Matthew 5:1-12
Rev. Deborah Church Worley
February 2, 2020
White Rock Presbyterian Church
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely[b] on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
(Matthew 5:1-12)
There was a period of several years in my life when I took antidepressants.
And I felt a variety of emotions around that. I was horrified, initially, when a friend suggested that I might benefit from them. Me??! I didn’t need antidepressants! I was perfectly fine. Besides, I had just finished telling her that I thought someone else in my life needed them. !! But not me…..
After consultation with my doctor and my counselor, and some honest reflection, however, I began to take them. For quite a while, I was embarrassed about it. I didn’t want people to know I was taking them. And I was frustrated by it–what was wrong with me that I couldn’t handle my life?? For a long time, I couldn’t really accept it, and I kept trying to figure out when I could wean myself off of them.
One day, in fact, I said to two close friends, “I’m thinking about weaning myself off of the antidepressants….” They looked at each other, and one of them very gently replied, “That might not be a good idea…. You may not want to do that right now….”
It’s so good to have good, and truthful, friends in your life. 🙂
Like it or not, we all have things in our lives that we’re embarrassed about, things we don’t want people to know about. We all have things in our lives that frustrate us, that we wish were not part of our life, that we wish we could simply be done with, that we wish we could make go away.
I suspect you’re all familiar with the quote: “Be kind. For everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle you know nothing about.”
I agree wholeheartedly with that sentiment. And try to keep it in mind.
But I’ve had a new take on it just this week. When I’ve thought about it in the past, I’ve “heard” it with an emphasis on my behavior–I’ve heard it as a reminder for me to treat others with kindness–perhaps especially when their behavior might warrant otherwise. Right? If I have to be encouraged to treat someone kindly, it’s probably because they’re not acting in a way that warrants it! Otherwise, I wouldn’t need reminding! Right? But that quote seems to want to remind me that when people are acting badly, that I should remember that there’s more going on than meets the eye. That they are fighting some battle that I don’t know anything about, and that that battle, perhaps, is what’s causing or at least contributing to their bad behavior…and so if I can remember that, and treat them kindly anyway, well, that will be a good thing. And it will! I agree. Completely. The more kindness and compassion and understanding in the world, the better. No question.
But this week, I’ve been considering that quote from a slightly different perspective. What if I read it through the lens of community rather than individual compassion?
And by that I mean, what if I “hear” it as not just being about everyone else, and the battle that everyone else is fighting, as though somehow everyone else is separate from me? Somehow “other than” me? Sometimes, if I’m truly honest, maybe even somehow less than me…because they’re fighting a battle that I’m not…? What if, instead of thinking about it that way, I hear it saying that everyone else is fighting a hard battle…just like me? Just like I am? Because I am fighting a hard battle, too, whatever it may be. We all have hard battles that we’re fighting. We all have hard things we’re dealing with. We all have things in our lives that we’re embarrassed about, things we don’t want people to know about, things that seem too painful or too shameful to share. We all have things in our lives that frustrate us, that we wish were not part of our life, that we wish we could simply be done with. But we can’t. They’re ours. Our hard things.
It’s not just that everyone else is fighting a hard battle, and that I, therefore, can be kind and compassionate because I’m not fighting a hard battle; or that I can be kind and compassionate because I’m a good person, maybe even somehow a better person because I’m not fighting any hard battles like they are….
That’s not it.
Everyone–everyone–is fighting some kind of battle–me…you…your obnoxious neighbor…your kind and loving neighbor…the school principal…your boss…the quiet kid on the playground…the waiter at your favorite restaurant…did I say me? Did I say you?…Everyone is fighting some kind of battle. Whether anyone else knows about it or not. And that’s what allows me, and you, to be kind. We can show compassion to one another because we are part of the human community of warriors! And I don’t mean to be militant!! I just mean that we know what it’s like to fight hard battles–whether those battles are called by the name of depression, or anxiety, or addiction to alcohol or drugs or gambling or people-pleasing, or credit card debt, or estrangement from loved ones, or childhood trauma, or an eating disorder, or crippling feelings of loneliness or shame or guilt or worthlessness–whatever our battles are, we know what it’s like to live with them, to carry them, to struggle with them, to feel embarrassed by them, to feel hopeless in their shadow, to wish they weren’t there, maybe even to pretend they’re not there…until they somehow come screaming out, demanding to be recognized…..
We know what it’s like to fight those battles…and that’s what allows us to be kind, truly kind, to one another.
But we’re not always kind...and maybe, that’s in part because we don’t know what it’s like to fight those battles….Or we don’t want to admit that we know what it’s like. Because that’s too painful. It’s too scary. It’s too real. It’s too honest. It makes us feel too vulnerable….
And so we don’t admit, or we won’t admit, or we can’t admit, that we know what it’s like to fight hard battles. Certainly not to others. We don’t want to seem weak. We don’t want to appear as though we don’t have it all figured out. We don’t want to give the impression that we can’t handle our lives. And so we don’t admit, or we won’t admit, or we can’t admit, that we know what it’s like to fight hard battles. Maybe not even to ourselves. It’s just too scary. It’s too real. It’s too honest. It makes us feel too vulnerable….
But you know what? I think all of that is exactly what Jesus was calling “blessed” in today’s passage….
Listen to some of his statements again:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God….”
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The poor in spirit–those who know they don’t have it all together, those who recognize their brokenness, those who acknowledge that they are fighting hard battles! And maybe not even winning! But they are honest about the struggle…. Jesus is saying that THEY are smack dab in the middle of the kingdom of heaven, that in their recognized vulnerability they are walking alongside God and God is right there with them…and they are blessed.
“Blessed are those who mourn,” he said, “for they will be comforted.”
Those who mourn–the heart-broken, those whose pain is real and not hidden, those who acknowledge that they are hurting and feeling like they are missing a piece of their very selves…. THEY will be comforted, Jesus said. In the honesty of the expression of their pain and heartache, they open themselves to the care, and compassion, and comfort, of others and of God…and they are blessed.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”
The meek–not to be confused with the doormats. Or the timid. Or those who fearfully submit to a cruel authority. But to be contrasted with those who aspire to cruel authority, those who thirst for control and power. Blessed are the meek–as in those who willingly, from a place of strength, submit to God and God’s sovereignty, as in those who have no illusions of being in control but who believe that God is, regardless of how things appear; the meek, as in those who know they are not, ultimately, in charge but know Who is…. And they are blessed….
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.”
All of those, it seems to me, fall in the category of “Blessed are the vulnerable.”
“Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,” are those who know things aren’t all okay as they are, who know there are things that need to change, who don’t live under any illusion that the status quo is perfectly fine…. Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who long for things to be in right relationship with God, whether individuals, or communities, or even systems–those people are fighting hard battles…and in that struggle, even in the awareness of the need for that struggle, as well as in participating in that struggle, they will be filled, Jesus said. Filled, I believe, with the presence of God, filled with the Spirit of God, filled with the fullness of God….and they are blessed.
“The merciful,” of course, are those who show mercy, who don’t respond to people in the way they might deserve, who don’t repay evil for evil, who are kind even when kindness has not been earned…. They know that they have already received mercy, that they have been treated kindly when they haven’t deserved it, that they have not been treated badly when they have deserved it…. They have been shown mercy, and they are grateful, and they are, then, merciful to others…and they are blessed.
“The pure in heart” are those who are, like the others, vulnerable. Real. Authentic. Fighting a hard battle and owning it. Not pretending. Not denying. Not hiding. Not blaming. Not shaming. Just saying, “I’m struggling, and I can see that you are, too. Maybe we can walk together in our struggles.” And in that, in that honesty, in that truthfulness with themselves and with each other, in that openness of spirit, the pure in heart see and feel and know God. And they are blessed.
Our society teaches us to strive for success, and power, and wealth. To be in control, to take charge, to look out for number one, to be on top. We are told that we can, and should, be able to solve all of our problems, and conquer all of our fears, and look and act and live and even make ourselves believe that we’ve got it all figured out. And then, by society’s standards, we will be living the good life. And we will be happy….
Except we’re not.
Fortunately, Jesus teaches another way. A different way. A better way. A way that leads to something more than living the good life, a way that leads to something far greater than being happy. Jesus shows us the way to live God’s life, the way of blessing; how to live smack dab in the middle of God’s presence….He shows us that strength can be found in weakness, that power can be found in submission, that victory can be found in the midst of struggle, that blessing–deep and profound and genuine blessing–can be found in vulnerability.
Call me crazy, but I don’t want the good life. I want God’s life, the life God has for me, life that is lived in God’s presence. I don’t want to look for happiness in power and control and having it all together. I want to find and experience the deep and profound blessing in struggle, and vulnerability, and faith. What do you want?
Amen.
Rev. Deborah Beloved Church (aka "Pastor Deb") 