Roger's Postings

Friday, January 27, 2017


Matthew 5:1-12.                Jesus says: Blessed are you …….!!!                               29/1/17



Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

He said:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.



Here today Jesus again reveals to us just how extraordinary he and what he says really are. Here again he turns upside down the thinking that is at the heart of our human existence. These words of Jesus are just down-right crazy to our human way of thinking. Is it any wonder that we say how nice these beatitudes are, but very quickly ignore them, or play games with how we can live by them?



However, we need to remember these are the words of Jesus Christ himself. This is the Messiah that God himself has sent into our world to help us out of the mess we have made for ourselves. This is the God who not only created this world, but who has the knowledge as what is best for us. Here also remember this very same Jesus Christ went on to die on the cross for our sins and was raised to life again so that we can be sure that those who are connected to him have eternal life.



So are we going to sit back and say how nice these beatitudes are and how we should live by them, without really taking them seriously at all. Surely we here will want to ponder over what he is saying here and why this is so important; even if it is ridiculous to our way of thinking.



According to him, if we are to find happiness, peace and hope we are looking in the completely wrong direction. If we want to be blessed, then we need to look at life quite differently to the way the world does. Also we need to look with quite a different attitude than what many in the churches do as well.



For humanity all too often would write these beatitudes in a completely different kind of way. Blessed are those whose spirits are high, for they sit on the top of the world. Blessed are those who are always happy and entertained, for they need no comfort. Blessed are the aggressive, for they shall dominate the world. Blessed are those who are satisfied with their righteousness, for there are more important things to hunger for. Blessed are those with rights, for they shall obtain justice. Blessed are the clever, the sharp in mind, for they cannot, or will not see. Blessed are those who dictate peace, for they shall play the role of God. Blessed are you when men like you, accept you, want you for their leader and consider themselves fortunate to know you. Rejoice and be flattered, for great is your prestige on earth; for so men have accepted the conformist before you.



Is it then any wonder that our world is in misery as it desperately tries to make a life for itself, but continually come up with the opposite. Our sinful human nature wants to desperately see and do that which is grand and popular in our own eyes. We want do life our own way without regard for what God says. Even when we consider what God says we twist it so that it conforms to our own thinking. Then even worse we want to pretend that it is all good, even though we can readily see all the problems that result.



This is seen also in our attitude toward these beatitudes that Jesus speaks. We all too often are like the Pharisees of Jesus day. We fail to see the true intent of these beatitudes and then set about seeking to live them out as best that we possibly can. All so that in the end we might be accepted by God because we have made a reasonable attempt at doing what God has told us to do here.



The attitude and teaching is that if we do these things then we are being truly Christian. We are following Jesus example and so we are being the kind of people that God would have us be. So it becomes all about me, myself and I and what I do.

Yet that is far from the intention of what Jesus is trying to impart through these Beatitudes. Again in many ways it is just the opposite. Let us look at them a little close and see what Jesus has in mind here.



Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. As I said earlier our worldly and self-centred attitude is: Blessed are those whose spirits are high, for they sit on the top of the world. But of course the realities of life are such that our spirits are often not high and our ability to reach the top of the world is nigh on impossible. So our spirits are crushed.



Then to add to the dilemma our world and all too often the church also tells us to try harder; be more positive in your approach; and the like. So we desperately try to do so; and we may see some improvement for a while. But in the end it all comes crashing down around our ears.



Now it is right here that Jesus tells us there is hope for us to be blessed. It is when we get to the point that everything is hopeless for us from a worldly perspective that God is able to reach out to us and tell us of the sure hope that he has for us. He tells us that God has that which enables us to be a part of the kingdom of God; eternal life in heaven. All as a free gift through Jesus’ death and resurrection.



 Jesus is our only hope when all our worldly hopes crumble. In him alone do we find the way, and the truth, and the life that we need. Nowhere else. We can’t do a thing to make ourselves truly blessed.



Let us move on to: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Again the world has quite a different view. Blessed are those who are satisfied with their righteousness, for there are more important things to hunger for. Near enough is good enough. As long as I am a reasonably good bloke, then I’ll be okay. As long as I think I am doing the right thing or doing what everyone else is doing we’ll be alright. Or look, I have got more important thing to do at the moment, rather than going to church and reading my bible. And the list could go on.



But again at the end of the day these views will let us down badly. In fact, our world is full of people who thought this was the way to go, only to find within themselves nothing to hold them up and sustain them. All around us people are empty inside and have got nowhere to go. Longing for something more, something better.



Only then again will they be open to what God has for them. Only then will the righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ be accepted and taken seriously. Only then will they be truly blessed.



Again: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

The world however says: Blessed are you when men like you, accept you, want you for their leader and consider themselves fortunate to know you. Rejoice and be flattered, for great is your prestige on earth; for so men have accepted the conformist before you.



However, for many of us this again is beyond our reach. Even though we have tried to conform and compromise, not only do we not achieve what our world says should be there for us; but deep down we are not comfortable with ourselves for doing so. Yet when we don’t follow this path we are ridiculed, insulted and persecuted. Along with that all kinds of falsehood are spoken against us.



This however, again, is the point at which we are prepared to hear all that God has done for us and the certainty that even though we have gained no rewards here on earth, eternal life for us in heaven is guaranteed. So again we find that we are blessed when we have given up on the world and all the lies it peddles.



So without going into the rest of the Beatitudes, we can see that the intent is to show us what happens when we follow our worldly and selfish views. How when they fail us, as they inevitably will, we fall into these beatitudes: we become poor in spirit, mourn, meek, etcetera. We then become more merciful toward others, peacemakers and the like. We no longer trust the world and its lies, and are then open to God and the help that he offers us.



Then as we look to and trust him we find one blessing after another. It is only when we give up on trying to achieve blessing through our own effort and turn to God, that we find then that we are blessed. Jesus Christ and his presence and blessings are already there for us. His forgiveness of sins, life and salvation are there for us. As these beatitudes become a part of our lives we find, in God, that we are truly blessed.  



Then Jesus Christ becomes so important in our lives, for in him alone we find that we are truly blessed. We find in and with him that we have that which is truly good and right. He becomes truly our Lord and Saviour, and we seek to subject ourselves totally to him and all that he says to us. So blessings are heaped on blessing for us as we take heed to what he says in these beatitudes.



So to him again then be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.



Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish


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