Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
The word "beatitude" is a big word, which in the Bible is rendered as "blessed," and that simply means "happy." It means that certain people enjoy a happiness that is the natural result of their faith and obedience; it can also mean that God in a supernatural way gives happiness to such people. But we hasten to add that He does not show partiality, favoring one person over another (James 2:1).
Don't let Satan discourage you with his suggestion that you are not one of God's favored ones. You may feel that way, but that doesn't mean that his suggestion is true. Even Jesus as He hung on His cross cried out, "My God, why have You forsaken Me?" Because of Christ's sacrifice, you must believe that the Lord loves you and has chosen you to be His child. That's what the "believing" in John 3:16 means.
So who are the "blessed" ones in the Bible? The answer has to be: those who believe God's gracious Good News. Their faith works, and that is why they obey, and the natural result is "blessedness."
There are well over 100 "beatitudes" in the Bible. But when Jesus came, He surprised the Jews of His day with "blessings" that seemed directly the opposite of their ideas: "Blessed are the poor in spirit," "Blessed are those who mourn," "Blessed are the meek," "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst," "Blessed are those who are persecuted," "Blessed are you when [people] revile you ... and say all kinds of evil against you falsely," etc., etc. Stunning!
Those words woke up a class of people who had been educated to feel left out of the kingdom of God! Surely Jesus must have been impressed by that "beatitude" in Psalm 94:12 which says: "Blessed is the person whom You instruct, O Lord, and teach out of Your law, that You may give him rest from the days of adversity." A happiness to be found in the most unexpected place! And Paul adds, "Whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son [or daughter] whom He receives" (Heb. 12:6).
Do you really need more evidence that He loves and receives you?
--Robert J. Wieland
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: April 12,1998.
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