It’s not what you think…
Have you ever gotten something only to find out it wasn’t what you thought it would be? Have you ever ordered something off the Internet and when it finally showed up, it wasn’t what you had imagined?
Maybe you’ve gone to a restaurant that you saw photos of online or knew someone who had been there only to order and be disappointed or underwhelmed by the experience.
As followers of Jesus, living a life under his teaching, I want us to understand that it doesn’t always look like what we thought it would. This principle is especially true when it comes to the idea of what it means to be blessed.
Matthew 5 is the most famous sermon in all of history, and Jesus is teaching on his coming kingdom. No often when we read about heaven, we think about a place in the future or the afterlife, but later on in this same teaching, Jesus would tell his disciples to pray that it would be on earth as it is in heaven.
So what are the markers of kingdom people? At first glance, reading Matthew 5:3-7, it might look a little depressing. It might look like Jesus is saying his followers will be discouraged, sad, lowly, and desiring more.
If this is true, why would we all want to sign up to essentially be Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh? But the point is not that Christians will have a lot of bad stuff happen, but Jesus is inviting us into a way of living in which our blessing can’t be robbed by our situation.
Even more, so Jesus is saying that following him is a way of living that actually increases our blessing in spite of the struggle and difficulties we’re up against.
Jesus is saying when the world is against us and when we’re challenged, we’re actually more blessed than ever. As followers of Jesus, we live in our greatest blessing when we’re down and out.
Blessed are the down.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the humble, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” - Matthew 5:3-6 CSB
We all have had bad stuff happen in our lives. Jesus literally would say as much justice, a few verses down from where we just read.
“so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. For he causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” - Matthew 5:45 CSB
Jesus is reframing our understanding of our condition in moments of suffering. The way to our greatest blessing is when we turn to God in the midst of our greatest struggles.
Jesus gives examples of what this looks like. He says that those who are discouraged or poor in spirit are blessed.
Why is this? Jesus is saying that when we are at the end of our own strength, we are blessed because it is there that we learn to depend on God. We rely on him in our weakness.
Jesus says that the morning of grieving are blessed. I believe this is because in our greatest grief, God is near to us.
In John 14 Jesus would call the Holy Spirit “the comforter”. You can’t experience being comforted if you’ve never needed a comforter.
Jesus says that those who are humble, content, or lowly are blessed people. In our humble state, we are satisfied with what we have.
We are blessed there because we focus on what God has given us and live a life of gratitude.
Studies have shown that there is a plateau in rising happiness when correlated to income. That for a while, income and happiness go up together on the chart. But it is a certain point income continues to grow and happiness levels off.
That’s because true blessing is not found in possessions, but it is found in contentment.
Jesus says that those who are hungry for God are blessed. This is a blessing because hunger for God leads to fullness of God.
When physically, we are in a state of hunger, our senses become heightened. This is because our brain is allocating resources to make us hyper aware of the things around us that could be sustenance for us.
I wonder if we have this kind of hunger or thirst for righteousness. Have we become obsessed with the things of God? The truth is for most of us, we’ve never been in a place of true desperation.
Blessing might not be what you think it is. Blessing is not a life free from struggle. Blessing is a life where we find the presence of God in the midst of our struggle.
Blessed are the out.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.” - Matthew 5:7 CSB
Here there’s a turn. This attitude is not focused on our condition but on our disposition. It’s not about what has happened to us, but what we do with that.
How do we treat others in the midst of our challenges? Are we quick to judge or quick to extend grace?
This is a struggle for me in my life. I always assume my motives are pure, but I am often slow to assume that others have pure motives. I want others to see me for my best qualities and not for my failures, but do I extend that grace to others?
Jesus is saying that those who are truly blessed are those who live with a heart for other people.
Jesus exemplified living a life of mercy. Jesus touched and cleansed a leopard in Mark 1. Jesus felt deep care for the crowds who were distressed and helpless in Matthew 9. After seeing a multitude, he was moved to heal the sick in Matthew 14.
Matthew 20 tells us that he responded to the desperate cries of the blind man and healed their sight. Luke 7 shows us Jesus comforting a grieving widow and raising her son.
The merciful are blessed. We are blessed when our lives are more about our compassion for others than our pity for ourselves.
Blessed are the out. People who live with their focus out, looking for others to care for. Blessed those who live with their hands out, ready to serve. Truly blessed are those whose heart is out, ready to love the ones around us.
Being blessed is not what you think. In the upside-down kingdom of God, the most blessed are the down and out.
