Matthew 5:1-12

Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,and he began to teach them saying:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

I just hate it when there's no clearly defined objective or expectation or goal, especially at work. Jesus is spelling out just what His disciples need to be like, the kind of attitudes they need to advance through the ranks, what is required for them to "bonus" in the incentive program. the performance expectations that will be discussed at their annual reviews. But this soooo anti-"the way the real world operates" list is going a bit overboard, don't you think? Real go-getters show no mercy. The meek never get ahead and just get lost in the shuffle. Peacemakers just get used as pawns by those who really want to trounce their enemy. Right?

The trouble is, what I tend to think of as the "real" world, really isn't. Sure it is the way of this fallen world I live in. But Jesus came to restore the world, not co opt it's ways for use in setting up just another alternative way of life. The Jesus Way is a complete contrast to the worldly way. And I, as His follower am to live in this world as mere ambassadors from His kingdom to it, not a full citizen of it. My standard of conduct and attitude isn't what will these people think and am I succeeding by the world's measurement. It needs to be what does my King think and am I representing Him well. If there is no drastic and marked difference, if I'm not poor in spirit, pure in heart, meek, peacemaking, merciful and hungry for righteousness, not only am I deprived of blessing but I also may deprive those I come in contact with of seeing the only hope for this world, Jesus.