Once again,
I must apologize for taking so long to transfer the lessons to the blog. With Operation Christmas Child, Thanksgiving,
and a few unexpected house repairs to do, I let myself get way behind. I hope you’ll forgive me. Our study into the beatitudes is an amazing
journey into the hearts of our men, and the Kingdom of God. I’ve learned so much the last few weeks, and
am looking forward to more.
Three
Sunday’s ago our Bro. Dale taught on the Pure of Heart. Here is his lesson sheet.
Blessed are the Pure of Heart, For
they shall see God.
“Pure is
defined as unadulterated, and “unadulterated is defined as pure, so the
dictionary only helps a little bit.
Is a
“hardened heart” pure? Why not?
What is this
whole heart thing about anyway?
What is
meant by the everyday phrase: “a change
of heart”?
WHY HAVE A
PURE HEART? (Proverbs 22:11 and Psalm
73:1)
**The
condition of our heart limits how we will act in the world.
**A pure
heart frees us. How much simpler is to
do “What is right”, rather than to weigh out “what is owed”?
Timothy 1:5
** the
condition of our heart limits how we see the world.
3 John 1:11
(Amplified)
How much
joy, peace, excitement would there be inour everyday lives if we saw God every
day? How about every hour?
How do we
get a Pure Heart?
Hebrews
10:22
2 Thessalonians 3:5
Some of the
thoughts brought out in the lesson were:
A pure heart
is a heart without ulterior motive. It
is a right heart toward all men, without regard for our own needs. A humble person has a pure heart.
A hardened
heart doesn’t have compassion, and a judgmental heart is critical, therefore it can’t be pure.
A pure heart
doesn’t pursue malice toward others, it is without offense, without pride, and
is compassionate above all else. A pure
heart is a heart like God’s.
A pure heart
is able to accept change, and to live in an unlimited faith.
Love comes
from a pure heart. While an impure heart
limits how we see the world. A hard
heart will not seek out pure motives or reasons for other people’s
behaviors.
A pure heart
has been baptized in the love of God, dwelling in the presence of God.
Two weeks
ago our Bro. Tony taught on being a peacemaker.
HAPPY ARE THE MAKERS AND MAINTAINERS
OF PEACE (THE PRESENCE OF GOD)
Matthew 5:9
(Amplified) Blessed (enjoying enviable
happiness, spiritually prosperous-with life- joy and satisfaction in God’s
favor and salvation, regardless of their outward conditions) are the peace
makers and maintainers of peace, for they shall be called the Sons of God.
·
Peacemakers:
those who are blessed (more than happy; experiencing hope and joy; the deepest
form of happiness) by maintaining peace, and in doing so, become a living
exhibit and ambassador of Christ’s love, and carry on the family traits as Sons
of God.
·
It
is under this distinction as Sons of God that we are granted access to our
inheritance: Our Kingdom ranted rights as Sons and Daughters of God to be
Peacemakers and usher in continued peace.
o
Isaiah
9: 1-7 NIV
§ Jesus is the Prince of Peace. The word says there will be no end to His
government and peace. Our opportunity as
peacemakers lines in this proclamation and promise.
§ Our older brother, the Prince of
Peace, has distinguished us as other Son’s of God with the right, ability, and
responsibility to make and maintain peace.
·
Jesus
leaves us HIM. He leaves us His Peace,
His presence. We must receive, make
more, and maintain His presence, His peace, and His love.
o
John
14:26-31 –(NLT, Message, and Amplified versions)
A FEW
THOUGHTS:
NLT- Holy
Spirit = My representative; Gift-peace of mind and heart; So the world will
know His love
Message:
“That’s my parting gift to you, Peace. I
don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left- feeling abandoned,
bereft.” Bereft means; (bereaved) as if
a family member or friend has died.
My Parting
gift to you?!! That sounds like someone who loves and is exhibiting love. Someone who is making and maintaining peace,
and that makes me really happy!
Amplified: Holy Spirit=Comforter, counselor, helper,
intercessor, advocate, strengthener, standby, in my place to represent me and
act on my behalf. WOW!!! My own peace I
now give and bequeath to you.
Bequeath-Handed
down, entrusted, as in a will, transferred to.
Peace is handed down. His will, willed.
·
With
understanding of His peace and love and how it makes us happy, we have to seek
it continually to experience greater happiness.
A conscious action and decision to love greater. Active pursuit
o
Psalm
34:14 (NLT)
o
1
Peter 3:8-12 (NIV)
§ Once again exhibiting His love. This will make us happier and turn the Lord’s
eart to your prayers. We then hunger for
more peace and seek to make and maintain peace.
·
WE
are to make and maintain peace:
o
Hebrews
12:14 (NIV) He willed it to us, we must
will to to others and hand it down
o
Colossians
3:12-17 (NLT) Clothe yourself in love,
it will make you happy. Put on Peace. It
will make peace. Give when others take,
love when others hate, help when others abuse, give up your own rights to serve
others. That’s what peace makers
do. Peacemaker out!
Some of the
thoughts that were shared during this lesson were so profound, that I couldn’t
write them down quick enough. I was able to capture a
few, but not enough to do it justice.
The 1828
Webster’s Dictionary defines peace as: A state of quiet, freedom, heavenly rest
with the happiness of heaven.
We are
‘chips off the old block’ and we exhibit the same character as our Father. We
are empowered to relieve pain, suffering, and strife.
We will
usher in reconciliation.
Christ has
left us HIMSELF in the person of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy
Spirit empowers us to live in peace.
The ruler of
this world had no power over Christ, because Christ was at peace with the
Father, himself, and his purpose. In
order to be free of the power of the evil one, we must adopt the same attitude
as Christ.
MY OWN
THOUGHTS:
We are at a
critical place in our study of the Sermon on the Mount. We can choose to believe that we can fully
live out the beatitudes or we can adopt the idea that we will never attain to
them. Walking in the Peace of God,
allows us to move beyond the power of this present world and live in the
spiritual realm. We can be at peace with
ourselves, the Father, and those around us, if we are assured that we are a
citizen of a greater Kingdom. We have
two more beatitudes to study and then we’ll launch out into the meat of the
sermon. (As if the beatitudes weren’t
meaty enough.)
