Dear Faith Family,
"When we get this introduction right, we will have acquired an accurate and comprehensive imagination with which to interpret virtually everything Jesus taught concerning the kingdom-of-God..." This is what Eugene Peterson says about Jesus' opening lines of the Sermon on the Mount, that introduction which we call the Beatitudes.
From parables to proclamations, Jesus has a lot to say about life under God's intimate and purposeful rule. The preponderance of space in the gospels committed to Jesus' teaching on the kingdom-of-God suggests that it is pretty important to get what he is saying. And the Beatitudes, according to Peterson, help us do just that.
Through Jesus' introductory couplets, we come to recognize that "God wills our happiness," as he titles us "Bless-ed." He also describes the kind of existence that can receive and live out the bless-edness that he shares. Similar to his kingdom stories, Jesus' pronouncement and depictions in the Beatitudes reveal much about the nature of our heavenly Father, what he gives, and what he desires for his children
Nevertheless, we have a propensity to read the Beatitudes like a math equation: "Blessed are the people who do X because they will receive Y." In doing so we miss the already present realities inherent in the experience of God's rule: his graciousness and abundance. This tendency of ours to miss what is offered reminds me of the parable of the two sons who similarly struggled in Luke 15:11-32.
You are probably familiar with the often labeled "parable of the prodigal son" (if not, take a minute to read it). So, let me encourage you this week to consider the Beatitudes through a story and a song. As you cycle through another round of Sermon on the Mount readings, reflect on the story of the two sons through the song below, considering what is missed and what is given.
“Two Lost Sons”
Read the sermon, remember the story, hear the song, and let what is lost be found, an accurate and comprehensive vision of kingdom life.
Love you, faith family. God bless.