Let us pray…
The recently concluded Olympics was a special one for our country the Philippines. It was the first time we struck gold, our nation was ecstatic, united in awe and admiration for such a feat. One of the sports we were hoping to win a medal as well was the pole vault. A very difficult sport where a bar is being raised and a flexible pole is used to catapult oneself over the bar. The bar is raised higher and higher until the one who clears the highest bar wins. The Philippines lost in that event. In our passage this week, Jesus shows us that the standards of righteousness is a bar that is set higher than anyone can ever reach, and He shows us that only the transformation He provides is able to empower righteousness in us.
Jesus acts like our radically supernatural, sturdy pole vault, that is transformed to empower us to reach the high standards of righteousness that He has set. We learn that we cannot do it on our own, not with our own devices, or tools, or equipment. Not with our own skillset, knowledge or strength. We need a savior, that savior is Jesus.
So today we have 2 divisions. Jesus' Radical Thinking of True Righteousness, that's Matthew 5:17 to 20; and Jesus' Radical Application of True Righteousness, Matthew 5:21 to 48.
Our lesson this week is the second part of Matthew chapter 5. We find Jesus in the mountain teaching a large crowd of people. Picture Jesus in a church in a pulpit, except there is no physical walls or even a sound system. But everyone hears Him. Everyone is intently listening to what Jesus has to say.
Now, the crowds were likely asking questions about Him, wondering how this new teacher compared with the Pharisees and the scribes who had been Israel's teachers and spiritual guides. What does Jesus think about the Old Testament Laws and He answers it directly in Verse 17:
He says, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." It was important for Jesus to clarify that even though His teachings were radical and counter cultural, He was NOT superseding or abolishing God's law, but He was actually fulfilling it.
How can He do that? Well, Jesus Christ met all the requirements of the law. He was sinless. His whole life was a fulfillment of prophecy and He lived out righteousness as it should be.
And he's addressing the thinking of those around Him, giving them a better picture of what it truly means to be righteous.
It goes on in verse 18 to say, "For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished."
In Christ's eyes, righteousness means obeying the entire law. Everything that God has written and instructed must be obeyed. Nothing is to be left behind.
Now the law, the law that Christ was speaking about was everything in the Old Testament; basically all of the Old Testament that we have right now. The phrase "The Law and the Prophets" that Jesus mentioned refers to the entire Old Testament.
The Word of God was to be embraced in its entirety and true righteousness was obeying every single one of these commands. Already Jesus is pointing His audience into the height of the bar, that it includes the entire law.
And He goes on in verse 20 to say, "For I tell you unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."
What's the significance of the Pharisees? The Pharisees were laymen who adhered to the law. In fact, they added so much more to the law. They're sometimes called the scribes as well. This group governed over the religious life of the Jews in Jesus' day.
And the teachers of the law were honored as those who knew the law and lived out the law. No one would think of themselves more righteous than the Pharisees or teachers of the law BUT, as one writer points out, the Pharisees were "People seeking to project a thriving exterior that denies and ignores the emptiness inside."
Now Jesus is not only saying you need to be as righteous as the Pharisees, but He's saying you need to be MORE righteous than they are, and He's making it the minimum condition of getting into the kingdom of heaven. It's radical.
This crowd was led by the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. The Pharisees were the ones who determined how a righteous life was to be lived, both by their example and by their rules. This crowd would have thought that it was impossible to surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law.
I can imagine how it was to be in that crowd in the mountain. Christ is pointing to something deeper than just surface compliance.
Unlike most of the Pharisees, Jesus was not and is not merely concerned with appearances. He doesn't care about surface spirituality. He was after radical heart transformation.
He's really addressing their thinking of what righteousness is.
So What is righteousness? It means just what it sounds like, "right-ness". right-ness in God's eyes. It is a standard of holiness that goes beyond external compliance with God's law. It's a very high-unattainable-minimum standard that God requires OF those who come to Him.
A person is righteous when God views them as "right" or "good" before Him. Righteousness means meeting God's standards for what is right.
The religious leaders of Jesus' day tried to do that with an obsessive focus on outward behavior. Their righteousness was not genuine because it didn't meet God's standards and it was only on the surface.
Jesus came so that His followers' heart attitudes and motivations could align with their surface words and actions.
When we believe the truth about God's righteousness, we can rest in Christ's righteousness. We can rid ourselves of self-righteousness. Jesus set the bar so high - so like the pole vault, we need him to reach it.
Let me ask you a question. Say you find yourself in a stop light past midnight. You see that the light is bright red and there's a timer that says 90 seconds left till you can go. You look around and your car is the only car in the whole intersection. No enforcers around, no cars around, no people around. Will you step on the gas and go? It’s a heart question. To be honest, I never thought of it as a heart question because my answer would be, YES, I would step on the gas and go. and that just points to my need for Jesus. Because unless there is a radical transformation in our hearts, we are all lost in our own transgressions.
This brings us to our first principle:
Jesus' Radical Transformation Of Our Hearts Impacts The Way We Think About Righteousness.
Jesus' definition of righteousness always includes the heart, and that's the harder thing to get right. Isn't it?
Jesus explains that His followers are to live counter-culturally. They are to follow Him in heart righteousness. To be in Jesus' kingdom involves a radical transformation from the inside out, from the heart out to the hands, from the attitudes out to the actions. His transformation of our lives is not just about our behavior but about our heart.
How does a clearer understanding of true righteousness give you less confidence in your own ability to be righteous? You know, as Christ begins to change our thinking on what true righteousness is, slowly and slowly as He raises the bar, we lose more and more confidence in our ability to be righteous. And He's leading us appreciate the work that He did on the cross.
So we're moving from the right way of thinking about righteousness to something deeper which is the heart; and how the heart is really at the root of the sins that we do.
Now in our second division; verses 21 and 48, Jesus uses a phrase we're going to see throughout the book of Matthew. It's important. He says in the beginning of verse 21, "You have heard that it was said to people long ago"
-- now look at the beginning of verse 22 -- Jesus says: "But I tell you." Here Jesus is explaining that His righteousness is different from what His followers have seen in their culture, what they've observed in the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. He was radically redefining righteousness.
Here in verses 21 and 22, Jesus extends God's command "Do not murder" to include the heart attitude of anger.
Jesus is following a certain pattern in this portion. He begins by stating what the law is and He goes on to expand it further, moving people from just seeing things on the surface to seeing them more deeper. Jesus is stirring the hearts of his listeners to move from the complacency that they may have been used to;
Jesus is addressing the root cause of sin which is at the heart. Anger is the heart of the action of murder. Anger and Murder - They're the same in God's eyes. They may have different consequences in the world's system, but Jesus is not concerned about the world's standards -- He's teaching about God's standard.
Jesus took the command against murder deeper than just the external act of taking someone’s life. He enlarged the command to incorporate the heart attitudes of hate and contempt and equated abusive language - words such as RACA or FOOL or an attack on a person’s intellectual capacities - as equal with the sin of murder. The outward act of murder sprang from those thoughts and emotions.
And Christ says in verse 23, Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.
Jesus is telling us here that Restoring a broken relationship took precedence over any offering, prayer, or even service to God.
Now Verse 25 and 26 talks about settling matters quickly. These verses Became real to me and my business partners many years ago. We were contemplating on taking business matters to court but we were reminded by the Holy Spirit to "settle matters quickly" and although the matter wasn’t settled as quickly as we should have done it, I believe God really allowed us to go through such experience to exercise his radical righteousness with His help.
In this time of pandemic, if you are harboring any anger or unforgiveness in your heart. Jesus is reminding us all to radically transform our thinking of righteousness and take the first step of reconciliation. Yes, I know it is difficult and perhaps even painful. Recognize that we cannot do it without Jesus. Ask Him for help and He will be your strength.
Next, Jesus in verse 27 says, "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I tell you anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
Christ is pointing not only to adultery which is the sexual act of sin but to what's at the heart -- the lustful thoughts where it all begins. In our world today, no one will convict you for the thoughts that you have. But Jesus is saying that's where it begins. The thoughts that you have lead eventually to action, and He says take drastic measures.
In verse 29, it says, If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
Clearly Jesus is using hyperbolic language here because He has made the point that desire is rooted in motives issuing from the heart, not the actions of hand or eye; our hands and eyes may be involved in an action but they are not the root of the action.; even a blind person can have lustful thoughts in their mind, so the point of this is that lust requires drastic action.
This is so countercultural to the way we live today where pornography is so rampant; It's so rampant that people can watch pornographic content in popular platforms such as youtube and netflix. It's so accepted.
It's not even seen as a wrong thing by much of the world. New age thinking even suggests that its normal. In some places, it's even thought of being therapeutic. But Christ clearly says NO!
Take drastic action on this; and for men and even women, this is something serious. So Take it very seriously. In our leaders meeting, we discussed some solutions. One said I simply close my eyes, one said I turn of my devices, one said I flee from it. One said I pray. Christ is saying I'm here for you, I am your strength and your salvation, The Holy Spirit is saying, I am your helper, I will remind you of your righteousness in Christ. We cannot do it on our own, we need Christ.
Next of all things, Jesus turns to divorce in Verse 31 and 32. Divorce was rampant in Jesus' day in part because the Pharisees had allowed Jewish men to divorce their wives for any reason, as long as the husband gave his wife a certificate of divorce. Moses had actually advocated for women to receive this certificate of divorce. He had done so as a protection so that the women could remarry. But Jesus came to complete the law and He limited the permissions that the Pharisees and teachers of the law had given. Jesus limits divorce to situations where sexual immorality has occurred. Christ considers the marriage covenant an important one, important enough for Him to mention it here.
Marriage is not easy and sometimes in marriage, things get so difficult that it is so tempting to think of a way out. And Christ is speaking to the heart, to turn the heart of His audience to see marriage as something that you should not easily get out of; to also protect the victims of divorce. Christ's words here are loving and they're caring.
If you are the victim of divorce or annulment, know that Christ cares deeply for you. And Christ offers help in these difficult circumstances for those who have been hurt by divorce or annulment, for those who are living with the guilt and pain of things they did that led to the separation. Christ cares, but His words here are really addressing the ease with which people in Jesus's days would leave and abandon marriages and it's very true in our day today addressing the commitment in marriage.
Next Jesus talks about oaths or promises in verses 33 through 37.
It was said that God's people were commanded not to break an oath, and the Pharisees had limited that command to require honesty only when the person made an oath validated by heaven, earth or the City of Jerusalem. HERE, Jesus extended God's command for truthfulness to all our words. The NKJV version of Verse 37 says this: "But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."
As one bible teacher point out. A poor substitute for integrity is an oath;
Next, Christ moves from the actions of those near you to something even more difficult -- the actions of when people are against you.
verses 38 and 39 says. "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also."
The way of the culture in Jesus' day was to allow personal revenge and retaliation. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law had given their Jewish followers permission to strike back in equal measure when wounded. But Jesus says, "No" to retaliation. That was never the intent of God's law.
Jesus is addressing one's rights and giving up these rights for the sake of righteousness. He is moving from a focus on self and gaining justice for self to a focus towards others and God's commandments.
The slap on the cheek was the slap with the back of the hand, a high insult in Jesus' days just as much as it is in our days. The coat was the warm outer coat and the law protected this coat from being taken even as a security for a loan. If it was given as a security for a loan, the law required that it is given back at the end of the day so that someone could use it as a warm blanket. But Jesus is saying even with this coat, give it away. Go an extra mile.
It was often that the Roman soldier would have someone carry their load by force, and Christ is saying, in verse 41, "If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles." Can you imagine the conversation that would happen in the second mile? I think the person who had forced you to walk one mile would certainly be thinking, Wow! There's something different about this guy. They didn't have to offer an extra mile. Why would they give up their personal right?" That's radical thinking!
Verse 42: "Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you." Jesus sets no condition to this radical thinking. Most of us would. The question would be what do I get in return? Or how much interest would I charge for borrowed money? Or how long will you pay me back? We set conditions based on our own experiences for what is right and again, Jesus expresses radical thinking by inspecting the intentions of the heart when giving or even lending: we should be motivated by generosity in helping others and not self interest.
Lastly, Christ points to an area that cuts to the heart. He is raising the bar far above what anyone is able to do in their own strength. He says in verse 43, "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy'."
The Scripture says love your neighbor but it does not say hate your enemy. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law added this later on.
So Jesus again says: "BUT I tell you, in verse 44 and 45 "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."
Jesus is pointing to something that is extremely difficult -- loving those who don't love you back, loving those who hate you, loving those who have exposed you to discrimination or unfair treatment. Hating enemies is not condemned by our culture but it is condemned by our Christ. This is how we identify ourselves as God's children by loving those who don't love us. When we love our enemies, we imitate our God who showers His common grace through the sun and the rain on both the righteous and the unrighteous. It takes a TRANSFORMED HEART to be able to do what Jesus commands here regarding enemies.
And HE goes on to say in verse 46, "If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?"
Righteousness goes beyond what is comfortable, It goes to being kind to those who are unkind to you; by greeting those who are outside your usual circles; by welcoming the ones who are left out; by encouraging those who are battling covid19 instead of isolating ourselves far away from them.
All these teaching requires a perfection that we don't have; Jesus raises the bar beyond anyone's ability. In verse 48, He says, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."
Oh wow! Jesus raises the standard of righteousness to God's own perfection.
It brings us back to this doctrine of righteousness. It is actually impossible in our own strength, and that's what makes salvation sensible -- that only Christ's perfect righteousness can make us truly righteous when we believe in Him. It's not our abilities and efforts. It's Christ who does the work for us in making us righteous, but He also does the work in us in transforming our hearts so that we are able to live righteously.
When I don't believe this doctrine of righteousness, I think I'm doing pretty good. I compare myself to those who may be less righteous and I set the standard based on the worlds definition of righteousness. and that's where many of Jesus's audience was at that point. And that's where many people are today. They don't see how far they fall short of God's holy standard.
But what happens when I believe this doctrine? I see how pitiful my attempts are at meeting God's very high standard. And then what happens? I come humbly to God seeking His forgiveness, help and transformation of my heart.
And this leads us to our final principle:
Only Jesus Can Radically Transform Our Hearts To Live Righteously.
We need Jesus. It's actually liberating to realize that we're completely hopeless without Him. But with Him, you can stop trying to be good enough to be acceptable to God, and you can look to Jesus who was perfect and who offers you His perfection and His position with God.
Heart righteousness is impossible without Jesus' heart. He must radically transform our lives from the inside out and we cannot do this on our own. But with Jesus, all things are possible. Jesus credits us with His perfect righteousness; then He gives us His Holy Spirit as a permanent companion to enable us to live in practical day-to-day righteousness.
In what ways does your response to others reflect the true condition of your heart? And where do you need to let go of your confidence in your ability to meet God's perfect standard and instead embrace Christ's help, transformation and righteousness?
If God's standard of righteousness seems impossible, You’re absolutely right. JESUS is the only one who transforms the hearts of all who come to Him to empower them to live like He did; and respond in the same way that He would.
Let us pray…
