The Forgotten Beatitude

Most of us are familiar with the beatitudes that Jesus used to introduce the Sermon on the Mount.  “Blessed are the pure in Heart….”  These are the most famous of Jesus’ beatitudes but they are not an exhaustive list.  Other beatitudes appear in Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain, which in many ways parallel those in Matthew 5.  But there is a forgotten beatitude, one that is rarely noticed and as far as I know never preached on.  Jesus inserts it as a bridge between two teachings.  This beatitude is enigmatic and, at the surface level, seems to apply only to those who are clearly outsiders.  But this forgotten beatitude needs to be taken as a warning to all of us who would follow Jesus.

The forgotten beatitude is found in Matthew 11:6, “And blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over Me.” NASB.  To comprehend what Jesus is saying here we have to set the context.  In Matthew 5-7, Jesus teaches with unique authority and sets Himself apart from everyone who came before Him.  In the next two chapters Jesus proves that authority with a series of healings and miracles overcoming disease, nature and the supernatural powers of the demonic.  In the next chapter He begins to pass that authority on to his disciples commissioning them to go and expand the preaching that the Kingdom has come.  On the cusp of this commission to tell people the Kingdom has come, Jesus receives a delegation from John the Baptist.

Don’t miss the convergence of these events.  A new authority has been claimed, demonstrated and is about to be proclaimed.  The Expected One has come, or has He?  John has questions that are unanswered.  The ministry of the Expected One is proving in some ways disappointing.  Remember the preaching of John?  He was expecting the judgment of God.  A baptism of Spirit and fire, an ax at the root of non-productive trees, a winnowing fork to cleaning the threshing floor with a fire that could not be quenched.  So far, while impressive in its own way, Jesus’ ministry has not met expectations.  The difference between expectation and experience is disappointment.  John was disappointed.  Healing a mother-in-law of a fever is wonderful, curing a woman of a menstrual disorder is impressive, but where is the shock and awe John expected?

The reform and purification of Israel had not happened; apparently, it had not even begun.  Even Jesus’ answer to John’s enquiry was a little vague.  Jesus instructs the delegation to tell John what is happening; He does not give a “yes” or a “no” answer.  He simply tells them to report what is happening and He quotes scripture.  This is important and we will come back to it.  Because when we get disconnected from scripture we end up not understanding Jesus.

Why didn’t Jesus give a simple “yes” or “no” answer?  There were in Palestine, at that time, a number of nationalistic factions that were eager for a reform and purification of Israel that started as a political movement and would work its way into a rebellion against Rome.  They wanted an Elijah that would call fire down from Heaven and slaughter the wicked.  Very likely there were among John’s disciples members who held this view.  John was now in prison his life in danger.  What better time for the Messiah to issue a call to arms.  He has the authority, and the power of miracles, and he has a network of disciples spreading the news of the Kingdom. What more would be needed; the battle is at hand.  “Give us the word, Jesus, we will tell John and he will call for the uprising.”

In verse 12, Jesus says, “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and violent men take it by force.”  In other words, rebels and zealots want to use the Kingdom of Heaven for their own ends and they do not care about the harm they do to it or with it.  They would gladly use the Kingdom, Jesus, even God Himself as a means to their ends.    A national powder keg is set and ready to be ignited and almost everyone, except Jesus, is fumbling for a match. 

Jesus for his part says, “Look at what is happening in my ministry.”  It is not enough to just look at the marvel of the miracles, but the gracious nature of the miracles.  In Matthew 8, Jesus’ first three miracles were for outsiders, an unclean person-the leper, a Roman centurion-an enemy of Israel, and a woman-a second class Jew   Jesus could not have given a more wet blanket answer to those wanting to crank up the rhetoric of nationalism. 

John wanted the purification of God’s holy wrath to clean up the moral rot of the day.  He wanted “Jesus the Reformer” to get rid of sin in society, destroying those who were evil and calling the repentant to a moral perfect society.  The campaign theme of “Make Israel Moral Again” might have fit well.  In Israel were those who said that the Messiah would rescue the nation from its bondage.  These feelings were likely present among John’s own disciples.  “Make Israel Mighty Again” would not be foreign to their lips.  For a nation that was going to war a King who could heal the sick and raise the dead would be very useful. 

Into this context Jesus offers His forgotten beatutide, “And blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over Me.” When we set up a Jesus of our liking and then meet the real Jesus something has to give and generally we stumble.  The word stumble that is used here is σκανδαλίζω. It means to cause to trip or to fall.  The verb is derived from the noun word for trap.  It is the root of our English word scandal.  When we set up a fake Jesus to suit ourselves, and then meet the real Jesus it takes us quickly and feels like we are caught in a trap. 

Let’s be honest for a moment.  A Jesus we can construct, according to our wants and wishes, can be a pretty attractive Messiah.  We can exploit His power and authority to accomplish our desires.  We can access His mercy and grace to soothe our conscience.  A properly constructed Jesus can be very useful for our political, business or social agenda.  This kind of Jesus can even help us break up with someone and do so with a divine mandate.  “I feel like the Lord wants me to focus on my relationship with Him so we shouldn’t date right now.”  (Pardon me while I go wretch.)   You name the need and with a little creativity we can craft a Jesus to fill that need.  Let’s consider a few examples:

DNC Jesus.  If you happen to be a democrat there is a Jesus for you.  I once heard a preacher say that wealth redistribution was God’s will.  In Jesus’ quoting that he was appointed to preach good news to the poor that would inevitably mean bad news for the rich.  DNC Jesus is pretty useful on matters of women’s rights, environmental issues, or issues related to homelessness or immigration.

RNC Jesus.  Republicans need not worry a Jesus can be crafted to serve your cause as well.  One preacher stated that Jesus endorsed capitalism and the free market economy based on the parable of the “Talents and Servants”.  The servant that invested and doubled money was blessed.  Jesus works Wall St!  RNC Jesus has a lot to say about abortion, family values, and faith in the public sector.

Genie Jesus.  While not a newcomer, Genie Jesus has been trending up of late.  This construct of Jesus has access to everything you want and is just waiting for you to ask for it.  You see He was rich but for our sake He became poor, but now that He is back in Heaven He is rich for our sake.  All we have to do is lay claim to the riches

He has for us.  He loves us so much that he will deny us nothing, if we only have the faith to ask for it and name it as ours.  The proof of His love for you is all the blessing He gives you, so the more you ask for and the more He gives you the greater His glory.  This Jesus lets you glorify Him by living a life of opulent wealth.  This is a pretty popular model.

Wingman Jesus.  The value of being non-judgmental has never been higher.  Wingman Jesus will never judge you; all He does is forgive.  You want to cheat on your spouse?  No problem.  Wingman Jesus understands and will forgive you.  Want to drink too much? Wingman Jesus will help you get home safe without a DUI.  Wingman Jesus is very popular with people who only want the tiniest bit of religion; just enough to make sure everything is cool.  Even if you get caught doing something reprehensible you can talk about being sorry, offer an apology and appeal to Jesus; Wingman Jesus to your rescue.  Jesus is apparently a wingman to a lot of politicians.

These are just a few examples of any one of a number of constructs we have of Jesus.  There are as many possible constructs as there are people.   The problem is that when we meet the real Jesus these constructs we have set up for ourselves cause us to fall.  The real Jesus is offensive to us.  The real Jesus is not a toy to be played with or a child to be teased.  The real Jesus demands that we die to our agendas and ourselves including our agenda for Him to follow.  We all have to some degree a Jesus construct that we have crafted.  But by God’s grace we can carve away this pseudo Jesus and find the real one.  The real one may not be what we wanted, but He is so wonderful that we will learn to love and want who He is.