I’ve always disliked the notion of being “perfect” so that others might think I am a good person. To me, this was sort of a lie. How can I be perfect if my very nature is corrupted? Like many of you, I still have to deal with my private self, which I know is not so great. But yet, Yahshua made the command in Matthew for us to be salt of the earth and a light to the world.
“Shining before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify the Father to all who are in the house.” Matthew 5:13-16
So, if I am not so perfect, how do I show good works and how can I draw others to the Father?
Yahshua proceeds in Matthew 5 to tell those who are listening. He has not come to abolish the law of Moses so that our righteousness must surpass that of the religious leaders of the day. Naturally, this led me to consider the words He spoke before this declaration. What were those words? We know them as the Beatitudes found in verses 1-11.
One of the blessings spoken by the Messiah jumped out at me. It’s found in verse nine.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”
When delving into these words, I was struck by the fact that a peacemaker goes above and beyond to bring about peace. This type of person would not spread fear, worry, division, and anger. To put it in a more realistic sense, a peacemaker among those who left Egypt wouldn’t be the one screaming out, “The Egyptians are coming—run for your lives!” Nor would they be the ones crying for the removal of Moses because they felt Yahweh might have picked the wrong leader in their “sighted’ estimation.
I believe a peacekeeper would be more like Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, who came up with a solution to keep the camp headed in the right direction. This was a man who was excited to learn about the mighty works of Yahweh and upon hearing them he recognized the need for judges. One of the most important characteristics was that these judges were men of truth. This would of course lead us to another question:
“What would a man of truth look like?”
In our modern mindset, most of us would say that a man of truth knows what is true. But when asking that question we must acknowledge that even evil men know what is true. And, just about anyone who wants to justify their perspective as true may be easily blinded towards the laws of Yahweh, due to their lack of understanding. So again, “What is a man of truth?”
Most recently, I have been grappling with Jordan Peterson’s book, “12 Rules for Life.” It is an astonishing read. To my amazement, Mr. Peterson, a world-renowned Doctor of Psychology, is becoming a man of the Scripture and talks openly about the works of Yahweh. In his book, he makes a very good case for a man to “tell the truth and not lie.” His approach to this rule is that often we project lies about ourselves that are not true to ourselves.
You might have seen men and women who live out this statement. Maybe they are super religious at church but are pagan outside of church. Maybe they are gentle to others at church but beat up their spouse at home. They might be the person who speaks the need for love but desires death upon others. Do you get the point?
Truth must start with the individual recognizing truth within his or her personal life before they can ever dictate truth to others. This is what I appreciate so much about the story of Israel while they were in the wilderness. Yahweh brings them to a place where they must face the demons within themselves before they can ever be a “light unto the world.” Yahshua repeated this concept to those seeking Him.
Imagine for a moment all the perspectives of “truth” brought to the Messiah during the Sermon on the Mount. It makes sense that many would have come to see if His truth lined up with their truth. (We do this even today.) One could assume some came to see if He would set up a new kingdom against the horrible Romans. Others came to hear if he would speak on the law, the resurrection, when to fight or when not to fight.
But instead, Yahshua spoke about insightful truth about one’s spirit. Wow! What kind of word was this? And while doing this, He reminded them that His Law was perfect and that it brings life.
His kingdom truth addressed the issues of the heart, before ever addressing what the people wanted truth to be.
How can I show the good works of the Father? I believe the first step is to be honest with ourselves before we try to convince others to follow our truth. I might also ask if my journey reflects the fruits of the spirit. Am I displaying them? Finally, I should at least consider if I am doing my best to love the Lord my God with all my heart and my neighbor as myself as dictated by the 10 commandments. I believe this kind of transparency will allow us to be judges displaying mercy and compassion, just as Yahweh shows His mercy and compassion upon us.
So, what kind of fellowship or church do you want to belong to? What kind of church do you want a stranger to see? What should be heard? What is the cornerstone of belief? Paul in his letter to the Colossians reminded members to bear one another in love and to let the peace of Messiah rule in their hearts. (Colossians 3:13-14)
My hope is for anyone who attends a fellowship or church, that they will be drawn to the Messiah and come to know Him personally, instead of being drawn into needless arguments or personal perspectives. Granted, many of us love to get together with close friends and speculate and discuss many things. But as ambassadors of the Kingdom, we are given a different kind of message from the Messiah.
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. And He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. “Blessed are the gentle, for they will inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.” Matthew 5:1-11
Be blessed this Sabbath,
Rollyn