Our text for this evening, and for the next few weeks is a very familiar, and basic passage found in Matthew Chapter 5. It is known as the Sermon on the Mount or the Beatitudes. It contains very much of what our heart is after as a fellowship, a true picture of the Glory of God in Christ. 
	This past year, in our youth meetings, we spent several weeks looking at the blessing of God in Christ Jesus, as seen in this passage of the very teaching of Christ to those who would believe upon Him. The basis of our discussion was from the Scripture Press curriculum, and it was used as the starting point for a clearer knowledge of the great Love of God to usward who believe and are part of the Church of God’s Son. While this may not be new to us, it is very important that we, together, recount and glory in the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ, as He gives instruction as to what should be true of the Church, of those who are His own. In so doing, let us be open to the Holy Spirit in the terms of what greater depth of the riches of Christ are evident in the image that we receive of our wonderful Lord Jesus Christ. It will show us, in a very vivid word picture, the difference that exists in being of Christ and being of this world order. That is one of the great beauties of looking at Christ as presented in the teachings that He gave us from the Father. We are enabled to see, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, the great difference of what this world offers and what God has given us in His Beloved Son.
	The first portion of scripture to consider is the first verse of this wonderful sermon, Matt 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven...  There is found the decided beginning to all spiritual truth in this passage. So often it is glossed over, or skimmed quickly due to a possible lack of understanding or desire not to consider what is part of being poor in spirit. 
	Mankind is utterly opposed to anything that would seem to be demeaning and less than vibrant in the human condition. It goes against the grain of humankind to accept a poorness in anything, much less spirit. Today, the very idea of humanistic sociology decries any aspect to this idea that man is not capable of doing something if he puts his mind to it. There is an inherent lacking of humankind in this poorness of spirit, because it makes the case that man is powerless to do something for himself. 
	Christ gives no place to human endeavor in the very first statement of the heart of God. At the onset, He puts forth the truth that man is incapable of coming to the throne of the grace of God on his own merit. One cannot bring pride before God and hope to have a place of audience. Rather, it is with a contrite heart that is full of the knowledge that only by the grace of God alone is there any audience before Him.
	The picture presented is that of the parable of the pious Pharisee and that of the lowly tax collector as recorded in Luke chapter 18. The two went to the temple to pray. The Pharisee pronounced what he felt was his self worth in coming into the House of God to pray, and delighted himself in the statements of his efforts to keep himself above the rest of humanity. he thanked God that he was not as contemptuous as other men, specifically pointing out the publican, and that he kept to the strict requirements of the law.
	The tax collector, however, lowered his eyes before Heaven, and couldn’t proclaim any good in himself. Rather, he asked God to forgive him, a sinner. He knew that there was nothing in him worthy to come to God. He knew that he had to have the forgiveness of God or he would have nothing. Christ said that, of the two, he was the one whose prayer was heard by God in verse 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. 
	We are shown that the initial ground of all who come to God must be in terms of humbleness of spirit. No haughtiness or self-proclamation of righteousness will find a place before the throne of God. Only those who recognize their need for the salvation and the forgiveness of God will find that place in the heart of God. This is one of the main problems of the so-called Christian world today. The reliance has been shifted from the need for Christ, to the need for self-engrandisement. Mankind has followed the path of self-righteousness, pride and arrogance. Humility is no longer seen as a virtue, even in any terms of consideration. Rather, it is viewed as a major liability that needs to be overcome. Entire curriculums in our schools are put forth to impress upon those less circumvent to proclaim their value to the world. Those who are timid and are humble, are seen as easy victims for the fleecing of the rest of this realm. To admit that we are incapable of anything is a blemish on the record of our humanity. That is the way of this realm.
	But, to come to the heart of God, we must be lowly of spirit, unafraid to admit that we are sinners and unworthy of the great Love wherewith He has loved us. Rather than trying to find a passage through the rags of our own self-righteousness, we must be fully covered over with the perfect righteousness of Christ, and Him alone. In that manner, in utter reliance upon Christ to plea our case before the Most Holy and Righteous, and Living God, we find the forgiveness that we so indispensably need in order to be made alive spiritually in Christ Jesus.
	When we come to God in that contriteness of spirit, we are reminded of the passage in Isaiah, where God makes every provision for those who seek after Him in humble adoration of Who He is. Isaiah 6: 1-7 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar; and he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
	There is every provision made by God for those who come before Him in the recognition that He alone can bring forth purity of heart and purity of spirit. These people are willing to undergo all that is required in order for the glory of God to be evidenced in their lives and in the lives of those whom they touch. As such, in that humbleness of being, they do fully inherit the Kingdom of God.
	This brings forth another vital factor at the onset of our considerations. There are those who feel that the Kingdom of God simply means that they are now saved and that when they die, they will go to heaven. While this, in itself, is of no small significance and comfort to those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, it does not permit God the leeway to make Himself fully known at this very moment in our lives. It is very crucial that we proclaim Jesus as our Savior. Praise God for that great and tremendous miracle of His boundless Love to usward. But we are shortchanging the full work of God in Christ when we do not permit the Holy Spirit abundant access to make known all the fullness of God in Christ in His Lordship.
	You see, the Kingdom of God refers not only to the time of eternity after we have lived on this earth, it refers to the moment that we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior. So many people forget that we have chosen to place Christ on the throne of our beings when we accept Him into our hearts. That is the whole basis of this Sermon on the Mount, after all. It is the proclamation of what our lives will be after we have been translated into the spiritual realm of life in Jesus Christ. He is giving forth a very precise likeness of Himself in the word picture He paints for all who would listen. Those who come to God through Him will be receiving these very characteristics, as outlined in this passage as their very life, because they are wholly before God in their own insignificance aside from the Love of God.
	As such, the immediate inheritance of the fullness of God is showered upon them, upon us, in the very Lordship of Jesus Christ. He makes us alive unto God, in the very Person of Himself, through His death and resurrection, and He works through His Holy Spirit, to make His Lordship, His wonderful and fulfilling Sovereignty, the very focus and purpose of our lives from the moment of our New Birth onward.
	His kingship is not just for eternity, it is for our every moment by moment walk on this earth, today, this instant and for all of eternity.
	The Kingdom of God is wherever Jesus Christ reigns. It is not a place, it is not a philosophy, it is not an earthly kingdom to come, it is here, it is now, it is in us, today! It is our very life this instant! It is that something special, that others see in us as we give our lives to God for Him to manifest Himself unto others. It is what makes life on this earth possible for us, as we learn to rely totally and fully upon Christ to be our everything. It is what develops livingly in each of us as we submit ourselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
	This submission is only possible as we are contrite before God, as we know that what we have apart from God is worthless. That is the reality of why it is so vital to have a true perspective of the valuelessness of our sinful nature apart from God as evidenced in the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Chapter 2, verses 1-5, And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for the great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: We come to God with nothing, expecting nothing, yet hoping against hope that He will forgive us our trespasses. Not only does He forgive us, but He takes us into Himself, in Christ Jesus, and lavishes upon us all the wealth of Himself in a life that has no measure in this realm. Through the magnificence of Himself, He works to make us fully conformed to the image of His glory in Christ. Please understand, we are in nowise made gods unto ourselves, but rather are the vessels through whom, in our lives completely submitted to Him, He has the means whereby this entire realm is the recipient of the Love of God in Christ. As we are led by Him, and in obedience to Him, so the rest of this realm receives the visible evidence of the invisible, yet all-encompassing Creator.
	This brings us to the second of the Beatitudes in verse 4, Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Here again, we have an attribute that makes this world cower in its promotion. The mere idea that one would be sorry for their sins, and the pain that it causes to God, is derided by this realm. Rather, this world prefers to glory in its sin and in its rebellion to God. There is no concern about impropriety or offenses committed against the Most Holy God. Even those who know that there is a God, often make comments along the line of wanting to live their lives now, enjoying the attractions of this realm before they have to settle down and accept Christ, as if that means that they would be missing something of importance. There is no true concern that any sin causes great pain to God. Yet, He was willing to bear it, and to deal with it for the sake of this world. As we know so fully in John 3:16, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
	The sin of this world was so immense that the very life of Christ, the very Son of God, hung on the cross was required to fully pay the price to set it aside on our behalf. It was a tremendous cost to God that He was willing to pay for our sake. Yet, this world, dead in its depravity, rather mocks the One Who so fully chose to love it unto Himself. Boasting in its sin, there is no heart after God, sensitive to the expense that its wantonness has placed upon its Creator. 
	That is the difference of those whose hearts are after God. We see this in the heart of David before God in Psalm 51, verses 1-4 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. Against thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thine sight:.... Those who have a repentant heart before God are very much concerned that they do not bring more pain to God than their sin has already caused. When they are disobedient, when they are caught in the web of their old human nature, there is a deep anxiety about the effect that it has with God. Their heart seeks after God to be pleased with them, rather than displeased, and there is an active desire to do only that which will please the Father. It is the same heart that was so perfectly expressed by Jesus Christ on this earth. When we grieve the Holy Spirit, there should be a sense within us that we have done something that requires the forgiveness and the cleansing of God. There should be a reality of the manner in which we live our lives that causes us to desire never to do anything that would grieve our Creator. As well, there should be little acceptance of the sin of this realm. In nowise do I mean that we are critical of the sinners, but rather that we hate the sin and choose to distance ourselves from it, while at the same time pryaing for those tangled up in its web of deceit. Just as God hates the sin, but loves the sinner, so very much, so should that be our attitude. There is no way that we should allow ourselves to be degraded by the elements of this earth. Rather, we need to be the vessels through whom the Light of this world, Jesus Christ, can shine forth. Our transparency in the perfection of Christ should be evident in the very lives that we live. That is only possible, as we have already discussed, as we are under the complete control of the Holy Spirit, living fully in the Kingdom of God.
	With a view toward the holiness of God, our beings will become the well-spring of the very comfort of God on this earth. Where there is pain and suffering, the comfort of Christ will be manifested in the presence of God through His church, His Beloved. The piteous cries of this age need to be quenched with the quieting compassion of the Love of God. The discord of sin, and the shame that it manifests is restrained by the joy and the rest that is inherent in the Person of Jesus Christ in His Omnipotence and Grace. The glory of His being is that He is the One Who can remove the sin that so easily besets us and this world, He has paid its price for all of eternity. Sin, and the death that is the price of sin, no longer has any dominion over us in Him, and that is the comfort that we bring to the rest of this earth. We become the beacons of the Light that indwells us, showing forth the truth that Jesus Christ has once and for always removed that curse of sin to those who will but believe upon Him. What greater comfort can we receive or can we give, than the knowledge of the Person of Jesus Christ in His victory?
	These are but the first two of the Beatitudes that we have considered to a measure. This surely is not the composite depth of everything that God has placed in these two blessings, because they are but the initial well-spring of the truth of Jesus Christ. As we consider, Lord willing, the further truths of Christ in this wonderful Sermon on the Mount, let us continually seek after God to bring us increasingly in line with the heart that He desires and finds pleasing in His Church. Let us crave to do that which pleases Him only, and not ourselves. There is no other way to come into the fullness of God’s plan and purpose than to submit ourselves fully to the longing after the Glory of God in Christ Jesus. That will only be evidenced as the Church becomes the perfect Bride, adorned in the resplendent grace of God, without spot or wrinkle, or any such thing. It is, after all, His life to live out from us, and not anything of our own. As we have so often seen and experienced in the writing of the Apostle Paul to the church of the Galatians Chapter 2, verse 20, I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
	Now, as exhorted by the Apostle Peter in his second Epistle, ...grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.