“THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD”
“Surpassing the Righteousness of the Pharisees and Scribes”
Mt. 5:20
Fr. Christopher M. Nerreau
Introduction: (READ PASSAGE) - In our gospel passage today Jesus commands us to have a righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees and Scribes. (v.20)
• Intrinsically many of us already understand God requires us to be righteous. The problem is we don’t understand how to achieve it. For the most part, we seek to fulfill this task by the sweat of our brow.
o A couple years ago I was at the beach watching a little boy attempt to drain the ocean with a bucket; he would take a scoop out of the ocean, walk over to the beach and dump it.
o We have about as much a chance of achieving the righteousness of God in and of ourselves as the boy had in emptying the ocean with a bucket. Let’s be honest with ourselves, we are not very good are we…
• So the question facing us today is – “Just how do we obtain the righteousness of God?”
Proposition: It is not possible for us to possess the righteousness of God on our own. We must have the help of God Himself.
Interrogative sentence: Today, do you possess the righteousness required to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?
Sermon Preview: It is my goal that by the end of this sermon you will be able to answer that question. So let’s look at the passage a little more closely as we see:
• The Problem of The Pharisees
• The Promise Of Christ
• The Prerequisite Of The Kingdom
Transitional Sentence: Let’s begin by looking at…
I. THE PROBLEM OF THE PHARISEES
Explanation: Jesus begins (vs. 20) with a call to righteousness, a righteousness that is greater than that of the Pharisees and Scribes.
THE BIBLE SAYS: 5:20 “unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees.”
The Scribes and Pharisees
• Scribes – A teaching class that transcribed the scriptures and was very familiar with them.
• The Scribes held a great deal of clout in the society of Jesus, they were a prestigious people.
• Pharisees -
• a member of a Jewish sect of the intertestamental period noted for strict observance of rites and ceremonies of the written law and for insistence on the validity of their own oral traditions concerning the law.
• The Common People –
• The Jews believed the Scribes and Pharisees were holy, as holy as they come.
• When I was a kid I thought my priest was “perfect”. I often wondered how he managed that.
The Challenge Of Jesus Statement
• Jesus command that the disciples surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees would have come as a great challenge to them. In their minds there were no people more holy than the Pharisees. They could not imagine trying to live a more devout life.
The Problem of the Pharisees
• The Pharisees emphasis was outward and showy by their own effort.
• Jesus reserved His harshest criticism for these people:
o Mt 6:1 – “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men.”
o Mt 6: 2 – “When you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet”
o Mt 6:5 - “When you pray [do not] stand and pray …street corners to be seen by men.”
o Mt 6:16 – “When you fast do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do.”
• Jesus summarizes by pointing out that we are not to Mt 6:19 - “store up for yourselves treasures on Earth.”
• Jesus advice to the religious elites Mt 23:26 - “You blind Pharisee, first, clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.”
Illustration: Have you ever looked at a car from a distance and thought – “Wow, that’s a really nice car. The outside is shinning and glimmering… Then you walk up a little closer and notice that the inside is a total mess.
This is a good description of the spiritual life of many of the Pharisees. On the outside they gave a great show but inside they were a mess.
Application:
o Jesus was not challenging their religiosity, He was challenging their hearts. Righteousness could not be accomplished by effort because it leads to pride.
o The first step in obtaining the Righteousness of God is to look introspectively and ask ourselves – “Is my Christian life just a show?” - “Why do I pray”, “Why do I go to Church”, “Why do I tithe”, “why do I help others”, “why do I _______?”
o Today we must move beyond a showy, prideful, self-righteousness toward a trust in God.
Transitional Sentence: So we see that the problem of the Pharisees was that they attempted to obtain righteousness within themselves and it lead to pride… Now let’s look at…
II. THE PROMISE OF CHRIST
Explanation: Jesus now makes a very eye opening statement. By promising that if our righteousness does not surpass that of the Pharisees, Jesus points out that the Pharisees and scribes are outside of the Kingdom of Heaven.
o One of the reasons people do not believe in Hell is that they really do not believe that God has given them the free will to choose it.
o Let this serve as evidence that this is not true…
BUT THE BIBLE SAYS – (v.20) “UNLESS…you WILL NOT enter the kingdom of heaven.”
More Is Required In The New Covenant
• The old covenant was a command to outward obedience; it was also a mirror to show that outward obedience could not be accomplished.
• Now we see in the New Covenant a greater requirement, to move beyond simply doing the works of the law.
We Must Find A New Way
• Jesus is basically saying that if you do not find a new way to obtain the righteousness of God, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
• Mt 7:13 – “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
Illustration: I want you to imagine that you have just received an invite to attend a black tie event at the white house. The president will be there, all the cabinet members, members of the house and senate and world leaders. But you show up in jeans and a “t-shirt”.
Now you have been invited, but are not allowed in simply because you are not prepared to enter.
Application:
• To arrive before the Father on that dread day of judgment dressed in your own righteousness will have a very similar result.
• It is not that God has not invited you into the Kingdom of Heaven, its that you did not arrive prepared.
• Jesus promise is that He will not allow those who arrive unprepared to enter the Kingdom of heaven.
• The alternative to the Kingdom of Heaven is a very severe existence in a place described as an “outer darkness” and where there will be “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Transitional Sentence: So we see that self righteousness is not enough and Jesus will keep His word, so how do we achieve the righteousness of God…
III. THE PREREQUSITE OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN
Explanation: The answer to our dilemma is found when we contrast Mt. 5:3 with Mt. 5:20.
THE BIBLE SAYS – Mt. 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Now look again at Mt. 5:20 ““For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
• In one case (v.20) the kingdom is withdrawn and in the other (v.5) the Kingdom is given.
B. The True Righteousness of God
• By contrasting these two promises of Christ we find that the key to the kingdom of God is poverty of Spirit.
• To be poor in Spirit means simply – “to be spiritually impoverished and to recognize it.”
o Why Is The Righteousness of God Rooted In Our Poverty?
• The most important thing we can do in becoming righteous is to see ourselves as we really are.
o You are not a good person
o You are not righteous
o You are not fair minded, generous, kind
o You are a thief, liar, adulterer, murderer etc.
o Blessed are you when you acknowledge your poverty before God.
• In admitting our own spiritual poverty we are in fact saying “I NEED GOD! I CANNOT DO THIS ON MY OWN.”
• THIS IS THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD – “To TRUST IN HIM”
• Romans 3:22-24 “But now,…the righteousness of God has been disclosed… the righteousness… through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. …since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
Illustration: The righteousness of God is given as a gift. When I was a teenager, I woke up one Christmas morning to find a brand new car in the driveway! To my absolute joy, I received the keys as a gift.
I could never have afforded this car but I did not have to, it was given as a gift and therefore I got in and drove it with great joy!
Application:
• You cannot within yourself “become righteous”, to show up at the doors of Heaven wearing your own righteousness will leave you outside.
• You must trust in Christ to be YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
• When we put our trust in Christ, God imputes His righteousness into our spiritual banking account. We go from Broke to Spiritually Rich in an instant.
• THE BIBLE SAYS – James 1:5 “God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom.”
CONCLUSION:
Restate Proposition: It is not possible for us to possess the righteousness of God on our own. We must have the help of God Himself.
Restate Main Points: At the beginning of this sermon I asked you – “do you possess the righteousness required to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?”
• The Problem of The Pharisees – Self Righteousness
• The Promise Of Christ – Not Enough
• The Prerequisite Of The Kingdom – Trust by Faith
Final Illustration:
• Often when my wife goes out with the kids people will say – “Your kids look exactly like you!” They have many of the same features, mannerisms etc…
• This is how righteousness is obtained also, by faith, when we receive Christ as our Lord and Savior He adopts us as His own and His righteousness becomes our own, His mannerisms, His features become ours.
• Today are you tired of trying to earn your way into the Kingdom, only to fail and fail again?
Instead I call upon you to receive the gift of God’s righteousness, the recognize tha the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven are in the recognition of your spiritual poverty, repentance and asking God for His help!
Amen!
