Contributed by David Delaney, Salem, VA

Warm-up Question

Has anyone in your group ever spent time in a very poor area, either as part of your own living experience, or on a mission or immersion trip to a developing country, or heard stories from those who have been to such places?

• What are some of the words that come to mind when you imagine or recall the lives of those who live day-to-day, hand-to-mouth, or under threat of disease, war, or oppression?  “Miserable,” “unfortunate,” “desperate,” “bitter,” “victim,” and “hopeless” are all words that might come to the minds of many.  Some people might include words that reflect stereotypes of the poor as mostly responsible for their own condition or dismiss poverty with a resigned shrug – “that’s the way the world is.”
• What would you do if you lost everything?  What would happen if your family disappeared, you had no income and no place to live, and you were left to blame for it all?  That might sound like an extreme scenario, but try to imagine it.  What words would you use to describe yourself then?

Whatever you might say, it is hard to imagine using the word “blessed” to describe someone else or yourself in a situation of poverty or any other kind of severe stress; that must be kept in mind as we reflect on Matthew 5.

Blessed to Bless

Many people use the term “blessed” to refer to some extra experience they have had for which they want to express some gratitude, even if they are not Christian or religious at all.  In mid-January, Sandra Bullock described herself as feeling “overwhelmingly blessed” after receiving an Oscar nomination for her movie Gravity.  Also in mid-January, the manager of the Liverpool soccer team praised one of his players, Daniel Sturridge, as being “genetically blessed” because of his remarkable ability to recover from injuries much faster than normal.

Discussion Questions

• Are these  good uses of the word “blessed”?  When you read Matthew 5, does it sound like Jesus is describing exceptional situations for exceptional people or the ongoing lives of everyday people?
• Are there ways for us to start seeing the constant experiences of our daily lives as blessings?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, February 2, 2014 (Fourth Sunday after Epiphany)

 Micah 6:1-8

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Matthew 5:1-12

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

The setting for the many things that Jesus taught throughout the gospels varies greatly, but the physical size of the land where he conducted his ministry was very small – less than the size of the state of Vermont.  Most places could be reached by walking in less than a day, and even a trip from Capernaum to Jerusalem could be done in a little more than three days of brisk walking.  Because there was a lot of travel done for business, government, and military purposes, people could easily see the great difference between the wealthier areas of the country and the poorer ones.  They were often very close together.  Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth was one of the poorest agricultural areas of the county, yet a brief walk to the top of the hill just south of his town would allow someone to see into the Jezreel Valley, one of the agriculturally richest areas of the country.

The traditional site of The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7), from which this passage comes, is less than a day’s walk from Nazareth and is once again a very rich area.  So when Jesus talks about being blessed, people from all different walks of life and economic circumstances might have been listening to him.  Regardless of all of those differences, we read these verses knowing that everything – even life itself – is a gift from God.  How do you hear that from the standpoint of your own particular setting in life?

Discussion Questions

• In verse one, Jesus goes up on a mountain to teach and invite his followers to a new kind of “law” for life.   Who does this remind us of from the Old Testament (answer = Moses)?  Do you think Matthew wants us to think of Jesus as replacing Moses or building on what the Israelite law said?  (Look at Matthew chapters 22-23 to see examples of Jesus responding to questions about Israel’s law).
• If you list all of the various situations listed by Jesus in this set of verses, which ones sound like they are the result of something that has happened to someone (answers: poor in spirit, mourning, meek, experiencing persecution, being lied about), and which sound like qualities that someone might want to adopt or nurture (answers: righteousness, mercy, purity of heart, peacemaking)?  Do they all have something in common?  (Possibly, all are situations in which the presence of God is needed and one might not recognize the need for God’s presence without them, which is why they are a source of blessing).  What do we learn about following Jesus from this?  Is the blessed life an active and willful life, or passive and receptive, or both?
• These verses in Matthew are traditionally referred to as the “Beatitudes” (pronounced be-AT-i-tudes), from the Latin word “beo” which means to bless or make happy.  There is a story about a child in Sunday School who had never seen or heard the word before and pronounced it “BEAT-i-tudes” and immediately added how much sense that made because these are RULES that BEAT you.  It is easy to see how these sentences that are intended to be comforting could be turned around to become a checklist of things you have to do in order to earn blessings.  How can we avoid thinking about them like that?
• How do we imagine that these blessings become real in the lives of people who experience the hardships Jesus describes?  Is it simply a direct line from God to the individual?  Or does the community have a role?  Do we who have experienced these things before or who are already equipped with the good news of the gospel and the means to relieve suffering serve on God’s behalf in bringing blessing to others?

Activity Suggestion

• On a sheet of paper that you will fold up and carry with you this week as a reminder, list the names of actual people you know to whom you can relate in a new way according to this list of promises from Jesus.   Is there someone in your life for whom you only have contempt or conflict?  How can you be “poor in spirit” in your conversations with them?  Do you know someone who is consumed by a lifestyle of destructive behavior or shallow thrill?  Can your “hunger and thirst for righteousness” provide a suggestion of another way to live?  Is there someone in your life who needs mercy and forgiveness from you or others?  Can you show mercy and forgiveness to that person, knowing that it may not be received or returned?   Are you afraid of the consequences of representing the love of God in Christ Jesus to others in word and/or deed?  Recall that the promise of verses 11 and 12 are not just that you have a heavenly consolation for your courage and trouble, but that there may be others nearby who have desperately needed to hear and see the witness of someone who believes that God’s grace can really make a difference.   Who in your life could benefit from that witness? Let this list of people be your personal prayer list for the week and also your reminder that God’s promises for following Christ as described here in Matthew 5 are true!

Closing Prayer

Lord Jesus, giver of every blessing, we rejoice that the wisdom and promises you first shared with your disciples have come down to us and still remain true today.  Help us to come to you as your followers did in those days and to welcome your word with gladness, even as it calls us to repentance and service.   We lift before you for your blessings all those whose spirits call out for relief and righteousness, all who mourn the loss of loved ones, who feel disenfranchised and isolated, and whose fondest desire is that they could feel strong enough to show mercy and forgiveness in the face of persecution and hatred.  Give us along with all your people joy and gladness for the reward that is ours in your kingdom.

Contributed by Angie Larson
Clive, IA

Warm up Question: What would you trade for one red paperclip? Do you think someone would actually trade for one red paperclip?

Kyle McDonald of Belcarra, British Columbia, Canada successfully traded one red paperclip up to a house within one year. Kyle, tired of delivering pizzas, planting trees, and paying rent, got the idea from a childhood game called ‘bigger and better’.

He announced his quest to trade up on Craigslist. Quickly after, he traded his paperclip for a pen shaped like a fish. He traveled to Vancouver, BC, to make the trade in person. From there he went to Seattle, Washington, to trade the fish pen for a handmade door knob.

The trades continued with everything from a generator to an afternoon with Alice Cooper to a snow globe. Finally, one year from when his quest began, the chamber of commerce of Kipling, Saskatchewan, traded him for a two-story farm house.

On the day he received his house, he proposed to his girlfriend. Now married, they live in the house in Kipling in front of which the city has placed the Guinness Book of World Record’s largest red paperclip. Kyle has now written a book called One Red Paperclip and is working in sales.

Discussion Questions

• What would your initial reaction be if you were one of the first to read Kyle’s proposal on Craigslist?
• Do you think that any small thing could be compounded to create a big thing? Would it work with ideas? How?
• Do you think that this experiment could work for helping other people? If so, how would you do it? 

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, July 26, 2009.

(Text links are to oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year B at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

• 2 Kings 4:42-44
• Psalm 145:10-18 (16)
• Ephesians 3:14-21
• John 6:1-21

Scripture Reflection

In the Gospel text Jesus takes five loaves of bread and two fish and performs a miracle to make it into enough to feed five thousand people. The text states that he knew it would be enough. In the 2 Kings text, Elisha also knows that there will be enough food. There is not only enough for many people, but much left over.

We live in a world that becomes consumed and obsessed with scarcity. We fear we won’t have enough, that we won’t make our goal, and that we won’t be enough. The economic situation of this year creates fear, despair, and worry. Our surroundings tell us that we live in scarcity. God tells us the opposite; we live in a world that is abundant. We can give knowing that God will take care of us and our families, just as Christ knew that there would be enough to care for the coming masses. It takes an amazing amount of trust.

There is enough. You are enough. Where you are weak, God is strong. It is in weakness and scarcity when God can come in and fill in the blanks. God makes things bigger and better and whole.

Nelson Mandela summarizes the human battle between scarcity and abundance beautifully:

“Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, handsome, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us. It is not just in some; it is in everyone. And, as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Discussion Questions

• Do you live in a world of scarcity or abundance? Explain.
• How do you tend to react during times of stress and need?
• When in your life do you forget that you are blessed by God? How do you respond when that happens?

Activity Suggestions

Play the game Bigger and Better to benefit a social ministry. Challenge the group to trade a small item for a larger one. It could be anything, from a paperclip to an egg. Ask them to go door-to- door to get a larger item, anything larger in size. Instruct the group to then trade that item for a larger item. See how big the items can get. You’ll be surprised with what you can get! Contact Lutheran Social Services for refugee programs or a homeless shelter needing the items you have to donate.

Want to see how much more you can maximize the items you’ve received? Use the final items as part of a congregational silent auction. Use the proceeds for a social ministry.

Closing Prayer

Blessed Savior, we thank you for blessing us in everyway. We know that you are continually working in our lives to remind us that you are in control. Please use us as you desire to let our light, and your light, shine through our actions. In your wonderful name, we pray.  Amen.