A deceiver, a prostitute, murderers, adulterers, one who coupled with his son’s widow, thinking her a prostitute, a thousandfold polygamist, his idolater son, and many wicked kings all have their place in the long passage of the ancestry of Jesus Christ. The royal bloodline of Messiah reads like a series of case studies in why humanity needed a Someone to save them from sin which had its grips even upon holiest patriarchs and the greatest of kings. What perhaps amazes still more than even His condescention into a lowly stable in Judea is His proceeding into the midst of a once-great people, sudjugated many times over and most recently by the Romans, from this nasty bunch of sinners.
Matthew brings the Babylonian captivity and Roman bureaucracy into his Story knowing that Messiah will not vanquish the current occupationary force with the sword (as crowds and followers so often hope). His conquest is broader and more significant. The evangelist of the first gospel quickly introduces a notion of a “kingdom” into Jesus’ ministry late in chapter four, and Jesus expands on it in chapter five in such a way to make it quite clear that Roman expulsion or Jewish sovereignty is not what He has in mind by any means. Instead, He blesses the downtrodden and the devout in his famous Beatitudes and positions them as denizens in this kingdom of heaven of which He speaks.
Christ’s Sermon on the mount calls His followers to a life of love and values but little the merits of a religion that is primarily external in nature. Acts of devotion – such as prayers, fastings and almsgivings – are to be done in secret. It is their kindness and their treatment of those less fortunate and even of those unpleasant or hostile towards themselves that will characterize them as Christ’s followers. His “Golden Rule” is, above all else, a law to be followed in spirit, not merely in letter.
One of the great beauties of this story is that Christ himself (as Matthew tells His Story) brings the ill and the troubled to Himself and ministers to them before His great sermon. Ever the most excellent and perfect Master, He lives out lessons in charity before the crowds. His message of blessing to the “poor in spirit” and to “those who mourn” was action before it was word. Jesus Christ certainly issues the difficult imperative to “be perfect just as [our] heavenly Father is perfect” but not before descending into flesh in order that we might overcome sin.
14 comments:
What you seem to focus on in your post is the internalisation, and personalisation, of the religious principles that could easily be followed in deed but not by heart.
The parts that stand out the most to me are (predictably) mostly around 6:19-34, about time and worry, and about trust and God's care of us. [Why is it I hear giggling from the peanut gallery whenever I talk about planning?!] For better or worse, what this passage reminds me of is making candles in my garage and listening to the track called 'Treasure' on Iona's CD Beyond These Shores, and feeling a very easy trust in the unseen. Seems easy when you're just 12. But I digress.
The relationship of Joseph to Jesus just hit me this time around, too, as a foster father. It was Joseph, not Mary, who was also a son of David and son of Abraham. Having been inured in medieval literature that sometimes borders on mariolatry, it is nice to see Joseph get some credit here; he is a good man from a noble lineage who takes to his own that which is . . . not his? His? What a confusing relationship.
Thanks for the post!
Interesting that when we look at this book we go for the message about resurrection in a book that on gives this a few paragraphs...it's funny how ultimate hope grabs our attention. I didn't look at the story too clearly, but it seems to spend more time on the betrayal by Peter than on the death of Jesus.
What is obvious is that this is a story set for five sermons. And the center one contains the central teaching. I think this is an ancient chiastic narrative set in classic rabbinic style (also the book of James fits this pattern...and maybe the Apocalypsis as well).
Given this possibility I wonder if one is truly able to bring "new things from the old"?
Thanks for the chance to think out loud.
When I read Jesus' teachings, I cannot help but think of modern politics. From mudslinging among candidates to bombing another country, politicians don't seem to have it Right in their practice. Jesus himself said, "Give to Caesar what is his," and as a Christian, I find myself wanting to give all of myself to God and none of it to our modern day Caesar. In these verses, we are called to do many things that seem so simple yet we find so hard. Giving away not only our shirts but cloaks as well. Loving our enemies. Not hoarding and worshipping money. Not worrying about tomorrow. Not judging others. Praying privately.
I attended a Bible study, and the one thing I couldn't take were the prayers. It was truly a constant stream of babbling, and I wanted to peacefully say, "Stop the words, and listen to God. He might want to say something, too." In the South, it seems that everyone prays in public, and good, lengthy prayers are something of a pride. But should we not pray with our hearts? Should we not sing to the Lord with our souls, and not proclaim, "I am Christian, hear me roar!"? It seems as though we do good acts to tell others about it. "I was at this soup kitchen" or "I went on this mission trip." Like we are building a resume for other Christians to judge. But it is the smallest things that matter to Jesus. Were you kind to that cashier at the grocery store? Did you stop to help someone with books or bags? Did you admire God's creation today, with sparrows hopping along the grass, as you busily rushed from one mindless place to another? Often we like to say what we have done for the kingdom, which only leads to the question, What have you left Undone?
With chapter 7, Ask, Seek, Knock, we are told that prayer should be persistent. I think of prayer like breath, each intake a prayer of thanks, each exhalation a prayer of welcome. We are to be mindful of our every action, much in the way of the Buddhist tradition, to further the kingdom of God.
These passages remind me of how much I need to Let Go and give it all to God. I want to be a bird of the air; I want to be a lily of the field.
I understand all too well what Sarah means when she talks about public prayer in the South. It seems that around here, church is a substitution for the country club, and religion the dues. Reading the beginning of the Gospels is a reminder to me that Christianity is something that is alive and within each person. Prayer is between an individual and God. Fasting is between an individual and God. Just as murder and adultery begin in the heart, so does Christianity. So does not judging others, loving your enemies, etc. Aimlessly following the teachings of Christ means nothing if you it doesn't mean anything to you.
Christ does indeed warn his disciples against the hypocrisy of publicly flaunted works and prayers, but I think that perhaps we are railing too much against public, Christian action. Christ condemns the insincerity of the religious hypocrites whose desire is only the approval of men. They desire a lesser good than God, and God has let them have their lesser desire.
And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
1 Cor. 13:3
But surely we cannot interpret Matthew 6 to be a blanket condemnation of public action or public prayer. Matthew 5 introduces Christ as speaking to "the multitudes," and in chapter 6 -immediately after his condemnation of hypocritical public prayer- Christ teaches his disciples to pray by publicly praying the Our Father. The pronouns of the Lord's Prayer are set in the first-person plural - it is the prayer of the Church, not just of the individual Christian. I know that there are few things in this world more obnoxious than open displays of insincere religiosity, but open displays of sincere devotion are treasures.
This has been a constant source of internal struggle for me. On one hand we're told not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them. Only one chapter earlier though, we're told that you do not light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket. Rather, you set it on a lampstand to light the whole house. So, as several of you already touched on, it is sincerity and motive that make your prayer and actions humble or cowardly, couragous or ostentatious. But how does one know? As a strong introvert, my first instinct is to say nothing and at times, I've even found myself stuttering to avoid admitting that I was at church for something. I don't have that energetic style that sets people at ease, so I worry they may automatically think I'm judging them. I think I can safely assume this counts as hiding under a basket. But beyond that, knowing the motives of your heart is no easy thing. We come across so many paradoxes in the Gospels, and most of them have to do with knowing what is in your own heart. I imagine that is why we are told to pray constantly and that much of that prayer should be in private. Alone, we can never figure this out, although we can spend hours of agonizing analysis trying. Only communication with God, the forgiving, yet honest Father, can aid us.
Sorry to post again so soon, but I have a question for the rest of you. It's a topic that's bugged me for a long time. In Matthew 7, Jesus advises us about false prophets and judging them by their fruits. He even says, "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit." What then are we to think of churches/slash people that may seem showy to us, possibly even insincere, but who have done miracles? Is a miracle a good fruit?
Quele, what sort of miracles do you have in mind?
How does the story of prayer hit you now...apart from modern churchiness? How can you trust in the breath of God and His word? How can you go beyond the self focus of most prayer? How can you restore your own will in order to choose God's will?
I like the view of Joseph in "The Nativity" movie...well done.
Be perfect as your Father is perfect...mindful of every motive.
We are driven in this first sermon to examine self in relation to God and build ourselves within His world.
Quele: Immediately after stating that "by their fruits you will know them," Christ says
Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds in your name?' Then I will declare to them solemnly, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.'
Matt. 7:21-23
Wonders done by "evildoers" in the name of Christ the Lord are not equated with doing "the will of my Father in heaven." Christ's statements about knowing a tree by its fruit are encapsulated within a larger warning against false prophets, Matthew 7:15-23. This warning against false prophets is preceded by a short version the Golden Rule (in verse 12), which is the will of the Father for His children as taught to us by His Son.
When I was writing, I had healing in mind specifically. Perhaps because Moses dealt with people who could perform other signs that were "miracles" (such as turning rods into snakes), but were not beneficial and clearly not from God. I don't attribute everything supernatural to God, but healing is one thing I don't recall being done other than by Christ's disciples. Though, as d. eduardo pointed out, Jesus didn't write a free pass for those who could cast out demons. I still don't know what to think when healing takes place in a church though. Is that a sign that God is working through them, or can that also be abused?
I attended a Pentecostal church in high school, and I've seen healings. However, I myself have been prayed over many times, and have not been "healed." Does this mean my faith is barren, or that God is deliberately choosing not to answer my prayer? I have no idea. Perhaps the healings and exorcisms you see are for fantastical whims. I've heard that by showing the power of the Holy Spirit you can "win" people over. I'm not sure how I feel about winning anyone over, like some sort of contest, but I've been present in the speaking of tongues and the laying of hands and the anointing of oil. I can say I have been conforted by God's peace but never truly healed. So I don't know what to tell you. I think in our hearts we know what we do, and we can't judge or know what others have in their own hearts. I am a very private person; I tend to live in my own mind and a world of my own making. I don't go to Pentecostal churches anymore because simply I am uncomfortable and seek God in humility and nature. It would be quick and easy to be able to tell the true prophets from the false, but sometimes that line is very thin. No human is perfect, and sometimes our desires are not always for the kingdom of God. Sometimes we want power and glory and riches, and anyone watching TBN can see that. So seek God, have great faith, and know that your will is not your own. I do not deny God because I have not been healed; I understand that it is part of a greater picture I cannot even fathom with my human mind.
The thing about miracles is they create quite a stir. So does a feigned miracle, for that matter. There're plenty of reasons to fake them (financially, etc), and there are plenty of people out there who do indeed fake them.
Somehow I think you're talking about something other than the notorious leg-lengthening tricks and their ilk. I don't know myself of many (or maybe any) cases of immediate healing to which I can attest. I would be interested to hear about any that you have seen. I believe they happen, but unfortunatley the false ones are probably more common.
If you have good reason to believe that a miracle is genuine, then it might make a case for at least hearing those people out. But religion that contradicts basic and obvious principles of Christianity should primarily be considered in light of those fruits; for example, I think it would be worthwhile to consider whether the "showiness" and "insincerity" you mention are indicators of pride and avarice.
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