The Broad Road and the Narrow Gate

Posted on October 3, 2017 by Don Merritt

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Matthew 7:13-14

I find that I am often confused when I listen to or read modern day attitudes and notions, and maybe the reason for this is that they are… well, confusing.

During my secular education and training, there was the appearance of great academic freedom; all the teachers preached it, all the professors demanded it. Listening to the popular media, freedom of expression and freedom of thought are touted as the right paths. I was always taught that to be broad-minded was good, and that to be narrow-minded was bad; free-thinkers were to be lauded, if not always copied…

Yet I was a curious child and an observant youth; as a child I suspected they really didn’t mean it, and as a youth I came to recognize that it was all a complete and total lie. As an adult, I shrug my shoulders; there is nothing more hilarious than a politician talking about free and open discussion while following the “party line”.

You see, as a child, I quickly came to see that freedom of expression didn’t apply to my views, only those of the teacher. As a youth I came to see that “academic freedom” meant that we must all conform to one view, and now?

My wife’s views on controversial social issues (say, gay marriage for example) are contained in a policy directive from her employer. Even in church I have been criticized for saying things that aren’t “politically correct”! “Tone it down Don or you’ll offend someone.”

Seriously?

Can you think of anything that is more politically incorrect that openly being a Christian and a follower of Jesus Christ?

Maybe you can, but I can’t.

Yet how many times have I been told that being a Christian is “narrow-minded”?

I never really kept a tally, but I sure would like to have a dollar for each one…

That broad road that Jesus mentioned in verse 13…?

It’s a lie.

The narrow gate? That dear reader is the only way to the Father.

So, all I can say is go ahead and call me a narrow-minded… or close-minded fool if you like, Mr. Politically Correct; I’ll take that as a sign that I’m on the right track… as you check your latest policy memo to be sure you are pulling the latest party line.

You know dear reader; there are days when blogging is really too much fun!

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Do unto others…

Posted on October 3, 2017 by Don Merritt

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

Matthew 7:12

Ah yes, the “Golden Rule”; everyone knows this one…

The main body of the Sermon on the Mount runs from 5:17 through 7:11, and is summed up here in verse 12 with the “rule” that fulfills all of “the Law and the Prophets”. Who can argue with it?

Yet for us to really understand what Jesus said here, we must recognize that it is much more than a summation; it is a radical call for every man and woman to turn upside down the way we view everything. If we really stop to consider the ramifications of this… wow! Oh yes, dear reader, it is a very simple and straightforward notion; treat everyone the way you want to be treated, you were probably taught this from early childhood… but who really does it?

Oh well, I treat my friends that way; but what about those other people, those who aren’t “nice”?

“Well, obviously hat’s different.”

Did Jesus say that? I don’t see it, do you?

If I am having a bad day, I would like you to be understanding and be nice anyway, but when you’re having a bad day, I think I can be a jerk right back.

When I need a helping hand, I want you to help me out, but when you need a hand, I must check my schedule; I might be too busy.

I’m guessing you get the idea…

This verse is a radical statement about putting love into action, and it isn’t worded as though it were a suggestion. This is how people were to recognize the Kingdom of Heaven when they saw it; its people were to be quite different from everyone else, in fact, it is the very definition of being “like Christ” which, it may interest you to know, is the sign of the New Covenant, theologically speaking. People would know who the descendants of Abraham were, for they bore the sign of circumcision, people would know who the Jews were, for they observed the Sabbath, and they would know who the followers of Jesus were, because they acted like Jesus.

So, how are we really doing with that?

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Ask, Seek, Knock

Posted on October 2, 2017 by Don Merritt

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Matthew 7:7-11

These verses emphasize prayer and our relationship with God. Notice the present imperatives in verse 7: ask, seek and knock; as present tense imperatives, they are commands that demand a persistent action. They are found next to the passive “will be given” and “will be opened” that anticipate God’s response. Verse 8 provides a balance in which the present participles “asks, seeks, knocks” are balanced with three verbs, “receives, finds, and opened”which demonstrates God’s responsiveness to the persistence we show in seeking His presence. If you stop and think about this, Jesus is telling us something wonderful here: Not only is it possible for us to enter into God’s presence, but God is expecting us to seek Him out, as though He might see us there and say something like, “Well there you are, welcome!”

Verses 9-11 amplify this with the example of a human parent who will do what is beneficial for their child, using the simple logic that if a fallen and imperfect human will see to the needs of a child, God, who is neither fallen nor imperfect, can be trusted to bless His children to the fullest extent.

When I was a child, my impression of God was of a God who was inapproachable, and everything I saw in church reinforced that notion. There was a great deal of bowing and kneeling going on, the preacher never prayed in any manner that seemed “normal” to me, it always seemed like he was afraid, saying things like “our gracious and most merciful Father” at the beginning of a prayer as though he was afraid of being struck dead at his audacity to even address an Almighty God who was never pleased by anything. Even as a little kid, I wasn’t especially fond of this God; He was just too scary!

I don’t know about you, but I am sure glad that this is not the kind of God Jesus is telling us about here!

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Casting Pearls

Posted on October 2, 2017 by Don Merritt

Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Matthew 7:6

This is an interesting little verse, don’t you think? I’ll let those who are smarter than I am debate whether this verse is part of the discussion in verses 1-5 about judging others, or a separate, stand alone verse; I’m dealing with it alone simply for the sake of clarity.

“Dogs” and “pigs” were two rather uncomplimentary ways of describing Gentiles back in the day, but I really don’t see anything in the verse that limits this teaching to any one person or group, so for the purposes of this discussion, let’s just agree that the person or persons Jesus is referring to is (are) “unclean” in the old Jewish ceremonial sense.

I don’t think that it would be news to anyone if I told you that there are people out there who simply will not listen to anything related to the gospel, just as there are people who will talk about God all day long, and then freak out at the mention of Jesus… unless it is used as an expletive. Some may even react with violence. I suppose there may be many reasons for this, and again, I’ll let others try to make a list, because I doubt that such things were in Jesus’ mind at the time He taught this.

What He is telling us here is that we need to be discerning when we discuss the gospel with others; another word we might use for this is “sensitive”, we must be sensitive to where the other is in their life when we approach them…

But how can we be sensitive or discerning in this way; shouldn’t we just walk up to complete strangers and tell them (in a loud voice) that they are evil worthless sinners and that they are going to fry in hell if they don’t accept Jesus this very minute?

Hardly; did Jesus ever do that?

The answer is to develop relationships with people, to get to know them, to develop mutual trust and respect; that is how we gain a hearing. Notice that in the gospels, Jesus is usually in a conversation with one or more people, and is seldom making a speech to a mass audience. By following this example, we can better discern who is ready to receive the gospel and who isn’t ready yet, and in the process, avoid doing a considerable amount of damage both to our relationships, ourselves and to the gospel. After all, most of us are aware of the fact that there have been times in our own lives when we were not receptive, and barring something unusual, we didn’t receive the message during those times.  I would have to conclude that Jesus is giving some very solid advice here, particularly when you consider that sharing the gospel is not a completion, but rather the beginning of a life-process.

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Judging Others

Posted on October 1, 2017 by Don Merritt

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:1-5

I’m tempted to simply post these verses, and wish all a great day without further comment, for they are more than self-explanatory. We are not to pass judgment on other people period.

Experience tells me however, that if I just leave it there, I am going to get comments. Yes sir, I’ll be told that I’m not properly dealing with sin in our midst…

Maybe that’s true… but I doubt it.

It seems to me that Jesus’ point is that we must deal with our own sin before we should be getting after our brother’s. Of course, as a community, we encourage and help each other to deal with problems, including sin; I’m all for that, but let’s be very clear: That is not the same thing as judging others!

“Judging” is what God will do on the last day; it is condemnation to “eternal perdition” and that is reserved for God alone. Quite honestly, I am delighted that judging others is so far above my pay grade.

Does that mean that we must condone sin? Of course not, it only means that we deal with the problems of others without judging the people involved. To be very clear, we cannot possibly help our brother by condemning him, but we can help him by loving him enough to guide and encourage him onto the right path.

That is love in action, not judging. Love in action requires empathy and grace along with the truth to bring about healing and redemption… and with that, I’ll wish you a blessed day.

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Worry

Posted on September 30, 2017 by Don Merritt

 

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Matthew 6:25-27

Jesus tells us right off that He is giving a summation to this section, by beginning with the word “therefore”. As always, “therefore” is used to indicate that the writer or speaker is drawing a conclusion from what has just been written or spoken; in this case it is the discussion of treasures.

Jesus’ words here are very simple and to the point: worrying is pointless.

“Yes, well that’s all well and good but…”

If you are thinking along those lines, please check the verses once again, and let me know where you found “but” in what Jesus said; I can’t find it.

Jesus continues:

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:28-34

Jesus moves on from food to clothing here, making the same point again: Worrying is pointless. Yet here, He does an interesting thing, He expands the section from the context immediately following His remarks on money into the larger context of 6:1, which you will recall is a Kingdom context, in verse 33, and then restates the point: Don’t worry.

Notice also that in this chapter we began with three illustrations each dealing with spiritual practices (6:2-18), after which Jesus moved into money, possessions and wealth management (6:19-27) and finished on the very practical note of placing our trust in God and putting His Kingdom first. Now comes the hard part: In “real life” what do we actually do?

I can’t answer that question for any of you in particular, but my observation of Christians in general over several decades tells me that what most of us really do is everything Jesus is telling us not to do, especially worrying about things.

We worry about what others think of us, about whether we are the most “righteous” or the most “spiritual”. We worry about money, finances, jobs, paying the bills, retirement, essentials of life… and frills and entertainment; these are even the things we pray about most often, along with health concerns. Yet Jesus is telling the people that in His Kingdom, this is not how His Kingdom people should arrange their priorities.

“But Don, it’s just too hard!”

Please remember that I am also living in this world along with you; I get that this can be difficult, but as is true with most aspects of the Christian life, it is usually not as difficult as we make it, for what it really is, is counter-intuitive more than anything else.

I am a work in progress just like everyone else, and I have a long way to go before I am “just like” Jesus was; a very long way indeed. However, I have discovered that for me at least, a recognition that this is all simply counter-intuitive, rather than overly difficult, simplifies the process quite a bit. The result, at least for me, has been that I have come to see Jesus’ teaching in this area as liberating and empowering, rather than hard and severe, and that most of the cares of this world are a waste of time and energy.

Of course, I might just be crazy…

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Treasures

Posted on September 29, 2017 by Don Merritt

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

Matthew 6:19-24

In the ancient near-East, possessions such as fine clothes, precious stones and food were considered necessary to lessen anxieties and insecurity about the future. Jesus sees it differently, for from His point of view, these things do not bring about security in any way, for all can be lost, stolen or ruined in this very difficult and unpredictable world.

In the previous several verses, Jesus has been hammering away at a principle found in Matthew 6:1, namely that we should not be pious or religious to impress others with our great righteousness, for this is not the sort of righteousness that God is interested in. Rather, God is interested in a people who will follow Him, worship Him, and have relationship with Him. Jesus has illustrated this principle with three examples; giving to the needy, prayer and fasting, and now in these verses, Jesus addresses the money issue.

The accumulation of possessions does not increase a person’s security or safety; money cannot buy us years of life or a moment’s happiness. Following God in close relationship on the other hand, can ensure an eternity of riches in heaven, that nothing can guarantee on this earth, and while there is nothing inherently wrong or evil about either money or possessions, the love of either can (and will) obstruct our relationship with God, placing our eternal future at risk. Can a moment’s comfort on earth be worth risking eternity in heaven?

Sounds like a bad idea to me, and Jesus would seem to agree.

Here’s an interesting thing to consider: If you go back to the beginning of the chapter and carefully read the three examples Jesus has given, you will notice that in each one, He has given us some clear ideas about how to store up some treasure in heaven…

Take a look for yourself!

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Fasting

Posted on September 29, 2017 by Don Merritt

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

Matthew 6:16-18

In Jesus’ day, fasting was a popular, common and much valued spiritual discipline, the Pharisees for instance fasted twice per week, usually on Mondays and Thursdays. It was also a part of certain festivals, such as on the Day of Atonement, and people would often fast individually as a sign of their religious devotion; Jesus would seem to have no problem with this practice. With this in mind, let’s also remember that this is now His third example of the principle He put forth in 6:1…

The difficulty that arose here is that not only was fasting used as a spiritual practice, it was also used to impress others with one’s spirituality. In that vein, I can tell you that I know of two kinds of people who regularly fast: The ones who do it to impress others, and the ones who do it the way Jesus taught. The thing is, I can give names of people in the first group, but I have no idea who belongs to the second… and that is precisely how Jesus wanted it.

I’ve been asked many times if we, as Christians should fast, and all I can really say to that is that if the Lord leads you to fast, then you had best do so, but make sure I never hear of it. I have also been asked to attend sessions where a group gets together for “fasting and prayer” to pray for such and such. I attended one of these once, I left early, and I’ve never done it again. You are free to draw your own conclusions…

So what am I really saying about fasting?

If the Lord leads you to fasting, then obey His leading and fast. If the Lord leads a group to fasting and prayer and you are one of those being led in that direction, then do it. If not, then don’t and don’t concern yourself about what the others think of you, because f you do, then you are the hypocrite.

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This, then, is how you should pray”

Posted on September 28, 2017 by Don Merritt

“This, then, is how you should pray:

“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’

For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Matthew 6:9-15

Keeping the context of 6:1 in mind, take a look at this prayer, what do you see?

Do you see “look at me”? Do you see “gimme the goodies”?

Hardly.

What we can see here is humility, putting God’s purpose first and foremost, necessities forgiveness, and overcoming the evil one; it is elegant in its simplicity.

We are addressing the Father in heaven, acknowledging His glory and giving Him honor, and then asking for His kingdom to come in its fullness, where His will be the only will that is done on earth, just like in heaven. Notice that this doesn’t leave all that much room for my own will to be done, in fact, my will and your will are not mentioned at all.

There is a request that God would provide for us, a humble request to be sure, and then a request for God’s forgiveness as we forgive others; a scary thought for many, I might add. Finally, we are to ask God not to lead us into temptation, but to deliver us from the evil one, again a request of supreme humility. When you put this all together, Jesus is teaching us to pray in a manner that is entirely foreign to the religious life of His time, and a lot more foreign in our own time than we might like to think about, with only God’s will being mentioned.

After this, Jesus goes on to expand a little bit on the whole subject of forgiveness making a conditional statement in verse 15, which must have blown the minds of the Pharisees and their gang of friends. Truly, this is radical now as it was back then.

Was it Jesus’ intention that we simply recite these words over and over? I really doubt it; I see this as a model for prayer, the elements to be included in prayer, rather than something to be memorized and recited to the absence of anything else, particularly when we lose what He is actually saying here. Of course, I would never say that there is anything wrong with reciting these verses, or any verses.

Here’s some homework: Reflect and pray on these verses, asking Him to reveal them in their fullness to you. I think you’ll find this to be a fascinating exercise in spiritual practice. Next time, we’ll see what Jesus says about fasting.

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Prayer

Posted on September 28, 2017 by Don Merritt

“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

Matthew 6:5-8

For us to properly understand these verses, and the ones to follow, we need to be reminded of what Jesus was talking about in this entire section; He set the context in 6:1:

Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

If we remember this context, and that prayer is His second illustration for this point (after giving to the needy) then the significance of these verses becomes quite stark, even convicting for many of us.

Prayer, talking with God, the very core of our relationship with God, is not intended to be a public spectacle. It is not something you do to impress your family and friends with how righteousness you are; it is never to be a “look at me” kind of thing in whatever form the “look at me” might take. In fact, there really is no part of our relationship with God that is “public” except that others will see the results of our closeness as He works through us to accomplish His purpose.

I hope that doesn’t sound too harsh; but to be fair, I’m being more diplomatic than Jesus was!

With all of that said, there is of course an important role to be played by corporate prayer and worship, but clearly that isn’t what Jesus is referring to here.

Let’s be honest, when these verses are considered in context, they really don’t need much explanation, but I would like to add a note on prayer and relationship with God. God created each one of us, He knows each of us better than we know ourselves, and He comes to us where we are, relating to us in the way that He knows is most likely to be meaningful and significant. As a consequence, He relates to each one of us a little differently; there is no “one size fits all” when it comes to our relationships with Him, and anyone who tries to tell you that your relationship with Him must be like such and such is making a mistake, for our God is much bigger than that. In hearing people describe their relational experiences with God, I am often amazed by what I hear, they are so different from my own rather matter-of-fact “conversations” with Him, yet they are precious to the one describing them, just as mine are to me… and this is perfectly fine, perfectly normal, right and proper.

Yet God’s relational method is never just to make us look impressive to other people; that is the point Jesus is making here.

Next time we will continue in this passage, and in doing so, we will arrive at what is often called “The Lord’s Prayer”. I hope we will all keep this context in mind as we look at it, for in context, it is even more amazing than we might have thought… see you then!

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