The Upside-Down Kingdom

Hey Summit Church, Brian Loritz here. It is a great joy to not only share the Word of God with you today, but to be on the team here.

Our family just feels so honored to be able to be a part of what God is doing right here in the Triangle area. We're taking a break this week from our series in 1 Peter, and I just want to step in and call your attention to a section of the Scriptures that's known as the Sermon on the Mount. It's in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7. And particularly, I just want to unpack one verse found in a section of the sermon known as the Beatitudes. Matthew chapter 5, verse 3. This is Jesus talking, and he simply says, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. One of my favorite books is a book written by one of my heroes in the faith.

It's Dallas Willard. It's a book called The Divine Conspiracy. If you haven't read it, do not die and go to heaven until you're able to read that book. It's a phenomenal book, as really Dallas just spends some time looking at the Sermon on the Mount and unpacking it for us.

But one of the things he talks about in that book is growing up in the early part of the 20th century in a rural section of Missouri. It was earlier in the 20th century, and we know that because electricity hadn't arrived yet. It was a place that was simply marked by kerosene lamps and ice boxes and lanterns. And then one day, as Dallas Willard tells it, it happened. The brand new local electric company showed up, and in so many words, they said, repent of your former way of life.

Put down your ice boxes, your kerosene lamps. There's a whole new way of living that's being offered to you. And for the most part, people jumped on it. They repented of this former way of life, and they tapped into this new thing called electricity, and sure enough, it was life-changing for them.

But then Dallas Willard says, surprise, surprise. There was a large swath of people who said, thanks, but no thanks. We're comfortable with the old way of life. We don't want to go down this new trail.

We'll hold on to our ice boxes and kerosene lamps and lanterns. And even though this whole new way of life had been offered to them, they were content to live according to the old way of living. Tragically, that's true for so many people in our world today.

No, I'm not talking about electricity, although there are many places where electricity isn't even the option. But I'm talking about the whole new way of life that Jesus has come to offer us. When Jesus shows up on the scene in the New Testament, he comes announcing and bringing the kingdom of heaven.

He comes literally saying, repent. That means to turn from your old way and to run towards this new way of life that he's guaranteeing us. And no, this new way is not a problem-free kind of life, but this new way of life that is offered through the kingdom of heaven is a life rich with meaning, value, and significance. And yet tragically, just as Dallas Willard explains, in the natural realm, in the spiritual realm, there are so many people in our world who are turning down Jesus's offer for this new way of life.

It's as if they're saying, thanks, but no thanks. We're going to hold on to our kerosene lamps and ice boxes. We like the old way of living. When the tragedy is Jesus says, a whole new way of life called the kingdom of heaven is available to us. Now I'm aware some of you all are tuning in and maybe you wouldn't call yourself a Christian or maybe you're new to the faith and you may be wondering, well, what does this new way of life look like? I encourage you, if you're new to the scriptures, don't start out in the book of Genesis, because by the time you get to Leviticus, you may die a slow death. I'm reminded of the anecdote of when Gandhi, that great reformer, was being proselytized by a group of believers.

Here's Gandhi, loincloth-wearing, pious Gandhi. He says, they give me this Bible and Genesis I loved and Exodus I loved, but by the time I got to Leviticus, I could barely keep my eyes open. Now, there's so much richness in Leviticus, but I would say if you're new to the faith, you might want to start out in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew chapters five, six and seven.

Because in this section of scripture, Jesus is saying, here's what life in the kingdom of heaven looks like. But I want to warn you, if there's one phrase that sums up the Sermon on the Mount, it's this phrase, impossibly Christian. See, when you and I read the Sermon on the Mount, we're going to feel a sense of, here it is, of being overwhelmed. You're going to read so much in this sermon, and you're going to have this sense of, I just can't do this.

It feels overwhelming. So, for example, Jesus says stuff like in Matthew chapter five, around verse 17 through verse 21, he says, listen, unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now, this is interesting. The Pharisees were the poster children of piety. Here are individuals who gave over 18% of their income every year to the things of God. Here are people who memorized the first five books of the Bible. And yet Jesus says, unless your righteousness exceeds theirs, you will never enter into the kingdom of heaven.

You feel overwhelmed? Or how about this one? Later on in Matthew chapter five, he says, you know, you've heard it was said, you shall not murder, but I say to you that everyone who's angry with his brother shall be liable to the judgment. And everyone who says you, you fool, shall be liable to the hell of fire.

Who here isn't guilty of that? Or try this last one, when Jesus talks about lust. He says, you've heard that it was said you shall not commit adultery, but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. And you throw your hands up in the air and you go, guilty. See, that's what I mean. If you read the Sermon on the Mount, it should come with a warning label.

It's an impossible standard. You feel overwhelmed. In fact, one of my favorite theologians, D.A. Carson, says it this way, will you look at it with me? He says, nevertheless, I insist that if the Sermon on the Mount be construed merely as legal requirement to kingdom entrance, no one shall ever enter. Can anyone meditate long on Matthew five through seven and remain unashamed? The Sermon on the Mount provides us with a crushing blow to self-righteousness and follows it up with an invitation to petition God for favor, without which there can be no admittance to the kingdom. At the same time, it sketches in the quality of life of those who do enter, those who petition God, ask for forgiveness and who, by God's grace, discover not only forgiveness, but a growing personal conformity to kingdom norms.

It's not long before their own lives begin to sum up the law and the prophets. See, I think what D.A. Carson is getting to is the reason why we feel overwhelmed. Jesus wants us to feel overwhelmed, not that we would just kind of throw our hands up in despair, turn our backs and walk away, but he wants us to feel overwhelmed. This prevailing sense of I can't do this, not that we would turn from him, but that we would turn to him our only hope. You see, we can't do this stuff on our own. That's why we need a savior, which is the whole punchline to the glorious gospel and the Sermon on the Mount.

It is this idea of I can't, I can't, I can't. But praise God that in Christ he can, he can, he can. And so if you're feeling overwhelmed by being mistreated by other people and being persecuted, fly to Jesus. If you're feeling overwhelmed by lust, fly to Jesus. If you're feeling overwhelmed by worry and anxiety, Jesus would say in Matthew 6, 25 to 34, fly to Jesus.

I can't, but he can. As we zoom in on the Sermon on the Mount, it begins with a list of kingdom traits that has been called the Beatitudes. Now, I want to be clear here, the Beatitudes beginning in Matthew 5, verse 3, going all the way through verse 12, these aren't things that we do to get into the kingdom. That's works salvation. Nor are the Beatitudes things that we do kind of to, to put God in our debt.

We would call that moralism. Instead, the Beatitudes kind of represent clothing that Kingdom of God people wear that, that make us stand out in a dark and dying world. In fact, what's interesting is, is if you just look at these Beatitudes, one of the first things you notice is that they stand in stark contrast to this world. It's sort of like there's this running contrast between the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of God.

It's sort of like pride versus humility, revelry versus mourning, oppressive use of power versus meekness, hunger for personal gratification versus hunger for righteousness, vindictive versus merciful, hidden agenda versus purity of heart, divisiveness versus peacemakers, acceptance versus persecution. When we wear the clothing of the Beatitudes, there's something about us that just stands out as different. You know, about a year ago, I remember I had a long drive. We were living in the Bay Area at the time and I was driving from San Jose to San Francisco and I wanted to hear some good preaching, so I pulled out my Summit app and just kind of clicked on the latest sermon and it was from Pastor Curtis and it was a phenomenal sermon. I'll never forget, one of the things he was talking about, he shares this illustration, which by the way I've used all across this country, first time I gave you credit, next time I said someone once said, third time I said it was pretty much mine.

I hope you'll forgive me, Curtis. But he just used this illustration in which he was going to a wedding one day and of course, as we all do when we go to weddings, he got dressed up. But Pastor Curtis said that this wedding was in a rural part of town and he had to get gas and so not far from the wedding, he pulled up at this old school gasoline station, which is a little slice of Americana the way he described it. And he says he gets out of the car and he looks around and everyone's got on shorts and t-shirts and tank tops and here he is just kind of suited and booted and they're all looking at him strange. And I'll never forget Curtis said, I wanted to tell them, I'm not dressed for where I'm at, I'm dressed for where I'm going. He stood out. Friends, that's the Beatitudes. It's the clothing we wear of another realm, of our future eternal reality in the kingdom of this world. And when we live these traits, we stand out. What's the first trait?

I just want to zoom in on one of them, won't hold you for too long. But Jesus begins by saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. What does this mean? As Pastor JD and other people on the teaching team have taught over the years, again, if you're new to the Scriptures, you should know that the original language of the New Testament isn't English, it's really Greek. And as Matthew records Jesus' statements, when again Jesus says, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. The Greek word for poor is an interesting word. It just doesn't speak of one's kind of condition. It actually speaks of their posture. In fact, one of the meanings of the word poor literally means to be hunched over. It speaks of a person's disposition.

This was a word that was used in describing beggars or people who are soliciting money, hunched over. Not only that, but he goes on to expound on this idea of disposition by saying, not blessed are the poor in finances. Some of you are like, if that's the case, I'm really blessed and highly favored. But instead he says, blessed are the poor in spirit. Here he's pointing to a, here it is, a disposition of desperation. It is in the innermost part of who I am, this constant wiring, this constant awareness, here it is, of neediness. You know, when I think of those who are poor, they are in tune with their neediness.

It's the background elevator music of their souls. I'm needy, I'm needy, I'm needy, I'm needy. Some of you have gone to AA. You've battled maybe alcohol addiction over your life. And it's just beaten you down and you've tried to manage it and manage it and manage it. And one day you said, I just can't do this anymore. You were in touch with your neediness and so you go to your first AA meeting and there you encounter kind of step one.

In step one of this AA meeting, one of the things that they say to you is that we admitted we were powerless over alcohol and that our lives had become unmanageable. That is the reason why I think in this section of the Sermon on the Mount, when the whole point of the Sermon is I can't but he can, he begins by saying blessed are the poor in spirit. This whole notion that I can't, I can't live a life that honors God in my own power. I can't do things that kind of climb up the righteousness ladder in my own strength.

I am perpetually needy. And what does Jesus say about that person who's in tune with their constant neediness? He calls them blessed.

Boy, if I was in front of a live audience, cue the Hammond B3 organ because I feel like shouting. You know what the word blessed means? It means fullness.

Don't you see the contradistinction? Poor in spirit is emptiness. And here Jesus says that's fullness. In other words, the contradistinction, the upside down nature of the kingdom is that we'll only get to fullness when we acknowledge our emptiness. Isn't that the exact opposite of the world? The world thinks that the way to fullness is fullness.

Accumulate more money, more possessions, more degrees, more status, more, more, more. And yet isn't it interesting that some of the most empty, spirit-speaking people that I know of are those who have all of the toys and trinkets and yet they're empty on the inside? You see, what the Beatitudes teach us is the upside down nature of the kingdom. Jesus says the way to true fullness, the way to true fulfillment is when you have a disposition of desperation. It's really the idea of humility. The way up is down. It's to be hunched over, spiritually speaking, constantly in tune of our need for a savior.

It's through humility and sacrifice and living outside of ourselves for something greater than ourselves that life truly becomes fulfilling. I enjoy the game of baseball. My grandfather, and we'll talk some over the years, he played in the Negro Leagues. And if you've ever watched the game of baseball, you see something interesting. And that is before the batter steps into the batter's box, that batter will look down the third base line to the third base coach who will give a series of signals. And sometimes that series of signals means that the coach wants the batter to bunt.

Now, bunting simply means to angle the bat in such a way to where when the bat meets the ball, it deadens it and the ball dribbles down one of the lines. And when you do that, when you bunt, you're guaranteed to be thrown out. So why in the world would a coach call on a batter to bunt? They want to swing for the fences. They want to hit a home run. Well, the reason why they're being called to bunt is there's a teammate of theirs on base. And by bunting, they want to advance the runner and to put the runner in scoring position, which would put the team in a better position. Don't you see, in order to bunt requires sacrifice.

It's thinking beyond myself and for the good of others. I'm so glad that 2,000 years ago, God peered over the balcony of heaven and saw us in danger of losing. Heading down a one-way street destined for hell, and Jesus Christ looks down the third base line to God, and he says, I'll bunt. And on the cross, he angled the cross in such a way that he sacrificed on our behalf. Don't you understand we're here because of the humility of Jesus?

And to be a follower of his is to mimic that same humility. It is to live a life of sacrifice, of bunting for the glory of God and the good of other people. So college student, I got to ask you, single person, when was the last time you bunted for your roommate? Husbands, when was the last time you bunted for your wife? Kids, maybe you're in a single parent home and mama is working multiple jobs and really working hard to provide.

When was the last time you bunted for mama? To be poor in spirit is to live a life of humility. And yet this is so hard.

Why? Because the downward gravitational pull of our hearts is into pride. We are born self-absorbed, narcissistic, prideful individuals.

That's just our natural fallen condition. In fact, the great mid-20th century preacher, D. Martin Lloyd-Jones, he says that the sin beneath every sin is pride. At the core of who we are, of fallen humanity, is pride. What is pride? If humility is dependence, pride is independence. Pride is what evicted Adam and Eve out of the garden. Pride is what got Lucifer, later to be named Satan, kicked out of heaven. And pride is what led Judas to betray Jesus. Pride has led to the unraveling of every marriage, of every relationship. No, what sends people to divorce court isn't irreconcilable differences. It's not even adultery, but again, to use D. Martin Lloyd-Jones' phrasing, the sin beneath the sin is pride.

I am ruthlessly committed to me. Which makes the first beatitude absolutely impossible. In the early part of the 20th century, a newspaper wanted to solicit its readership. They just put out a simple question, and that question was, what is the problem with the world? The great literary luminary, G.K. Chesterton, he wrote in his response. He simply said, the problem with the world is me, G.K. Chesterton.

Some years later, another great literary figure, C.S. Lewis, in his classic spellbinding book, Mere Christianity, he would say it this way, that the fountainhead to all vice is pride. So when I look at gossip and slander and lying, that's just surface level. The reason why I do those things, it's pride. So let's just stop a moment. I feel like the sermon needs some vitamin A, some good old application. Will you take a test with me? I want to ask you a series of questions, and if you answer yes to any of these, you and I struggle with pride. So question number one, are you easily offended? I once heard a preacher say one time that it's almost impossible to offend a humble person.

Almost impossible. Why? Because humble people don't lead with personal rights. They're far more concerned with someone else's agenda than theirs.

Kingdom of God people are more concerned with God's agenda and the good and flourishing of His creation and of humanity than their own rights. And so maybe if you're finding that your sensitivity is hijacking relationships, that's symptomatic of a far greater problem. You are constantly in tune with me, me, me of pride. Are you a people pleaser? Second question. Are you a people pleaser? Now is it good to serve people? Yes. Is it good to honor people?

Yes. Is it good to go out of our way? But I'm not getting to any of that. I just want to talk to the person who just can't say no. And you're constantly kind of people pleasing, people pleasing, people pleasing.

And if you're honest with yourself, it's not so much about helping them, it's being accepted by them. And you're worried that if you say no, they may not like, well, me. See the pride? Are you timid?

Now this is interesting. Timidity is actually a face of pride. Here's one of the ways you know that. Timid people don't really confront.

Now let me just caveat this. Anybody who says they love confrontation is a sicko. You should not like to confront. It should be a necessary evil that you do. But humble people confront. Why? Because the humble person is more concerned about the other person's development than whether or not that person will like them.

The timid person is more concerned about them and being accepted by others than the other person's growth. See the pride? Fourth, do you find it hard to apologize? I mean, you know, you may know you're wrong, but I'm sorry just kind of never makes it out of your esophagus. You don't apologize, or maybe you do apologize, but it's just absolutely wrong apologies. I'm sorry you took it that way, or I'm sorry you heard that. That's not an apology. It makes sense, doesn't it? Prideful people don't really apologize.

Why? Because they don't really see themselves as doing wrong. Conversely, it takes a humble person to own the wrong and to openly confess to others and ask for forgiveness. Fifth, do you find a way, no matter what's being talked about, to always bring the conversation back to, well, me? There's kind of this one-upmanship that someone tells a story and you can tell one better and they tell another story and you tell one better.

That's a face of pride. Sixth, do you struggle with prayer? Are there many days of prayerlessness?

Here's what I mean by that. The great 19th century prayer warrior and writer is a guy by the name of E. M. Bounds. If you see anything that he's written, pick it up and read it.

It will stir your affections. E. M. Bounds defined prayer this way. He says prayer is the expression of the soul's dependence on God.

Did you catch that? At its core, prayer says, I need you, I need you, I need you, I can't do this. Conversely, every day Brian LaRitt spins in prayerlessness is me pretty much saying to God, I got this. I can do it on my own.

It's independence. See the pride? Seventh, if you would say I don't struggle with any of these, you got pride issues. I mean, who here doesn't go guilty?

We all struggle with pride. I think we can take a break right now and just worship the Lord. Let's just pause and I know I've thrown a lot at you. Let's just rest in His goodness and His faithfulness on our behalf through His Son, Jesus. And then we'll pick it up and wrap up this sermon. In Christ alone, my hope is found. He is my light, my strength, my song. This cornerstone, this solid ground firm through the fiercest drought and storm. What heights of love, what depths of peace, when fears are stilled, when striving sees, my comforter, my all in all, here in the love of Christ I stand. In Christ alone, who took on flesh the fullness of God in helpless fame, this gift of love and righteousness was formed by the ones He came to save. Till all that cried as Jesus died, the wrath of God was satisfied. For every sin on Him was laid, here in the death of Christ I live. Here in the ground His body lay, the light of the world by darkness slain.

Then bursting forth in glorious day, up from the grave He rose again. And as He stands in victory, since curses lost His grip on me, for I am His and He is mine, I'm born with the precious blood of Christ. No guilt in light, no fear in death, this is the power of Christ in me. From life's first cry to final breath, Jesus commands my destiny. No power of hell, no scheme of man can ever block me from His hand. He returns or calls me home, here in the power of Christ I stand.

I stand. So Jesus says, blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This whole idea of disposition, of desperation, that the weight of fullness, being blessed, is actually counterintuitive, it's through our sense of emptiness. When we are in touch with our neediness, when we have that posture of humility, that's where we experience the richness and the fullness of life.

As we round third and head for home, I just want to spend about five minutes with you, just going, how do I cultivate humility in my life? I want to draw your attention to two very practical ways we can do this, and both of these two things are rooted in the gospel. As we love to say around here at the Summit Church, the gospel isn't just the diving board, it's actually the swimming pool.

These are the waters that we swim in every day. And when I think of the gospel, there are at least two pillars, there's actually more than that, but two essentials to the gospel. One is Jesus Christ, and the other is grace.

How do I cultivate humility in my life? One, I want to really encourage us to abide, to remain in Christ. The author of Hebrews, in Hebrews chapter 12, he says it very bluntly. He implores us, he actually commands us to look to Jesus, to actually have our gaze fixated on him. You know, it's actually a truism to life, that whatever we look at, whatever we meditate on, we naturally drift towards. So imagine driving down 540 and you're fixated, not in front of you, but to the right. Well, if you're looking to the right, you're going to drift that way. It's a truism to life.

Whatever we look at, whatever has our attention, whatever we fixate on, we'll drift towards. We'll show me anyone who is fixated on Christ, and we'll drift towards him. Now, why is this important when we talk about humility? In Philippians chapter 2, Paul just gives this stunning portrait of who Jesus is. He spends a lot of time just talking about rich theological truths, and how Jesus is 100% God.

He's fully God. But then he says these words in Philippians chapter 2, beginning in verse 5. He says, Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God the thing to be grasped, but emptied himself.

See that? By taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men, and being found in human form, he humbled himself. I mean, here is Jesus. No one lived a more full and satisfying life than him. And yet the way to his fullness was through emptiness, and that took humility. Again, it is the epitome of hypocrisy for me to say I follow Christ, and yet live in pride, because the essence of who Jesus was was humble. So when I look to him, I see among other things the beauty of humility, and that inspires humility in my life.

Let's go home on this. Secondly, I would say not only abide in Christ, look to him, but secondly, I would say be gracious. Be gracious. Grace is a cornerstone of the gospel. It takes a humble person to actually receive grace. To actually acknowledge I'm needy, I can't do it on my own, but praise God, I am more than conquerors, more than sufficient, not through my moral strivings, but through the grace of Jesus Christ.

Now watch this. When I receive grace, I am now positioned to dispense or give grace. It takes a humble person to both receive grace and to give grace. So if I want to really cultivate humility in my life, be gracious. Here's what I mean.

I want to be careful with this illustration. I am not the paragon for humility. I think I just heard my wife say amen.

I struggle with pride, as all of us do. But I remember when our kids were little, much of those years were spent in Memphis, Tennessee, where I was pastoring a church there, and we had a tradition. On Saturday mornings, I'd take one or more of the kids out for breakfast, and it was our time to just really sit and for me to get into their lives. And I remember one morning, I take, I believe it was Miles, our middle son, and we go to a local diner there in Memphis, and we walk in, and as soon as I see our server, I'm like, ugh, this is not going to be good. Everything about her just projected she was having a bad day.

And sure enough, that played out. She was rude and condescending. She messed up our order numerous times. When I tried to gently correct her, she wouldn't receive it.

She pushed back. I mean, rude is kind of mild. Maybe nasty is a better word. When the check came, I hope this is a safe place. I hope you're not judging me or condemning me.

But I said, I'm going to fix her. And that little line called gratuity left it blank. Yanked my son out of there, got him in the car, drove down the street, and sure enough, the Holy Spirit, being the divine nuisance that he can be, began speaking to me. It was as if he said to me, hey, Brian, you know that word, gratuity? It comes from the same family of words we get the word grace from. You know what grace means? It means to give people something they don't deserve.

Well, Brian, when you left that blank, you gave her what she deserved. And praise God, I don't do that to you. So I just felt led by the Spirit to turn into the parking lot of a local bank, go to the ATM. I took out a significant amount of money, more than the cost of our meal, did a U-turn, went back to the diner, didn't leave it out, but actually requested to speak to the server. I apologized. I said, ma'am, will you forgive me? I didn't treat you well.

Here's the tip. And when she saw the amount, immediately she started to tear up. And immediately she starts sharing her life with me. She says, hey, you just need to go.

I'm going through a nasty divorce, and it's a nasty custody battle, and my estranged husband is ostracizing me financially. I'm just struggling as it is. And it was a beautiful moment for us to talk about the gospel and what broke her wasn't law. What broke her wasn't my prideful resistance. What broke her was grace.

I want to encourage you. We are saved by grace, which is an insane act of humility. And if I want to grow in humility, I promise you God has surrounded you with people who are in need of grace. And one of the most humble things we can do, one of the most poor in spirit things we can do, is to give grace because that's what God in Christ has done for us. Amen.