Ryan Sim - June 19, 2013

Wednesday - Change It - The Golden Rule

Jesus always has the Pharisees, or religious lawyers, in mind as he teaches. Pharisees were essentially seeking a checklist of laws they can work through. Jesus says that wasn’t the point of the law. Look back to the beatitudes, the content that we started this series with. Jesus was always expanding the law to look at our motivations, not just outward actions we can check off our do/don't do list. It's a good thing, because we know life isn’t like that. Life throws stituations at all of us that we never anticipated, and could never have listed in advance. Jesus describes keeping God’s law with this line: So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. He goes on to recognize, this is no checklist, this is very difficult: narrow gate to pass through. Baggage doesn’t fit. All your religious background, credentials, money, power, etc. all get left behind if you want to go through this gate. Every human can go through this door if we are willing to let go of all the sin baggage that keeps us from God. The narrow path – or the cramped path – does not allow us to take with us the things we can carry on the broad path. What are those things? Our failure to live this way, to go through Jesus’ narrow door, is due to our self-centeredness. We are instinctively self-centered, self-loving. Fall. 40% of millenials say that "being self-promoting, narcissistic, overconfident, and attention-seeking is helpful for succeeding in a competitive world." Almost 80% say that their friends use social media for those reasons. So Jesus uses that against us. Uses our self-love to love others. He redeems our self-love. Self-love is powerful. Usually our guide – now Jesus says it’s for others, too. Jesus calls us to an awareness of others as God’s beloved children, too. We’re not the only ones. Prevents need for endless rules for every situation. Put self in other’s shoes. Question: Describe the most self-centered person you know. What do you have in common with them? What characteristics do you share? Why is this so hard to admit?

From Series: "Sermon on the Mount"

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There is some teaching, especially when it’s unoriginal and shallow, that you can take under advisement. You can simply say, “That’s interesting” and then move on with your life.

We read stuff like this all the time. Magazine articles. Newspaper. Blogs. Facebook posts. Some people are very skilled at rehashing other people’s research in entertaining and interesting ways.

I often read things that are of little value to me. They’re just interesting, and not going to change my life.

I hope the Sermon on the Mount we’ve been studying is not that way for you.

We saw last week – hearing and living these words is like building upon a stone foundation for life. Hearing and ignoring these words is like building on a sand
foundation that washes away.

How you hear the Sermon on the Mount is like the difference between a wedding announcement and invitation.

With a wedding announcement in the newspaper or on Facebook, you say, “Oh, look, they’re getting married, how nice”.

An invitation is quite different, since it has your name on it. It’s for you. We want you to come.

The Kingdom of heaven is often described as a party, and it would be a party with the most original, profound teacher ever at its centre. The very source of truth, wisdom is the attraction.

His way of life would now be the only reality. The kingdom he’s been describing, would be there in living colour.

He’s issued that invitation to you. Come to my kingdom, my celebration, my party. And this is not just a future reality, somewhere else. It’s something we are called to start practicing now, really living it out, to be ready for the full production .

Life on earth is meant to be a practice party, and you’re invited.

We’re establishing a new church, or Christian community, in Ajax – and it will be built on the model of a party with Jesus at the center.

It will be like nothing you’ve ever experienced before. We’re planning our first party for this fall.

Challenge: We’re running a poll right now, that you can find in our app or here on our web site: bit.ly/15B2yry Tell us what kind of party you could RSVP to!

Watch the Video: : http://vimeo.com/70141643