The Beatitudes
Today’s Gospel reading in this fourth Sunday in ordinary times, we bring you an extraordinary teaching by our Lord Jesus Christ, which Christians call “The Beatitudes”. You can find it in your Bibles in Matt.5: 1-12A.
“When [Jesus] saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 He began to teach them saying:
3“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
6 Blessed are they who hunger
and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are they who are persecuted
for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they insult you and
persecute you and utter every kind of evil
against you [falsely] because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad
for your reward will be great in heaven.”
More than a thousand years before our Lord Jesus Christ came to this earth; the Jews had Moses who was called “The Deliverer”. During his exile, Moses climbed up
Today, Jews and Christians often differ in their interpretation of the Ten Commandments, some even dare to suggest that these are not commandments rather they are Ten Suggestions! But whether we like it or not, Christians and Jews have to accept all of the Ten Commandments, which unfortunately many Christians or Jews fail to obey. We cannot say that we like all the Commandments of God, except I have trouble with my Father and Mother or they have trouble with me. Thus violating any of the Commandments is an offense in the eyes of God.
But while the Ten Commandments comes from the Old Testament, our savior Jesus Christ was sent by God to save us from our sins, which brings us to today’s Gospel reading about the Sermon on the Mount, which in Luke was the Sermon on the plain. Why couldn’t the two evangelists decide whether Jesus gave the Beatitudes on the Mount or on the Plain is subject to speculation, but unimportant for God’s salvific plan.
The Beatitudes give us a hint of what God wants from us, regardless of our station in life, which is why the first of the Beatitudes says “Blessed are the Poor in Spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Notice that Jesus doesn’t say, blessed are the rich? Indeed the Beatitudes give us an idea of how different is the values of God from us humans. If you read the second reading today in 1 Corinthians
“Consider your own calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God. It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.” As Christians, we must read each passage of the Beatitudes and internalize it and live our life as God wants us to live, not by want we want for ourselves. This is what is call humility, which God wants his children to be.
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