Adults

Roger Severino

Reflections on the Sermon on the Mount for Leaders

TWO QUESTIONS ABOUT TEACHING THE BEATITUDES

Photo credit: Joe Hendricks — *Roger Severino, Adult Discipleship – Leadership Minister*

by Roger Severino

Last week’s and this week’s JourneyOn Today devotionals relate to meditating on the Sermon on the Mount, beginning with the beatitudes. Here are two questions to consider as you read, apply, and possibly teach the beatitudes to others.

Are the beatitudes descriptive or prescriptive? In other words, is Jesus saying we should pursue being poor in spirit, mourning, being gentle, being hungry and thirsty for righteousness, being merciful, being pure in heart, etc.? Or, is Jesus simply describing the people who are characterized by these things as blessed, even though the world does not see them that way? Is Jesus telling us a way to live, or pronouncing an unsuspected blessing on people who are often not seen as blessed? I tend to go with a middle way that includes both. I think there is spiritual benefit in recognizing our poverty in spirit, mourning over our sin and rebellious heart, leading us to hunger and thirst for righteousness, etc. At the same time, I do think that Jesus is turning our world upside-down by highlighting the potential blessings of those who are not “powerful” in our society.
Is there a sequence or connection between these various characteristics in the beatitudes? Or, does each characteristic stand alone, or only have a marginal connection to the others? I lean toward there being a potential sequence in the beatitudes, though I don’t want to press it too far. I don’t want to suggest that Jesus was giving a formula – step 1, 2, 3, etc. – and yet there does seem to be a certain flow in the beatitudes in my opinion. Those who recognize their poverty of spirit and need for change will mourn over their unrighteousness, which will cause them to be gentle, and create a hunger and thirst for righteousness. This sequence will naturally lead toward being merciful (as we understand God’s mercy toward us) and desire to be pure in heart (part of hungering and thirsting for righteousness); we seek peace, even in a world that persecutes us for righteousness’ sake. The beatitudes sound nice and palatable, like something you would cross-stitch, and yet, like the rest of the Sermon on the Mount, incredibly challenging to live out – really impossible, apart from God’s enabling.

Jay Fennell , Uncategorized

Sent

Making Disciples

by Eric Warren

Are you curious as to what your life’s calling is? While every single one of us has a journey laid out before us that is unique and crafted by the wonderful creator of the universe, there is a calling that we all share. If we dive into Acts 1:6-8, we see Luke describe the disciples’ last encounter with Jesus before His ascension and the offering of this common calling.

⁶So when they had come together, they asked Him, “Lord, are You restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?” ⁷He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by His own authority. ⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

This passage is one of the accounts that is referred to as “The Great Commission.” It is not simply an event that applies to those in attendance in the first century context, but rather is a calling that we all take on upon coming into our relationship with Jesus. The minute that we make that decision to follow Him, we are saved from the death sentence created by sin and onto God’s mission of making his name famous among the nations.
Here, the disciples propose a question concerning Jesus’ timing and, by His response, we gain insight that this is not an issue that we should concern ourselves with. Our minds should not be geared towards His timing but the task that he has laid before us, that being making disciples among the nations. While we are all anxious for that wonderful day where our faith will be our eyes and we see Jesus face to face, the closest that we can come to the Parousia, as we know it, is the evangelization of the world.
At this time, all of us at Brentwood Baptist are in the utmost need of your help and prayers as leaders as we seek to plunge in even further into The Great Commission and God’s call for us to make disciples. Many of you may already know that on August 23, we will be hosting an event called “Group Connect” where we hope to initiate 30 new LIFE groups in hopes of connecting the unconnected to healthy relationships and community where they may be pushed onward towards Christ in daily life. So please, first and foremost, what we ask of you is to join us in relentless prayer as we fervently hope to change the world around us and connect everyone here at Brentwood Baptist to a LIFE group where they may find intimacy with the Risen Lord on a whole new level.
Things to Pray for:

Pray for a hunger to spark among everyone here to dive deeper and plug into a LIFE group so that they may grow in intimacy with Jesus.
Pray for the preparation of Group Connect, that all efforts may be lifted up as first fruits so that God’s name may be glorified.
Pray for Group Seekers, that they may feel catered to, comfortable, and loved, and that they may truly find family here.