MATTHEW 5:7-10 Lesson # 2
By Faith, It Is Possible to Please God.

I. Introduction:
A. Looking For Human Love.
One of the greatest things in life is to be loyally loved: to have someone really love you and not leave when the bloom of romance or fascination is over. We would all like to be excessively handsome, or a tremendous athlete, always successful, then we might always be loved.
It would be great if those of you in school walked to get lunch, and as you walked by, the member of the opposite sex swooned and started to hyperventilate just because you passed by. What if you set hearts racing just because you walked into view. What a life! Huh?
There is a good chance you would not be loved.
RQ Did you ever realize that those who have money really wonder if they are ever lovable if they did not have money?
RQ Is not a rich or famous male vulnerable to never really finding out if someone loves him for just who he is?
RQ Did you realize how hard it is to separate the gold-diggers from those who sincerely love you?
RQ Would you be loved if the health, success, money, or looks were gone?
Note: Do you see why the marriage vows include: “for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health”. Whoever, penned those vows knew a great deal about love.
Q How do we know if we are truly loved by someone?
An = The ancient Israelites knew the difference between “love” and the “love they really needed”, this quality was so important that they had a special word for it: “Hesed”. They had other words for love, like “ahav”, but the word “hesed” meant more. It can be loosely translated: “covenant or loyal love”. God had committed Himself to them and so His love was “Hesed”, it was consistent, it would always be there.
B. Looking For How To Love God.
Q What about loving God? How does God know we really love Him, or are we only doing things because we fear Hell, or want some blessing?
An = There are several approaches among Christians. Some folks think that if you have “deep religious emotions” that this is what proves you truly love God. They will criticize churches or individuals who do not have the same deep emotional experiences that they have as “dead”. I must admit that such experiences are amazing and good, but we have to be careful.
Q Do such feelings quickly fade? How many of you have come back from camp as a kid all pumped up about God only to have the feelings quickly disappear?
RQ Is there another way to truly love God?
Q Do we really love God when we do the right rituals or believe the correct doctrines? An = We should have emotions and we should do the right rituals and believe the true doctrines. However, that is not love, but could be how we were raised or worse a subtle form of manipulation on our part.
>>>> Read Hebrews 11:6
Q It makes sense that if we loved God we would like to please Him, so if faith is necessary to please Him, how do we develop faith?
An = I think God has a way of making it hard to be loyal to Him. Sometimes He seems so emotionally far away. Sometimes we do our part, we are loyal, we go to church, we serve in the church, we are moral, we believe in biblical doctrines, but it does not seem to help us get ahead in our lives. Some times you help in the church and all you get is criticism!!!
Q Have you ever served your best only to be picked apart by others in the church?
Q Why does God allow that? Where is He? Why does He sometimes feel so far? Why no success despite our religious actions? Why no appreciation from God’s own people?
An = The key is the word: “Faith”.
RQ Do we love God when the emotions are gone? Do we love God when it does not seem to get us ahead? Do we continue to serve when all we get is flack?
Note: Let me give you three simple ways to help your faith grow. I know they are good, because they are not my ideas, but come from the very lips of Jesus Himself. Turn with me to Matthew 5:7.

II. Developing Love, Developing Faith, By Loyal Obedience.
A. Being Merciful by Faith: Matthew 5:7.
>>>> Have someone read Matthew 5:7
Note: God says if we are merciful, then we will receive mercy.
Q Is this true? Aren’t we really tempted to think: “He who is merciful is a chump”. “He who is merciful is naive”.
An = In contrast, Jesus said, Blessed are you. Notice the motivation that He gave! See the reason He gave: God will reward you.
>>>> Have someone read Psalms 41:1-3.
Q But will God really come through?
An = You won’t immediately know. There is usually a delay, and maybe it will take years, maybe not even in this life for the reward to come.
>>>> Have someone read Matthew 21:14-15.
Q How did these people respond to the wonderful deeds Jesus had performed?
An = They were indignant! Even Jesus Himself had experienced what has happened to you in the way of criticism: healing the blind and the lame, in the very temple courts of God, brought Him reproach.
Note: How we love God and prove to Him and ourselves that we love Him is to be merciful and trust He will show mercy to us.
B. Being Pure In Heart: Matthew 5:8.
>>>> Have someone read Matthew 5:8.
Q What does “pure in heart” mean?
An = Some scholars think pure in heart means “singleness of heart”. Others think it means having pure motives. In other words, our motives are not mixed: part for God, part for us.
Q Does it pay to really be pure hearted?
An = At times it seems most folks just want to hear the right words, rather than meaning them! It almost seems that all the effort to truly be “pure in our heart” is not worth the effort and not necessary. People just want the “words” anyway.
Q Is there really a God who knows our hearts and whether we are lying?
An = Some would say: “Just go to church, do the right rituals, or just pump up those emotions”. However, God said it does matter if our heart is pure.
>>>> Have someone read Psalm 24:3-6.
Note: This is true, but to experience it we have to begin by faith.
C. Being A Peacemaker: Matthew 5:9
>>>> Have someone read Matthew 5:9.
Q What is your definition of a “peace maker”?
Note: When we make the effort to bring peace, it will not always work but it shows we truly believe in God.
We believe He really exists and will reward us.
We believe He will call us His sons in the final Day of Judgment.
We believe He will stand up and say: “That one is mine, that’s my son, that one is my daughter”.
If an angel should question Him, He will reply: “She is just like Me, or he tried to act like Me even when it did not always pay.”
The most sincere form of flattery is imitation.
>>>> Have someone read Psalms 103:1, 8.
Note: He wants us to be like Him, but we will only get there by faith, by being loyal, when it does not seem to pay.