MATTHEW 6:14-15
“If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Always a failure in need of grace!
Forgiveness defines the heart of Christianity. Only my trust in God’s forgiveness opens the door to my participation in eternal life. Trusting his forgiveness means that I recognize I am not capable of earning the right to be his child. I can never be good enough to deserve him as Father and his home as my destiny. I am his always and only because he graciously forgave and still forgives me.

No matter how much love he pours into me and no matter how much that gracious gift of love transforms me into a whole and holy person, I remain entirely dependent on his daily forgiveness. Here is one of the great ironies of the Christian life. The holier I get the more I realize no one is holy except God. With Isaiah I cry out, “Woe is me!”

So how can I not forgive those who sin against me? Sure, the more God makes me holy – like himself – the more I too will become a master forgiver. But this isn’t the context of Jesus’ words. Instead Jesus insinuates that no matter how far I mature, I am always a failure in need of grace. How can I not forgive those who fail me when I fail God? How can I not be gracious to those who hurt and offend me, when God is gracious when I hurt and offend him?

Any lack of forgiveness in me demonstrates that I am not fully relying on his forgiveness, but on a combination of his grace and my own merits. Somehow I am not as desperate for his forgiveness as you are. So, from my slightly or significantly better position than yours, I won’t forgive you. You are less deserving than I.

I know this feeling. I get very angry and unforgiving of those who I perceive hurt the church and who hurt me as a pastor. Those jerks! Don’t they see what they are doing? They are so judgmental, so rigid and pharisaical, so arrogant, so stupid. By resisting forgiveness, my actions call out, “I’m not as much a jerk as these – my sins aren’t as bad as theirs! But alas, they are. And I am just as desperate for God’s grace as they are. Whether or not they see this reality doesn’t matter. Jesus has spoken and revealed this reality to me. Now I must choose.

Grand Forgiver, truth is, I struggle with the sinful attitude of superiority – that somehow I am less in need of your forgiveness than several others. I am sorry and repent again of this attitude. Grant this sinner the grace to forgive other sinners, even and especially the ones I perceive as possessing a holier than thou attitude; those whose sin is a mirror of my own. – Mike Leamon

Forgiven to forgive

Forgiveness to me is always an act of God. I cannot truly forgive from the heart without holding it over the person I forgave without the work of God. I experience God’s forgiveness and grace and then am asked to pass along that work of grace to others. I become a conduit of God’s forgiveness into the live of others.

In the Catholic tradition you go to the priest for absolution (forgiveness) of sins. The priest acts as a conduit of God’s forgiveness into the confessor’s life. I do not believe you have to go to a priest to receive forgiveness (we have direct access to God through Jesus Christ), but I do think God wants us to be “priests” to others. God asks us to be conduits of forgiveness for other people.

This is such an important aspect of our faith, that to fail to forgive others, (be a conduit of God’s forgiveness and grace) is to stop the flow of God’s forgiveness into your own life. Perhaps our failure to forgive others is a demonstration of pride and self-righteousness. (They owe me, I did not do anything wrong, they need to realize how wrong they are and come repent to me.) Attitudes like this lead us away from repenting our sins to God and receiving his forgiveness.

God of forgiveness and grace I confess I am in need of your forgiveness. Help me to see how much I need you, and in return recognize my need to forgive others as an act of receiving your grace. I want to be an open conduit of grace and forgiveness today. - Dan Jones

MATTHEW 6:5-13

“When you pray, don’t be like the hypocrites who love to pray publicly on street corners and in the synagogues where everyone can see them. I tell you the truth, that is all the reward they will ever get. But when you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private. Then your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. Don’t be like them, for your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him! Pray like this:

Our Father in heaven,
may your name be kept holy.
May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done on earth,
as it is in heaven.
Give us today the food we need,
and forgive us our sins,
as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
And don’t let us yield to temptation,
but rescue us from the evil one.

Cliff Note Prayer

When I was a boy we would stay at Grandma’s house when my mom and dad were out of town. Staying at Grandma’s was not all that exciting because they just lived down the road, so we saw my grandparents all the time. When you stayed with Grandma and Grandpa, you participated in devotions with them. My grandparents faithfully read from the daily bread for years. The devotion would not take all that long, but the prayer following the devotion was another story. If it was Grandpa’s turn to pray we were normally done in less than 15 minutes for the whole devotion. If it was Grandma’s turn to pray, the devotion took 20-30 minutes. Grandma was a long prayer.

There are some people in the church who can really pray. When they pray, it is poetic and beautiful. I wish I could pray this way sometimes. This is how grandma prayed. Her prayer was like a King James Version Psalm 119. Nothing and no one was left out either.

I appreciate my grandmother’s prayers still today. I know she prays for me and the church I pastor every day. I also know God answered grandpa’s prayers as readily as grandma’s prayers. If you have the gift to pray with poetic finesse do so. If you do not have that gift; no problem. God does not need flowery words. The Lord’s Prayer is short and to the point. Like Cliff Notes, it gets the job done with brevity and candor, yet with humility and submission. Pray from the heart, pray with honesty, pray with an open heart to God, and God will bless your prayer. Remember your prayer is directed to God not other people.

Lord Jesus, I pray this morning you will tune my prayers to sing your praise. Teach me to pray again today. - Dan Jones

Healing in its proper context

I like this prayer. It’s short, without any hint of long boisterous sessions that drag on for hours. It’s simple, focusing on a few essentials rather than a laundry list of wants or demands. Then again, it’s rather different from the way I’m used to praying.

I have a tendency to pray mostly for physical healings. In fact, sometimes I get louder and a bit repetitious when praying for a healing, almost as if God were deaf or a little slow. And I’m not the only one. Attending pastor’s prayer and fast retreats is like riding ocean waves of long prayer sessions that flow with loud and intense beseeching and ebb with quiet murmurings, only to swell again with the next need.

I’m taken aback by Jesus’ apparent lack of specific concern for physical wellbeing. He only guides us to pray for one day’s worth of food! And that’s it for physical needs. So much for asking big and believing large! When people want me to pray for them it is almost always about some physical issue. I’m seldom asked to pray for bigger picture issues like God’s rule, forgiveness of sin, or spiritual victories over the Tempter.

Could it be that these bigger picture issues are where most physical needs get addressed indirectly? Part of God’s kingdom rule on earth is a healthy and whole lifestyle – personally and in the culture – that will certainly lead to healthier bodies and adequate food. Forgiveness that opens the door to restoring broken relationships and inward peace plays a huge role in physical wholeness! Victories over temptation free us from destructive addictions and lead to moderation in all things – health.

So maybe Jesus was just as concerned about my physical wellbeing in this model prayer as he was in his own practice of healing people’s broken bodies. It’s just that he’s as concerned about preventing physical breakdown as he is in healing after the breakdown.

All wise God, forgive me for being too narrow in wanting healing without a total life change. Help me to realize that healing is a whole life issue of your rule, forgiveness, and victory over temptations. I’m going to pray more for those things. – Mike Leamon

MATTHEW 6:1-4

“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. But when you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.

Why do I do good?

Once again rigid literalism often distorts this teaching into something Jesus never intended. He didn’t forbid or discourage public recognition that affirms and thanks. He wasn’t insisting on super secrecy even from those who receive the good deed. If so, this teaching would negate his earlier words, “Let your good deeds shine out for all too see.”

Jesus addressed the attitude of the good deed doer. I think he was talking about these kinds of attitudes. “They don’t appreciate what I do for them so I’m done.” “I’ve given so much and then they treat me this way!?” “I’ve earned the right to have a say in what goes on around here with all that I’ve given and sacrificed!” “I didn’t get a ‘thank you’ so no more gifts for him.”

Jesus calls me to good deeds for one reason, to honor God. He’s got an uphill battle on his hands to help me reach this calling. We do good for a host of other reasons that distort relationships, devalue others, and ultimate shrivel my soul.

We buy love with our good deeds. We bolster low self esteem. We manipulate and control others. We pursue enough good to offset our bad. These kinds of motivations sabotage every good deeds, turning them into acts that dishonor God and ultimately turn others away from him rather than draw them into praising God (Matthew 5:16).

God calls me to generous charity regardless of the response others give. In my setting this means being a generous pastor, whether or not the people to whom I give my energy, spirit, money, or talents respond with authentic appreciation or any hint of understanding my sacrifice. In fact, it doesn’t matter if others respond negatively and walk away. I give, and give some more, only to honor God.

But alas, my motives for giving get mixed up too. Doing good purely out of honoring God is yet another high calling, yet another opportunity to fall short, and yet another opportunity to experience God’s grace and patient transformation of my deepest self.

Patient God, I commit myself to honor you in all that I do and grow to the point that my only motive is honoring you. I trust you to purify my heart in every way. - Mike Leamon

Talk show charity

This past year Oprah hosted a TV show called the big give. Contestants were given money they then had to give away to people in need. The winner of the show was the person who gave away the most money in a way that kept giving.

Celebrities give away money all the time, but it normally comes with a press conference. Jesus does not seem to condemn this type of giving; instead he presents a better way. Give in such a way God will reward you not others. It appears Jesus is encouraging us to give in a way that points the attention away from us towards God and others.

Could it be that Jesus is talking more about the heart of the giver than the visibility of the gift? Some gifts are impossible to give in secret, but can be given with a heart of humility. The motivation and spiritual orientation behind the gift need to be directed towards God, who then blesses. When we give with the focus on us, our reward is received in the praise of people. God’s blessing always gives longer and better than human blessing.

Giver of the first and best Gift, help me to give in such a way that you are glorified and others are served. Purify my heart that every motive and sacrifice I make in giving would be birthed out of a heart of love for you and your people. - Dan Jones

MATTHEW 5:43-48

“You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect.

My enemies reveal my sin
I really don’t like this one. It pushes my rebellion button so that I flare up and walk away from Jesus the way he rich man did when told to sell everything.

I know Jesus built this entire set of teachings around hyperbolic speech. (He’s making his point by deliberate overstatement.) So I do not think Jesus is against killing some enemies in some wars any more than he is against divorcing an abusive spouse, getting angry at an unfair boss, or preventing an intruder from harming my family. But –

While bin Laden should be brought to justice, I don’t want to love him or treat him kindly. Forget capturing him alive and life imprisonment! Blow his fanatical brains out. Can I get an amen?! But loving enemies of my country isn’t my biggest problem here. I don’t have any power over what the government does to them.

I feel like running away from the personal implications of this teaching. It’s people who were friends, fellow Christians, and partners in ministry but who treated me unfairly – who acted out the role of enemy – these are the ones I want nothing to do with. I don’t want to bother confronting them (they wouldn’t get it anyway) and I don’t want to treat them kindly (they would think everything is hunky-dory). Truth be told, I’d just as soon God not send any sunshine on them.

I know Jesus isn’t teaching that I need to submit myself to ongoing misuse as if I had some sick need for emotional pain. A healthy person doesn’t get cozy with those who place themselves in the role of enemy. Still, even in emotional and often physical distance, Jesus calls me to do and say things that build up my enemy. He calls me to kind acts and words on their behalf. He calls me to pray for their spiritual renewal and blessings.

Father of Love, I confess I am a sinner. I struggle to follow you in this teaching. My words and thoughts about some people are anything but kind. In my own offence I see only the jerky actions rather than your potential in these people. Be gracious to me, even while I am less then gracious to my enemies. Help me to turn away from self and toward you. - Mike Leamon

Fully evolved
If you attend a public school today you will no doubt learn in biology class that we “evolved from primordial slime into human beings over millions of years.” This evolutionary process leaves God completely out of the picture or at best relegates Him to some explosive deistic force. Evolution teaches us we are continually moving towards a more complete and perfect species through natural selection.

Escape with me back to a Biblical viewpoint. The world and all that is contained within it, and outside of it, is created by God. Looking at humanity, I do not see a moralistic progression. I can observe technological improvement and advancements in our capabilities. I do not see us moving towards perfection on our own.

Jesus told his disciples, be perfect like God is perfect. The Greek word Jesus used is (teleios) or “fully developed in a moral sense”. Jesus calls us to become like the creator. To fully express the Imago Dei in our lives. The problem is: this is impossible on our own. We cannot become perfect. All our progression has accomplished is to create more and varied ways of perpetuating the same carnality we have struggled to overthrow since the fall. The reason is that we do not become perfect through evolution, we become perfect through transformation. Jesus’ expectation for us is only possible through the indwelling and work of the Holy Spirit.

Creator and sustainer of all life, I acknowledge my total dependency on you in moving towards perfection. Help me to become more and more like Christ in every area of my life through your transforming power. - Dan Jones

MATTHEW 5:38-42

“You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles. Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.

Extreme love

I am challenged by this passage of scripture when I take it to heart in every area of my life. I have never been sued and no one has taken my coat from me. I have given my coat to people but I initiated the action, not them. I have helped people out, but they were grateful for my help, not demanding it. The examples Jesus uses here are too far removed from our society to make us feel squeamish. The problem is we do not apply the principle to the other parts of our lives.

What if Jesus had said, if your neighbor asks you to watch her kids after school one day you should volunteer to watch them two days. If a guy without a job borrows your car to go grocery shopping one day, let him have your car two days a week while you ride the bus to work. If the lady on welfare asks for gas money, fill her tank. I think these examples would have brought the passage to light for our lives.

Treating hostile soldiers generously and giving my shirt in court are not part of my life. Giving to people who lie about their needs, are complacent about finding work, or need help in ways I don’t enjoy serving, are real aspects of my life. This passage is more about our attitude and willingness to be radically different from the world around us in showing love to others. Turning the other cheek just became a lot more real to me.

Jesus, I confess my attitude stinks at times when I see others taking advantage of me. I get offended that they are enjoying something I should be enjoying. Father, help me to give joyfully with a cheerful attitude even to those who abuse my help. - Dan Jones

More questions than answers

These verses provided the groundwork for Mahatmas Gandhi’s nonviolent “rebellion” against British rule in India, and Martin Luther King’s “rebellion” against racism in the United States. Both these men forbade their followers to return violence for violence. Those working for just change stood their ground without backing down. But neither did they pick up weapons in self defense or counter attack.

Once again, rather than giving hard and fast rules Christians must literally follow, Jesus, I think, offers a broader and, frankly, more difficult principle to follow using hyperbole. He’s calling his followers to a non-violent life. Somebody’s got to stop the fighting on this planet, and that somebody’s going to be his followers.

It’s not that there is no fight in us. Quite the contrary. Christ equips his followers with the power and resources to fight the real enemy; not flesh and blood but spiritual rulers. And one of the ways Christians fight the dominance of evil in the world is to refuse to participate in the cycle of human fighting. We are the world’s short circuit in the fighting machine.

And it’s not that there is no strength or courage in us. Standing up against physical attack without counter attacking demands super human strength. It takes courage to return good for evil and love for injury. And it’s risky, life threatening, and feels completely illogical.

Some of my favorite movies feature underdogs fighting for a just cause and winning. Star Wars and the Bourne series are but two examples. I too hailed our military response to 9/11. Go after bin Laden and his lunatics! But is there a better way? A way that de-escalates violence rather than adding to the raging storm?

Is it possible that those Christians in the Pacifist traditions have some answers I need?

Giver of the Sermon on the Mount, it’s easy for me to pass over your difficult sayings, to spiritualize them, or to get hung up in rationalizing them. Forgive me. I want to understand what you meant on that ancient day and what you mean for me to live out in today’s violent world. - Mike Leamon