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Friday, November 13, 2020 - Devotional from Pastor John

“Letting God Bless You” 
The Beatitudes are a series of nine proclamations, nine blessings that Jesus delivers at the beginning of his Sermon on the Mount. And, I am sure that at times, these Beatitudes have inspired us. At other times they have confused us. And, they have probably left us wondering what on earth Jesus means when he says things like, “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” “Blessed are those who mourn…” Or, “Blessed are the meek, and the merciful,” and so forth. I mean, at first glance, all these things Jesus calls “Blessed” just don’t seem that blessed at all! On this the Friday, the 13th, is that what Jesus is really saying? “Lucky are the unlucky?” 
Many so-called experts point to the Beatitudes as proof that Jesus had some kind of mental instability. One distinguished British psychologist in a speech to the Royal Society of Medicine said, “The spirit of self-sacrifice which permeates Christianity and is so highly prized in the Christian religious life, is masochism moderately indulged. . . This blesses the poor, the meek, the persecuted; exhorts us not to resist evil but to offer the second cheek to the smiter; and to do good to them that hate you and forgive men their trespasses. All this breathes masochism.”
 
As I finish my sermon series on the Beatitudes of Jesus this Sunday, the question I want to pose is, “Which is it for you?” Does Jesus teach us that living for the kingdom of heaven means something important? Or, is it just ridiculously unrealistic rhetoric? Is it masochism, or profound words of wisdom to live by? 
What we need to realize is that God views the world through a different set of lenses. And if you want to remember anything I have said, just remember that Jesus taught that humility, sacrifice, and a longing to change, -- are the keys to the door of the kingdom. See you for worship this Sunday!  
Pastor John