Jesus already spoke about his unique vision of the character of the true people of God in the first part of the Sermon on the Mount, called the Beatitudes. However, Jesus’ vision really is unique—in fact, it is disagreed with by most religious leaders that have ever lived, including most Christian ones! Jesus really did know who God really desires to help, because Jesus is the only one to hear it directly from the Father. He has the full vision of God, while all other prophets and religious teachers only have a part of God’s plan.
Most teachers say that God’s people are righteous—but they think that God’s people just need to follow a particular code or list of rules to be God’s people. Jesus is saying that rules aren’t the heart of God’s people. Rather God’s people are interested in being merciful to other people and in having a motivation to be right before God in everything they do—whether their list of rules is long or short. Most religious teachers say that wealth and a good life are signs of God’s blessing. Jesus says that those who are oppressed and poor and looking to God to help them out of the trouble they find themselves in—these are the ones who will truly be blessed by God.
Jesus’ teaching is strange to most people, and most people will strongly disagree with it. This makes it difficult for those following what Jesus truly says. If everyone says that to be a good Christian you just need to pray a prayer, what does that mean for those who follow Jesus’ words to be merciful and clean in heart? If everyone says that to be a good Christian, everything will be going well in your life, what does that mean for those who listen to Jesus’ words about oppression and persecution?
After the Beatitudes, Jesus gives us some additional words of encouragement to remain in the character of God’s people. He gives three teachings, all of which are reflections on enduring in God’s character, although the world tells you something differently.
1. Act Like A Lottery Winner—Matthew 5:11-12
You are fortunate when they disparage you and persecute and speak all kinds of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and show gladness, because your reward is much in heaven, for even so did they persecute the prophets who were before you.
Jesus tells us that it makes sense that we will be spoken ill of, especially by people who hold to their own views about religion or how life should be lived. They will say, “Don’t allow yourself to be oppressed—you need to agree with us and to do what we do.” And if you don’t—in other words, if you stick with Jesus in opposition to their points of view—then people will say terrible things about you—even lies and horrible slander. This is normal, Jesus says. More than normal, it is a cause of great joy!
How can this be? Normal people don’t get lied about, slandered, hated and then have a party about it. That just doesn’t make sense. Jesus tells us to remember the prophets of God. They were speaking the truth of God and have been honored by God’s people for countless generations. However, they were rejected and hated and slandered about by the generation they spoke to. They weren’t liked at all! But what happened to them? They received great reward from God. God gave them much more after their life in His presence than they could possibly expect on earth.
This means that the prophets, although they were despised on earth, were actually like secret lottery winners. No, they haven't collected their prize yet, but they had the ticket. The ticket to winning the lottery, Jesus says, is living a merciful, godly life and being persecuted for it. So if you’ve got the ticket—act like it! Be happy, jump up and down, sing praises to God, have a party! Sure, people will think you’re nuts—“No, I don’t think I want to go to your ‘Persecution Party’”—but since you know the secret, you might as well enjoy it (Acts 5:41).
2. Don’t be like Marlon Brando—Matthew 5:13
You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt is foolish, with what will it be made salty? It is capable for nothing except as an outcast to be trampled on by men.
In Jesus’ day, salt was used for a number of things—just like today. We use salt for seasoning food, for snow covered sidewalks, for liquid absorption and much more. Jesus wasn’t using the image of salt to speak of it’s use, rather he was using salt because of it’s ability to still look like salt, but not to be useful anymore. Salt can lose its “salty” character, and so it is no longer useful to anyone for anything.
Even so, Jesus says, can God’s people lose their basic character. We have to remember that the basic character of God’s people is to have our hearts focused on God, to be merciful and to be oppressed because of our stand to follow Jesus. But in a world—especially a church—that is telling us that God’s people are NOT like that, it is easy to focus on what other people say are the characteristics of God. But if we lose focus, if we lose track of what Jesus says is most important—mercy, devotion and being persecuted—then we are like salt that is no longer useful. We will no longer be God’s people. We will only be fit to be thrown out of God’s kingdom.
Jesus is telling us not to be like Marlon Brando. Marlon Brando was famous as a character actor. In front of the camera, he was a new person, a different character than he really was. However, when he lived his real life, he was something completely different. Marlon Brando was a consummate actor—able to believably be what he was not. Jesus is saying that we are to constantly be the people of God—and that means acting like it all the time. We must always be merciful. We must always have devotion to God. And we must not shrink from or be depressed by persecution. We must embrace the characteristics of God’s people, and be glad that we are who God made us to be, and never be anything else.
3. Show off like a sports star
You are the light of the world. A city being set on a mountain is not able to be hidden. And nor is a lamp burned and placed under a container, but upon a lampstand and to shine everywhere in the house. Thus, shine your light before men, so that they can see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.
When we are God’s people—the real ones, not the fake ones that the world is filled with—we often want to shrink back and hide. We don’t want people to see our true character, because they might think we are stupid (or worse, they might tell us so). We’d rather show people that we are normal, in other words, just like them. If people saw that we were constantly, 100 percent devoted to God in all things—they’d think we were fanatics. If people saw that we were always being merciful, they’d think that we were soft-hearted or easy to take advantage of. If people saw that we were pleased to receive persecution, they might use it as an excuse to abuse us. If people saw that we were seeking God for justice, they might think that we were idiots or lazy.
And so we are tempted to go undercover with our true character. To hide the true character of God’s people with something that is more acceptable. Jesus, however, tells us to do just the opposite—we need to show off! The work that we do, the character that we’ve become isn’t our own decision, but it is God’s work. If it is God’s work, then we shouldn’t hide it! Instead, we need to display God’s work as often as possible.
First of all, Jesus says, God’s character in your life CANNOT be hidden. If you put a city on a mountain—that can’t be hidden. Even so, Jesus says, that’s what God’s people are like. They are like the sun in the sky—try as you like, you can’t hide it’s presence. (I Timothy 5:25)
But also, Jesus says, God’s character in us SHOULDN’T be hidden. A lamp is made to shine the light. Even so, God’s people are placed on earth to display God’s light. Does Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods hide in closets because they don’t want to be boastful about their abilities? Absolutely not! They show it to as many people as possible! Even so, we are to show God’s work.
This doesn’t mean that we are to show off how much we pray or whatever to impress people (Matthew 6:1-2). Rather, we show our devotion and especially the persecution we suffer to show God’s glory. Perhaps people won’t be impressed with us. Perhaps they will find us disgusting. But that’s just shows who are in God’s people and who aren’t.
Don’t be ashamed of being what God made you to be: Devoted to Him.
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