Matthew
5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the
mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he
began to speak, and taught them, saying:
Mat 5:3 "Blessed are the poor in
spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:4 "Blessed are those who
mourn, for they will be comforted.
Mat 5:5 "Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Mat 5:6 "Blessed are those who
hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
Mat 5:7 "Blessed are the
merciful, for they will receive mercy.
Mat 5:8 "Blessed are the pure in
heart, for they will see God.
Mat 5:9 "Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Mat 5:10 "Blessed are those who
are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 5:11 "Blessed are you when
people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you
falsely on my account.
Matthew
and Luke[1]
record these sayings of Jesus. These have the feeling of sayings that have been
remembered by rote. And at first glance these sayings are complete nonsense! How
is it possible for the poor, the bereaved, the hungry and the persecuted to be
called “blessed”. These were the people who experienced life as the “cursed”.
Certainly the culture of Jesus day would have pointed to their misfortune and
asked what they had done to deserve God’s displeasure.
And
this is the point of Jesus teaching: that those who we think of as “cursed” are
in fact the precious ones of God. God takes special notice of those who find
themselves on the margins of society. The persistent challenge for us who
follow the ways of Jesus is the reminder that God loves those rejected by
society. While societal norms are for us to reject those on the margins, our
Christian norms invite us to embrace the poor, the sick, the weak and the
persecuted.
Ordinary 22 / Pentecost +15
44 True Greatness
The Scripture passage
for the day is drawn from Reuben Job and Norman Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other
Servants, (Nashville, The Upper Room 1983), 271.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.
This reflection is from my own devotional exercises for the day.
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