“Blessed are the poor in spirit: theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are the gentle: they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who mourn: they shall be comforted.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for what is right: they shall have their fill.”
(Mt 5:3-6)
Do we rely on God like Jesus did?
Do our actions attract kingdom blessing?
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Our discussion on the first four Beatitudes took an interesting turn. While acknowledging that the Beatitudes are characteristics of Jesus and that they are based on the Old Testament understanding that the 'poor in spirit' are those who know that they need God, our discussion centred on work place bullying.
The way to handle bullying is not to retaliate, but to address the issue. This approach fits so well with the balance between the two Beatitudes "Blessed are the gentle" and "Blessed are those who...thirst for that is right."
Jesus, himself relied on the strength of his Father's Spirit as he confronted Pharisees, Saduccees, unresponsive crowds and Roman occupiers. Like the boy in our photo, confronting the sumo wrestler, Jesus was used to the "David and Goliath Situations."
