Building on the Cornerstone

During the sermon on the mount, Jesus follows up the beatitudes with these declarations about his followers: You ARE the salt of the earth; You ARE the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16).

To be the salt and the light we must actively engage with the world around us, not isolate ourselves in a bubble. And we are to engage as Jesus did, with love for all we encounter. This is a challenging message for all of us. We must live God’s love. We must be the preserving salt. We must show His light through our lives. This is a reminder of who we are called to be.

Dr. John York from Lipscomb University visited Cornerstone this week to share some exciting news about a new path of learning, ministry and growth ahead for our church.

In addition, John shares his insight into the final beatitude (Matthew 5:10-11) to conclude this thoughtful series. Jesus states that blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness; blessed are those persecuted “because of me”. But what does this mean in practice? We can look at what Jesus did in his life to that caused from those around him to persecute him. Jesus saw every person as being in the image of God; treated every human being as deserving of being fully human. And he worked to fulfill this vision. No matter what others might think, every person is loved by God and deserving of God’s love. This is good news. And we are called to care for each other and our planet as Jesus did; no matter the consequences.

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God” (Mark 5:9). One of the most challenging things Jesus calls his followers to be… peacemakers. Peacemakers do not sit idly by when troubles surround. Peacemakers work to bring the Light into darkness. For the children of God are those who bring peace to places where there is no peace.

Listen to this woman’s Easter story. Like each of our story, hers begins with an ending. Her story is a reminder of the resurrection promise fulfilled. A reminder that through Jesus, we are reunited with God. Victory over all things is available and if death has no power to separate us from God, nothing can. Ever.

Endings are the beginning through the resurrection of Jesus. This is good news to share with everyone and is available to everyone. And there is work to be done to share this resurrection story. We have to be share and celebrate resurrection everywhere we see it, everywhere that we are.

Masks are a way for us to deflect and conceal our identity as well as our thoughts and feelings from the outside world. Our words can mask our true feelings, words like ‘fine’ in place of the troubles of our heart. But Jesus clearly states that “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God;” (Matthew 5:8). To be pure of heart, we are called to be completely sincere and honest. To present our insides to the outside, even in all of our brokenness.

It is when we have a pure heart, a completely honest heart, that we can see God. Even more, when we have a pure heart, we can reveal God to others. Others who are share our brokenness and long for the same saving grace that God has shown us. We are not called to hide our thoughts and intentions, we are called to show them and let Jesus use us just as we are.