Being Like The Father

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.” - Lk. 6:36-38

"I want to do everything you do. So I’ve been watching you." - Rodney Atkins

Jesus tells us today that we need to be like God. There are absolutely no excuses. We need to show mercy and forgiveness towards others just like God shows us. Who are we to judge and condem others? Are we not all marked with original sin? Rather than dwelling on negative aspects of living, we should rather focus on sharing the goodness God grants us with others.

Now Jesus is smart. Like any good teacher, he recognizes that it is not enough to tell his students that they should behave a proper way. He sweetens the deal by reminding them that if they do follow through and start behaving like God towards one another, they will be greatly rewarded!

Now a cynical teacher would argue that if Christ himself had to use "incentives" to motivate his disciples, then what hope do we have to motivate our students now to do the work of God? I completely understand this concern. I find myself struggling with this everyday in and out of the classroom.

I absolutely hate the concept of required community service hours. To me, it is no different than the way society views community service, a potential alternative to serving jail time. By requiring it, we are not encouraging, but rather forcing, students to do the work of God. Jesus never did that. He encouraged, motivated, but never forced, people to believe in him or follow his lead. Personally, I rather a person not do service if they are not truly motivated and dedicated to doing the work of the Lord. What about those who are called to do the will of the Lord openly but can't because service organizations are being "used" by students in need of service hours?

I digress. My point is that Christ wants us to serve others out of the kindness of our hearts. Will we be rewarded if we can successfully do this? Yes. Should we do it just because we "get something?" No. We need to break from this "What do I get in return?" mentality. God has already given us what we need, so why not share the wealth with others?