We're excited for another beautiful Sunday with you! Here are some important facts you'll need to know for Sunday:

• Join us online for Digital Service at 8:30am, 10am, & 11:30am on Facebook, YouTube, or on this page
• In person services are being held Sunday mornings at 8:30am, 10am, & 11:30am
• Kids Ministry is available ALL services for ages nursery through 6th grade!
• Community Youth for students 7th-12th grade meets during second service (10am) in the Upper Room. No sign in required, just drop your student(s) off upon arrival

“As we march through the Beatitudes of Jesus we come to the place that I believe is vital to being a mature adult, and to anyone in a position of authority. Jesus tells us, “Blessed are the Gentle.” Gentle is also the word Meek. As the saying goes, “Meekness is not weakness.” In fact it is just the opposite. It actual means, “Power under control.” Which is a valuable quality for developing into a healthy adult. It should be a great Sunday and I hope to see you there.

The Blessed Person

(The Beatitudes) Matthew 5:5-6

The Blessed Person...

1. Practice power ________________

Matthew 5:5

1 Samuel 24:1-11

Psalm 37:1-13

2. Simultaneously hungers and ____________________

Matthew 5:6

John 4:1-28

We covered only two verses in Matthew so we really can’t do our normal first question to dig out as much as possible. So, let’s dive right into the questions.

1. I want you to think of how the beatitudes roll out sequentially. First is blessed are the poor in spirit. We could say, “blessed are those who realize they are spiritually bankrupt before a Holy God due to sin. Then Jesus says, “blessed are those who mourn.” We could say, we mourn over our sin because we don’t want to sin against God anylonger. So, the first two carry a deep acknowledgment that we are flawed sinners. NOW, the next thing is, “Blessed are the gentle or meek.” We defined Gentle/Meek as “Power under control.” Here is my question: Why does putting this one in the third position make sense? Explain

2. In Matthew 5:5we find that the Gentle person lives the blessed lifestyle. I said on Sunday that Gentle/Meek is power under control. The visual of thetime was that of a powerful stallion, broken and his strength is used for good. He hasn’t lost any power; it is simply under control. Sunday I gave a list: Here is the list. I want you to pick two and dialogue its application in life with your group.THELIST:*They are not easily pushed around...so they are not weak people*They do not use their power to forcefully get ahead. Not self-promoters.*They have the power to return evil for evil, but they don’t*They have the power to hurt but they choose to heal instead.

3. Now for fun commentary. David is anointed by Samuel the Priest to be next King. The current King Saul is hunting him down to kill him. This goes on for years. With this background read I Samuel 24:1-11 writing down your thoughts and questions for your group. BUT ALSO: Explain why David for years under such conditions was able to practice, “Power under Control” in that cave.

4. Big question! We all want to grow and be more like Jesus. Under all the pressure of the cross to come Jesus practices power under control that final week of His life. Where and with whom do YOU need to get a spiritual grip and practice Power under Control? Explain.