We are Blessed!

 

Read Matthew 5

We look now at the beatitudes.

"Beatitudes" is derived from the Latin word "beatus," meaning blessed or happy.  That’s the AI synthesis that my computer gave. It’s on target.

Each of these beatitudes begins with the words, “Blessed are…”

And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.  Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,

For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,

For they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

For they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

For they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,

For they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

For they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

For they shall be called sons of God.

Jesus turned the world upside down for those who were listening. For those of us who have the benefit of decades of biblical study, we know he was turning the world right-side up, but in the moment, some of these must have seemed way off the mark. Some seem to make sense in our own understanding, but…

But blessed are the poor in spirit? Whether it’s spirit or money or stuff, poor is poor. How can it be a blessing?

Try this: If your needs are not satisfied by the things of this world, your spirit is poor by world standards.

Or, try it this way: Your spirit is ready to be redeemed and fully satisfied by God.

Yeah, ok, I’ll give you that one, but not mourning.

Mourning is not something we put on our calendars, but it shows up. It’s no fun. It stinks. To some extent, it helps us accept our loss, but it still stinks. So, how can it be a blessing?

God will comfort those who mourn. God knows we suffer. God will use our suffering for good, but he also grants us peace that goes beyond what we can figure out.

Too often, when we suffer loss and all we can see is hurt, pain, and mourning, what we do is look for answers as to why we lost someone or something close to us.  What our own understanding craves are why answers. Why me? Why him? Why her? Why here? Why now?

All of the answers in the world only placate a need they can never meet.

But peace, comfort, and assurance are exactly what we need. We will have trouble in the world, but we are to take heart and courage, and I will extend the thought a little further and say, "Take comfort and assurance in the Lord."

Isn’t peace and comfort what we need most when we are mourning a lost loved one? If we had every answer to every question that seems to haunt us, but we didn’t have peace and this blessed assurance, we would be unsatisfied.

Here is another thought on mourning. What if the mourners are mourning the loss of a relationship with God? What if they mourn for the lost?

In that case, they are after the desire of God’s heart, that none should perish.  If that’s the case, we all should be mourners desiring what God desires and hurting when people remain lost.

Part of our comforting resides in our evangelism. God grants us peace that we can’t understand, but we understand there is comfort in working the problem. For us that’s sharing the gospel.

Salvation is 100% the gift of God. That hasn’t changed.

Discipleship, on the other hand, is mostly our efforts and we want efficacy in our efforts. We want to hit the target.

So if we mourn because of the lost, the target is rescuing the lost. But we are blessed because we do mourn the lost. That’s lost in the moment and lost for eternity.

The meek inherit the earth, really? The Proverbs tell us that hard work and discipline provide for our needs in this world.

They do in the here and now. That’s how we navigate a world where work is required.

But note the verb in this parable. It’s inherit. It will come to them by a benefactor who just so happens to be the Lord.

Yes, work is a good thing. You don’t work, you don’t eat still applies, but there is an inheritance for those who simply want to serve in this world.

There is an inheritance for those who don’t have to take the hill in this world.

There is an inheritance for those who humbly were known by their love.

What’s an inheritance based on?  Your relationship with the benefactor.  Our benefactor happens to be the Lord, and he is giving the world to those who understand turn the other cheek and go the extra mile.

We all will receive an inheritance that has been set aside for us for longer than we can know.

Now we get to one that seems straightforward. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.

Understand the verbs. This does not say those who are righteous. We know that we can’t get there on our own.

But the verbs are hunger and thirst. We eat and drink every day, frequently more than once. Do we hunger and thirst for the righteousness of God as often as we grab something to eat or drink during the course of the day?

Do I hunger and thirst for the ways of God as often as I reach for my coffee cup? As often as I reach for my $5 herb-filled, mega-dose energy tea? As often as I reach for a snack during the course of the day, or look forward to that evening meal?

Is my hunger for the ways of God even in competition for me satisfying my carnal needs?

If the answer is yes, I do hunger and thirst for the ways of God, then the promise is that you will be filled.  Jesus is not talking Ramen here. That stuff is filling but of no value.

The promise from Jesus here is that if we seek God with our very being, then our very being will be satisfied with the things of God. God will not leave us hungry.

And like the wine at the wedding banquet, yes, the stuff that Jesus made from big vats of water, it will be the best ever. You will truly be satisfied by what the Lord gives you.

You will be filled.

The next three seem to make sense without having to do too much right-side upping. They are:

Blessed are the merciful,

For they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

For they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

For they shall be called sons of God.

Tom’s executive summary is if you are putting the words of our Master into practice, he sees it, likes it, and rewards it.

If you are moving towards God, he is moving towards you.

We are merciful, pure in heart, and something of a peacemaker, not so we get the rewards. We are rewarded because we “get” God's thoughts and ways, and we try to live by them.

It’s not always the Primrose Path, more on that in the next service, but we are blessed to walk it.

Know that once we professed Jesus is Lord, not only did we cross over from death to life, but we began a journey in which everything that happens to us is just grist for the mill. That is, God takes everything and works it for our good because we believed in him and he called us to his purpose.

Now that we begin each day with your grace is enough, we can see the blessings of seeking God in everything we do.

We are blessed because we seek God. Some of those blessings we realize now, and some we will realize at some point in our eternity.

But let’s have eyes to see the promise of all of these blessings, and more, in our victories, struggles, trials, hardships, and moments that we mistake as ordinary.

We don’t do ordinary. We do blessed, for we are blessed to be God’s children and wholly owned by our Master, Savior, Lord, and Friend.

Every moment that we live as his disciples is ordained from above and is blessed.

In every moment and every circumstance, even when we can’t see it, we are blessed.

We are blessed!

Amen.