THE HEART OF THE LAW

Last night, I wrote about discipleship, and wow! I would just like to say to all of you who commented, thank you, and well done. I hope you learned as much as I did.

Somehow, though, we got to talking about the exact thing I didn't want to talk about. We talked about the I.C. (Institutional Church) and a few of its flaws, and the growing "Home" church, for lack of a better name. So, tonight, I will write about something that shoots straight to the heart, bypassing the type of church we have grown accustomed to, no matter what it is. I want to learn about the truth, not the flavor of a church. That being said, I think there were things discussed that did touch on the truth, but my heart tells me we spent way too much time talking about flavor.

Therefore, my topic today. Let me begin by admitting that I am not set apart from anyone regarding this topic, I am with you, and what you will teach me about it, I look forward to.

I give you Matthew 5:21-22.

"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'You shall not commit murder' and Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell." NASB

The Legalists will keep the letter of the Law, which plainly states, "Thou shall not commit murder." And they will believe they fulfill the Law. Christ Followers will understand the heart of the Law. So.......... What is the heart of the Law?

That is what I am concerned with. I'll give my take on it, and I invite you to do the same. Please understand that what I am going to say is one man's somewhat educated answer, it is not God's Word on the subject. However, I believe it to be accurate.

The heart of the Law goes beyond the flesh, into the very heart of the person, delving into his mind. And this, the mind, which we are cognizant of, is where the trouble starts. You see, I have no trouble at all keeping the letter of the Law. It's the heart of the Law that I struggle with sometimes. And, here comes the point aimed at your heart, I have never met anyone who didn't struggle with it. Never.

Why am I so protective of the I.C.? Why are some so protective of their church? Why do we say things aimed at building our way up, and tearing other ways down? Don't we realize that what we say comes from our heart? And, if we can say it, then what does that say about our hearts? What does it say about mine? What about yours?

The heart of the Law is to speak no evil of anyone, and, to think no evil of anyone. The heart of the Law goes beyond murder of the body, into the place where God knows us better than we do, into our hearts, and minds. The heart of the Law is for Christians to stop bickering about which church is better, and to start being of one mind, regardless of what is different between us. The heart of discipleship is to follow Christ. His purpose was to save us, make us alive, and make us one, undivided.

All these petty differences between the church (which I must say is asinine, because, how can the singular church be divided?) mean nothing. Satan wants us to stay here and argue. He wants us to carry the pain from the past into the present, and future. I am as guilty of it as anyone, and I am ashamed.

No more! Murder is for the world, not for the church. The thoughts of our minds must get past the past. Murder happens when we don't look upon our brothers and sisters in love, but rather in pity or judgment.

There isn't a single local community of believers that does it all right. Not one. Do you know why that is? Because we are all made up of imperfect people. And in each church, there are people who are not fully sold out to Christ. We ourselves at times are not. And yet we expect the church to be perfect, anywhere, anyway? No, it isn't possible. If it were, what would we long for heaven for? We are not home yet. Local churches are not perfect. That's reality, for everyone.

Don't let this message make you feel guilty. It is not intended to. It is intended to encourage you, to spur you on to what is real and true, Christ in us, and us in Christ. We are all One, and we are all in Christ. Shouldn't that unite us? Murder happens when we are divided, and from what I have seen and heard, we are at least somewhat divided. So, one must ask oneself, we who are blogging on the internet, what is the reason we have all come together? I think the reason transcends anything we could ever think possible, I think the reason is to begin again toward unity, singleness of purpose, oneness of mind. That is exactly what I am going to ask Father for in prayer. And I know my Father will say yes.