MANsights

“God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.”  Matthew 5:11-12 The persecution of the righteous and the Kingdom of God just seem to go hand-in-hand. We shouldn’t take it personal when we are being mistreated for righteousness sake. Truth be told, it isn’t personal it is spiritual. The enemy and his unbelieving children are [...]

“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.”  Matthew 5:9 It is good to be reminded of what it means to be a converted Christian. When you are converted in the Kingdom of God, you constantly become more like Jesus. This is what Jesus meant when he said peacemakers shall be called the children of God. Since, Jesus is the Prince of Peace, his followers are peacemakers too.  God’s children take on His character. They have His DNA and look like Him. Kingdom citizens bring the kingdom wherever they go. This means Christian’s bring [...]

“Yet we who have this spiritual treasure are like common clay pots, in order to show that the supreme power belongs to God, not to us. We are often troubled, but not crushed; sometimes in doubt, but never in despair; there are many enemies, but we are never without a friend; and though badly hurt at times, we are not destroyed. At all times we carry in our mortal bodies the death of Jesus, so that his life also may be seen in our bodies. Throughout our lives we are always in danger of death for Jesus' sake, in [...]

“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”  Matthew 5:8 When Jesus measures a person, he looks at their heart, not at their waist. The heart is the way the bible talks about the real you. When we talk about the heart, we are talking about the whole person: body, spirit, and soul.  The “pure in heart,” is a metaphor used to describe people that are redeemed through faith in Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross for the sins of the world, He became an organ donor. He gave His clean heart in exchange for [...]

“Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy”  Matthew5:7 In the “Sermon on the Mount,” Jesus describes people who are blessed in His kingdom, who are normally thought to be unfortunate in this world. Jesus mentions that some of the blessed people are those who are merciful people. Those who are merciful are caring and compassionate. They prefer forgiveness over punishment. These kinds of individuals are usually trusting and kind by nature. Often time, they get a raw deal when they treat other people so good. Usually, when you treat people better than they deserve, others think you [...]

“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.”  Matthew 5:6 In today’s world, when we call someone “thirsty”, it is usually used in a negative way to describe someone as desperate. These types of people want something so bad, that they are willing to do anything to get it. They do not care what anybody thinks of them either. We usually look at such a person as being sad and pitiful. We say, “Man, they sure are thirsty.” In Jesus’ day it almost meant the same thing too. Being hungry and thirsty [...]