sermon on the mount--suffering does not need to be sought after

In the beatitudes, Jesus seems to challenge a traditional understanding of what it means to be “blessed.” Yet even in hearing the Lord promise that blessing will go to the mourners, the meek and the spiritually impoverished, I still am still inclined to want to be happy and successful. I would prefer not to mourn the death of those I love. It is nice to be found and comforted, but I would prefer not to be lost in the first place.

Some people like to put themselves in situations where they are guaranteed to suffer, as though being unhappy is a characteristic of spirituality.

For the disciple of Christ, suffering does not have to be sought after. It comes with the job. Yet, unlike the suffering of the world, the suffering of the believer can be a source of “rejoicing and gladness (Matt. 5:12).”

Daniel