Matthew 5:17 – “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.  (NIV) 

During the first several centuries of Christianity, there was a group of Christians known as the Gnostics.  The word Gnostic comes from the Greek word gnosis, which means knowledge.  There were several forms of Gnosticism, but one early group got their name by claiming that the knowledge of salvation through Jesus was all that we needed, that one could live however they wished as long as they had the knowledge of Jesus.  It’s fairly easy to see that there are many Christians still today who live like those ancient Gnostics.

We are saved through grace, and Jesus did pay for our sins, but Christianity calls for holy living.  Throughout the New Testament we get this message of changed lives.  In the opening verses of Paul’s letter to Rome, he wrote: “I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people” (Romans 1:7).  Paul wrote this again in 1 Corinthians 1:2 – “I am writing to God’s church in Corinth, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people.”  We are called to be holy.  The Greek word that we translate as holy can be translated several ways, but primarily it means to be set aside for God. 

Jesus tells us the same in the reading for today.  We are called to be righteous people.  We are called to live lives dedicated to God.  Salvation is free, but our response is to live differently.  We are all sinners, and we will stumble from time to time, but that is no excuse for accepting a life of sin.  Jesus even said in verse twenty above: “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Let us strive not to live as the Gnostics lived, but as children of God who have been called to live holy lives.  Yes, we trust in Jesus’ sacrifice, but we respond through faithful living.

Posted by Ramón Torres