28.27a The on the Mount—The (:1–12; Luke 6:20–26) (Although the Matthew and Luke were probably given at different times, because of the similarity of the passages, we are combining them in the following six stories.) “Check” it out; opinion, inference, supposed conversation, or fact one can verify follows [. . .] indicates a remark to the teacher that usually should not be read. It also indicates answers to questions. Visuals and Tools:  Pictures and other visuals found at the end of this lesson. Please give credit to the sources of pictures.  Check “Activities” and “Handwork” found below for additional materials.  Other resources are CEF-produced flannelgraph from the Life of and Children’s Ministry International, Bible Building Blocks, “How Can I Know I Will Live Forever?' Series D, Lesson 6. Bible Time Tips and Terms to Teach: Vocabulary words are enlarged for flashcards at the end of this lesson. Print, cut out, and glue to card stock, or just print on colorful cardstock.  blessed: to have God’s favor; to be happy—a be attitude  beatitudes: blessings promised  humble/humility: the opposite of being proud/pride  righteousness: doing or being right Matthew’s (listed first) and Luke’s Accounts Correlated (NKJV): 1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: 20 Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” 20 “Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.” 24 “But woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation.” 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.” 21 “Blessed are you who weep now, For you shall laugh.” 5 “Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.” 6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.” 21 “Blessed are you who hunger now, For you shall be filled.” 25 “Woe to you who are full, For you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, For you shall mourn and weep.” 7 “Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.” 8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.” 9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.” 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.” 22 “Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man’s sake.” 12 “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” 23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.” 26 “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets.” Introduction/Review: [locate on map] was Jesus’ base of operation. It was here that He healed the demon-possessed man in the synagogue, Peter’s mother-in-law, and the crowds of people who came to Peter’s door. It was near here on the Sea of that He called the four fishermen for the third time. Who were those fishermen? Name them in two sets of brothers. [Simon Peter and Andrew, James and John.] Story: (Many thoughts below are from CMI’s lesson cited above.) Everywhere Jesus went crowds followed Him. After the miraculous catch of fish, Jesus went up on a mountain and seated Himself in order to preach to the multitudes. Bible scholars have no idea where this mountain is located except that it was likely in the vicinity of Capernaum. This picture [refer to the photo at the end of this lesson] shows a likely place; although it looks rather like a hill than a mountain. Remember that the was almost 700 feet below sea level; any land around it rose rather steeply. Here Jesus preached a sermon called the , that many people think is the finest proclamation that Jesus made during His lifetime. It takes up three chapters in the book of Matthew. Luke 6 records twenty verses that are similar to Matthew’s account, but we believe they were spoken at another time. Nevertheless, we will include what Luke wrote in these stories—in six stories. Beatitudes states that Jesus taught His disciples as He delivered the Sermon on the Mount. However, the word disciples could easily include more than just the first four men whom Jesus called. Rather, perhaps hundreds of followers of Jesus, disciples, were in the multitudes. Jesus began His sermon with eight beatitudes. What are beatitudes? [Blessings.] What does beatitude mean? [Being happy with an inner satisfaction—a be attitude.] These are not steps in getting saved from sin; rather, they show attitudes and actions that God wants in the lives of those who already believe in Jesus Christ as Saviour. [Teacher, use the prepared visualized statements found at the end of this lesson as you teach each beatitude. #1 “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” “Poor in spirit” means to realize you are a sinner. It is to come before God in humility. Generally, it is the “poor of this world” who are “rich in faith” (James 2:5). “To be poor in spirit is to have a humble opinion of ourselves; to be sensible that we are sinners, and have no righteousness of our own; to be willing to be saved only by the rich grace and mercy of God; to be willing to be where God places us, to bear what he lays on us, to go where he bids us, and to die when he commands; to be willing to be in his hands, and to feel that we deserve no favour from him. It is opposed to pride, and vanity, and ambition (JFB in Online Bible). “For theirs is—already is—the kingdom of heaven.” They are citizens of God’s kingdom. #2 “Blessed are those who mourn.” Mourning includes being sorry for sin and repenting. When I have sinned, I should mourn and turn away from that sin. In mourning, this beatitude states that I “shall be comforted.” What a blessing to be comforted by God. #3 “Blessed are the meek.” Many people think that because meek sounds like weak that it means weak. No, meekness means being willing to be taught, being willing to be corrected, and being willing to obey. It has the idea of humility in it. Those who listen to God and obey Him will have a great reward: they will “inherit the earth” (CMI, p. D6-6). #4 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” To hunger and thirst for righteousness means to long to be more like Jesus—living the right way, God’s way. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness “shall be filled, or satisfied.” #5 “Blessed are the merciful.” This was the verse my husband preached the night the Lord led us to take two young girls into our home. The English Standard Version of the Bible consistently translates mercy as loving kindness. This translation defines the word well, for mercy is to show love to others. This beatitude states that those who show mercy will receive mercy. #6 “Blessed are the pure in heart.” To be pure is to be clean. Can I purify my own heart? No, I need Jesus’ blood to cleanse me from all sin. He then makes me pure in my thinking, my desires, and in what I do. “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23b). The result of being pure in heart is to “see God.” I am eager for that! #7 “Blessed are the peacemakers.” What is a peacemaker? We can think of it in two ways: (1) To tell others about Christ. If they receive Him as Saviour, peace is made between them and God. (2) To seek peace between two offended parties. “They shall be called sons of God” is the result of peacemaking. #8 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.” Being persecuted because of righteousness means being mistreated because you obey God. This beatitude is the lengthiest. It goes on to say, “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.” This doesn’t sound very pleasant, does it? No one really enjoys being mistreated; however, this beatitude continues, “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” I read of people in other parts of our world who are being severely mistreated just because they own a Bible. These people are true believers, and they firmly practice “rejoice and be exceedingly glad,” for they know that “great is their reward in heaven.” The kingdom of heaven is theirs. Lessons from this lesson:  Jesus is God: He said, “I came to fulfill the law” (Matthew 5:17, 18).  Live, through God’s Spirit, by the be-attitudes. Activities:  Play dough: bees; happy faces; sober faces  Display and discuss the map found at end of this lesson from Voice of the Martyrs that shows the extent of persecution around the world.  Sing “The Blessings from God” from http://larryholdermusic.org/godcares.html found below. (At his site the composer gives free access to his worthwhile musical for young voices, “God Cares for You,” which is based on the Sermon on the Mount.)  Sing “The Beatitudes” song found below.  For an active game, play Hide and Go Seek in a designated area. One child is blindfolded; the other children “buzz” around the blindfolded player who tries to reach and catch the buzzing bees (http://www.sermons4kids.com/bee_attitudes_group_activities.htm).  Before class print and prepare take-home booklets for this story. The online source for ordering or downloading for $12.99 is https://www.carsondellosa.com/products/0499--New-Testament-Take-Home- Bible-Stories-Resource-Book-0499#/?book%20media%20type=f389e45b92884d48844baaf09d49e3c5. The book is less expensive at other sites, but those sites do not offer the ebook.  Review questions: (Game: Print, back with paper towel, and cut out “The Blessed Bee-Attitudes” bees and hive found below. Place a bee on the flannel board when a question is answered correctly.) True (T) or False (F): Correct the answer if it is false. (The first five questions were copied from http://www.sundayschoolsources.com/lessons/blessed.htm). 1. Jesus taught many people while on earth. [T—thousands.] 2. Matthew 5 records the Belattitudes. [F—Beatitudes.] 3. Jesus taught that those who were merciful would be given mercy. [T.] 4. A peacemaker settles arguments by out-shouting others. [F—reconciling; speaking softly.] 5. Jesus said His people would never suffer. [F—rejoice when persecuted.] 6. To be meek means to be weak. [F—to be willing to be taught or to obey.] 7. Mercy is loving kindness. [T.] 8. Any person can purify his or her own heart. [F—Everyone needs the blood of Jesus to cleanse his or her heart.] 9. The lengthiest beatitude is “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” [F—“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.”] 10. The persecuted will be blessed because “great is their reward in heaven.” [T.] Handwork:  Color the beatitudes page found below. [I apologize for the style of the cross.] Memory Verse[s]:  Luke 6:26— “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, For so did their fathers to the false prophets.”  Review John 1:1–18 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. 6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. 9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. blessed

beatitudes

humble

righteousness http://www.bibleplaces.com/mtbeatitudes/ Possible site for the “Mount of Beatitudes” http://www.jesuschristsavior.net/Sermon.jpeg

https://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2011/09/sermon-on-mount-in-film.html https://hfa.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/RestrictedWorldMapA4-2015-LowRes-copy.jpg https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/12/71/7a/12717a68796db0dd1aeb2cc5de93234a.jpg Beatitude Description Beatitude Exhibited

#1 Poor in spirit  Realizing you are a sinner

#2 Those who mourn  Being sorry for sin and repenting

#3 The meek  Willing to be taught, corrected, and to obey

#4 Those who hunger and  Longing to live God’s thirst after righteousness way

#5 The merciful  Showing loving kindness

#6 The pure in heart  100% for God

#7 The peacemakers  Telling others about Jesus; reconciling

#8 The persecuted for  Being joyful when righteousness mistreated for Christ’s sake (CMI, p. D6-7, slightly altered) The Blessings of the Beatitudes

#1 Theirs is the kingdom of

heaven.

#2 They shall be comforted.

#3 They shall inherit the earth.

#4 They shall be filled/satisfied.

#5 They will receive mercy.

#6 They shall see God. #7 They shall be called sons

of God. #8 Their reward is great in

heaven.

Beatitudes Song by Patsy Stevens (Tune: “Faith of Our Fathers”) Verse 1: Jesus said blessings will come to you If you are humble, kind and true. The poor in spirit, the kingdom is theirs And those who mourn will be comforted.

Chorus: Then shall the meek inherit the earth Righteously hunger, you'll be filled.

Verse 2: Blessed the merciful, mercy receive. The pure in heart, their God will see. Peace-makers will be called sons of God. Persecuted for righteousness’ sake

Chorus: These will receive the kingdom of God. Rejoice for your reward is great. http://gardenofpraise.com/bibsong40.htm

https://www.gospelgrabbag.com/2017/08/14/bible-beatitudes-happiness-blessed-bee-atitudes-post-present-activity-sharing-time-family-home-evening/