Matthew
5:1-12
When
Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his
disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:
"Blessed
are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they
who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will
inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for
they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the
peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are
persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. Blessed
are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil
against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be
great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
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Reflection:
There is
this story of a poor family; they were poor based on the standard of this world
they live in a shanty, they wore tattered clothes yet they were happy. When
they were asked on how come that they were happy in spite that they were
materially poor the father said: “We follow Jesus, we subscribe to His
teachings and He’s part of our family.
After
descending from the mountain Jesus sat down and taught those around Him about
the Eight (8) blessings of the Beatitudes. What were these Beatitudes all about?
It is the secret of true disciples for Christ. When Jesus told those around Him
about these Beatitudes He was actually saying to them that this is how my life
is in this world but don’t you all worry for I am happy in following all these.
Jesus
closed Himself to the comforts of this world He never embraced it. Let us all
remember that the happiness of this world is extremely different from the
heavenly happiness that Jesus offers us. He knew that what the world gives and
dictates are nothing compared to what God the Father would give Him.
In
effect, Jesus is telling us through these Beatitudes to be like Him, to follow
Him to always be with Him for these are all His characteristics.
But isn’t
it hard to follow all these qualities of the Beatitudes? Isn’t it hard to
follow Jesus? Yes it’s hard for the
simple reason that the life of Jesus in this world was full of hardship and
persecution. However the hardship that Jesus went through was nothing compared
to what was waiting for Him in heaven.
Thus, our
focus should always be heavenward never mind the present hardship that we may
encounter. For it has a purpose and that is to prepare us for our ascent to
heaven someday. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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