Matthew 5:1-161And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 3Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 13Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. 14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 15Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:1‑16)
Part 7
The Fourth Beatitude
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Verse 6.
But would not, thou mayest say, my soul—would not this seeking to walk in conformity to a rule or given standard tend to a spirit of legalism? Not in a Christian point of view; on the contrary, the Word of God is “the perfect law of liberty” to the divine life which we have as Christians. But this leads us to the root of this great subject, on which thou wilt do well to meditate deeply and prayerfully for a little while. Here thou wilt discover the secret of real, holy, liberty.
The life of Christ, which is ours, as thou knowest, and in which we are to walk, can never dislike or be opposed to His Word. The new nature delights in the words or commandments of Christ; they are but His authority to do what the divine life desires to do. Let us suppose a case.
A young Christian, from the purest motives, has an intense desire to go to the prayer meeting; this would be right—according to the mind of Christ-righteousness. But the way is not clear, he is under another. He quietly waits on God. By-and-by he is told to go—this is what his heart was desiring; he rejoices to obey; it is the law of liberty. The bent of his new life and the Word of Christ are one. But take another example.
A young Christian is indulging in a worldly state of mind; he is asked to go to the prayer meeting, but he dislikes going; the will of his fleshly mind is opposed to the will of Christ; His commandments are not at present joyous, but grievous; they are not the law of liberty, but of bondage, he is most unhappy.
Thus it is that obedience, walking in righteousness, is perfect liberty, holy joy, and divine power to the life of Christ in the soul. True, the Holy Spirit is the power, but we cannot separate the power of the Spirit from the authority of the Word. The desires of the new life, the authority of the Word, and the power of the Spirit, go together.
The first Epistle of John, especially the second chapter, is a divine exposition of this great practical principle of Christianity.
“Whoso keepeth His Word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in Him. He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked.” (2:5, 6).
The words of Christ were the expression of His life when here on earth—that life is thine, my soul—that very life—wondrous, precious, blessed truth! And this shall be thy life forever, and the basis of thy happy fellowship, and of thy divine intimacies with Christ throughout the countless ages of eternity.
“When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:44When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. (Colossians 3:4)). But, in the meantime, suffer His words so to guide and direct thee, that thou mayest walk even as He walked.
Before closing our Meditations on this beatitude it may be well to turn for a moment to Psalms 16;17. Here we have the same great lines of truth—life and righteousness—but in immediate connection with Christ and the godly remnant in Israel. In the former we have the path of life with God, and that through this world, through death, up to the fullness of joy in His presence.
“Thou wilt show me the path of life: in Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” (Ver. 11).
In the latter we have the path of righteousness in entire dependence on God. Absolute faithfulness in heart and life, both to God and man, marked the steps of Jesus through this world. “Hear the right, O Lord,” was His cry, and this should be the Christian’s motto— “Hear the right, O Lord.” His one grand object was to meet His Father’s mind, to do His Father’s will, and mark out a path for us, that we might walk in His steps. And here the heart is proved, and the value of the Word.
This could only be absolutely true of Christ, and only true of us in so far as we live the life of Christ. Nevertheless, we should be able to appeal to God as to the purpose of our hearts and the desire of our lives.
The Lord enable us by His grace thus to walk before Him, with proved hearts and consistent lives, notwithstanding the opposition and persecution we may have to bear. Hungering and thirsting after righteousness—after the whole mind and will of God in Christ Jesus, and practical conformity to the blessed path of the Son of Man in this world—we shall surely be filled. This beautiful psalm, (17) observe, begins with,
“Hear the right, O Lord,” and ends with the grand consummation, “As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied when I awake with Thy likeness.” Glorious end! Shall it be thine, my reader?
Pause, consider—hast thou faith in Christ? Is His life thine? His practical ways in this world thy delight? Wondrous, blessed hope! What is to be compared with it? To awaken from the long sleep of death, to arise from the ashes of the tomb, and come forth in the radiant beauty and the heavenly glory of the Lord Jesus, is a prospect worthy of thy deepest consideration now.
Another, while I write, and a near neighbor, has just passed off the stage of time. His credit at the bank in this world is counted by millions, but, if that be all, many millions, could he take them with him, would not buy a foot of ground in the paradise of God, or one drop of cold water in the regions of hell. How many fall from the lap of luxury to the depths of eternal misery!
Nothing can purchase the blessings of heaven, or deliver the soul from the doom or sin, but the precious blood of Christ. It is the sinner’s only passport through the gloomy gates of death, and his only title to the mansions of glory. Prayers, penance, charity, with the devout observance of religious ordinances, may pass current in this life, but without Christ and His cleansing blood they are valueless, and must be rejected as counterfeit coin at the gate of heaven. The work that saves the soul is a finished work.
“See sprinkled with the blood;
The ‘mercy seat’ above;
For justice had withstood
The purposes of love:
But justice now withstands no more,
And mercy yields her boundless store.”
Yes, be assured of this, my dear reader, that no good works are acceptable to God that are not the fruit of living union with Christ Himself. The branch that is wild by nature must be grafted into the true olive, and drink of the fatness of its roots, before it can bear fruit to the glory of God the Father.
Have faith, then, in the blessed Jesus; trust His precious blood to cleanse thy sins away; trust to His holy Word without a misgiving; and patiently wait his return, when He will do more and better far than thou hast either asked or thought of.
(Continued from page 268)
(To be continued)