The Higher Standard: It’s a Heart Thing | Walking the Narrow Path (Part 3)
Matthew 5:17–48
If you’ve been following this journey, you’ve seen the internal shift of the Beatitudes and the external shine of being Salt and Light. But today, we hit a part of the trail that gets a little steeper.
In Matthew 5, Jesus does something radical. He doesn’t lower the bar to make the Narrow Path easier to walk; He actually raises it. He moves the conversation from rules to relationships, and from actions to intentions.
Beyond the Checklist
On the “Wide Road,” life is about technicalities. “As long as I didn’t break the law, I’m a good person.” But Jesus looks at the traveler and says, “You’ve heard it said… but I tell you…”
He takes the commandments we think we’re keeping and applies them to the hidden corners of our hearts:
- It’s not just about murder; it’s about the anger you nurse in your heart toward a brother.
- It’s not just about adultery; it’s about the lust you allow to linger in your mind.
- It’s not just about honesty; it’s about being so full of integrity that you don’t need an oath to be believed.
The Traveler’s True Compass
The Wide Road is satisfied with “good enough.” The Narrow Path seeks Holiness.
Why? Because the Narrow Path isn’t about earning your way into Heaven—it’s about reflecting the Father who lives there. Jesus ends this section with a staggering command: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
That sounds impossible, doesn’t it? If we try to do this in our own strength, we will collapse before we take ten steps. But that’s the secret of the traveler: we don’t walk this path to get God’s love; we walk it because we have it. We seek a higher standard because we serve a Higher King.
Love Your Enemies (The Ultimate Test)
The hardest part of this steep climb is when Jesus tells us to love our enemies. The world tells us to “get even” or “cancel” those who hurt us. But the traveler on the Narrow Path prays for them.
When we love those who don’t deserve it, we look most like Jesus. That is the “Higher Standard.”
Reflection for the Road:
Is there a “technicality” you are hiding behind? Are you keeping the rules on the outside while harboring bitterness or lust on the inside? Today, ask the Father to clean the heart, not just the hands.
Coming next in Part 4: Secret Devotion: Walking for an Audience of One | Walking the Narrow Path (Part 4)
