Matthew 5

something God has been asking of me quite passionately these past few weeks through so many different ways - is to get back to the basics of what it means to follow Jesus.
Last wednesday we watched a video from Francis Chan's Crazy Love series and he asked "if you were on a deserted island and all you had was your bible to learn from - how would your faith and your relationship with God look different?"
and as soon as he said it - i felt God telling me to do that. to go and really read through the new testament...looking at the church - at the first followers of Jesus and His ministry as it was just getting started. and to see what the foundations of it were, what was important - and i will be honest. i have never read the bible all the way through - i dont even know if i have ever read the new testament all the way through.
but i am now...and God is having me read it as if i am meeting Jesus for the first time. and i will say that there is something so cool and so intimate about reading Jesus' actual words spoken directly to me (and to you!). i just read Matthew 5 - and at the beginning of the chapter it says "so Jesus withdrew to a hill and as the disciples sat down he began teaching them..." and he starts teaching them for the first time - and it goes on onto this almost seemingly random list of things from anger to divorce to humility...but i was thinking about it and what would it have been like to sit down with Jesus and just wait to hear the truth? to find out what was important to Him, what it was all about, why they were following Him???
and one of the things that stuck out was from a section (in my esv bible) labeled Oaths (v.33-37). and basically Jesus says "dont give a bunch of words and explanations and swear on all these things - give a yes or a no and then commit to it."
and at first i thought - why is that even in there? be humble, think of yourself as the least, dont divorce your spouse - oh and by the way, when you make promises - dont swear on all these things. just give a yes or no.

haha...but then i was thinking - what if when Jesus called the disciples to follow Him they all said - "oh Jesus, yes, and i swear on my mothers life and on all the fish in the sea and on all the money i have that i WILL follow you!"
it sounds really nice, right? well in the verse Jesus says "But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black." v. 34-36

Heaven is His throne, earth is His footstool and Jerusalem is His city...not to mention everything you "own" - also belongs to Him.
so i just feel like He's saying - how do you swear on all these things? who's to say you will have any of these things tomorrow? is that how permanent your oath is too?

and when He asks us to follow Him - all He wants is a yes, here we go.
and then commit to it!
its like He's saying - i dont care how many things you have to swear by...i am asking you to follow me. and all i want is to hear you say yes or no...and mean it.

how many times in the bible does He say that He can't stand double-minded people, or lukewarm people? people who are "undecided" are tossed around just like the waves! (james 1:6)
He doesnt want that for us. He wants us to stand strong on His promises, to be ready to follow Him into anything at any given moment...
but He has a mission to accomplish...and its happening NOW.
and there is no time to waste.
not enough time to give satan any of it by going back and forth.
so decide - give Him a yes or a no. and live it- no looking back.

v. 36 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.

so choose.
and choose God.

-ALIVE