Life for the
Christian is a life that is lived by faith – On this All Saints Day Jesus the
greatest teacher who has ever lived gives a description of the child of God who
has been incorporated into the family of faith. These Beatitudes are the gifts
the Savior has given to you.
These
Beatitudes are not some new kind of new Law given to us. They are not rules for
the righteous. They are rather a description of those who are in Christ. The
Beatitudes describe both who Jesus is and what He gives to all who, by faith,
have been incorporated into Him. You, dear friend are blessed. The Kingdom of
Heaven is yours! You shall see God for you are called the sons of God - for you
belong to Christ.
In the midst
of our constant struggle as believers, we need to be blessed. And so we are.
The poor in spirit, the meek, the hungry, the thirsty, the merciful, the pure
and the persecuted are all blessed, and we will most certainly inherit the
kingdom of heaven.
Jesus
introduces His Sermon on the Mount with nine beatitudes that detail the future
blessedness of His disciples. These promised blessings are God's gracious gifts
to those who repent of their sins and trust Christ for righteousness. Only
after Jesus has assured His disciples of God's goodness to them does He call on
them,, in the rest of His sermon, to be good and do good. When we recognize our
own spiritual poverty when the Lord leads us to hunger and thirst for
righteousness, when He makes us pure in heart so that we seek to worship only
the true God, then we are blessed now and forever.
Gracious
Savior, keep my eyes ever focused on You and Your blessings, which are mine by
grace alone. Amen
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