Matthew 5:4: The Inverted Kingdom – Part II
Thursday, January 18, 2024
Jesus proposes that we forego power and wealth, pleasure and honor. Today we consider the solution to overcoming our overwhelming desire for pleasure, and our deep aversion to pain and suffering.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. (NSRV)
This vision of the world sees those who suffer as close to God.
Happy are those who mourn; God will comfort them! (GNT)
This picture of the world sees those who grieve as central to God’s design.
Those who are sad now are happy. God will comfort them. (ICB)
This view of the world sees those who are addicted to their own comfort above that of others as missing the essence of God’s plan.
You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you. (MSG)
This picture of the world sees aversion to suffering as an obstacle to intimacy with God.
The Gospels show us how God’s Word brings healing and comfort to those who mourn. They show us that Jesus makes a choice to cure and transform the wounded and betrayed. They show us that the Spirit is always abiding with those in the margins of society, rather than with those who hold themselves apart to seek after their own preference and desires.
How do we see ourselves as becoming an essential part of God’s designs and plans?
When we compare varying versions of this verse, we better understand how we might enrich our lives by sacrificing our comfort to tend to the suffering of others.
Image from: http://www.reformjudaism.org/practice/lifecycle-and-rituals/death-mourning
The Noontimes 