What Are Works AKA The Beatitudes

Last week we looked at James 2:26 where James says, "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead." This is in direct conflict with Paul, who in Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it it the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." We decided that both of these scriptures were valid because works are not the CAUSE of salvation, but the EVIDENCE of salvation. With that in mind, we ended by asking, "What are works?"

For starters, let's drop the word works and replace it with evidence of salvation. The evidence of salvation can be summarized by Jesus in Matthew 5:3-12:

Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven

Blessed are those who mourn,

for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely

say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad,

because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they 

persecuted the prophets who were before you.

So what do all of those verses mean? In verse 3 Jesus says blessed are the poor in spirit. This is simply a way to say humble. Humility is realizing that everything you have and everything you are is no more than gifts from God. We have been blessed by Grace through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. We should be open to doing the will of God and not our own will. Maybe Obama was on to something when he said, "If you've been successful, you didn't get there on your own." At least, that is what Jesus is saying in verse 3. Those who realize that their life is no more than a gift from God will be given the kingdom of heaven. 

In verse 4, those who mourn refers to those who appreciate the gift of life and the sacrifice Christ made on their behalf and due to that abhor the sin they see in themselves and in the world around them. It says that those who mourn will be comforted, and that is why God has sent the Holy Spirit, to help console us and guide is. 

In verse 5, the meek are those of us who submit our will to God and allow the Holy Spirit to guide us. It is those of us who are kind and show love to thosewe encounter, even in the face of adversity. Those who hunger in verse 6 are those who truly try to live our lives as Christ did. We hunger for the Spirit, and if we ask we shall be filled with the Spirit. 

In verse 7 Jesus mentions the merciful, who are those that show others compassion, love and forgiveness. Those who show mercy to others will be shown mercy by God. IF we forgive others of their trespasses as mentioned in the Lord's Prayer, then our sins too shall be forgiven. The pure of heart mentioned in verse 8 are those who act purely for the benefit of those around them with no selfish intent. Being altruistic is what we should be striving for. 

Verse 9 says blessed are the peacemakers, which are those of us who live our lives at peace with others. More than that, it is those of us who also try to create peace, friendship and goodwill  in the lives of others as well. 

In verses 10-12, Jesus looks at those who are persecuted because of their righteousness. This is not only those who are physically attacked by others because of their faith. It is also those who are ostracized by those around them because they are different. It is the kid who is made fun of for not drinking, for not joining in the ridiculing of another student or for being a virgin. It is the employee who is not invited into the conversation because they refuse to gossip about other coworkers or is not invited out after work because they don't drink, smoke and/or laugh at the raunchy jokes. 

Too many Christians try to blend in and fly under the radar. We read the same dirty books and watch the same movies. We see nothing wrong with reading 50 Shades of Grey or watching soft core pornography. We listen to the same music as those around us. These are movies, television shows and music that glorifies: pre-marital sex, drugs, drinking, partying, anger, gossip, adultery, hate, hustling and committing crimes. We take in the same garbage that those around us take in. Remember, garbage in garbage out. If we feed on sin through our senses, then sin is sure to come out in our speech and actions!

Jesus says in John 15 that they will hate us as they hated him, yet all we do is try not to offend those around us by showing we are different.  Jesus has let us know that if we live our lives timid in faith, that our faith is dead. If we are embarrassed of Him, He will be embarrassed by us. If we try to blend in with the rest of the world, then we will gain the same gift as the rest of the world. Don't kid yourself, Matthew 7:14 says that "Narrow is the path" to will lead us to salvation. If we continue to live our lives as the world around us, we are sure to gain the same eternity that they will. 

I beg you, choose life! This is done by applying the beatitudes in our lives. This can be a difficult and seemingly impossible task. After all, Satan attacks us at every corner. In order to live our lives well and try to live the beatitudes, we need to equip ourselves to be successful. This can be done by donning the armor of God, which we will talk about next week.