I’ve been active on social media and in the world of internet since like 2007. And, I use social media to share my thoughts, life, and stay connected with friends as well as family.
I often browse facebook, as an example, and then realize that a friend or two have so many likes and comments every time they post something.
Of course, I have a good following on social media, but not as a few of my friends do. When their single post has over a thousand likes within a day, mine will only have just a few.
Ok, don’t get me wrong here. I’m not marketing myself now. But, I am ok if you can also share some of my thoughts like this reflection with a friend or a family member on the social platform of your choice.
The point though here is that the number of followers and likes can become misleading. They may make you think you weren’t made for this moment just like the others you see and watch on social media or TV.
This reflection is to help you and I remember that God made us all for this moment too, whether we have some following on social media (the net or in real life), or not.
“You were made for this moment” is a four part-series reflection I share in Church as well as on the net to help us thrive as individual followers of Christ as well as a community of believers.
Let’s take a look at the sermon on the mount. You may have already heard of it. You find it in the gospel of Matthew.
Jesus goes on top of a hill and starts teaching. These teachings cover chapters 5 through 7 in Matthew. They also address several topics, which were relevant then just as they are today in the 21st century.
Attitudes
The sermon on the mount begins with the beatitudes. In French, you can call them “belles attitudes.” Read about them in Matthew 5:3-12.
They talk about attitudes, which come down to the following, I’d say: humility, love, generosity, happiness, and hospitality. I discuss them in my book, 5 Attitudes Every Christian Should Have. You can also read about them in one of my previous articles by clicking here.
When you think of attitudes, these are the core of our psychological construct, emotional and mental entity.
In other words, they represent the backbone of what makes us think and feel the way we do. They affect our behavior meaning the way we conduct ourselves publicly or privately.
Identity
Jesus, in his sermon, goes from the beatitudes to something different. See verses 13 through 16 below,
“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
He uses two analogies here — salt and light — to say this is what we are to be. The closing of this section is what matters the most: “let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds, and glorify your Father in heaven.”
We let our light shine before others through attitudes we display: humility, love, generosity, hospitality, and happiness.
Therefore, you shouldn’t start with attitudes before making sure there is saltiness and light within you to share with others.
The Foundation
To help us maintain saltiness and light within us, we need to stay connected to the source of all this. We need to do what Jesus recommends us all based on Matthew 7:24-27
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
The above verses are the conclusion of the sermon on the mount. They summarize all the teachings from the sermon into one truth:
[bctt tweet=”When you don’t build your life on the rock (Christ), your house (life) will not stand when you go through life’s storms. But, when you use Christ as the foundation of everything you are, you and whatever you build in life will never fall. ” username=”emmanuelnaweji”]
Clearly, we cannot build or successfully embrace good Christian attitudes, which make up our behavior, if we don’t build our lives on the Rock that is Jesus Christ.
In Conclusion
Start with Christ, the Rock. Build who you are on Jesus’ word. Doing so will not only make you salt of the earth and light of the world, but it will make you stand and face, head on, anything life throws at you. In the end, people around you will eventually see God at work in your life, and give glory to God, as a result.
