Blessed are you who...
How would you finish that sentence?
Blessed are you who... always have a full fridge? Get all the green traffic lights? Find a parking space right outside the shop? Win the lottery? Retire early?
We all have our own ideas about what a "blessed" life looks like. Usually it involves having enough, staying healthy, avoiding too much stress, being surrounded by loved ones, and hoping life goes more or less according to plan.
Jesus had a rather different idea.
He introduces one of his most famous sermons “Blessed are you who…” followed by a number of different endings, each one more surprising than the previous one. Instead of offering us a few helpful tips for a happier life, Jesus turns our ideas about the world and how true blessing is found upside down – or perhaps, the right way up?
The words that follow include many ideas that have become proverbial in our day-to-day speech – “turning the other cheek” and “can the blind lead the blind” to name a couple. Sayings which, when understood and lived out have the power to change the world.
Even the great Albert Einstein, who was no friend of formal religion, acknowledged his deep admiration for Christ’s sayings: “I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene,” he remarked in a 1929 interview. “No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word.”
This summer, our all-age Sunday services will be exploring a section of Luke’s Gospel often called the Sermon on the Plain. Week by week we'll explore what Jesus said and consider the impact his words can still have on our world and our lives today.
You don't need to know anything about the Bible or church to join us. Whether you've been coming to church for years, haven't been for decades, or are simply curious about what Jesus actually said, you'll be very welcome, all the details are below: