It’s amazing how God can paint such beauty in the midst of all the terrible things that happen.”
                    –B.N. Rundell  (The Trail to Rebellion)

       “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him.”
                    –Ephesians 1:9 (NASB)
—————————–
I don’t understand it.  Man tries to explain in his feeble way.  God spoke and the worlds were created and all that is in them.  Man for some reason has trouble with that.  They instead make idols to explain.  Then as man progressed he realized that idols were not right, so he made the ultimate idol–himself, and has come up with the answer to creation–the Big Bang or other such theories.  Man wanting to be rational and logical chose not to accept the only rational and logical reason for creation–GOD!  
     Then there is the issue of evil.  I do not understand how it all happened.  Get this, evil and sin were not created!  We read in Ezekiel, “You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,Till iniquity was found in you.” (28:15, NKJV)  Other translations use the terms:  wickedness, evil, unrighteousness.  Here we see the only perfect being.  Lucifer–perfect in his being, perfect in his ways, who had access to the throne room.  Then…then he looked to the One on the throne and saw someone who was–more than perfect.  I don’t understand perfection, much less more than perfect.  Lucifer looked at Him, and sin/iniquity was found in him.  Paul mentions this “mystery of lawlessness” in 2 Thessalonians.  It is indeed a mystery.  Adam and Eve partook of the forbidden fruit–sin came, death is now a part of life.  A mystery!
     Paul also writes about the mystery of faith, the mystery of Christ, the mystery of God.  We see now only as through a glass darkly (1 Corinthians 13:12)  It is a mystery, but as we continue in this verse we read, “Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.” (NIV)  Tell me about mercy and grace.  It is a mystery.  John Newton wrote, “We judge things by their present appearance, but the Lord sees them in their consequences…”  
     Look at the agony in Gethsemane.  What do you see?  The physical and mental anguish of Jesus.  Look at the cross.  What do you see?  Jesus in agony, brutally whipped, beaten unrecognizable, and bleeding.  But is there a mystery?  Is there something hidden from our view?  Absolutely!   F.W. Krummacher says this, “His being taken prisoner, His being brought before the bar of judgment, His condemnation by the Sanhedrin, and His passage to the cross, are only symbolical representations of infinitely more exalted events, which were behind the veil.”  We do not, and thankfully so, have the view of the supernatural at this time.  We cannot see sin as it touches the loving Savior, only in His cry, “It is finished.”  What did it look like in the spiritual realm?  Thank God, we cannot see the fullness of the agony of Christ.  We cannot see the devil, and the imps rejoicing at the death of Jesus.  I could go on–the tomb, the burial, the days before the resurrection, the resurrection itself–what did it look like in the spiritual realm?
     We must be careful.  Eastern religions and Cosmic Humanism seek to find the spiritual world.  While we are told to leave that to the Holy Spirit within us.  There is continual activity in that mysterious realm, but do not dare to enter.  One day that mystery will be opened to us as well.  “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2, NKJV)  We shall see Him in all of His splendor, majesty, and glory.  The mystery will be over.  As Jesus came in the fullness of times, the mystery of time will be over, and we will be forever in the fullness of eternity.

We can scare ourselves into insanity if we don’t get a hold of ourselves and shake the cobwebs off. It takes courage to live this life.”

Apprenticeship’s over, and so is schooling. Time to be a man.”
                    –Chris Bennett  (Road to Revolution)

       “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
                    –Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
————————–
We see here beginning in chapter 10 of Proverbs what is called antithetical parallelism.  This is a positive phrase followed by a negative phrase.  Mike Leake adds that these proverbs are the “path to truth in a misinformation age.”  I might also add that most translations use the term “son” where it does mean child of either sex.  As we see in verse 1, the NLT translates, “the wise child…”

          –“A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is the grief of his mother.” –NKJV
          –“A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.”  –ESV
          –“A wise child brings joy to a father; a foolish child brings grief to a mother.”  –NLT

     It would be an interesting study of the Bible to see the stories of wise and foolish sons.  Sons who either blessed their parents or cursed them; bring joy or grief.  This begins at the beginning with Adam and Eve.  Cain brought a curse, Seth a blessing; Esau a curse, Isaac a blessing; and on down to David, Absalom a curse, Solomon a blessing.
     With verse 1 there is a need to keep in mind Proverbs 1:7 and 9:10:  wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord.  “All wisdom flows from that spring.  The foolish son despises the Lord and His instruction.  And so it is in our relationship to the Lord that we bring our parents’ joy.” (Bob Beasley)  It is important to remember that the parents are to give godly instruction to their children, but it is still the decision of the individual child to choose to take it to heart or not.
     Grief versus gladness is the reality of life.  The words that the parents speak are important, but as J.L. Flores points out, “whether parents shall have gladness or grief in their children depends not so much upon the excellence of their words as upon the godliness of their lives.”  Our lives dictate much of what our children will perceive and hang on to.  Words and life go together and as Mike Leake points out, “The more a lie is shared the more it feels true.”  A child is to be given the truth, shown the truth and the child must choose the world’s view or the truth of God’s Word.  “The babbling fool comes to ruin; his reality isn’t grounded in truth.” (Leake)
     Know this, “The child’s behavior affects both parents.  Both parents find their joy or sadness in their child who demonstrates skill in life.” (NKJV Study Bible)  Therefore, as children of Father in heaven, our greatest calling then is to bring our heavenly Father joy.

To be a man was to be responsible. It was as simple as that. To be a man was to build some-thing, to try to make the world about him a bit easier to live in for himself and those who followed. You could sneer at that, you could scoff, you could refuse to acknowledge it, but when it came right down to it, Conn decided it was the man who planted a tree, dug a well, or graded a road who mattered.”
                    –Louis L’Amour  (Conagher)

       “But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation.  The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
                    –Luke 6:49 (NIV)
——————————-
I have greatly enjoyed watching The Chosen over the seasons.  One item that I disagree with is when Jesus is “preparing” for the Sermon on the Mount.  The film shows Him anxious, even fretful; He says He has to make it right.  It is my humble opinion that Jesus was not anxious, nor fearful of making a public speech.  We read several places in Scripture not to fear, nor to have anxiety.  This was His calling, part of His great purpose.  Jesus is the message–the message is Jesus.
     The Sermon on the Mount, oh my, what a series of life lessons, of ethics in which to guide one’s life.  John Stott says, “Here is a Christian value-system, ethical standard, religious devotion, attitude to money, ambition, lifestyle and network of relationships–all of which are totally at variance with those of the non-Christian world.”  If we have trouble with them, then check to see how close to the world we are living.  
     There are two main views regarding this “Sermon.”  One is that it was one sermon given on one day.  The other is that it is a set of sermons preached throughout Jesus’ ministry and Matthew simply placed them together as a whole.  There are some, of which I agree, that believe it could have been one sermon, but that they were also taught throughout His ministry.  I have started a study, as you can see, on what we call the Beatitudes.  One thing I have not noticed before now is the eschatological aspect of these verses as well as the practical meaning.  Keep that in mind as we look at them together.
     John Stott writes, “The beatitudes set forth the blessings God gives to those in whom He is working such a character–blessings given not as a reward for merit but as a gift of grace.”  The writing of Matthew simply begins, “And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.  Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:” (Matthew 5:1-2, NKJV)  When “He opened His mouth” is used as a solemn, grave, and dignified utterance.  The Greeks thought of it an “oracle”–a weighty saying.  In other words–LISTEN!  Listen, take to heart the words of Jesus.  According to William Barclay, this means that, “A person is really opening his heart and fully pouring out his mind.  It is used of intimate teaching with no barriers between.”
     To close out this introduction I want you to think of the setting and Jesus opening His heart to the disciples and to the multitude that had gathered.  Contemplate, ponder, meditate simply on the words of these two simple verses.  Then I want you to get into the imagery that Thomas Watson portrays:  
          “Here is a garden of delight, where you may pluck those flowers which will deck the hidden man of your heart.  Here is the golden key, which will open the gates of Paradise!  Here is the conduit of the Gospel, running wine to nourish as are poor in spirit and pure in heart.  Here is the rich cabinet wherein the Pearl of Blessedness is locked up.  Here is the gold pot in which that manna which will feed and revive the soul unto everlasting life.  Here is a way chalked out to the Holy of Holies.”