Blessed are the weak

How vulnerability, lack, and loss bring us closer to Jesus

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 

Matthew 5:3-11

The Beatitudes, Jesus’ unconventional list of the “blessed”, are as mysterious as they are beautiful. Why did Jesus highlight those specific groups of people? Is there a common thread? Should we aim at being spiritually poor, sad, or downtrodden in order to find God’s kingdom? 

Perhaps Jesus was simply announcing that life with God was available to the ordinary people listening to him at that moment, regardless of their social status. My favourite author, Dallas Willard, would say these verses are proof that “the rule of God from the heavens truly is available in life circumstances that are beyond all human hope.” 

One more connection stands out to me: every group Jesus mentions is in a position of need. 

The spiritually poor, grieving, and powerless, along with the persecuted and those single-mindedly longing for God’s righteousness, mercy, and peace, are in a state of dependence. They need God to come through for them. Jesus’ words echo Mary’s song in Luke 1:53-54 

He has brought down rulers from their thrones

    but has lifted up the humble.

He has filled the hungry with good things

    but has sent the rich away empty.

Do you need God in your day-to-day life?

I remember once hearing the challenge: What in your life would fail if God didn't show up?

In my life, I have struggled to grasp my need for God. As a child, I excelled at learning and discovered early on how much approval this talent could win me. My prestigious University degree gave me little usable knowledge, but lots of praise and self-confidence. 

As a young adult, I worked with all my strength to climb the ladders placed in front of me. I tested the limits of what my brain and stamina could achieve. I experienced great success, yet often found myself exhausted, unsatisfied, and terrified of failure. I worked for God with all my heart, yet rarely needed his help. I knew I had been saved by grace, but I pinned my earthly hopes on my performance.

As an older adult, I have felt thoroughly broken by life. I have experienced great betrayal, disillusionment, and confusion. I have lost friends and reputation. I have battled with anxiety, grief, brokenness, and self-doubt. As a tired mum to four little girls, I have also been hidden away, wiping bottoms, doing laundry, and unable to do much outside my home. I’ve often felt small and isolated. I am daily faced with my need for God.

However, in my vulnerability, I am starting to see a precious opportunity. There’s a pattern in my favorite Old Testament stories. All the most incredible miracles happened when God’s people were in desperate need. In fact, the test they most often faced was whether to trust in their own strength or to put their trust in God.

David is a perfect example. As a teenage shepherd, he was able to fell a giant warrior, not by cunning or bravado, but by God’s power, because of his total conviction that “the battle is the Lord’s.” However, later in life, when David—now King—ordered a census of Israel’s fighting men, presumably to measure the nation’s military strength, God saw this as a grievous sin, with devastating consequences. 

God told the apostle Paul that his weakness was crucial to his calling:

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. - 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

For myself, I have grown so thankful for my loss, my lack, and my need. It’s like a huge weight has been lifted from my life. I no longer have to fight to make something happen. It no longer all depends on me. I’m carried along, little person that I am, in the current of what God is going to do, offering my little seed of faith, excited to see what miracle he will work with it.

One of my favorite scenes from The Incredibles is when Mr. Incredible catches a little boy waiting outside his house—the same boy who earlier caught him lifting a car above his head. Annoyed, he snaps, “What are you waiting for?” The boy replies: “I don’t know, something amazing, I guess.”

For me, that sums up the wonderful privilege of the weak, waiting on God. Instead of powering away, chasing success and approval, we can live in the anticipation of what God will do next. We have a special part to play, but only to the extent that we invest our trust in God, rather than ourselves. It is our very weakness that qualifies us for something incredible.

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