3-Day Bible Reading Plan: Blessed Are You
Who is truly happy? Who is living the good life? We often look to the wealthy, the powerful, and the famous. We envision the good life as having a penthouse view, a corner office, and a life free of hardship. We tend to be happiest when our bank accounts are full, and our doctors only deliver good news. However, Jesus, at the very beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, offers a radically different perspective. He challenges our very understanding of flourishing, of what it truly means to live a good and virtuous life. - Pastor Paul Crandell, 1/19/25
Day 1
Featured Verse: Matthew 5:1-12 - “He opened His mouth and taught them.”
Cross References:
Psalm 37:11 - “The meek shall inherit the land.”
How does this promise resonate with your personal experiences or observations of humility and gentleness in today's society?
Luke 18:13 - “Be merciful to me, a sinner!”
Why did God hear the tax collector and not the Pharisee? What is it about humility that facilitates answered prayer?
1 Peter 4:12-14 - “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed.”
Why is persecution for Christ’s sake considered a blessing? Why do you think persecuted believers have great rewards in Heaven?
“The whole seven describe a perfect character and make up a perfect benediction. Each blessing is separately precious, ay, more precious than much fine gold. But we do well to regard them as a whole, for as a whole they were spoken, and from that point of view they are a wonderfully perfect chain of seven priceless links put together with such consummate art as only our heavenly Bezaleel, the Lord Jesus, ever possessed. No such instruction in the art of blessedness can be found anywhere else…Together they are a ladder of light—and each one is a step of purest sunshine.” - Charles Spurgeon
Day 2
Featured Verse: Psalm 1 - “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked.”
Cross References:
Isaiah 61:3 - “The planting of the LORD.”
Why are strong men and women of God described as planted trees?
Jeremiah 17:8 - “He is like a tree planted by water.”
How does one become a tree planted by streams of water? How do his or her leaves remain green, and how might you apply these principles in your own life?
2 Timothy 2:19 - “The Lord knows those who are His.”
The Lord knows who are His, but according to the rest of this verse, how might others know?
“The seven Beatitudes mark deepening humiliation and growing exaltation. In proportion as men rise in the reception of the divine blessing, they sink in their own esteem—and count it their honor to do the humblest works.” - Charles Spurgeon
Day 3
Featured Verse: Jeremiah 31:33 - “I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts.”
Cross References:
Hebrews 10:16 - “I will put My laws on their hearts.”
Why does God make several promises to write His law upon our hearts in Scripture? How does this help us live our lives of faith?
Psalm 37:31 - The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip.”
What does it mean to you personally for your steps not to slip, especially in times of personal or societal turmoil?
2 Corinthians 3:3 - “You are a letter from Christ…writing not with ink but with the Spirit…on tablets of human hearts.”
How might the poetry of Paul’s words help you better understand the concept of God writing on the “tablets of human hearts”? If God’s law is written on one’s heart, what does this idea imply about the believer’s relationship with God?
“Poverty leads the van, and persecution brings up the rear. Poverty is the opposite of riches and yet how rich are those who possess a kingdom! And persecution is supposed to destroy enjoyment and yet it is here made a subject of rejoicing. See the sacred art of Him who spake as never man spake. He can at the same time make His words both simple and paradoxical—and thereby win our attention and instruct our intellects. Such a preacher deserves the most thoughtful of hearers. ” - Charles Spurgeon