God has set Jesus Christ as the ultimate Standard for all people, a beacon drawing the remnant of Israel and Judah from the four corners of the earth. As foretold in Isaiah 11:10-13, He stands as the banner for the nations, assembling the outcasts of Israel and the dispersed of Judah, uniting them into one nation under His reign. His character, imbued with the Spirit of the Lord, wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and the fear of the Lord, forms the foundation of the Millennium, a time of peace and righteousness where even the wolf shall dwell with the lamb. Through His sacrifice, Jesus Christ provides the means for atonement, covering and carrying away the sins of humanity. As depicted in Isaiah 53:4-12, He has borne our griefs, carried our sorrows, and was wounded for our transgressions, ensuring that by His stripes we are healed. His blood, as the ultimate sin offering, cleanses us from all sin, a truth echoed in Hebrews 9:11-15, where He enters the Most Holy Place with His own blood, obtaining eternal redemption. This act of grace, not through the blood of goats and calves but through His sinless life, purifies the conscience to serve the living God. As the Mediator of the New Covenant, Jesus Christ redeems the transgressions under the first covenant, offering eternal inheritance to those called. His one-time sacrifice, as stated in Hebrews 9:23-28, puts away sin forever, and to those who eagerly await Him, He will appear a second time for salvation. For the humbled remnant of Israel, returning in repentance and sorrow, He will forgive their sins, making them the human nucleus of His Kingdom. Through Him, the New Covenant will be established, as promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34, with God's law written on their hearts, uniting them as His people under His divine guidance.

In our pursuit of righteousness, we must look to Jesus Christ as our ultimate Standard, far above the flawed measures of human comparison. When we evaluate ourselves against others, as many do, we set a bar far below what God desires for us. His ideal calls us to strive for a higher goal, not to settle for the imperfect standards we see in one another. Comparing ourselves among ourselves leads to self-justification, stagnation, and a lack of growth, as we fail to see our own sins and shortcomings without the revelation of God's Holy Spirit. God's Word reminds us that only His standard of truth provides the true measure of our lives. As we read in Romans 2:2, the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice sinful things. We must not judge others for the same faults we possess, nor should we use them as our benchmark, for this will not allow us to escape His judgment. Instead, we are to seek His guidance, as David did in Psalm 139:23-24, praying for God to search our hearts, reveal any wicked ways within us, and lead us in the way everlasting. Through the indwelling of His Spirit, as described in Romans 8:5-9, we are called to live not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit, setting our minds on spiritual things. Those who are carnally minded cannot please God, but we, united with His Spirit, belong to Christ. Therefore, let us fix our eyes on Him, the perfect Standard, and allow His Holy Spirit to cleanse us from both hidden faults and willful sins, guiding us toward true righteousness and eternal life.

Jesus Christ is of course the one doing the measuring of His church. He is the righteous Judge. The measuring here then is a measuring of the true church by Jesus Christ. We, the church of God, are being measured now against God's standard to see how we fit into His Kingdom. To examine something is really to test or measure it against a standard. God's measurement system goes far beyond the outward obedience to the letter of the law. Loving God with all our hearts. All our hearts is what God is most interested in. Our heart is the center of our intelligence. It underpins our will, our character, and ultimately drives all of our outward actions, including words and deeds that all come first from our heart, which is in our mind. We know that God judges our hearts. Our heart is what God measures. And as we approach the Passover, our heart is what we are to be examining. God is more concerned about our underlying heart, our attitude, our intent, our complete submission to His will, as opposed to just mere outward obedience to the letter of the law. We are going to pick up the very beginning of Jesus Christ's ministry where He lays out God's measurement system for our hearts. The Beatitudes are eight individual attitudes or mental states that overlap in our linked characteristics. When we put them together, they describe the proper mindset, the proper hearts that leads to eternal life. These mental attributes are required in order to be truly blessed by God because they enable us to have the right perspective, the right foundation to both act and react properly to all of life's circumstances. It is the most critical attitude of our hearts that must come before anything else. It is a precursor, a prerequisite attitude, the most essential element that opens the door to our relationship with God. Only those who are poor in spirit will be in God's Kingdom. Jesus uses a play on words here with an adjective most often associated with the physical to describe something spiritual. He uses the Greek adjective to describe our underlying spirit that is translated rather poorly as poor. It is Strong's 4434, ptochos, and it carries a much more severe meaning than the English word poor. The real meaning here is someone that is a beggar, a pauper, completely destitute, helpless, wretched, powerless, much more significant than just being poor. Jesus is saying, Blessed are those who understand they are spiritually bankrupt and spiritually destitute. Blessed are they who come to understand that we have earned nothing of spiritual value. To be poor in spirit is a product of God's Spirit working in those He has called and those He is creating in Christ Jesus. When we are poor in spirit, we know that we never come even close to doing everything God commands. Every single day we fall short in our heart. The poor in spirit know that we are unprofitable servants in the eyes of God. When we compare our heart to God's holiness, we become very poor real quick, bankrupt, destitute in spirit, and this creates an underlying heart of humility. It all starts with a proper comparison between our hearts and God's heart, and this underlying attitude of failing to measure up flows over to our relationship with everyone else. When we are poor in spirit, we are restrained from thinking badly about anyone else. When we are poor in spirit, we esteem others better than ourselves. Jesus kicks off His ministry in Luke 4:18, I have been anointed to preach the gospel to the poor. . . to heal the brokenhearted. Jesus tells us to take His yoke and learn of Me. A yoke was used to control the power of an animal. Jesus is telling us to take His yoke. Take the yoke of God's Holy Spirit so that we can learn to restrain and control our powerful minds and put them to work to become just like Him. Being poor in spirit is unnatural to the human mind. It is only through God's Holy Spirit that we can develop a heart that is restrained and under control at all times. As we examine

Jesus Christ stands as our ultimate Standard, the perfect example we are called to follow in all aspects of life. His interaction with Peter in John 21 reveals the depth of love and responsibility required of His followers. When Jesus asked Peter three times, "Do you love Me?" He emphasized the importance of a genuine, heartfelt commitment, offering Peter the chance to affirm his devotion after past failures. In response, Jesus charged him with the duty to "Feed My lambs" and "Tend My sheep," underscoring that true love for Him manifests in caring for His flock. This responsibility extends beyond Peter to all who follow Christ. Jesus instructs us to feed His sheep by teaching and promoting the Word of God through both word and example. As under-shepherds, whether in ministry or as parents, our primary duty is to nurture those entrusted to us, recognizing that the flock belongs to the Chief Shepherd, to whom we are accountable. Love for Christ demands sacrifice and a willingness to accept His will, even unto suffering, as Peter's martyrdom exemplified. Jesus foretold Peter's death, signifying that following Him often leads to paths we would not choose, yet through such trials, we glorify God. Jesus' command, "Follow Me," repeated in John 21, serves as a constant reminder to keep our eyes fixed on Him as the Standard of Christian service. He warns that without Him, we can do nothing, highlighting our dependence on His strength and guidance. By following Him, we learn self-denial and the bearing of our burdens in His service, as He Himself demonstrated by humbling Himself to the point of death on the cross. This path of discipleship, though marked by death to self, leads to the fullness of life, both now and hereafter, as seen in His resurrection. Christ's example teaches us to avoid comparing ourselves with others or judging their callings, as He corrected Peter for questioning John's future. Instead, we must focus on our own journey, ensuring our call and election are sure. His life, from beginning to end in John's gospel, frames the call to discipleship with the words "Follow Me," urging us to turn from all else and pursue Him alone. Through His Spirit, we are enabled to move toward perfection, united in purpose as we look to Him, the author and finisher of our faith, who endured the cross for the joy set before Him.