Reward

This week we begin worship with:

Matthew 18:21-22
Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

Peter was stunned. He had been taught to keep it even.  The principle of “An eye for an eye” comes from Leviticus 24:17-23 and does not involve forgiveness. In fact, the Law does not call for us to forgive anyone. 

But Jesus had been saying something very different.  Jesus took that law, which was intended to limit the scale of the punishment to match that of the crime, and He replaced it with what our Heavenly Father does, who brings rain to both the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:38-48).  Jesus explains:

Matthew 5:46-47
For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

In God’s kingdom, the imbalance brings reward.

Unbecoming

We begin worship this week with:

Ephesians 4:1-3
I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

It should not go unnoticed that to walk is a privilege for a prisoner.  Ancient prisons did not have weight rooms and exercise yards. They had shackles and chains. 

Paul is using walking as an analogy for our daily string of decisions and conversations.  One after another.  

When the conduct of a soldier, particularly an officer, does not live up to their position, they may be charged under Article 133 of the Uniform Code of Military justice for Conduct Unbecoming an Officer and Gentleman. 

We received our orders at the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-48).

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Thanks

 This week we begin worship with:

Psalm 107:1-3

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south.

This whole chapter deserves to be read!  It describes group after group, that is lost or in trouble.  

"Some wandered in desert wastes,"

"Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,"

"Some were fools through their sinful ways,"

"Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters;"

Whatever the cause, they could cry out to Him, with an empty hand:

"Then they cried to the Lord" 

And at His expense, He redeems.

Then only one thing is required of them:

"Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,

    for his wondrous works to the children of man!"

Salt

This Epiphany Sunday we begin worship with:

Matthew 5:13

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

Because Jesus was speaking with substance and authenticating that substance with miracles, He was being followed by a great crowd. Wanting to say many important things, He moved up the mountainside so He could be heard and gathered His disciples around Him.  So, the Sermon on the Mount was at times to the crowd and sometimes to His disciples. 

The Beatitudes, which precede this verse, were to the crowd.  They conclude with Jesus turning to His disciples and speaking directly to them (Matthew 5:11-13).  First, He warns them and explains to them the blessing of being persecuted for His sake.  Then, He speaks today's truism.

Salt does not lose its taste. It is either salty or it is not salt. 

They are either His disciple, who is willing to stand out, be different, not work on Sunday, who prays before meals, and then, for His sake, loves the unlovable . . . or they are not salt.

Found

This week we begin worship with:

2 Peter 3:13-14
But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. 

Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.

We spend a lot of time thinking about the future.  What will the next year bring?  Will COVID once again cause havoc?  How will the war in Ukraine end?  Is it time to retire?  

But today, we are being instructed to lift our eyes to the horizon.  When we do, we see heaven approaching at the speed of life.  

With that change of focus, we will no longer be concerned with the conditions in which we find ourselves, but rather in what condition we will be found.