Stumbling
“The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
(Matt 11: 5 and 6, NIV)
In my last post, I finished by saying, “did you notice the last sentence that Jesus said? “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me”. We will take a look at that later. Well, this post is looking at that last sentence.
The immediate context of this sentence was that the normally confident John had doubts. His circumstances had changed, and this posed a real test of his faith. Herod had imprisoned John, and now the prophet sent Jesus a message, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?” (Matt 11: 3, NIV) Gone was his boldness; he was showing his shortcomings.
Jesus gave a reassuring reply, “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” (Matt 11: 5 and 6, NIV)
Jesus didn’t rebuke John because he understood his predicament. Nevertheless, there was a subtle reminder. Jesus could have concluded with “...the good news is proclaimed to the poor,” but he chose not to. He added these further words to his message for John: “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
If we look at the Beatitudes, we see a whole host of blessings. But these blessings seem odd at first glance. The Beatitudes are:
“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 children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
At first glance, we see the poor in spirit are blessed. We see that those who mourn are blessed. We see that those who are meek are blessed. We see that those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be blessed, etc. Our first reaction is I don’t want to be poor in spirit. I certainly don’t want to mourn, and I could go on. And here, I suppose we could say that Jesus had introduced another Beatitude, “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.”
Let’s consider this “additional” Beatitude. First of all, God wants to bless us, not demean us. Why is that? First, when He looks at us and sees His own image, He is naturally very pleased with what He sees. Next, when He looks at us, He sees a person who is pure as snow because the blood of Jesus Christ has washed away our sins. When we confessed God’s Lordship over our lives, then the blood of Jesus cleansed us of all unrighteousness. Furthermore, it’s the grace of God that works for us. We don’t deserve God’s forgiveness, but we have it because the penalty paid by Jesus is sufficient for each one of us. So when God looks at us and sees His image, His grace working in us, and His salvation, then He wants to bless us because He loves us just as a father loves his own children.
However, the blessing is conditional. It depends on our response to the situation we face. To be clear, our salvation is not conditional because God’s grace is a gift; it does not rely on anything we do. However, the blessing is indeed conditional. His desire is to bless us, but the blessing may be withheld. Let me repeat the sentence again: Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me. We are blessed by God when we don’t stumble on account of Jesus Christ. This brings us to another facet of this scripture. We will face many trials in our lives if we stand up and be counted as followers of Jesus Christ. Life is much simpler if we keep our mouth shut. No one will mock us, no one will ridicule us, and no one will try to take us to court and prosecute us. If we just stay quiet and have an easy life, then we won't face any difficulties. But is that what God wants for us?
It is said that each of the first apostles was martyred because of their outspoken nature. Restricting ourselves to the Bible, we know that Stephen was killed, John the Baptist was beheaded, James was killed, and Paul was very explicit about his hardships. He said, “I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have laboured and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.” (2 Cor 11: 23-27, NIV) Personally, I have never endured anything like what these men of God have. I recall when I was a student, a fellow student approached me and told me I should turn the other cheek, then proceeded to slap me. I must admit, I didn’t turn the other cheek or forgive the student easily. Instead, I held the student in a neck hold for a moment, then released him. He never slapped me again.
But I am aware of people in the UK being taken to court for praying and for preaching the gospel on the streets. I am aware of pastors being sent to jail because they have shared the gospel with their congregation. I know that simply being a Christian in many countries has resulted in being killed, and women being raped. Oh yes, it’s much easier to remain silent.
However, it is in these times when we stand up for Jesus that God will support us with His staff and rod. It is in those times that God will give us the words to say. It is in those times that we will hear the small, quiet voice of God telling us that He is pleased with us and that He is with us.
We may never be persecuted, nor feel the wrath of the enemy. If we are wise and hear God’s voice, then maybe He will tell us to go somewhere for our protection, just as God told Elijah to go to the Kerith Ravine. But irrespective of the challenges we face, God has commanded us to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit.” (Matt 28: 20, NIV) God has instructed us to “entrust to reliable people,” the gospel, “who will also be qualified to teach others.” (2 Tim 2: 2, NIV)
And so today, as the day comes to an end, let us kneel before Almighty God, who is above all and everyone, and ask Him for the grace to stand.
I think the idea of blessings is often misunderstood. Too often we equate them with money, fame, or recognition. But the truest blessings are being alive, well, and in relationship with God—things that can’t be measured by the world’s standards. When we shift our view, fear disappears, and gratitude takes center stage.
And there is sometimes a misconception . God isn’t sitting somewhere keeping score, deciding whether to release blessings based on our performance. That kind of thinking creates fear and turns faith into a chore. The truth is, God’s love and grace are constant. Blessings are really about participating—engaging with life in alignment with Him—so they flow naturally as we trust, act, and persevere, not because we’ve “earned” them.
Pastor Robert - I am thrilled to see you address this much needed aspect of being a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. We in the 'modern Church age' are so coddled and lulled to SLEEP - the REAL believers are those in countries where proclaiming your Christianity would mean you are immediately ostracized by your friends and family and, many times, flogged publicly and imprisoned. Ofttimes, in prison you are eventually killed or die from mistreatment/starvation/illnesses that are not treated.
I had a pastor as a child and young adult who very strongly proclaimed from the pulpit that present day Christianity consisted of coddled people who were constantly feeding from the MILK and not the MEAT of the Bible. He used the term "easy believism" quite often and stated that, if persecution became widespread, the majority of so-called Christians would deny their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ to save their lives or that of their family.
And so it goes....I pray for my grandchildren earnestly and often that they will become "Courageous Christians".
Thank you, Pastor Robert, for your faithful witness through your daily blogs...I read all of them, brother in Christ.