Mt 5.17-19

Even in the kingdom of God, there are rankings. Some get As’, others get Es’. Schooling in heaven? Well, sorta. Except we have to remember that heaven happens on earth. Eternal life is about knowing Jesus. Right here, right now.
Schooling in heaven? Yup. Rejoice, though, because Jesus is our teacher. Not just our teacher, He is our text book, our exam question, our examiner, our student counsellor, our certificate. We graduate with Him. At the end of our course, He is our reward.

But, again, this doesn’t mean that everyone gets the same score. Check this out:
“Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teachers others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teachers these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5.19)

‘Least’ vs. ‘Great’. Yet both are still IN the kingdom of heaven! Just like a family. There can be good children and naughty children, but the father loves them all.
What kind of children are we? What kind of students are we? How have we been performing the school of Christ? Do we need ‘extra classes’ to get in shape for the exams? Oh, by the way, examinations are on a day-to-day basis. Marking is done by the moment. And no cheating is possible.

“What am I being examined on?!” you may ask. Well, go have a chat with your Teacher. Sort out the “important topics” you must work on. Get some feedback on your learning methods. Improve on your previous errors. Think about putting more thought and discipline into your revision, your presentations, your substance.

And now is Lent. The time when the lessons may get a little bit more intensive, a little bit more stressful. Maybe we’ll have to “burn midnight oil”. Indeed, we may. Perhaps we may need extra remedial classes to smoothen out the rough edges in our studies. To get back on track. To avoid failure.

Reflection:
1. If Sunday service is “class”, then what we doing BETWEEN classes? Do we even make a conscious effort to record clearly what we learn “in class”? And if we don’t understand, do we make it a point to ask?
2. In today’s schooling, tuition is pervasive. Almost everyone has to attend tuition. What kind of ‘Christian tuition’ are we taking?

(Meditations by Alwyn)