Micah 6:1-8; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Matthew 5:1-12
People may say that they are blessed when they see how well off they are
compared to many others. And they may say that they are blessed when they are spared from a terrible hardship like a natural disaster or a devastating accident. And many tell people that they are blessed when they overcome a very difficult situation and its problems are behind them. But how many people say that they are blessed when they have to do without the things that the world considers important or essential? And who calls themselves blessed when they are weighed down by grief and sorrow over friends and loved ones who are absent, estranged, or have died? Would any of us tell people that we are blessed when we are hated and being persecuted. But Jesus calls us blessed in and through these very circumstances.
How can Jesus consider His people blessed when they have to endure terrible hardships in this world simply because they are His people? Called to be poor in spirit, meek, and merciful in a world that values earthly riches, power, and control, those who take Jesus seriously are certain to face ridicule, harassment, and persecution, to be hated and reviled, and to be blessed. Not blessed as we like to count blessings, but truly blessed. That means that we may not be better off than other people, not spared from terrible hardships, and not able to overcome difficult situations, but that through these very things God is actively working to bless us in ways that we cannot experience apart from them. It seems like folly and foolishness to think that our struggles and problems are the very means through which God blesses. And it is, because “the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Cor. 1:25).
To gain the perspective that we need to consider ourselves blessed in and through hardship, suffering, and loss, we must first consider what we were when God called us to be His people: “not many of you were wise … powerful … of noble birth” we are reminded. But “God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are” (1 Cor. 1:26, 28). Because of this, you are in Christ Jesus. Being in Christ Jesus means that the Lord has removed the temporary things, the foolishness, and the fate of this world from you and given you His eternal things, His wisdom and power, and His life and salvation. In Christ you are blessed in good times and bad, plenty and want, joys and sorrows. In all things, consider yourself blessed.
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