Changing the Norms

A few years ago Jacob got to be principal for the day. He was so excited. He wore a tie to school and got to visit each Word of Life campus. He ate lunch with the current principal, and got to play with all the kids. I drove up that day to find my little principal in the middle of recess playing a game with a bunch of older kids.  Later I saw pictures of him playing with the preschool kids. For his final act as principal, he declared a free dress down day. Jacob’s innocence was undeniable. He had no clue what “power” was given to him for that day. My son is not perfect, but at least his understanding of power and leadership is pretty pure. Now granted, he is too young to understand the adult world.

Over the next several weeks, we will take time to look at Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. We started last week as we looked at the Beatitudes. This is an impromptu series – “Changing the Norms.” No matter how hard we try to avoid these norms, they sneak up on us like a bad habit. Before we know it, we have accepted something we assume is the way things are, without any questions.

I am going to take this unique opportunity to show how the words of Jesus are relevant to us today. In fact, Jesus’ words have become even more relevant since our world is so focused on leadership right now. Again, I am not concerned where you fall on the spectrum, because all human leadership is flawed. This is one reason why God truly never wanted the children of Isreal to have a king. He knew an earthly king would always disappoint them. You can read all about that in 1 Samuel 8. But, the people were persistent and they begged God. While we cannot turn our eyes from the actions happening by our country’s leadership, let’s take this unique opportunity to look at the Sermon on the Mount with fresh eyes, eyes focused on the leaders, and our leader – Jesus.

Jesus had a unique way of changing the cultural norms. He was looking at the commonly accepted principles of the day and helping to guide people to a new perspective. That new perspective was so shocking that it was hard to hear at times. Jesus was helping to form people into what God intended them to be. A few weeks ago we said this formation starts with repentance, and then last week we said the next step was hope for the hopeless. Over the next few weeks we’ll cover another step – sanctification. The Pharisees had interpreted the law in a certain way, but Jesus was speaking with absolutely certainty the way the law was intended, and giving the people a new way to live. This was not always well received by the current leaders of the church, but God’s ways are not our ways. Jesus showed the people God’s intention for their relationship with Him, and with the Holy Spirit. After hearing Jesus, the people were ready to act. This week we hear about Salt and Light, a hopeless people hearing God speak that they are the key to the future of the city. Jesus spoke with authority, and He is still that authority today, no matter what norms are sneaking up on us.