FRIDAY August 30th
I think it would be fair to say that we are all aware of the ‘Blessed’ statement which we call the beatitudes in the gospel of Matthew and chapter 5, even if we were unable to recite them all by heart. There are 9 of them altogether, and here they are, and I have kept the verse numbers in.
2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
But are you aware that there are seven ‘Blessed’ statements in the book of Revelation? We truly are blessed people as we come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, yes, Jesus talks of the possibility of persecution as we stand up for the sake of righteousness, but the reward for doing so is out of this world, we are assured of access into the kingdom of heaven. The ‘blessed’ statements in Revelation are all attached in some way to our being faithful and our being willing to persevere in this life as we head toward that which is to come. And so next week I will begin to take us through the seven statements in Revelation, but to whet your appetite, if you want a preview of the verses, here are the references.
Revelation 1:3, 14:13, 16:15, 19:9, 20:6, 22:7, 22:14.