Episode 1295: Rules of Community

[00:00:00] Scott Maderer: Thanks

[00:00:00] for joining me on episode 1,295 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

[00:00:09] Gary Johnson: Hey friends, my name is Dr. Dairy Johnson. And I serve as the executive director of E two effective Elders. I challenge you to invest in yourself. In others and develop your influence while impacting the world by using your time, your talent, your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to grow yourself through self-leadership is key, and one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this The Inspired Stewardship Podcast with my friend Scott Maderer.

[00:00:52] Scott Maderer: Reading these verses, it seems like Jesus is saying there's a higher standard here, and it's not just about [00:01:00] a list of rules. It's not just about following the rules. It's almost like he's using hyperbole. He's bringing it to an extreme and saying, if you break even the tiniest of these, you're in trouble.

[00:01:14] Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling. In the Inspired Stewardship Podcast, you will learn to invest in yourself, invest in others, and develop your influence so that you can impact the

[00:01:40] world.

[00:01:47] Scott Maderer: In this spiritual foundation episode, I talk about Matthew chapter five, verses 21 through 37. I share how we need to know the rules, but the rules are likely more than we can handle, and I also [00:02:00] share why they are about community and creating a community like that of the Kingdom of God. Matthew chapter 5, 21 through 37 begins You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, you shall not murder.

[00:02:14] And whoever murder shall be liable to judgment. But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you'll be liable to judgment. And if you insult a brother or sister, you'll be liable to the council. And if you say you fool, you will be liable to the hell of fire. So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against.

[00:02:37] Leave your gift there before the altar and go first be reconciled to your brother or sister and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him. Or your accuser may hand you over to the judge and the judge to the guard and you'll be thrown in prison.

[00:02:57] Truly, I tell you, you will never get out until [00:03:00] you have paid the last penny. You have heard that it was said, you shall not commit. But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her and his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away for it is better that you lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

[00:03:20] And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away for it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into. It was also said, whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the grounds of UNC Chastity, causes her to commit adultery.

[00:03:41] And whoever marries a divorced woman com commits adultery. Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times you shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord. But I say to you, do not swear at all either by heaven, for it is the throne of God or by the earth for it.

[00:03:59] Is his foot [00:04:00] stole or by Jerusalem? For it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair, white or black. Let your word be yes or no. No anything more than. Comes from the evil one. I don't know about you, but I tend to get more information from the world now across social media.

[00:04:23] Than I do from regular news or I look at things that are on YouTube or on Facebook or other places and often get information from them. Sometimes that information is good, sometimes it's not. But I look for information and community in these social media places. , but I'll admit I'm not the greatest at using them.

[00:04:47] I don't always know what to do. I second guess myself a lot. I see people that post multiple times a day and share things like what they're eating or what they're doing. And I think, is that how you're supposed [00:05:00] to use it? And then I see people that post in other countries or even hear about their fears or about something that's going wrong or about needing help.

[00:05:10] And I think, is that how you're supposed to. I see other people that are posting about business and is that how you're supposed to use it? I really don't know the rules that are there around social media, all that. Part of it's probably my age. I'm a Gen Xer. I grew up in a period where social media wasn't really around, but I'm also of an age where I started to use it relatively young as.

[00:05:39] I, I'm not really a native to that world though. I don't always understand exactly what's going on. I see post and I think I could share something like that, but who would really care about that kind of information about me? Who cares what I had for breakfast or where I'm traveling to? And I'll be honest, there are [00:06:00] times that I swear I'm gonna shut down all of my social media apps.

[00:06:03] I'm gonna delete all my profiles and I'm gonna get off of it because quite frankly, Whether or not social media is a net positive or a net negative often depends on what posts come across my feed that day and what I'm actually seeing it. It can be a black hole where I see things that just make me fear or sad or angry about the world.

[00:06:25] And then there's other times when I see posts that are uplifting and create harmony and make me think about how wonderful people can. and my feeling about social media often is reflected by my feeling about what I'm seeing now, you may be wondering what does this have to do with the Matthew passage that I read?

[00:06:46] I think part of the reason that I have so much kind of fear and trepidation and worry about things like social media is because I don't really understand the procedures, the systems, or the [00:07:00] rules. I think learning the rules is something that as humans, we really want to know. We wanna know what rules we operate under.

[00:07:08] If you read the Old Testament, it, a lot of it is about the rules of community and society. What do you do to sus to survive? We talk about the law that's in the old. And here in the Sermon on the Mount, and in this part of it, it feels like J like Jesus is saying, you think you know the rules.

[00:07:31] You think you know the law, you think you're following all of the rules. You think that L listen to this. You've heard that it was said, but I say to you, he's referencing back to the law and he's actually not telling us not to follow it. He's saying it's actually more strict than, read through those verses, think about those verses, and if you're not overwhelmed, you're not paying attention.

[00:07:57] Rules are one thing that [00:08:00] this is rather extreme. These are intense rules. These are rules for those who are really into following the rules. We've got to a point in our society where a lot of this stuff is no big deal, right? But yet reading these verses, it seems like Jesus is. There's a higher standard here, and it's not just about a list of rules.

[00:08:24] It's not just about following the rules. It's almost like he's using hyperbole. He's bringing it to an extreme and saying, if you break even the tiniest of these, you're in trouble. Pay attention because people are precious. Relationships are precious. Community is a gift from God. Don't waste. All of these higher ways of living seem to be about community.

[00:08:54] They're about relationships. They're saying if you really love each other, if you [00:09:00] really take care of each other the way that we're supposed to in the kingdom of God, then these would not be a problem because we would care first about each other, not about ourselves. It's about all of the little details.

[00:09:17] Of daily living. It's about revolution. It's about transformation. It's about becoming a community of respect and joy. See, I think the point is that we can't actually follow the rules. We can't rule ourself into relationship. Instead, it's about recognizing that we've all fallen short and that whatever you're upset about somebody else doing that you look at and say that is, that's the sin that's unforgivable.

[00:09:47] You've done just as much. That's why Jesus seems to be taking these rules to the extreme so that you understand that you can't judge others [00:10:00] and you can't judge yourself. That's above your pay grade. Instead, our job is just to be in relationship and love one another. Thanks for listening.

[00:10:17] Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your. If you enjoyed this episode, do me a favor. Go over to facebook.com/inspired stewardship and like our Facebook page and market that you'd like to get notifications from us so that we can connect with you on Facebook and make sure that we're serving you to the best of our abilities with time and tips there.[00:11:00]

[00:11:00] Until next time, invest your. Your talent and your treasures. Develop your influence and impact the world.