The Rebuild: Matthew 5-7નમૂનો

Growing up, my father would remind me that I am to treat others how I want to be treated. This constant exhortation would frustrate me. Why should I treat others decently if they won’t treat me decently? This tends to be a universally accepted truth. People will generally treat us the way we treat them. Why then, does Jesus give this command? If it’s something that most people will abide by even if they don’t follow Christ’s words, why would Jesus make it a point of instruction?

Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:13-14 paints a clearer picture of why our hearts must be in the right place. The wide gate which leads to destruction is an easy path to stumble upon. When our hearts get out of alignment with God’s love for us in Jesus, we lose sight of treating people well despite how we’ve been treated. The narrow gate which leads to life, however, is a hard road, but one that has been well trod on our behalf by Jesus Himself. Although despised, hated and crucified, Jesus walked the hard path for us so that we too can follow in His steps, love people sacrificially, and arrive at our heavenly destination.

Today, ponder this: Jesus walked the narrow path ahead of us. Is there a situation in your life where you can follow in His footsteps to love, show humility and grace when another person doesn’t deserve it? Consider how you can be a pointer to Jesus in our actions and responses.