Don't Worry Be Happy

  • Series: The Kingdom
  • by: David Crosby 06/14/09

“Happiness—who has it and why” serves as the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount.  I discover two solid truths in these simple observations.  First, happiness has to do with attitudes rather than a lot of other things we might expect.  Second, happiness is important to the Lord Jesus--important enough to justify its place at the beginning of his longest recorded sermon.

Jesus begins each beatitude with the word “blessed” or “happy,” the Greek word makarioi.  This word was used first by the Greeks to describe the happiness or bliss of the gods, a transcendent happiness beyond labor, care, and death.  It was used by derivation to describe the divine blessing upon men.  So “blessed” captures the idea of this word. It points to a full and lasting happiness. It is not a barrel of laughs for one night.  It is not a simple pleasure only.  It is a sustained and enduring contentment of soul.