18 not suffered persecution , maybe we should ask if God has kept it from us because we were not ready for the responsibility of walking righteously through it . Certainly , that is still a mercy , but then we lack the blessing which comes with it . Yeshua Himself said “ Rejoice and be glad , for your reward in heaven is great !” ( Matthew 5:12 ). Perhaps we should desire righteousness before God more than we desire mercy for our lack of righteousness .
“ Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness , for theirs is the kingdom of heaven .” ( Matthew 5:10 )
By this point this blessing starts to feel more natural in the progression . It summarizes the process , takes it to another level still , and then circles back to receiving the kingdom as mentioned in the beginning . Persecution in this life is the worst possible consequence of walking in righteousness , and yet we cannot comprehend the reward in the kingdom for going through that persecution ( Romans 8:18 , Jacob [ James ] 1:12 , 1 Peter 4:1 ). While we might consider it a mercy that we have
Now when you read the rest of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7 , you can start to see how the blessings were the opening salvo that showed the difference between man ’ s religious ideas and the path of genuine faith in the Gospel of Yeshua . The path is a narrow path , and many lose their way based on the very things Yeshua talks about throughout this sermon . Remember the blessed path and keep it . Start over at the beginning as many times as you need to – just stay on the path . Also remember that the blessings build on each other like the shape of a pyramid . So , the more you grow in each blessing , you are laying the foundation for growing in the next blessing .
I pray you are truly blessed as Yeshua said you would be .
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