Jesus not only tells his disciples that he has not come to abolish but to fulfill the law, he constantly teaches how this is true, models how to put his teachings into practice, and empowers them to do so. This elaboration on the law and the prophets, the entirety of Jewish scripture, is highlighted well in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. This is evident in his Beatitudes with one example being, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”, and another example from his Six Antithesis show the building on the Torah more vividly: “You have heard that it was said ‘an eye for an eye,’ but I say to you offer no resistance to one who is evil”. Jesus clearly begins with quoting the law, “You have heard that is was said”, and then offers his elaboration by stating with authority, “But I say to you”.
If we seriously take the time to read through Jesus’ teachings, we will see quickly how challenging they are. Jesus is not lowering the bar of discipline for his followers, but instead, raising it. Jesus is not putting heavy burdens on us for burden’s sake, he seeks to make us holy, to guide us to be restored to our original glory that God has intended from the beginning. He himself lives what he preaches, but Jesus is no ordinary teacher or mentor. The principles that he teaches, forgiving seventy-seven times, loving our enemy, giving up all to follow him, seemed impossible to his disciples then and to us today as well.
At face value, we may think that many of Jesus’ teachings are not possible to put into practice or very practical in our day and age. This is why many people do not follow in the tradition and walk away. Attempting to do so with our willpower alone may lead to coming up short each time, and feeling more frustrated, and/or not wanting to even put in the time and effort to do so. Jesus does not expect nor desire us to accomplish living as his followers on our own efforts. Much to the opposite. We are to yolk ourselves with him and be open to the transforming power and love of the Holy Spirit acting through us. This happens when we daily invite Jesus into our lives and are humble enough to follow his lead and to ask for his help in putting into practice what he requires of us.
We become a disciple of Jesus when we are willing to study his life, learn and put his teachings into practice, and surrender ourselves to his will through prayer, discipline, worship, service, and participation in the sacraments. Ultimately though, it is nothing we do, other than ask for his help, open our hearts and minds to and allow Jesus to live his life in and through us. As we are transformed and see that with Jesus all things are possible, we are transformed by his love and conformed to his life such that we can say with Paul, it is no longer I who live but Jesus who lives in me (cf. Galatians 2:20).
The path of faith is not a sprint or a one-time event, but a marathon, a life-long journey. Each one of us can be assured that Jesus is with us for the long haul, every step of the way. No matter what trials or challenges arise, we can meet them with Jesus. We need to resist focusing on the temptations, refuse to make decisions from a fearful or reactive state, and instead lean into Jesus and on each other. We will not only make healthier decisions, we will grow stronger and closer to God and one another, no matter what arises.
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Photo: View coming out of our hall after leading Tuesday night Bible study. God’s word is indeed alive!
Spiritual Stepping Stones 