Seeds For Thinking

Link: http://seedsforthinking.oldgleaner.com/

* Hard - Isn't It Hard?
* Scripture: Jesus said, "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect." Matthew 5:48, NKJV

What a challenge Jesus laid out for us in the Beatitudes! It is just our earthly nature to nit-pick the rule of most anything and thereby fall short of God's plan. If we are commanded to take just one of something, we will likely pick the largest, the fanciest, the most expensive item of the lot. Or the one with the most sugar or chocolate. (Go ahead - try to convince me it isn't so!)
One young lad, upon taking the larger slice of cake, was reminded of the fine art of sharing by his mother. "Taking the smaller piece is the polite thing to do," she chided. "Well, she's got the polite piece," he said of his sister.
Then of course, there is the polite horse, who always stopped and let the rider go over the jump first. "Polite is not always "proper," not always good enough.
Jesus goes way beyond just being polite in The Beatitudes; He points to the heavenly way, the "Father in Heaven's" way. The John 3:16 way. The way of servant hood and forgiveness. Jesus was the True Vine, the Light of the World, the Good Shepherd. Jesus has set the example, fulfilling the true intent of the Laws and the Prophets.
In Matthew 5:17, Jesus affirms His role, giving examples where our earthly nature to nit-pick conflicts with the Divine intention behind the Laws and Commandments.
God judges the hidden sins, the thoughts and attitudes we so cleverly disguise from our brothers and sisters of the world.
We speak of road rage and spectator (especially parent) rage at sporting events, and can rightly point to examples where anger has developed to violence - and anguish.
Jesus recommends not only reconciliation - making things right after the anguish - but also steps to make reconciliation unnecessary! "Turn the other cheek." "Go the extra mile." "Give to him who asks." "Love your enemies." Hard! Isn't it Hard?
For the most part, we are polite to our friends and acquaintances. We greet them, we try to be pleasant and polite, even when our "Great!" reply to "How are you?" is a bit of a stretch. But the stranger, the person we may never see again, often gains the full treatment of our surly attitude.
And God likewise gains the full treatment of our surly attitude!
February 12, 2006