He didn’t even ask the advice of the scribes and Pharisees as to how He should proceed with His ministry. Because the time for their full rejection had not yet come, He instructed some whom He had healed to report the facts to them, but aside from this Jesus gave the scribes and Pharisees no recognition. They couldn’t humble themselves to accept Jesus as their King under such conditions; so they were set aside in favor of the “poor in spirit,” to which class was given the Kingdom privileges.
MOURNERS COMFORTED
The second Beatitude reads: “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.” There are two general reasons why people mourn. One is because of their own troubles, and the other is because of the troubles of others; the latter being a sympathetic mourning. Jesus was this kind of a mourner and His attitude of deep and genuine sympathy for others is an important part of His example to us. True, Jesus had trials of His own. Particularly was this so in the Garden of Gethsemane when His soul was “exceedingly sorrowful.” (Mark 14:34) Jesus certainly was comforted in this experience and given strength to carry through unto death in doing the Father’s will. So it is with every one of His true followers.
Inasmuch as the Beatitudes as a whole set forth the qualifications of those who are acceptable servants of God, the true light-bearers in the world, it seems reasonable to conclude that in this second one Jesus uses the term mourn to describe those who maintain a proper attitude of sympathy for and interest in their fellowmen, and particularly their own brethren in Christ. We cannot be true followers of the Master, conformed to His image, unless we have a large measure of that same loving sympathy for others in their troubles which caused Him to weep when standing beside the grave of His friend, Lazarus, sharing the heart pangs of Mary and Martha. As was the custom on such occasions, professional mourners were present at the funeral, but Jesus was the real mourner—His heart was touched with a feeling of the world’s troubles.
Of Jesus it is prophetically stated, “Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.” (Isaiah 53:4) Here is the true representation of Jesus, who gave His life that we might live. We are invited to share in His sufferings, and be conformed unto His death. To be faithful in this means that we will carry the sorrows of others, sympathetically, that we will lay down our lives that others may be blessed. From this standpoint every Christian should be a true mourner, ever on the alert to cheer and comfort those in distress. Paul says that we “weep with them that weep.”—Rom. 12:15
Those who are genuine mourners from this standpoint, surely are themselves comforted, just as Jesus said they would be: on the principle that “he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” (Prov. 11:25) This thought is reflected in Philippians 2:1,2. The Apostle Paul was in a Roman prison where he needed encouragement and comfort. The Lord used the Philippian church to minister to him, and in this passage he is alluding to the privilege we all have of comforting each other, even as they had comforted him. He indicates that his joy would be full if they would endeavor thus to fulfill the law of Christ. We quote: “If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, ifs any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and. mercies, fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.”
What then is our attitude toward others, especially those in distress? Is it one of cold indifference, or do we have a sympathetic heart which impels us to lay down our lives in helping to lift their burdens? Here is an important measuring rod of true Christ-likeness. Our attitude in this respect will govern much that we, endeavor to be and do as Christians. If we are not true mourners, it will be easy to shut ourselves away from others and conclude that the Lord doesn’t want us to do much about them until the Kingdom is established—that that will be the time of the world’s blessings, so we don’t need to be concerned about the people now. With the proper outlook, however, while knowing that the time for the world’s conversion is, indeed, in the future, yet our interest in the people now will impel us to give them the comfort of the truth to the fullest extent possible. If the Spirit of God truly animates us we won’t be able to hold back from doing this. (Isaiah 61:1-3) More especially, of course, we will endeavor to be comforters of the brethren.
DEVOURING WIDOWS’ HOUSES
The second woe, in contrast with the second blessing, confirms the thought that in speaking of mourners Jesus had particularly in mind those who mourn sympathetically on behalf of others and who seek to comfort them. We quote: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.” (Matthew 23:14) Here Jesus describes their hypocritical attitude of sympathy toward those in distress, while at the same time they were busily engaged in selfishly exploiting the helpless ones whom they professed to befriend. What deep-dyed hypocrisy was this!
Jesus’ mention of “widows” reminds us of what James says about the same class—“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.” (James 1:27) We are not to understand this to mean that if we keep busy calling on all the fatherless and widows we can find, we will prove ourselves to be true Christians. We understand, rather, that the terms “fatherless” and “widows” are used to denote those in need of our help, and that if we are true Christians we will not turn a deaf ear to these but will do what we can to help them.
The scribes and Pharisees should have viewed the matter in the same way, and outwardly they did profess to take an interest in widows. Jesus’ mention of their long prayers, indicates that they offered public prayers for the widows of Israel, thus making the people believe that they were looking out for the interests of these needy ones, while actually, their prayers were but a camouflage for their iniquitous practice of “devouring widows’ houses”—that is, robbing them of whatever means of livelihood they may have still possessed. How sharply this is in contrast with the true attitude of a Christian, and how it should encourage us to strive the more earnestly and successfully to empty our hearts of all selfishness, and to think more and more of how we can bring a blessing and be a blessing to those in special need.
WE MUST BE TEACHABLE
The third Beatitude reads: “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” Meekness is teachableness. Humility involves a true recognition of our own lack of wisdom, while meekness means that we are willing to be taught the Lord’s ways and thus to be endowed with the “wisdom from above.” This is one of the prime character essentials for all those whom the Lord uses to represent Him as light-bearers in the world. How, indeed, could we speak for God unless we know what He wants us to say? True meekness means a willingness to hearken unto the voice of the Lord, to be guided by Him in all that we think, and say, and do.
Jesus said that such as are thus meek, shall “inherit the earth.” This is a quotation from Psalm 37:11. The 37th Psalm contains a number of promises, the purpose of which is to assure the righteous servants of God that theirs is to be a final triumph of righteousness, and that all evildoers will, eventually, be destroyed. The assurance of these promises would apply in principle to the righteous of any age, including the Millennium. Jesus applies the 11th verse to the church, and says that they shall “inherit the earth.”
This is peculiarly fitting when we realize what constitutes the hope of the church; namely, to reign with Christ upon the earth for the purpose of restoring man to life upon it. While the church will share in the spiritual phase of the Kingdom; yet the Kingdom will operate upon the earth, and is for the benefit of the human race. The earth is a part of the purchased possession of Christ. From another standpoint, it is His inheritance, and we, as members of the church, are joint-heirs with Him. (Micah 4:8; Psa. 2:8; Rev. 2:26,27) The church will not live upon the earth, but it will be the church’s privilege to share with Christ in the rulership of earth for a thousand years. When the thousand-year work of restoration is complete, then this domain will be turned back to the original owners and they will be invited to “inherit the Kingdom” prepared for them “from the foundation of the world.”—Matt. 25:34
The church’s temporary inheritance of the earth, as joint-heirs with Christ, is for the purpose of establishing the divine will world-wide. If faithful, we will have the privilege of turning to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord to serve Him with one consent. (Zeph. 3:9) Even now, before the Kingdom is fully manifested, Christians are commissioned to do whatever work of preaching the truth God is having done in the earth. Paul said that God “commandeth all men everywhere to repent.” (Acts 17:30) This call to repentance has gone forth from the church, and only those who have been meek have enjoyed the Lord’s blessing in the effort.
COMPASSING SEA AND LAND
The vitally important lesson of the third Beatitude shines all the clearer in contrast with the third woe, which reads: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.” (Matthew 23:15) The Jewish nation was called to be a teacher nation, and a nation of kings and priests. The scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ day seem to have taken this thought seriously, and, as Jesus indicates, they encompassed sea and land to make proselytes—that is, to convert all nations to Jewry. They considered the whole earth their field of operation, their inheritance, and apparently were zealous in trying to enter fully into it.
But the scribes and Pharisees were cast off from this inheritance because they were not meek, not teachable. They wanted to do things their way, and to teach their version of God’s will. The precepts of men seemed of greater importance to them than the commandments of God. In trying to proselyte the nations into the Jewish faith they were accomplishing nothing in God’s sight because their false teachings did not represent the true religion of Israel. They failed, and woe was pronounced upon them because they did not, in the spirit of meekness, first of all make sure what the Lord wanted them to do and say. Here is a valuable lesson for us. God wants us to be zealous for Him, but our zeal will not be according to knowledge—hence not pleasing to Him—unless we first learn what He wants done, and then humbly proceed to work accordingly.
TRUE DESIRE FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS
The fourth Beatitude reads: “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” The illustration of hunger and thirst denotes a genuine desire for righteousness, a desire that in no sense is feigned or a mere outward pretense, for hunger and thirst are real. When a healthy person has gone without food and water more than the normal length of time, a hunger and thirst develops beyond the normal craving, compelling one to go to great lengths in order to satisfy it. How aptly this illustrates what should be the true attitude of Christians in their desire to know, and to be guided by, the true principles of righteousness which are the habitations of God’s throne.
David said, “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul for Thee, O God.” (Psa. 42:1) A hungering and thirsting for righteousness, is in reality a desire to know God and to be found in harmony with Him. But if our hunger and thirst is to be satisfied—if we are to be “filled”—our desires must be so genuine and whole-hearted that we will gladly make any sacrifice of time or strength in order to attain that for which the soul thirsteth. Mere professions won’t do. A mere studying of the Bible won’t suffice. It will require earnest prayer; devout Bible study—not merely for knowledge’s sake, but to learn God’s will; and a self-sacrificing effort to put into practice that which we learn. If our hungering and thirsting for righteousness is genuine enough to cause us to consistently follow such a course, we shall be “filled.”
FALSE RIGHTEOUSNESS SOUGHT BY BICKERING
In Matthew 23:16-22 the Master presents in considerable detail the method employed by the scribes and Pharisees in their insincere effort to attain righteousness. This method of seeking righteousness is called “casuistry,” a “branch of ethical science which resolves cases of conscience or of doubtful propriety, or which determines the lawfulness or illegality of an act by rules and principles drawn from the Scriptures, from social customs, or from reason.” The scribes and Pharisees, by the use of this method, pretended to know the will of God for themselves and for others, but Jesus pointed out to them that their reasoning was false, and that their hair-splitting interpretations demonstrated that they were “fools,” and “blind guides,” who had not been filled with righteousness themselves, nor had they thus helped those who had looked up to them as teachers in Israel.
The lesson of this “woe” is a very important one for us in that it reveals how not to seek for righteousness. It is a lesson that each of us can apply personally; and it can be applied in ecclesias, too. In brief, it is a condemnation of that type of Bible study the object of which is to haggle over the technicality of words, etc., to no profit except ‘to satisfy the argumentative desires of the student. This doesn’t mean that it makes no difference what we believe, nor that we should not make every effort possible to learn even the finest details of the truth accurately. It does make a difference what we believe, and we should be very careful what we accept as truth, but we should ever remember that the object of our study is that we might show ourselves approved unto God, and not to see how technical we can be. We should constantly have in mind as we study the Bible, how the things we learn are intended to affect our relationship to God.
Careful Bible study is necessary if we are to really learn righteousness. How grateful we are today that the true meaning of the words “sheol” and “hades” has been pointed out to us. Those who refuse to accept the truth which is based upon the true meaning of these words, still worship a god of torment. And what a flood of light is thrown upon God’s plan through the true meaning of the Greek word “parousia.” Our proper understanding of this has vitally affected our whole viewpoint of what now constitutes God’s will for His people. The beauties of present truth, and our privileges in connection there-with, have, to a considerable extent, come to light through a proper understanding of the word “parousia.” If some can’t see it, we are not to conclude that it’s unimportant. There are thousands who still refuse to believe the true meaning of “sheol” and “hades.”
When we realize that true righteousness involves the knowing and doing of God’s will, and not merely a spirit of devotion, we can see how important it is that, in our hungering and thirsting for it, we humbly seek the truth of the Scriptures, and be willing to pay the price the finding of it imposes upon us. If we knock, the door will be opened to us; and if we seek, we shall find, provided we are willing to pay the price. It’s a glorious thing to be filled with righteousness, but it’s costly to the flesh.
THE MERCIFUL OBTAIN MERCY
The fifth Beatitude reads: “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” Jesus touches upon this thought in the model prayer He gave to the church, saying, “If ye forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you.” (Matt. 6:12,14,15) It is a simple lesson, but very exacting, and one that most of us find very difficult to practice. Perhaps it was by design that Jesus mentioned this point following the lesson pertaining to the matter of being filled with the righteousness of God. The only true standard of righteousness is God’s standard, and being merciful is a reflection of God’s own attitude toward the erring and sin-cursed race.
The importance of our having God’s viewpoint in dealing with others is so fundamental that our failure to do so means that God will withhold mercy from us. And how much we need God’s mercy! There isn’t an hour of the day in which we do not make mistakes. We can see that others also make mistakes. If we are harsh and critical of them, refusing to forgive, then God will be that way toward us, and this will be true irrespective of how faithful and particular we are in connection with other matters. We might be the best Bible students in the world; attend every meeting; have “all knowledge;” adhere to every little detail of church decorum; yet if we fail to be merciful we fail in everything, for it means that God will not be merciful to us. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”—Heb. 10:31
SWALLOWING A CAMEL
The lesson of the fifth Beatitude, like the others, is made even more vivid and impressive by noting the contrasting “woe.” We quote, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.” (Matt. 23:23,24) The lesson here is obvious. Jesus didn’t say that they had done wrong in paying tithes of anise, mint; and cummin. He didn’t say they had been wrong in straining at a gnat. What He did say was that they had failed to learn the lessons these things were supposed to teach; namely, “judgment, mercy, and faith.”
Certainly the scribes and Pharisees must have been very careful about little things. According to the Law the Israelites were forbidden to eat “unclean” meat. Apparently they were so particular about this that they strained their drinking water to make sure that even the little bit of unclean meat represented in a gnat would not inadvertently be taken into their stomachs. But Jesus pointed out to them that in failing to be merciful toward those to whom they ministered, they were, by comparison, swallowing a camel—and that certainly would be eating a lot of unclean meat.
There isn’t much in the way of ceremonials to which the church needs to give heed; although God has given us some little things to observe in order to impress certain lessons upon us. For example, a sister should keep her head covered while in meeting, either by wearing a hat, or otherwise. This is to remind us of the Headship of Christ—a very important lesson. However, a sister might be very particular about doing this, yet, while in the meeting, obtrude her views upon the class in a manner wholly unbecoming to her feigned attitude of humility. Or, she might be over-anxious to pick flaws with the manner in which the elder of the meeting expressed himself on certain points of truth, failing to realize that she is just as likely to make mistakes—if not in that way, in other ways—as the one she criticized. Such a disposition would be the equivalent of straining at a gnat and swallowing a camel.
There is nothing in what Jesus said to the Pharisees to justify us in being careless with respect to even the smallest detail of what the Lord requires of us. And there is a rich blessing for all who are extremely careful in obeying all the rules that apply to the New Creation. Indeed, we cannot be truly loyal to the truth and not do this. But there is a “weightier” side to it all, as Jesus indicates; namely, the principles of righteousness which the details of the Lord’s requirements reveal. Let us then seek, through loyalty to the details of the truth, to learn and apply these principles, that daily we may become more like our Father which is in heaven.
PURITY OF HEART
The sixth Beatitude reads, “Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.” (Matt. 5:8) Purity of heart is an inward purity, not merely outward professions of purity. Heart purity is the only kind that will stand the test of divine inspection, for God looketh on the heart, not on the outward appearance. Purity of heart will manifest itself in outward purity also, although imperfections of the flesh will prevent a full manifestation. But no matter how fallen our flesh may be, we can have sincerity of intention—we can be determined in our hearts to be wholly devoted to God. At heart we can be in the attitude described in the Hymn, “None of self and all of Thee.”
Those who are thus pure in heart shall “see God,” says the Master. There are two ways in which it is possible to see God. One is that of being in His actual presence and beholding His glory. This will be the blessed privilege of all the true followers of Jesus. They not only will see God, but will partake of His glory. (Rom. 5:2) Through His exceeding great and precious promises they will become partakers of the “divine nature.” (II Pet. 1:4) What joy it will be to see God! Concerning it the prophet wrote, “In Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”—Psalm 16:11
But there’s another sense also in which we may “see” God; namely, by the eye of faith. In Isaiah 6 the prophet tells of seeing God “high and lifted up.” This was in a vision, and God has permitted us to see Him high and lifted up through the vision of Present Truth. And what glory we behold as we gaze upon His Wisdom, Justice, Love and Power! Is the vision becoming brighter with the passing days, or are other interests—earth-born clouds—obscuring God, destroying the clearness of our once enraptured view?
If we are faithfully keeping our heart with all diligence, making sure that it is pure, wholly devoted to God, then we can continue to see God now by faith, and, if thus faithful even unto death, will actually enter into His presence. But if we become careless, permitting other attractions to draw us away from full devotion to God, then our vision of Him will become dim, and at the end of the way we will lose the full reward of glory, honor and immortality.
Perhaps there is no other single factor that has more to do with our ability to see the truth clearly than purity of heart. The Christian whose heart is partly set upon earthly things—the “deceitfulness of riches” or whatever else it might be—cannot be expected to see and appreciate the truth in its fullness as do those who are wholly for the Lord. If one’s affections are set upon other things than God, he will be prone to interpret the Scriptures in keeping with his heart condition because he will seek justification for what he is doing. This leads away from the truth, and destroys one’s vision of God, no matter how outwardly pious such an one may be.
CLEAN ON THE OUTSIDE
In contrast with the ability to “see” on the part of those who are pure at heart, Jesus said that those who were clean on the outside only, were “blind.” We quote: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.” (Matt. 23:25,26) The lesson here is too obvious to need much comment. How it contrasts with purity of heart! It well illustrates that no matter how desirable outside cleanliness may be real, complete cleansing must begin with the heart. Where there is true purity of heart, its expression and exhibition will take care of itself. Of that, we can be assured.
RIGHTEOUSNESS PROMOTES PEACE
The seventh Beatitude reads: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” (Matt. 5:9) In Isaiah 32:17 we are told that the effect of righteousness is peace. The Psalmist says that “righteousness and peace have kissed each other.” (Psa. 85:10) While both of these statements are descriptive of blessings coming to mankind during the Millennial age, yet they set forth the conditions upon which true peace may be founded, hence the character-standard of those whom the Lord can use to promote peace both now and in the Kingdom. James tells us that the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable. (Jas. 3:17) Having set forth in the sixth Beatitude the necessity for heart purity, it is appropriate that those who possess it should remember their privileges as peacemakers.
A Christian’s influence should always be in the direction of peace, not strife. He is not to work for peace at any price, but he will desire, nevertheless, to live peaceably with all men so far as his purity of heart will permit. But the Christian is a peacemaker in a still more important sense than this, that is, he is a minister of reconciliation between God and men. As such it is his privilege to establish peace between God and men by pointing out to those who have a hearing ear the basis upon which they may obtain “peace with God,” which, of course, is “through our Lord Jesus Christ.”—Romans 5:1
It is the Christian’s privilege to serve thus as peacemaker even now, but the service of the present is but a preparation for the world-wide work of the next age, when, in association with Jesus, it will be the church’s privilege to mediate the New Covenant, thereby bringing all mankind into at-one-ment and peace with God. This is implied in the promise that the peacemakers are called the children of God. Paul says that if we are children, then we are heirs—“heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together.” (Rom. 8:17) Paul further explains that the whole groaning creation is waiting for the manifestation of these “sons of God.”—Rom. 8:19,22
UNRIGHTEOUS CANNOT BE PEACEMAKERS
In the seventh woe the Master points out the false righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees which disqualified them as peacemakers. He said to them, “Ye appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity”—lawlessness. (Matt. 23:27,28) If the “effect of righteousness is peace,” as the prophet points out, certainly the scribes and Pharisees, with their sham righteousness could not be peacemakers. Thus comes to light another reason why they were cast off from being the servants of the Lord.
Jesus said that they were full of “iniquity.” “Lawlessness” would be a better word here, indicating that this class of hypocrites were not themselves obeying God’s laws, hence were in no condition to encourage others to do so. There can be no peace apart from obedience to law. This is true even with man-made laws, and much more so in connection with the laws of God. If we are to be peacemakers we must be obedient to divine law ourselves, then we are in a position to encourage others to seek peace upon the same basis. Peace in an ecclesia, for example, is possible only to the extent that each member endeavors to humble himself under the divine rules that govern ecclesias. Peace in the home is obtainable upon the same basis, and it is likewise true in connection with our own peace of heart and peace with God.
BLESSED ARE THE PERSECUTED
The eighth and last Beatitude reads: “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:10) It is well to remember that the Beatitudes are not describing eight different classes among God’s people, but rather that the qualifications set forth in all eight of them constitute the standard of righteousness for which each and every follower of the Master should strive. The rewards mentioned in all of them will be the happy portion of the entire overcoming church of Christ. We mention this point because some seem to get the thought that to be persecuted is in itself a sure token of being one of heaven’s favorites. This is not necessarily so.
Jesus said that the persecution should be for “righteousness’ sake,” and the righteousness to which He refers is, without question, that high standard set forth in the preceding seven Beatitudes. This standard, briefly stated is (1) true humility before God and men; (2) a loving, sympathetic attitude toward others in their distresses, plus a disposition to help whenever possible; (3) meekness; (4) a genuine desire for the righteousness of God; (5) mercy; (6) purity of heart; (7) obedience to divine law. Those who are persecuted because of their adherence to this standard of righteousness are truly blessed. Such persecution may well be taken as a “witness of the Spirit” that one is a child of God, hence an heir of the Kingdom.
To be persecuted for righteousness’ sake is quite different from being persecuted for foolishness’ sake. History reveals that shortly after the death of the apostles, while many true Christians actually suffered for righteousness’ sake, yet martyrdom was much sought after by thousands of merely professed Christians. Most of these were accommodated by the authorities of that day, just as we can get ourselves persecuted today if we seek it. But persecution alone is not necessarily an evidence that one is a child of God. Nor should the true followers of the Master expect to be persecuted all the time. Jesus was not persecuted all the time. Only a small part of the entire three and one-half years of the Master’s ministry are accounted for in the Gospels; and not all of this is marked by persecution. It seems reasonable that any outstanding opposition that might have occurred during the remainder of the time would have been recorded. It is evident, therefore, that there may have been much of the time during that wonderful three and one-half years during which the Master was not being severely persecuted. We mention the point here because some are inclined to worry because they are not being violently persecuted all the time.
It seems to us that our concern should be to make sure that we are living up to the standard of righteousness required of the ambassadors of God, and that we are faithfully using all the opportunities that come of letting our light shine. If we are thus faithful the Lord will permit all the persecution that His wisdom sees is best for us. If and when the persecution comes, and we know it is for righteousness’ sake, then we can consider ourselves truly blessed of God, and can rejoice the more in the hope of a share in the Kingdom.
WOE TO THE PERSECUTORS
The eighth “woe” pronounced by Jesus upon the scribes and Pharisees (Matt. 23:29-33), shows that instead of being persecuted for righteousness’ sake, they were guilty of persecuting the righteous. This was the inevitable outcome of the false standard of righteousness to which they adhered, as pointed out in the preceding seven woes. The lesson for us is that we be not found among the persecutors of the people of God. We are “blessed” indeed if persecuted for righteousness’ sake, but let us make sure that no matter what happens we do not turn upon our persecutors and render “evil for evil.”
As Christians we are expected to “contend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the saints;” we are expected to fight the “good fight of faith.” We should not permit ourselves to be blown about by every wind of doctrine, and we should take a firm stand against all unrighteousness. But we can do all these things, and still be kind to our enemies. We do not need to fellowship with the “unfruitful works of darkness;” indeed, we should reprove them, but always in love and with the desire to help and not to injure. Bitterness, hate, and persecution have no place in the lives of true followers of the Master. To permit them to have a place would disqualify us for the Kingdom. May each of us strive more earnestly day by day to be among the “blessed” in connection with all the points mentioned by the Master in this introduction to His Sermon on the Mount.