Word to the Wise
Thursday, June 27, 2024 - Thursday in the 12th Week in Ordinary Time
[2 Kgs 24:8-17 and Matt 7:21-29]When Jesus finished these words, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes. [Matthew]
The words above appear five times in the Gospel According to Matthew, each at the end of a "discourse." Today they come at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus was a new kind of teacher. He did not appeal to the authority of someone else, like the scribes did. He was his own authority both by identity as well as by the way he lived.
Our baptismal identity gives us "authority" to speak and act as Christians in Jesus' name. Our identity is, of course, not one of divinity but as people who have, as today's gospel says, built our houses on the "rock" of Jesus' teachings. But it will not be enough to appeal to our baptism. Our lives and actions must reflect the power of that sacrament. People are not likely to ask for our baptismal certificate. They will respond to the power of our good example. This is how we can preach and teach. What we do outside of devotional and liturgical activity can have a more lasting impact in drawing others to faith. Following the teachings in the Sermon on the Mount is a good place to start! AMEN