Have.You.Filed.For.Bankruptcy?

Intro:.
A...
Two.thousand.years.ago,.a.lowly,.Galilean.carpenter.continued.His.father's.(Joseph's).business..
......1...This.was.the.second.year.of.His."business"....
......2...
The.primary."tool".this.carpenter.employed.was.not.a.hammer.nor.a.saw—but.truth....
...........a...Jesus.had.already.endured.two.previous."altercations".with.His.perennial.antagonists—the.Pharisees....
...........b...Now.in.Mt..5,.this.carpenter.begins.to.work.not.with.wood,.but.with.hearts..
B...TSOTM.does.not.say,."Live.like.this.and.you.will.be.a.Christian,".rather.it.says,."Because.you.are.a.Christian,.live.like.
......this…"..(It.shows.how.we.ought.to.live)..
......1...
We.do.not.study.this.sermon.because.it.makes.us.feel.good;.the.Pharisees.certainly.didn't.feel.good.after.it.
...........a...If.you.claim.that.it.makes.you.feel.good,.then.either.you.have.not.read.it,.or.you.don't.understand.it..
...........b...Jesus'.message.condemns.us.for.falling.short.and.drives.us.to.Calvary's.cross....
......2...
If.you.want.to.be.blessed,.then.study.TSOTM..
...........a...There.is.a.tendency.today.to.wrest.various.verses.from.this.sermon.from.its.context,.to.misapply.them,.and.
................therefore.miss.the.blessing...Ex:.
. .....Some.think.turning.the.other.check.means.it.is.okay.for.somebody.to.beat.you.up...cf.,.5:39. .
. .....Some.think.if.you.own.a.department.store.and.a.thief.steals.one.of.your.coats,.that.you.ought.to.stop.him.
. .....and.offer.him.one.of.your.overcoats.as.well...cf.,.5:40.
. .....Some.think.it's.acceptable.to.call.other.people.any.name.under.the.sun—except.a.fool...cf.,.5:22.
. .....Some.think.it's.acceptable.to."affirm".something,.but.it's.not.okay.to."swear".something,.even.though.the..
. .....terms.mean.the.same.thing...cf.,.5:33-37.
. .....Some.misquote.and.misapply,."Judge.not,.that.you.be.not.judged,".and.think.that.any.judgment.of.any.sort.
....................is.wrong...cf.,.7:1.
...........b...Properly.understood,.this.sermon.shows.the.way.of.blessing.for.a.Christian..
. .....We.do.not.find.our.happiness.in.the.same.way.the.world.does..
....................Our.standards.are.markedly.different.from.those.of.the.world..."Let.us.hear.the.conclusion.of.the.whole.
....................matter:..Fear.God.and.keep.His.commandments,.for.this.is.the.whole.duty.of.man...For.God.will.bring.every.
....................work.into.judgment,.including.every.secret.thing,.whether.it.is.good.or.whether.it.is.evil."..Eccl..12:13-14.
C...
The.sermon.begins.with.a.series.of.Beatitudes.which.describe.the.character.of.the.citizens.of.the.kingdom..
......1...Each.Beatitude.begins.with.the.word."blessed".(Gr..µ......s)....
............a...The.word.refers.to.a.state.of.consummate.bliss..
............b...Vs:.
....................Happiness.depends.upon.external.circumstances.while.joy.does.not..."Rejoice.in.the.Lord.always...Again.I.will.
....................say,.rejoice!"..Phil..4:4.
...................."Therefore.you.now.have.sorrow;.but.I.will.see.you.again.and.your.heart.will.rejoice,.and.your.joy.no.one.
....................will.take.from.you."..Jn..16:22.
......2...
They.are.paradoxical—assaults.on.conventional.wisdom.because.they.reverse.the.world's.view...(And.yet.
...........experientially.Christians.have.found.them.to.be.true)..
D...Mt..5:1-3.
.
I...
An.IRONY—joy.is.found.in.poverty..
.
.....A...From.our.vantage.point,.this.sounds.ridiculous.because.we.tend.to.equate.poverty.with.unhappiness..
.
.
.
...........1...
What.do.we.typically.think.of.when.we.use.the.words."poor".and."poverty"?.
...........2...I.think.of.the.lack.of.life's.necessities.and.the.sorrow.and.fear.that.accompanies.not.being.able.to.pay.the..
................bills..
.
.....B...But.notice.that.Jesus.did.not.say,."Blessed.are.the.poor.in.the.pocketbook…".
.
II...
A.MISCONCEPTION—poverty.is.a.spiritual.value..
.
......A...Our.Catholic.friends.are.fond.of.teaching.that.in.order.to.be.a.truly.spiritual.person,.one.must.embrace.a.life.of.
............physical.want.and.destitution..
.
............1...I.have.not.been.able.to.find.in.Scripture.where.God.favors.the.poor.over.the.wealthy...Ex:..Job,.Abraham.
.................(A.person's.financial.acumen.is.not.indicative.of.their.standing.before.God)..
............2...The.Bible.does.not.condemn.money,.but.the.love.of.money..."For.the.love.of.money.is.a.root.of.all.kinds.of..
..................evil,.for.which.some.have.strayed.from.the.faith.in.their.greediness,.and.pierced.themselves.through.with.
..................many.sorrows."..1.Tim..6:10.
.
.......B...Both.riches.and.poverty.have.certain.inherent.dangers..
.
.............1...
."But.those.who.desire.to.be.rich.fall.into.temptation.and.a.snare,.and.into.many.foolish.and.harmful.lusts.
...................which.drown.men.in.destruction.and.perdition."..1.Tim..6:9.
.............2..."Remove.falsehood.and.lies.far.from.me;.give.me.neither.poverty.nor.riches—feed.me.with.the.food.You.
...................prescribe.for.me;.lest.I.be.full.and.deny.You,.and.say,.'Who.is.the.LORD?'.or.lest.I.be.poor.and.steal,.and.
...................profane.the.name.of.my.God."..Prov..30:8-9.
.
III...
A.CLARIFICATION—Jesus.was.not.addressing.financial.values.in.this.context..
.
.......A...
The.key.word.in.the.verse.is."spirit.".
.
.............1...
We.can.understand.the.Lord's.meaning.if.we.substitute.the.word."ego".for.the.word."spirit.".
...................a...Ego.means.self.and.to.be.rich.in.ego/self.is.to.have.too.much...cf.,.Lk..18:9-12;.Dan..4:27,.30..Illust:..A.
.........................recent.news.release.told.of.a.Charlotte,.North.Carolina.woman.who.set.a.world.record.while.playing.a.
.........................convenience.store.video..game...After.standing.in.front.of.the.game.for.fourteen.hours.and.scoring.an.
.........................unprecedented.7.½.million.points.on.the.game.called."Tapper,".the.woman.was.pleased.to.see.a.TV.
.........................crew.arriving.to.record.her.efforts.for.posterity...She.continued.to.play.while.the.crew,.alerted.by.her.
.........................finance,.prepared.to.shoot...Suddenly.the.video.screen.went.blank!..While.setting.up.their.lights,.one.
.........................member.of.the.camera.team.had.accidently.unplugged.the.video.game.outlet—thus.bringing.her.bid.for.
.........................10.million.points.to.an.end...The.effort.to.publicize.her.achievement.became.the.agent.of.her.failure..
...................b...We.all.know.people.who.are.rich.in.ego.and.we.do.not.typically.like.them.because.they.are.haughty.and.
........................conceited..
.............2...
What.are.some.of.the.characteristics.of.a.person.who.is.rich.in.ego?.
...................a...
He.acts.as.if.he.knows.everything.and.is.always.right..
. ....b...
He.is.emotionally.defensive.when.someone.disagrees.with.him.in.the.realm.of.opinion..
. ....c...
He.tends.to.be.self-satisfied.and.self-sufficient..
. ....d...
He.tends.to.emphasize.heritage.and.family..
...................e...
He.tends.to.flaunt.his.abilities,.intellect,.and.accomplishments..
. ......
.
..................f...
He.seeks.position,.power,.and.influence...Illust:..In.the.summer.of.1986,.two.ships.collided.in.the.Black.
........................Sea.off.the.coast.of.Russia...Hundreds.of.passengers.died.as.they.were.hurled.into.the.icy.waters.below..
........................News.of.the.disaster.was.further.darkened.when.an.investigation.revealed.the.cause.of.the.accident...It.
........................wasn't.a.technology.problem.like.radar.malfunction—or.even.thick.fog...The.cause.was.pride.and..
........................stubbornness...Each.captain.was.aware.of.the.other.ship's.presence.nearby,.booth.could.have.steered.
........................clear,.but.neither.was.willing.to.give.way.to.the.other...By.the.time.they.came.to.their.senses,.it.was.too.
........................late..."A.man's.pride.will.bring.him.low,.but.the.humble.in.spirit.will.retain.honor."..Prov..29:23.
........................1)..You.may.be.thinking,."But.Mike,.what's.really.wrong.with.being.rich.in.ego?".
........................2)..Answers:..Rom..12:3.
.. ..................Pride.hinders.your.fellowship.with.God..
. . ....Pride.leads.to.broken.relationships.with.others..
.................................Pride.blocks.God's.blessings.and.can.cause.you.to.lose.your.eternal.reward..
.
.......B...
God.is.interested.in.a.person.who.has.filed.for."spiritual.bankruptcy.".
.
.............1...
Before.a.man.can.rise.before.God,.he.must.fall.to.himself.".
...................a..."For.thus.says.the.High.and.Lofty.One.Who.inhabits.eternity,.whose.name.is.Holy:..'I.dwell.in.the.high.and.
........................holy.place,.with.him.who.has.a.contrite.and.humble.spirit,.to.revive.the.spirit.of.the.humble,.and.to.revive.
........................the.heart.of.the.contrite.ones."..Isa..57:15.
....................b...Thus.says.the.LORD:..'Heaven.is.My.throne,.and.earth.is.My.footstool...Where.is.the.house.that.you.will.
..........................build.Me?..And.where.is.the.place.of.My.rest?..For.all.those.things.My.hand.has.made,.and.all.those.
..........................things.exist,'.says.the.LORD...'But.on.this.one.will.I.look:..On.him.who.is..poor.and.of.a.contrite.spirit,.and.
..........................who.trembles.at.My.word.'..Isa..66:1-2.
.............2...Paul.was.a.man.of.great.power.and.education,.but.after.meeting.the.Lord,.all.of.that.became.loss.to.him..
..................
5
."Circumcised.the.eighth.day,.of.the.stock.of.Israel,.of.the.tribe.of.Benjamin,.a.Hebrew.of.the.Hebrews;.
..................concerning.the.law,.a.Pharisee;.
6
.concerning.zeal,.persecuting.the.church;.concerning.the.righteousness.
..................which.is.in.the.law,.blameless...
7
.But.what.things.were.gain.to.me,.these.I.have.counted.loss.for.Christ..
8
.Yet.
..................indeed.I.also.count.all.things.loss.for.the.excellence.of.the.knowledge.of.Christ.Jesus.my.Lord,.for.whom.I.
..................have.suffered.the.loss.of.all.things,.and.count.them.as.rubbish,.that.I.may.gain.Christ."..Phil..3:5-8.
...................a...Being.poor.in.ego.doesn't.mean.the.suppression.of.your.personality,.nor.being.ashamed.of.your.
.........................personal.abilities,.or.the.things.you.have.worked.for..
...................b...A.person.who.is.poor.in.ego:.
............................Experiences.a.deep.sense.of.need.and.recognizes.all.that.he.has.comes.from.God..
............................Is.keenly.aware.of.his.own.insufficiencies....
.
Concl:.
A...The.kingdom.of.God.is.not.open.to.the.self-righteous.and.self-assured,.but.to.the.supplicant.sinner.who.comes.
......seeking.God.out.of.a.sense.of.his.own.emptiness..
B...Illust:..The.late.A..T..Robertson.once.wrote.an.article.about.Diotrephes.(3.Jn..9).for.a.religious.publication...He.
......renamed.him,.updated.his.story.using.present.day.terms,.and.labeled.him.the."church.boss."..Dr..Robertson.reported.
......later.that.twenty.deacons.had.cancelled.their.subscriptions.because.they.thought.the.article.was.a.personal.attack.
......on.them..
......1...Are.you.rich.or.poor—in.ego?.
......2...Do.you.need.to.humble.yourself.in.obedience.today?..