The Beatitudes Part 1

INTRO: Because of the circumstances we find ourselves in at present, I thought I would shift gears and do some messages on the beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount. This passage has been a great encouragement to me over the past year or so, and I thought it might be that to you as well. I shared a little of this with the young people last summer. Turn with me this morning to Matthew chapter 5 (read 1-3). Nine times in verses 1-12, the word 'blessed' occurs. From that word we get the word 'beatitudes' and we will look more closely at this word later. For the next while, and it will take some time, I want to take us through the beatitudes section of the Sermon On The Mount. The Sermon On The Mount is Jesus' first major discourse in the Gospels, and it covers Matthew 5-7. The beatitudes take up the first 12 verses of that sermon. This first message is a general introduction to the Sermon on the Mount and then the beatitudes.