Living Jesus' Teaching #2

In this ongoing series of blogs, I will put up a section of the Sermon on the Mount and ask you to simply imagine what our organization would look like if we truly lived it out. I recently did this as an exercise at a staff retreat and it went pretty well. This is not meant to be an in-depth study of the text. We did that in previous blogs, click here for those  ( http://chdevotions.blogspot.com/2007_07_01_archive.html ). So just read the passage and ask what your serving (not your co-workers) would look like if you truly lived out Christ’s words. Then what would Christian Horizons look like if we all truly lived them out together. Please feel free to submit comments.


Matthew 5:21-26 (NIV)

21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'
22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison.
26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.


Matthew 5:33-37 (NIV)


33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.'
34 But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God's throne;
35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King.
36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black.
37 Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

Imagine an organization where no one held on to anger or bitterness. Where no one said disparaging comments or wrote people off. Imagine an organization where whenever we say we will do something it is done, where our promises are realistic and followed through on. I pray that I can live that out for my part.

Mark Wallace

Note: I did leave out the passages on adultery and divorce that lie between these sections in the sermon as well as Jesus teaching on the law that precede these sections. Those passages are very relevant to our lives but the purpose of these blogs is to imagine what CH would be like if I lived these things out and we all lived them out so for these purposes I omitted them.