Walking With Christ

We’ve talked about the ministry of what didn’t happen. Let’s talk for a minute about the ministry of what Jesus didn’t say.

Matthew 6:25 Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?(ESV)

Jesus said to not worry. Jesus did not say to plan every step of your life and worry over every small detail. We are to rely on God’s provision.

Matthew 6:19-21 (19)Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, (20)but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. (21)For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.(ESV)

Jesus said that everything in this world is temporary or can be stolen by thieves. Time and rot are the two biggest natural thieves there are. Jesus did not say to strive for wealth and comfort at all costs in this life. The next life offers both wealth and comfort that will not perish for those wise enough to hear.

John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.(ESV)

Jesus said to love others as He loved us. Jesus did not say to judge and condemn others who do not believe as we do or follow Jesus as we do. He wants us to follow His examples and show them to others in the same ways that He did.

John 13:35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.(ESV)

Jesus said that people would know His followers by the love they showed the fallen world. Jesus did not say that the world would know us by the titles we use, clothes we wear, cars we drive, jobs we have, church we go to, how well we sing in the choir, how often we listened to sermons, how much we read the bible, or any other marker mankind ascribes to success. No, He said it was His love that would mark us. His love is the truth and changes us in ways that the world simply can’t understand from the outside. The world cannot understand it, but can identify how different it is.

Luke 9:23 And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.(ESV)

Jesus said to follow Him. Jesus did not say it would be easy or include any kind of happiness or success. It’s not a guarantee of anything that this world considers good and worth while. It is, however, a guarantee of something far greater than words can describe.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.(ESV)

Jesus said He gave us His peace. Jesus did not say that He would remove all of the troubles and pitfalls in the world so that there was nothing to be cautious of. We are promised a peace that transcends earthly circumstances, that confounds the worldly mind. We are guaranteed to face adversity, but with Jesus we are also guaranteed peace through the storm.

Matthew 25:35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me(ESV)

Jesus said that how we treat the unfortunate and downtrodden would reflect how we would have treated Him. Jesus did not say to only help those who can repay or those who deserve it. He called for unconditional compassion and universal assistance to those who are in need. We will all find ourselves in need from time to time and if the only help that ever comes is to those who can repay or are worthy of it then nobody would ever get help.

Let’s listen to what He has to say without hearing the things He did not say. Far too much theology is built on what didn’t happen and what Jesus didn’t say. Part of believing the truth is identifying and rejecting the lies. Jesus is truth. Always seek truth and wisdom.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.(ESV)