Lent: The Attitude of the Heart

I've been in the Sermon on the Mount for devotional reading during Lent and something keeps popping up.  Jesus keeps talking about actions and the attitude of our hearts.  Mercy, forgiveness, prayers, giving to the needy, fasting, worry, and much more are all tied to the sincerity of the heart.  Lamps, trees, wide and narrow gates, wise and foolish builders, salt and light, are all used to turn everything previously known and practiced inside out.  It becomes clear that "religion" is not the motive for living.  It's the heart:

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.  (Matthew 6:1)

Jesus didn't oppose or change the religious laws.  He expanded the interpretation of them.  He turned them upside down.  No longer is the act of a sexual affair the sin of adultery, but lusting toward another as if you desired an affair is the same as adultery.  Murder is now seen beyond the violent act of killing someone, but it is expanded to having murderous thoughts.  Wishing someone dead is the same as killing them. Having that kind of hatred within is the same as acting on it.  Over and over Jesus keeps pounding the attitude of the heart.  What we feel and believe in our hearts is reality, not the outward motions of hypocrisy that often betray what we really believe.  

And the very grace, mercy and forgiveness we want from God must show up in our actions and attitudes toward others, even enemies, or those who've wronged us.  We say we believe in and value mercy, grace and forgiveness, but its ultimate value is found in our capacity to grant it toward others.   We can't be high grace receivers and stingy grace givers.  For example, picking at the speck of wood in our brother or sister's eye is actually hysterical when we've got a 4x4 post sticking out of our own eye.

Jesus isn't saying we receive grace, mercy and forgiveness based on our heart condition because God's grace is amazingly free.  He's saying that those who've received such grace have transformed hearts and can't help but extended grace to others.  With great grace comes great responsibility!

There's nothing new, or exhaustive here in terms of interpretation.  Just a simple reminder that the bottom line is the attitude of the heart.  And the work of Lent calls all of us to get alone with God in our prayer closet and ask Him to show us what needs to be changed.  If we sincerely ask and sincerely listen He will!