The Beatitudes: Developing Spiritual Character
Overview
The beatitudes reveal to us eight qualities that bring God’s blessing: meekness and mercy, poorness in spirit and purity of heart, mourning and hunger, peacemaking and persecution. Jesus highlighted these to offer both encouragement and instruction on living distinctly as his followers in a world with values much different from God’s. As we study these qualities and integrate them into our lives, we will receive the blessing Jesus promised to his followers then and now.
Top Highlights
“The beatitudes set forth the blessings God gives to those in whom he is working such a character—blessings given not as a reward for merit but as a gift of grace.” (Page 7)
“Though the Greek can and does mean ‘happy,’ it is seriously misleading to render it ‘happy’ in this case. Happiness is a subjective state, whereas Jesus is making an objective judgment about these people. He is declaring not what they may feel like (‘happy’), but what God thinks of them and what on that account they are: they are ‘blessed.’” (Pages 11–12)
“The standards of the Sermon are neither readily attainable by everyone nor totally unattainable by anyone. Jesus spoke this Sermon to those who were already his disciples and thereby also citizens of God’s kingdom and the children of God’s family. It describes the kind of people reborn Christians are (or should be).” (Page 6)
“Meekness is a true view of oneself, expressed in attitude and conduct with respect to others. This makes us gentle, humble, sensitive and patient in all our dealings with others.” (Page 25)
“It is important to note that in the beatitudes ‘the meek’ come between those who mourn over sin and those who hunger and thirst after righteousness.” (Page 23)
- Title: The Beatitudes: Developing Spiritual Character
- Authors: John Stott, Dale Larsen, Sandy Larsen
- Series: John Stott Bible Studies
- Publishers: IVP, Inter-Varsity
- Print Publication Date: 1998
- Logos Release Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Beatitudes › Textbooks
- ISBNs: 9780830873586, 9780830821624, 9781844743155, 0830873589, 0830821627, 1844743152
- Resource ID: LLS:STOTTBEATTDS
- Resource Type: text.monograph.bible-study
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-12-20T01:44:47Z
