Trinity Lutheran Church

Luke 6:17-26

February 17, 2019

6th Sunday after Epiphany

  

Aristotle, Plato, Immanuel Kant, and my favorite philosopher Blaise Pascal all agree: Happiness is something all people seek, it is the highest good, above all things it is something to strive for and desire. But what is this happiness? The beatitudes of Jesus are sometimes translated, ‘Happy are you who are…’ and sometimes, ‘Blessed are you who are…’ But again, what is this state of being ‘Blessed’?

If it is happiness we seek as the highest good, if blessedness is something we desire and seek, the beatitudes of Jesus are confusing at least and words the church has pondered, probably, ever since Jesus said them, without much success in figuring out he meant. Maybe they made sense back then when most people were poor, hungry, and oppressed, but now in21st century America? I can’t imagine anyone who includes poverty, hunger, mourning, and ridicule in their list of blessings. I am so blessed to be homeless, I am so blessed to beg for one meal a day, I am so blessed that people call me names and wish I would go somewhere else. What’s up with this Jesus who says such odd things? I don’t know. I’ve done my reading, I’ve debated explanations trying to make sense of it, I’ve heard the cliches, rationalizations and popular wisdom attempts to make these words sensible. I’m no further along.

Still this is what I have found. The beatitudes, Blessed are you who are … are recorded by both Matthew and Luke yet neither agree with each other. Matthew and Luke nuance these sayings. Matthew makes them a bit more ‘spiritual’, Blessed are the poor in spirit… Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness… while Luke makes them very concrete and clear, Blessed are the poor… Blessed are the hungry... no qualifications or nuances. Again, not much of either of these variations describe what anyone I know of thinks of as blessedness or happiness.

Nor are these sayings unique lists or statements of happiness in the Bible. Moses gave the Israelites a long list of blessings and curses based on obedience to the commandments of God. Blessed shall be the city… Blessed shall be the fruit of your womb… Blessed shall be your basket and kneading bowl… The bottom line was that obedience to the commandments and instruction of God would lead to a life of well-being and peace. The phrase Happy are those who… is all over the Psalms: Happy are those who do not follow the way of the wicked… Happy are who take refuge in (the LORD). … Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven.... Happy are those who consider the poor … Happy are those who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times. … Lastly, the prophet Isaiah includes a list that sounds strikingly like these beatitudes contrasting the servants of God to others: My servants shall eat, but you shall be hungry; my servants shall drink but you shall be thirsty; my servants shall rejoice, but you shall be put to shame; … For I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; … To be partnered to the new thing God is doing, to serve the LORD is to be blessed.

What then is this happiness? What is this blessedness that is the highest good to seek and desire? The older lists of Moses, the Psalms and the prophet say that it is a reality of knowing the way of God, even obedience to the commandments. It is trust and faith in God who is our source of refuge and hope in times of trouble and trial, not necessarily miraculous rescue or victory, but more the well-being of a child in the arms of a parent per Psalm 131, I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a … child with its mother. It is forgiveness. It is awareness of and compassion for the poor, the oppressed, and the wronged. Well-being, happiness, blessedness is the condition of being a servant, a servant of God.

The thought that has run through my heart and mind is this. I hear people tell me how blest they are, how blest they feel. ‘I am so blest.’ Often it’s said in comparison to others less well off, or as perspective in the midst of some personal trial. You know how it goes. It is an expression of humility and gratitude, though it is still never the hope or desire of actually being poor, hungry or oppressed. We still harbor a sense that wealth, three good meals a day, and personal honors, compliments and esteem are sources and signs of happiness, blessedness. This thought keeps running through my heart and mind, and I struggle with this too: Don’t tell me how blest you are? Don’t say to me ‘I am so blest.’ it sounds so much like, ‘I am so privileged.’ That is not the story we have been called to tell. Tell me a stories of how you have been a blessing. Tell each other how you have brought hope to someone who is troubled, or met the need of someone who has hungered or thirsted for food or drink, or consolation or acceptance. Tell me how you have blessed someone who has wronged you with forgiveness and now you still have a relationship. I think the point of the Bible might be expressed with a beatitude that sounds something like this, Blessed are those who are a blessing to those who are poor, Blessed are those who are a blessing to those who are hungry, Blessed are those who are a blessing to those who weep, Blessed are those who are a blessing to those who have been excluded, reviled, and defamed. Blessed are those who have offered forgiveness and found reconciliation. That may not have been exactly what Jesus said, but it is what God in Christ did.

We believe in a God who did not sit in heaven and say I am so blest, all people will sing my praises and all the world, earth and all stars witness my wonders. Someday all creation, all people, all living things will sing Alleluias to me for eternity. I am so blest. Rather we believe in a God who looked on this broken and fallen world where some have and many have not, where some are fed and many hunger, where some laugh and live at ease while many struggle and mourn, where some are honored and happy with the things of this world but many are forgotten and are uncertain from day to day; we believe in a God who looked on this world that needs a new creation, that needs new life, that needs a new way of being with each other and the earth and said I will go to them and be a blessing. I will bless them with my love. I will bless them with forgiveness and acceptance. I will bless them with my way, my commandments, and wisdom. I will bless them with new hearts and minds, with new eyes and ears, so they can see that I made them to be a blessing to all who need one, especially to those who none of them would call blest. Those who are a blessing will be blessed.