Holy Ground

April 23, 2019

Holy Ground

“So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.”

Matthew 5:23-24

Jesus began his Sermon on the Mount with the Beatitudes. (Matthew 5:3-10) This was his introduction into our life in Christ. In the rest of his sermon, Jesus takes us deeper and shows us what it looks like when he replaces our  narcissistic, self-absorbed hearts, with hearts of compassion that have love for our neighbors and enemies alike. One of our challenges in interpreting scripture is to discern when, and why, Jesus may have used hyperbole to make a point, and when we are to take him literally. Jesus loved hyperbole as he talked about taking the log out of our eye, or straining gnats and swallowing camels, or if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. In today’s passage I think Jesus wants his hyperbole to inspire us to take him literally.

First, there is an altar. To appreciate the importance of the altar, you may want to read Revelation 22. In the closing scene of all that God has created is a sanctuary scene with an altar and the people of God at worship. For the entire history of God and His people, the focal point has been a sanctuary and an altar where God’s people come to worship. I am saddened that so many of the modern gathering places for worship are called auditoriums. The chancel area has been replaced with a stage and the altar is not there at all.

Secondly, when we are at the altar, God speaks to us. The most sacred time of worship for me occurs on the first Sunday of the month when our church celebrates the sacrament of Holy Communion. After my wife and I receive the elements, we go to the altar and kneel together in prayer. In that place; I hear God speak to me. What I hear is clear and is distinct from how I may discern God leading me in any other place and time. Frequently, what I hear is a call to action that I need to process further when I am alone with God in my personal devotional place.

My Takeaway: For me, when I kneel at the altar in my church, it is no less holy ground than the ground where Moses knelt before the burning bush. (Exodus 3:5) I believe this is the way Jesus wants me to experience it.  

Sē’lah

Alex

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.