Blessings

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands.

His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever.                         Psalm 112:1-2 (NIV)

Then Jesus turned to his disciples and said,

“Blessed are you poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours.

 Blessed are you hungry, for you will be satisfied.

Blessed are you who weep, for in due time you will laugh.                      Luke 10:21-22 (author’s translation)

The Beatitudes are an excellent indicator of the thrust of the so-called “Sermon on the Mount” (Matt 5-7). Jesus wants to correct a wrong understanding of the Old Testament. He does not want to discard it or supersede it, but to show what it is really about.  The goal of the Bible, indeed of God, is inner transformation, which will be accomplished through walking with him. The inevitable result of such a walk and such a transformation is blessing, good things in your life. To make that point, the Old Testament promises an abundance of external good things to those who do what is right in God’s eyes. Included are long life, many children, and wealth. (See Psalm 112.)

But are those the real blessings? Not necessarily. If your heart is not transformed, they may well be curses, convincing you that you don’t need God. Or we may make service to God simply a means in order to get that physical abundance that is our real goal. If you are in love with God and your heart is being transformed, then the presence or absence of those conditions is not a big thing. The real blessings are internal. Does giving your heart to Jesus mean you will be poor, hungry and weeping? Yes, in many parts of the world, and maybe soon in ours. But it’s a great tradeoff!

This pattern is carried out in the rest of the sermon. In the Old Testament certain external behaviors are required if we are to walk with God. Transformation starts with changed behavior. But changed behavior is not the goal; changed character is the goal. Unless the changed behavior leads to changed character, changed instincts, changed thinking, about God and others, the good behavior will only lead to pride, which is the problem in the first place!

Blessed are those who want God more than anything else.