Friday February 15, 2013

Read Matthew 5:17-20. Luke 14:25-33.

 

There are two things that are immediately striking about this part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. First of all, a person who takes the call seriously and attempts to live as a kingdom citizen takes a great risk because each of the counter-values of the world seems to have great survival value!

 

If you aren’t competitive and aggressive, how can you get ahead? If you can’t take the practical course and make the expedient choice, you’re asking for trouble! If you don’t look after self, who will? Jesus’ sermon calls men to abandon this whole approach to life and to walk out of step with society. We are called to abandon “wisdom” for responsiveness to God’s will whatever the apparent cost. And this involves risk.

 

The second thing we see in the sermon is the impossibility of the standards Jesus maintains. In shifting attention from behavior to values and motives, Jesus sets righteousness even farther from us than it was before! You and I may have been relatively successful in controlling our behavior. But what about our desires? What about our thought lives? How about our emotions and feelings toward others? If righteousness in the kingdom means purity in the inner man, each of us is helpless.

 

But this is just the point of Jesus’ announcement. The kingdom is “at hand”! In Jesus Christ, God has begun to take that action which culminates in our total freedom. In the ultimate expression of the kingdom, Jesus will reign over a renewed earth. But even before Jesus returns, believers of every age have been “brought” by God to the “kingdom of the Son He loves” (Col. 1:13). You and I are in a relationship with God in which He acts for us. When we grasp this, when we open up our lives to Jesus’ royal control, He will break into the pattern of our daily lives and into the very heart of our character. Owning Jesus as King, we turn our fears over to Him and seek to rebuild our lives on that which He finds valuable.

 

Jesus is risen King. We can take the risk.

 

Prayer:

Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.

 

Adoration:

 

 

Confession:

 

 

Thanks:

 

 

Supplication:

¥ Pray for wisdom for yourself and everyone in your congregation to live lives that are counter culture and that are a powerful witness to the revolutionary love of Christ Jesus. Pray that many people will see the lives of the people in your church and be drawn to Christ for salvation.

¥ Pray that our Session will be filled with wisdom and insight into the Word as they lead us and guide us and seek to shepherd us. Pray that these men will be deeply committed to Christ first and willing to obey Him at all costs.

 

 

Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. What risks do you see for yourself in choosing to live as Jesus calls you to live?

2. What things have stopped you in the past adhering to Jesus’ kingdom call?