The Journey from Curses to Blessings
Rev. Jimmy Moore, preaching
Matthew 5:1-12
Have you ever felt cursed? As baseball season approaches, Cubs fans are reminded of the Billy Goat curse, which originated when William Sianis, owner of the Billy Goat tavern, brought his goat, Murphy, to game four of the 1945 World Series. Murphy’s odor was a problem for some fans, and Sianis and Murphy were asked to leave Wrigley Field. As he left, a miffed Sianis was heard to utter the words, “The Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more.” This was widely interpreted to mean that the Cubs would not win a world series in Sianis’ lifetime. Indeed, they did not and the ‘curse’ was not lifted until the Cubs won the series in 2016. Still, Cubs fans are known to live with the dread expectation that if something can go wrong with the team, it will.
That’s sports, and we can laugh about that. But in broader human life, many feel that they are cursed…that they are born under a bad sign. Many carry the sense that nothing good will happen for them, and the unhappy legacies they and theirs have known will only continue. And too often, we can join in the continuation of the woes of others by pronouncing our own curses on them, or just as unfortunately, neglect bringing blessing to their world.
Blessing seeks to undo the cursed sense that we can carry. In the teachings of Jesus, the “beatitudes” are intended to reverse the power of curses, of the expectation that certain behaviors flow from and bring about the deep displeasure of God. In Luke’s version of the Beatitudes, unlike Matthew’s version, woes (curses) are included, indicating that there are indeed some behaviors that merit deep divine displeasure. But in the Jesus’ teaching, much of what has been considered to be woeful can rather be understood as blessings. But both Matthew’s and Luke’s versions represent that is called “the great reversal”. So, if someone thinks that someone’s poverty, to name one example, is an indication of the absence of blessing, Jesus flips that, and teaches that it is rather the poor who are blessed.
So, therefore being an intentional community or person who embraces blessing has the power to effect dynamic change. We’ll talk about this in worship, as the sermon is titled “The Journey from Curses to Blessings”, arising from Luke 6:17-26. We hope you join us.