Matthew 5:10-12
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. We now come to the eighth and final Beatitude, and it is the consequence of living the Beatitudes: persecution. You can almost hear Jesus say, “Sorry!” as he pronounces this one. Note that Jesus is not blessing those who seek persecution or those who are obnoxious or rude or proud. He blesses those who by find themselves encountering opposition simply by living a Beatitude life. The bottom line is this – the life Jesus provides us will provoke hostility. It provoked hostility for him, and it will provoke hostility for his followers (John 15:18-20). Jesus will go on to make this a double beatitude in verses 11-12. Maybe he knew we wouldn’t like it, and we needed to hear it twice? 🙂 Join us this Sunday as we explore the different parts of this, the last, beatitude.