text:
SER Links
- SER Home
- Purpose of the SER
- How To Use The SER
- Env Handbooks
- Questions about the SER?
- Caltrans staff - contact the Environmental Coodinator for your district.
- Local agency staff - contact the Caltrans
Local Assistance Engineer for your district.
- Suggestions or problems with this site?
Email the website coordinator or use the suggestion form.
*This site is produced by the Caltrans Division of Environmental Analysis (DEA) and Division of Local Assistance (DLA).
- Vol 1: General (Topics Chapters Overview)
- 1-Federal Requirements
- 2-State Requirements
- 3-Public Participation
- 4-Environmental Considerations During Transportation Planning
- 5-Preliminary Scoping
- 6-Formal Scoping
- 7-Topography/ Geology/ Soils/ Seismic
- 8-Paleontology
- 9-Hydrology/Water Quality/ StormWater (On Hold)
- 10-Hazardous Materials, Hazardous Waste, and Contamination
- 11-Air Quality
- 12-Noise
- 13-Energy
- 14-Biological Resources (Chapter 14 has been merged with Chapter 16 which was renamed to Biological Resources.)
- 15-Waters of the U.S. and the State
- 17-Floodplains
- 18-Coastal Zone
- 19-Wild and Scenic Rivers
- 20-Section 4(f) Resources and Related Requirements (Chapter 21 (Section 6(f) has been merged with Chapter 20 Topics.)
- 22-Land Use
- 23-Farmlands
- 24-Community Impacts
- 25-Environmental Justice
- 26-Traffic (On Hold)
- 27-Visual/Aesthetic
- 28-Cultural Resources (Chapter 29 has been merged with Chapter 28 which was renamed to Cultural Resources.)
- 33-Reevaluations
- 34-Exemptions
- 35-Initial Study/ Neg Dec
- 37-Preparing and Processing Joint NEPA/CEQA Documentation
- 38-NEPA Assignment
- 39-Incorporating Environmental Commitments into Design
- Vol 2: Cultural
- Vol 3: Biological
- Vol 4: Community
- Vol 5: Coastal Requirements
- Stormwater
- Emergency Projects Environmental Process and Requirements
- CTC Submittal Guidance
- Other Guidance
- Forms & Templates
- Policy Memos
- MOUs/MOAs
- Scoping Tools
- Training On Demand
- Acronyms and Abbreviations List
- Glossary
Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view and print PDF files.
Adobe Acrobat is required to edit online forms and save them to your computer.
Last Updated: Tuesday, June 21, 2016 3:23 PM
Environmental Handbook, Volume I: Guidance for Compliance
This section of the SER includes the bulk of the reference materials used during the preparation of environmental documents.
I: Overview
Chapter 1 - Federal Requirements introduces the federal laws, Executive Orders, and regulations applicable to transportation projects. There are links to policy, guidance, directives and advisories pertaining to federal environmental laws, and agreements pertaining to National Environmental Policy Act and Department of Transportation Act Section 4(f) compliance. Agreements pertaining to other federal and state requirements are listed in Section III: Topics.
Chapter 2 - State Requirements addresses the requirements of California law and regulations, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and its Guidelines as well as related state environmental statutes and regulations. CEQA compliance is required for all projects for which a public agency has a discretionary action unless the project is exempted by statute in an act of the Legislature. Refer to Section V: CEQA for the preparation and processing of CEQA-only categorical exemptions, initial studies, negative declarations, and environmental impact reports. Section VI: Joint Documents discusses joint CEQA and NEPA environmental documentation.
Chapter 3 - Public Participation sets forth the legal requirements for public hearings and notices, describes the public participation process during project development and transportation planning, and discusses government-to-government relations between the federal government and recognized Native American Tribal governments.
II: Project Planning and Development
Chapter 4 - Environmental Considerations During Transportation Planning provides a brief overview of the Transportation Planning and Project Initiation processes that occur prior to the Project Approval and Environmental Document phase.
Chapter 5 - Preliminary Environmental Scoping discusses the various types of Project Initiation Documents (PIDs) used to program funds for transportation projects. It then addresses the preliminary environmental scoping documents used to identify the efforts needed to conduct the subsequent environmental studies and prepare the environmental document. The types of programming documents and the timing of the preparation of the preliminary environmental scoping documents differ based on whether the project will be on or off the State Highway System.
Chapter 6 - Formal Scoping Process describes the requirements and process to engage other agencies and parties to formally provide their views on the range and breadth of issues to be addressed in Environmentl Impact Statement (EIS) or Environmental Impact report (EIR).
III: Topics
Chapter 7 - Topography/Geology/Soils/Seismic provides information and requirements for describing geologic, soil and seismic conditions in the vicinity of the project area as well as an analysis of the potential environmental impacts of project alternatives on these conditions and the potential impacts of geotechnical conditions on the transportation facility.
Chapter 8 - Paleontology provides guidance on pertinent Federal and State statutes as well as recommended procedures and document formats for conducting paleontological studies in response to Federal, State, and local laws, regulations, and ordinances.
Chapter 9 - Hydrology/Water Quality/Stormwater is currently on hold. For more information on these topics, please see the Caltrans Statewide Stormwater Program page.
Chapter 10 - Hazardous Materials, Hazardous Waste, and Contamination provides an overview of the procedures used to address hazardous materials, hazardous wastes, and contamination during the project planning and delivery process.
Chapter 11 - Air Quality covers the regulatory framework and recommended procedures for performing an air quality analysis for both Caltrans and local agency transportation projects. Preparation of the air quality section of the environmental document and supporting technical report are discussed in detail. There is also discussion of air quality requirements throughout the project delivery process, from transportation conformity determinations at the regional planning stage to project requirements during construction.
Chapter 12 - Noise is an overview of Caltrans noise policies and procedures as they relate to transportation project planning and delivery. Information is provided to give the reader a basic understanding of the need to consider noise impacts, evaluate potential abatement measures and documentation requirements.
Chapter 13 - Energy discusses the policy and procedures regarding energy analysis, including when an energy analysis is required for a proposed project. This chapter also provides general guidance on how to conduct and write an energy analysis.
Chapter 14 - Biological Resources discusses the framework within which biological resources are considered during project planning, development and implementation. The laws, regulation and policy that apply to biological resources are discussed within the context of project delivery timelines.
15 - Waters of the U.S. and the State provides guidance on laws and regulations, agency coordination, assessment and reporting requirements, and information needed for project delivery pertaining to Waters of the U.S. and the State.
Chapter 17 - Floodplains, discusses the requirements of Executive Order 11988 and the responsibilities of FHWA, Caltrans and local agencies when projects encroach on a 100-year base floodplain.
Chapter 18 - Coastal Zone, focuses on compliance with federal and state laws that protect coastal resources. Background on the applicable laws is given, followed by a general discussion of when those laws apply to a proposed project and what must be done if those laws do apply. References and links to more specific guidance on coastal resources issues are also provided.
Chapter 19 - Wild and Scenic Rivers, discusses all river reaches officially designated as being part of the National Wild and Scenic River System and official study rivers. Also lists all river reaches officially designated as wild, scenic, or recreational by the California Natural Resources Agency.
Chapter 20 - Section 4(f), discusses the application and requirements of Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act (49 USC 303). This includes:
- Publicly-Owned Public Parks, Recreational Areas, Or Wildlife Or Waterfowl Refuges officially designated as such, or when the agency having jurisdiction over the land determine one of its major purposes or functions is for park, recreation, or refuge purposes.
- Historic sites on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and archaeological sites on or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and which warrant preservation in place as determined by FHWA and the SHPO.
Chapter 22 - Land Use includes guidance on dealing with the following issues in the environmental document:
- Local land use plans (General Plans, comprehensive plans, etc.)
- Existing and planned land uses and zoning (parks, recreational facilities, community facilities, transportation/circulation plans, agricultural, housing, etc.)
- Current development trends
- Past development trends
- State and Local government plans and policies on land use
Chapter 23 - Farmlands - This chapter is an overview identifying potential impacts to agricultural lands associated with proposed transportation projects. Information is provided that defines the different types of farmlands and the procedures necessary to evaluate them. Relevant California farmland policies are also discussed as well as identification of the agencies responsible for those policies.
Chapter 24 - Community Impacts - This chapter is an overview of the potential community impacts that may be associated with a transportation project.
Chapter 25 - Environmental Justice - This chapter includes a basic overview of the principles of environmental justice and how they are incorporated into the environmental process. Definitions of minority and low-income populations, and other terms related to environmental justice are presented. Laws, regulations and guidance pertaining to environmental justice are also included within this chapter.
Chapter 27 - Visual & Aesthetics Review - This chapter provides an overview of the approach the Department uses to identify visual and aesthetic issues that may result from transportation projects. Information is provided to give the reader a basic understanding of the Visual Impact Assessment and Scenic Resource Evaluation. These studies are used to predict the degree and type of impact proposed projects will have on the "visual" environment.
Chapter 28 - Cultural Resources - This chapter discusses the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and other federal and state laws regarding cultural resources in the environmental review process.
IV: NEPA Documentation
Chapter 30 - Categorical Exclusions, discusses the criteria that a proposed action must meet to be categorically excluded from the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the preparation and processing of the Categorical Exclusion (CE) documentation for Caltrans and Local Assistance projects.
Chapter 31 - Environmental Assessment (EA)/Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), discusses the preparation and processing of a NEPA Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). In most cases EAs are prepared jointly with CEQA Negative Declarations. For guidance on joint CEQA/NEPA Initial Studies/Environmental Assessments and joint Negative Declarations/FONSIs refer to Chapter 37 and 38.
Chapter 32 - Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), discusses the preparation and processing of a NEPA Notice of Intent, Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statement, and Record of Decision. In most cases EISs are prepared jointly with CEQA Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs). For guidance on joint CEQA/NEPA Environmental Impact Statements/Environmental Impact Reports (EIR/EIS) see Chapter 36.
Chapter 33 - Reevaluations discusses the different types of reevaluations, and their processing requirements.
Chapter 34 - Exemptions to CEQA, discusses the criteria that a project must meet to be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act and the preparation and processing of the Categorical Exemption (CE) documentation for Caltrans projects. Local Agencies may find this guidance useful for CEQA compliance for transportation projects for which they are the CEQA lead agency.
Chapter 35 - Initial Study and Negative Declaration, discusses the preparation and processing of a CEQA Initial Study, Negative Declaration and Mitigated Negative Declaration.
Chapter 36 - Environmental Impact Report, discusses the preparation and processing of an EIR in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act. This chapter also discusses the preparation and processing of documents related to an EIR including, a Notice of Preparation (NOP), a Notice of Completion (NOC), Certification, Findings, Statement of Overriding Considerations (SOC), and a Notice of Determination (NOD). The chapter also includes information on the preparation and processing of a Supplemental EIR, a Subsequent EIR, and an Addendum to an EIR.
VI: Joint NEPA/CEQA Documents
Chapter 37 - Preparing Joint NEPA/CEQA Documentation, provides direction on the preparation of documentation designed to meet the requirements of both the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Combined documentation is the most efficient means to comply with state and federal requirements. One document is prepared and circulated for public review.
VII: NEPA Assignment
Chapter 38 - NEPA Assignment, this chapter provides guidance on NEPA Assignment pursuant to 23 USC 326 and 23 USC 327.
VIII: Environmental Commitments and Design
Chapter 39 - Incorporating Environmental Commitments into Design, this chapter describes required actions so that appropriate Environmental Commitments will be included in the design of both Caltrans' and local agency projects on the State Highway System.
(Last content update: 09/27/2012: MtC, MSapp)


text:
The Phils increase their winning streak to two games as they hold on in a close game to defeat the Pirates, 5-4.
The Phils hold on to win a close game with the Pirates as they increase their winning streak to two game, winning 5-4.
The Pirates tried to take the lead in the first as, with runners on second and third, and with one man out, Vance Worley, after catching Garrett Jones' grounder back to the mound, threw the ball home for a fielder's choice out, as Jose Tabata, who had started the game by being hit by a pitch, then moved up to second base on Neil Walker's walk, before going to third on Andrew McCutchen's ground out, 6-3, is tagged out by Carlos Ruiz for the inning's second out, while Walker, who had earlier walked, and went to second base on McCutchen's ground out, would move up to third, while Jones would be safe at first on the play. Worley then got out of trouble by getting Casey McGehee to hit into a force out, 6-4, wiping out Jones at first base. The Phils then took the lead in their half of the first as, with a man on third, and with two men out, Ruiz hits an RBI single, scoring Hunter Pence, who had just tripled, giving the Phils a 1-0 lead. The Pirates would tie the game up at one-all in the second as, with a man on third, and with one man out, Michael McKenry hits a sacrifice fly, knocking in Pedro Alvarez, who had started the inning off with a double, then moved up to third on Clint Barmes' ground out, 6-3. The Phils retook the lead in their half of the second as, with two men on, and with two men out, Placido Polanco hits an RBI single, knocking in Mike Fontenot, who had earlier singled, then moved up to second base on Worley's sacrifice bunt, 1-4, giving the Phils a 2-1 lead, before Jimmy Rollins, who had just walked, is thrown out trying to go to third base, 7-5-3, for the inning's final out. The Phils added to their lead in the third as, with one man on, and with two men out, Ty Wigginton hits a two-run home run, his eighth home run of the season, knocking in Ruiz, who had earlier singled, giving the Phils a 4-1 lead. The Pirates would get a run back in the sixth as, with a man on third, and with two men out, McGehee hits an RBI single, knocking in McCutchen, who had earlier doubled, then moved up to third on Jones' ground out, 3-unassisted, making it a 4-2 Phils' lead. The Pirates then cut the Phils' lead down to 4-3 in the seventh as, with two men on, and with nobody out, pinch hitter Drew Sutton hits an RBI double, knocking in Barmes, who had started the inning off with a walk, then stopped at second base on McKenry's single, while McKenry, who had just singled, would stop at third base. After Michael Schwimer replaces Worley on the mound, the Phils would get out of further trouble as Tabata grounds out to the pitcher, 1-3, after Schwimer looks McKenry back to third, for the inning's first out, then Walker flies out to left for the inning's second out, before John Mayberry, Jr. throws a strike to home plate, as McKenry tries to score on the fly out, but is tagged out by Ruiz for the inning's third out on a fly out-doubleplay, keeping the score 4-3 Phils. The Phils added to their lead in the eighth as Ruiz hits a lead-off home run, his tenth home run of the season, a career high, as he gives the Phils a 5-3 lead. The Pirates would get a run back in the ninth as, with one man out, McHenry hits a solo home run, his fourth home run of the year, making it a 5-4 Phils' lead. But that would be the final score as Jonathan Papelbon would record his eighteenth save of the season by getting out the next two batter, as he got Tabata to end the game by striking out, swinging.
Vance Worley (4-4, 2.92) gets the win as he pitched six inning, plus three batters, as he gives up three runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out five. Michael Schwimer collected his first hold of the season as he pitched a scoreless inning, getting out the two men that he would face, thanks to a fly out-doubleplay. Antonio Bastardo collected his fifteenth hold of the season as he threw a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, while striking out a batter. Jonathan Papelbon received his eighteen save of the season as he pitched an inning, giving up a run on a hit, while striking out two. Erik Bedard (4-8, 4.27) took the lost as he went six innings, giving up four runs on eight hits and two walks, while striking out three. Juan Cruz pitched an inning, plus three batters, giving up a run on two hits and a walk, while striking out a batter. Tony Watson pitched an inning, getting out all three men whom he would face, striking out one.
The Phils had ten hits in the game, with Carlos Ruiz (2 Singles, Home Run, 2 RBIs) leading the team with three hits, followed by Placido Polanco (Singles, RBI) and Ty Wigginton (Single, Home Run, 2 RBIs) with two hits apiece. Hunter Pence (Triple), Shane Victorino (Single) and Mike Fontenot (Single) had the other three Phils' hits. The Phils also had three walks and a stolen base (Victorino (18)) in the ballgame.
The Phils (36-40, 4th East) will continue their series with the Pirates (38-35, 3rd Central) with a night game tonight. The game will be played at Citizens Bank Park and is to start at 7:05 pm. The Phils will send to the mound Raul Valdes (2-0, 1.84) who will be making a spot start, as the Phils plan to use the bullpen tonight. Valdes last pitched on June 23, throwing two innings in relief against the Rays, giving up no runs on a hit, while striking out four. Valdes hopes to keep the Phils in the game. The Pirates will counter with James McDonald (6-3, 2.19), who is coming off a complete game win against the Twins on June 21, as he gave up a run on six hits, while striking out five, in the Pirates' 9-1 blow out. He will be trying to stop the Pirates' present losing streak. The Phils will be going for the series win, while hoping that Chase Utley will be ready to go both on the field and at the plate.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Treating the first symptoms of
plantar fasciitis with rest and ice can help prevent
your heel pain from becoming long-lasting (chronic). This treatment is less
successful after the problem has become chronic.
Ice your heel
when you have pain, to control the inflammation associated with overactivity or
high stress on the plantar fascia. There are a number of ways to do this. Your
doctor may have suggestions on what works best.
Health Tools help you make wise health decisions or take action to improve your health.
ByHealthwise StaffPrimary Medical ReviewerWilliam H. Blahd, Jr., MD, FACEP - Emergency MedicineAdam Husney, MD - Family MedicineKathleen Romito, MD - Family MedicineSpecialist Medical ReviewerGavin W.G. Chalmers, DPM - Podiatry and Podiatric Surgery
Current as ofMarch 21, 2017
Next Section:
Previous Section:
Current as of:
March 21, 2017
Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
William H. Blahd, Jr., MD, FACEP - Emergency Medicine & Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine & Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine & Gavin W.G. Chalmers, DPM - Podiatry and Podiatric Surgery
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated, disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. Learn how we develop our content.
To learn more about Healthwise, visit Healthwise.org.
© 1995-2017 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.
Last modified on: 8 September 2017


text:
- Search
- LegalWeek Home
- Law.com
- Publications
- Law.com
- The American Lawyer
- National Law Journal
- Corporate Counsel
- New York Law Journal
- The Legal Intelligencer
- The Recorder
- Daily Business Review
- Browse All Publications ➝
- Law Topics
- Career Development
- Deals and Transactions
- General Counsel and In-House Counsel
- Law Firm Management
- Legal Technology
- Litigation
- Browse All ➝
- International
- Surveys & Rankings
- Law Firms
- DLA Piper
- Clifford Chance
- Allen & Overy
- Linklaters
- Hogan Lovells
- Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
- Browse All ➝
- Legal Ladder
- Lean Adviser
- Events
- British Legal Awards
- International Private Client Forum
- Strategic Technology Forum USA
- Commercial Litigation and Arbitration Forum
- Legal Week Connect
Browse All➝
- Jobs
- All Sections
- About Us
- Contact Us
- All Sections
- Advertise
- Customer Care
- Terms of Service
- Modern Slavery Statement
- Privacy Policy
- Follow LegalWeek
Copyright © 2019 ALM Media Properties, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Pinsents confirms second round of post-merger back office job cuts
Pinsent Masons is to cut around 15 support staff after announcing its second redundancy consultation since its merger with Scots firm McGrigors went live in May. The national firm confirmed the consultation today (8 November), with the cuts expected to affect staff in the firms' finance and knowledge management teams.
Thank you for sharing!
Pinsent Masons is to cut around 15 support staff after announcing its second redundancy consultation since its merger with Scots firm McGrigors went live in May.
Dig Deeper
Trending Stories
Recommended Stories
Hogan Lovells Launches Mandatory Anti-Bullying and Harassment Training In UK
The firm is the latest to ramp up its efforts to manage behaviour expectations.
Lloyds Advisers Gear Up for Fight As Process to Cut Panel Begins
The review process is underway.
Hogan Lovells Boosts NQ Pay Packets to £117,000
Meganne Tillay |
The firm's new pay and bonus structure means NQs could take home £117k in total.
Think Lean Daily Message
"We have to ask the right questions, different questions, and so develop a deeper understanding of the client's business and the problems. Th..."
Legal Research and Law Library ManagementBook
This revised edition of Legal Research and Law Library Management retains the best elements of the previous edition while covering the latest in law library management.
Get More Information
More from ALM
Debt Capital Markets - 5-8PQE - Partner Track - London
City of London, London (Greater), United Kingdom
Our client is one of the world's largest and most prestigious law firms. Their debt capital markets team, which works across a wide range of...Apply Now ›
Employment PSL PART-TIME
London, United Kingdom
Our client is now looking for an experienced employment lawyer, with or without previous dedicated PSL experience, to join its highly regard...Apply Now ›
Real Estate
London, United Kingdom
Real Estate Associates required by highly popular Mayfair practice. The firm prides itself on offering high-quality work together with a s...Apply Now ›
From Data to Decisions
Dynamically explore and compare data on law firms, companies, individual lawyers, and industry trends.
Exclusive Depth and Reach.
Legal Compass includes access to our exclusive industry reports, combining the unmatched expertise of our analyst team with ALM's deep bench of proprietary information to provide insights that can't be found anywhere else.
Big Pictures and Fine Details
Legal Compass delivers you the full scope of information, from the rankings of the Am Law 200 and NLJ 500 to intricate details and comparisons of firms' financials, staffing, clients, news and events.
Corporate Counsel Forum Africa 2019
September 05, 2019
Illovo, Johannesburg
Unites leading general counsel to discuss, debate and deliver vital insights into the changing dynamic of the African legal market
African Legal Awards 2019
September 06, 2019
Recognising exceptional achievement from within Africa s legal community while the legal sector is going through rapid change.
Corporate Counsel Forum Europe 2019
September 12, 2019 - September 13, 2019
Bagshot, Surrey
Two-day conference providing a platform for legal department heads to deconstruct and redefine the role of general counsel.
Pay Equity: Current Trends and How to Mitigate Compliance Risk
Sponsored by: Littler |
Webcast date: Thursday, July 18, 2019 | Join this webcast to learn about the complexities associated with pay equity and how your organization can address them.
Webcast: New Research Reveals How CFOs View Legal Cost and Risk Management
Sponsored by: Burford Capital |
Webcast Date: Wednesday, June 19, 2019 | Law firms: use this exclusive information to better engage with clients and win business. | In-house lawyers: understand how to better work with financial colleagues to manage legal cost and risk, and get insight that will improve day-to-day job performance.
Tips, Best Practices and Hot Button Issues of Commercial Mediation & Arbitration
Sponsored by: NAM (National Arbitration and Mediation) |
Webcast Date: Tuesday, June 25, 2019 | **EARN CLE FOR THIS EVENT** | Join this webcast, and earn 1.0 CLE credit (General Skills)*, where Jim Wrynn from NAM (National Arbitration and Mediation) will address the latest developments and hot button issues in commercial mediation and arbitration.
Legal Week Newsletters & Alerts
Sign Up Today and Never Miss Another Story.
As part of your subscription, you can sign up for an unlimited number of a wide range of complimentary newsletters and alerts. Get the timely legal news and critical analysis you cannot afford to miss. Tailored just for you. In your inbox. Every day.
Law Topics
Copyright © 2019 American Lawyer Media International, LLC. All Rights Reserved.


text:
Life is one great balancing act - between work, family, love and health, keeping all the moving parts working together truly is an art. I'm Sasha and my blog is about keeping all these parts working together to create harmony. Check out my about page for more about me.
© 2019 The Great Balancing Act | The Art of Living a Balanced Life


text:
My entreaty was prompted by this post vvvv from my online buddy Bea. Her asiatic posts are one of the joys of QOL for a lot of us, and this has got to be the tenth time this has happened to her.
Bea wrote::onfire: Just written a page and a half reply to Missy's posts and lost the lot. Sod it. Going to sulk now.


text:
Bluffton achieved its first perfect season winning 58-6 over Hilton Head in its last regular game Friday night. It also meant the team retained possession of the coveted Bridge Bowl Trophy for the second year in a row.
Hilton Head began the game on the receiving end, leaving Bluffton to receive to open the second half.
Seahawks and Bobcats went three-and-out for most of the first quarter until Bluffton quarterback C.J. Frazier found receiver Eric Boyles with a 12-yard pass for the first score of the game.
That's not to say there weren't a lot of dropped passes. Receivers on both sides had trouble holding on to the ball. When they did, gains made were often called back with flags on the play. In the first half alone, there were 65 penalty yards between both teams.
There were a total of 17 flags in the game, an unusually sloppy performance on the part of the Bobcats.
"We've just got to go back this week and go back to basics and take care of some of those things," said Bluffton Head Coach Ken Cribb.
He made no excuse for his team but said there were a lot of distractions for his players in the past week, including being ranked No. 1 in the division, not knowing who their next opponent would be and "just being teenage boys," Cribb said.
"It was a little messier than normal, but that's high school football. If you think you're going to play perfect every week, you're wrong," he said. "We've just got to try to avoid those things."
To Bluffton's credit, many of the Seahawk passes were blocked at the line of scrimmage and the Bobcat defense made a number of stops at or behind the line of scrimmage, giving Hilton Head's quarterback Michael Julian a rough night.
With players, families and friends gathered around him at the end of the game, Cribb told his team "You've got something real special here. Don't take it for granted."
He said that what made them so successful this year was "our work ethic, our character, our pride. There are a bunch of teams out there who would love to be in our place right now.
"And we get a lot of support. You have to work hard and you've got to have talent, but you can't get anywhere without support," Cribb said. "We get support from the families, a lot of support from the school. There are a lot of factors that go into our success."
Playoffs begin next Friday and Hilton Head will meet Myrtle Beach, the team that ended Bluffton's playoff run last year with the kind of performance that the Bobcats have given their opponents this year.
Bluffton will play the Georgetown Bulldogs.
Bluffton132012 13-58
Hilton Head0060-6
1st QUARTER
4:12 BLUFFTON C.J. Frazier 12-yard TD pass to Marquis Webber
PAT Mallie Sprouse
2:19 BLUFFTON C.J. Frazier TD pass to
PAT wide
2nd QUARTER
11:44 BLUFFTON Frazier shovel pass to Boyles for 24-yard run.
PAT Sprouse
6:09 BLUFFTON Frazier hand-off to Duncan Adkins for 59-yard run.
Two-point conversion failed.
2:07 BLUFFTON Frazier 12-yard pass to Boyles.
PAT Sprouse
3rd QUARTER
4:30 BLUFFTON Frazier 23-yard TD pass to Demetrius Smalls.
PAT wide
3:47 HILTON HEAD Michael Julian shovel pass to James Sanders who ran 75 yards for TD.
PAT wide
1:44 BLUFFTON Boyles 31-yard pass to Jerry Scott for TD.
Two-point conversion failed.
4th QUARTER
10:13 BLUFFTON Boyles hand-off to Scott who ran 25 yards for TD.
PAT wide
2:03 BLUFFTON Vinny Boni run in for TD.
PAT O'Kasta Blagrove


text:
Dr. Grumpy: "What's up?"
Mary: "Sorry, it's Dr. Promissory. He says he needs to speak to you urgently."
Dr. Grumpy: "Okay." (picks up phone) "This is Dr. Grumpy."
Dr. Promissory: "Hi, sorry to interrupt you."
Dr. Grumpy: "What's going on?"
Dr. Promissory: "My wife recently started her own business as a mortgage agent, and I was wondering if you'd considered refinancing your home?"


text:
The Last Remnant is a completely original RPG title, taking advantage of the power of next-generation hardware to build a lush, realtime fantasy world. Making full use of the power of Epic Games' flexible middleware solution, Unreal Engine 3, Square Enix can now achieve simultaneous development on multiple platforms.
The game's battle system has been carefully crafted to deliver a brand-new experience for gamers, as they control forces in massive battles between up to seventy different units at once. Today's press conference also featured a demonstration of the game, showing off the dynamic world and sprawling landscapes of The Last Remnant.
Long ago, the world was filled with Remnants -- mysterious artifacts from an ancient civilization. But as time passed, the powers of the Remnants began to shift the world's balance. As the rift widened between those who ruled and those who were ruled over, a new era dawned: one of countless frays brought upon the world by those enslaved by their own lust for power.
A thousand years later, the journey of one young man begins.
John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd. comments, "THE LAST REMNANT represents a significant step in bringing our titles to a global audience and to all fans regardless of the platforms that they own. Following the Xbox 360® release, we hope to reach a new audience with the Games for Windows version of THE LAST REMNANT and I hope that fans enjoy this exciting new adventure."
Key Features :
- Imagine a vast, war-torn battlefield, scarred by years of conflict.
- Countless enemies surround the player, who is backed up by his own army.
- Threatened by numerous foes and saved in the nick of time by allies, players will feel the true tension of a soldier on the battlefield.
- As many as seventy units will duke it out at once in fierce yet beautiful battles.
- Backed by the visual power of next-gen hardware, the unique play style and battle system will challenge and invigorate players like never before.
- Innovative new battle system that allows for large scale battles delivered with an unrivalled cinematic intensity
- Selective Encounter System allows you to engage the enemy your way, eliminating random battles
- New features not included in the original Xbox 360 release version
The Last Remnant is currently available on Xbox 360, with the PC edition coming spring 2009, PS3 version date to be announced.
More articles about The Last Remnant


text:
Just an update. This is the 714th post of this blog.
If you have read them all, thank you... and I apologize for being so wordy.
I am continuing my quest to write down as many of the Karate Thoughts in my head as possible. Perhaps one day I will forget them, and can read them here to remind myself.
Plus my many Karate friends here in Hawaii and around the world are always giving me new things to ponder.
Thank you again!
Charles C. Goodin
Post 714
Just an update. This is the 714th post of this blog.
Posted by Charles C. Goodin on Tuesday, September 25, 2007


text:
kinston residents talk about what draws them to Kinston, and what the city needs to keep them here.
Dorian Edwards said if you see a problem, you run from it, ignore it or try to fix it.
The 22-year-old has chosen to become a part of the solution.
The problem, according to many people Edwards� age, is Kinston. It lacks the social scene, shopping, jobs and future they see in a bigger city � or even in neighboring towns like Greenville and Goldsboro. Its population, now about 22,000, is actually shrinking � down about 15 percent in the last 20 years.
Yet Edwards plans to return to Kinston when he graduates from Livingstone College in May to help resolve those issues.
�You can�t sit around and wait on something to happen,� he said about Kinstonian�s grumbles. �We should put the same effort into trying to get away from Kinston into trying to make Kinston a better place for every single person.�
�It�s home�
That work is under way � and is bearing fruit. Community members are striving to bring more businesses and people into town. Some young people who grew up in the city are returning, bringing with them their outer-Kinston experiences.
�It�s home,� said Troyshika Shaw, a Kinston High School graduate who travels around the country in her fashion design career. �I don�t want to live here permanently for the rest of my life, but it�s a place I like to come back and visit.�
Shaw, 21, said Kinston isn�t ideal for a younger crowd since the lack of activities and events pushes them into other communities.
�If we had more programs to draw their attention, it would make them stay,� she said. �We don�t have a lot of activities to keep (youth) focused, busy and that will occupy them in a positive way.�
Her attitude about Kinston isn�t completely negative, though. She realizes the city is just like any other place � it has its good points.
Some residents, especially of the younger age demographic, seem to overlook those points and only see what�s missing from Kinston.
�People are a lot quicker to say they don�t like something than to say they like it,� said Greg Hannibal, who manages the LCC Small Business Center downtown. �Very few people are totally satisfied with their circumstances.�
He said communal issues begin with everyone�s individual problems coming together. The community has to work together to fix issues, including collectively finding ways to make Kinston larger.
�You have to attract more people,� he said. �Telling people you don�t like (Kinston) and you live here is not going to attract more people.�
Hannibal believes that before people decide to settle into Kinston, the lack of resources � such as public transportation and less-than-modern apartments � and social amenities have to be confronted.
Developmental strategies
Adrian King, executive director of Pride of Kinston, worries about downtown, which he sees as both an indicator and driver of Kinston�s growth.
The scheduled replacement of two bridges on South Queen, the main entrance into the business district, will take a toll on commercial activity for at least the two years of the project, to begin next year.
More long range bypasses and other highway construction plans could take travelers farther away from Kinston�s center
�If those bypasses materialize, it�s going to have a material effect on the customer base in downtown stores,� King said.
�We need to double our efforts to get people coming in town,� he added. �We�ve got a lot of things going. Slowly but surely, our town is evolving right before our very eyes.�
Pride is working with local businesses, entrepreneurs and community organizations to open more shops, restaurants and cultural sites downtown.
Recent business openings, such as Chef and the Farmer restaurant, Mother Earth Brewery, the Woodman Community Center and the new Red Room nightspot are just part of the beginning of Kinston�s growth.
However, many people in Kinston don�t know about major developmental plans.
�It�s not enough around here for young, successful or educated people,� said Miguel Starkey, a Kinston native and Woodmen Community Center employee who returned home after graduating from UNC-Pembrokein May. �I feel like they can do a lot on Queen Street as far as businesses and night life, possibly.�
He said that would keep a younger crowd around and attract visitors.
Changes are happening slowly as businesses bloom in the area.
�I�d say five or six years from now, it�s going to be a totally different town,� King predicted.
Keeping them here
A local organization, Young Professionals of Lenoir County, tries to make an impact with the city�s youth to influence those that want to leave to return to Kinston after they venture off to college or join the workforce.
�I think every high school kid wants to be a doctor, lawyer or teacher,� said former YPLC chair Justin Hill, who returned to Kinston after graduating from UNC Chapel Hill and teaching in South Korea for a year. �There are just a lot more specific things out there.�
The group is taking about 12 high school juniors to Lenoir Memorial Hospital this week and exposing them to different career choices.
�(It will) give them a reason to come back to Kinston,� said Hill, an LCC employee and former Free Press staff writer. �There are a lot of things going on that might not be apparent at first glance, but when you do a little bit of looking, there�s a lot of great stuff going on here.�
Annually, The Free Press honors 20 residents under 40 years old who have made an impact in the area. Last year, Ashley Manning was among those honored and part of the 75 percent in that group who was born here and chose to live here.
�I came back to be with family,� said Manning, a social worker for Lenoir County Department of Social Services. �There are a lot of family-owned businesses here. � I feel it�s important to local families to carry on traditions to continue to make Kinston a good place to live.�
Inaugural 20 Under 40 winner and Rochelle Middle School Principal Nicholas Harvey II said he wishes more people would come back to Kinston.
He grew up in the city, went away to North Carolina A&T and initially moved to Greensboro as an educator.
�When I started teaching in Greensboro and saw how effective teachers could be, I wanted to come back home and do what I was doing in Greensboro in my own community,� he said.
Harvey said while he understands the importance of natives coming back to Kinston, he knows it�s sometimes not the most attractive place for teenagers.
�I always try to push our students to be prepared academically so they can go to college,� Harvey said. �I think going to college, getting that college experience and bringing stuff back to Kinston, is the only way that we improve Kinston. That�s why I�m back here.�
Even if it�s not college, he thinks simply having an experience outside what Kinston has to offer will �continue to head us in the right direction.�
The Answer
Patience is not only a virtue, it�s an imperative when the goal is to transform a town.
�As in any community, I think that the constituents really need to invest in their community,� Greg Hannibal said. �Nothing is a quick fix when you�re talking about community and how to solve problems.�
He said everyone � community, small and big businesses and the government � has put forth equal, collective efforts.
�Yes, we have problems, but they�re all solvable problems � and universal issues,� Hannibal said.
Kinston Mayor B.J. Murphy said people in the city need to be more involved in their communities and with the youth.
�There is continuous, negative conversation without any constructive cause,� he said. �Engaging in our youth, engaging in the business enterprise in the community and engaging in the civic lives of our community is important to have a healthy and vital (one).�
Adrian King said entrepreneurs are talking to Pride about fa�ade grants to improve buildings on Queen Street, even turning some into living spaces.
�We�ve got big business and small businesses in that area perking along together,� he said. �The economy is beginning to perk along again and people are beginning to invest more.
�People are having dreams again, and we do have a reason to believe that things will get better.�
Jessika Morgan can be reached at 252-559-1078 or at firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessikaMorgan.


text:
Brian Frick is the Associate for Camp and Conferences Ministries with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). He has been involved in camp and conference ministry since high school. For the past ten years, Brian has served as program director of Johnsonburg Center in New Jersey, Westminster Woods in California, and Heartland Center in Missouri.
Camp and conference ministry compliments and partners with other ministry aspects of our church to foster faith development and reflection. As our communities and our church changes, our ministries need to grow and adapt with creative and emergent programming and leadership to meet new realities.
These blogs entries, though varied, are intended to spur thought and conversation around the opportunities and challenges before us.
Coming "home" is as important a right of passage as being sent. When our youth get "sent" out into the world, where are they coming "home" to? This edition features 3 young adults who are coming 'home' to Stony Point after a transformative experience.


text:
Sanctuary Criminal Justice is currently looking for an experienced and dedicated prison nurse to work in Essex. The ideal candidates will possess highly developed specialist knowledge of prison nursing and be registered with the NMC.The pay rate for this locum prison nurse job is £18.89 per hour (LTD Company Equivalent). This is an initial 3-week contractResponsibilities of the prison nurse:- Assisting and supporting the Head of Offender Health and the Clinical Nurse Manager Offender Health across the services ensuring that prisoners and detainees receive a high quality service in line with Primary Care Services within a safe, secure and clean environment- Being responsible for the effective day to day clinical leadership and management of the healthcare department- Undertaking the role of Primary and Unscheduled Care Specialist as require and as appropriate
Requirements of the prison nurse:- Degree or equivalent in nursing- Current NMC registration- Significant experience within a similar roleContact: This prison nurse job is advertised by Daniel Allard; if you are interested in this position, please click below to apply now.Due to the high volume of applications we receive, regretfully we are only able to respond to candidates who meet our clients' requirements.Reasonable Adjustments:If you consider yourself to have a disability or require any reasonable adjustment during the recruitment process or within the workplace, please highlight this at the earliest opportunity by contacting us. With this information, we will provide appropriate support to you throughout the process and into your work placement.


text:
Hi, I am al little confused on the best way to set up Poco and broadcast email software to share the same email account and work together in a friendly and productive way. If anyone knows of a mailing / list management software that would be the most Poco friendly I would appreciate the referral. I have found 6 email programs that look good, but none of them speak to this issue. It is probably so basic that they don't think too - or the pros don't share the list account with thier general email account ... I don't know.
I have a photo portrait studio. I want to add an email newsletter and such to our marketing. I also want people to be able to opt-in and out and sign up from our web site, all in an organized and professional way without me having to do everything manually;)
I want to continue using Pocomail for all manual mail reading and sending and then use the mailing software for what it does best. This feels like a normal small business situation, but I have not found any clear advice, and I don't want to end up with a mailing software that makes this more difficult than it needs to be.
Any and all suggestions and comments are appreciated.


text:
ILDC: Three Notable Cases
October 31, 2016
Domestic court decisions dealing with international law are significant not only as potential authoritative determinations of international law, but also because of what they tell us about a respective domestic legal system's distinctive approach and relationship to international law.
Gregor Novak, Associate Editor for ILDC (University of Vienna) examines three notable cases from Canada, Germany, and Japan, illustrating the dual utility of domestic court decisions dealing with international law.
Read the entire article ILDC: Three Notable Cases
To celebrate 10 years of ILDC, explore our collection of insightful editorial articles, from the stages of early development, to the top 10 most consulted ILDC cases of today.


text:
Your browser does not support iframes.
Against cruelty, even in country
I am a country girl, a regular red-meat-eating Republican redneck from a place just as rural as Carroll County, and just about as enlightened.
That's okay. I don't mind unenlightened. But what I do mind is people just assuming that folks in Carroll County think puppy mills like David Winesett's are okay.
I am sure they don't. I am sure they are just as horrified and outraged as I am. They just don't know how to stop it.
It's far too easy to forget the mistakes of the past, as they recede further and further into the rearview mirror.
All it takes is another near-tragedy to remind us that some simple protective measures still have not been taken more than one year after a tragic accident that left two women dead and three others injured.
On Dec. 10, 2007, a car struck a propane tank at a laundromat in Fries, and the gas that leaked as a result ignited into a deadly fireball.
Despite the sad news for the area that a cabinet manufacturer has resigned — possibly just temporarily — its interest in expanding its facility into the city due to a failing economy nationwide, there's still hope for Galax and the Twin Counties through alternatives, like The Crooked Road, to keep the local economy moving forward.
Real tree looks better
I think the county made the right decision to remove the artificial Christmas tree from the middle of the sidewalk on the Old Carroll County Courthouse lawn.
I can understand their concern about the safety hazard.
In this day and time of lawsuits, if someone tripped over one of the stakes or cables holding up the artificial Christmas tree, the county would have been held responsible.
Don't be a Scrooge this holiday season. Give like you mean it.
Or rather, be like Scrooge, but make that the transformed Scrooge who saw the meaningfulness of helping others and found the true spirit of the season in Charles Dickens' classic Victorian Christmas tale.
You don't have to be visited by three ghosts on Christmas eve to do the right thing this year — especially when so many people are out of work and face the grim specter of need as brought on by the poor state of the economy.
Civil rights eroded in U.S.
One thing I heard little or nothing about in the groundbreaking 2008 elections, was the disastrous erosion of civil rights in this country.
Nor have I heard any subsequent discussion of George W. Bush's assault on the Constitution, which he called a "(deleted) piece of paper."
Barack Obama is moving into an Imperial Presidency that would have warmed Richard Nixon's heart.
In response to your Nov. 24 editorial "Policing the budget," I'm disappointed that it was filled with such a lack of understanding about local government budget management.
Our board never criticized the Sheriff for "needing the money." Any comments made were related to a well-founded concern about the sheriff's budget exceeding expenses the county had budgeted.
We expect every department of Grayson County government to abide by the budget passed. In Grayson County, budgets are firm.
We've heard a lot lately about corporations and financial institutions seeking federal government handouts to keep from going bankrupt. It's a plan that leaves a bad taste, but here's something more appetizing to consider.
Corporate giants aren't the only ones in need of a "bailout." There are dozens of smaller local companies and businesses struggling in this economy, and they don't have a government plan to back them up.
All they have is us.
Humane Society appreciates help
Twin County Humane Society would like to express its gratitude to The Hardware Company and everyone that helped make its first Pancake Breakfast for Man's Best Friends a huge success.
It is because of caring animal lovers that we are able to continue to provide assistance to pet lovers in the Carroll, Grayson and Galax areas.
The money raised will help to fund spay/neuter assistance, school and community education programs and adoption services.
In economic times like these, it's understandable to be tight with your money. A fiscally responsible government should be tight, too.
But, that should only apply when a locality is tightening its own purse strings.
Recently, Grayson County Sheriff Richard Vaughan approached the board of supervisors asking for money to be transferred from the Special Law Enforcement Fund to a few line items in his budget.
Chestnut Creek School of the Arts may have had a slow start after a two-year delay, but now that the paperwork and ideas have come together, the art school will take off fast.
The City of Galax has been pushing the process along as quickly as possible. This year, the city chose its director and associate director. CCSA finally came into the public eye, as various art classes have been hosted during festivals and throughout the year. And most recently, the city has finally chosen South End Construction to begin the renovation by the end of this year.
Writer criticizes Boucher
It is time to congratulate Rep. Rick Boucher for yet another re-election.
Although he ran unopposed, Mr. Boucher raised $1.6 million and reportedly spent $1 million on his "campaign." Lobbyists contributed $60,000 to him and political action committees contributed over $1.1 million. He retains $1.3 million in his reelection war chest.
Sutherland thanks supporters
I would like to thank the voters of the Elk Creek District for your vote of confidence.
I would also like to thank the many others who supported me in various ways.
I am excited about being given the opportunity to give back to my community and Grayson County as a whole.
My pledge to you is that I will work to the best of my ability for each of you as a member of the Grayson County Board of Supervisors team.
Brenda R. Sutherland,
Elk Creek District
Copyright © 2019
The Galax Gazette is your source for local news, sports, events and information in Galax, Grayson, Carroll, and surrounding areas.


text:
Servants of the Lord
Scripture places a high premium on our love for other believers. Simply put, loving other Christians and treating them with respect is not optional. If we do not treat them well and love them, then we do not know God ...Read More
The Holiness of the Church
God does not see His people in the same way that He sees the unregenerate world. He sees us as holy, but He sees those outside of Christ as unholy. This does not mean He is ignorant of our remaining ...Read More
Christian Unity
Today the invisible church, consisting of all those who have true faith in Christ Jesus, is united in the Savior. In time, the visible church may be united once again as well, but true visible unity will occur only as ...Read More
Proper, Edifying Talk
Words spoken to us at just the right time stay with us for the rest of our lives, as do words of malice. If the words of others have this impact on us, then we can be sure that what ...Read More
Every Member Ministry
Do you consider yourself a minister in the church? Although you might never be ordained to a church office, your gifts are critical to the healthy functioning of Christ's body. Determining your specific role may not be easy, but ...Read More
One Body, One Spirit, One Call
Although we all have different roles in the body of Christ, our call is the same — to live together in loving unity with other believers as we worship the Lord in the beauty of His holiness and proclaim the gospel ...Read More
Making Known God's Manifold Wisdom
A church unified in the truth and in love is one of the most powerful displays of God's glory to all of creation. We should therefore strive to bear with one another's failings and endeavor to study the ...Read More
The Church is One
Are you concerned for the unity of the church? Although we can never compromise on the essential truths of the gospel, striving toward reconciliation with other believers and the unity of the faith, both invisible and visible, is a commendable ...Read More
The Lord's Holy Temple
Because every believer is a stone in God's temple, to sin against another Christian is to assault His holy dwelling place and thus a most grievous act. We must therefore strive not to harm other Christians with our words ...Read More
Providence and God's Inheritance
Our Creator does not need anything from us, which makes it all the more remarkable that He purposed in eternity past to make us His own inheritance. This is a great privilege, and it is due entirely to His sovereign ...Read More
Lifting the Church's Burden
Matthew Henry aptly comments, "Rich people should be ashamed to burden the church with their poor relatives." It is easy to think that helping the impoverished is someone else's responsibility, even if they are related to us. But each ...Read More
Gossips and Busybodies
The life God has given each of us is short, and it will be measured in the heavenly rewards He has promised us. We should therefore make the most of it that He might find us to be good and ...Read More
On Younger Widows
It is no sin to desire remarriage. The problem comes only if we become unequally yoked (2 Cor. 6:14) or break a vow made to the Lord. But being that God nowhere commands us to vow to serve him ...Read More
Enrolling Widows
Matthew Henry writes, "Those who would find mercy when they are in distress must show mercy when they are in prosperity." The widows whom the church should be most ready to support are those who in their lifetimes have been ...Read More
Hope Set on God
One of the good and necessary consequences that we can draw from 1 Timothy 5:3–16 is that the church is not required to support financially those widows who are able for whatever reason to support themselves. However, the ...Read More


text:
I'm using Synaptic (and occasionally
aptitude via ssh) under Debian.
When upgrading packages, there is the extremely annoying behavior of scanning changelogs, which can take a minute or two when there are lots of updates, and displaying them.
The time spent scanning the changelogs is not the critical factor, but the fact that the upgrade process blocks until I acknowledge that I have read information that I do not read, and do not want to read.
I want to tell the computer "go ahead, upgrade", go to lunch, and come back an hour later, and should be done. If some package is so broken that it is already known not to work, it should not install in the first place, I'd rather stay with the one that works (one would hope that packagers are are smart enough for this). And otherwise, I'm really not interested in whatever they have to say.
Is there a configuration switch (preferrably globally, within
apt) to disable changelogs once and forall, and maybe an option that does not consider upgrade packages which break?


text:
The soldiers buried in Richmond were from a number of southern states which included: Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas. Though only containing thirty burials of Confederate Jewish soldiers, the larger cemetery within which the Confederate burials lie accommodates five more soldiers who were buried in their family plots.
The cemetery founded in 1816 is located at Shockoe Hill at Fourth and Hospital Streets in Richmond, VA and has been maintained since 1888 by Congregation Beth Ahabah, one of the oldest synagogues in Richmond. You can read more about the cemetery by clicking here.


text:
We are going to begin a study in the Word of God tonight in Matthew chapter 5 and I want to talk to you on the subject of the key to happiness, the only way to happiness, Matthew chapter 5. As we come to Matthew 5, we come to familiar passage of Scripture called the Beatitudes. You will notice starting in verse 3 the word "blessed" is used right on down through verse 11. These are the Beatitudes. These are the pronunciations of blessing.
And I want to begin tonight by just giving you a bit of an overview and then starting next Lord's day we'll look more carefully at each of these Beatitudes. But we need to get the picture of all of it as it lays out before us. And to start with, to acknowledge the fact that Jesus is committed to providing true happiness. That really is the issue here. The Lord Jesus Christ has come into the world to provide to men and women real happiness, lasting happiness.
Sadly, however, not everyone knows that and certainly not everyone believes that. Not even everyone in His kingdom has enjoyed the reality of that provision of happiness, but happiness is His concern. It is God's concern, it is Christ's concern.
And that becomes very evident from the fact that here we have in Matthew chapter 5 the first recorded sermon of Jesus in the New Testament, the first sermon that we have on record and it is a sermon that begins with the issue of happiness. Why do I say that? Because the word "blessed" means that. There are nine blesseds starting in verse 3 and running on down through the opening verses of this great chapter. The word "blessed" really can be translated and often is in Scripture by the word "happy." And I want to introduce this to you in the broadest possible terms looking at it from several different vantage points.
Let's start setting the stage a little bit by looking at the biblical context. What are we talking about when we talk about blessedness? The Greek word is makarios and it's a familiar word, it's an adjective. As I said, it appears nine times here in the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount that we know as the Beatitude...the Beatitudes. But it also appears in its form in one form or another, a cognate form, at least fifty times in the New Testament. And the best that can be said about the word "blessed" is it describes the happy condition of the soul, the contented condition of the soul. It is perhaps similar to the word makar in Greek which means happy. It also can be translated blissful. And that's exactly what the word is intended to convey.
In five of the passages where this word is used in the New Testament it is translated by the English word "happy." So the translators understood that it was related to that word, and that concept.
Homer in ancient Greek writing used the word to describe a wealthy man who was satisfied with all that he had. Plato used it to describe a prosperous man. Both Homer and Hesiod, another Greek writer. spoke of the Greek gods as being blessed in themselves, that is they were in a state of perfect contentment. They were happy with their condition. Unaffected, he said, by the world of men who were subject to poverty and weakness and death.
So, we're talking here about contentment. We're talking here about satisfaction. We're talking here about what we tend to call happiness, inward happiness, a condition of bliss which is neither the result of external circumstances nor is it the result of some outside influence subject to change. Most people in the world experience a little bit of happiness when they have internal emotions that are positive, or when they have external circumstances that for the moment are positive, but both of those things are whimsical. The basic New Testament meaning that we're looking at is a continual constant state of happiness, a state of bliss, a state of blessedness, a state of well being in which a person finds satisfaction and fulfillment.
Now the word is also indicative of character. It is connected to believers, and we want to make that very clear at the very beginning. It is used to describe those who are believers. It is not used to describe anywhere in Scripture those who are not believers. So a permanent state of happiness, true bliss and contentment, satisfaction and fulfillment belongs only to those who know God. In fact, going even beyond that, it is a word used to describe God Himself. Psalm 68:35 says, "Blessed be God." Psalm 72:18, "Blessed be the Lord God." Psalm 119:12, "Blessed art Thou, O Lord." In 1 Timothy 1:11 Paul talks about the glorious gospel of the blessed God, and then at the end of that epistle, chapter 6 verse 15, he calls God the blessed and only sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, referring, of course, to God in the form of Jesus Christ. So God is by nature happy, contentful, filled, satisfied, blissful and blessed. And those who belong to God share in that same bliss. It is a word then used of God, used of Christ...listen carefully...to describe the divine nature. And since we as believers, according to 2 Peter 1 verse 4, are partakers of the divine nature, we then can be said to also be blessed. We are blessed because we possess the life of God by His grace granted to us in Christ. We share in the bliss of God. We share in the joy and satisfaction, fulfillment and happiness that God Himself experiences. No one can know true happiness if he is not a partaker of the divine nature. So all that we're going to learn here in this portion of Scripture is for Christians. It is for those who believe in the Lord God. It is for those who have come to God through faith in Jesus Christ. It is for those who have come to the cross to obtain forgiveness for sin and to receive the gift not only of righteousness imputed, but the gift of a new nature, the divine nature and can thereby enter in to true and divine happiness. Once a person comes to know God through Christ, then comes this happiness.
So, to begin with, looking at it in the broadest possible context, Jesus is talking about inward character. He's not talking about something connected to a momentary emotion or an external event subject to change. He's talking about something that is characteristic of people who belong to God.
Now all of this given at a very crucial time by our Lord as He initiates the dawning of the New Covenant age, the new age. This is a very important point, of course, in redemptive history as the Messiah comes to...to introduce the New Covenant, to provide the New Covenant sacrifice in His death and resurrection. True blessedness then is consonant with the provision of this New Covenant.
The Old Testament, for example, is the book of Adam and his story, starting in Genesis. Adam was the first king in history, according to Genesis 1:28, he was given rule over all the creation. He, however, failed as a king and plunged the entire race into a sea of sin and depravity. And the Old Testament begins, as it were, with sin and ends with a curse. The Old Testament ends with these words, Malachi 4:6, "But I come and smite the earth with a curse." The book about Adam ends with a curse. The New Testament is a book about the new Adam, Jesus Christ and it begins with a blessing and that blessing is connected to the New Covenant. The New Testament opens with an amazing, thrilling contrast as we meet a new King, a King who will not fail in the realm of His rule. And all is different and the message is blessedness.
The first Adam was tested in a beautiful garden and failed. The last Adam was tested in a dangerous desert and triumphed. The first Adam was a thief and he was cast out of paradise. The last Adam turned to a thief on the cross and said, "Today you will be with Me in paradise." The book of the generations of Adam ends with a curse, but the book of the generations of Jesus Christ, which is how Matthew begins, ends with a promise, Revelation 22:3, "There shall be no more curse." The Old Testament gave the law to show man his misery. The New Testament gives the life of Christ to show man true happiness.
So, Matthew presents the King who reverses the tragedy of Adam's fall and makes us subjects of His glorious Kingdom. Revelation 1:5 and 6 puts it this way, "Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood and has made us kings and priests unto God and His Father."
So, the New Testament is all about blessedness. It's all about happiness. It's all about fulfillment and satisfaction. It is for only the people of the King, however. This happiness is reserved for those who are partakers of the divine nature, who share the very happiness of God. That's the general biblical context of the word "blessing."
Let me talk about the context in the book of Matthew itself. Matthew is about the arrival of the King. As the New Testament opens, Matthew focuses on Christ the King having come. And real happiness is the King's concern. He is come to bring happiness. He is come to bring happiness to the subjects of His Kingdom, to those over whom He reigns. That is His purpose, to bring them happiness.
I have to say, however, at this point that even in the midst of this happiness there is a paradoxical picture of misery. All the qualities that make up real happy life do involve some pain, do involve some misery, as we'll see when we move through the study. To most people, though, this might not make any sense. I suppose the world assumes that true happiness means the absence of misery and the absence of pain, whereas believers understand that true happiness is found in the midst of pain, in the midst of misery.
Everything changed when Jesus brought His kind of happiness. As one writer said, "It is though Jesus crept into life's large display window and changed all the price tags." All the "Happiness is..." books don't read like this, nor did they in the world of Jesus' day. Happiness is the successful man. Happiness is the wealthy person. Happiness is the person in love. Happiness is the go-getter, the one who can push everyone out of his way and get what he wants, when he wants, where he wants it. Happiness is acquiring.
But this is not Jesus' plan. This is not Jesus' pattern. This is not the kind of happiness that belongs to the divine nature. He doesn't say "happy are the rich" here. He doesn't say "happy are the famous." He doesn't say "happy are the noble." He doesn't say "happy are the successful." He says "Happy are the poor in spirit, happy are those who mourn, happy are the meek or humble, happy are the hungry and thirsty, happy are the merciful, happy are the pure in heart, happy are the peacemakers, happy are those who are persecuted, happy are those who are insulted." It's a paradoxical thing to look at this kind of happiness. If you're looking for the same kind that the world designed, it's not here...it's not here. The tree of happiness that grows in the cursed earth is nothing like the happiness that God offers us in Christ.
Solomon is certainly a classic illustration of that, if not the most classic. His parentage was the royal line of David and nobody could have been more noble than that. He was the son of a king who had the right to rule. His palace literally was the paragon of the earth in the city of God. His wealth immeasurable with treasures so vast that silver was as common as rocks. His pleasure was fabulous food, stables, horses, buildings, servants, vineyards, fish ponds, gardens, to say nothing of an almost endless string of women. His intelligence was unequalled in the world of men. He was the wisest of all men. But did he find in it happiness? No, he found in it emptiness. Read the musings of Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes, and all appeared empty and useless. All is vanity, he said over and over again. And that's because of a New Testament truth. A man's life consists not in the abundance of things which he possesses. That's not the key to happiness. Another New Testament teaching is that she that lives in pleasure is dead while she lives. Pleasure isn't the path to happiness. Possessions aren't the path to happiness. It's ridiculous to spend your whole life trying to make yourself happy on things that are all going to end up on the junk heap. Happiness is never found in the cursed earth and it's never really ultimately and finally found in the evil system. Why? Because physical things do not touch the soul. You cannot fill a spiritual need with a physical substance. Anyone that has a deep longing for true happiness is unsatisfied with any material thing, things which cannot quiet the heart. Things which cannot bring peace to the heart in a storm cannot provide any true lasting happiness. You cannot pour oil on a wounded spirit. When Saul was sore distressed, you remember, all the jewels of his crown couldn't comfort him for a moment. King Belshazzar, according to the book of Daniel, was carousing and drinking and living it up. He drank wine, it says, in the golden vessels of the temple, but when the figure of a man's hand appeared and wrote, "Mene, mene, tekel upharsin," on the wall, you'd been weighed in the balances and found wanting, it says his face changed. His wine went sour, his food was rotten in his stomach cause there was no real happiness in his soul.
One of the Puritan saints by the name of Thomas Watson said, "Things of this world will no more keep out trouble of spirit than a piece of paper will stop a bullet. Worldy delights are winged, they may be compared to a flock of birds in the garden that stay a little while but when you come near to them they take their flight. So riches make themselves wings, they fly away as an eagle, Proverbs 23:5 says. They're like the meteor that blazes but spends and annihilates itself. They're like a castle made of snow, lying under the torrid beams of the sun," end quote. External things do not bring permanent comfort to the soul.
Ecclesiastes 5:13, listen to what Solomon said, "Riches are kept for the hurt of their owners." They're a fuel for pride, fuel for lust. They are snare in a trap. They choke out the Word of God. They tear our souls as thorns tear our clothes. But riches don't bring true happiness.
And what God is saying to us through the very words of Jesus in this passage is that you cannot find real happiness in the ways of the world, in what they possess or in their philosophy. You cannot seek the living among the dead. Happiness is not here in this world. The world can't bring it. It can't offer it. It can't provide it. It is spiritual in nature. It belongs in essence to the nature of God and is only enjoyed by those who share His nature.
Jesus came as the King to present this tremendous truth. He came to introduce the principles of His kingdom which were inward and spiritual. The problem with that was, as we've seen in our often studies of the New Testament, the Jews were looking for a political kingdom. They were looking for a material kingdom. They were really attracted to Him when He created food for them. They were very much attracted to Him when He healed their diseases and cast demons out of them, when He increased the state of their physical well being, their earthly condition. But when He began to drill into their hearts and talk about the fact that they were sinful and alienated from the life of God and needed to receive the blessedness that God gives to those who share His nature by recognizing their sins and repenting before Him, they took issue with that. In fact, in the Sermon on the Mount here, Jesus' great sermon that runs from chapter 5 through the end of chapter 7, not one reference is made to a social issue, not one reference is made to political aspects of the kingdom. The Jews were so concerned about that, Jesus was not. The stress is on being, not on doing, it's on being. The stress of the Sermon on the Mount is what a man is and not what a man does, or what a man has, or what a man achieves. And that was true all the way through the King's ministry. They were all wanting to hear about what a man can have and what he can become and what he can possess. And Jesus only wanted to talk about what he is. That's why He said, "My Kingdom is not of this world."
So, the position of the blessed is the most exalted position in which you share the very nature of God and participate in His blessedness, but it is absolutely antithetical to anything in this world. Absolutely nothing in this world fits into that category. This is a material, earthly passing world and His is a spiritual, eternal Kingdom.
Now the religious scene sort of exacerbated the issue because Jesus was confronting a society of religionists who thought that they were okay on the inside. "Fine, Jesus wants to talk about the inside, we're okay on the inside." They had come to the conviction that they were living life as God wanted them to live it and that things were okay with them.
Now the religious life of Israel was quite diverse. I suppose you could divide it into a myriad of different groups. It's amazing to see that happening today. Back in 1948 when Israel became a nation, the great vision of David Ben-Gurion and other architects of the modern state of Israel was there would be this one great glorious unified people and that they would all come there and every Jew on the face of the earth would find a home in Israel and they would come from everywhere. They would come from Russia. They would come from western Europe and eastern Europe. They would come from South America. They would come from the Americas over here in the western hemisphere. They would come from all over the globe to that place and they would all live in harmony and joy with their arms wrapped around the same great love of their nation, the same great national and ethnic devotion. And the fact of the matter is, here we are in 1998 and there are factions beyond counting and they're at each other's throat and the whole nation is in chaos. And that's somewhat like it was even in the time of Jesus. There was chaos among the Jewish people because they were splintered into so many groups. The most commonly known groups were the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Essenes and the Zealots.
The Pharisees who believed that happiness was found in tradition and legalism. The Sadducees who believed that happiness was found in liberalism and philosophy. The Essenes who believed that happiness was found in self-denial and separation from the world, they were monks, monastics, living in a sort of a minimal conditions out on the edge of the desert in caves. The Zealots, they were the ones who assassinated the Romans at every turn. Some of them carried daggers around and when they saw a Roman soldier they slit his throat. Zealots believed happiness was found in the overthrow of Rome.
So you had these various factions. The Pharisees believing happiness was found in legalism and tradition, the Sadducees believing it was found in liberalism, being liberated from old traditional laws and in philosophy, Essenes believing happiness was found through personal self-denial and separation from the world so they lived in isolation like monks, and Zealots who believed happiness was found in overthrowing Rome. I suppose we could say this, to the Pharisees happiness meant go back. They were the nostalgia people. They wanted to go back and hold to the traditions. To the Sadducees, happiness meant go ahead, modernize, get away from the past, let's liberalize. To the Zealots, happiness was go out, let's isolate. And to the Essenes, rather, it was go out, let's isolate. To the Zealots it was go against, let's revolt, let's kill. Go back, go ahead, go out, go against...every direction they were going trying to find true happiness.
The Pharisees in going back to the law and back to tradition rejected the present and sacrificed the spiritual reality to hold on to the past. They killed their Messiah to hold on to the past. The Sadducees in rejecting the past and going only with the present and their future ignored the Messiah who was the fulfillment of all the past prophecies and types. The Essenes in their desire for holy living made an issue out of geography and for them holiness was all about where you live and the style of life you live, not the heart. And the Zealots were caught up in violence and rejected the message of Jesus Christ as well.
The point I'm trying to make is that there were all these religious factions all looking for happiness in some zone and not ever finding it because it isn't there. It's not in tradition. It's not in philosophy and modern thought. It's not in self-denial and isolation from the culture. It's not in political overthrow. And Jesus came into the situation and said, "Happiness is..." and gave all new direction for the answer to the longing of the heart of man. He literally dismantled all of those groups. The Pharisees and Sadducees He confronted regularly. The Essenes and the Zealots are not as much an issue in the New Testament, but obviously the Essenes disappeared into oblivion. In their isolation they eventually went out of existence. And the Zealots were perhaps for the most part slaughtered by the Romans. In 70 A.D they disappeared.
Jesus brought a completely different way. He brought a way of happiness that had to do with the heart and nothing else. With that, let's look at verse 1 for a moment and see how this begins. "And when He saw the multitudes He went up on the mountain and after He sat down His disciples came to Him. And opening His mouth He began to teach them, saying, `Blessed...blessed...blessed...blessed...blessed...blessed,'" and so forth.
In order to master this sermon, in order to understand the Beatitudes you have to understand that Jesus was saying something different than what those people were used to hearing, and even what the disciples were expecting to hear. He was talking about an internal happiness that only God can grant and He grants it to the most unlikely people, those who are poor, sorrowful, meek, hungry, thirsty, merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers, persecuted and insulted. And nobody would draw up a list like that and say...Here, folks, is the path to happiness, all it takes is a bankrupt spirit, sadness, humility, hunger and thirst, mercy, purity, peace making, persecution and being insulted, that's the path to real happiness. But, believe me, Jesus was counter-culture in every sense.
It says in verse 1 that He saw the multitudes, and He always cared for the multitudes, they always filled His heart with sympathy and a deep desire to help them. He had, of course, wept later on in His ministry when He looked over the multitudes and saw them as sheep without a shepherd, they wouldn't come to Him no matter how He had tried to gather them. He cared about them. When they were hungry, He fed them. When they were sick, He healed them. When they were demon-possessed, He delivered them. He cared about them. When they were ignorant, He endeavored to teach them. And there was a wonderful attraction in Him that drew the crowds. They came to Him. In fact, look back at the end of chapter 4 verse 23, "Jesus was going about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. And the news about Him went out into all Syria...to the east...and they brought to Him all who were ill, taken with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics and He healed them and great multitudes followed Him from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan." He was really amassing a huge crowd, all sorts, all classes. There were Pharisees and publicans. There were ritualists and legalists, along with harlots and prostitutes. There were scholars and there were the illiterate. There were the refined and there were the degraded. There were the rich and there were the beggars. There were the well and there were sick. There were men and women. He was the attracter of every man and He brought to them the message of the gospel of the Kingdom, the good news that God had a kingdom and they could enter into that kingdom. It was a spiritual kingdom and they could enter that kingdom. There was a way to true happiness. There was a way to sharing the very nature of God.
So, the crowd was gathered. But in reality they were kind of a secondary audience because it says He went up on the mountain, that's a mountain somewhere on the north of the shore of Galilee. There's a traditional site that is believed to be the place where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount. If that's not the exact spot, certainly it's nearby. I myself have stood there on that very spot and preached the Sermon on the Mount a number of times. It's a beautiful, beautiful spot, the slope of which is so far elevated above the sea of Galilee that you look down upon that beautiful body of water beneath you and see the fields all around you. And Jesus was there on the mountain. But it says, "After He sat down," that was the teaching posture the rabbis always took, they sat, "His disciples came to Him, and opening His mouth He began to teach them, saying..." And I just note that because though the multitude was there, closest to Jesus was the disciples and the multitude only heard the sermon in a secondary way. Probably the further away they were from Jesus, this massive amount of people, the less they heard at all because Jesus was sitting and He would have been above them if He was sitting on that slope of the mountain because being even seated the crowd would have been below Him because the slope is that severe. But further back they might not have heard everything, but the disciples up close would have heard every word that He spoke and that was His intention. Because, as I told you before, this happiness which He was talking about, this blessedness which He offered belonged only to those who belonged to God...only to those who belonged to God. Only the sons of the kingdom could understand this. Only the sons of the kingdom could have this happiness.
So, as Jesus begins to talk about happiness He talks to the people who will understand what He means, He talks to His own, He talks to His disciples. And beyond them certainly the multitude could have heard and would have heard and maybe not as clearly understood it if they understood it at all and the further back in the crowd you might have gone, you may have heard people saying, "What did He say? What is He saying? Well I can't quite hear, what does He mean?" And as it got passed back it may have not been as clear as He had first uttered it. But the disciples, they needed to hear the message because it really was a message designed for them.
He took the official Jewish rabbinical position, sat down, began to teach. The primary target, I remind you again, was the disciples. Who would that be? Well, that would be the Twelve to start with and then it would be others who were following Him in faith, true believers. They are the matheti(?), that's the word used here, followers. The message is for all in every age, the message is for all, but it is only able to be understood and grasped by those upon whom God has worked powerfully and graciously to transform their hearts. They gathered around Jesus with believing hearts and hearing ears and they could understand what He was saying. So could the others but not nearly as well until God marvelously worked upon their hearts.
So, Jesus speaks primarily to the souls loyal to His kingdom that they might understand the principles of true happiness, which principles are already a reality in their lives as they had come to believe the truth as Christ preached it. He speaks then to loyal souls primarily. And this then is a message to us who are believers, to remind us of the message that the King preaches so that we can pass it on to the rest. It would then become the responsibility of the disciples to go to this multitude as they went out from Christ and went out to preach, they would go back to this multitude wherever they were in what every city or location and they would preach what they learned from the lips of Jesus.
The late archbishop McGee once said, England, once said that it was impossible to conduct the affairs of the English nation on the basis of the Sermon on the Mount because the nation was not loyal to the King. This great Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 through 7 is only applicable to loyal subjects. That's an interesting thing because if you typically today talked to anybody in the religious world who is not saved, not truly converted but they're in the religious environment, they teach theology at a college or a seminary, they teach the Bible or they're a liberal...liberally trained pastor or whatever it might be but they don't know the Lord but they sort of name His name and they're in the Christian world, they will invariably go back to the Sermon on the Mount and sort of camp there and say..."Well certainly the Sermon on the Mount we proclaim and we believe because it is this great ethical treatise." The fact of the matter is they don't understand it at all. Because they are not loyal subjects to the King, they cannot comprehend the manifesto of the kingdom. People have tried to apply the Sermon on the Mount, even the Beatitudes, socially. They've tried to apply this sort of externally in a social way. It's become kind of a social gospel. But that effort is doomed to failure. And I think the social gospel is pretty well doomed to failure nowadays, it's not succeeding too well.
This is not a social gospel. This is not an ethical message. This is not something that's trying to call people to a higher level of human devotion. This is a message that tells people how to get into God's kingdom. And it reminds the disciples of the attitude that they had when they came to this happiness and it's the message they must preach. He says, "You must tell people that if they want to be happy, they have to be poor in spirit. If they want to be happy, they have to mourn. If they want to be happy, they have to be meek, that's what the word gentle means, or humble. If they want to be happy, they have to hunger and thirst. If they want to be happy, they have to be merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers. They have to suffer persecution and insult.
Strange, but some evangelicals have taken the Sermon on the Mount and objected to it because they say it's too hard...it's too hard, they say. They say, you know, "Matthew 5:48 Jesus says, `Be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.'" And they don't even like the Beatitudes. There are many evangelicals, we think the Beatitudes are too hard because it sounds here like if you want to get in the kingdom you've got to go through all these kinds of attitudes to receive the blessing of God that brings this true happiness, and we don't like that because getting saved shouldn't be difficult, there shouldn't be such a wrenching experience as this. There shouldn't be such a soul searching. There shouldn't be such a poverty of spirit and mourning and meekness and hungering and thirsting and all of that. That sounds like pre-salvation works and coming to Christ should be an easy thing where you just receive the gift. And so there are evangelicals who say..."Well, we don't even think the Sermon on the Mount applies to us today, we'll just take it and push it off into the millennial kingdom and it will apply in the millennial kingdom.
But the text doesn't say that. It's not in there. Nowhere in this Sermon on the Mount, nowhere in these Beatitudes does it say..."By the way, fellas, make sure that the folks who come after you know this doesn't apply to them." In fact, Jesus spoke to a people in a real world just like our world and also, He promised persecution and there won't be persecution in the millennial kingdom. Matthew 5:44 He says you're going to have enemies and there's going to be persecution. That's meaningless in the kingdom, there's not going to be any persecution in the kingdom, we're going to reign with Christ. And the only persecution is going to be when the King wields the rod of iron on the ungodly. Plus, all the same principles that are in the Sermon on the Mount and in the Beatitudes are elsewhere all over the Scripture and particularly in the New Testament also.
This is not something that has to be relegated to some future kingdom on earth. It is simply this, Jesus is teaching the life patterns of true believers. That's what the Sermon on the Mount is about and it starts with the Beatitudes which show us that God designs for us to be happy and here is how we enter the kingdom wherein happiness dwells. It starts out with the Beatitudes because that's the point of entry, and then goes on through the rest of the sermon to discuss life among kingdom citizens. It's just a tremendous, tremendous sermon. We're not going to go through the whole sermon, just at least for now the Beatitudes. We'll get a little more into it once we get into our study of the gospel of Luke. But Jesus is saying happy people are people who have the right attitudes. Can I get that across to you? And we're going to leave that tonight, our time is gone. It's attitudinal, it's not what you possess, it's poverty of spirit, mourning, gentleness, hunger and thirst for righteousness, mercy, purity, peace. It's attitudes that produce happiness. It's attitudes that are God-like attitudes that literally come to us by virtue of us sharing His divine nature. Jesus was saying, happiness then starts from the inside and works its way out. And even where there is suffering and sorrow, happiness is not cancelled out, it is, in fact, generally aided and increased.
Well, much more I could say about it, but let's leave it at that for tonight. The sequence I'll give you and then we'll start them next week. The sequence leads to from the first step of entering into a relationship with God that produces happiness and that is being poor in spirit. That is simply admitting spiritual bankruptcy. That leads us to dealing with my attitude toward my spiritual bankruptcy. Spiritual bankruptcy simply means I'm in sin and nothing else, and that leads to mourning, mourning over my sin. And the consciousness of my sin and the sorrow over my sin leads me to meekness, I feel small and insignificant in the face of a holy God. And that leads to a hunger and thirst for a righteousness I know I need and do not have. And when that righteousness manifests itself to me, it manifests itself in mercy, purity and peacemaking and a willingness to suffer persecution and insult. That's the flow of these beatitudes. It is a rich and profound sequence.
I don't believe there's anything more instructive in all the teaching of Jesus in the area of evangelism and entrance into the kingdom than these beatitudes. And they're so often just kind of thrown away as sort of ethical statements or social statements. They are not. They are salvation-oriented truths. And we're going to see that unfold. And once, of course, we enter in and we have this blessedness, we share, as it were, the divine nature. Verse 13 says, "We become the salt of the earth," verse 14 says, "We become the light of the world." We then become what the world needs, salt and light.
So, not only is there happiness provided for us here, but great usefulness. It is God's standard for living in His kingdom so that we might be happy and that others might be influenced for the glory of God and their salvation as we live as salt and light. Well, that's the overview. Next week we'll start with beatitude number one, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Our Father, again today has been a rich and wonderful day and we thank you so much for it. Certainly Your Word has penetrated our hearts and opened us up again to a fresh and new understanding of Your own mind, Your character, Your will, Your way which calls us then to live obediently, submissively to that revelation. We have received much and are accountable to respond in obedience. We thank You for the Word, the promise that You have come to bring happiness, blessedness, bliss, joy, but that it comes in the most unlikely matrix of brokenness, mourning, meekness, hunger, thirst, that it is out of that brokenness and contrition effected in our hearts by the wondrous sovereign working of the Holy Spirit that we come to the place of repentance and embrace the gospel and enter the kingdom and thereby are blessed. We thank You for that permanent state of true happiness that exists deep within us because we share Your divine nature and we can, with Paul, say, "Rejoice always, and again I say rejoice," because our joy is not connected to any passing emotion or changing circumstance but an abiding and eternal relationship which You have determined to engage with us by Your mercy. We thank You for that and we pray, O God, that You might help us to enjoy the happiness that is ours, to enjoy the bliss of knowing You, to not have that stolen as the psalmist who cried out in the midst of his sin, "Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation." Lord, it's so easy for us to become unhappy, to lose the bliss and the joy of our salvation because of sin. O Lord, help us to live with fullness of joy as we obediently respond to Your Word which has been written that our joy might be full. We thank You for the fact that You desire us to be happy, contented, fulfilled, satisfied, blessed and You've called us to this by the sweet grace that bestowed ...was bestowed upon us in Christ at the time of our conversion and now we would desire to enjoy that, to enter into the fullness of it by obedience and faithfulness. And, Lord, as well that we would learn from the study of the beatitudes how to proclaim this to others that we might call them to an appropriate response to the gospel, to their own sinful condition that they thereby may enter in to this happiness and we cherish and shall forever enjoy. We'll thank You in Christ's name. Amen.
This article is also available and sold as a booklet.
This sermon series includes the following messages:
Please contact the publisher to obtain copies of this resource.Publisher Information