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August 18, 2012For the Sake of the Kingdom #7
Single-Minded Devotion to God
In last week’s column on the Sermon on the Mount, I explained how Jesus teaches us to observe the law so that we will be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect. Highlighting the deeper and fuller meaning of the Mosaic Law and the Prophets, Jesus teaches us to do more than the law requires. For example, the fifth commandment forbids murder, but Jesus insists that we should avoid anger because it leads to murder. The Law requires us to love our neighbor, but Jesus challenges us love even our enemy. In this week’s column, I turn to another aspect of Jesus’ teaching about the moral life as found in Matthew 6: the need to be singled-minded in our devotion to God.
The reason so many people fail to be perfect as God is perfect, Jesus teaches us, is that they want the praise of both God and human beings, and so they are divided in their allegiance. For example, in Matt 6:1-18 Jesus provides us with three examples of how people who are divided in their allegiance to God act: (1) they give alms in order to gain the praise of others; (2) they pray so that others will see and praise them; (3) they fast so that others will admire them. But if we want to be perfect, as God is perfect, we must be single-minded in our devotion to God. Therefore, when we give alms, pray, and fast, we must do it in a way that only God will see our almsgiving, prayer, and fasting, and God who sees in secret will reward us.
Jesus provides other examples of what he mean by single-minded service to God in Matt 6:19—7:11. For example, he tells us to store up treasure in heaven rather than on earth, for where we store our treasure, there is our heart.
Again, he tells us that we cannot serve two masters, since we will always prefer one to the other. In other words, if we wish to be perfect we must be single-minded in our devotion to God.
Jesus provides another example of what it means to be single-minded in devotion to God when he tells us not to worry and be anxious about the daily necessities of life such as food and clothing since our heavenly Father cares for us (Matt 6:25-34). While such advice may sound unrealistic to contemporary ears, it highlights the complete confidence in God needed to be single-minded in our devotion to God.
The central message of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is quite simple: Be single-minded and whole-hearted in your devotion to God. Prefer the kingdom God to all else, and everything else will fall into place. Choose one thing and forsake all others. Do this, and you will be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.
But is it possible to live in this way? Are we to take the Sermon on the Mount seriously? This is the topic I will discuss in next week’s column.