Episode 873: The Sermon of Sermons - Part 1

Each of the beatitudes has two parts—a pronouncement of blessing and a reason for that blessing. But notice in Chapter 5 verses 3 and 10 that the first and last reasons are the same: “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. By opening and closing the list of beatitudes this way, Jesus is telling His disciples that all of these blessings, from the first to the last, are of the kingdom. meekness, mourning, and peacemaking, for example, are blessed ways of life only if God’s kingdom is indeed coming. So, too, Jesus’ promises have weight only in a kingdom where He reigns.

But there’s something else that distinguishes the first and last beatitudes from the rest. While the others are all future tense. We see this in verses 4-6—“they shall be comforted. . . . for they shall possess the land. . . . for they shall have their fill.” —the first and last two beatitudes are in the present tense. In verses 3,10,11 They read, “for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” “for your reward is very great in heaven” Here, Jesus is saying something that is hinted at throughout the Gospels: God’s kingdom is already here, and it also hasn’t yet arrived.