“Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us.” Titus 3:5
The Lord is only five verses into the Sermon on the Mount and already his audience knows this is not the Judaism the Pharisees are teaching. In verses 3-5, the Lord focuses on emptying one’s heart of self and pride. To enter the Lord’s kingdom one does not not come proclaiming their good works and their own righteousness. Instead being right with God come after being broken in spirit, mourning over their sin, seeking God’s will and direction. One comes meekly ready to follow Him in whatever he says. This shows us a profound truth – one cannot be saved from their sin unless they first realize they are a sinner which separates them from a holy God.
Next the Lord describes the heart of one who is transformed by God. He recognizes the desperate heart of one who desires Him. When one recognizes the magnitude of his own sin they are willing to forgive others.
He knows that in comparison to he sin he has committed against a holy God, others sin toward him are trivial and insignificant. He hungers to do right. Based on that he is merciful to others both in forgiveness and in kindness. How can this happen? Because the love of God lives inside him. He is a new creature. His heart, once ruled by self, is now ruled by Christ. This is where the kingdom of God is alive on earth today – in believer’s hearts.
Now the Lord turns to the last four beatitudes. These four deal with the life of the believer on this earth. A member of the kingdom of God is not just blessed by God and experiences joy because they are saved from their sin in his life but because of what the Holy Spirit does in his life.
This is sanctification – becoming like Christ. The following beatitudes describes the characteristics of the believer produced by the Holy Spirit. His audience would realize that they can’t live this way as hard as they may try. That is exactly what the Lord wants them to realize. His kingdom is now. He lives inside their hearts. The question is “are they a part of his kingdom?”
What can we learn? No one can be forgiven of their sin without God and no one can live the kingdom life apart from God living it through us.
The beatitudes teach us very clearly that without God “we can do nothing“. Great joy (blessedness) comes from realizing what God alone has done for us. We must meekly turn our lives over to Him and allow Him to live it through us.