All three readings today point in the same direction:
God chooses what the world overlooks.

Zephaniah speaks about a people who are “humble and lowly.”
Not powerful.
Not impressive.
Not successful by the world’s standards.
Yet they are the ones who will be sheltered by the Lord.

St Paul says the same thing in a sharper way:
“Consider your own calling… not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth.”

In other words:
God did not build His Church out of the strong and the important.
He built it out of the ordinary.

And then Jesus opens His mouth and teaches —
and what He teaches is the Beatitudes.

Not rules.
Not commands.
But a description of who truly belongs to the kingdom of heaven.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit.”
“Blessed are the meek.”
“Blessed are those who mourn.”
“Blessed are the merciful.”
“Blessed are the pure in heart.”

This is not a list of achievements. It is a portrait of dependence.

Jesus is not praising suffering for its own sake.
He is revealing where God’s kingdom takes root.

Not in self-sufficiency.
Not in pride.
Not in control.

But in hearts that know they need Him.

The world says: Blessed are the successful. Blessed are the confident.
Blessed are the winners.

Jesus says: Blessed are the poor in spirit —
those who know they cannot save themselves.

Zephaniah says: Seek the Lord, you humble of the land.

Paul says: God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.

Jesus says: Blessed are the meek… the merciful… the peacemakers.

All three are telling us the same thing:

The kingdom of God is not built on strength, but on trust.

We often misunderstand the Beatitudes as ideals for special people:
saints, monks, or unusually holy Christians.

But Jesus speaks them to ordinary listeners.
Fishermen.
Villagers.
The poor.
The tired.

He does not say: Try harder to become like this.

He says: This is who is already close to God.

The poor in spirit are not spiritually talented.
They are spiritually honest.

They know they need mercy.
They know they need forgiveness.
They know they cannot live without God.

That is why St Paul can say: “Whoever boasts, must boast in the Lord.”

Not in intelligence.
Not in success.
Not in goodness.

But in Christ.

The Beatitudes turn our values upside down.

The world says: Avoid mourning.
Jesus says: Blessed are those who mourn — because God will comfort them.

The world says: Be assertive.
Jesus says: Blessed are the meek — because they will inherit the earth.

The world says: Protect yourself first.
Jesus says: Blessed are the merciful — because mercy will be shown to them.

This is not weakness.
It is the shape of Christ’s own life.

Jesus Himself is poor in spirit.
He depends entirely on the Father.
He is meek.
He is merciful.
He is pure of heart.
He is the peacemaker — at the cost of the Cross.

The Beatitudes are not just words He teaches.
They are the life He lives.

And that is why St Paul says:
“It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”

We do not enter the kingdom by becoming impressive.
We enter by becoming humble enough to be changed.

Zephaniah speaks of a people who:
“shall do no wrong and utter no lies.”

Not because they are naturally good,
but because they are living under God’s protection.

This is what holiness looks like:
not perfection,
but dependence.

The Beatitudes are not a ladder we climb.
They are a door we walk through.

A door that leads us away from pride
and into trust.

So the question today is not:
Am I strong enough for God?

It is: Am I poor enough in spirit to let Him work?

Do I know my need for mercy?
Do I hunger for what is right?
Do I try to make peace?
Do I trust God more than my own strength?

Jesus does not promise an easy life.

He promises a blessed one.

Not because it avoids suffering,
but because God is present in it.

“Rejoice and be glad,” He says,
“for your reward will be great in heaven.”

That reward is not comfort.
It is communion with God.

So today the Church invites us to see ourselves truthfully:
not as the strong,
but as the called;
not as the worthy,
but as the chosen;
not as the self-made,
but as the redeemed.

Blessed are the poor in spirit.

Not because they have nothing,
but because they have room for God.

And where God has room,
His kingdom can grow.