2008-05-16
Good Morning Cherished of God,
We continue to view the supporting Scriptures for Christ's Sermon on the Mount statements in MT 7: 1-6. You'll remember that (1-2) of this passage begins with "Do not judge others, so that God will not judge you, for God will judge you in the same way you judge others, and He will apply to you the same rules you apply to others." He then uses hyperbole to indicate we should not try to take the speck out of another's eye until we have taken the log out of our own, i.e. don't be hypocrites. The last verse introduces the need for discernment in making the judgments God does allow us to make. "Do not give what is holy to dogs-they will only turn and attack you. Do not throw your pearls in front of pigs-they will only trample them underfoot." It should be said that part of this discernment is understanding that the eventual fate of another is God's right to judge, as is when and how an earthly life is given or taken away.
Today, we will look at MT 7: 24-27, the Two House Builders. "So then, anyone who hears these words of Mine and obey them is like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, and the wind blew hard against that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on rock. But anyone who hears these words of Mine and does not obey them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, the wind blew hard against that house, and it fell. And what a terrible fall that was!" The logic of what our Lord is saying here is pretty hard to miss in physical terms. Anyone who had visited the beach knows that even the most expertly crafted sand castle will dissolve away the first time a wave hits it.
As always, Christ is also referring to emotional, intellectual, and spiritual realms when He speaks to us. So many people forget this. From the intellectual point of view a person writing his masters or doctoral thesis knows he must ground whatever hypotheses he puts forth solidly on what is already known from a thorough research of what has already been published first, then test his theories under different circumstances to see if they hold, and then at last, have his these challenged by a panel of experts. If his ideas stand before all of that, they can be accepted in the professional community. From the emotional point of view, the same principles also apply. I remember taking a course called Learning To Tell Myself The Truth, from the book of the same name by William Backus, Ph.D, who was also a Lutheran pastor. The basic premise of this book is that we need to remember the various messages that others around us gave us in our childhood, determine if they are positive or negative, and then update them from the point of view of an adult who believes if Jesus Christ. It came as a huge surprise to me just how different from reality the messages I was given as a child were. Updating them as an adult helped me to get more comfortable in my own skin, so that I could turn my attention to what Christ is teaching me, rather than focusing on negative feelings I had about myself. Within the spiritual realm, we must understand the Father began in the OT and continued in the NT giving us a firm moral and ethical foundation upon which to base our thoughts, decisions, attitudes, and actions. By understanding His will and this foundation, we can also see the need for making use of the open channel of prayer between Him and us. People who subscribe to situational ethics, i.e. ethics which change with the pressures of popular stands at one time or another, have built their houses on sand. They can never be sure of what the basis of their beliefs are, because that base is shifting with the tide of popular beliefs at the time. As Bob Dylan would say, they are "Blowin' In The Wind." This group of people believe they can be all things to all people, a stance that anyone believing in the words of the Sermon on the Mount realizes is impossible.
Often, I have been told by people immature in their knowledge of the Bible, "I hate the OT. God was so harsh in it." And indeed, at times, He had to be. His response to the rebellion of the Jewish tribal leaders, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, while the Jews were wandering in the desert, is an example [NU 16: 1-35]. These fellow Levite conspirators influenced many people and set themselves above the rest of the community. They challenged Moses' leadership, even though Moses was God's chosen leader. God stepped in, opened the ground under the feet of these three and their followers, and allowed them to be swallowed up. If we look at this judgment on God's part, it had to be carried out, or more people might have made a choice against His will. From God's lofty view of things, He knows what must happen to bring back as many people to Himself for eternal life, His righteous motivation for such a decision. In the course of any judgments we make, we must ground our decisions on God's will, learned in the Scriptures, or people will be lost to eternal life. That's how important making wise judgments is. And under the circumstances, a thorough investigation of the Scriptures shows God's teaching and His judgments to be wholly consistent throughout them.
PRAYER: O Lord, there are times when we should step back and yield to Your superior ability and right to judge. Certainly, this is true when it comes to the decision as to who should be allowed to enter Your Kingdom, or when an earthly life should be ended. However, there are other smaller judgments which You prepare us to make through a knowledge of Your will in the Scriptures and through prayer. You have told us, in PS 75: 2, "'I have set a time for judgment,' says God, ‘and I will judge with fairness.'" Your human creation has had a terrible time learning to trust You, even so. None of us are perfect in that area, as we are still sinners in need of Your wisdom and intervention. Your fairness is seen in PS 78: 38-39, "But God was merciful to His people. He forgave their sin and did not destroy them. Many times He held back His anger and restrained His fury. He remembered that they were only mortal beings, like a wind that blows by and is gone." You are an all-seeing Judge. PR 15; 3, "The Lord sees what happens everywhere; He is watching us, whether we do good or evil." If we do good, we have no need to worry. Because You love us enough to have given us Your word, we can tell what is good and what is evil. Before we had Your word, we had no way to know this. When You judged Babylon, that ancient evil nation, and when You judge the modern-day Babylon of hedonistic living, Your judgment was and will be swift and righteous. IS 47: 10-11, "You [Babylon] felt sure of yourself in your evil; you thought that on one could see you. Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray, and you said to yourself, ‘I am God-there is no one else like me.' Disaster will come upon you, and none of your magic can stop it. Ruin will come on you suddenly-ruin you never dreamed of!" We, who believe in Your Son, know that He will separate the sheep from the goats in the end, the sheep will enter the gates of the heavenly temple in thankfulness and joy; passing into its courts with praise for You [MT 25: 32; PS 100: 4]. For the wisdom and righteousness of Your judgments and for our freedom to choose judgments that conform to Your will, we offer You our eternal thanks and praise. In Christ's mighty and holy name, we pray. Amen.
Next week, we will examine MT 7: 28-29, words on Christ's authority, and also some supporting Scriptures on judgment. We all know that good judgment for humans often comes after life's experience has yielded some mistakes. We all have at times misjudged people and their motives, rushed to judgment only to later find out we were wrong. Praise to God, He gives us the time to learn to judge wisely, all the while knowing that we still have imperfections that can cloud our judgment. 2 PET 3: 9, "The Lord is not slow to do what he has promised, as some think. Instead, He is patient with you, because He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants all to turn away from their sins." We must never forget that He loves us enough to have sent His only begotten Son to the cross, so that as many of us as possible can be saved through repentance of sins and faith in Him [JN 3: 16: RO 3: 24-25]. In the end, the book of living and the book of dead will be opened, and Christ, Who was given authority to judge, will be the final Judge [DN 7: 13-14; REV 20: 11-15]. Once again, we need not worry if we have learned well what we are taught by the Lord, because we who believe in Christ have the knowledge that the Holy Spirit is with us to guide us to God's will in our judgments and actions. Our God is righteous, just, and fair. Praise be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn