Matthew 5:1-12

Matthew 5:1-12 
English Standard Version (ESV) 

  The crowds never knew just what Jesus was going to say.  At times, he told challenging parables, while other times he assailed the traditions of the day.  Sometimes, he openly confronted the Pharisees, while other times he was dramatically healing people.  But still they came -- they came because he was so compelling.  He spoke with power and authority, and yet he was also a selfless servant.  He is the most authentic person to have ever lived, and he loved each person. 
  And so they came to hear, and we come, as well.  We gather around Scripture to hear what Jesus has to say to us.  We struggle with many of his teachings, asking big questions about how we are supposed to live into these and what they mean for us, but still we come -- we come because we know that he loves us and we know that he wants us to flourish.  We know that he is the path to eternal life, and so we come, trusting in him and his love, ever hopeful that his words will become clear and that we'll discover what our next step is.
  Here in the Beatitudes, we hear Jesus offering up things that don't make sense when we use our capitalistic first-world lens, but when we step back and recognize that God's vision extends beyond time and space, and that we must learn to empty ourselves before we can allow God to fill us, we begin to see with Kingdom eyes, recognizing that God is often at work in ways we don't understand, and he is calling us to join him in how we live and how we love and how we give -- those who lose their life for the Kingdom will save it.