Matthew 5:1-12

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:

“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 receive mercy.

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

  Blessed

Today we get to spend some time with one of my favorite passages in the Gospels – the Beatitudes.  This passage from Matthew’s Gospel is traditionally called “The Beatitudes,” because “Beatitude” simply means “blessing.”  I am fond of this passage for a couple reasons.  First, in the Beatitudes, Jesus does something he did frequently during his ministry … he offers blessing to those who were not usually considered blessed in that day and age.  In Jesus’ time, if you had power, money, or status, it was assumed that God had blessed you.  If not, you – or even your parents - must have done something wrong at some point.  Illness, for example, was often seen as a punishment for sin.

In the Beatitudes, Jesus challenges this notion of who is and is not blessed.  Instead of lifting up the rich and powerful, Jesus lifts up the meek, the poor in spirit, those who mourn.  We hear this same reversal in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians.  He tells us that God chooses what is weak and foolish and despised rather than choosing that which is strong and wise.  Both Paul and Jesus remind us that our human ways and assumptions about what is best or who is blessed are not necessarily God’s ways. 

Which leads me to the second thing I love about the Beatitudes … they remind us that each and every one of us can be blessed.  I don’t know about you, but I sometimes fall into the trap of comparing myself to those around me, or to the standards of our society.  And when I do that, I usually walk away thinking that I am not smart enough or talented enough or good enough.  Someone out there is always going to be better at just about everything than I am.  But, say Paul and Jesus, though those types of standards might be important in our very human world, they are not important to God.  God pours out blessing upon us, not because we are smart or powerful, but instead because we are each beloved children of God.  Because we are each doing the best we can to live a life of discipleship, having good days and bad days, and ups and downs.  Through it all, says Jesus, we are blessed … in those times when we are feeling good and confident, and in those times when we can barely get out of bed.  We are blessed … when we boldly stand up for justice, and when we are feeling meek or powerless.  We are blessed.

These statements of blessing from Jesus are so powerful, that I find I don’t fully comprehend their meaning when I read them quickly, one after another.  Today, I would like to spend some time with just a few of these Beatitudes, and consider what they might mean in our world today.  I want us to fully appreciate the vastness in these blessings … to consider all of the people Jesus may have been talking about as he offered each blessing. 

I am inspired today by two preachers – Nadia Bolz Weber and Doug Gay – who have each offered their own expansive lists of blessings based on the Beatitudes.[i]  I am going to share some of their blessings with you today.  I will read the blessings slowly, giving you time in your own heart to perhaps offer a prayer, or add your own blessings to the list, or to simply give thanks for the extravagant love and welcome and blessing of God.  As I read, you are invited to close your eyes if that is comfortable for you, or to look at the images on the screen, which are a visual interpretation of the Beatitudes by artist Hyatt Moore.

Today, I will share just five of Moore’s Beatitudes with you, but I wanted to quickly show you his entire series.  Each Beatitude has a carefully drawn face representing different ages, races, and genders … each is also a different color, but when put next to each other, the series spans the entire color spectrum. No one is left out. We all are blessed.

 Jesus said - Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who doubt. Those who aren’t sure, who can still be surprised.

Blessed are those who believe they have nothing to offer.

Blessed are those who feel their own unworthiness.

Blessed are you if you think you don’t deserve to be here this morning.

Blessed are those for whom nothing seems to be working.

Blessed are those who know they have fallen short.

Blessed are the poor in spirit. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.

 Jesus said - Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are those for whom death is not an abstraction.

Blessed are those who have buried their loved ones.

Blessed are those whose hearts are not made of stone.

Blessed are those who don’t have the luxury of taking things for granted any more.

Blessed are those who can’t fall apart because they have to keep it together for everyone else.

Blessed are those who have regret.

Blessed are those who “still aren’t over it yet.”

Blessed are those who mourn. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you

 Jesus said - Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who no one else notices. The kids who sit alone at middle-school lunch tables. The laundry guys at the hospital. The people who sleep on the street.

Blessed are the parts of ourselves that don’t want to make eye contact with a world that only loves the winners.

Blessed are those who know when they have had enough.

Blessed are those who need others.

Blessed are those not so full of themselves they don’t have room for others.

Blessed are the forgotten.

Blessed are the unemployed, the unimpressive, the underrepresented.

Blessed are the meek. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.

 Jesus said - Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Blessed are the wrongly accused, the ones who never catch a break, the ones for whom life is hard.

Blessed are those who fight racism and sexism and ageism and all kinds of other isms.

Blessed are those who want the world turned upside down.

Blessed are those who host the tables where all are fed and no one is turned away.

Blessed are foster kids and trophy kids and differently abled kids and relatively average kids and every other kid who just wants to feel safe and loved … and never does.

Blessed are those who know there has to be more than this.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.  You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.

 Jesus said - Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.

Blessed are those who make terrible business decisions for the sake of people.

Blessed are the burnt-out social workers and the over-worked teachers and the pro-bono case takers.

Blessed are the kids who step between the bullies and the bullied.

Blessed are those who give us another chance.

Blessed are those who want the best for others.

Blessed are those who take time to understand.

Blessed is everyone who has ever forgiven me, even when I didn’t deserve it.

Blessed are the merciful.  You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.

 Finally, blessed are you who come here to this table, to the Lord’s Supper, to share the bread and cup. Christ is here for you, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to meet you and to bless you.  May it be so.  Amen.

   [i] See https://www.patheos.com/blogs/nadiabolzweber/2014/11/some-modern-beatitudes-a-sermon-for-all-saints-sunday/ and https://www.facebook.com/notes/doug-gay/blessed-are-a-sermon-on-the-beatitudesin-beatitudes/1244200052283782/ for more blessings.