The Kingdom Life

As the school year is approaching and our children get ready to go back to school, it is imperative that we as Christians go to school.  That is, learn the lessons that Jesus Christ taught.

“How is it that we can go to school for our profession, but not go to school for our faith?” – Pastor Ferne Sapp

If we look just at Matthew 4 – 7, we can see just a small snippet of some of Jesus’ courses:

• Gospel of the Kingdom 101 (4:23)
• Healing 101 (4:23)
• Deliverance 101  (4:23-24)
• The Kingdom Life 101 (5:1-11)
• Living In The World 101 (5:13)
• Relationship Dynamics 101 (5:38-48)
• Prayer 101 (6)
• Fasting 101 (6)
• Stewardship 101 (6)
• Cure Anxiety 101 (6:25)
• Judging People 101 (7)

In the text today, Jesus paints a picture of how “The Kingdom Life” looks.  In other words, how does a Christian look?

Application:  Write down three things that make you happy?

In Matthew 5:1-11 we see that a Christian is:

1. Poor in Spirit
2. Mourner
3. Gentle
4. Hungry
5. Thirsty
6. Merciful
7. Pure In Heart
8. Peacemaker
9. Persecuted

Does your list of 3 (things that make you happy) match the list of 9?  If not, then we still have room for learning.

Lesson 1

In order to live the Kingdom Life, our entire attitude must change.

We must be

1. Poor In Spirit – This is not an indication of your financial state, but rather an indication of your attitude.  Poor in spirit references being crouched down like a beggar.  This is also not referencing self-esteem, but rather attitude.  We should be constantly humble because if God had not extended His grace and covered us, we would not be where we are today.
2. Mourners – When you see sin, you should mourn the state of it.
3. Gentle – You should always be gentle with people.

Notice that these are the exact opposite of the world.

1. The world is prideful when Christians are poor in spirit.
2. The world celebrates sin when Christians mourn sin.
3. The world is violent when Christians are gentle.

Bonus

If you look further in the text, you will notice that persecution is coming.  Let’s make sure we have a clear understanding of persecution.  1 Peter 4:15-16 shows us that there is a difference between persecution and punishment.

If you are experiencing suffering because of your stand as a Christian, you are being persecuted for righteousness sake.  However, if you are experiencing issues because of your own un-Christlike behavior, you are reaping the reward of your bad behavior.