Epiphany 4 A
Blessed! Really!
St. Matthew 5:1-12
29 January 2017 – Redeemer
During Epiphany what you cannot see with your eyes is revealed to your ears. A baby is born in Bethlehem. Big deal, until some Magi show up from the East with gifts fit for a King and then you see what you couldn’t see before – this Jesus has come for the whole world. Jesus is walking along the Jordan River – so what? But then He is baptized and the Father says, “This is my beloved Son” and John the Baptist preaches, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” By their words you believe what you did not see – God’s own Son has come to die for your sins. These are Epiphanies about Jesus given by God’s Word. Today’s Gospel breaks the Epiphany pattern – it’s not about Jesus. The text from Matthew is an Epiphany about you.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” This is not the way of the world – the rich are blessed. The successful are blessed. You judge your blessings by what you hold in your hand and count in your investment portfolio, but not so in the Kingdom of heaven. Not so among you. This is not about money and possessions. It is about those who are poor before God. The poor in spirit are those who look at their deeds and lives and recognize the depth of their sin. This verse is describing a man whose life is a tattered rag of unrighteousness, who stands before God with nothing in his hand. He is a beggar who can only say, “Lord, have mercy.” He is blessed, not because he is poor, but because only those who are poor will receive the riches in Christ. Only sinners need and desire forgiveness. Christ’s death on the cross is no use to those who believe they have something to offer God. God gives the Kingdom to the poor in spirit. By the blood of Christ your sins are washed away and your names are recorded as citizens of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. This is not the way of the world either. Blessed are those who go from joy to joy. Blessed are those who never suffer tragedy or accident, who die in their sleep at 95 in perfect health. Not so in the Kingdom of heaven. Those who mourn cannot stand death. They cry out, “This is wrong” not only when a child dies in an accident, but when a beloved parent dies at 95. Mourners realize that all the pain and wrong in the world has its source in the human heart, in my sinful heart. It is believers in Christ who mourn and weep over sin and death. Who was at the March for Life in Washington DC this past Friday? Christians. On the other hand who calls evil good and sheds no tears over sin and death? Who celebrates death as the answer to the inconvenience of the unborn or the expense of the aged and suffering? Those who do not mourn, who do not believe they are sinners. Those who mourn their sins will be comforted – for Christ has come to face death for us and defeated it and He will come again to raise us from the dead.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. That’s not what evolution teaches. Blessed are the strong, for they will destroy the weak. Blessed are those who take what they want. Not so in the Kingdom of heaven. The meek are those who believe that Jesus is Lord. The meek are those who do not boast in themselves, but trust that Christ will never leave them or forsake them. They do not believe the world can be taken by force, but rather that Christ has redeemed the world by His death. As Saint Paul writes they believe that “God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong” – that Jesus, His humbling birth, His embarrassing death, His foolish forgiveness, His weak word, and His feeble church, will do more to deliver the world than all the wars and weapons and might of mankind.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” You won’t hear that sermon preached by the world. Blessed are those who a full of themselves. Blessed are those who do what they want when they want it and believe they are right because they feel they are right. Not so in the Kingdom of heaven. This beatitude follows closely on the first two – if you are poor in spirit and see your own sin, if you witness the damage and pain caused by your sin and the evil in the world, then you hunger and thirst for righteousness. You want this to end. You want life, your own life to be right again – right as God ordained it – not where sin and death rule, but where love and life reign. Where are we filled and satisfied with righteousness? In Christ. At the cross He made things right – He took the evil of the world, He took your sin, and He carried them to the cross. Someone finally paid for all that was wrong with me and you and the world – God Himself paid with the blood of His only begotten Son. When you were baptized that righteous work of Jesus was declared to be yours – you are righteous in Christ.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. This is perhaps the most foolish beatitude of all. You know what happens when you are merciful? People take advantage of you. They walk all over you. If you’re generous, people will always look for a handout. If you’re forgiving, they’ll keep on sinning against you. Blessed are those who keep track and hold people accountable. Not so in the Kingdom of heaven – for that is not how God has treated you. What if God counted your sins against you? What if He set a limit? What if He said, “Well, you’ve already been here seventy times seven – I think you need to start taking care of your own sin?” God our heavenly Father gives us everything we need for life – out of fatherly and divine goodness and mercy. Above all He has given His Son – forgiveness without measure, not counting our sins against us. We are and will be blessed with mercy and therefore we are merciful.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. In the world blessed are those who follow their hearts, who do whatever their hearts desire. Likely that is why the world is such a mess – we have followed our hearts and no one has been bold enough to say, “Your heart is rotten with sin – what your heart desires is not pure.” In the Kingdom of God blessed are the pure in heart – those whose hearts have been redeemed by Christ, whose hearts have been created new by the Spirit to beat in faith toward God and love toward neighbor. Those who live in faith toward God here will be blessed to see Him face to face in the resurrection.
It has been suggested that the next two beatitudes hang together. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called Sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. You would think that those who bring the peace of God to the world would be welcomed, rewarded, honored, but how were Jesus’ apostles treated? The same way the Prince of Peace was treated. They were rejected, imprisoned, whipped, and many were killed. The world will treat Christians with contempt and scorn, but in Christ we are God’s own children. When we are persecuted for calling sin sin and for confessing one singular way of salvation – Christ’s death alone for forgiveness, we might feel God has abandoned us, but these words of Jesus reveal what we do not feel. We are the Sons of God and as sons we are heirs of the Kingdom, not because of persecution or suffering, but because of Christ.
The final Epiphany of the Beatitudes is the most revealing – for Jesus preaches it “to you.” Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. With these Words Jesus takes all these blessings and declares them for you, to you. If you believe in Christ Jesus as your Savior from sin, the only Savior from sin, you will find the world against you, as did every prophet and apostle and disciple before you. But here is your comfort and your Epiphany. Even if the whole world is against you – Christ is for you. He was born for you. He was crucified for you. He rose again for you. You are blessed with His life, death and resurrection, His forgiveness and salvation. You might not see it or feel it or experience it, but that’s OK. In Epiphany God’s Word reveals what you would never see with your eyes. Rejoice and be glad today for this singular reason. You are blessed in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Pr. Bruce Timm
28 January 2017 anno Domini