TO ANOTHER LEVEL (PART 4)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.”

“And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that.”

“And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full.”

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”

Luke 6:32-36

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Within the New Testament, we find Peter writing these words in his first letter:

“Just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1:15-16)

When Peter says “it is written” in reference to the words “Be holy, because I am holy”, he is referring to words spoken by God and recorded in the Old Testament book of Leviticus, one of the books of the Pentateuch (also called the Torah), the five books of the Law.

So God, through His word, calls us all to be holy as He is holy. There is no doubt in this.

But what does it mean to be holy?

I believe the easiest way to explain it is to use the following two words: set apart. And in the matter of holiness, the specific call is for God believers to be set apart from the ways of the world just as God is.

Here’s the problem with this expectation:

We’re all sinners. All of us. The Bible tells us as much in the Book of Romans:

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23

All of us are sinners and thus our natural inclination is to be sinful. It’s true whether we want to admit it or not. So when we are called to be set apart from the world and its sinful ways, it’s unfortunately easier said than done. We can’t reach another level on our own.

With this truth as a backdrop, look now at the words of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke as we continue to study from His Sermon on the Mount, the first extensive teaching from the Savior of the world:

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.”

“And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that.”

“And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full.”

“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.”  Luke 6:32-36

Note that Jesus uses three specific scenarios, calling His listeners to ascend to another level, a higher level than the ways of the world and the sinners who inhabit it.

First, He uses love as the central focus. Specifically looking at the people we choose to love.

It’s easy to love those who love you back. Jesus’ point is that anyone can do that and He makes that point when He says, “Even sinners love those who love them.” In other words, you can’t consider yourself set apart from sinners if you only love those who love you. Christians are to love at another level, loving not only those who love them but those who don’t as well. Jesus calls for His followers to love their enemies as well as their friends.

Next, Jesus looks at the matter of doing good to others, particularly focusing on the people we choose to do good for.

It’s easy to do good to those who do good to you. Very easy. But Jesus asserts that anyone can do it and so there is no credit attached to it. Doing good to those who do good to you does not set you apart from other sinners.

This is why Jesus calls on His disciples to extend doing good to a broader audience, casting a wider net to include those who wish to do harm. In other words, our Savior commands us to do good to everyone, whether they wish us good or bad. We’re not to discriminate in regard to who we do good to which definitely elevates the matter to another level and sets us apart from the world’s view.

Finally, Jesus covers the matter of giving to others. The earthly approach, the one followed by sinners, was to lend but demand repayment in full, often charging interest as well. This was not the tact that believers were to follow.

We know this because Jesus teaches His followers (us included) to give in a way that sets us apart from the world’s ways. To reach another level when it comes to lending, Jesus commands for us to lend with no expectation of getting anything back. Giving with this mindset comes when we see what we have as not belonging to ourselves but to God and in lending, we are simply giving someone a portion of what God has given us. And since what we have never really belonged to us in the first place, we can lend freely without feeling as if we need to get anything back.

Ultimately, these three callings - to be set apart from the world and sinners when it comes to love, doing good, and lending - only happen when we allow the Lord to lead us to these higher plains, when we commit ourselves to allow His righteousness to be our own. When we submit ourselves fully to His word, will, and way, then we will not only achieve what Jesus tells us to do and be merciful as God is merciful but we will also reap a great reward through living in a way that is pleasing in our Father’s eyes, living as children of the Most High.

It’s this life that will always be at another level when compared to the world.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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