Children of the Highest

It is very important to discern the doctrinal application of this passage on the children of the highest before studying each verse in the passage.

These words were spoken to Jesus’s disciples, v.40.  They were spoken during his earthly ministry, before his crucifixion.  At this time, all of his disciples were Jews and none of them had yet been born again.

When Jesus preached these words to his disciples, he enhanced the way they were to obey the Old Testament commandments.  They were to no longer love their neighbor and hate their enemy or to recompense and eye for and eye, for instance.  They were to forgive so that they could be forgiven.

This passage contains verses that are very much like the sermon on the mount in Matthew.  Doctrinally, then, you can expect to find references to Israel’s peculiar relationship to God where he is called their Father, v.36, and they are called the “children of the Highest,” v.35.  In this age, God doesn’t become our Father when we do these things spoken by Jesus.  We must be born again.

Therefore, some of the statements Jesus made cannot be applied doctrinally to us in the church age.  For example, v.37.  Certainly, we will be judged at the JSC, 2 Cor 5:10.  Surely, a Christian can be condemned if he walks after the flesh and not after the Spirit, Rom 8:1.  And we don’t need to forgive to be forgiven because we are forgiven when we trust Christ, Eph 4:32.

Nevertheless, the verses in this passage can be applied spiritually to us because they establish principles by which we are to live.  Here are some principles to live by:

Love Your Enemies, 27-28

• Love your enemies.  Jesus did.  Paul did.  Elizabeth Elliot did.  She moved into the Auca/Waodoni village with her daughter to live among those who had killed her husband.
• Do good to them which hate you.  Paul said feed you enemy and overcome evil with good, Rom 12:20-21.
• Bless them that curse you.  Paul repeated this in Rom 12:14.
• Pray for them which despitefully use you.  The Jews beat Paul everywhere he preached (Acts 14:19, for example), but his prayer to God was that Israel might be saved, Rom 10:1.

Don’t Retaliate, 29-30

Avenge not yourselves, Rom 12:19.  He commanded this instead of an eye for an eye.  Jesus didn’t retaliate, 1 Pet 2:19-24.  Paul followed what Jesus said and didn’t retaliate.  We should’t either.

Keep the Golden Rule, 31

We don’t keep the golden rule so we can be saved, like most people believe and many churches preach.  The golden rule, according to Jesus, “is the law and the prophets”, Matt 7:12.  Paul agreed, Rom 13:9-10.  Thus, we should live our lives toward others like we expect them to live their lives toward us.  Be the kind of Christian that you think they should be.

Be Like the Highest, 32-35

If you only love, do good to, and lend to those who love you, do good to you, and pay you back, then you’re just like all the other sinners.  They do all of these things.  Jesus wants us to conduct ourselves as “children of the Highest”.  Since, as born again Christians we are now “sons of God”, we must do these things.   

And as sons of God, we should be kind to the unthankful and evil, just like the Lord is.  This gives us a good testimony with others for the Lord’s sake and a great future reward.  Jesus implies that our reward will be far greater than any loss we may suffer down here.  Paul agrees, Rom 8:18.  Plus, we have the promise of God’s provision while we are here, v.38.

Be Merciful, 36-37

Over and over in the Old Testament we see the mercy of God.  See Ps 136, for example.  And the Lord has extended and continues to extend great mercy to us.  Therefore, we should be merciful just like he is.  This helps those who don’t know God to understand that he is merciful with them.

To study the previous lesson, see The Apostles and the Kingdom of God. To study the next lesson, see A Disciple’s Character.