The High Road

We are Christians.  No matter what economic level we live in, whether we are rich or poor, we are at the top of God’s spiritual kingdom, immediately below our Lord and Savior Jesus (Revelation 1:5-6, 5:1-10).  We are kings and priests under the King of kings and Great High Priest (Revelation 17:14, 19:16 and Hebrews 4:14).  That means something important.  We are called to rule AND lead.  Kings rule by authority and power.  Priests lead by precept and example.  Both must have unassailable integrity.

We are the narrow road to greatness that few find, not the wide road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-15).  This means that we follow those who follow the Word and not those who follow their belly (Philippians 3:17-21).

Matthew 5:38  Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 

Exodus 21:22-25  If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished, according as the woman's husband will lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine. And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Matthew 5:39  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Proverbs 15:1  A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.

If you ask the world’s system – and sadly more often than not, the church – they would say you never let someone take advantage of you or treat you badly or be disrespectful or rude.  Had Jesus held any of those attitudes He would have never given Himself for our salvation.  Even today He endures slander and mocking from the hard hearted and blind.  Scripture is filled with those who don’t take any trash from others.  These people are usually called the enemies of God.  It is also filled with those who gave their lives for the Lord and loved their enemies.  These are called evangelists, pastors, teachers, prophets and apostles.  They are called deacons, ushers, servants of the Most High, lovers of God more than lovers of themselves.

Matthew 5:40  And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.

Give more than required.

There are often times when we are sued or required to repay someone for some inadvertent offense or accidental damage we may have caused.  Never forget that when you have hurt someone the damage goes beyond the monetary considerations.  Perhaps you have cost them time; the time required to repair what you have damaged.  It could be that you have reduced the value of a special piece of property but the law is only interested in the bare replacement.  Whatever is required of you by law or custom, go beyond that, especially if the person hurt is offended as well. 

Scripture says the wounds of a friend are faithful if they lead us to repentance and growth (Proverbs 27:6), but wounds to a stranger often cause them to examine and hate everything about us, even our faith.  Always remember you are a representative of Christ Jesus.  Scripture also contains several examples of Jesus behaving rudely toward someone so it isn’t that there is never a reason to do so.  It should be noted however that He was only rude toward those who knew better and broke His Father’s laws.  His target for wrath was the Jewish religious community who were breaking God’s laws on a daily basis as seen in Matthew 23:13 below.

When you are discovered in a fault, make it your mission to repair as much as possible the offence you caused and leave them understanding that it was caused by your immaturity and flawed humanity, not by your relationship with God.  They ought to know that it is your relationship to God that has caused you to go above and beyond what is strictly required.

Matthew 5:41  And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

Do more than required.

There are times when you are required to work for someone who you would not normally work for.  In Israel during this period a person might be sold to another to pay off a debt or fine.  This economic slavery was common in the ancient world and allowed in Israel in a more regulated manner.  Slaves had certain rights; it was understood that they were human beings just like their owners.  They had simply fallen on difficult times.  Slavery as practiced in America was an absolute abomination to God’s word.  It is rarely taught in our history that the less racist Christians (Quakers come to mind) had much to do with ending it in this country.

My point here is that we ought to go beyond in these life journeys.  A slave who was sold for a year to pay off a debt was admonished to give two.  A laborer who was ordered by the court to work six months to pay off his or her debt was admonished by God to give a year.  This might seem harsh or difficult to the man or woman who does so but one thing is certain; if you give twice what you were required because of your faith and love for God you will certainly cause the other party to consider his opinion of our Lord.  No matter what your crime or debt, God expects us to turn it into a kingdom building occasion.  To do such a thing requires great faith.

Matthew 5:42  Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

Offer more than is necessary.  There are times when we have an excess to give.  Christians should not be guilty of living for filthy lucre.  There is nothing wrong with having more than a sufficiency (2 Corinthians 9:8), but God may send people to you when there is a need.  Some will come who have nothing and cannot pay you back.  Others wish to borrow and pay you back.  Loaning money to others is allowed but giving to others is better.  Remember that you have what you have by the grace of God and the gifts He has given you.  God desires to prosper us but we limit Him by greed and a refusal to share in our good blessings.  Give and it shall be given unto you, good measure, pressed down shaken together and running over shall men give unto your bosom (Luke 6:38).

 Matthew 5:43  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy.  44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Luke 10:30-37  And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

The path being traveled meant the man might have been a Jew or a Gentile.  There were no obvious physical cues and the clothing that would have revealed his station in life and his nation was missing. 

A priest, a descendant of Aaron came by along the same path and stopped to look upon the man.  He had been stripped naked and wounded.  There was no way to tell if the naked man was a Jew.  This ruler of God’s people would not help a stranger and went away.  Next came a Levite, a worker in the temple.  He too came and looked upon the bleeding man without compassion and went the other way. 

Finally, a Samaritan, hated by the Jews for their mixed Hebrew and Gentile faith came by and looked upon the man.  He was unconscious and bleeding with terrible wounds.  The man’s heart was touched by this sorry wretch’s condition and began to methodically bind his wounds after pouring valuable oil and wine in them to help them heal.  He placed the man upon his own animal and began walking to the nearest inn along his way.  All night long this Samaritan nursed this poor man and finally left early the next day upon his business.  Before leaving he took two days wages and gave them to the innkeeper with instructions to care for the man, promising to pay any extra for his care when he passed by in the other direction.

The question Jesus posed to his young proselyte was, “Who was this man’s neighbor?”  It is often said in various parts of the world that ‘life is cheap.’  God would say to you, “Life is precious, it cost me the life of my Son Jesus.”  Never forget that great truth.

Matthew 5:45  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

John 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

If we wish to be the children of our Father we must have compassion and concern for the lost.  We do not live this life for money or riches.  They may come or may not but that is not the purpose for our love.  We live this life for the one who died for us and gave His life for us.  We live for God to the benefit of man.  I pray we never forget this great truth.

Matthew 5:46  For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

We should be the best husbands, wives, children or friends.  We serve the God of all the universe.  We should reveal all the good and love of our Father, not the limited and nearsighted love of the publicans.  Our reward is in HIS hands.  Don’t limit it by shortsighted acts of worldly attitudes.  Love those who hate you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you.  If it doesn’t drive them crazy it will drive them to Jesus. 

In the verses below you see the failures of lying preachers and deacons.  Never let those failures be found in you.  Love without falsehoods.  Give without fanfare.  Worship and pray without doubting.  Trust and obey Jesus in all things and His Word as supreme.  Have INTEGRITY in everything you do.

Matthew 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows 'houses, and for a pretense make long prayer:  therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! Ye fools and blind:  for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. Ye fools and blind:  for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?  Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Matthew 5:47  And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?

Matthew 7:9-11 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him.

Matthew 5:48  Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Perfect = Teleios = Complete, mature, without character flaws, lacking nothing. 

And having done all to stand…stand therefore (Ephesians 6:13).