Welcome to Glory Prayer Podcast Season 2 Ep 3 hosted by Bro Wen Yao and Sis Chui Ting & their sons; Yi-Zhi & Yi-Zhong.
Devotion by Pr Isaac Chang.
The pronouncement of the kingdom of heaven given by Jesus frames the seven blessedness or happiness in the Beatitudes.
First, blessed are the poor in spirit, as in material or spiritual destitute, which most of them suffered under the Roman tax and religious laws. But Jesus said the poor would have the heavenly kingdom. Blessed are those who mourn, for God of heaven will give them comfort. Blessed are the meek, typically referring to those who have God's strength without being harsh, yet under God's control, for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for being in the right state before God, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, a priceless virtue back then and now, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. It's so hard to be untainted in a corrupted world today. But this is God's promise to them, to quote and unquote, be able to see Him.
Blessed are the peacemakers or those who desire to maintain a harmonious relationship, for they shall be called sons of God. Lastly, blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, who do what is right, too, like those who are poor in spirit, for they will have the kingdom of heaven.
That's a lot. So many heavenly blessings are promised while we have our breath and earthly challenges. But wait a minute, that's odd. These blessings are so heavenly, so unheard on earth. It probably won't ever happen to us as the disciples of Christ. But blessedness is happiness from God's perspective regardless of our earthly circumstances. That's really different from the earthly point of view towards God's perspective. It gives us an upside-down view of the kingdom of heaven invading earth with blessing.
Therefore, regardless of our present or future conditions, we, the disciples will embrace in faith the blessed promises of the kingdom from God's perspective. We shall envision the blessings with hope. The world may revile or persecute us for such a crazy upside-down blessing when we put our trust in God. But Jesus would never pressure us to emphasize the blessed outcomes. Instead, Jesus asked us to rejoice and be glad, to live out happily the blessedness that God has unveiled. Thus, we are called to be different for Christ by living out joyfully the blessed kingdom life.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father our King, we thank You for sending Your Son Jesus as a lavish expression of Your love for us. Through His death, we have communion with You, and through His life, we see what true happiness and blessing are. In a world in which happiness is defined by what we have and who shouts the loudest, we are thankful for the passage today, that Jesus would share the secrets of living a blessed life in his sermon on the mount. We desire peace and blessedness from You, and we submit to You in obedience. We pray for our families and children that You may kindle within them a sense that something is not right in the world, all the dreams and aspirations lead to a sense of emptiness that cannot be fulfilled by things gained temporally. We pray that they may ask us the reason for our joy and that You will give us the answers to point them to Christ’s saving work on the cross.
Lord, lead us every day as we walk through the toils and snares of this life. May You help us to live life in view of eternity and save us from the myopic view of personal success and interest. Hold us fast, our Sovereign God. Be the hope of all of us who struggle along life’s narrow way; when we need to be that friend that You send us to love. Send us forth into the world, to live a life worthy of the calling, by the grace and strength that you give. All this we ask in Jesus' name, Amen.
