Living In the World, Not of It

We are continuing our series called “Back to the Basics” in which we set out this summer to equip every disciple in the fundamentals of following Jesus.

The goal was that every follower of Jesus who calls Oak Hill home… every one of you who is growing in their dependence on and devotion to Jesus… would go back and examine the fundamentals of the Christian walk in their own experience.

Some of our teenagers have recently been doing football camp or band-camp in the pre-season lead-up to the fall season… pre-season camp is about making making sure everyone on the team understands the plays… the steps… the progression of things… the fundamentals.

And that’s what we’ve been doing here - Except instead of trying to keep in step with each other on the football field each other under the direction of a coach or band director, we are getting in step with each other in the CHURCH under the direction of Jesus.

And we’ve been pointing out that being a disciple is not some private “me and Jesus” thing… just like football or band, it’s a team sport.

It is personal, but it is definitely not private.

It affects the relationships in our family… in our church… in our workplace...

And today we are going to look at how it affects our relationships in the community in which we live.

Because, I don’t know if you noticed… if you really follow Jesus… if your life starts looking like his and you TRULY depend on him for everything… and you give up everything to follow him like he calls his disciples to do, you are going to stick out in this world.

Let me ask you: how much do you like to stick out in a crowd?

I don’t mean like the life of the party where you enter a room and everyone just sort of gravitates to you… some of you love that, some of you hate it.

I’m talking about sticking out like the one person who just doesn’t fit in.

I remember one time this happened to Katy and I...

We have these friends who run in kind of posh circles… they are super sweet people, but they just a bit more swanky than we are.

And so early on in our marriage, we were invited to their apartment for a housewarming party...

And we show up… and of course we were NOT fashionably late (we were right on time: you know me…) and they opened the door and said, “We KNEW you would be the first to show up...”

And then people started showing up… and we were wearing normal clothes… just casual everyday clothes… but as others started arriving, we realized that this wasn’t the type of housewarming party we were used to...

Katy was the only woman NOT in a black dress… I was the only guy NOT wearing a tie...

And our friends, the hosts, didn’t treat us any differently… they were and are so kind… but let’s just say, we were clearly not fitting in with the culture.

We clearly stuck out. We clearly had a different day to day experience.

None of us really enjoy sticking out like that. But if we are going to follow Jesus, we had better get used to it.

Because following Jesus isn’t just about worshiping him within the privacy of our home (it’s about proclaiming Jesus to others)… it isn’t just about attending bible studies and Sunday services so we can stay comfortable within the walls of the church… it’s about being equipped so that we can live as sent witnesses in the world.

God doesn’t save us and take us immediately into his heavenly kingdom. He makes us citizens of his kingdom, but leaves us here in the kingdoms of earth.

He calls us to be IN the world, but not of the world.

And we get that phrase from Jesus’ prayer for his disciples in John 17,

“I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” (John 17:14–18 ESV)

Jesus not only LEAVES his disciples in the world… he SENDS us into the world. We are IN the world, but not OF the world.

Following Jesus changes the way we relate to the world around us… we are “sent witnesses” of the Kingdom of God.

We stick out… and in our sticking out, we point people to a different Kingdom.

So here’s our Big Idea for today:

Big Idea: As you relate in the world, represent the countercultural kingdom of God.

Your Bibles are open to Matthew chapter 5...

Matthew chapters 5-7 contain what is known as the Sermon on the Mount. If you are a newer believer, the sermon on the mount is an important thing to know...

Because it is all about the Kingdom of God...

Jesus ushered in the kingdom when he came the first time and he will bring it in full when he returns.

And at the end of chapter 4, Matthew tells us that Jesus was proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom throughout all the towns of Galilee.

The central content of Jesus’ teaching was the good news of what his kingdom was like.

And while he was teaching, he was healing and casting out demons… his ministry was to the poor and the outcast and the hurting of society.

Which is EXACTLY what the prophets of old had said his kingdom would be like.

The prophet Isaiah had said that a sign of the Kingdom was that those who were afflicted would be made whole.

And so Jesus was performing the signs of the Kingdom that accompanied his message.

So it’s no surprise with all this healing and powerful wonders being done that the crowds are getting pretty big.

And what would a typical teacher do when the crowds start getting big? He would say, “This is GREAT! The more the merrier!”

But not Jesus… look down in your Bibles at chapter 5:1 - “Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.” (Matthew 5:1, ESV)

What is he doing? He is making it MORE difficult to get to him.

That seems really strange.

If you wanted people to hear you, you would send THEM up the hill and you would stay down in the valley and create something like an ampitheater.

But now they have to take a step toward him. He saw the crowds… but notice, his disciples came to him.

This would be like if we were here on Sunday morning and the sanctuary was just PACKED to hear the word of God preached… but it was packed because we told people that if they came, we would give them a new car.

So seeing this, I said, “OK… if you came, you still get a new car. But if you REALLY want to hear the word of God, the TRUE treasure, you are going to have to follow me a mile up Winter Hill Rd… I’m going to be preaching in the field up there.”

Who would come? Those who were beginning to understand that the message of the Kingdom was the true gift.

His DISCIPLES came to him.

Disciples come to Jesus. They remain with him. They sit at his feet and listen to his teaching. That’s what makes them disciples.

And just so you have the right picture in your head, this wasn’t just the 12 disciples… those guys aren’t named until chapter 10 and they are called out of the larger group.

This is all those who were understanding that there was more to Jesus than what he could do for their physical circumstances.

They didn’t just need his healing… they needed the healer.

So the content of this sermon on a mountain delivered to his disciples… just like all his other sermons he was preaching from town to town… was the good news of what his kingdom was like.

It was all about what it would look like to live differently in this world while being a citizen of the Kingdom of heaven.

And verses 1-20 are like the introduction to that sermon.

Read with me Matthew 5:1-20.

Big Idea: As you relate in the world, represent the countercultural kingdom of God.

Today we want to look at...

Three Ways Every Disciple Must Represent the Kingdom of God

And the first is this:

1) Rejoice in the countercultural virtues of the Kingdom. (5:1-12)

Explain: Jesus’ sermon starts with 8 phrases that are called “beatitudes.”

These beatitudes have been a part of teaching or catechizing young believers for the entire history of the church… they are for SURE part of the basics that every believer needs to know.

I remember memorizing them in my third grade Sunday school class when I was growing up (don’t ask me to cite them from memory today).

But they were written in a way that was intended to be memorized… they are organize, simple... and they are just SO SO different than what we are used to in this world.

And even though they are so familiar, they have been so misunderstood throughout the history of the church as well.

A lot of people treat them like a list of things that you work to BECOME: make yourself poor… make yourself miserable… because then God will bless you.

Others MERELY look at words like poor… righteousness… or peacemakers and make this all about social justice and turn it into a social gospel that they say is DIFFERENT than the gospel Paul describes… that’s NOT what Jesus means by “gospel of the Kingdom” by the way.

On the other hand, people OVER spiritualize the list so that it has NO connection to the context where Jesus really IS talking to the physically poor and needy.

So we need to understand the FORM of a beatitude if we are to really understand what’s going on here… if we’re really going to understand just how countercultural the Kingdom of Heaven really is.

According to the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, beatitudes were a common Greek form, usually pronounced over people because of their wealth, children, marriages, riches, knowledge, fame... (TDNT, 548). You know… it’s the typical list that the world consider blessed in most cultures.

(show beatitude form slide) Beatitudes always followed the same Form = Blessed (happy in the favor of the Lord) + are (declaration, not desire) + description of recipient + description of the reason they are blessed.

So it might sound like this, “Blessed are those who have much gold because they will have much power.”

And that’s right in line with how the world thinks of blessing today:

A modern beatitude might sound like this:

[show instagram mockup slide] Blessed are those who drive a new Toyota truck for they shall haul great loads and not break down.

[show next instagram mockup slide] or… Blessed are the women who sip pumpkin spice lattes in sweater weather for they shall feel all the feels.

That’s the typical way of talking about blessing in our culture… but the Kingdom of God rejoices over other virtues.

So let’s look at each of the beatitudes of the Kingdom to see what virtues are celebrated by Jesus.

Blessed are… The Poor in Spirit -

There is a lot of debate over what exactly this means, but based on who is listening to Jesus, and what he says later in the sermon, I believe Jesus is referring to those who see themselves as lowly before the Lord.

They do not define themselves by their material status. They are humble before the Lord.

Now remember, Jesus is speaking to disciples who come from great physical need. These are people who have no hope for the kingdoms of earth to be theirs. The kingdoms of the earth belong to the wealthy and powerful.

But, Jesus is saying, the Kingdom of heaven can belong to them.

In fact, sometimes the materially poor have a head start in understanding the virtues of the Kingdom.

Remember, Jesus will say later in Matthew 19:4 “...that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Why? Because the wealthy tend to trust and value their riches over God, and a man cannot serve two masters.

The wealthy are often unwilling to follow Jesus at all cost.

In fact, Jesus goes on to say that with man, it is impossible for the rich to enter the Kingdom… but with God ALL things are possible.

That’s why we must also be careful not to leave off the “in spirit” phrase.

The materially poor can be poor without being poor in Spirit… they can still have their heart set on riches… and their hope is that “some day” if they ever get riches, all their problems will be solved.

At the same time, the materially wealthy can be poor in spirit without becoming materially poor.

They can view all that they have as coming from God and to be used for his kingdom.

They can see that their wealth doesn’t earn them a place in the Kingdom, but that it is useful FOR the Kingdom, and they can be rich in generosity.

I believe Jesus, in this sense, is a good example of “poor in spirit.” Philippians 2:6-7 says of Jesus...

“though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.” (Phil. 2:6-7 ESV)

He had ALL the riches in the world… but lived as a servant… and entered willingly into our suffering..

And Paul starts out that sentence in Philippians by saying that we are to have that same mind among ourselves.

And instead of finding their life in riches, disciples find their vitality… their spirit… in knowing the King…

So regardless of your economic status, to the poor in Spirit, Jesus says, YOURS IS the Kingdom of Heaven…

it is yours NOW… the poor in spirit are treasuring the Kingdom of heaven in their heart RIGHT NOW.

D.A. Carson says it this way - "[The Kingdom of Heaven] is given to the poor... those who are so 'poor' they know they can offer nothing and do not try." (Carson, D. A. (1984). Matthew. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, p. 132). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)

And often that poverty in spirit leads to this next virtue… Jesus says...

Blessed are those who Mourn -

Godly mourning refers to lamenting sin... AND sin’s effects.

Those who mourn lament sin as an offense against God...

And equally they lament the affects of sin in a fallen world… death, destruction, disease, dissensions…

They lament all these things because they were not part of God’s original perfect design for humanity.

Jesus again is a great guide in our mourning. He wept over the depravity of Jerusalem. He wept over the death of his friend Lazarus and the pain it caused Mary and Martha.

Jesus understands our mourning.

And true disciples mourn for sin and its effects... in their own lives... and in the lives of the people around them.

When they look at suffering, they don’t say, “Welp… they got what they deserved!”

When they look at sin they don’t say, “Oh, everyone makes mistakes… it’s only human … not a big deal...”

No… they MOURN!

But these mourners are also blessed… and here’s why - because God brings comfort to those who mourn.

The world mourns as those who have no hope. They don’t get the connection between suffering and sin and God’s plan of redemption.

When it comes to sin, they have worldly grief - they don’t really understand the offense of their sin against a holy God.

But when we see our sin for what it is… God brings the comfort of forgiveness and grace.

and when we see the affects of sin and truly understand the fallenness of this world… God rushes his presence toward us and brings assurance of the Kingdom that is yet to come.

The Lord’s comfort comes in part NOW through the Holy Spirit who is called the COMFORTER…

And ultimately it comes in the future Kingdom when God will wipe away every tear from our eyes and bring final resolution to all of our mourning.

We can be happy in the Lord’s favor because we take comfort in the Future kingdom that is coming.

And that assurance is also given to the meek.

Blessed are the Meek -

Meekness is not, as the world would suggest, weakness.

Meekness is gentleness… strength under control.

It is The opposite of "self-important." The kingdoms of earth are all about putting a good face on and looking important… showing how STRONG you are and getting yourself to the front of the line.

But Jesus says, Blessed are the Meek.

Later, Jesus would say in Matthew 11:29 “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am GENTLE and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

That word for gentle is the same Greek word as the word for meek.

Disciples reflect God’s son in his meekness.

And as adopted children of the Living God, they take part in his inheritance… they shall inherit the earth.

The book of Revelation declares that “The kingdom of the world will become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ and he shall reign forever and ever.”

And his disciples shall reign with him on the earth.

That is why they are blessed.

But disciples don’t just mourn over sin and carry themselves with meekness… they:

Hunger and thirst for righteousness

The world does what is RIGHT in their own eyes… but disciples desperately long to see the righteousness of God... in their own lives and the lives of the people around them.

Righteousness is acting in right relationship to God and others.

Disciples SEE the perfect righteousness of Jesus… RECEIVE his righteousness credited to them through faith… and LONG to see that righteousness work out practically in their lives.

Last week we said that because Jesus was vindicated as righteous, we have a righteousness to grow into.

And not only for ourselves, but disciples long for OTHERS to be "made right" with God and embrace his righteousness.

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are BLESSED… because God loves to satisfy the desire for righteousness.

When we pray, “Lord, grow me in righteousness… help me demonstrate your righteousness to others…”

…that’s a prayer and a longing that God LOVES to answer “YES” to!

God satisfies our longing for righteousness because he is merciful.

Blessed are the Merciful -

The world says, “You get what you deserve. An eye for an eye.” But mercy is the currency of God’s Kingdom.

Jesus is often described as having compassion or mercy on people… he stepped into their sin and suffering and provided the cure.

The “merciful” are those who extend compassion toward sufferers and forgiveness toward sinners...

The “merciful” walk with people instead judging over them.

And they are blessed because they receive mercy from the higher judge.

Jesus told a parable about a man who had a MASSIVE debt… more than he could repay in many lifetimes...

And the judge forgave his debt.

But then the man went out and found someone who owed him a MUCH smaller amount… and demanded to be repaid... and beat the debtor when he couldn’t come up with the cash.

And so the original judge found the corrupt master who owed the massive debt and had him beaten and thrown in prison forever.

Those who have been shown great mercy demonstrate their faith in that mercy by extending mercy to others… and those who do not extend mercy reveal that they are not a part of the Kingdom.

But because disciples have been shown mercy from God, they are also pure in heart...

Blessed are the Pure in Heart -

The world is stained through and through with sin. Even their best deeds are like filthy rags before the Lord.

None of us are pure before the holy perfection of God without Jesus.

Psalm 24:3-4 says, “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.”

Who fits that description? Only Jesus.

And Jesus went into the most holy place… that place where the presence of God dwells... and he made THE offering for our sin with his own blood so that we could enter in through him...

And by faith in him, disciples are made pure in heart.

They have been cleansed by the blood of Christ, and as a result genuinely pursue God.

The pure in heart have a singular devotion to God through the cleansing of Christ.

And they are blessed because they shall see him.

There is no greater blessing in all the world than to SEE God.

We see him now through eyes of faith… but one day we see will see him face to face.

And that is only possible because Jesus came to make peace between us and God. Which leads us to the next blessing:

Blessed are the Peacemakers -

The world wants peace, but few are willing to make peace. And even if they try, they do not know how.

Kids, do you ever try to make peace with your sibling and it feels impossible?

But Jesus is the ultimate peacemaker. Ephesians 2 says the he himself is our peace.

And he calls his disciples to be peacemakers… ministers of reconciliation.

Not just peace KEEPERS, but peace MAKERS… they bring warring parties together through the good news of Jesus.

We make peace when we declare that the ground is level at the foot of the cross… that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God and must be justified by his grace as a gift.

And the reason Peacemakers are blessed is because they are called sons of God… it’s a fitting title because they continue in the family business of their Father who is the ultimate peacemaker.

But being peacemakers doesn’t mean that people won’t oppose us… which is why Jesus gives this last beatitude with even more explanation:

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake -

Living out the kingdom virtues isn’t always popular.

In fact, it’s downright strange.

People will see your meekness as vulnerability and trample on you.

People will see your righteousness as “holier than thou” living and try to trip you up.

People will see your “purity of heart” and declare you a threat to their values system that must be neutralized.

But when your life is expressing the righteousness of the kingdom, and you are opposed for it… you are just showing how countercultural the kingdom of God really is.

It’s proof that you “get” the kingdom… because our King went through the same treatment.

This is the only beatitude that Jesus elaborates on… and notice what he does: he changes the wording from “persecuted for righteousness sake” to “revile and persecute and all other kinds of evil on my account.”

When we are persecuted, we are identifying personally with the Savior who suffered and died for us.

We are identifying with every prophet of God ever who stood against the evil of this world with a heart set on the kingdom of heaven.

And the reward for that is great. Yours is the kingdom of heaven. You are counted among the faithful and receive the reward of faith.

Blessed are… blessed are… blessed are… blessed are… disciples of Jesus! It is totally worth it!

But I want you to see this morning that this list of beatitudes is TOTALLY countercultural in any culture.

No one says, “Look at that guy who is mourning… isn’t he HAPPY IN THE FAVOR OF THE LORD?!?! HE IS SOOOOO BLESSED!!!!

I don’t care whether you live in the jungles of South America or in Buckingham Palace… the virtues of the kingdom are countercultural in any culture.

If you want to fit in with the cultures of this world, the Kingdom of heaven is not for you.

The virtues of the Kingdom are celebrated only when we truly treasure our king and understand the good news of his kingdom. They are celebrated because they reflect the character of our King.

Understand - that’s what beatitudes are doing… they are celebrating certain virtues and values. They are saying, “Don’t you SEE how blessed disciples are!!!”

Jesus said in verse 12 - “rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven!”

That’s the point of the beatitudes: to get our eyes off of the values of this earth and onto the virtues of heaven.

But many of us… even disciples… have a hard time seeing how blessed we are.

We see our poverty of soul… but we don’t understand how seeing it is the prerequisite of experiencing the kingdom.

We see our mourning… but forget that you can’t receive comfort unless you first understand the source of the pain… which is sin.

We see the persecution and the opposition… but forget that this is the way it always was expected to be… because we represent a countercultural kingdom.

And so what we do is we avoid these virtues instead of celebrating them.

We seek therapy instead of Jesus for our poverty of soul.

We seek alcohol instead of the Spirit as our source of comfort.

We seek licentious living under the guise of free grace instead of truly hungering and thirsting for the righteousness of our savior.

So let me ask you:

Apply: Do you celebrate or avoid these Kingdom virtues? If you avoid them, start the celebration first by looking to Jesus.

Maybe you are like me and you can see a lot of ways that you fell short of these virtues… even in the last week.

Go to Jesus… HE is the perfect embodiment of these virtues… celebrate HIM…

Because these virtues of the Kingdom are only available to us THROUGH HIM.

HE must be our example… but he must also be our substitute… paying for all the ways we miss the mark… and then he must be our power for living out these virtues.

So celebrate him!

Because we become what we celebrate.

It’s when we celebrate HIM as the Suffering Savior that we can “rejoice and be glad” when we lack what the world values, because we still have all that the kingdom of heaven has to offer.

So lift up your voice and shout for joy that, as a disciple, you have been given the full rights of the kingdom of God...

That you have been been given the Holy Spirit...

That you that you await a glorious inheritance...

That you have been granted access to see God!

And if another disciple is having a hard time seeing it… help them see it!

Remind them of what is true of them!

Point their eyes to Jesus and his eternal kingdom!

Because as much as we are “not of” this world, we still must live in this world. And that’s HARD… but it’s according to God’s good purpose.

Look at v. 13 - Jesus says, ““You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.”

As we celebrate the countercultural virtues of the kingdom, we will...

2) Retain the countercultural goodness of the Kingdom. (5:13)

…in the world.

Explain: There’s a lot of ink spilled in commentaries about what function of salt Jesus is talking about here.

Is he talking about salt as a flavor enhancer?

Or a fertilizer that was used to enrich soil in that day?

Or a preservative?

But no matter what function of salt Jesus is specifically talking about, he’s clearly talking about a positive effect that could easily be diluted.

Salt is good. And it is used to enhance the thing it is added to.

And just like salt, disciples of Jesus… enhance the world in which we live.

We become the seasoning of God's goodness in a world that is dying.

The world needs more people who, through the gospel of Jesus Christ, see sin, mourn sin, are humbly confident in Christ and who hunger and thirst or righteousness.

The world NEEDS disciples who walk by the Spirit and bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control… I don’t care WHO you are… people who bear that fruit are a joy to be around!

The world NEEDS believing families who are ordered according to God’s word raise their kids in the goodness of God’s order.

The world NEEDS Workers and employers who work HARD unto the Lord are going to contribute excellence and goodness to their workplaces.

The world NEEDS Churches who encourage one another to bear witness to the gospel will be a blessing to their communities.

As salt, disciples of Jesus enhance the world in which we live.

Without Jesus-people, the world would be profoundly less good.

The problem is, too often disciples of Jesus spend all their efforts on trying to FIT IN with the world instead of being SALT in the world.

This is what Jesus is talking about when he warns about salt that loses its saltiness...

Technically it’s not possible... Salt is the most stable compound on earth… it can’t LOSE saltiness...

But Jesus is talking about the salt that was mined with other minerals and is impure.

It LOOKS like salt, but it lacks the effectiveness… the goodness of salt.

Really it’s just adding more of the world to the world.

So what are some ways we do this?

Think about the way we talk about evangelism...

Spend years becoming someone’s friend, and then when the time is just right… invite them to your church which is designed to be a cool, Christian version of the world.

Because here’s how that church is set up…

The world loves self-help, so let’s do a self-help sermon series.

The world loves coffee… let’s put a sign out that we have free coffee… THAT will bring them in the doors!

Listen… the world doesn’t need more coffee… they don’t need more entertainment… they need JESUS!

Listen: if we focus on BEING disciples who accurately represent the kingdom of God, we WILL be the salt of the earth.

We merely need to focus our hearts on the kingdom, while remaining IN the world.

We can’t retreat. We must remain and retain a countercultural goodness in the world.

Apply: Do you have a good impact on the people around you?

Do you stand out as different?

Do you add the flavor of Jesus to your relationships (whether they like that flavor or not)?

Do unbelievers want to be different because of what they see in you?

Not everyone… some people will see the work of Christ in you and be repulsed… they will persecute you...

But for those who are being saved, you will retain the goodness of God and point them to his glory.

That’s the thrust of what Jesus teaches next:

Read Matthew 5:14-16 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

3) Radiate countercultural glory of the Kingdom. (5:14-16)

Explain: When disciples of Jesus live out the virtues of the Kingdom, they shine the glory of God through them.

Notice: they see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.

Now, most unbelievers I know don’t make that kind of connection on their own: giving glory to God because I did something good.

So what is implied? That we actually TELL them about the King and the Kingdom we represent!

Being the light of the world is revealing God's glory through us: his beautiful plan of redemption.

To be the light of the world, we shine into the Kingdom of darkness and call others into the marvelous light, the Kingdom of his beloved Son.

We do this by showing what the Kingdom of our God is like through our good works.

But then we point others to the one who produced these good works in us.

Now a lot of Christians think, “But doesn’t that sound prideful? I mean, later in Jesus’ sermon he says that we aren’t supposed to let our right hand know what our left is doing. Aren’t we supposed to do good works in secret?”

Well, first of all, the verse about your right and left hand is about giving in the temple to look good in front of religious people, not doing good works in front of unbelievers.

Second of all, we are NOT trying to attract attention to ourselves, we are shining LIGHT onto God’s glory.

Illustrate: Dietrich Bonhoffer said it this way - “Flight into the invisible is a denial of the call. A community of Jesus which seeks to hide itself has ceased to follow him” (Bonhoeffer, p. 106, qtd in Carson, D. A. (1984). Matthew. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, p. 140). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.

Being countercultural does not mean that we hide or retreat from the darkness. It means that we illuminate the darkness.

Apply: So here’s what this looks like on a practical level -

It means you HIGHLIGHT the difference God’s kingdom makes in your life… NOT in a way that makes you look good, but in a way that shows YOUR weakness and God’s power in you.

You gently respond to a stressful event… and when others ask why, you make sure to say, “It’s not me… it’s Jesus.”

You become a peacemaker in your workplace by refusing to talk bad about that person that everyone else hates…

And you tell them that it’s because God showed you mercy when you hated him and were impossible to deal with.

So make this personal: what good works… what VIRTUES of the Kingdom... will unbelievers see in your life this week?

And how will they know who to give the credit to?

Will you radiate the countercultural glory of the Kingdom this week?

As you relate in the world this week, represent the countercultural kingdom of God.