Loading more...
What Does God Sound Like?
An Excerpt from Speak, My Soul If we are to hear our own soul speak, we Read More
Luther E. Smith Jr. | Read Matthew 5:17-20
Often we have ignored or distorted God’s laws for so long that we only come to know them as false surrogates for what God intended. “Love your neighbor,” “Welcome strangers,” and “Do justice” are examples of God’s commands that too few churches enact. In many churches, if some members insist...
Release us, O God, from whatever hinders our enthusiasm to fulfill the guidance you have given us. Help us to rest in the assurance that comes from yielding our anxieties and fears to you. Enliven us by the certainty that your loving presence is constant and your joy is even beyond our imagination. Amen.
According to another counterfeit gospel, our inward convictions about God are enough, so our actions do not really matter. Isaiah chastises his audience for being half-hearted in their religious observance. They ignore the plight of the oppressed and the poor, and by doing so they betray that they do not grasp the heart of God. The psalmist argues that the true faithful are steadfast and generous, and as a result God establishes them and their cause. The understanding of God’s view of the world, Paul writes, must be spiritually discerned, for it opposes the normal thinking of the world. In Matthew, Jesus tells his followers that living faith is shown by bringing flavor and light to the world. Otherwise, our faith is useless to those around us.
Read Isaiah 58:1-12. What can you do to be a foundation of many generations, the repairer of the breach for your community?
Read Psalm 112:1-10. How have you seen God’s blessings abound from your faithfulness? How do you remain faithful when God’s blessings seem absent?
Read 1 Corinthians 2:1-16. Consider the many ways wisdom comes. How do you seek to understand God’s wisdom?
Read Matthew 5:13-20. When does your faith community resist the call to be the salt of the earth and light of the world? How can you transform yourself or those around you to fulfill God’s commandments?
Respond by posting a prayer.
