Blessed are the Cursed, Not Those that Curse

There is a deep temptation in our fractured world to believe that blessing belongs to the loudest voice, the strongest hand, or the sharpest comeback. We live in a culture that often rewards those who curse, who shame, scapegoat, dominate, and win at any cost. Yet Scripture tells a very different story.

In Micah 6, God calls creation itself as a witness and asks a haunting question: “What have I done to you? How have I wearied you?” The people of God respond not with repentance but with religious bargaining. Should we bring burnt offerings? Thousands of rams? Rivers of oil?

God’s answer cuts through the noise:
“What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God?”

Justice. Kindness. Humility. Not power. Not control. Not vengeance.

When Jesus ascends the hillside in Matthew 5 and opens his mouth to teach, he echoes the same divine rhythm. The Beatitudes are not a list of virtues to master or blessings to chase. They are a declaration of who God sees, honors, and draws near to, often the very people the world overlooks, dismisses, or curses.

Blessed are the poor in spirit.
Blessed are those who mourn.
Blessed are the meek.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.
Blessed are the merciful.
Blessed are the peacemakers.

Jesus does not say, “Blessed are the powerful,” or “Blessed are the winners,” or “Blessed are those who curse their enemies before being cursed themselves.” He says blessed are those who carry wounds, who refuse retaliation, who keep choosing faithfulness even when it costs them something.

This is hard teaching. It always has been.

Because if we are honest, we would often rather curse than be cursed. We would rather strike back than stay gentle. We would rather protect ourselves than risk mercy. But the gospel insists that blessing flows not from our ability to harm others, but from our willingness to trust God while living differently.

Micah and Jesus together remind us that faith is not measured by how loudly we speak about God, but by how faithfully we live among others. Justice asks us to notice who is being harmed. Kindness asks us to respond with compassion instead of contempt. Humility asks us to remember that we too live by grace.

To follow Christ is to believe that blessing is not the absence of suffering, but the presence of God in the midst of it. It is to trust that God’s kingdom grows not through curses, but through mercy. Not through domination, but through love. Not through winning, but through faithfulness.

So perhaps the question before us is not “Who deserves blessing?” but “Who are we willing to bless?” Are we willing to stand with the poor in spirit, the grieving, the overlooked? Are we willing to be peacemakers in a world that profits from division? Are we willing to live justly, love deeply, and walk humbly, even when it leaves us vulnerable?

Jesus says yes.
Micah says yes.
The gospel says yes.

Blessed are the cursed, not because suffering is good, but because God is near. And blessed are those who refuse to curse in return, trusting that God’s mercy will always have the final word.

In God’s grip,

Pastor Chuck Church