The Beatitudes

We are in the process of updating our information on cults and religions in our World History and Literature Package. In researching/revising the content on Hinduism, I found that Mahatma Gandhi, the Indian lawyer who led the successful campaign for India's independence from Britain, was an admirer of the teaching of Jesus. He was inspired by the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) to employ nonviolent resistance in seeking India's freedom. Indeed, he reportedly read Matthew 5-7 every morning and every evening for over 40 years of his life.

My favorite part of the Sermon on the Mount is the Beatitudes.

The Beatitudes
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 be shown 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 because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
¹¹ “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

This version uses the word, blessed, while some translations use the word, happy, but neither of those fully capture the breadth of the original. The Greek word used here is “makarios” which denotes the great joy and contentment that comes from living in a right standing with God. In other places in the New Testament it is used of those who are forgiven by God. Hence, “blessed” has a sense not of destination, but of journey. As you live and act every day in the attitude of being poor in spirit, dependent on God and hopeless without God, you find that you live now and forever in the kingdom of heaven where God is the Ruler. As you experience mourning for your personal situation or for the world around you, you find that God is there with you to comfort you, for God has promised to be with you always. As you live in peace and humility, you will find that these qualities are the path to receiving God's promises. As you daily pursue living in relationship with God, you will find that you will grow in that relationship and become more like Jesus. As you show mercy to those around you, you experience God's mercy in your own life. As you act with integrity and sincerity, you will experience God's nearness and happiness. As you work for peace, you join God's work in the world and demonstrate that you are His child. As you maintain faith in God and resist compromise, even in the midst of suffering, you realize you are in a long line of servants who have suffered before you. This is just a beginning to give you a sense of the breadth of the meaning of “blessed,” the Beatitudes are so rich that entire books have been written exploring them. As you lean into and live the qualities that Jesus embodied, you begin to see the kingdom of God around you.

As an aside, Matthew uses “kingdom of heaven” while the other gospels use “the kingdom of God.” For Matthew, heaven is likely an indirect way of referring to God and reflects the Jewish preference to not use the name of God directly. Both phrases denote a kingdom of love and mercy where God is the Ruler. This is an alternative kingdom to the kingdom of empire that the Jews of Jesus' day found themselves in and while Rome has long ceased, we continue to find ourselves surrounded by kingdoms of empire. The Beatitudes are a call to follow a different path and pursue a different kingdom by emulating the character of Jesus.

So, Gandhi read the Sermon on the Mount, twice a day, for over half his life. That is about 15 minutes in the morning and another 15 in the evening. I find this amazing, not that someone reads the Bible 30 minutes a day, but that someone who is not a follower of Christ reads the Bible 30 minutes a day, every day, for 40 years. My take-away from this is that the Gospel is true, it is true across all situations and all cultures, and it influences even those who are not disciples of Jesus.

If you are interested in reading the Bible every day, we can help. Journey Everyday was designed to help you consistently engage with the Bible and grow in your relationship with God. It includes, short videos to help you see the Bible as one connected story, daily readings and audio links so you can read or listen or both, practical help in learning to talk to God, and journaling sheets to keep you on track. If spending time in the Bible each day is something you would like to start, go to journeyeveryday.com.