“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’” (Matthew 5:38 NASB)
Six times in the Sermon on the Mount, found in The Book of Matthew, chapters 5-7, Jesus makes the following preliminary remark that precedes a valuable teaching, “You have heard…” He uses these words as a preface to what He has to say about adultery. He uses these same words, “You have heard,” before His teaching on making vows. Other times He uses “You have heard,” before providing us Divine principles regarding nonresistance, love, and murder.
Paraphrasing “You have word,” I hear Jesus saying, “The world says…” What follows are these additional words spoken by the Christ, “But I say to you.” Jesus then goes on to guide us away from errant human behavior and lines up our actions so that they are pleasing to the Lord. As I pondered on these instances, I thought of today’s secularism and how this captivating and growing trend is, in many cases, superseding the sayings of the Lord. Still pondering, continuing in meditating, contemplating about the contrast between what the world says and what the Lord says, I ended up asking myself, “What if God acted like the world acts?” If He acted like we act, referring to the world in general, we would find ourselves in a heap of hurt. There would be no love, no grace, and no mercy falling anew every day on us by the merciful Father above. There would be no reconciliation, no forgiveness, and no casting of our sins in the sea of forgetfulness once we have sought forgiveness. If God acted like the world acts, peace among men would be an anomaly or just a saying on the front of Christmas cards. Hope would be hard to maintain if God acted like the world acts. We would not be able to depend on Him to be that reliable, dependable source that we talked about earlier this week. If God acted like the world acts, He would not bless us with His special presence when we gather in the sanctuary. No! He would find something else to do with His time. Lord, please help us!
What if God acted like the world acts? I think it would be a cold, non-caring ordeal trying to make it through life. Would He always answer our calls when we get on the mainline to Heaven, when we call Him up and tell Him what we want? Would He look past our faults and see our needs? Would He care about those that are suffering? I don’t think so! What if God acted like the world? Would it still be true that we can’t beat God’s giving due to the fact that if He acted like the world acts, and He held back giving in such a way that we could no longer sing, “You can’t beat God’s giving, no matter how hard you try?” Would He make a promise and not keep it? Would our salvation be retracted our reversed or recalled? What if God acted like the world acts?
All that “What if” thinking takes one into dark thoughts. Well, let’s end with some light that will give you a brighter day and assure you that a smile shines brightly in your heart and your heart is brightened with gladness! Here is the bottom line! God is not like people! Hallelujah! God does not act like the world acts! Hallelujah! Thank God that He is consistently good and faithful to His character! Praise God!
Go about your day now, grateful that God does not act like the world acts and remember, neither should we. Base your behavior on the Divine principles found in His word. If you do so, you will find that your day will be much better! Love you, my friend! Be blessed!
God is not a man, so he does not lie.He is not human, so he does not change his mind. Has he ever spoken and failed to act? Has he ever promised and not carried it through?” (Numbers 23:19 NLT)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King