The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1-12 NIV) are all about living life differently. And it takes courage to live life differently from the rest of the world.
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
It takes courage to live a life poor in spirit, to live a life of humility and dependence instead of proudly and independently.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
It takes courage to take responsibility for your own sin, to ask forgiveness, to mourn over your sin instead of ignoring it and pursuing pleasure at any cost.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
It takes courage to live a life of meekness, to realize you have great power but not misuse it, to be patient.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
It takes courage to seek to hunger and thirst for righteousness instead of for the things of this world, to deny self and seek to be filled with God’s Word.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
It takes courage to show mercy to others instead of bringing the gavel of judgment down and making people pay, giving them what you think they deserve.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
It takes courage to stay pure in heart in a fallen world when all around us impurity is encouraged and normalized.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
It takes courage to be a peacemaker, to seek to smooth out instead of fanning the flames, It takes courage to not just turn a deaf ear and to be concerned with more than just our own inner peace.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
And it takes courage to stand up under persecution and not deny and flee.
I’m grateful that God gives us His Spirit and that He empowers us as Christians to live this way. But it still takes courage to go against the flow of our sinful nature and the way of the world.
What do you need courage for today?