How to be Happy

Everyone wants to be happy, and fortunately, Jesus told us how we can be. In His famous Beatitudes in Matthew 5, Jesus began the Sermon on the Mount with the word blessed, which means happy. If you want to be happy, here is what you need to do.

First, be humble. That is what it means to be poor in spirit. This describes a person in utter poverty, bankrupt before God in the area of goodness. The poor in spirit have no works they can boast of for their salvation, and yet they are happy because they have learned to rest in the finished work of Jesus.

The next Beatitude is a paradox. Jesus said those who mourn would be happy. Sad people are not typically happy, but those who are broken and in mourning over their sin will be. Those who learn to hate sin will find comfort when they are forgiven by God, and no longer forced to carry that burden.

The meek will also be happy because they have learned to submit to the Father; these people have discovered that living for one’s self might seem promising, but it is ultimately empty. Living for God means living for a higher, more fulfilling purpose. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will also be happy. Not many people are happy while they are hungry. In fact, the term hangry is used to describe a person who is so hungry that he is angry. But when this hungering and thirsting is for righteous living, the believer will be happy because he will become filled with goodness.

Those who show mercy to others will be happy because they will receive mercy from God. The pure in heart will be happy because they are drawing nearer to their Lord, and the peacemakers will be happy because they will rejoice in seeing people brought into peace with their Maker. Even those who suffer for Christ’s sake will be happy because they are in good company, and they will have great rewards in heaven.

These are clear steps to take for a life of happiness, but I want to close by looking at what it means to be happy. The word Jesus used was a rare one, and as the first word out of His mouth in this sermon, it would have shocked the audience. The word He used for happiness was not used to describe people because it was of a level so lofty that it was said no mortal could attain it. Greek mythology applied this word to the gods, and the Greeks sometimes used it for the deceased because they were said to be happy as they were freed from the trials of life. There it is: a kind of happiness reserved for the gods and the dead, but in Christ, is available to all who trust in Him and live according to His words.

Are you happy?