Living before God – more wisdom from the
Sermon on the Mount
Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 6 follows a
similar pattern. Short pithy sayings packed with visual imagery to remember and
treasure and turn over in the mind. Like many modern comedians whose observation-based
humour often leaves the listener squirming in their seats at the truth that has
been unveiled, Jesus probably also had his listeners shifting uneasily too.
He tackles questions like how to do good
without being a do-gooder; how to pray without wanting to be in the limelight;
how to live before God in a state of honest contentment rather than trying to
impress (either God or others).
Recently, a group of us were looking at
Frank Lake’s ‘Cycle of Grace’ which teaches a healthy way to live based on
gift rather than grief.[1]
The four-phased theory works like that this:
The healthy way to live is
ACCEPTANCE: know that you are accepted
for who you are not what you do
SUSTENANCE: know that this acceptance
will sustain you, not achievements
SIGNFICANCE: we all need to know we are
special, but this springs from acceptance not achievement
ACHIEVEMENT: achievement is what we do
arising from being accepted, sustained and knowing our significance.
What is unhealthy is living a pressured
life which springs from reaching targets, hitting new performance levels and
only been loved and accepted for what you do, not who you are. Many of us experience this in the world of work. But it can also be prevalent in every other avenue of existence - dare I say, even in a church community or family.
Jesus’ teaching in Chapter 6 is an
exploration of the cycle of grace. Don’t
big yourself up for what you do. There is nothing you can do to improve your
acceptance before God… don’t worry about possessions or food or clothes. Don’t
try to impress others with long-winded prayers or blowing your own trumpet. Don’t
hoard up treasures or wealth to boost your significance. Don’t give your heart
to the pursuit of riches. Don’t spend your time worrying about your looks.
Don’t be preoccupied with getting but instead learn how to receive what God gives. It might be that for us who struggle with these inspiring teachings, learning to live thankfully for small mercies might be an 'achievable' and 'acceptable' (and even a significant and sustainable) step in a direction towards liberty.
Don’t be preoccupied with getting but instead learn how to receive what God gives. It might be that for us who struggle with these inspiring teachings, learning to live thankfully for small mercies might be an 'achievable' and 'acceptable' (and even a significant and sustainable) step in a direction towards liberty.
[1]
Frank Lake was a Christian Psychologist from the 1950s and 1960s who was one of
the first to take seriously from a Christian perspective what psychology could
teach us about wholeness before God
I suspect we can all be attention seekers. Fed by our insecurities we need recognition. Yet often it can be in times of crisis that we can gain perspective. It is liberating and a relief when we don't have to or are even able to "perform". Jesus' teaching to be simple and honest before God is a loving gift to us bringing freedom and wholeness.
ReplyDeleteToday I'm going to sit and watch the birds on our feeders and know God's acceptance which will sustain me through concerns and worries.
Reading chapter 6 reminds me of the prayer of St Ignatius Loyola.
Teach us, good Lord,
to serve you as you deserve;
to give and not to count the cost;
to fight and not to heed the wounds;
to toil and not to seek for rest;
to labour and not to ask for any reward,
save that of knowing that we do your will.
Amen.
There’s quite a change in emphasis as we move from chapter 5 to chapter 6 – still the Sermon on the Mount. The last section dealt with the big social matters, murder, adultery, divorce, revenge and treatment of enemies. This section is much more personal, about reaching the inner state of blessedness that Jesus described at the start of the sermon, and the role of salt and light in our society. It is about our ambitions, our priorities and our state of mind, all of which determine our actions.
ReplyDeleteIt starts off by coupling generosity with secrecy and humility. Jesus says, ‘when you give to the needy’, not ‘if you give’. He assumes that those who follow his way will share and be generous. However, he warns not to seek publicity and ‘kudos’, but to give humbly and quietly, even secretly. This is one thread of the gospel teaching to live a humble life not an ostentatious one – perhaps something lacking in the world today, as many of our politicians demonstrate.
It moves on to urge the same simplicity and solitude in prayer and fasting; in our age, we might read fasting as representing all of our religious observance. For a second time in the chapter Jesus reminds us that God knows what we do that is good and worthwhile without a fanfare of trumpets to draw His attention to it.
None of this is to deny having ambition and trying to reach out to greater achievements in the whole of our life. It is rather about being careful about where our ambition lies. Jesus recommends concentrating on spiritual treasure and ambition, rather than material wealth. He tells us that all we need to live by, our essential food, clothes, and shelter, God will provide. There is an implication, however, harking back to the assumption of his followers’ generosity, that what God provides is for all and to be shared. There is nothing selfish in God’s provision – it is not for me to exploit, but for everyone to benefit. This in turn leads on to the attitude of Christians to issues such as the ‘green’ agenda and the redistribution of wealth and resources in our worldwide society – but that is for another blog!
So, this is a chapter to set our thoughts and attitudes straight. The take away our worries and fears, and replace them with a trust in God. It urges us to be humble and generous, free from self-seeking and pursuing wealth, but very spiritually ambitious. It’s a chapter about our inner nature, and it should set us up nicely for life in the ‘real’ world.
Not proud of the fact, but just saying...... I was a child of the 40s from a poor family, where we learned that paying our way was very important. We knew we were loved even though there were no expensive toys or new clothes or fancy food and that was ok because that’s how things were then... It made us grow up not desiring things, we had no ambitions. We were what we were, confident in our own skins taking life as it comes. As the years went on something happened to make things change and there's now this must have attitude to life. In the simpleness of life we grew up contented knowing that we were loved and that's all that really mattered. Still does.
ReplyDeleteTo be loved by mother God is comforting in itself.