Latest / Cultivator Podcast / Episode 13 - The First Three Beatitudes
Transcript
- EP 13: Yeah. Hey, welcome to the Cultivator Podcast. I'm so excited for us, the trio, to be together hanging out today. Man, we are gonna be jumping back into Matthew 5, the Beatitudes. And I'm excited. And so if you haven't listened to, we started this a few weeks ago. we got like one word in with the word blessed or blessed. And so if you haven't listened to that one, that one might be a good one to go back and listen to before you jump into this one. But we are gonna just jump in today and dive more into. Matthew five, the Beatitudes, and then leading into the Sermon on the Mount. And so I'm excited you guys are hanging out and and joining us. So yeah. So all right, you guys, my scholar friends. so I just wanna s I want us to just kinda as we're diving, like we said, we got into one word last time, that word blessed. And so now if we're gonna begin to approach the Beatitudes and even serve like how what would you think is the best way to for us to even begin to approach the scripture? Okay. And I was saying to you guys that my rule for starting with Beatitudes and then working through the whole sermon is that Jesus is being descriptive, not prescriptive. Meaning he's not prescribing what you have to do to get into his kingdom. He's describing what he will be doing to fit you for his kingdom. That's good. Okay, so pragmatically. How's that affect the way that we read this? Well it it it we often make just taking the Beatitudes, we make them a to-do list. Okay. They're not a to-do list. Okay. They're it it's I take it to mean something like this. Like I I've had surgeries where I had to be awake. They couldn't put me to sleep because of the nature of the surgery. And while I was being operated on, the doctor would say to me, Now you're gonna feel some pressure here, I'm gonna be working over here, I'm gonna you're gonna feel some tugs. And what he's doing is he's letting me know what he's doing or what he's about to do. Okay. And I think that's what Jesus is doing, is that and so th the the our side of that equation is cooperation, obedience. Okay. Does that make sense? It does make sense. And one of the things that I I think will hit over and over again in the Sermon on the Mount, I think one of the ways that we get it wrong is when we treat this teaching as law. Yeah. Yeah. Like the last thing Jesus is gonna do is take the old law and replace it with a new law that's a lot harder than the old law, right? And so I think that's helpful because prescriptive says these are the things you have to do. Right. and we'll get into some of things that we're clearly not obeying. when it talks about cutting off hands and gouging out eyes, the church should be filled with people that are maimed if that's the case. if it is a if it's truly a law, if it is truly prescriptive. Right. But I do think that that really becomes important. And I think it becomes important in the Beatitudes, especially because it is not a blessed are this. So go do it. Yeah. It is not telling you that and I I I think we miss that a lot. I think we look at that and go, Well, I I mean not anybody's like, I want to be poor in spirit, I wanna mourn, I wanna be meek, but like it I I think that that matters in our interpretation of it if we come and it's describing something as opposed to prescribing that we do something. Yeah. Yeah. And I think it's huge, it's it's not something we're sitting out to go do, but it's actually something being done to us. Right. that if we are cooperating with the work of the Holy Spirit in our life, then it is this is what's going to be taking place inside of us. Yeah. and so I think that hopefully it relieves the sense of pressure, the sense of religious duty that I gotta this is a whole bunch of other little morals or things that I have to live out and do. And it's sort of like geez, like this is this is what's gonna happen to you if you cooperate with the work that I'm gonna be doing in you. Yeah. I love that. Yeah. Well, so we this this past Sunday as we were recording this, and not as we are you're you are probably watching this, but this past Sunday we did our gathering a little bit different. Yes. with with Kingdom Co op. And one of the things that we had is we had a directed prayer time. And Carrie did a great job of directing that. And but he did it through a a portion of this. And I just was struck in and the way the way that he did it for those of you who were not there, he he just kind of gave us some time to reflect and then would read and would have his kind of thoughts on it. And as as I was reflecting and praying, I I I was struck by kind of the structure of the Beatitudes because there's a statement of blessedness and then there's a almost a promise. Yeah. And I began to wonder if maybe the promise doesn't tell us something about the first part. Yes. Does does that make sense? I think you're right. And so we start with blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Well, it tells you that in the kingdom there's a different e ethic. Yeah. Because y even before we got on, you were talking about your experience with brave cities and and wanting to talk the the the group through some w how do we oppose empire right there. Like The kingdom that we are in is populated by those who are born spirit. Yeah. Yeah. Whereas the kingdoms of the world, the empire is not. Like you you can't get anywhere in politics if you're porn spirit. Like you just can't. Right. And and I just was and I I don't think it works for all of those, but like as we go through there, I think that, you know, when it says, Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth, the earth is going to be populated by meek people. That's what the world looks like. Yeah. The earth looks like. It I it was a it was just a fascinating what this where the spirit was leading me in that prayer time. Yeah, that's awesome. I like that a lot. So I guess we'll be like if we don't jump in, we'll never get there. So let's jump in. I don't know how far w I'll I'll give us a couple of them and and then let's let's just kind of reflect. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn. For they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Anything on those three that you were talking a little bit about meek. Can you can you kind of unpack a little bit of that? this comes from Tim Mackey at Bible Project, but he takes it back to and I can't n speak the Hebrew word that is the equivalent of the Greek word for meek or gentle. And that that's usually how it's translated in our English Bibles. he traces it in the Old Testament, the Hebrew equivalent is basically those who are unimportant. And that fits the first two because the These are conditions that nobody wants. Right. and and so that and he goes on to say, and and I would say Scott McKnight, the New Testament scholar, also echoes this same thing, and it makes sense to me, and so I've embraced it, but he says that they're really the Beatitudes are really triads. There's three, three, and three. Well, I'm glad I read three back. But he says the reason for he says the reason he thinks that is because when you when you look at the architecture of the sermon, the sermon has three parts which has three parts, which each of those parts have three parts. And so it just makes sense that the introduction has three parts. And so and the of course now some of the argument is is that is the last three really two or two and a half? Is there really three there? Then so there's discussion about that. But anyway, there's and he he says if the the categories that he puts them in, the first three, the second three, and the third three, sort of fits the movement of the sermon. So It is it's really an interesting argument. And Scott McKnight echoes the same thing. So in his he he his in his book on Sermon on the Mount. So I love that. So that first one you're talking about, blessed is the meek. So it's the unimportant. Mm-hmm. Right? Is what kinda and so and the one before that is blessed are those who mourn. Mm-hmm. And then the one before that is blessed poor in spirit. So if meek are the unimportant, right? That n just and then we go to what is this blessed are those who mourn. Like what what is it that's being a deeper thing that's being said in that. Yeah. Well, and you kick in here now. Jump in, please. there's there's several layers to that. One is is just loss that we that's part of the human experience is it i i it helps to know that part of what Jesus is doing in this first three in that category is is he's he's there's There's a general assumption in the air of who can be a part of the kingdom. And and and when you ask that question in that culture to the people that were there, to the disciples, they would have said, the Pharisees. That's that's who, you know. And so he's he's really attacking a general assumption that everybody had. So he's saying, W where can you see the kingdom? Where where is the kingdom Available. And now, of course, the kingdom is greater than this category of people. Yeah. Yeah. But the kingdom is so great, it includes even these who you think are excluded. I mean, on its surface, the the that second one is preposterous. Yeah. Blessed are those who I that's my world, right? I mean, I'm around grief and death all the time. Yeah. Doesn't feel like a lot of blessing. Like, I mean, there is in the midst of it, like there's some beautiful stuff that happens, but you don't you don't think of people on hospice as blessed, right? Right. And people that are t caring for people at the end stage. I mean it's it's a ridiculous statement. Right. What's the promise with that one? So blessed are those who more than I you know, I I wrestle with this. I very dated story when I was in college junior year maybe. I was the TA for the Greek class, for my Greek professor, and so like We did Mounts' book and there was a workbook. So I'd be in charge of the workbooks and talking through all this stuff. And I remember a student that was actually a year older than me, but was just taken first year grade because she it wasn't required for her major. And I just kind of and it wasn't about this, but I made some statement about this is a divine passive, you know, be meaning passive tense of the word, meaning that implied there is they will be comforted by The divine, by Jesus, by God. Yeah. And she said, How do we know that? And I was like, Well, we just know that. She's like, Well, that's not the an that's not an answer. How do we know that? And I think sometimes this is is interpreted to be a divine passive, but I don't know that it is. It doesn't say who does the comforting. I mean, I think and I look at that and I think of the they will be filled, they will be shown mercy, which will come up to the we can all those could all be the spirit does that. But I also think they can be the community that does that. those who are inheriting the kingdom. We you know, in in my world there is an element of the spirit that comforts those who mourn. But there's also an element of the people comfort those who mourn. Yeah, and I I I agree with that whole argument that I I think w you know, Jesus is talking about his kingdom. So who's going to be producing the comfort he is? Yeah. Yeah. So I think I think that that's the point of that. And that can come through his people. Correct. Right. Right. it it just in that that I guess it's a triplet there that th th there's all of that's ridiculous. You know, everything there is ridiculous. Well it's it's it's okay, there's translates called the Lexum. I don't know if you're familiar with L E X H A I kinda like it 'cause it sounds like Latham. But anyway. it's supposed to be the most literal one-to-one translation there is, but it says, you know, blessed are those who mourn because and that word for the be for they shall be comforted can and they this is how they translate it can be translated because. Okay. So it's giving like blessed are those who mourn. Why? Because they will be comforted by God. That that's, you know, or by Jesus. And that so it so then is there's the the thing is is to s they're blessed. These people are blessed because what they need is on the way. That you know, they they are already blessed. Present tense, blessed are these who mourn because what they need is on the way. It's coming. Okay, well that that makes a little sense there. Now no one wants to be in that category. Yeah. But everyone will be in that category. Yeah. And it one of one of the arguments that I see in here against the scriptures is, well, if it were truth, we would all read it the same way, if it were the word of God. But like you bring up a good point, because that preposition can flip the meaning of because they will be comforted, for they will be that's to me where the where the work of Bible scholarship comes in because that word for in here could be a because. It can be a causal statement. Right. It can also be, and so there's a lot of prepositions are notorious for being interpreted a thousand different ways. And it really affects how you read this based on how you interpret that little preposition. Right. Yeah. Is it causal? They're they the those who mourn are blessed because they'll be filled, or is it just, you know, I don't know. I don't know the answer to that. That's one of the challenges of the scriptures. Yeah. And I would also push a little bit. If you're pushing back against me, I'll push back against you. There isn't there isn't there's no R in the Greek. Yeah. It could be it could be a future. We don't know. Like we put that in. Yeah. It it's a It's a just a linking verb that says porn spirit equates with blessed. It could be blessed will be the porn spirit. We don't know, but you know, the the easiest way to go is to put it in the present tense. That they are blessed. But again, that's interpretation. Yeah. You can you could say blessed are and I could say blessed will be, and we might both be right. We might both be wrong. I was about to say I was we're both to get together either way. Either we're both wrong or both right. Yeah. And so I mean to me that's why this it opens it up. You know, I was I was I was thinking last night in a conversation with a friend who has expressed his disagreement with our first one. That like this is one of the reasons why I'm hesitant to even put myself out there because I don't know in Two weeks I'll agree with what I'm saying when it comes to this stuff. But I do think it's important that we, dive in and and have conversations about this. And you know, critics come what may, you know, kind of talk about it. So well, yeah. I think the biggest thing that stood out to me so far is that idea of this this first triad exp it kind of setting the picture of of who he was talking to, that man, the kingdom of heaven it's accessible to anybody. And so, like to me, that switched to my mind. I was like, I never thought about that or heard that. It's like he's painting this picture of Whenever they say who's the kingdom of heaven for, usually it would have been the Pharisees, the Sad Sadducees. And he's No, no, it's it's available. th this is who it's available for. Those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn, those who are meek, right? Like that and then all of a sudden it's like, because if you think about it, Jesus what he was showing up and saying, Hey, the kingdom of heaven is at hand. It is here And now he's going in and explaining, and it's accessible, it is is here for you. It's not just the religious people, it is here for you. And so for me, I'm just like, how how often do people even today need to hear that? Mm-hmm. Because we have this mindset or this thought of I gotta get my crap together, I gotta be the certain thing, I gotta do whatever else, and then maybe I can experience the kingdom. Instead of saying, No, no, no, like actually the kingdom is right here, right now. Mm-hmm. And anyone, everyone can have access to it. Yeah, I mean I I do think if we're looking narratively at the at the gospel of Matthew, he's very much at the start going, the the kingdom that I am here to proclaim is much more open than what you have heard and believed. And I think that's a message that still translates. Yeah. I mean I think that we can we can put it in cultural elites, we can put it in religious elites, but we have turned the things of God into an exclusive club. And I think Jesus from the start is going, I'll tell you, I'll show you who Is excluded, I mean nobody. Like spiritually bankrupt, you're in. Unimportant, put yourself on the unimportant list, you're in. Mm-hmm. You've had life has hit you and you're in the middle of grief and you can't see straight, sweet, you're in. I mean, I think there's definitely an element that of that that needs to be heard. Yeah. And I think also I was reading Dallas Willard's book recently that came out, it's kinda you he's passed away, but when it came out and even his explanation of when it says the kingdom have the term kingdom of God and kingdom of heaven or kingdom of heavens. And so it's not we think heaven and it's like this distant, far off place. And whenever Jesus talked it, it's not that. When he says heaven or heavens, it is this right out in front of us around us. It is the kingdom of the heavens that is here, right now, this other Yes. Dimension that it's not some heaven up in the sky. It is the Right here, right now. Right. And I think a lot of times we we even Forget that element of what Jesus was saying. It was like the kingdom of heavens of the heavens is available. Yeah. Which again comes back to the Jewish nature of Matthew's gospel, because do not take the Lord's name in vain. So we're not even going to say kingdom of God. We're going to call it kingdom of the heavens. Whereas if you were to look in the other gospels, it is use that because that is not as Jewish specific as a gospel of a gospel. And it does. I mean, it leads to all kinds of Poor interpretation because people look and they go, Blessed will be the poor in spirit, because they're gonna get to go to heaven. Yeah. Yeah, that's not what I was not what I was saying. That's not what it's saying. Out of this first triad, I think I think honestly, looking at these as in triads, these first three would be huge would be great. And so out of this first kind of triad, because we're gonna look at these three, what are what are some practical things that we could just pull out that would be? Let's do a to do list on this descriptive non prescriptive non prescriptive. Scott, make us a to do list of no sorry Well, I think it n it's it's to say do you does everyone feel at times unimportant? Will everyone go through loss? Is there times when every human being will feel spiritually destitute? Okay, is is that I mean now when you think about the crowd Jesus was talking to, now that w where I'm describing them, but I'm I think I'm describing everyone. And and so then it's like, okay, Jesus is including me, even when I think I'm not included because of life's has beaten me up, I'm s I'm still in. I I'm still his. I I I can still be a part. And not only that, it's like he recognizes He sees me. He sees how destitute I am. And yet he is offering the kingdom to me, even though I am. Is this making sense? So I I think it's for me the goal is can I begin to shift my perspective to match with his? That that because it I mean It's like someone once said, attitude shapes everything you see, and what you see is what you get. And so it's like, can I begin to shift my perspective to his because what you see is what you get. Well, I I you know, I was as as we're reading through this, I was reflecting, on the chosen. I think the chosen's done a good job of of making some of this stuff really stick. I think that Dallas and his team have done a good job of filling in some of the blanks and adding some backstory. And but the Sermon on the Mount is one I disagreed with where he went. Because it he turns it into a mega church thing. it is Jesus on a stage and the people sitting and I just don't that's not how I read the text. But one of the things from a cinematography standpoint that I thought was beautiful was as his words are coming out, they're showing different disciples that th that applied to. And I just in thinking, I wonder when he is what what was his what were his actions? Like when he says, Blessed are the poor in spirit, who's he making eye contact with? Right? And I mean, 'cause Mourn you could know like Mourn would be one of those that you can't really hide when you've lost a loved one like that. But like I like is when he says blessed are the are are the poor in spirit and makes eye contact with you like is your reac reaction to go, not me. I don't I mean I'm that's not me. Well and and add to that that everyone there would have considered themselves that because they weren't a Pharisee. Yeah. So Jesus seems like he's he's talking to this this kingdom of nobody's that's gonna experience his presence through some pain and some And even even whenever you feel like you have nothing spiritually to offer, he's still gonna be there. Yeah. I mean that to me is really I mean, we we can land on the poor part of the first one, and I do believe, I believe scripturally that we find Jesus among the poor. The physically financially financially poor materially. Yeah. But that's not what this is saying. It's the everyone there realizes how they can't do this. Yeah. Everybody in that crowd is like, well, that's from them from the first thing, the first words out of his mouth, include everybody there. Yeah. Because they're going to look and go, I'm just I'm spiritual. I can't attain this. I can't, you know. And so that first one just it really includes everybody. Yeah. I pastored a little church that was right next to a mi a main highway. This is in the s south of here and w one day I was in the office and the office was right next to the highway and I heard a knock on the door from the inside and I couldn't see anybody and so I said come in and st then this a gentleman who obviously it be it was a hot summer day. He had been walking he was sweaty and smelled And and he frightened me. And I said, can I I stood up and I said, Can I help you? And he said, I'm on my way home. my daughter graduated from college and I walked from and I can't remember, but it was a a city way south. And he said, I walked from to see her graduation and I'm walking back home. And I'll only get to the next town before it turns dark. And I was just wondering if I could get some kind of financial help to get a room there. And so I said, Well sit down and let me see what I can do. And so I called a member of the church. I said, Do we have funds? And he said, Yeah, come come to my house and I'll give you so I so I d I w I said, Okay, I'm gonna get you some. You just hang here, get some water. there's ice in the refrigerator and so then I ran and got that cash and then I came back and then I g there was some old t shirts. He was wearing a black shirt, so I gave him a white shirt, you know. And so then I I handed it to him and I said, Now listen, and I gave him a an envelope and with the church's address on it. And I said, Now listen When you get home, this is stamped, everything's ready, just I need you to just get a sh rip a piece of paper or whatever, just said I made it, 'cause I know this will be you. And if I don't get that, if you ever come through here again, then I know I've been scammed and you won't get a thing. I was pretty rough with him. And he said, Yes, sir, I'll do that. And I said, Now I'm gonna pray for you and I want you to pray first and then I'll pray. And he started praying and I lost it. I have never to this day heard a more profound, beautiful, incredible, heart moving prayer than I heard that day with that gentleman. And and I I couldn't pray because I was so emotionally involved with his prayer. So you know, I'm dabbing my eyes and s holding my nose and and I escort escort him to the door that's outside. He goes outside and I I you know and send him on and I shut the door and I come back in and I go. I just wanna make sure he gets out of town. So I go to the door, open it, and step out, and I can't see him. He's gone. And I think I entertained an angel that day. Now Poor. Lots of loss. Unimportant. But heavenly. Does that make sense, guys? Yeah. I think I encountered the kingdom with this person that day. I think that's what Jesus is trying to say is that the kingdom is in real unexpected places. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. O open your eyes a little differently. Yeah. It's yeah, I mean, yeah. Kingdom of heaven is all around you. He says that elsewhere. Yes. You know, even within you. Yeah. I'm afraid at this pe point at pace we're never gonna get through it. But I feel like that's probably a good place to wrap this one up. Yeah, I agree. So thank you guys. Thank you all for Josh's thoughts and just input and this is really, really good. it's good for me. It's good for me. I'll pray and hope it's good for you guys as we experience this because our hope and my prayer is, man, if if we long to be kingdom cultivators, we need to have a good understanding and idea of what we're talking about when we talk about the kingdom. And we feel like Being in the Beatitudes and the Sermon on the Mountain gives us a greater sense and an understanding of when Jesus is talking about the kingdom, what he what he was really talking about. And so as we're going through this, that's our hope and our prayer is that that we're having these conversations out of Matthew five. that we can kind of grasp that. So yeah, we would love feedback, even if you're like, I think you guys are dumb, I don't agree, I don't whatever else, like come on, yes. we'd love that. But hey, thank you guys so much for joining us today. keep on watching and we'll we'll keep on diving into the Beatitudes. See you guys.