The only responsible place to dispose of our old life, whether sin or sin’s carcass, is at the foot of the cross where Jesus’ blood poured out on our behalf.  We cannot trivialize our past, blame it on others, compare it to others, or claim to save ourselves through righteous acts.  Jesus’ teachings in the Beatitudes, or any other body of scripture, always bring us to a place of repentance.  Repentance is how all spiritual detox begins, because without it, we are not willing to surrender our will to the will of God and seek the better life He has planned for us.

This marks the difference between merely learning more about Jesus and letting His teachings transform our inner being, as well as our view of the world.  What we know won’t change the world, but what we do with what we know will.

Did you know it is possible to be confronted with the truth and remain unchanged, just as it is possible to know there are toxins in our food supply and do nothing to improve the situation?  James wrote, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.  But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it–he will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:22-25).

There it is!  The Beatitude word “blessed.”  If we apply the Lord’s truths to our lives and let Him change us, we will be blessed.