“Blessed are the cheesemakers ……?”

I can all too easily and sadly remember a vulgar, crass and irreverent movie watched with very open eyes during some time of my mis-spent youth; depicting the Sermon on the Mount with the camera moving back some distance to the imagined fringe of the crowd that had gathered to listen.

One character turns to another and asks when one of the Beatitudes is mis-heard : “Blessed are the cheesemakers .....? - What’s so special about the cheesemakers ?”

A mountain environment could have created a natural amphitheatre for many people to have heard a single man speaking. Yet here was a Man who performed the very will of God, as His Son upon the earth. Could He not have made Himself heard clearly in all locations with these precious words had He really wanted to, all to the glory of His Father?

The Sermon on the Mount is one of the passages of scripture that is all too easily glossed over. The “Blessed’s” make for common and easy reading, but it is only when we try to remember them in sequence or which trait and characteristic goes with which reward, that we realise just how difficult they can be to retain them accurately in our minds. Are the mourners going to be called the children of God ? Or are the persecuted going to inherit the earth ? More than likely ‘yes’ is the answer to both questions, but this is not really as Jesus described it to us !

Here they are taken from Matthew 5 again for you to digest :

3Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
6Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
10Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
13Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
15Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
16Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
17Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

A Bible Commentary has this to say :
The mountain on which Christ delivered the Sermon on the Mount has been called the “Sinai of the New Testament,” inasmuch as it holds the same relationship to the Christian church as Mt. Sinai did to the Jewish nation. It was on Sinai that God proclaimed the divine law. It was on the unknown mountain of Galilee that Jesus reaffirmed the divine law, explaining its true meaning in greater detail and applying its precepts to the problems of daily life.

The law that Jesus referred to is the divine law, the royal law that James discusses in his epistle (chapter 2, verse 8) or as otherwise recognised, by each surrounding reference as the 10 Commandment Law. This law is the very transcript of the character of Jesus Christ, so it is no wonder that He wanted to make it as plain as possible for everyone to understand.

The divine law is re-interpreted not as ‘Thou shalt’s...’ and ‘Thou shalt not’s...’ , but as an invigorating reminder, for all those at the very bottom of the social and economic ladder of that particular occupied, down-trodden, but 'chosen' society. Jesus did not kick his captive audience when He knew that they were down; He gave them aspirations, unpacking the original divine law by delivering pure Inspiration, and later in His sermon, He delivers timely reminders as to how they (and we) are expected to behave as potential citizens for His Kingdom. Would the cheesemakers be just as welcome ? Only through their faith and if they can demonstrate the traits and characteristics of the only truly spoken “Blessed’s” !