The Life of Christ

Makários, the Greek word used in the Bible for “blessed” differs from the Greek word for “happy.” The Greek word for happy comes from a root word “ hap, ” meaning “luck or favorable circumstance.”

• Blessedness is not connected to “luck” or “favorable circumstances,” but rather to “kingdom favor found within the heart.” 22

• Christian blessedness differs from secular happiness in that true blessedness often thrives on some form of humility, patience, or sacrifice. Worldly happiness abhors such virtues.

Blessed are: (i) the poor in spirit, (ii) those who mourn, (iii) the meek, (iv) those who hunger and thirst, and (v) the persecuted, when men cast insults at you

• Blessedness in many cases requires some form of discomfort.

• The problems and difficulties in our life are the potential ingredients for such blessedness.

Mt. 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

To be "poor in spirit" means to demonstrate humility in our human spirit, rather than an attitude of pride or haughtiness.

• The Greek root word for "poor" is "to crouch or cringe."

• It’s the same word used in the story of “Lazarus and the rich man” when Lazarus is referred to as a “beggar.”

• The poor in spirit realizes his constant lack and total dependence upon God, not relying upon his own resources or abilities.

One of Spurgeon's promising ministerial students mounted the circular steps ascending to the elevated pulpit during Homiletics class with every expression of absolute confidence .

As he proceeded with his message it became evident to all that his words only fell to the ground, as he experienced more and more difficulty communicating. When his sermon was over, he walked down the steps from the pulpit most distressed and broken hearted and immediately went to speak to the master communicator, Dr. Spurgeon, about of his failure. Spurgeon responded, "If you had gone up as you came down, you would have come down as you went up."

Mt. 5:4 “B lessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

To mourn means to allow oneself to feel the afflictions of life.

• To mourn is to absorb the difficulty rather than take the path of denial or escape (alcohol, drugs, distractions, or choose some rational justification).

• To mourn is to pause and feel the pain; Jesus allowed Himself to feel the pain of Lazarus’ death, even knowing that in a few minutes He would raise him from the dead. His weeping released the blessedness of mourning, which enabled him to empathize with His dear friends, Mary and Martha.

• To mourn is to also reflect upon the problem, search for lessons to be learned or words of deeper perspective to share with others.

22 S. Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament ( Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000).

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