[Q6. Blessed Are the Persecuted]

In this beatitude Christ pronounces a blessing on those who are being persecuted. But the persecution that they are suffering is not for misdeeds or evil acts, their persecution is for doing righteouness.

No. not for any crimes they have done, and not for being unrighteous and committing the acts of those who practice evil such as murders, thieves, and all other acts of wickedness, but on account of their righteous and Godly conversation and Godly actions which in turn brings upon them the hatred and enmity of the men of the world. For by living righteously the believers seperate themselves from the world and profess themselves not to belong to the world. The Godly life of true believers places a brand upon them that distinguishes them from the rest of the world.

Persecution in the United States at this time, frequently comes verbally, via the tongue, usually in the form of cruel mockings and reproachful language, or by deeds such as confiscation of goods, banishment from a group, or even in the work place where one may be fired, demoted, or spoken against because of one's Christian Faith. In today's society to tell others that you are a born again Christian who has put His entire faith and trust in Jesus Christ, is to bring on smirks and laughs, rude and disgusting comments, and alienation and retaliation.

But why is their such persecution in the world, and why is God so offensive to so many? Because the word of God is a stumbling block to ungodly people. The unbelievers that don't know Jesus enjoy sinning, in fact they revel in it. They enjoy partaking in as many sins, is because of the spirit that the creator has placed within each one of us. When the unbeliever sins, The Holy Spirit is convicting the spirit of that sinner and this cause the sinner to know that he is doing wrong and that his actions are against the laws of God.

If you are not being perscuted, you should ask, "Why" And the answer just my be that you are not living a Godly life. It is our Godly life that causes the other person to get heated up, upset and unhappy. The truth is, everyone who lives a Godly life in Christ will be persecuted. If no one is persecuting you. It is because you are not living the Christian life and shing as lights in the world!

What a great answer, and wonderful insight. You have raised some points that I did not even consider. Where I live, Southern United States (Arkansas), most people here are Christian, and know what it means (although they do not act like it). Our worldly attitude gets in our way most of the time.

[Q6. Blessed Are the Persecuted]

We should rejoice because despite what is happening to us, we know what our reward will be. Recall the story of the Jewish man who prayed everyday at Auswitch. He prayed for thanksgiving. When asked what he was thanking God for, he replied

[Q5. Blessed Are the Pure in Heart]

What a difficult question to answer. As a sinful people, we do not have a pure heart. Nor will we have a pure heart, because we will always sin. However, as we grow older and learn more, we can start to have a more pure heart. As was stated, doing God

[Q4. Hungering and Thirsting for Righteousness]

A desire for righteousness is at odds with the world because the world only wants for itself. It does not care who or what is right, just as long as they get their way. The world view is to look out for one

[Q3. Blessed Are the Meek]

The sort of meekness (or gentleness) is contrasted in today

[Q2. Blessed Are the Poor in Spirit]

It is necessary to be aware of your spiritual poverty because you know that you cannot live on this earth alone. One must be in relation with God the Father before they can be in relation with each other. Knowing that our spirit is weak means that we will always be dependent on God and not of worldly things.

The kind of mourning that is necessary is to our sin. It should break our hearts, as it does the Father

[Q1. Beatitudes and Spiritual Fruit]

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