Jesus is Different

Hey, Bridge Family,
My wife, Lori, tells me at least once a week that I’m “so odd.” While I’m not always sure if I truly am, it makes me smile to be considered out of step with the world. I enjoy being different, if you will. That’s why I particularly liked this week’s Bible Point, “Jesus is Different,” emphasizing how we live differently. Our lesson was from Matthew 5-7, known as “The Sermon on the Mount.”
This is not an easy lesson, and Brandon, who taught it this week, did a great job! It’s challenging because a lesson like this can easily become a checklist for righteous living, rather than a genuine desire to honor our King of kings and Lord of lords. When it’s treated as a checklist for righteous living and we credit our righteousness based on our actions, two things can happen. First, we fail to give credit to Jesus, “who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God…(2 Cor 5:21), and then we often give up because we see the futility of our effort. Face it, the expectations Jesus presents in his sermon are really high!
Do you want to know one reason why our kids leave the church when they grow up? It’s because they feel they can’t meet the expectations. They miss the point! Following Jesus isn’t about meeting expectations; it’s about living a lifestyle that’s out of step with the world—one that honors Jesus. See, we are supposed to live differently simply to acknowledge that we know he is King and we want to witness to his Lordship. It’s really the point Jesus was making with the “Rich Young Ruler” (Matt 19, Mark 10, and Luke 18), if you think about it.
So, what about us as parents? Are we truly living to honor our King—the one we profess as our Lord? Or are we only proclaiming Him as our Savior, giving thanks, but not letting His Spirit guide our lives? Do we find ourselves struggling to keep the checklist of righteousness and misleading our children into doing the same? It’s an easy trap to fall into, and many of us have sadly done so. Face it, if our kids miss the point while growing up, chances are we did as well.
Try this: read through the Sermon on the Mount with your family, and show your children that, in truth, only one person could meet such a standard, and that’s Jesus himself. Then talk about how to live differently. Learn to be out of step with this world as a family, so that his light may shine.
Remember, it’s never too late to engage. As long as your child is at home, you have an excellent opportunity to share the Bible and explore it together, making faith an exciting and meaningful adventure. God Bless, and hope to see your family on Sunday.
Pastor Bob