Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to Him, and He began to teach them, saying:  "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.  Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.  Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.  Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. "You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."  Matthew 5:1-16

 

Christians are called to be powerful forces for the Kingdom of God. In our scripture for today Jesus said that we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Unfortunately, many Christians have turned these two statements into questions. Rather than accept the challenge and responsibility, we question what Christ said.

This section of scripture is called the Beatitudes. The word "beatitude" is generally interpreted as "happy." However, it is more than happiness, for happiness is an emotion that is dependent on outward circumstances. "Blessed" here describes our well-being and spiritual joy as we share in the salvation of the Kingdom of God.

In reality, we should look on the Sermon on the Mount in the same way we look at the Ten Commandments!  It truly describes the Christian life!

Our Women's Fellowship group is studying the book "The Peace Maker" by Ken Sande; available from www.amazon.com.   His opening story tells about a family of four adult children whose mother had recently died. One of the sons, Frank, had been born with a disability that kept him in his mother's home his entire life so she could care for him.

In the later years things changed and Frank became the care-giver. With Mom dead and the will stating the farm was to be sold, a family battle was brewing.  Frank's world was turned upside down. He did not want to leave the only home he had ever known! His two brothers wanted to sell the place and had arranged for a buyer and real estate agent to come that day. Frank met his brothers at the door with a baseball bat and was ready to defend his territory!

Jenny, the sister, wanted things to be settled peacefully. After praying over the matter, God gave her an idea. The family held a dinner in the banquet room of a hotel to honor Frank for the way he had cared for the mother. With twelve nieces and nephews watching, the oldest son thanked Frank by saying, "Frank, our family is gathered together today to honor you. For the past ten years you devoted yourself to caring for Mom. Today we want to present you with this special plaque."

The plaque said, "To our brother, Frank, the best of all sons, who cared for our mother with selfless love and undying devotion. Your companionship filled her life with joy and delight and was a constant reminder to her of the love of God. With deepest gratitude to a wonderful brother, from Joe, John, Jenny, and Matt."

The family had found a buyer that would purchase the farm, and the family gave Frank a life estate in the farmhouse. He could live there the rest of his life!  How did this affect the family? As Joe leaned over and hugged his brother for the first time in years, Joe's teenage son leaned toward his sister and whispered, "Maybe there is a God after all, because there's no way Dad would have done this on his own."

You and I cannot possibly live the kind of life that God calls us to without living by His power!  Even Jesus said that He could not do things on His own.

As God's children our first responsibility is to our family - our parents and our children and grandchildren. If we fail here we have not passed the true test of Christianity. I love the saying, "Everything works out in the end. If things have not worked out, it isn't the end."

None of us does things perfectly, so we have to allow God the time necessary to act in our lives so that "all things work together for good" when it is all over.

One of the religious expressions I grew up with was "We should live a crucified life." It always sounded great, but I never was sure what it meant. As I studied for this week's message the light finally dawned!

Galatians 2:20, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Romans 12:1-3, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will.  For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you."

What it means is that we are to "die to ourselves." That is a religious expression that means we must make serving others our priority!

Over the Christmas holiday we were honored to have our children and grand-children home. In watching the parents of the young children I was reminded of how much work little kids are!  One cannot be a good mother and be selfish or lazy!

One of our church members has been on bed rest for several weeks - and will be for a few more weeks because she wants to be able to carry her baby long enough to survive outside the womb. This is love in action!

In the Beatitudes we are taught:

1. To be poor in spirit - this means true humility. Humility is accepting the gifts and talents that God has given us and using them to His glory.

2. To mourn is to grieve for our sins - both personal and corporate; both personal and national. Daniel lived a very godly life, but he repented for his sins and the sins of his fathers.

3. To be meek is to have a teachable spirit. To be able to accept discipline and discipleship. If you have a dog that you can leave in the house and he will not tear things up or leave little puddles on the floor when you are gone, you have a meek dog!

4. If we hunger and thirst for righteousness - godliness - God will meet that need! Hunger and thirst reflect life itself! If you do not eat or drink fluids, you will die!

5. Being merciful is a heart attitude. It does not reflect a sloppy attitude. Justice is getting what we deserve, mercy is not getting what we deserve, and grace is getting what we do not deserve. God wants us to show both mercy and grace!

6. To be pure in heart is to have the right motive. If we are pure in heart keeping Christ's teachings will flow naturally from our heart. The scriptures tell us that "Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."  (By this Jesus meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive.  John 7:37-39)

7. We've already discussed being a peace maker!

8. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake (not self-righteous, however!)

When we do these things we become salt and light. I believe that LIGHT reflects the church as a whole. A church is a body of believers, and we make a difference in the cities and towns where God places us. We should be involved in the leadership of the community at all levels. When the church speaks the politicians should listen!

That sort of voice has to be cultivated.

SALT reflects the individual. A salt shaker container has thousands of grains of salt. Each grain will affect whatever it is put on. At the time of Christ, most salt came from the Dead Sea and contained a lot of impurities. As a result it would lose its saltiness/power.   

Equally, our lives need to be free of impurities! In fact we need to be passionate about serving Jesus!

Not long ago the basketball coach at Oklahoma State University pulled his center from a game because he was not playing with enough passion! The bowl game between the University of Oklahoma (OU) and Boise State was a fantastic game, but the wrong team won - assuming you are an OU fan.  However, the right team won if you look at which one wanted to win the most!  OU was out-played and out-coached!

If that is true, then there is a lesson for the church! A lot of churches across our nation close every week because the passion is gone! But the passion has to be well-directed. Prior to Pentecost the apostle Peter was a passionate man. He had told Jesus he would die with Him. But when the guard stepped forward to arrest Jesus, Peter tried to cut his head off!   Fortunately the man ducked and only lost an ear. After Jesus restored it, Peter retreated... and denied Jesus three times that very night!  But God did not give up on him! After Pentecost Peter preached fearlessly and 3,000 people were saved!  Peter became a dynamic leader!

  Which brings us to our final point: God is looking for dynamic leaders! Are you interested? Are you willing to step outside your comfort zone and with joy and enthusiasm tell God that you are willing to do and become whatever He wants you to do and become?

On January 21st our church will make a decision that can affect this church and community for generations to come. God planted this church 112 years ago for many purposes... those purposes have not been totally fulfilled. It is for this time and season that you have been brought here!

Yes, you are the light of the world ... the salt of the earth, and God wants to minister through you today!

Pastor Leon