When you grow up in a Christian home sometimes certain passages of Scripture become mundane and just seemingly overused. I find myself approaching these certain passages with an attitude of resistance and pride as if I know everything (I can see my parents rolling their eyes thinking "typical teenager"). I had the Beatitudes, Matthew 5, as my devotional one morning and I kept thinking to myself about the many times I have read them (which apparently meant that I knew all that there is to know about them). But news flash... I don't.
The word blessed is almost overused in our nation today, especially in the South. Do we even have the idea of what it truly means to be blessed according to God's Word? The Beatitudes begin in verse 3 with "Blessed are the poor in spirit..." Most of the time when we think of poverty we think of those depressing commercials with the starving African children or even the 'suffering' as college students because we endure the pitiful diet of Ramen and PB&J's. However, poverty according to Matthew 5 is one of realizing where you come to the end of yourself in which you can do nothing, and realize that's the beginning in which He can do any and everything. Spiritual poverty is ultimate humility and being fulfilled with Christ and Christ alone. It's hard to fathom just being satisfied with Christ alone and not with the addition of our precious distractions and self whims. When we realize that all we have is Jesus then we are able to run to Him when we are weary and heavily burdened (Matthew 11:28-30). This first Beatitude should ring with the open invitation of all who can hear its call to respond and run to Christ, their fulfillment, their riches. One question I had while reading Matthew 5 (this time around) was "Why is being poor in spirit listed first?" Quickly the answer was revealed to me that without humbling yourself before Christ you cannot truly understand what it means to mourn, or be meek, or hunger and thirst for righteousness, or even be blessed for that matter. Often times we pick and choose which Beatitude best fits us in whatever we are going through and that we are blessed because of it. I kept thinking that if I was sad and would 'mourn' over a situation whether it be the struggle of college classes or Dunkin Donuts being out of literally the only donut I get every time I go there, but it goes far beyond my simplistic wants (and even needs for that matter). We cannot think to ourselves that we can simply start hungering and thirsting after righteousness if we first have not become poor in spirit. We can't even be persecuted for Christ's sake until we have learned to become poor in spirit (Matthew 5:10-11).
So this brings us back to the word blessed... "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven..." (Matthew 5:12a). Our greatest blessing is the promise that we get to spend eternity with Christ our Savior. Bringing Him all the glory is our prize.
Maybe this will give a new meaning to the phrase hashtag blessed... #Blessed.
The word blessed is almost overused in our nation today, especially in the South. Do we even have the idea of what it truly means to be blessed according to God's Word? The Beatitudes begin in verse 3 with "Blessed are the poor in spirit..." Most of the time when we think of poverty we think of those depressing commercials with the starving African children or even the 'suffering' as college students because we endure the pitiful diet of Ramen and PB&J's. However, poverty according to Matthew 5 is one of realizing where you come to the end of yourself in which you can do nothing, and realize that's the beginning in which He can do any and everything. Spiritual poverty is ultimate humility and being fulfilled with Christ and Christ alone. It's hard to fathom just being satisfied with Christ alone and not with the addition of our precious distractions and self whims. When we realize that all we have is Jesus then we are able to run to Him when we are weary and heavily burdened (Matthew 11:28-30). This first Beatitude should ring with the open invitation of all who can hear its call to respond and run to Christ, their fulfillment, their riches. One question I had while reading Matthew 5 (this time around) was "Why is being poor in spirit listed first?" Quickly the answer was revealed to me that without humbling yourself before Christ you cannot truly understand what it means to mourn, or be meek, or hunger and thirst for righteousness, or even be blessed for that matter. Often times we pick and choose which Beatitude best fits us in whatever we are going through and that we are blessed because of it. I kept thinking that if I was sad and would 'mourn' over a situation whether it be the struggle of college classes or Dunkin Donuts being out of literally the only donut I get every time I go there, but it goes far beyond my simplistic wants (and even needs for that matter). We cannot think to ourselves that we can simply start hungering and thirsting after righteousness if we first have not become poor in spirit. We can't even be persecuted for Christ's sake until we have learned to become poor in spirit (Matthew 5:10-11).
So this brings us back to the word blessed... "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven..." (Matthew 5:12a). Our greatest blessing is the promise that we get to spend eternity with Christ our Savior. Bringing Him all the glory is our prize.
Maybe this will give a new meaning to the phrase hashtag blessed... #Blessed.