Blessed
are the Poor in Spirit . . .
Text: Matthew 5.1-12
Matthew's beatitudes summarise the essential spirit of Jesus' teaching
in much the same way as the ‘Ten commandments’ summarise the Jewish
Law. The first hearers of the beatitudes would have been familiar
with their form: “Blessed are the so-and-so, for such and such
will be theirs.” This was a common form of blessing in the
Mediterranean world, often used in general conversation as an aphorism
which reinforced the common values that everyone shared . . . .
“How blessed is the man whose has many children; he shall have an easy
retirement!” The main function of the form was to exalt and
support the status quo, the way things were . . . “Blessed is the
man who is sober in business; he shall enjoy much wine.”
Matthew's use of the form is striking, because it does precisely the
opposite of what it is supposed to do. Instead of reinforcing the
most common values and attitudes, Matthew's beatitudes actually seek to
subvert these values by giving a new status to all those who were
regarded, at the time, as stupid, unlucky, or cursed by the gods:
the poor, the mourners, the persecuted. It is not an exaggeration
to say, in fact, that the beatitudes are more interested in changing
the world for the sake of these people, than in affirming the world as
it stands.
Now, over the years, the revolutionary power of the beatitudes was
effectively watered-down through sentimental preaching and the
establishment of State churches as an instrument of the aristocracy and
merchant classes. In this setting, the beatitudes were heard as
nothing more than exemplary religious ideals which were of no practical
use in everyday life. They made sense when associated with
heaven, God, and the end of human life, but they did not make sense
with regard to the real world of daily toil and commerce.
Thankfully, that time is past, for most of us. We no longer live
in a world dominated by State churches or, indeed, any church at
all. I suspect, nevertheless, that the revolutionary vision of
the beatitudes remains quite lost. For we are moderns, most of
us, and moderns are likely to regard the beatitudes, along with the
rest of Christianity, as little more than a curious oddity, a relic
from a no-longer-relevant past. They have nothing to say to us in
our brave new world of medical miracles and technologised capital.
Well, we could capitulate to that point of view. Most do.
But let me ask you this. How would your life be different if you
were to take a renewed interest in the studying the beatitudes and
taking them seriously? Note that I'm talking about your life, for
the moment, not the life of the whole world or the whole church.
In modernity, we have been hoodwinked into thinking that what happens
in the world and the church is beyond our influence. When
addressed in these more general terms, we moderns always seem to think
that the speaker is talking to someone else. So I want to make it
clear that I am addressing each of you personally, as
‘individuals’. How would your own life be different if you took
the beatitudes seriously?
Perhaps you are a person who is satisfied about your life and the way
you live it. Perhaps you believe that you are doing all that God
or the Universe requires, and that you will be welcomed into heaven
with open arms. Or . . . Perhaps you are a person who is
deeply aware that you haven't got it together, that despite all efforts
to the contrary, you cannot produce your own contentment. You are
deeply aware that every joy in life, every moment of happiness, every
sense of well-being comes as a gift from the Lord of love.
Whatever the case, the Lord stands before this morning and says,
“Blessed are the ones who know the poverty of their own religion, for
God belongs to them.”
Perhaps you a person absolutely at home in the modern age. You
welcome the new technology and you know how to use it. For you,
the world is full of promise and opportunity. There's a dollar to
be made around every corner. The good life comes to those who
work hard and make the most of their natural creativity. Or . .
. perhaps you are a person who mourns the loss of a more gentle
age, when people knew their neighbours and looked out for each
other. When the strong helped the weak, when the businessman was
content with his share and felt no need to buy out his
competitors. When the fruits of one's labour were shared with
those who were poor. Whatever the case, the Lord stands before you this
morning and says, “Blessed are the ones who mourn this passing, blessed
are the gentle of heart, blessed are those who are merciful. They will
receive back a hundred-fold of all they have given. They shall
inherit the earth.”
Perhaps you are a person who is content to live in your enclave of
privilege and plenty. You see your comforts as your due for hard
work and right living. Perhaps you turn a blind eye to the
homeless in your own city, or the impoverished billions in that
far-away place called the 'two-thirds world'. Or . . .
perhaps you are a person who sees that your own peace is utterly
interdependent with that of the whole world. Perhaps you feel
hungry and thirsty because so many others are hungry and thirsty.
Perhaps you weep and cry aloud because so many are denied their fair
share of the earth's plenty. Whatever the case, the Lord stands before
you this morning and says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for
justice. Their hunger will be satisfied as they work to fill the
stomachs of others. Blessed are those who work for peace; they
will know themselves to be children of God.”
Perhaps you are a person whose attention is always divided.
Deeply discontented with your life, you leap upon every fad which comes
your way. You buy what the advertisers tell you to buy. You
wear the right clothes and watch the right TV programmes. Your
values change according to your appetites for the day. Perhaps,
in your emptiness, you have become interested in astrology and bizarre
theories about a spiritual world populated by angels and demons who
control everything we do. You feel like you have no control over
your life, that you are a victim of forces far more powerful. Or
. . . perhaps you are a person who knows that every heart is
restless until it finds its home in God. Perhaps you have seen
that the pure vision of truth and beauty is forever being clouded by
our desire for the lesser things. Perhaps you have renounced your idols
for the sake of finding the one true God. Whatever the case, the Lord
stands before you this morning and says, “Blessed is the heart that
wills one thing, which seeks after God and God only. In seeking,
that heart will be found by God.”
If we were to study the beatitudes, and take them seriously, we would
become what our faith tradition calls prophets, saints and
mystics. To be a prophet, a saint or a mystic is not only for
those who have gone before us, those mysterious figures hidden away in
some unattainable age that is no longer entirely real. For every
ordinary Christian, any who would take their faith seriously, is also
called to be a prophet, a saint and a mystic. Even today. A
mystic is one who makes communion with God their one goal in
life. A saint is one who has renounced worldly power and prestige
for the sake of serving God. A prophet is one who resists the
values of the age in order to live the values of God's kingdom.
All Christians are called to be mystics, saints and prophets. All
Christians.
Through the reading of these beatitudes, God today challenges all of us
(myself included) to have done with trivial pursuits, and embrace the
great vocation that God has put before us. The vocation of
blessedness. Not ‘happiness’, mind you, as some would have
it—even the “Good News” Bible. Blessedness, a deep-down knowing
that you are in the right place, the place where God would have you
be. Blessedness is not about ease or comfort. Indeed, you
can expect some level of vilification or even persecution for your
efforts, as Matthew says. But you will be blessed. You will
belong to God. You will become an agent for the dawning of a
wonderful new age in the world, and you will be granted that perfect
peace for which all human beings seek, even in the midst of all that is
wrong with the world. In all seriousness, my friends, what else
really matters?
In the name of God: Maker, Christ and Spirit. As in the
beginning, so now and for ever. Amen.
Garry
J. Deverell
4th Sunday after Epiphany, 2005
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