Daily Devotions

We read in Matthew 5:12a these words,
“Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven…”
In the Sermon on the amount, what Jesus promises is not a gimmick to give you goose bumps nor a mental attitude that has to be pumped up at pep rallies. No, Matthew 5 describes God’s radical reconstruction of the heart.
Notice the sequence. First, we recognize we are in need (we are poor in spirit). Next, we repent of our self-sufficiency (we mourn). We quit calling the shots and surrender control to God (we’re meek). So grateful are we for His presence that we yearn for more of him (we hunger and thirst). As we grow closer to him, we become more like him. We forgive others (we’re merciful). We change our outlook (we’re pure in heart). We love others (we’re
peace-makers).we endure injustice (we’re persecuted).
It’s no casual shift of attitude. It’s a demolition of the old man and a creation of the new (2 Corinthians 5:17). The more radical the change, the greater the joy. And it’s worth every effort, for this is the joy of God.