Blessings

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying “Blessed are: the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven; they who mourn, for they will be comforted; the meek, for they will inherit the land; they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied; the merciful, for they will be shown mercy; the clean of heart, for they will see God; the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God; they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven; and you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus, they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matthew 5:1-12)

I’ve never understood “they who mourn” are blessed.  However, now I get it.  If we mourn, it’s because we have lost someone of great value.  It means we have loved.  With love comes joy and wonderful memories.  It means we were blessed with someone to love and to be loved in return. Yes, we mourn their loss and we cry, but the reward for that sorrow is having had someone with whom to share our lives whether for a short or long time.  

Relationships cause bonding and often create enduring friendships.  When those bonds are broken by death, we mourn, and ironically, we are blessed.   

Another difficult-to-understand blessing refers to “poor in spirit.”  I’ve read: (begin) “To be poor in spirit is to recognize your utter spiritual bankruptcy before God. It is understanding that you have absolutely nothing of worth to offer God. Being poor in spirit is admitting that, because of your sin, you are completely destitute spiritually and can do nothing to deliver yourself from your dire situation. Jesus is saying that, no matter your status in life, you must recognize your spiritual poverty before you can come to God in faith to receive the salvation He offers…When Jesus says, ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,’ He is declaring that, before we can enter God’s kingdom, we must recognize the utter worthlessness of our own spiritual currency and the inability of our own works to save us.” (end)

I still don’t get it. We have “absolutely nothing of worth to offer God.”  That’s nuts!  How about our love?  Is that worth nothing?  This explanation is very unsatisfying, and I cannot consider it a blessing.  I still struggle with this beatitude.  However, if "poor in spirit" means being humble, then I understand.

Contrary to Matthew, Luke is quite different.  He said Jesus said: “Blessed are the poor.”  About 99% of the population was poor so perhaps Luke was giving encouragement to the many destitute being trampled by the rich through taxes, land seizures, tithes, and the like. Jesus told them that God recognized their plight and was on their side.

The remaining beatitudes are easy to appreciate and understand.  However, each of us must ask ourselves, “Do I merit any of those blessings?”

Deacon David Pierce