Heart Work, Not Hard Work

This message by Pastor Lonnie challenges the idea that spiritual life is about simply following rules or performing religious duties. Jesus calls us to a righteousness that goes beyond outward appearances by not just doing more, but by transforming from within. He shifts the focus from external actions to internal attitudes, showing that contempt, anger, and arrogance are just as serious as murder in God’s eyes. A healthy spirituality isn’t about keeping score; it’s about nurturing a heart that reflects God’s love. Jesus doesn’t just want better behavior; He wants hearts that have truly changed. Reconciliation is more important than religious rituals, and being at peace with others proves that our relationship with God is genuine.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
How many of you woke up today and thought.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
You know what, I'm going to try not to kill
somebody today. I mean, that's not what's on the usual morning.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
Checklist, is it.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
We wake up, brush teeth, feed the dog, don't murder anyone.

Speaker 1 (00:38):
So when we hit that part.

Speaker 2 (00:44):
Of Jesus's sermon in Matthew twenty one or he says
it very clearly.

Speaker 1 (00:51):
He says, you've heard it said to the people long ago,
you shall not murder.

Speaker 2 (00:58):
Well, most of us we'll read that. We'll say cool,
I kneled it. I didn't murder anyone. I must be
fine in God's eyes. But if we keep going a
little further, he says, but I tell you, anyone who's

(01:20):
angry with your brother or sister will be subject to judgment.
And now all of a sudden, we're alike.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
Now wait a minute, hold on.

Speaker 2 (01:36):
You mean when that guy who cut me off in
traffic yesterday and I said some words that I cannot
say in church, that counts.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
Yeah, it does. That counts.

Speaker 2 (01:52):
Now I want to rewind a little bit. And this
goes all the way to the beginning.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Of the reading that Julie did. Julie, you did a
great job it's a hard read. It's a hard read.

Speaker 2 (02:04):
It begins by saying, you know, Jesus, he said, don't think.

Speaker 1 (02:07):
That I have come to abolish the law.

Speaker 2 (02:10):
We have this idea where a new Testament people, So
therefore the Old Testament doesn't well, it does matter, Jesus,
and I didn't come to get rid of it. I
have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill that law.

Speaker 1 (02:29):
Now, when Jesus says that, why would he.

Speaker 2 (02:36):
Come across that way, it's because he's about to say
something that actually is pretty radical to our ears. Because
at this point, at this juncture, Jesus is really engendering
I would call a higher standing of the gospel that

(02:58):
he brings.

Speaker 1 (02:59):
He is about to push people.

Speaker 2 (03:03):
Pass rules and into the heart behind the rules. He's saying, hey, gang,
I'm not rewinding rewriting the law at all. I'm revealing
what God meant in that law. Because the law and

(03:25):
the Old Testament that wasn't just created to keep us
in line, to make us act good, to carouse us.

Speaker 1 (03:32):
That's not what the law was there. The purpose of
the law was about.

Speaker 3 (03:36):
Shaping our hearts, not about how we live by a checklist,
but to shape the heart, and Jesus is the one
who brings that full vision.

Speaker 2 (03:48):
Into reality and the life that he lived. Now I
want us to also. Right now, let's get to the
real hard part. As Jesus says verse twenty one. In
twenty two, you've heard, but it's said you shall not murder.
But I tell you anyone who's angry with.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
The brother or sister will be subject to judgment.

Speaker 2 (04:15):
Now we need to underscore that Jesus is just saying, hey,
don't kill anyone. We tend to just think of that,
Why do you kill anyone?

Speaker 1 (04:25):
He's not saying don't kill anyone.

Speaker 2 (04:29):
He is saying, don't even carry around a low grade, slow, simmering,
passive aggressive anger.

Speaker 1 (04:48):
I think that hits us, doesn't It really hits us?

Speaker 2 (04:53):
Because while murder may not be on your two do
list today, bitterness might be.

Speaker 1 (05:05):
Our resentment.

Speaker 2 (05:08):
Or perhaps that fantasy conversation in your head where you
tell somebody off and you finally put them in their place.

Speaker 1 (05:17):
And we've all been there, we've been there. So here's
the deal. I think Jesus is saying this, and that
is what's in.

Speaker 2 (05:29):
Our hearts matters as much as what we do.

Speaker 1 (05:36):
That's pretty difficult, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (05:40):
You might never punch somebody in the face, but if
you've assassinated their character in your mind or under your breath,
Jesus is saying that is a heart level version of
the same thing. Now, so does that mean anger is wrong?

Speaker 1 (06:05):
Of course not. Jesus himself got angry. He has something
to do with the fols who were making the church
a marketplace.

Speaker 2 (06:15):
But it was a righteous anger that was rooted in love,
and it was an anger that was also rooted in justice.

Speaker 1 (06:22):
And even the apostle Paul when he wrote.

Speaker 2 (06:24):
The community in emphasis in Ephesians chapter four, verse twenty six,
he said, be angry, but don't sit. So there's that
balance in dealing with that emotion. But our anger usually
isn't that noble.

Speaker 1 (06:46):
Usually it's not.

Speaker 2 (06:47):
It's usually about either three things.

Speaker 1 (06:52):
We get angry about our ego.

Speaker 2 (06:56):
Or hurt feelings, unmet expectations.

Speaker 1 (07:04):
And that will get us riled up. And then Jesus
doesn't leave us hanging there. But I think Jesus.

Speaker 2 (07:13):
Provides a very practical illustration on how we can work
through this inner battle, this inner war.

Speaker 1 (07:21):
And we find that as.

Speaker 2 (07:23):
He goes to verse twenty three, where he says, if
you an offering a gift to the altar and remember
that your brother or sister has something against you, leave
your gift there in front of the altar and go
first and be reconciled to them.

Speaker 1 (07:41):
You know, it's like it's winning when we offer it. Related.

Speaker 2 (07:44):
If I've got something that that's not right with someone,
Jesus a go take care of that.

Speaker 1 (07:50):
That's what I'm after, that's the offering.

Speaker 2 (07:52):
I want you to give thanks for what you're bringing
to the altar and lacy o there.

Speaker 1 (07:55):
But I want your heart.

Speaker 2 (07:59):
And if the heart is bruised and blemish, there's some
work to be done.

Speaker 1 (08:04):
So what do you think Jesus is getting at here?
I think this is what he's getting at.

Speaker 2 (08:12):
God cares more about relationships than our rituals.

Speaker 1 (08:20):
That's what he cares about, not the liturgy. Word is
your heart and your relationship with others.

Speaker 2 (08:31):
Now, when we offer a gift at the altar, it
is it's an act of worship.

Speaker 1 (08:37):
It's an active worship to the Lord. Here I am,
here's here's my here, here's my time. It is an
act of worship.

Speaker 2 (08:44):
He's not saying ignore worship here, but he's saying, don't
pretend everything's good with God when you're at war with
the other people that God created.

Speaker 1 (08:57):
That's that's rough.

Speaker 2 (09:01):
So let me ask us, all, is there someone in
your life right now who comes to mind, someone that
maybe you haven't forgiven, Maybe a friend, maybe a sibling,

(09:27):
maybe a parent, or even a fellow church person. If so,
don't ignore that prompting. That's the spirit of God, I believe,
nudging us, nudging you towards glorifying God and towards healing.

(09:53):
So what's the point in all that.

Speaker 1 (09:55):
Is that Jesus isn't just raising the bar.

Speaker 2 (10:02):
He is intergendering a paradigm shame by saying he is
changing the game and saying, following me is not checking
a bunch of moral boxes.

Speaker 1 (10:16):
Oh I didn't do this, I didn't do that. I
didn't you know all.

Speaker 2 (10:20):
And we have an idea that following Jesus I checked
enough moral boxes. So therefore I'm cool, He's saying, I'm sorry.
That's not the point, not at all. It is about
essentially letting love rewrite the script of your heart. It's

(10:44):
heart work, not the hard work of keeping the law
and the dietary restrictions and all the stuff that made
the Pharisees crazy and keeping them letting love read.

Speaker 1 (10:59):
Write the script of your heart. That's what's Jesus.

Speaker 2 (11:04):
He's not here talking about damnation in Hallivan. He's saying
there's something more, there's something beyond that.

Speaker 1 (11:11):
I want to rewrite your heart. And I don't believe
that God is very impressed with people who say I
didn't murder anyone today. I don't think he's all that impressed.

Speaker 2 (11:29):
But I do believe he's enormously impressed by people who
say I choose mercy overrage.

Speaker 1 (11:41):
I sought peace over pettiness. And so here's the challenge.
Who do you need to forgive?

Speaker 2 (11:52):
Who do you need to ask forgiveness from? And what
angers holding that you're holding onto that God is asking
you to release, and maybe most importantly, and this is
the final takeaway from this morning. It's a lot of

(12:12):
heavy stuff, But are you ready to live not just
by the letter of.

Speaker 1 (12:18):
The law, but by the heart of Jesus. That's what
he was after. So we're not legalists. I don't care
about that law.

Speaker 2 (12:31):
I don't have to care about it because Jesus said,
you love your heart, Love Lord, You've got your heart,
your mind, and soul.

Speaker 1 (12:36):
You do this, You've done it all very clear. Why
do we make it so complicated?

Speaker 2 (12:42):
Are you ready to live not just by the letter
of the law, but saying I want the heart.

Speaker 1 (12:48):
Of Jesus to be about all that I am about.
It's not trying harder to not kill someone, It's about deeper.
That's what Jesus wanted. It's not hard work. It's hard work.

(13:13):
So I would encourage you.

Speaker 2 (13:17):
To stop chasing spiritual performance.

Speaker 1 (13:23):
Let God transform your motives, not just your actions, not
just your actions.

Speaker 2 (13:35):
Because if the heart is not right, life won't be
right either.

Speaker 1 (13:44):
So let the spirit.

Speaker 2 (13:47):
Do the hard work, the healing work inside. For we
are never more like Jesus. Then when we love people.

Speaker 1 (14:01):
Who are hard to love, that is when we are
most like Jesus. And when we offer that on the altar.

Speaker 2 (14:12):
So I have a vision for us, a passion to
be the christ following community where when people talk about
Fox River Congregational Church, they'll say that's a community of people.

Speaker 1 (14:32):
And a church. For they don't just avoid doing wrong.
They won't kill you there. They don't just avoid.

Speaker 2 (14:40):
Doing wrong, but they actively seek to love. Big difference,
big difference and it's the deciding factor of the Church
of Jesus Christ. Idol love Michael Angelo, and I'm sure

(15:01):
a number of you actually viewed his sculpture of David.

Speaker 1 (15:07):
It's amazing.

Speaker 2 (15:08):
I can't imagine how a human being was able to
create that sculpture.

Speaker 1 (15:14):
Well, there's a there's a story.

Speaker 2 (15:17):
Where someone asked Michael answered the question was how.

Speaker 1 (15:20):
Did you carve something so beautiful?

Speaker 2 (15:26):
And he said, I just chipped away everything that didn't
look like David.

Speaker 1 (15:33):
Cool.

Speaker 2 (15:34):
I just got rid of the stuff that didn't look
like David.

Speaker 1 (15:40):
Well, Jesus is doing the same with us.

Speaker 2 (15:42):
I believe he's chipping away everything that doesn't look like him.

Speaker 1 (15:51):
He wants you to look like Christ.

Speaker 2 (15:55):
So let him be the sculpture, okay, of your life,
of who you are.

Speaker 1 (16:02):
Would you please stand? Let us pray together.

Speaker 2 (16:07):
Before we have our concluding him.

Speaker 1 (16:12):
Father, we thank you for not giving up on us.
Thank you for seeing past the surface and into our hearts.

Speaker 2 (16:25):
To do the deep work we cannot do on our own.
And so Lord chisel us, shape us, refine us, make
us more like.

Speaker 1 (16:41):
Jesus, not just in the big moments, but in the
hidden places of our thoughts and motives.

Speaker 2 (16:55):
Help us to love deeply, to live honestly, and to
reflect you in Jesus name.

Speaker 1 (17:07):
Amen.