[Pastor Ralph]

Q1. (Matthew 5:3-11) Each Beatitude consists of two parts. What are these parts? Why do you think Jesus made each Beatitude a paradox? What is the relationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

[John Weir]

There is a paradox as Jesus wants to emphasise the contrast between the Leaders and Teachers of the Law and their self-righteous approach - 'Happy is contrasted with being 'meek' 'mourning' 'humility' etc. The relationship is with 'The fruits of the Spirit' which call us to be humble.

[Tabatha]

nd leave the rest. They must be taken as a whole. They describe whatwe should be likeas Christ's followers

[Tabatha]

There is a paradox as Jesus wants to emphasise the contrast between the Leaders and Teachers of the Law and their self-righteous approach - 'Happy is contrasted with being 'meek' 'mourning' 'humility' etc. The relationship is with 'The fruits of the Spirit' which call us to be humble.

There are least four ways to understand the Beatitudes. (1) They are a code of ethics for the disciples and a stardard of conduct for all believers. (2) They contrast kingdom values( what is eternal) with wordly values( what is temporary) (3) they contrast the superificial"faith" of the Pharisees with the real faith Christs wants (4) They show how the Old Testament expectations will be be fulfilled in the new kingdom. These beatitudes are not multiple choice-- pick what you like and leave the rest. They must be taken as a whole. They describe what we should be like as Christ's followers.

Jesus began His Sermon with words that seem to contrdict each other. But God's way of living usually contradicts the world's. If you want to live for God you must be ready to say an do what seems strange to the world. You must be willing to give when others take. To love when others hate. To help when others abuse. By giving up your own rights in order to serve others. You will one day receive everything God has in store for you. ( The Fruit of the Spirit. ) ( Galatians 5:22-23 )

Please forgive me John I messed up on this I did not mean to put the quote in there it was an error on my part. I am so sorry. Tabatha

[Rosemary NoVA]

Q1. (Matthew 5:3-11) Each Beatitude consists of two parts. What are these parts? Why do you think Jesus made each Beatitude a paradox? What is the relationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

Both speak to transformations that will happen when we submit to God through Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit will transform us into Christ's image.

The beattitudes in Matthew are expressed as a characteristic, then what will happen when that characteristic is given over to God.

The fruit of the Spirit are those Christ-like characterstics which change us from the inside out when we "die to ourselves" and our way of doing things and let the Holy Spirit lead us.

[dand]

The two parts are those who are blessed and the promise. They are truly counter-culture. They are a path for us to grow into maturity. Each one to be taken in their purest form is impossible to obtain, however they are the heart-beat of our Savior. Truly, as stated before, they are what we are to be more than to do. I present these attributes to those who would mentor others as a framework to be and to encourage others to walk in. As a paradox they are the essence Christ came to portay. The religious culture of the day had created a "church life" that did not resemble God's nature. Christ came to put us on track with His true nature as well as to pay the price we could not.

[UncleBlake]

Q1. (Matthew 5:3-11) Each Beatitude consists of two parts. What are these parts? Why do you think Jesus made each Beatitude a paradox? What is the relationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

The two parts of the Beatitudes are the "Blessed are..." and the "...For they shall..." Jesus made each a paradox in order to illustrate the virtues of following His teachings. Each parallel the Fruits of the Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23.

[Majestic Dancer]

First part is the blessing
the second part is a riddle or paradox.
Could also be rules to follow.

Story telling was common in the day and it was easier to be understood by those that read or heard them.

Contrast to the Fruit of the spirit is the attitude of the christian, how we should act. The spirit connection. These things can not be accomplished by flesh only but by the spirit of God. If you are not a believer you could not accomplish either because you would not be able to understand them nor be able to accomplish them.

[tom.nabors]

The two parts of each beatitude are 1) the subject being blessed, i.e. type of person being blessed and 2) the reward. Most of the beatitudes are paradoxes because Jesus' intent is to show that the way to true happiness is anti-thetical to the worldly path normally followed in pursuit of happiness. He also wants to strip away our ideas of self-sufficiency and show how spiritually bankrupt we must realize ourselves to be.
We bear the fruit of love by being merciful and pure in heart.
We bear the fruit of joy by realizing the blessings we have as described in the beatitudes.
We bear the fruit of peace as peacemakers.
We bear the fruit of patience when we endure persecution and being reviled and insulted for Jesus' sake.
We bear the fruit of kindness by being merciful and peacemakers.
We bear the fruit of goodness by being poor in spirit and relying on the grace of God through Jesus to reflect goodness.
We bear the fruit of gentleness by being meek which means maintaining a humble and gentle attitude that is patiently submissive in every offense and having no desire for revenge.
We bear the fruit of faithfulness by hungering and thirsting for righteousness in a way that relies on Jesus for the righteousness that He faithfully imputes to believers.
We bear the fruit of self-control by hungering and thirsting for righteousness instead of the things of this world.

[Greg]

The Beatitudes seem to be more of a prose poem in 9 verses... Jesus teaching in a form or fashion as was typical for that day and time. Creating a paradox in each verse made it interesting to those that heard and gave them reason to listen even more intently and ponder and meditate on the message even more so in order to discern the true meaning.

It is amazing that in 9 verses, the Beatitudes constitute what is practically a general summary of the whole Christian teaching...and parallel the Fruits of the Spirit found in Galations. They are a literary synopsis, summarizing the spirit of teaching rather than the letter, which was what the "religious leaders" of that day (and many of our day) pushed towards.

[Jean @ Rosehill]

I want to say that I am looking forward so much to this study!

a. The first part of each beatitude is tells us who will be blessed, and the second part tells how they will be blessed.
b. I think Jesus taught this way maybe to get their attention and to show them that things were radically different in the spiritual realm than they are in the spiritual realm.
c. Galatains 5:22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. " Here we see true righteousness, which is what Jesus is trying to teach in the parables. It goes beyond the OT laws and man-made traditions. It can only be accomplished by a rebirth of the Spirit through faith in Jesus Christ. Within ourselves we are nothing, but "His grace is sufficient, for His strength is made perfect in weakness."

[Jean @ Rosehill]

oops...i goofed...

[Jean @ Rosehill]

The two parts of each beatitude are 1) the subject being blessed, i.e. type of person being blessed and 2) the reward. Most of the beatitudes are paradoxes because Jesus' intent is to show that the way to true happiness is anti-thetical to the worldly path normally followed in pursuit of happiness. He also wants to strip away our ideas of self-sufficiency and show how spiritually bankrupt we must realize ourselves to be.
We bear the fruit of love by being merciful and pure in heart.
We bear the fruit of joy by realizing the blessings we have as described in the beatitudes.
We bear the fruit of peace as peacemakers.
We bear the fruit of patience when we endure persecution and being reviled and insulted for Jesus' sake.
We bear the fruit of kindness by being merciful and peacemakers.
We bear the fruit of goodness by being poor in spirit and relying on the grace of God through Jesus to reflect goodness.
We bear the fruit of gentleness by being meek which means maintaining a humble and gentle attitude that is patiently submissive in every offense and having no desire for revenge.
We bear the fruit of faithfulness by hungering and thirsting for righteousness in a way that relies on Jesus for the righteousness that He faithfully imputes to believers.
We bear the fruit of self-control by hungering and thirsting for righteousness instead of the things of this world.

I can't tell you how much what you have written has blessed me. God has been speaking so much of this to me, even before this study, through mental trials, etc. It is wonderful to know that I am in the center of God's will in doing this study!

[lulu 1931]

The first part is a blessing and the second part is foretelling what the future will be if you follow the blessings.
People like to hear a story and these give hope to you ones who are seeking more in the lessons from God.
It follows the same line of teaching that the Beatitudes in discribing the blessing of God and his spirit.

[yokko]

the 2 parts i saw are 1) the state of the heart of the person and 2) reward of God to them. having the kinds of disposition and relying only on God for help. the reason why Jesus made each beatitude a paradox is for those who think they have already inherited the kingdom simply by obeying the law. the relationship of the beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit - the beatitudes are descriptions of how we should be as Christ's followers, "blessed". and if we are followers of Christ, the Spirit will produce the Fruit in us - character traits that are found in the nature of Christ.

[DZION]

Q1. (Matthew 5:3-11) Each Beatitude consists of two parts. What are these parts? Why do you think Jesus made each Beatitude a paradox? What is the relationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

The first part tells who is blessed, the second part tells us the reward, or what the blessing is. Jesus spoke in paradoxes because it was how they spoke then when imparting wisdom. The fruits of the spirit are are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. If you put these next to the beatitudes there is a direct correlation. i.e. longsuffering would go along with verses 10 and 11. You can see this relationship with each of the beatitudes and the fruits of the spirit.[size="2"][/size]

[jjj]

The two parts of each Beattitude are: The conditions of the Blessing and the outcome of the Blessing.
I think Jesus wanted people to 'go deeper' than just to hear nice words. I think he wanted people to think and identify with what He was saying. The relationship of the Beattitude to the Fruit of the Spirit is the behavioural response of the blessed one of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control.

[VollieFireman]

First, I decided to reply to the question prior to reading other postings. To me, this allows me to formulate my own answer. From past experience, I found that I will follow what others say, especially when I am not a topic expert. To that end, here are my answers.


The two parts of each “Beatitude” is first a description of a person. What problem they may be suffering from. The second part is what they will receive because of the first part. For example; The poor in Spirit, will receive the Kingdom of Heaven.

Jesus made them a paradox to get the crowds attention. If you tell someone who is poor, that they are rich, that person will start to listen to you. By going thru different statements, more people realized that they belong to one, or more, of each group. It was a way to get people to stop and think.

Each "Fruit of the Spirit" is derived from one or more "Beatitude".

[Cee]

Q1. (Matthew 5:3-11) Each Beatitude consists of two parts. What are these parts? Why do you think Jesus made each Beatitude a paradox? What is the relationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)?

To me the two parts of the Beatitudes are Declarations of Blessedness and Ethical Admonitions.
To me Jesus made the Beatitude because He teaches a new heart attitude toward God and the people. To me the realationship of the Beatitudes to the Fruit of the Spirit are the same but they are worded different.

[JanMary]

The first part is the heart attitude He desires , and second part is the reward or promise for the Godly attitude.

I think He wants us to see that His kingdom is upside down from the world's point of view. In the world, the greatest, is the most powerful, and sits at the pinnacle of a pyramid, if you will. His kingdom turns the pyramid paradigm upside down, and the least, most humble, greatest servants are at the top and the most gifted in the worlds eyes are at the bottom. His method seemed to be to jolt us into completely new thought patterns, and to start thinking about what He values rather than what the world values....almost always opposites.

I loved the fruit of the Spirit part of the question, and will be thinking about that all week. Thank you to those who responded so eloquently on this.

I'm really looking forward to studying with all of you, and know that I'll be enriched and challenged by your input. I'm new to computers, and it's taken me an hour to figure out how to post my response.....