“Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying…” (Matthew 5.1,2).

For a while now in our Life category, we’ve been considering what the Son of God had to say about living the Christian life in the “beatitudes” of Matthew 5. And actually, he had quite a lot to say. Consider this summary from John Stott:

“The beatitudes paint a comprehensive portrait of a Christian disciple. We see him first on his knees before God, acknowledging his spiritual poverty and mourning over it. This makes him meek or gentle in all his relationships, since honesty compels him to allow others to think of him what before God he confesses himself to be. Yet he is far from acquiescing in his sinfulness, for he hungers and thirsts after righteousness, longing to grow in grace and in goodness.

“We see him next with others, out in human community. His relationship with God does not cause him to withdraw from society, nor is he insulated from the world’s pain. On the contrary, he is in the thick of it, showing mercy to those battered by adversity and sin. He is transparently sincere in all his dealings and seeks to play a constructive role as a peacemaker. Yet he is not thanked for his efforts, but rather opposed, slandered, insulted and persecuted on account of the righteousness for which he stands and the Christ with whom he is identified.”

There you go. That’s the man/woman who is “blessed,” according to the lips of the king.

Note that all the beatitudes are describing equally what every Christian is called to be. Even that last one that we looked at briefly last time — the blessing of being persecuted for the sake of Christ (see the June 22, 2008 post).

Apparently, whenever Christians are despised, sneered at, rejected, mocked, slandered, excluded, or persecuted, they are to receive this as an everyday mark of Christian discipleship — like being merciful or pure in heart. Those who stand with the suffering and rejected Christ in this world will occasionally know suffering and rejection themselves. Expect it.

This is frequently taught in the Bible, actually. John 15.18-25; 1 Peter 4.13,14; Acts 14.22; 2 Timothy 3.12. 

Remember the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer? (If you need a refresher, visit the blog post from November 7, 2007.) He had a pretty good handle on this connection between Christian discipleship and suffering. Consider:

“Suffering, then, is the badge of true discipleship. The disciple is not above his master. Following Christ means passio passiva, suffering because we have to suffer. That is why Luther reckoned suffering among the marks of the true Church….  Discipleship means allegiance to the suffering Christ, and it is therefore not at all surprising that Christians should be called upon to suffer. In fact, it is a joy and a token of grace.”