Skip to content The Beatitudes: The Blessing of Discomfort Dec 30 · 21 min ...more
The Beatitudes: The Blessing of Discomfort
December 30, 2024 · 21 min
This week, Rabbi Schneider explores the unexpected blessings that arise from our discomfort.
Series Discovering The Jewish Jesus December 30, 2024 · 21 min · Discovering The Jewish Jesus
This week, Rabbi Schneider explores the unexpected blessings that arise from our discomfort. ...more Show the full description Show less This week, Rabbi Schneider explores the unexpected blessings that arise from our discomfort.
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Rabbi Schneider is equipping the body of Christ, building the church, and evangelizing the world. From the Old and New Testament, learn the biblical roots of Christianity and Jesus' Jewish heritage.
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The Beatitudes: Pathway to the Kingdom 0:00 You've got to be dissatisfied with where you're at in order to receive the riches that Yeshua wants to give you.0:23 Welcome, beloved 1, in the name of the Lord. I'm in the land of Eretz Israel today, and I'm standing on the site that is traditionally targeted as the place where Yeshua, where Jesus0:35 preached the Sermon on the Mount. We don't know if this was the exact spot, we just believe it was somewhere in this area that Yeshua recorded the sermon that we call the Sermon on the0:46 Mount that's recorded in Matthew chapter 5 through chapter 7. It's actually the longest sermon in the Bible that Yeshua preached. So what we're gonna do during this series from0:58 Israel is we're gonna go through the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5 through chapter 7. Now I want you to pay very careful attention, and I really want to encourage you to make it a point to tune in to1:10 all these episodes because this particular area of Jesus' teaching teaches us, his disciples, how to live in the light of the kingdom of God. And so these are the1:22 principles as to how we ought to live as his followers in this world. Remember Yeshua said, broad and wide is the way that leads to destruction, but straight and narrow is the1:34 way that leads to life, and few there be that find it. Strive then to enter through the narrow gate. And so part of walking in this narrow way is following the principles that1:45 Yeshua taught us in the Sermon on the Mount from Israel. So we're gonna go right to Matthew chapter 5. We're gonna go verse by verse, very critical important teaching. Many people look at this1:57 teaching as poetic pleasantries. Beloved, I believe that Yeshua wasn't writing to put something on a Hallmark greeting card. He was literally telling us, this is how you need to be transformed to2:09 live according to these principles. Hear now then the Word of God. When Jesus saw the crowds, Matthew 5 1, he went up to on the mountain, and after he sat down, I want you to2:21 listen to this, and after he sat down, and why am I making a point of this? Because this was a typical way a rabbi would have taught his disciples in this time. He would have sat down and his disciples would have2:32 gathered around to listen. So it says, he went into the area on the mountain, and after he sat down his disciples came to him. He opened his mouth2:44 and began to teach. It's kind of a curious statement if you think about it, because if you were gonna say what somebody did, you wouldn't probably say that Jim opened his mouth and began to2:56 speak. You would just say, Jim said. So this phrase here, he opened his mouth, it kind of is making us aware that something spectacular, something3:08 revelational, something profound and powerful is about to come forth from his mouth. It's not just that so and so were talking and conversing, he opened his mouth.3:20 Words from heaven are gonna begin to pour out. He opened his mouth and began to teach, and here we go. This is called now the first part of the Sermon on the Mount, we call the Beatitudes.3:33 So we're gonna go through these Beatitudes, and again I want to state that oftentimes when we see the Beatitudes somewhere, it almost sounds like it's almost like a fairy tale, something that we'd see again, like, on a3:44 Hallmark greeting card, like, poetic pleasantries, but Jesus wasn't playing around. We need to take these very, very seriously. He meant what he said, and he said3:56 what he meant. Hear what he said. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God. You see in our culture we think of that word poor, and we don't4:08 associate the word poor with a good thing. Like if we speak about somebody being poor, generally we think about material wealth and that they don't have enough to to get by, that they're barely able to survive, that4:20 maybe they're having a hard time buying food and even putting a shelter over their head. And so we kind of connect the word poor to something negative. And so when Jesus said, blessed are4:32 the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of God, we need to understand that Jesus said, blessed. Happy. It's this this term blessed, it carries with the meaning4:44 of divine happiness. So we need to kinda get out of the, American mindset and the mindset of our culture, regardless of where in the world that you're living, that we think of poor as a negative4:55 thing. Because Yeshua is actually saying, if you're poor in spirit, he said, you're blessed. So we need to understand what did he mean by this? What does it mean5:07 to be poor in spirit, and how can I possibly be blessed by being poor in spirit? I mean, who wants to be poor the way we normally process that? But what Yeshua is5:19 saying here is blessed are those that don't have confidence, listen now, in themselves. Blessed are those that have come to the end of themselves.5:32 Blessed are those that have come to a place in life where they realize that they don't have all the answers. Blessed are those that come to a place where they realize that they're empty inside, and they5:44 begin as a result of feeling poor in spirit to look outside themselves. And so the beginning of entering into the kingdom of God is to come to a5:56 place where you're no longer self satisfied. The beginning of entering into a relationship with Yahweh, the God and father of the Lord Jesus Christ, is to come to a place where we cry out for6:07 help because we realize that in and of ourselves, we don't have the answer. It's not in us. And so Yeshua said once again, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the6:19 kingdom of God. I think about some of the words of the apostle Paul that helped shed light on this subject. 1 of my favorite portions of scripture is in second Corinthians6:31 chapter 1. And in second Corinthians 1, the apostle Shaul, that was his Hebrew name because Paul was a Hebrew, right? He said he was a Hebrew of Hebrews from the tribe of Benjamin. And6:43 did you know that Paul actually considered himself a Pharisee? Look it up. So Paul was a Jew, he was a Hebrew. And in second Corinthians chapter 1, Paul said this about his life. He said,6:55 I would have you know, brethren, that I am burdened excessively. In other words, there was such a weight on his life. He was so heavy in spirit. He said, I am burdened excessively7:07 so that I despair even of life. In other words, his life was so hard. It there was there was such agony that he was feeling that he despaired even7:19 of life. So we sometimes think that walking with Jesus is supposed to be a rose garden, that every day is supposed to be blissful, but that's not what we find in the life of the apostle Paul. Again, second Corinthians7:30 chapter 1, I would have you know, brethren, that I am burdened excessively, so that I despair even of life. But then he gave us the reason why, so that I would learn7:42 to trust in God, in Hashem, in the God and father of the Lord Jesus Christ that raises the dead. So what Paul was saying7:54 was that the Lord brought him to the end of himself. He he he found himself going through a time that was so difficult, but he said God brought him into this time that8:05 he would learn to trust not in himself, but in Hashem, in God that raises the dead. Let me say it 1 last time. I just want you to get this to sink in. Paul said, I would have you know,8:17 brethren, that I am burdened excessively so that I despair even of life, but this happens to me. This happened to me that I would learn to trust in Hashem, in God8:29 that raises the dead. So this is what Yeshua was referring to in the first beatitude. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of8:41 heaven. And by the way, we find in scripture that the term kingdom of God and kingdom of heaven are oftentimes used interchangeably. They're referring to the same thing, the kingdom fromEmbracing Mourning and Gentleness 8:53 above that Yeshua came to usher in. And so the first prerequisite to entering into the kingdom of God is to come to a place where we recognize that we're poor in spirit, that we9:05 need help, so that we begin to look up, so that we begin to look outside ourselves, so we turn to God that can fill us with the spirit. Paul had a similar experience when he spoke about9:16 in the Book of Corinthians that because of the abundance of the revelation that was given him, to keep him from exalting himself because God had given him so much revelation, he said there was a messenger of9:28 Satan that was sent to him, and this messenger of Satan was causing him torment. Paul said this messenger of Satan was a thorn in the flesh. And Paul prayed 3 times that the Lord would remove this pain from9:40 his life, that God would that God would remove this messenger of Satan. But after the third time, the Lord said to him, Paul, my grace is sufficient for my power will9:52 be perfected in your weakness. So this is a similar example of being poor in spirit. Paul is struggling. A messenger of Satan is causing him pain. He's reaching up to God to get10:04 through because he doesn't have the resources in himself to get through this challenge that he's facing. And then Paul says God says to Paul, my grace is gonna be sufficient for you, and your my power, the10:15 Lord said to Paul, as you're struggling through relying on me, my power is gonna be perfected in your weakness. So you're starting to see more, beloved ones, why Jesus10:28 said, blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of God. We can't be filled with the power of God until we come to the end of relying10:40 on ourself and begin to rely on him. Again, as we turn from relying on ourselves because we realize that we're empty, as we turn to him because we can't find within ourselves what we10:51 need and nobody else has the answer, the doctors, the lawyers, our friends, no 1 can help us, and we turn to him, we're poor in spirit, then we begin to be filled with this power, and we begin to enter into11:03 the realities and the mysteries of the kingdom of God. Okay. Let's go on to beatitude number 2. Yeshua said, blessed are those who11:15 mourn for they should be comforted. This is similar. This is similar than the first beatitude because remember, the first thing that Yeshua said is blessed are the poor. And we think, but who wants to be11:27 poor? We just covered that, but now Yeshua is saying something that sounds almost similar, blessed are those who mourn. And we think to ourself, well well, why would I wanna mourn? I mean, we think of11:39 mourning as sadness. Right? We don't think of mourning as something that's positive. So a lot of people don't embrace the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount because they can't relate to them. They just kinda dismiss11:50 them because they seem like unpleasant statements. But we need to understand, Jesus said what he meant, and he meant what he said. And we12:02 need to take his words very, very seriously because these are the truths that help us to enter in to the kingdom of God. And12:14 without living a Sermon on the Mount type of lifestyle, we will not be disciples of Jesus. And so listen again. Yeshua said, blessed are those who mourn for they12:26 shall be comforted. So what's the point? The point is if you look around, like, for example, consider most teenagers. Are most teenagers mourning?12:38 No. Some are, I know. Some some young people are hurting and struggling. But if you think about the youth, the youth are so kind of caught up in experiencing the newness of things that they've never experienced before.12:50 They begin to drive. They begin to become attracted to the opposite sex. They begin to be exposed to parties and the different things of the world, and everything is brand new. And so many13:02 young people are not mourning inside. They're thrilled with the delights of youth. But when you're thrilled with the delights of youth and you're getting joy from the things of the world,13:14 you're not able to receive the riches of the kingdom, because the riches of the kingdom only flow into our lives when we're low. Yeshua said through the13:25 prophet, God gives grace to the humble, but resisteth the proud. Humility is being dependent on the Lord. So the second beatitude is similar13:37 to the first. The first is blessed are those that are poor in spirit, the second is blessed are those that mourn. So what's the point? You've got to be dissatisfied with where13:49 you're at in order to receive the riches that Yeshua wants to give you. Because if we're satisfied where we're at, then we're not hungry for more. And we're14:01 gonna see that Jesus speaks more about this in these same Beatitudes. You have to come to a place where you have what I like to call a divine dissatisfaction. You have to come to the place14:13 where you're not satisfied with where you're at. You begin to lament where you're at. You want something more. You're sad about life. You're sad about your life. You're sad with where you're at,14:25 and the whole purpose of this is you begin to turn your eyes upward and ask the Lord to fill you with the riches of His spirit. And so don't be afraid to go14:37 low. Don't be afraid of being sad. Because sometimes the Lord will lead you into the wilderness. He'll lead you into a place where you're sad. He'll lead you into a place14:49 where you're hurting. He'll lead you into a place where you're divinely dissatisfied so that you can begin to call out to him. And as you begin to call out to him, a channel is15:01 opened up in your soul for him to begin to flood you with the resources of heaven. This is the prerequisite for him to enter in. Again, his power is perfected15:13 in our weakness. Let's continue on with the third beatitude. Blessed are the gentle, Blessed are the gentle15:26 for they shall inherit the earth. Again, for many of us, this concept of being gentle, especially if you're a man, is counterintuitive. Because in15:38 our culture and in many macho cultures around the world, men don't esteem so much to be gentle, they esteem to be powerful. And many people look at gentleness15:50 and being powerful as 2 opposites, but beloved, being gentle is actually power that's under control.16:02 The fruit of the spirit is gentleness, love, joy, peace, gentleness, and self control. God can be hard when he needs to be. He16:14 can be harsh when he needs to be. He can drive out the enemy with a whip when he needs to like you did the money changes at the temple. But predominantly and essentially,16:27 the Lord is gentle. Again, the fruit of the spirit is gentleness. And so if we're gonna walk in the light of God's spirit and walk in the fruit of the16:39 spirit, we need to develop the quality of gentleness. You know, when I travel the world for discovering the Jewish Jesus and I'm exposed to different cultures, so many of the cultures that I that I visit16:51 are bombastic in in in in their in their personality. Even in Israel, I would not describe Israel as a gentle culture on the surface. Now many people describe Israelis17:03 as a fruit called a sabra, and a sabra is a fruit that's prickly on the outside, but sweet on the inside. And, perhaps that's true in in in the lives of many, but the17:15 outside culture is very strong. You know, they're trained in the military here. It's a it's an intense place here, and so it's bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. I find the same thing in many other cultures in the17:25 world that I'm in. In in many cultures in in Africa, not all the African nations, but in some of them, very bam, bam, bam, bam. Not a lot of gentleness. But you and I are not to be conformed17:37 to the world. We're to cultivate gentleness. I remember not long ago, I was in New York City with my team, and we were doing an interview there. And I went to sleep that17:49 night, and in my sleep, the Holy Spirit spoke to me. He literally spoke to me, and He said to me this, He said, you don't always have to use force.18:01 Sometimes gentleness is the most effective way of touching people for my kingdom. Very clear word he gave me that night. You don't always have to be forceful. You don't18:13 always have to rely on raw power. Sometimes gentleness is the most effective way to build the kingdom. I came down from my room that morning, and I met my partner that was18:25 traveling with me. We were waiting for the taxi, and he said, rabbi, I'm reading this book right now. And he brought out the title of the book. It was a book on gentleness. So I wanna18:37 encourage you, maybe you're not treating your wife or husband with gentleness. Maybe you're not relating to people with gentleness. God wants us to be self aware and to transform18:48 ourselves so that the general disposition of our life and the way that we treat people, especially those closest to us, is with a spirit of gentleness. Be not19:00 conformed to this world, but be transformed according to the renewing of your mind. Beloved, these are Jesus' words. And as we begin to live out and walk in the principles that19:12 he taught in the Beatitudes, we're gonna enter into more and more light and we're gonna know the reality of Jesus more and more in our lives. This is Rabbi Schneider.19:24 Join me next time as we encounter him in this incredible Sermon on the Mount. Well, we've all heard of the Beatitudes, but19:36 if you're like me, I'd look up what the word Beatitudes means. It means supreme blessedness. Yeshua is teaching us how to live a19:47 lifestyle through which we will be extremely and supremely blessed. And 1 of the principles of the kingdom that Yeshua taught us is give20:00 and it'll be given unto you. I just want to encourage you to be a giver. And if this ministry is feeding you, if this ministry is blessing you, if if God's using it in your life and you feel a20:12 witness from the Holy Spirit with what I'm saying that you're to make a sacrifice to the Lord through this ministry, I just want to encourage you to be obedient. Because Yeshua said give and it will be given back to you,20:22 pressed down, good measure, running over into your lap. And the word of God teaches that we should support the ministries that are so that are spiritually feeding us. So I just want to tell you that I love you, thank20:33 you, and I pray that you'll continue to be blessed through this ministry and give if the Lord leads.In this video 0:00 The Beatitudes: Pathway to the Kingdom8:43 Embracing Mourning and Gentleness
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