Verse 10. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Verse 11. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you,
and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
Verse 12. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
The Lord gives EIGHT characters of blessed people, which represent to us the true character of a Christian.
8th Description and Blessing: Verses Ten and Eleven and Twelve.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you;
The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”
2 Corinthians 13:14
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.”
Those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake are happy.
There is nothing in our sufferings that can gain any merit from God; but God will provide that those who lose for Him, though life itself shall not lose by Him in the end. Jesus was killed as a criminal at Calvary, and He was the holy God without sin, men will not think highly of us that follow Him.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted.”
Not for any crimes they have done, or for unrighteousness and iniquity, as murderers, thieves, and evildoers, but:
“For righteousness' sake.”
On account of their righteous life and godly conversation, which brings upon them the hatred of evil men of this world: for saints, by living righteously, separate themselves from them? By "righteousness" may be meant, a righteous cause, the cause of Christ and His Gospel; and they are persecuted for preaching, maintaining, or embracing, the doctrine of justification by the righteousness of Christ.
“For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The same blessedness is predicated of these as of the poor in spirit, in verse 3. China pastor story, after years in prison, said in interview, “I never thought I was worthy to suffer for His Name.”
“Blessed are you when they revile you.”
These words are particularly directed to the Disciples of Christ, all died in a cruel way by the hands of men for Christ’s sake, and are designed to inform them, that they should not be exempted from reproach and persecution, but to endure for Christ's sake.
“And persecute you.”
From place to place, by ill means of all sorts.
“And say all kinds of evil against you for My sake.”
The worst things they could think of and invent, they were "falsely" laid; there was not a word of truth in them.
But all were the wicked lies of men, invented on purpose to bring them and Christianity into disgrace: for His name's sake.
“Rejoice and be exceedingly glad.”
Because of the honour put upon them, the glory they bring to Christ and His cause, by cheerfully suffering for it.
“For great is your reward in heaven.”
Saints must not expect their reward here, but hereafter, when God himself will be their reward; he will be all in all.
“For so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
As Isaiah, Jeremiah, and others; which shows, what should befall them was no new and strange thing, but what had been the destiny of the most well-known servants of God in former ages.
Conclusion:
Now you should know:
The kind of people Christians should be?
The character to which Christians should aim at?
The outward walk and inward spirit which becomes a follower of Christ the Lord?
By living the “EIGHTFOLD” character of a Christian. For none will find happiness in this world or the next, who do not seek it from Christ the Lord.
Numbers 6:24-26
“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.”
I PRAY THAT THESE STUDIES HAVE BEEN HELPFUL TO YOU!
PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING THESE BIBLE STUDIES!
MAYBE WE CAN DO OTHER STUDIES FROM THE WORD OVER A "WEEK OF BIBLE STUDIES."
David = Admin.
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