SEVEN CHARACTERISTICS OF GOD

Phil 2:5, Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

To discover some of the attitude of Jesus, let's study the beatitudes and parables about the kingdom of God.

POOR IN SPIRIT

Mat 5:3, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

If we want God to rule as king in our heart, there must be no other rulers there. That's what pride is. It is when we put faith in something besides God.

Pro 16:18, Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. 19 It is better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud.

"Lord, when we are wrong, make us willing to change. And when we are right, make us easy to live with." (Peter Marshall)

Sammy Morris, a devoted Christian from Africa who came to America to go to school. Although his pathway to service for Christ was not easy, his difficulties never deterred him. Perhaps this was because he had learned genuine humility. One incident that showed this occurred when he arrived at Taylor University in Indiana. He was asked by the school's president what room he wanted. Sammy replied, "If there is a room nobody wants, give it to me." Later the president commented, "I turned away, for my eyes were full of tears. I was asking myself whether I was willing to take what nobody else wanted."

Was Jesus poor in Spirit? Yes, He didn't come as a dictator to make us obey - He leaves the choice to us. The people who are rich in the kingdom of this world stockpile their wealth with little thought of anyone else. The Father, on the other hand, in His poverty of spirit, continually empties himself for our sake. Coming down to be born a man and give His life on the cross for our sake was the ultimate expression of this spirit.

THE SOWER

Mat 13:18, "Hear then the parable of the sower. 19 "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. 20 "And the one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word, and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 "And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23 "And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty."

The areas of our lives where we have pride are where we have rocky places and thorns and will not allow the word to take root.

EPHESUS

Rev 2:1, "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:... 2 'I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot endure evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; 3 and you have perseverance and have endured for My name's sake, and have not grown weary. 4 'But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 'Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lampstand out of its place-- unless you repent. 6 'Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 'He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.'

The Ephesians began to be lifted up in religious pride and were no longer poor in spirit. They didn't fully realize their need for God any longer.

Poorness of spirit is the intense desire to give yourself away, a passion to continually empty yourself for the sake of others. That is what that first love is. The person who is first in love has the drive and desire to empty himself for the one he loves. He'll do almost anything for the one he loves, regardless of the price. Serving is an honor rather than a sacrifice.

MOURNING AND SUFFERING

Mat 5:4, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

2 Cor 1:3, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; 4 who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

The prosperity gospel of today teaches against this part of God's Spirit. They even teach it is from satan. Like the tares, for a time God's people must mourn and suffer to bring about the will of God.

1 Cor 12:25, that there should be no division in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. 26 And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

TARES

Mat 13:24, He presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 "But while men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares also among the wheat, and went away. 26 "But when the wheat sprang up and bore grain, then the tares became evident also. 27 "And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' 28 "And he said to them, 'An enemy has done this!' And the slaves said to him, 'Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?' 29 "But he said, 'No; lest while you are gathering up the tares, you may root up the wheat with them. 30 'Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

When Jesus returns suffering will be ended.

SMYRNA

Rev 2:8, "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this: 9 'I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 'Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

MEEK AND GENTLE

Mat 5:5, (KJV) Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

Mat 5:5, (NASB) "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

Gal 6:1, Brethren, even if a man is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, lest you too be tempted. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and thus fulfill the law of Christ.

Jesus was gentle and meek. To be meek and gentle is to be obedient to God. Being stubborn would be the opposite.

MAT 11:29, "Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.

The meek and gentle are like mustard seed, they may not be noticed, but they have great effect.

MUSTARD SEED

Mat 13:31, He presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; 32 and this is smaller than all other seeds; but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants, and becomes a tree, so that THE BIRDS OF THE AIR come and NEST IN ITS BRANCHES."

HUNGER AND THIRST AFTER RIGHTEOUSNESS

Mat 5:6, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

We will have what we go after.

One day in Florida, As far as the eye could see, orange trees were loaded with fruit. But when someone ordered orange juice with their eggs. The waitress said, "I'm sorry," "I can't bring you orange juice. Our machine is broken." They were surrounded by millions of oranges, What was the problem? No juice? Hardly. We were surrounded by thousands of gallons of juice. The problem was they had become dependent on a machine to get it.

Christians are sometimes like that. They may be surrounded by Bibles in their homes, but if something should happen to the Sunday morning preaching service, they would have no nourishment for their souls. The problem is not a lack of spiritual food--but that many Christians haven't grown enough to know how to get it for themselves.

What is in the heart will grow like leaven.

LEAVEN

Mat 13:33, He spoke another parable to them, "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three pecks of meal, until it was all leavened."

MERCIFUL

Mat 5:7, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Even the Lord's Prayer tells us to be merciful.

Mat 6:9, "Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. 10 'Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11 'Give us this day our daily bread. 12 'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 'And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.' 14 "For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 "But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.

HEB 2:17, Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.

We should show mercy to all - some will hear. Buy the whole field - not just the treasure.

HIDDEN TREASURE

Mat 13:44, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field.

PURE IN HEART

Mat 5:8, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

1TI 1:5, But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

When we are pure in heart all of our faith is in Christ.

PEARL

Mat 13:45, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, 46 and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

PEACEMAKERS

Mat 5:9, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

We become peacemakers by breaking down barriers between us and God and between people.

Eph 2:13, But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, 15 by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, 16 and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. 17 AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO YOU WHO WERE FAR AWAY, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR; 18 for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

DRAGNET

Mat 13:47, "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; 48 and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. 49 "So it will be at the end of the age; the angels shall come forth, and take out the wicked from among the righteous, 50 and will cast them into the furnace of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

When we work for all as we should, we will realize that things we are blessed with are to enable us to meet the needs of others - not to horde. When we become rich it may be a sign we have started to horde and quit looking for where we can help others. Then like Loadicea, even though we are rich, to the ones who we refuse to help we are the same as poor.

LAODICEA

Rev 3:14, "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write:.. 15 'I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I would that you were cold or hot. 16 'So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. 17 'Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, 18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. 19 'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent.

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