Thursday, October 29, 2026 (All Saints’ Day)
Seeing the crowds, He went up on the mountain, and when He sat down, His disciples came to Him. And He opened His mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:1-12)
If you look carefully at the text for today, you soon realize that it’s a very good picture of Jesus! For who else do we know who is so perfectly poor in spirit, meek, merciful, pure in heart, peace-making, and hungering for righteousness? Not to mention the way people persecuted Him!
And the rewards apply to Him as well. To whom else does the kingdom of heaven belong but Jesus? Who inherits the earth? Again, that would be Jesus. Who sees God? Who is called the Son of God? Who will have all His good and holy desires satisfied in the end?
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.
But these are rewards that He shares—that He is eager to share with each one of us. For that is why He came down from heaven to become our Savior, to die and to rise for each one of us. He means to turn us into little Christs—children of God, younger brothers and sisters of His own. When the Holy Spirit finishes working on each of us, the family resemblance will be clear. Each of us in our own unique way will resemble Jesus—not as carbon copies, but rather as the same music might be taken up by many different instruments.
All this is by God’s great love for us, which came looking for us for one reason only—to bless us. Not to curse us for our sins, but to bless us with His forgiveness. He loves us, and He wants us home.
WE PRAY: Dear Savior, thank You. I want to be like You. Please make it happen. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions: