← ArchiveMatthewMatthew – The Rich Life (Matthew 5:1-12)DateJune 1, 2025SpeakerDr Josh BurnhamTextMatthew 5:1–12Passages in this sermonMatthew 53:38Psalms 4218:09Philippians 119:56TranscriptMachine transcribed. Click any line to jump there.0:00I'm going to go to the next episode of the show. I'm going to go to the next episode of the show.0:30We believe what the Word says, that when we gather in the name of the Lord, He is with us also.1:00And that changes our lives. Today, I have the joy of worshiping with you through who Augustine called the Sermoni Domenei in Monte. The Sermon of our Lord on the Mount. Augustine was the first to use that phrase. So if you have your Bibles, join me in the book of Matthew, chapter 5, in the Sermoni Domenei in Monte.1:26The Sermon on the Mount. And as you turn there, I have a really quick question. Hopefully, you'll pass this test. It's pass or fail. If you fail, just we'll figure it out. I have faith in you. Raise your hand if you want to live a blessed, happy life. Okay.1:57Okay. Hands down. Anyone say, you know what? I just want to be miserable for the rest of my life. Sign me up for that train. Okay. No one. Well, Jesus speaks into that desire. Because I believe every person, whether they are spiritual or not. And I believe everyone is seeking the Lord. Because there's a God-sized hole in every life that only Christ can fill. Even those who would say, well, I don't believe in God, would raise their hand and say, but I want to have a blessed life. I want to have joy.2:27I want to have long-lasting happiness. I want to live a rich life. And Jesus speaks into this. And he reminds us that true richness does not come from what we own, what we have, but by what we are becoming. Who we are. And in the Beatitudes, Jesus redefines what it means to be blessed. So Jesus offers you and me a rich life. But he says, the richness you desire doesn't look like what the world offers.2:54But here's the hope. We can live a rich life. Not in stuff, but in spirit. And the rich life that Jesus offers us doesn't end when you die. The rich life that Christ offers you and me lingers into eternity. Now we're going to start in some strange places, right? You raise your hand and say, Pastor, I want to live the rich life.3:22And Jesus says, well, we're going to start with the poor in spirit. So today's message is simply rich life. We all want it. Jesus offers it. So let's get it. So let's read Matthew 5, verses 1 through 12-ish. When Jesus went on the mountain, he saw the crowds. When his disciples gathered around him, he sat down. He began to teach them, saying thus.3:51Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Jesus says, blessed are those who are meek, for they will inherit the earth.4:10Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.4:37Then Jesus says, blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. And he bookends the persecuted and he bookends the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me.5:06Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great, where? In heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Let's pray. Father, thank you that you provide us a rich life. A life of abundance when the world offers scarcity.5:33A life that is eternal when the flesh offers that which is temporary. A life that is hope-filled when we live in a broken, hopeless world. A life where the poor in spirit will inherit the kingdom of God.5:56Lord, give us a rich life in the spirit. And may we not simply hear your words only, but may we be doers of your holy, sacred word today. Lord, I pray in Jesus' holy name, amen and amen. So you've already raised your hand and said, I want a rich life.6:25And now Jesus says, this is how you receive it. Now, the beatitudes are a breathtaking standard. And when we hear them, I think that our hearts are bent in one or two ways. Some of us read this and you say, okay, this is what God requires. Poor in spirit, I'm about to get poor. Meek, I'm about to get meek. Hungry, I'm about to get hungry. I'm going to buckle down and I'm going to do what Jesus says.6:54Do you want to be rich? I'm about to get the rich life in Jesus. And if that's your desire, that's your bent, that's not the gospel, that's exhaustion. Because Jesus sets before us a standard that not a single person on the planet can reach. And you say, well, how dare him do that? I would say, that's the point. Jesus is saying, you can never get this on your own.7:22So if you have walked in here exhausted, ready to exhaust yourself more to get the rich life that only the gospel can bring, just stop. Now, I think there's another way we can read this. We can read it and say, I gave up in verse 3. I gave up at blessed are the poor in spirit. There's no way I could ever reach this on my own.7:52That's the miracle of the gospel. Because when you and I would humble ourselves and say, I can't do this. Like, why would Jesus even give this sermon? He knows we don't measure up. And I would say to you, friend, that's the point. That's the miracle of the gospel. We will never receive this on our own.8:19But by grace and by faith, we can receive this through the spirit of the living God. So let's just pause for a moment. If you are ready to white knuckle this faith thing and say, okay, I'm about to mount this sermon on my own. That's not the point. And if you are exhausted and you say, well, I'm hopeless, I will never measure up. That's not the point.8:49The invitation is Jesus is saying, if you come up here and listen, then by the spirit of the living God, you can be what God wants you to be through the gospel. Jesus in your place. So now that we have set things rightly, how do we have the rich life? Let the Beatitudes revive us today. Verse 3. Let's start here. The rich life begins with poverty.9:17Makes a lot of sense, right? Verse 3. Blessed are the poor in spirit. The good life with Jesus does not start at the top. It starts at the bottom. And that's the beauty of it. To be poor in spirit isn't weakness. It's honesty. Really, when Jesus says to be poor in spirit, he says, you already are poor in spirit without me. I just need you to recognize what you are without me.9:44And when you do that, when you look in the mirror and you say to God, God, without your son, Jesus, I am nothing. Look what he says to you. He says, blessed are you. For what? He says, the kingdom of heaven is yours. Blessed are the poor in spirit for the kingdom of heaven is yours.10:12When you admit you are spiritually bankrupt without Christ is the moment that he begins to deposit into your bank. And that's the paradox of the gospel. The hard part of the gospel is the first step. And the first step is realizing that you can't take the first step without Jesus. And many in the world will go to hell because they are refusing to take the first step of surrender.10:40The most difficult step to receiving Christ is the step of saying, God, I am the poor. I am the needy. It's to say to God, I am spiritually bankrupt. The nephew of Constantine, a man named Julian. He wasn't Julian the Great. Actually, the world knows him as Julian the Apostate because he was Rome's last pagan emperor.11:09Somehow he found out about the Beatitudes. And so he had this tongue-in-cheek mantra. He said, I'm going to confiscate all of the possessions of the Christians. I'm going to make them poor in spirit. That way they might gain heaven. And so as he was illegally confiscating the possessions of Christians in the Roman Empire, he was saying, oh, now you are rich, aren't you? Because he knew what Jesus had taught.11:40And I think the world is still to this day slandering the name of Christ, mocking the name of God, saying, what's with you Christians? You say you're rich in heaven. Well, let's take all your things and let's see how rich you really are. And Jesus would say to the world, take everything that we have. Because there is a treasure that the world cannot take away when you are poor in spirit.12:06This is the truth. And this is what our Dominican team would tell you as they came back from the Dominican yesterday. You can have the whole world at your grasp and be spiritually poor. And you could have nothing to your name and be spiritually rich in Jesus Christ. And I don't know about you, but I would rather be rich eternally than rich today than what the world offers.12:34So here's your rich life, number one. True riches begin the moment you admit you have nothing in Christ. And then you say, God, you are all that I need and you are more than enough. The rich life begins with poverty in spirit. But there's a second richness that Jesus offers you and me in verse 4.13:00Blessed are those who mourn. So he says, not only should you be poor in spirit, but you need to walk around crying all day. When you do, you will be comforted. Now Jesus is not talking to those who have just lost a loved one. And we use this at funerals because we believe as Christians that the resurrection changes the conversation around the grave. Because it does. But Jesus is speaking to those who are looking at the world and they see that it is fundamentally broken.13:29People who look and say, God, why don't you just come quick? Because I don't like the world that I see. I don't like the life that I see. And I don't like the vulgarity that I hear. I don't like people stabbing each other on the back and canceling each other. God, I'm just tired of the world. And it breaks my heart. And to you, God would say, well, Josh, that breaks my heart too.13:59It's like Jesus weeping over Jerusalem and lamenting that they would not come to faith. And if you've ever had that desire, to mourn is simply this. It is faithfulness in tears. If you've ever looked at your life or looked at the world and looked at sin and you said, God, I hate this. I'm tired of the world. God would say, well, Josh, I hate sin also.14:28I'm tired of the world. But if you'd come near, I will comfort you. Paul actually calls God, in 2 Corinthians, he says, he is the God of all comfort. And if you've ever looked at your life and you said, I am just tired, I'm worn, I'm frazzled. God, where are you? The rich life promise to those who mourn is what? Blessed are those who mourn for you will be comforted. In a world that wounds your soul, God's comfort is not just a promise.14:58It's his presence. What a great joy of the rich life in Christ. In a world that wounds, Jesus brings comfort. But there's a third richness here. Verse 5, he said, not only blessed are the poor, blessed are those who mourn. He says, blessed are the humble or the meek. And meekness is this, it's the strength to stay quiet when you have been wronged.15:25Although you have the right to speak up. Meekness says, you know what, God, vengeance is yours. God, you have Josh's back more than Josh has Josh's back. So I'm tapping out. Are you a meek person? What do you do when your name is dragged through the mud?15:54What do you do when people say things behind your back or slander you on social media? What do you do if you don't participate in the joke or the dirty joke or the vulgarity? And you know that to walk away means that people will say things as you walk away. Meekness is to say, God, I trust you more than I trust myself. God, give me the strength to stay quiet.16:22And maybe you need to pray, God, if you have the power to shut the lion's mouths for Daniel, would you just simply shut Josh's mouth? Give me meekness. Because the meek and the humble will inherit the earth. Meek people don't have to clap back at the world. Because we have a father who thundered from heaven.16:51It is finished. Can you imagine a community like this? Can you imagine a church where the world gets so mad? They say, the more we slander you people, the more quiet you become. We were reading scripture at our house this week. And we're reading through the end of Luke. And it just hit me that when Pilate accuses Jesus, are you king of the Jews? What does Jesus do?17:21He says, you have said it. And then when they continue to push, Jesus remains quiet. Why? Because blessed are the meek. For they will inherit the earth. If you want to live radical faith, keep your mouth quiet when the world is running theirs. We don't have to clap back. Because blessed are the meek.17:51They will inherit the earth. That's rich. Number four. We have richness in satisfaction. Richness in satisfaction. Look at verse six. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Psalm 42, verse two. The sons of Korah cried out. They said, Lord, our soul thirsts after you as the deer pants for water. So our soul longeth after you.18:19That's the picture of the Psalms. This is not religious formality. It's holy desperation. It's saying, God, I want you more than any treasure on earth. God, give me that thirst. Give me that hunger. This is the kind of hunger that Jesus blesses. You see, we live in a world that is stuffed with distraction. There's a chance that some of you are playing solitaire right now.18:50You think that I think that you're in Matthew 5 on your phone. But you're playing the Oregon Trail. Try not to get dysentery. As you cross Chimney Rock. Because we live in a world that distracts. And the world says, well, Josh, if you would eat this, then it'll be what your soul needs. But the calories of the world are empty calories. The world stuffs you but leaves you empty.19:21Jesus is the opposite. He says, if you hunger and you thirst, I will leave you full. This is the blessed life. Prophet Amos, in his day, warned about a famine. He said, there will be a day where there will be a famine. Not in bread and not in food, but there will be a famine in the word of God. And may we never have that in our lives. That's why we together are trying to memorize the word.19:52That's why we are trying to put Philippians 1, 6 in our hearts and our mouths. Because when we hunger and thirst, we will be filled. Where God says to us, I am confident of this, that he who began a good work is faithful to carry it. When? How far? To completion. Listen, we're not complete yet. But the joy is one day I will be.20:23You ain't seen nothing yet. Wait till God has completed me. I long for that day. That's why we're putting God's word in our, we're treasuring God's word in our heart that we might not what? We might not sin against the Lord. That's why, church, together we have said, let us seek first the kingdom of God. And what? And his righteousness. And all these things will be given unto you.20:52Because that's what Jesus says to us, right? Blessed are those who hunger and thirst because of what? You will be, when you hunger and you thirst, you will be what? He doesn't say you will scrape by. He doesn't say I will give you crumbs. Like God doesn't give us Vienna sausage when we're hungry. He doesn't say here's potted meat. No, he says here's steak.21:22I will fill you. And I don't know about you in a world of spiritual potted meat. But I want the good stuff. And the good stuff comes when we hunger and we thirst for righteousness. Let me ask you, what does your heart long for today? What do you, what do you, what do you seek? Blessed are those rich life who hunger and thirst for righteousness because you will be filled.21:50If you hunger and thirst today, you will be filled in Christ. And so the first four beatitudes are lead us to, lead us low, right? Spiritually reflecting on ourselves. And the last several beatitudes kind of lead us high. Saying this is, this is what Christ does now in you. So now let's, let's see another richness of Christ. Being rich in mercy.22:19Verse seven. Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy. So mercy is one of the most beautiful words in the world. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. And I don't know about your life, but I am thankful for a God who does not give me what I deserve. Mercy leans in when others run away.22:50Mercy is looking at someone at the worst and saying, I'll give you a chance to start again. Mercy leans in when others run away. This is the mercy of Christ. And to be rich in mercy is to be generous with grace. To be rich in mercy means that you forgive others debts as you have been forgiven. To be rich in mercy means that we release grudges.23:20When we could hang on to them. When you have been wronged for righteousness sakes. And you were wronged because you were in the right. But mercy says, I will not hold that against you. Because my heavenly father has released bigger things in my life. To be rich in mercy means that you hand out second chances like you've been given one yourself. And most likely I would say this, if you are not quick to mercy means that you probably have not received mercy personally.23:51The most forgiving people I know in my life are the ones who have been forgiven the most. The people who have drank deeply from the mercy of Christ are the ones who get it. Because they realize where they came from. This is what it means to be rich in mercy.24:20To be rich, I would simply say the rich life in Christ. Show mercy as your father does. And this is what happens. Look at verse 7. Blessed are the merciful. Why? Because they will receive. So when we give out mercy as our heavenly father does, what do we receive? We receive it. That's the rich life that I want.24:50I never want God's mercy to end with me and for me. Well, there's another rich life in Christ. Look at verse 8. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Now, pure in heart does not mean perfection. Because as I look out among the church at Bethel, there's not a perfect person in here. And so if Jesus was saying, blessed are the perfect, he's not talking to us.25:20But that's not what he says. Blessed are the pure in heart. To be pure in heart means to have a heart that is whole, undivided, and all in for God. It's doing the right thing and wanting the right thing at the same time. To be pure in heart means to be a person of integrity. To say that my internal constitution meets what the external looks like.25:50And you say, well, does that even matter? Yes, every bridge you cross going home, I pray, is a bridge of integrity. Because I want the internal constitution of that bridge to match the external disposition of the bridge. To be pure in heart means that you live a life that says, God, I don't care what other people say about me because you know everything.26:19And I don't have any secrets in the closet, so I don't really care what they say because I am living a life of purity. And this is what happens when we live that way. Look at verse 8. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will what? When you live with heart, soul, mind bent towards Christ, God says you get to see things that the world doesn't get to see.26:47A life of faith gets to see things about the kingdom that a life of impurity will never see. This is rich. And maybe today you say, well, I don't see much about the kingdom of God. Check your heart. Are you living an impure life? Because sin will cloud your vision to the rich life that Jesus wants.27:15Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see. God, when your heart is entirely his, your eyes will begin to see what only grace can reveal. I want to see those things in my life. That's richness in Christ. And that's enough, by the way. But Jesus says there's two more things he wants to add to us.27:43He says, blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called sons of God. Notice that Jesus doesn't say peace keepers. He says peacemakers. There's a difference. Peace keepers are those who avoid conflict at any cost. Peacemakers are those who step into the temptation with the gospel grace. We live in a world that says, well, you need to be a peace keeper.28:11And here's what we know. We know that the gospel is a stumbling block. That there are some times that peace can't be found unless someone gives their life to Jesus Christ. And so when we share the good news of Jesus, we are making peace. We are saying this is the rich life you can have. Blessed are the peacemakers. Why or how? What's the promise? They will be called sons of God.28:42You see, Jesus doesn't leave us comfortable or conflict averse. He wants people who are spiritually brave. And if you promise God, God, I will be a peacemaker. I will do the right thing no matter the cost. Here's his promise to you. He says, well, I will call you mine. You will be my son.29:12You will be my daughter. We live in a world that says, keep peace. Keep quiet. Leave me alone. Your sin is your sin. My sin is my sin. It doesn't matter what we believe. As long as we believe something, God will understand in the end. That's not peace. That is a lie from the devil that sends us to an eternal damnation. Peacemaking is us gathering together in the name of Jesus Christ and to say, not to us.29:36Not to us, but to your name be the glory. And when we make peace in Christ, he calls you beloved. He says, you are my son. You are my daughter. Be the one who brings peace where it costs you something. And watch your father call you his own.30:05Now, we're already rich, but let me give you the cherry on top of the rich life. And it can be whatever cake you want. Some of you are dreaming of a coconut cake and bleh. I can't stand coconuts. I'm going to put cherry on the blackberry cobbler with some ice cream. This is the cherry, no matter what flavor you desire.30:37Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake. For the kingdom of heaven is theirs. In a world that values compromise. In a world that rewards cowardice. The kingdom of heaven rewards the persecuted.31:04And I know what you're thinking. You're saying, well, this is not good news. Like, I don't want to be persecuted. And Jesus says, it'll be okay. They persecuted the prophets. You're in good company. I'm like, I don't, I still don't like that. But God reminds us that being persecuted for righteousness is like a badge of fidelity.31:28It's the quiet echo of faithfulness in our lives. From the prophets to the martyrs and to, yes, even Jesus himself. Now, let me just pause there. Jesus doesn't say, blessed are you when you're persecuted for being weird. He didn't say, well, just bring your Bible mug cup around to work and let them laugh at you.31:55He didn't say, just wear the crazy Christian shirt. No, he says, blessed are you when you're persecuted for righteousness sake. For meekness. For hungering after righteousness. For peacemaking. You see, sometimes we create this subculture of Christianity. And we think, well, if I am persecuted for the subculture of Christianity, then that's righteousness.32:24And that's not what God says. I want to be persecuted for doing the right thing every time. No matter the cost. Blessed are the persecuted when they suffer for Christ. And church, I don't think the prayer for us today is, God, just keep us from difficulty.32:52If you keep us from persecution, then we are sort of in the back door of persecution and then we're still blessed, right? That's not the right prayer to pray. The right prayer to pray is, God, thank you that we live in a place today where we can gather. And I'm not worried about the police busting down this door. God, thank you that we can gather with brothers and sisters.33:22But, Father, tomorrow, if we worry that someone is going to come arrest us because we gather in the name of Jesus Christ, God, give us the strength to show up. Because I will do what God wants me to do no matter the cost. And here's the promise. When you're persecuted, Jesus says, don't lower your head, don't hang your head, but you lift your head up.33:52Because blessed are you when you are persecuted for righteousness sake. For you will inherit the kingdom. This is the rich life in Christ. So let me ask you, if you were to make a list this morning of your rich life.34:20And I said, give me a top five things. You know how to, don't speak, just write it in your mind. Write it in your note. Quit playing organ trail. Just write it in your note section. You have permission. What would your rich life look like? For you, that might be, I just want to retire one day. I'm tired of working for the man. But if that rich life doesn't include God, free me up from a nine to five so I can do more for you from five to nine.34:49Maybe that's not the richness you really desire. If you're rich and says, God, if I can just get this promotion, if I can just get into this program, if I can just get into this college, if my child can just get into this place, they can just make this travel team. God, if I could just have this, then my life would be rich.35:19I think Jesus would say to you and to me today, Josh, the world is offering you empty calories. They're filling you, but it's not going to sustain you. Would you pray this morning, God, create a new list in my life. I want to be rich with the things of heaven. I want to be rich in that which brings Christ joy.35:47I want my life to look like this. I want to speak for a moment to those that you're frustrated right now at me because you know your life doesn't measure up. And there's a tendency for you to leave here frustrated at me again because you're going to leave here without Christ.36:11Malcolm Muggeridge once said, he said, the horrors of the Christian life is not that it has been tried and found wanting. It is that it has been found difficult and left untried. I don't want you to mishear me. The Christian life is not easy. It is not simple.36:42It is a life that can be filled with persecution. A life where you are taking up your cross and following Christ. It might require you to drop your nets, to leave your father, to follow him. But it's a life that is worth it. And today, if you are spiritually frustrated or you look at your life and you say, God, this is not what I have signed up for.37:06Is Christ a part of your rich life? And if not, would you, for the first time today, simply say, God, for the first time, I want to be poor in spirit. God, I'm sorry that I'm a sinner. That's called repentance. God, forgive me. In a world that says, apologize, Christians speak the language of forgiveness.37:35I believe that Jesus died on the cross. I believe Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount. I believe he lived a sinless life and he rose again. And God, I believe your promise today that whoever calls upon the name of Jesus will be saved. God, for the first time, Father, I want my rich life to be in Christ, rooted in him. And if you seek the Lord today in that way, remember the promise.38:05Blessed are those who hunger and thirst. Why? Because you will be filled. Would you run to Christ this morning and find that he will fill you as no one else can in your life? Blessed are you. Just think about that for a moment.38:38The God of the universe calls you blessed in Jesus Christ. Have you ever fathomed that thought? We sing, blessed be the name of the Lord. But in Christ, through the atoning work of his son, and by the spirit that lives within you, you and I are called blessed.39:06This is a rich life indeed. Father God.← Previous in MatthewMatthew – Follow Me, Galilee (Matthew 4:12-25)Next in Matthew →Matthew – The Sermon on the MountMore sermons on Matthew →
