Have you ever wondered what might be one of the worst things that a Christian might hear? I feel it's somebody telling us, "You are no different from anybody else."
We are supposed to be different from everyone else. This is what the Lord has always wanted from all of His chosen people. When Israel came out of Egypt God said - And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am the Lord your God. You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the Lord you God" (Leviticus 18:1-4). Years later Israel went into captivity because they were, in fact, no different from the rest of the world.
Many of us might think if the first sermon that Jesus spoke is relevant to us today. The conditions are different. The times are different. The culture is different. I am sure the relevance will be made clear as we dwell with the sermon closely in the coming days of our morning devotions. But till then, a quick look at the outline surely tells the relevance it has even today.
Jesus' disciples, priests and churches today need to learn from Him. Sad to say but most of the churches and it's leadership make the mistake of falling into a "consumer mentality" - giving the people what they desire.
I have been a priest for the last 8 years and if my sermons were given taken into account what people wanted to hear, I have failed in my vocation.
God's word clearly tells us that we make a huge mistake in doing so. And the perfect example for this we find in Exodus 32. When we start asking people what they want, what do we get? We get a Golden Calf. That's what the people wanted! They wanted an idol. It was wrong; it was idolatrous - but like Aaron told Moses, that's what the people wanted.
Jesus is teaching the life patterns of true believers. That's what the Sermon on the Mount is all about. The Jews of Jesus' time were concerned about the politics and social life. But Jesus makes no reference at all about those in the first sermon that He preached. The stress here is on being.
In other words, Jesus is not after what men do, He's after what men are. Because ultimately, what they are will determine what they do. Let us prepare ourselves in the coming days to be prepared to change our being which ultimately will reflect in our doing.
We've got to be careful about going down that road of giving people what they think they need. We need to be careful about pandering to the crowds. Jesus never did that.
This Lenten Season let us introspect our inner being and tune it to Jesus' way.
May the Lord help us in being what He wants us to be. God Bless you.
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.
Matthew 5:1-2
We are supposed to be different from everyone else. This is what the Lord has always wanted from all of His chosen people. When Israel came out of Egypt God said - And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, I am the Lord your God. You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the Lord you God" (Leviticus 18:1-4). Years later Israel went into captivity because they were, in fact, no different from the rest of the world.
Many of us might think if the first sermon that Jesus spoke is relevant to us today. The conditions are different. The times are different. The culture is different. I am sure the relevance will be made clear as we dwell with the sermon closely in the coming days of our morning devotions. But till then, a quick look at the outline surely tells the relevance it has even today.
- Matthew 5:3-12 deals with Christian character.
- Matthew 5:13-16 deals with Christian influence in a wicked world
- Matthew 5:17-48 deals with the Lord's requirement of righteousness
- Matthew 6:1-18 deals with Christian piety and God's hatred of hypocrisy
- Matthew 6:19-34 deals with Christian ambitions
- Matthew 7:1-20 deals with Christian relationships
- Matthew 7:21-27 deals with Christian commitment
Jesus' disciples, priests and churches today need to learn from Him. Sad to say but most of the churches and it's leadership make the mistake of falling into a "consumer mentality" - giving the people what they desire.
I have been a priest for the last 8 years and if my sermons were given taken into account what people wanted to hear, I have failed in my vocation.
God's word clearly tells us that we make a huge mistake in doing so. And the perfect example for this we find in Exodus 32. When we start asking people what they want, what do we get? We get a Golden Calf. That's what the people wanted! They wanted an idol. It was wrong; it was idolatrous - but like Aaron told Moses, that's what the people wanted.
Jesus is teaching the life patterns of true believers. That's what the Sermon on the Mount is all about. The Jews of Jesus' time were concerned about the politics and social life. But Jesus makes no reference at all about those in the first sermon that He preached. The stress here is on being.
In other words, Jesus is not after what men do, He's after what men are. Because ultimately, what they are will determine what they do. Let us prepare ourselves in the coming days to be prepared to change our being which ultimately will reflect in our doing.
We've got to be careful about going down that road of giving people what they think they need. We need to be careful about pandering to the crowds. Jesus never did that.
This Lenten Season let us introspect our inner being and tune it to Jesus' way.
May the Lord help us in being what He wants us to be. God Bless you.
Amen May the Lord help me in being what He wants me to be.
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