“Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . those that mourn . . . the common-or-garden . . . those that hunger and thirst for righteousness . . . the merciful . . . the pure in heart . . . the peacemakers . . . [the] persecuted.” – Matthew 5:3–10
As a toddler who grew up in Sunday school, I used to be acquainted with the Beatitudes, but I need to admit they never really drew me in. They felt like an arduous list of to-dos, but even worse, who desired to attempt to be poor in spirit, or hungry, or, for heaven’s sake, persecuted? In highschool, I discovered this less enticing than being popular. While an incredible deal of sanctification still needed to occur in my life, at the least a few of my aversion to the Beatitudes was simply that I didn’t understand them.
Without stripping the Beatitudes of their radical claims, it got here as an incredible relief to learn that the Beatitudes will not be a listing of Christian to-dos. Nor are they Paul’s fruit of the Spirit we’re to display, or the Ten Commandments we’re to rigorously adhere to. They are antigravity truths that float up when the harshness of life crashes down. They are more like laws of nature than laws of the land. You don’t keep the Beatitudes like an excellent citizen; moderately you reside by them as fundamentally sound realities you may count on.
Jonathan Pennington explains them this manner, “Jesus presents not a listing of heroes of the religion nor a listing of ethical behaviors that describe the truly pious but moderately a redefinition of who the people of God are.”5 Don’t you simply love this?
This liberates me, and I hope it does you too. The Beatitudes will not be one other food regimen plan or exercise regime or study program on which it is advisable get cracking. They’re a declaration of how life operates in God’s kingdom because the arrival of Jesus! They’re guarantees of what’s available to us immediately and within the age to come back.
If we’re really going to “get” the Beatitudes, I feel probably the most helpful thing to do is put ourselves within the shoes of who was there that day. We must stand on the hillside of the worn out, those weary of waiting for God to bring freedom from their oppressors like He promised Abraham He would. Maybe you’re already in those shoes—poor in spirit, mournful, having to point out mercy . . . again. You’ve had it as much as here with sticking yourself in between two warring parties because the peacemaker. Being pure in heart has cost you your house in line. Belonging to the pious doesn’t seem value it.
It is precisely in these conditions that Jesus speaks the word blessed. He says you are flourishing in His kingdom due to divine realities His presence calls into existence.
If we hearken to the Beatitudes, as those first-century followers of Jesus listened, I feel they’ll ring out as kingdom realities, not kingdom chores. If you’re mourning, you’re invited to flourish in God’s kingdom because you may count on being comforted by the Son of God Himself. If someone has deeply wronged you, you’re invited to be merciful to the wrongdoer because Christ will, unquestionably, shower you with His mercy. If you end up persecuted for the sake of Christ, you may reckon yourself as positively blessed because the dominion of heaven is yours. This continues to be as radical as ever; it’s just not oppressive.
As we consider the Beatitudes, don’t feel like you might have to do anything. Jesus has plenty for us to do later within the Sermon. For now, stop striving and easily contemplate the surprising nature of Christ’s kingdom. Reflect on the deep mystery of with the ability to thrive within the presence of Christ when the world says unattainable. And for those who struggle to grasp what a few of the Beatitudes mean, it’s okay. Rest assured we’ll spend the remainder of our lives growing into them. You need only make yourself available to learning His ways.
Excerpt taken from The Blessed Life by Kelly Minter, B & H Publishing Group, Nashville TN. Copyright © 2023 Kelly Minter. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.
Photo Credit: Getty Images/Marinela Malcheva
