Matthew 5 - Part 2

 

Read Matthew 5

Do you know how I know that 2020 is the craziest year ever?  I checked a package of salt that I had and it said expires December 2020.

Salt has been around at least since the beginning of the world.  How do I know?  When Lot’s wife turned into a pillar of salt as she looked back at Sodom, nobody commented, “What’s that stuff?”

Salt has been around.  Man didn’t have to invent salt.  It’s not like gravy that someone had to say, we need something to go with chicken fried steak.  Salt has been around.

But what is it to be the salt of the earth? Salt has many qualities.  It seasons.  It preserves.  It can make you scream if you rub it in an open wound.

Salt can make you thirsty.  Salt pills used to be the cure-all for sports-related cramps.  Then came Gatorade.

Of all of these, I think being the salt of the earth is to be the God seasoning of the planet.  People should taste the goodness of God when they encounter us. 

And then there is light.  Light and darkness are common themes in the Bible. 

Isaiah said that light was coming.  John said that the light had come.  Jesus said he was the light.  Now he tells us that we are the light. We are to be light in this world.

When we profess Jesus as Lord, his light should emanate from within us.  Unless we cover up the light, but who would do that?

What’s the point of having light and not letting it shine?

What’s the point of salt that is not salty?

Why would anyone want either of these?  Salt that has lost its saltiness should not even exist.  A light that is brought into a room and then covered so as not to illuminate the room makes no sense.

You are the salt of the earth.  You are the light of the world.

Do not deny who you are by how you live.

Be the salt of the earth.  Be the light of the world.

Amen.

7 I Am Metaphors in John

 

The words I am are powerful words.  They are how God’s people were to know that Moses was sent by God.  The words I am move boats across water or cause armed guards to fall backwards

They are words that use God’s name to precede ours.  Who are you?  I am Tom or I am Jane or I am whatever name your parents gave you.

These are words that identify God and help us to understand our identity and they are more than we can comprehend in a single serving.  Jesus gave us 7 I Am metaphors to help us understand him and his Father in heaven and what it is to have life in him.

Let’s briefly consider each of these I Am statements.

“I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35-51)  Jesus used this one several times in a single pericope.  Bread sustains physical life. Christ offers and sustains spiritual life. Think to the fourth chapter of John’s gospel.  Jesus said he had food that his disciples didn’t know about.

His food was to do the will of his Father. His food was to finish the work he was sent to do.  Jesus still ate meals but his real sustenance was in doing his Father’s will.

Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

Jesus and his commands to us sustain us.  We are to receive him and his commands with the same enthusiasm we have for the fellowship meal.  Will we be nourished?

 “I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) To a world lost in darkness, Christ offers Himself as a guide. John has a recurring theme of light and darkness.  While Jesus was in the world, he was the light of the world.  We as his disciples are charged to be the light of the world.  You can be the salt of the earth while you are at it.

Will we walk in the light?

In chapter 11 of John’s gospel, when the disciples are concerned about going back to Judea and Jerusalem because the Jews there wanted to kill Jesus, he told them that if they walked in daylight they would not stumble.  If they walked in his light, they would be protected.

“I am the door of the sheep.” (John 10:7-9) Jesus protects His followers as shepherds protect their flocks from predators.  If every sheep and shepherd go through the gate, everyone is protected.  Visualize a small or narrow gate that offers only one way in or out.  Only the thief would climb the fence to steal or kill or destroy.  Jesus is the gate and the gate is the way, which will come up in chapter 14.

Will we by receiving him also receive his protection?

“I am the good shepherd.” (John 10:11-14) Jesus loves and protects all who belong to him.  Everyone who had been entrusted with the shepherding of Israel before fell short.  Jesus is the model of shepherding.  His sheep know his voice.

Will we know his voice?

As we are talking shepherds, I’m going to make a little rant here.  I see a lot of scripture abused on the internet.  Scripture is twisted or rewritten to fit the desired narrative. That’s the age that we live in.  Sometimes, I am compelled to comment.  Here is one of those cases.  It’s from Luke 15.

Have you seen the one about how Jesus leaves the 99 to find the 1?  Did you have any problems with that?

Jesus tells the parable. He is not in the parable. What difference does it make?

Besides manipulating the scripture to fit the desired narrative of the one who posted it; it ignores the literary tool selected by Jesus. The parable helps us understand the things of God by setting it alongside the things people understood in the world.

The shepherd in the parable is your basic human shepherd. Even he would leave the 99 in the open country to search for the lost sheep. If the human shepherd would do this, how much more will your Heavenly Father search for those who are lost?

How great the celebration in heaven when the lost one is found and home again.

Trust that Jesus knew what he was doing when he told this parable.  He is the Good Shepherd after all.

“I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11:25) Martha thought that resurrection was a date on an eternal calendar.  She was probably right, but resurrection was standing in front of her.  Resurrection, life, and life eternal are in Christ. 

These bodies will wear out but we will live.  We will live.

Ask ourselves the same thing that Jesus inquired of Martha.  Do you believe this?

“I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) The disciples wanted to see the Father.  C’mon, they had followed Jesus for 3 years.  If anyone should be entitled to a glimpse of the Heavenly Father, it was them. 

Jesus explained that if they had seen him, they had seen the Father.  Jesus was in the Father and the Father in him.  You want to know the Father, then know me.  That’s the essence here.

Everything is through Jesus.  Everything that was made was made through him.  Everything that we need comes through him.  Everything that we hope for is in his name.  Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life.

Will we trust in the Lord with all of our heart?

“I am the true vine.” (John 15:1-5) You know those disconnect notices that we gave out a few years ago and I still use about once a week.  They pose the question to their readers, “Are you connected to the body of Christ?”

Jesus asks us if we remain connected to him.  Are we a teachable spirit?  Have we taken his yoke and do we learn from him?

Do we really want to know the Father?  Then we must be prepared for him to do some pruning.  He will prune away everything that does not produce good fruit.

We have made it through John’s gospel.  If you check out my postings online, you got a high speed flyover of the entire gospel this week.  These 7 I Am metaphors are also a good way to retain much of what you have learned.

I am the bread of life.  Will we be nourished?

I am the light of the world. Will we walk in the light?

I am the door of the sheep. We will receive his protection?

I am the good shepherd.  Will we know his voice?

I am the resurrection and the life. Do you believe this?

I am the way, the truth, and the life.  Will we trust in the Lord with all of our heart?

I am the true vine.  Will we stay connected and do we trust our Father to prune us so that we may produce good fruit?

Those are the 7 I Am metaphors. I find them a fitting way to conclude what has been a 5-month journey.

John told us that his gospel did not contain everything that Jesus did, that it was enough for us to believe and by believing have eternal life in Christ.

So let us believe and have life.

Let us live as his disciples and produce good fruit.

In a world of deception, let us know his voice.

Amen.

Light of the World

Read John 8

Jesus continued to teach.  Earlier he declared himself to be the Bread of Life.  He lost a lot of followers after that discourse.  In this chapter he said:  I am the light of the world.

Whoever follows him walks in light, not in darkness.  Think back to chapter 1 where this light and darkness discourse began.

Light came into the world.  The darkness could not overcome it, but the world did not recognize it.  Chapter 8 picks up on that introduction with Jesus stating that he is the Light of the World.

The religious leaders and many lay persons had too much of an investment in this dark world to want to hear what Jesus told them.  He was from the Father.  His testimony was enough on its own but if you needed more, the Father testified to the same things.

Jesus told them that he was from above and they were from below.  Without his light—without believing he was of God and from God—they would remain in darkness.  They would exist without life. They were already dead.

Discord reigned among the Jewish leaders.  Who is this guy?  Where is he going that we can’t go?  Why should we believe what he has to say?

This discussion was consistent with those before as was the answer Jesus gave them.  I am who I said I am all along.  You don’t need more information.  You need to believe.

I love the short quote that makes the rounds via various memes these days.  It says something along the lines of:

We are overwhelmed with information but have a dearth of wisdom.

Everyone seems to want more information but few seek wisdom.  Our craving for information causes us to rubberneck when there is an accident scene with flashing lights all around.  Wisdom guides us to keep our eyes on the road so as not to become accident site number two at the same mile marker.

People crave more information.  Consider the 24-hour news cycle.  On any given day, there is probably enough news to fill an hour’s worth of broadcasting, but you are going to get 24 hours and so many people watch for that little tidbit that seems new.

I can only roll my eyes when the Breaking News logo scrolls across my screen.  I would kick myself if I could when it reads:  What we told you 20 minutes ago remains unchanged.

So many were asking for more information not so they could believe but so they could come up with new questions in an effort to delay having to process the information they had already been given.  Jesus had given them enough to believe in him, especially the leaders who knew the scriptures well and should have been expecting him.

In spite of the hard-heartedness of the leaders, many did come to believe.

To those who had not yet believed, Jesus told them they would get another chance.  When the Son of Man is lifted up then you will know that I am who I claim to be.  The question was, would they believe?

We know the story from prophecies to birth and to death and to resurrection.  We did not hear any parts first hand, but if it is information that drives us, we have all the information that we need.  But receiving Jesus as Lord is not about information.

So it really comes down to faith.  Do we believe?  We are told at this point in John’s account, many did come to believe in the One who called himself the Light of the World.

We say that we also believe.  Information will come and go and remain constant or be changed, but our belief—our faith in what is not seen—must not waiver.  God is our constant, our Rock and our Redeemer.  We believe.

Jesus is Light.

Jesus is Life.

Jesus is Lord.

Amen.

Parable: A Lamp on a Stand

Read Matthew 5:13-16

We begin a study of parables.  We know that Jesus taught in parables but we don't always know what we are supposed do with the parable.  So, let's begin with some general parameters on parables.

Parables make a comparison.  They use analogy sometimes with tools such as metaphor and simile.  Some may even be considered allegory, that is each or at least many elements of the parable directly represent something else. 

Others are more general but all should consider the context of the time.  We can't always reduce a parable to a lesson learned or what many would consider a moral such as in a fable, but there is always something to be learned.

Sometimes the parable speaks to us without interpretation.  Sometimes it begs to be dissected.

Sometimes Jesus compared things in heaven to things on earth or in our lives.  He is the only one who can make this comparison.  We may speculate.  Jesus spoke in the first person with authority.

Sometimes his comparisons involved things that we all know.  Such is the case in this first parable that we will examine, that of a lamp on a stand.

Jesus spoke to his disciples and told them that they were the light of the world.  That's is a bold declaration by our Master because he is the light of the world.

Jesus is the light of the world; yet, he tells his disciples that they are the light of the world.  Light is important and associated with God and his goodness.  We do not live in the darkness but in the light.  Angels are described as stars.  We are children of the light.

Recall the time that Jesus and his disciples were at the Jordan and received news of the death of Lazarus.  Many of the disciples were afraid to return to the area surrounding Jerusalem.  Jesus told them that walking with him was like walking in daylight.  If we live in the light, we don't stumble.

But Jesus tells us that we are the light of the world.  He didn’t say that we could be the light of the world.  He said that we are.  Our light cannot be hidden from the world so we need to live wise and holy lives.

We are commissioned not only to bring good news to the world but to be light in this world.  What we do and say cannot be hidden from the world.  Why would we want to hide it?

We are to be seen by the world.  People should see how we live and speak and get a glimpse of God's goodness.  People should praise God because of what they see in us.

We need to understand that we are the light of the world.  Christ is the light but much like our commission, he has entrusted us with being light on his behalf.  If we truly understand that then we must also understand that it is contrary to our Christ-given nature to hide our light.

A lamp is made to bring light to a whole room.  We don't light it to hide it.  We sing, Hide it under a bushel?  No!  It's a good song for today, but we should understand that the bushel was not a measure two thousand years ago.  The measure described was probably even smaller than today's bushel, but the principle remains intact even if the basket size might have grown over the ages.

What we need to understand is that the light of Christ is not just for ourselves.  It, like the good news that we have received, is to be shared with others.

What does that mean in our personal application?

Consider our approach to leading people to God.  We could use the scare the hell out of them approach.  It is valid logic.  Live in paradise or burn in hell?  Eternal paradise or eternal separation from God?  In terms of simple dichotomy, this approach makes sense, in the context of what Jesus wants from us--to follow him--these hellfire and damnation approaches leave us ill-equipped for discipleship.

In the accept God's grace or else approach, accepting the ultimatum seems to be the end of the game.  Being the light of the world is not the natural follow-on.  But the natural follow-on to receiving the grace of God is to share the grace of God.

Salvation is not game over it’s game on!

Not to be a light to others is salt without saltiness.  That is, to receive grace and not live by grace, leaves us in a worthless state.  The parable is about a lamp on a stand but Jesus ties it closely with the metaphor of being the salt of the earth. 

Salt brings flavor to life.  It is the God-seasoning of life.  Saltiness is abundance.  Saltiness lets us savor life in bringing our Savior to the world.  But what happens if we retreat from the world?

Our salt is no longer salty.  We have gone from brining the very essence of life to being common material for footpaths.

What happens when we withdraw from the world by trying to hide our light?  We miss out on being the people that God made us to be.  We are the light of the world.  Why would we deny who we are?

Our light must shine for it is from Jesus.  We are called to shine for God lives within us.  We are luminaries to the world.  We are to spiritually enlighten the world.

You can't hide a city that sits atop a hill.  Even our best stealth technology can't hide it.  Likewise, we who follow Christ really can't blend in with the world.  Why would we want to?

Sometimes it seems that we try very hard to camouflage ourselves as creatures who are citizens of the world; but it just aint' so.  Our nature is to be light, live in the light, and share the light.  That is who God made us to be.  We realize the lampstands that we are as we grow in grace and give off more and more of Christ's light to a world that seems to grow darker and darker.

Sometimes we let our mistakes get in the way of letting our light shine before others.  We think that we are not qualified to let God’s light from within us.  We must understand something that came to clarity in the Christian world almost 500 years ago as we entered the period known as the reformation; that the law showed us what we ought to do, but grace shows us what God has done for us.

Our light shines when we get out of the business of measuring ourselves against unobtainable standards and live in the light of grace.  Our message transcends any fraility in our human nature.  Our light is God's love for us.

That love must not be hidden.  We cannot live contrary to our nature.  Such existence is not living.  Salt that is not salty or light that is hidden defy the purposes for which they were created.

A disciple who does not share God's love in word and deed, speech and action, spirit and truth tries to live a dichotomous life.  Such a person can only know dissonance in resisting their God-given nature and purpose.

Our charge is to bring God's light into this world so that people will know him as they come to know us and in those revealing encounters, we will bring glory to God.

The question before us is simple.  Are we shining our lights?

Are we taking what God has given us and sharing it with others or are we reatreating from the purpose for which he made us?

Advancing or retreating?

Light or darkness?

Living or denying our God-given purpose?

Who lights a lamp and then sticks it under a bowl or under the bed or lights it just to hide it?

Here is something that is not explicit in the parable but was obvious to those listening to Jesus.  Nobody lights a lamp in the middle of the day.  It is just not effective because the sun shines so brightly.  Light is needed in darkness.

One day, living fully in God's presence will be the only light that we need; however, today the world is retreating from God and his goodness and his light.  We must shine now more than ever.  Our mission--our God-given mission--has never been more important.

How is the world to know God's mercy if those who know God best shrink away from their purpose? Salt without saltiness and hidden lights won't get the job done. 

Long ago when I was still young enough to drive from the east coast to western Oklahoma without stopping for sleep, I was somewhere between Weatherford and Clinton.  My endurance was about gone and the effects of caffeine and loud music were becoming less and less.  I could see the lights of Clinton in the distance.  They stretched out across the horizon and then in an instant, they were gone.

That will wake you immediately.  The horizon had gone totally black.  Not only had the city gone but there were no stars in the sky.  Everything was dark.  When you have been driving for 24 hours straight and are already on the edge of consciousness, that experience will transport you immediately to the Twilight Zone.  A dozen possible scenarios raced through my mind, none of them comforting.

Before I could resolve in my mind the concept of an entire city disappearing and every light in the sky going dark, the light emerged again.  I had simply driven under an overpass that effectively blocked my vision of everything except the road immediately in front of me.  My mind immediately reset to normal but those two seconds have stuck with me for almost 4 decades now.

A city that could not be hidden vanished instantly.  It was gone.  There was only darkness.  I can't describe the mix of thoughts emotions that I lived in that instant but I was so relieved when the lights appeared again.

Imagine those two seconds of darkness as the world’s perspective of existence.  The world longs for light.  It is mostly looking in the wrong places, but it wants light.  It craves light but sometimes gets comfortable with darkness.

How could God leave the world in total darkness?  He didn’t.  You are the light of the world. 

Here the parable once more.  This is from the New King James Version.

You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Let us not deny our God-given nature.  Let us be like a lamp on a stand and bring the light of Christ to all those around us.

Let your light shine now, more than ever.

Amen.