The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-01-27
Sunday Sermon
MANY BLESSINGS
GIVEN TO THOSE
Who NEED AID
Honest, Earnest Souls De-
rive Gain From Teach
inqS of Jesus.
TEXT: MATT. 5:1-4S
BY VIM. E. GILROY, d. d.
Editor of the Congregationaiist

Editor OF the
The kingdom of heaven begins in
blessedness, and blessings are the
portion of all who enter into 1t and
who continue in it. Not blessings as
the world too often counts them.
Not the blessings of ease or OF
pleasure or of material satisfactionS.
Jesus never promised to his fol-
lowers. and to those who would
establish the truth in their hearts
and lives, an easy way. On the
contrary, it was to these that he
offered burdens and sacrifices and
ways of service.
Our lesson begins in what have
been called the Beatitudes-that
is, the roll of blessings. 1t is in
structive to study the blessings
that are promised and those to
whom they are offered They offer
to the prosecuted and the har-
ried inner peace and satisfaction,
but beyond this they express also
great spiritual laws or compensa-
tions that are operative in life.
Offers Comfort Blessing
The poor in spirit-that is, the
ingenious, honest, simple, earnest
souls, who are not concerned about
worldly gain, or power, or anything
that enables them to dominate over
their fellowmen-have the blessing
of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The blessing of comfort is offered
to those who mourn. 1t is doubtful
whether those who never have
mourned ever have discovered the
real meaning of comfort. There are
spiritual satisfactions that one can
know and understand only as one
has felt the need of them through
suffering and sorrow.
Perhaps the StrangeSt of all the
blessings is the announcement of
the inheritance of the earth for the
meek. 1t seems to contradict al
most all the experiences of human
life, where it is apparently the ag-
gresSive, and the selfish, and the
eXacting, who win the greatest re-
wards. But it we'll may be asked
whether the success of these is as
great as it seems.
Many Inglorious Souls
1t was this same Jesus who pro-
nounced these blessings, who in
quired concerning the worth of a
man who had all the world, but who
had lost his own soul. Surely the
world is full today of people who
have attained great world success,
who seem to inherit the earth, but
in whose lives there is little that
makes the soul either glorious or
worthwhile.
Does not experience, when we
search into its meaning, reveal
something Of the truth that Jesus
emphasized? The blessings upon
the merciful, and the pure in heart,
and the peacemakers. speak for
themselves.
The trainers of this lesson have
shown insight and good judgment
in attaching to the BeatitudeS the
closing verses of the fifth chapter
of Matthew, which lay stress upon
the good human life as like the life
of God in the bountifulness of it's
love and magnanimity.
Spiritual Value Cited
This triumphant description Of
the good life is related closely to
the way of blessing. It is life
in which man is lifted into a diff
ferent atmosphere from that Of
worldly and selfish passions and in
terestS. 1t is a life in which even
toward ones enemies reconstructive
powers begin to operate when one
meets enmity not with enmity, but
with love.
Selfshness never can conquer
self1shneSs, hate never can conquer
hate, but when one meets selfish
ness with unSelfishneSs a founda-
ton is laid for something new.