Scripture Matthew 5:1-9
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain and sat down; his disciples came to him. Then he opened his mouth and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the majesty of the heavens.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called daughters and sons of God.”
Translation: The Rev. Dr. Wil Gafney, “A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church,” Year A,
Sermon
A blessing. What could be more beautiful? More sacred? To feel intuitively, or perhaps know, definitively, that God has blessed you, will bless you! You heard Jeff’s wonderful sermon last month, the blessing of being prayed for. Blessing is not something that comes solely from God: God has enlisted each of us to be blessings to one another, to make a difference in one another’s lives, to pray for one another, and to serve one another with energy, intelligence, imagination, and love.
Why, then, have the words “blessing” and “blessed” come into… I would say, wonky usage? How’s that for a theological term! In my defense, the American Heritage Dictionary defines “wonky” as an adjective, meaning:
1. Shaky or unsteady.
2. Out of alignment; crooked.
3. Not functioning properly or normally.
I would say that the words “blessed” and “blessing” have come into wonky usage. And this is not a recent phenomenon. It’s been going on for at least a dozen years that I am aware of. Writer Jessica Bennett addressed it in a 2014 New York Times article called, “They Feel ‘Blessed.’” She cited social media uses of the word “blessed” as diverse as gratitude for having hot fiancés, finding a designer dress for an infant, scoring front row seats to Fashion Week, or being gifted a Caribbean getaway. All but one of these #blessings involve having a lot of money. But there was also a Facebook post of what I believe they call a “booty shot” with the simple hashtag #blessed, and nothing else.
There has also arisen an ironic/ mocking use of the words “blessed” and “blessing,” as in, a comedian posting, “Caught a piece of bacon falling out of my sandwich right before it hit the ground,” followed, by the punch line: “#blessed.” This use of “blessed” is mocking its prevalence in posts that sound more like bragging than invoking our Creator (see front row seats at Fashion Week, etc.).
A friend who has now passed into eternity used to say that getting a good parking space was a blessing of the Holy Spirit, and now, I suppose, she’s in a position to find out if she was right about that. And… please understand, I don’t want to scare any of us away from the concept of blessing, or the use of it in our own experience. But first, I want us to ponder what blessing means in a scriptural context. How does Jesus understand “blessing”?
…Which brings us to this morning’s passage, the first 9 verses of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. This sermon, found in Matthew’s gospel, has fascinated scholars for centuries. Scholar Warren Carter wonders about the sermon,
Does the sermon reveal God’s will, persuade compliance, construct identity, train for discernment, [or] empower followers?
The opening of the sermon—the section we call the “Beatitudes”—answers his question definitively. It begins by naming the blessed. In the ancient world, a blessing was an honor—in this case, an honor bestowed by God. But instead of honoring the heroes, the monarchs, the high priests, or other people elevated according to the social scale, God’s honor is bestowed on the least likely people imaginable. Of the crowd that has gathered to listen to Jesus’s word, about 95% of them belong in one or more of the categories Jesus names in this list.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the majesty of the heavens.”
The first beatitude describes those who are lacking not only tangible, life-sustaining resources such as food, drink, adequate clothing, and adequate shelter, but also the heart and spirit to keep trying to survive. The idea that people such as this are “blessed” is shocking. But Jesus insists that God blesses these people, that God blesses these people particularly. What can this mean? The next three beatitudes continue to pose this question.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.”
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” This beatitude, like the first, operates on two levels. It indicates those who both hunger and thirst literally, because they do not have the resources to survive in this world, but also those who know the wrongness of this, those who long for a better life and a fairer world.
What can these beatitudes mean? How can Jesus call these people “blessed”? First, the beatitudes recognize the facts of the matter: the people of Galilee and beyond live under the thumb of the brutal Roman Empire, where poverty, grief, and feeling small and insignificant are part of the human experience by design. The empire does not want people feeling hopeful. It does not want them feeling protected. Quite the opposite. It wants them feeling terrified and powerless.
But second… In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shares “visions, elaborations, illustrations, and examples about life in the empire of God.” These beatitudes also give the breathtaking good news that this is a temporary condition, because God’s empire, God’s kingdom, or, if you like, God’s kin-dom, is working to alleviate this suffering. God’s reign promises another kind of empire entirely, one in which all are cared for, in which all are welcome, and in which all are treasured children of God. They are blessed, because God is on their side.
The next four beatitudes are focused on another population. Here, God is blessing those who are already members of God’s empire, God’s kin-dom. Here, God is blessing those who are already in servant-mode and trying with all their energy, intelligence, imagination, and love to care, to tend, to advocate, to assist, to walk alongside, and in every way to show the love of God to those named in the first four beatitudes. Here, the beatitudes describe facets of this work.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.”
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called daughters and sons of God.”
And the beatitude that is not included in today’s passage, but which I’m quoting anyway, because it’s essential:
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Taken together, all these beatitudes bless people who have no social standing, no fame, and little to no power. God blesses all those who are in danger of being crushed by the empire, or in a position to help those being crushed, or both.
Today we blessed the backpacks and briefcases and bookbags of anyone who cared to bring them forward. This blessing is a reminder to all of us, of every age and stage of life, that God is always with us, in every situation, and we can always be comforted and reassured by that knowledge. We also shared small cards to remind the carriers of those backpacks that all of us, at every age, are called to love and care for our neighbors. Loving God and loving neighbors go hand in hand. We can’t love the God we cannot see if we don’t love the neighbor we can see. We can’t love the neighbor we can see without God, whom we cannot see, providing us with the inspiration, will, and courage to share that love.
We are blessed, unironically. We are blessed, because God’s promise is to be with us always. We can claim that blessing in good times and in bad. And we are blessed because God’s promise includes our call to be blessings to one another.
So, blessed are the carriers of backpacks, for they are among those who have been sent to love their neighbors.
Blessed are the visions and dreams of Jesus, for they show us the way to God’s kin-dom.
Blessed are those who are living under the thumb and boot of empire, for God’s kin-dom of love cannot fail, and will prevail.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
[i] Jessica Bennett, “They Feel ‘Blessed,’” The New York Times, May 2, 2014. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/04/fashion/blessed-becomes-popular-word-hashtag-social-media.html.
[ii] Bennett, op. cit.
[iii] Warren Carter, “Commentary on Matthew 5:1-12: God’s empire is at work to reverse the damage imposed by imperial policies, structures, and practices,” February 1, 2026, Working Preacher website. https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/fourth-sunday-after-epiphany/commentary-on-matthew-51-12-11.
[iv] Osvaldo Vena, “Commentary on Matthew 5:1-12: If God blesses the ones that you curse, there is something fundamentally wrong with your theology,” November 5, 2023, Working Preacher website. https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/all-saints-sunday/commentary-on-matthew-51-12-10.
[v] Carter, op. cit.