Higher Standard

Jesus invited his followers to aim higher.

Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lamp stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 5:13-20

When we set ourselves up as examples for others, everything we do and say is scrutinized.  This is even more true today, where so much of what we do is broadcast on social media, whether we know it or not.

It is impossible to attend an event where someone isn't capturing the action on a smartphone, so the example of a city on a hill is a reality.

We cannot hide our actions from the world, for someone, somewhere will notice and be influenced by them.

so I guess the message for all of us is to realize we are always on, that everything we do and say is potentially known by someone, and could be made public.

Will that change what we do?

Maybe not.  We may not think what we are up to is bad or subject to scrutiny, until someone makes a point of it, taking it out of context, or using it to take us down.

We seem to be in age of defense, where we have to be ready to support and defend what we do and say at all times.  And still, we speak out minds and do what we choose without thinking about the consequences.

Jesus warns us that all that will be made known and we will have to answer for it.  And that may be ok.  We should expect to defend and support what we believe.

So, let us remember His words and try to be better than those who act so righteously but fail to do what is right.

And let us hold ourselves to a higher standard.  Not for fear of being called out, but to keep ourselves honest.  If we say it or do it, we should be able to explain why.

More to come...