Matthew 5:1-12

¹ Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. ²And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: 

³ “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

⁵ “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

⁶ “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

⁷ “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

⁸ “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

⁹ “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

“Blessed.” Nine times, Jesus proclaims a blessing in this text. Each of these blessings that Jesus speaks is the kind of story that we like – a rags to riches story. The poor, the down and out, the little, and the weak rise from their pitiful condition and get something good.

Other than the Bible, the book my nose has spent the most time in is Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. And, I have to say the obvious, don’t just watch the movies, read the books – they’re infinitely better. The little hobbits “rise from their quiet fields to shake the towers and counsels of the Great,” and topple the dark lord, Sauron. We love that kind of story. We love how Cinderella ascends from mopping the floors of her wicked stepmother and waiting on her cruel stepsisters to live in the palace married to Prince Charming.

The stories where the small, weak, despised, and ostracized overcome all the obstacles and live happily ever after capture our attention. They are often a nice escape from reality because we know that not everything works out so perfectly. And even though we like to hear, “and they all lived happily ever after,” we know that real stories don’t end up that way. Cinderella grows old, wrinkly, and dies. The Ugly Duckling turns into a swan, but eventually gets entangled in a windmill. And Bambi either gets chronic wasting disease or shot during hunting season.

So, back to Lord of the Rings for just a moment: Old Bilbo was the one who found the ring of power which gave him an unnaturally long life. He has passed the ring on to his nephew, Frodo, and retired from adventuring at the elven house of Rivendell so he could settle down and write a book about his adventures. But when Bilbo finds out the ring must be taken on a perilous journey to Mount Doom to be destroyed, he figures it’s his job. He mourns for a bit saying, “I was just writing an ending for [my book]…. I had thought of putting: and he lived happily ever afterwards to the end of his days.” That last phrase, “to the end of his days,” is more realistic. Happily ever after can only last so long in this fallen world. Psalm 90:9 says, “we bring our years to an end like a sigh.” Deep down, we know that happily ever after doesn’t come in this world. Rags-to-riches stories rarely happen, and even when they do, those riches don’t last.

So, when Jesus sits down on the top of the mountain and teaches us the Beatitudes, we know our Lord doesn’t lie. We want our own happily ever after, so think we need to try to be what Jesus describes in order to be eternally blessed. But, when we hear who Jesus says is blessed, we take a step back. Who wants to be poor in spirit, mournful, meek, hungry, thirsty, and persecuted? We spend so much time and energy trying to avoid being those things. We want to be spiritually strong, not poor in spirit. We want to be happy and joyful, not mourning. We want to be powerful, not meek. And we typically avoid persecution at all costs.

Today, as we observe All Saints’ Day, it is important to remember that the Beatitudes are not attitudes that Jesus commands us to have. They are not Jesus’ advice on how we must arrange our lives to attain our own rags-to-riches, happily ever after ending. That approach turns the blessings Jesus gives here into be-curse-itudes. Instead, the Beatitudes are a description first of Jesus and then of who you are, dear saints, because you are in Jesus.

And we can say that because of what Christ has done. Christ’s story is a better but different kind of story than rags-to-riches. In fact, Christ’s is the only story that even makes rages-to-riches possible. It is the story, the true story, of Jesus who went from riches to rags to save us ragged sinners.

The eternal Son of God left His dwelling in heaven. He humbled Himself to be born in a manger and entered this sin-sick world. Christ endured every temptation, disappointment, and sorrow you have ever and will ever face. He was poor in spirit (Mk. 14:34). He mourned death (Jn. 11:35). He was meek (same Gk. word in Mt. 11:29 and Mt. 21:5). He became hungry (Mt. 4:2) and thirsty (Jn. 19:28). He was merciful, pure in heart, and a peacemaker. And persecuted? Yes, He was persecuted. Abandoned by even His closest friends, betrayed into the hands of evil men, beaten, mocked, scorned. Crucified, forsaken by God the Father, died, and buried. It doesn’t get any lower than that.

Jesus didn’t have to do or experience any of this, but out of His great love for you – He did. “He left His Father’s throne above, so free so infinite His grace. Emptied Himself of all but love and bled for Adam’s helpless race.” Jesus left the riches of heaven to descend to you and me in the filthy rags (Is. 64:6) of our sin. He came to you to raise you from your rages to His riches. He did that to make you His saints, His holy ones, His beloved, His blessed.

Dear saints, you don’t ever have to wonder if the blessings Jesus proclaims in the Beatitudes are for you. If v. 3-10 were all we had, then, sure, maybe there would be doubt. But Jesus closes the Beatitudes by saying, “Blessed are you.” You are blessed now even when you are reviled, persecuted, and slandered for your faith in Jesus. Rejoice and be glad, your reward is great in heaven.

“Beloved, [you] are God’s children now, and what [you] will be has not yet appeared; but know that when He appears [you] shall be like him, because [you] shall see Him as He is” (1 Jn. 3:2). Blessed Jesus, may that day come soon. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.