What Does Blessed Mean?

Blessed by God

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When Jesus sat down on the mountain, the first word He spoke was blessed. He said it nine times in a row (Matthew 5:3-11). So what does it mean to be blessed?

A gift from God. Blessed means God is pouring out His goodness on a person. It is His favor, His kindness and His care, given freely.

Happy in God. The Children's Bible says happy. This is not the kind of happy that is over by bedtime. It is a deep joy that stays, because it rests on God.

The blessed person. The book of Psalms begins with the same idea: “Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly” (Psalm 1:1).

Loving God's Word. “But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night” (Psalm 1:2). The blessed person loves to listen to God.

Like a tree. That person “shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season” (Psalm 1:3). God's blessing is like water that keeps a tree green, even in a dry summer.

Forgiven. David wrote, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered” (Psalm 32:1). The biggest blessing of all is having our sins forgiven.

Not luck. Some people say they feel blessed when they win a game or get a new bike. Those are good gifts, and “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17). But they are not the deepest blessing.

Not riches. Many people think the rich and famous are the blessed ones. Jesus did not name them. He named the humble, the sad and the people who are hungry for God.

Mary knew. Mary sang, “Henceforth all generations will call me blessed” (Luke 1:48). She knew why: “For He who is mighty has done great things for me” (Luke 1:49). Blessing is about what God does.

Blessed in Jesus. Peter praised God, who “according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Because Jesus rose, His people have a hope that cannot die.

What we learn. To be blessed is to be loved by God and close to Him. The best blessing of all is knowing Jesus.

What to do. Each night this week, thank God for three blessings. Make one of them something Jesus has done for you.

The Beatitudes open with one word, repeated nine times: makarios (say: mah-KAH-ree-oss), blessed. Understanding this word opens up the whole sermon.

A Greek word with a new owner. Greek writers used makarios for their gods and for wealthy people who seemed to live above worry. Jesus took the word and gave it to the poor in spirit, the mourners and the persecuted.

The Hebrew background. The Old Testament word is ashre (say: ah-SHRAY), the first word of Psalm 1. It describes the person who walks in a right relationship with God and so lives the good life God intended.

Psalm 1:1-3. The blessed person avoids the path of sinners and delights in God's law, and is “like a tree Planted by the rivers of water.” The picture is a life that is rooted, fed and fruitful because it is joined to God.

Psalm 32:1-2. David's blessing rests on forgiveness: “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity.” To impute is to count something to a person's account.

Romans 4:6-8. Paul quotes that psalm to show “the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works.” The deepest blessing is a gift God credits to us. It is never a wage we earn.

A statement, not a wish. Jesus did not say, May you be blessed someday. He announced that certain people are blessed now, because of God's verdict about them.

Blessed is not the same as comfortable. Happiness often depends on what happens to you. Blessing depends on God's favor. That is why a person can be mourning and blessed at the same time (Matthew 5:4).

Blessing and woe. Luke records Jesus adding warnings to these blessings: “But woe to you who are rich, For you have received your consolation” (Luke 6:24). Woe is a cry of sorrow over people who think they need nothing.

Every spiritual blessing. Paul praised God for blessing us with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). Every blessing of the Beatitudes is found in Jesus.

A living hope. Peter blessed God for a new birth “to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3). Christian joy rests on an empty tomb.

Application. When you hear someone say they are blessed, ask yourself what they mean. Then thank God for the blessings money cannot buy: forgiveness, His Word, and a place in His family.

God's Upside-Down Kingdom

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In most kingdoms the strong and the rich sit at the top. Jesus described a kingdom where God lifts up the lowly. You could call it an upside-down kingdom.

The poor first. Jesus began, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). The kingdom belongs to people who know they need God.

Good news for the poor. In His hometown Jesus read from Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor” (Luke 4:18).

Mary's song. Long before, Mary praised God: “He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly” (Luke 1:52). Exalted means lifted up high.

The hungry filled. “He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty” (Luke 1:53). God fills people who come to Him hungry.

God chooses the weak. “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1:27).

Grace for the humble. “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). Pride pushes God away. A humble heart opens the door.

Lifted in time. “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time” (1 Peter 5:6). God does the lifting.

The King who served. Jesus said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

Down, then up. Jesus “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8). Then “God also has highly exalted Him” (Philippians 2:9).

Strong in weakness. Paul learned that God's power shows up best in weak people. Jesus told him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Come to Me. Jesus invites tired and needy people: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

What we learn. In God's kingdom the way up is down. God loves to lift up people who know they need Him.

What to do. This week, look for someone who is left out. Invite them to play, help them or pray for them, the way Jesus would.

The Beatitudes turn the world's ladder upside down. The same pattern runs through the whole Bible: God brings down the proud and lifts up the humble, and the clearest picture of it is the cross.

Isaiah 61:1. God promised a Messiah anointed “to preach good tidings to the poor” and “to heal the brokenhearted.” In Nazareth Jesus read this and said it was about Him (Luke 4:18). The Beatitudes are that good news spoken out loud.

Mary's song (Luke 1:51-53). “He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.” Mary sang about thrones overturned and the hungry fed before her Son was born. She saw in her own story what Jesus later taught on the mountain.

Luke 6:20-23. Luke records Jesus saying, “Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.” He was speaking to disciples who had left everything to follow Him. Their outward poverty and their inward need went together.

1 Corinthians 1:26-29. “Not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.” God chose the weak and the despised “that no flesh should glory in His presence.” God's way of choosing guards His glory and humbles our pride.

James 4:6. God does not merely ignore pride; He “resists the proud.” The same verse promises “more grace.” The humble are not the people who think little of themselves, but the people who think much of God.

Mark 10:45. In the world's kingdoms, rulers are served. Jesus came “to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” A ransom is the price paid to set someone free.

Philippians 2:5-11. “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Jesus did not grab at His rights, but took “the form of a bondservant” and went down to the cross. Then God gave Him “the name which is above every name.” The pattern of the Beatitudes is the pattern of Christ's own life.

Lowly, then lifted. “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time” (1 Peter 5:6). The lifting is God's work and God's timing.

Matthew 11:28. The invitation of the upside-down kingdom is open to every tired and burdened person: “Come to Me.” The only thing needed is to come.

Application. Pay attention to who your school or team treats as unimportant. Treat them as people God values, and look for a way to serve rather than to be first.

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