Soutwestern Adventist University
This past Thursday on my way back home from a pre-trip to Belize and Guatemala for Cruise with a Mission, I had the amazing opportunity to speak at the chapel service for the student body of Southwestern Adventist University (SWAU). I had only been to the campus once before (in the late 90’s) and I must say that I was very impressed. Not only was the campus laid out well, with beautiful buildings, but the students and staff were very hospitable. And the cafe was out of this world. “BIG UPS” to David Knight, the VP for student affairs on campus. He has great rapport with the students!
The title of my talk was “10ft. Overhead”. In the message we explore the fact that we there are often so many standards in the Bible that we feel like we will never measure up. Sometimes sin is so dominate in our lives that we feel we can never please God. What begins to happen is that we start down the slippery slope of doubt which can easily lead to us loosing faith in God completely (something that I hear about all the time).
Jesus, in His opening discourse at the beginning of His public ministry, begins by telling the crowd that if they want to go to heaven, their righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees (Matthew 5: 20). I can just imagine the crowd gasping as Jesus, who they have heard is the Messiah… the savior of the world, is now telling them that they need to get their lives together if they really want to go to heaven. The conflict comes when they realize that the prophet Isaiah says that their righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).
So here is a question for you: What does Matthew 5:20 + Isaiah 64:6 + Matthew 6:33 = ____________? You tell me?
Blessings,
mwg
Posted by matthew gamble on October 28, 2007 at 06:25 PM
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Hey Matt..
Posted by Nat on October 29, 2007 at 06:20 AM | #heard you speak at North New South Wales camp (BIG Camp) really enjoyed it.
So here are my thoughts on the verses(I couldnt find the Isaiah ref tho?!?)...I think...that living righteously is all about living a full life with Gods guidance(prayer, bible etc), realising your gifts and using them to further Gods work..not comparing yourself with others.. so yep there are my thoughts!
Keep up the awesome ministry
I think the Isaiah verse you want is Isaiah 64:6??
Some would say Matt 5:20 is calling for us to do more works to be saved so that our ‘righteousness’ will be better than the pharisees ... but I think it means the opposite. I think Jesus was highlighting the fact that man can’t save himself, that our attempts to gain righteousness are as “filthy rags” (Isaiah). The important thing is to seek Him - measuring up is not the issue - we will never measure up. Titus 3:3-8 is a clincher for me ... “It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! You can count on this.” (The Message)
Posted by Rod L on October 29, 2007 at 02:55 PM | #Yes, I believe Jesus said that in Matt 5:33 to make a point. Matt, correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems that Jesus wanted to show how hard it is to work your way to heaven. It says in Isaiah 64:6, if that’s the verse you’re referring to, that OUR righteous acts are filthy rags. But if we seek HIS righteousness, Matt. 6:33, all these things will be given to us. That’s what I take away from those verses. Thanks, bro!
Posted by Robin on October 31, 2007 at 10:52 PM | #Thanks Rod for the clarification! I’ve gone in and made the corrections. You were right, it was Isaiah 64:6!
It IS all about HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS and none of our own! Keep up the strong work guys! And thanks a trillion for the comments!
Posted by matthew gamble on November 04, 2007 at 10:16 PM | #i unfortunately didn’t get to listen to you give our assembly, however, i heard it was amazing and it really made the student body think. I wish i would have been able to hear because you left an impact with some of the students.
Posted by geraldo on December 09, 2007 at 09:25 PM | #Greetings Geraldo! Thank you for taking the time to write. It was a blessing to be at SWAU. I hope that one day the door opens to return!
mwg
Posted by matthew gamble on February 21, 2008 at 10:23 PM | #Page 1 of 1 pages