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February 17, 2002 - Matthew 5:1-2, 10

Open It

1. If the story of your life were made into a movie, what would the title be?
2. If you could be known for only one thing when you died, what would you want it to be?
3. Who is someone whose reputation you admire?

Explore It

4. What was the setting for this sermon? (5:1)
5. Who was Jesus addressing? (5:1-2)
6. What will happen to everyone who wants to live a godly life? 2 Timothy 3.12
7. What will evil men and impostors do? 2 Timothy 3.13
8. What does the future hold for those who are persecuted because of righteousness? (5:10)

Get It

9. What sort of reputation do you want to have?
10. What sort of reputation do you have at work, at school, and in your neighborhood?
11. When and how have you been persecuted for living a godly life?
12. In what sorts of ways should we use the Bible?
13. How equipped are you to do every good work?
14. What type of doctrines do people today like to hear?
15. In what way are all Christians able to be evangelists?
16. How does it pay in the present to walk with God?
17. How (if at all) does the promise of future blessing affect us in the present?
18. What is the most common type of persecution that you face?
19. What peacemaking responses work well at diffusing hostility?

Apply It

20. What can you do this week to encourage a friend who is under fire due to his or her stand for the Lord?
21. How can you use the Bible in your own spiritual growth this week?
22. What can you do this week toward discharging all your duties?

Each beatitude tells how to be blessed. "Blessed" means more than happiness. It implies the fortunate or enviable state of those who are in God's kingdom. The Beatitudes don't promise laughter, pleasure, or earthly prosperity. To Jesus, "blessed" means the experience of hope and joy, independent of outward circumstances. To find hope and joy, the deepest form of happiness, follow Jesus no matter what the cost.

With Jesus' announcement that the kingdom was near (Matthew 4:17), people were naturally asking, "How do I qualify to be in God's kingdom?" Jesus said that God's kingdom is organized differently from worldly kingdoms. In the kingdom of heaven, wealth and power and authority are unimportant. Kingdom people seek different blessings and benefits, and they have different attitudes. Are your attitudes a carbon copy of the world's selfishness, pride, and lust for power, or do they reflect the humility and self-sacrifice of Jesus, your Savior?

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