9 June 2014 - prior priorities

9 June 2014 - prior priorities

This morning Jesus wants us to understand how different the kingdom of God is from the kingdom of the world.  

The world says, 'Blessed are they who are never sad.  Blessed are those who don't need to exercise self-control (because that is weakness, yielding to others what we ought to enjoy).  Blessed are they who never want for food or drink.  Blessed are the pitiless and vengeful.  Blessed are those who are well acquainted with worldly pleasures and enticements.  Blessed are the powerful who can subject others to their will and who are too strong to be persecuted.  Blessed are they who insult others and persecute them because the only reward is here and now and only the strong can get it.'

That even non-Christians appreciate mercy and peace demonstrates the Christian inheritance of our culture.  Our culture is gradually detaching itself from this Christian inheritance.  It is moving back to a pre-Christian view that cares little for mercy, much for strength, and revels in impurity.  Even while still paying lipservice to mercy the culture is clearly enshrining both strength and, notably, vengence.  We can see this clearly in our entertainment media.  It is clear in the Supreme Court decision of Planned Parenthood v. Casey, “At the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life." 

Perhaps it does not yet strike us how radical Jesus is in the Sermon on the Mount.  But as the culture deviates more and more from these principles it will.  When the weakest among us are trampled and ground down by the strong the absence of this teaching will be acutely felt.  As the number of strong grows fewer, as more are more are included in the number of the oppressed the more the merit of these teachings will speak.  The Sermon on the Mount can be medicine for our culture.

Why is our culture so ready to abandon it's heritage, it's birthright?  Because to embrace it requires profound trust in God.  It requires this to mitigate our selfish ambition.  We insist on our ability to provide for ourselves.  We refuse to hunger and thirst if necessary, but in doing so we find ourselves in a land of famine.  Ultimately the choice is between trusting in our power and becoming tyrants on the one hand and on the other trusting that, "Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth."

He may call us to leave our places of comfort to provide for us as he does with Elijah.  Ravens bring what Elijah cannot provide for himself.

He went and remained by the Wadi Cherith, east of the Jordan.
Ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning,
and bread and meat in the evening,
and he drank from the stream.

And sometimes he calls us to forego these blessings until he gives them to us in the banquet of the kingdom.  Sometimes we accept the hunger and thirst longer than we'd prefer.  But it is ultimately only in relying on the LORD that we find blessings that last.

We can be assured that the stream of the Holy Spirit will always flow for us.  Drinking from this stream, we will always have that which makes us truly blessed.  The mountains of our social order look impressive, but let us always remember from where our help truly comes.

I lift up my eyes toward the mountains;
whence shall help come to me?
My help is from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.