Thursday, December 1, 2011

Advent Reflections, Week One, Thursday


"It is not enough to hear the truth; one must live the truth." Thank you Dad. It is as if we were having a conversation right now.  You sitting at the end of the table and me talking about some lofty idea and Dad grounding me (as always) with these words.  

Thursday, December 7, 2000 
Isaiah 26:1-6 ~ Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 19-21, 25-27 ~ Matthew 7:21, 24-27

“Anyone who hears my words and puts them into practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock."” Matthew 7:24

These words from the last section of the Sermon on the Mount are a fitting conclusion to all that Jesus preached. The Sermon on the Mount, found almost immediately after Jesus calls the first disciples, clearly explains what following Jesus will mean. Lest we think that discipleship will be easy or only a matter of mastering the right teaching, the Sermon on the Mount is a call to – sometimes very difficult – action. It’s not enough to hear the truth; one must live the truth. Jesus calls his followers to bring alive his words by their actions. Only in that way will they be able to sink their lives more firmly into Jesus who is the Word ever-active. We all know what the house looks like because we’ve heard the words. Now it’s time to build.

Word of God, foundation for life, guide all my actions today that I may build your kingdom.

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