Matthew 5:1-12
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2Then he began to speak, 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 will be comforted.
5"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7"Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
8"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
10"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account 12Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Let me give credit to Dr Richard Carlson of Gettysburg Seminary for much of the inspiration for what I'm sharing with you this morning.
I want to begin with Some background on the Gospel according to Matthew
A key theme of Matthew's gospel is re-visioning righteousness- a redefinition of righteousness
And for Matthew there is the Jesus Filter: prior to Jesus there is a clear understanding of what holiness and righteousness are, there are firm boundaries;
outside the boundaries are gentiles, sinners;
Matthew asserts Don’t forget it all – but filter it through Jesus;
Righteousness has got to be re-visioned
The Church is called to greater righteousness;
by filtering everything through Jesus we can understand what it means to live in the greater righteousness (“unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees…”);
it’s not an internally focused community – it is an outwardly focused community (make disciples all nations) (‘you have heard it said … but I say to you…”) (“do not think I have come to abolish the law and prophets, but to fulfill them”)
Continually Matthew has the Jesus filter that calls us to think anew about what it means to be God’s people
Most of the time we take the “what” Jesus said as the most important;
Matthew invites us to consider that the “who” Jesus is-makes what he says important;
The words- the stories- the parables are being spoken by the Son of God, the Messiah, the agent of heaven’s reign the “who” gives full shape to the “what” is being said
and on to the sermon on the mount
5:1-2 There are three Groups that Hear the Sermon on the Mount 1) disciples – Jesus addresses them, 2) the crowds – who overhear it, 3) US – they are intended to address us
“.. then he opened his mouth … and began teaching them.” – (refer back to Chap 4 … a person will not live by bread alone,, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord”); the son of God opens his mouth; fulfills Duet 8:3
These are among the most familiar passages in the bible- so today I want to challenge us-with some new ideas
The Beatitudes: Intentionally crafted in Matthew’s story;
The greek word translated Blessed is “Makario” = Dr Carlson suggests that blessed falls short and perhaps it can be better translated-congratulations!
Dr Carlson asserts that These are not morale maxims; They are congratulations –
but congratulated folks had privilege – people who lived above the daily grind. People on the upper echelon of society. Congratulate the few who have won. These congratulations are only understandable within the reign of heaven.
They Sound sarcastic within the dominant culture.
They are congratulations to those standing in heaven’s reign;
first they are divine congrats and then with the “for” (Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.) they are divine promise;
Makario embodies a sense of empowerment- whether translated blessed or congratulations
The beatitudes are “Performative Speech”= speech which brings into being that which it pronounces;
they are not something for the ‘by and by”;
not of what should be, but of what IS;
the future has invaded the present -- so the vision of life is a vision of how God’s future has been dawning into our own reality;
Congrats to the Poor in spirit – no illusions of grandeur here– their only resource is God because they got nothing on their own;
on their own, they even lack God
( these are the people who come to Jesus in Matthew – the ruler whose daughter has already died, etc);
They are the antithesis of the religious leaders; they are the desperate and despondent- their promise is the Kingdom of heaven
Congrats toThose in mourning– those who have lost hope, who lack joy – they will be comforted;
listen up- on this All Saints Day- when we recall those who have died in the past year-and beyond- those we love who we miss
comfort doesn’t come through time, inner resources, or anything we can do – comfort is divine activity;
I'm comforted by this- that it is not up to me- that's its not my strength-comfort is divine activity.
Congrats toThe meek – some say humble but Carlson suggests it is much closer to “humiliated” – “congratulations to the humiliated”–powerless, no patron to take care of them;
those who are denied access to the powers that be;
God will be their divine patron;
their promise-they will inherit the earth
Congrats to Those who thirst for righteousness – the stress of seeking right relationships within the daily grind of life;
the sustenance is to live in right relationship with God.
God will ultimately accomplish God’s will;
This basically sums up first 4 beatitudes;
those who have nothing else going for them but trust in God’s triumph; God’s power is for the powerless
their promise-they will be filled
Congrats to The merciful – Hosea 6:6 “I desire mercy, not sacrifice”;
mercy, love, forgiveness, compassion should be seen as the heart of the law and the prophets;
23:23 Woe to you Pharisees and Scribes – you neglect the weightier items of the law (mercy, love, compassion);
You will be shown mercy – this is an eschatological promise
God will show mercy to the merciful
Congrats to the Clean in Heart – pure = this is cultic imagery;
absence of that which pollutes or makes impure;
Matthew is concerned about “heart conditions”;
the heart is seat of “wanting/desires”;
this stands in contrast to today when there are many who feel that right belief- right thought is what is important
Jesus condemns religious leaders because of their heart condition;
congruency is important – one should be clean on the inside and the outside;
their promise – they will see God;
usually when you see God --you die;
but those who are inwardly clean, will be able to see God and live
Congrats to the peacemakers- the Peace-doers – those who actively strive for reconciliation and the end of strife;
“if your brother or sister has something against you … make peace”;
their promise – they will be a child of God
And for all this-- you will be Persecuted – commitment to God will make one a target;
what is one’s focus in the midst of one’s persecution?;
they/we shouldn’t expect everyone to love them
or congratulate them;
5:3-6 God is working reversal;
In Wisdom Theology = if you do the right things, everything will go right;
In Matthew's theology = if you do the right thing, you will be persecuted.
It is a tipped upside down wisdom theology.
That's the good news- Congratulations! Rejoice and be glad, your reward is great in heaven
now promising a reward in heaven-this has been used to oppress others-
it is not something we impose on others- or an excuse for persecuting
It is something that we experience divinely and others experience divinely
a sense of comfort in the face of horrendous mourning
a sense of peace that surpasses understanding
congratulations! Rejoice and be glad
Amen
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