Saturday, July 7, 2012

Characteristics to Being Called Blessed...

Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

Matthew 5:7-8

Today, we find two passages of scripture that outlined ways in which a believer in Christ can be called blessed… To be blessed is to be held in high esteem as you are (holy, consecrated  and/or sanctified)… I often hear people say that they are blessed; however, in today’s passage we find that there are characteristics associated with being called blessed… The first one is that you must be merciful… Mercy is withholding or forgiving someone who has wronged you and or caused pain and strife within you… Matthew records that those who are merciful shall obtain mercy; we have all fallen short, we have all made bad choices and decisions, but as a child of God we cannot allow those things to be a stumble block which hinders our growth and future aspirations! We must learn from our mistakes and seek the forgiveness of God as well as our fellowman… More importantly, we must be able to extend forgiveness to one another in pure and unconditional love so that our sins and poor choices may be forgiven by our Lord and Savior! Jesus informs us in the 18thchapter of Matthew that the forgiveness of our sins are made possible by the forgiveness (mercy) that we extend to others… "I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” If you want to obtain mercy from above, you must first extend mercy on earth… So many of us walk around holding grudges, we are so bitter inside that we are of no value to God… We must release the anger, resentment and malice that we have in our hearts if we want God to reside within us, transform us and use us… The bible also teaches us about forgiveness even when praying unto the Lord… We are told that we should go to our brother and clear matters up before we even go before the Lord… God sees all that happens upon this earth and we must show Him what we desire of Him by doing the things that are pleasing to His sight…

The second thing that I see as it relates in today’s focus verse regarding being called blessed is that you must have pure heart… Matthew goes on to say that the pure in heart will see God! When I read this question I can’t help but ask what it means to have a pure heart… As we have talked about several times before, the heart is the foundation that all things are built upon… Jesus taught His disciples that every action taken or every move that someone makes comes from the heart… This teaches us how powerful the heart is and the fact that this is where our most intense battles with the adversary reside… The bible declares that out of the heart man speaks… So again I ask, how do you obtain a pure heart…? David messed up several times, he ran from God when the heat became too much, he committed adultery and killed a (n) innocent man; yet God called David a man after His own heart… This passage doesn’t say the perfect in heart, it says the pure… So many of us forget that we are not perfect, and that is not what Christ desires, He desires a sincere approach to His thrown, a humbleness in your walk, and a faith that will move mountains! David was placed on the throne because God know he meant God within his heart… We all make mistakes, but it is the desire that we have within that God looks at… What is the intent of your move, what was the purpose for your decision, who are you trying to please... People will judge you, people will criticize your every move, but you must make sure that your heart aligns with the will of God… To be pure in heart means that you are genuine in your love for Christ and trying to walk in His will… Yes there will be stumbles along the way, you will make mistakes, but remember that your heart is what matters and your sincere approach towards God and your fellow man is what counts! Be sincere, be forgiving, be faithful, then you will be aligning yourself for Christ return!

BE BLESSED

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