The basis for everything we do is the life and teachings of Jesus, as recorded in the Bible.
This includes how we live, how we work, and how we communicate with others.
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Values for living
Live Like Jesus
The following teachings of Jesus and his statements not only set the highest possible standard of thinking and behavior, but note that a life set on following Jesus is the best life there is. As they run contrary to our nature and culture, incorporating them into our lives is a daily task.
It’s not just the actions, but the mind.
“You have heard that it was said long ago, ‘Do not murder’. . . . But I say that anyone who is angry with his brother will be under judgment.” – Matthew 5:21-22
Repay evil with good.
“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” – Matthew 5:44
Forgive without limit.
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not just seven times, but seventy-seven times!” – Matthew 18:21-22
The helpless deserve hero treatment.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” – Matthew 25:25-26
Be generous beyond your means.
“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” – Luke 6:38
This is the best life.
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” – Matthew 13:44-46
Values for servING
Work Like Jesus
Jesus focused on building people with humility and no-compromise integrity, uninterested in short-term results. We therefore choose to invest in people long-term, building them into effective multiplying leaders.
Small becomes big.
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” -Matthew 13:31-32
Work yourself out of a job.
“Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” – John 12:24
Racial Reconciliation Mural
by Brian Bakke, Gregory King, and Community Members, CHICAGO, 1995
Lead by putting others in front.
The disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.” – Matthew 18:1-5
Have no task beneath our position.
“And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet.” – John 13:14
Teach everyone that they can give.
Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.'” – Mark 12:41-44
The changing world requires changing paradigms.
“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” – Matthew 9:16-17
Values for sharing
Communicate Like Jesus
Jesus’ consistent message was to invite people to join him. To turn from self-centeredness to love-centeredness. No one was excluded from his message.
Share with kindness and honesty.
“We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” – John 1:14
Invite people to life transformation. “
“Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” – Matthew 4:17
Share good news to bring others to God.
“No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” – Matthew 5:15-16
A Note about the Gospel
According to the writer of the New Testament book of Mark, Jesus began his ministry by entering Galilee and proclaiming: “The time has come. The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” This writer wants us to understand these simple words as the summary of Jesus’ message. The Gospel, from Old English “god-spel,” meaning simply “good news,” was that God’s kingdom was arriving in the person of Jesus.
A kingdom includes a ruler and a realm. The ruler is obvious, but what is the realm? Jesus is clear that it is not geographic, with statements such as “My kingdom is not of this world,” and “The kingdom of God is among you.” In fact, Jesus’ so-called “Triumphal Entry” into Jerusalem on a donkey was a demonstration of irony. This supposed liberator knew that within days he would be executed in shame as a fraud.
Jesus’ realm is simply people, and the good news is that all are invited. Anyone may gain citizenship, with two related prerequisites: repent and believe.
Repent
The very concept of “good news” implies a solution to a problem. From individual choices to systems of oppression, the problem is selfishness: living for ourselves ahead of others, with the constant conflict that ensues. Jesus made it clear that the members of God’s kingdom will live for love; loving God as the source of all good and loving others because they are loved by God. The choice to repent involves agreeing to submit to God’s authority, from which living to take care of others will follow.
Believe
Jesus’ words, “believe the good news,” indicate that we are to accept it as real, that we can join God’s eternal kingdom through the exemplary life, sacrificial death, and triumphant resurrection of Jesus. It is therefore not a mere assent but a complete life transformation.
Altogether, the Gospel is completely simple, beginning with these very two small steps, We can take them as children or on our deathbed. But of course the earlier the better.
Billy Sunday, lithograph, George Wesley Bellows, 1923