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Wed December 18 - Becoming more like Jesus
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”
Matthew 5:9
The Sermon on the Mount is sometimes called Jesus’ kingdom manifesto, in which he deepens our understanding of his kingdom and how he wants us to live. ‘How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation...’ (Isaiah 52:7).
As we hear Jesus’ life-giving words to us today, let’s ask the Holy Spirit to embed them in our hearts, and use them to re-shape our lives – helping us to put our faith into action, and live in ways that please and glorify Jesus. The Spirit helps us to follow Jesus more obediently and become more like him.
All God’s peace-making holiness sat humbly among his people that day, as Jesus, ‘the image of the invisible God’ (Colossians 1:15), ‘the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature’ (Hebrews 1:3), began making the great peace that reversed man’s fall and brings us back to God in complete reconciliation. He offers the great blessedness of being ‘born again’ into God’s family, by free-gift faith; forever to be God’s beloved child... and increasingly to bear his family likeness! ‘Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness’ (James 3:18).
Precious Lord Jesus, I hear your call today to be a peace-maker - in my family, church, work and community life. May I grow sow seeds of peace today for your glory. Amen.
Thursday December 19 - Persecuted for Jesus “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all
kinds of evil against you because of me.” Matthew 5:11
This week’s theme is ‘Blessedness’ – being fully and happily satisfied in God. This blessedness is not dependent on our situation, circumstances or feelings, but on our relationship with God, in Jesus, through the Holy Spirit – the Apostle Paul was able to rejoice in Christ, even when in prison, on death row.
God’s blessedness comes to those who receive Jesus as their Saviour, and follow him as their Lord, by seeking to do his will. Yet even as our hearts are warming to the joy of this, Jesus speaks today’s verse... and it feels like a sudden crash of gears!
Most of us expect condemnation for breaking the law – but condemnation for following Jesus and living righteously... surely this makes no sense? Yet Jesus warns us to expect ill-treatment in the world for following him authentically... and not ‘if’ but ‘when’: “when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.” Precisely because we live a faithful Christian life of love, truth, and sacrifice, persecution will come.
Wonderfully, counter-culturally, Jesus even now brings great encouragement by twice linking ‘persecution’ with ‘blessedness’. It’s a lot to process, but more on this tomorrow... meanwhile, let’s receive Jesus’ words with thanksgiving, and pray for the Holy Spirit to root them in our hearts and increase our trust in Jesus.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
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Precious Lord Jesus, you call me to think differently about suffering for my faith. I cling to you, knowing that you are already holding me fast, and are trustworthy. Amen.
PRAYER FOR TODAY