Usually, when we consider the Beatitudes, we tend to break them down into distinct segments. We talk about how blessed this person and that person is. We talk about how we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. We talk about how Jesus didn’t come to destroy the law but to fulfill it. But the thought occurred to me that all these separate segments carry the same theme.
Look particularly at how Jesus said that He did not come to destroy the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfill. I find the placement of this admonition rather telling, as He drops this right RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE of His Sermon — directly after the Beatitudes, the salt and light, and directly before His application of laws regarding murder and adultery.
Far from being a separate theme, it seems that “I come not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it” is the centerpiece of the Sermon. In South Alabama vernacular, it’s like He’s telling them, “None of this should be news to y’all. THIS IS THE POINT of the Law and the Prophets.”
Dropping that claim in the middle of His Sermon, He’s saying that in order to live according to the Law and the Prophets perfectly — which was the aim of the Jewish culture — requires meekness, mourning, purity of spirit. It requires the cleansing integrity that salt has, and the in-your-face witness that light has.
In order to live the way that God intends us to live, we have to live for Him with authenticity — openly and without compromise. We have to legit be children of God, with Him as our top priority rather than we ourselves.
A legit child of God doesn’t think that as long as he doesn’t murder, that it’s okay to entertain unjust anger. A legit child of God doesn’t think that as long as he doesn’t “do the deed” that it’s fine if he entertains lust.
Such a one doesn’t try to please God with a gift while still causing hurt to somebody else that God loves. He doesn’t let his brother stew on the wrong that he did to him, but seeks reconciliation — not tomorrow, not when he gets done with what he’s doing for God first, but immediately.
And to be clear, seeking that unity between the two of you doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to “endorse” what you think they might be wrong about. Unity is not about supporting error, but about showing God’s love to someone who might not be able to experience it as easily as you do.
Of all of God’s attributes, singleness of mind, internal consistency, and personal integrity are probably the most basic ways that we can faithfully follow him. It’s very telling then that Jesus should end The Sermon on the Mount by commanding people to “be perfect just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Because every attribute that Jesus touched on in the Sermon is a perfect reflection of who God Himself is, which is why God wants us to be that way. The best way that we could show God that we love Him is by emulating him before those who might not be able to see Him.
Uncliche the Fundamentals 