Category: Sermon on the Mount

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32(day six)

“I am the way…” -Jesus, John 14:6

The Pharisees were the gold standard of righteousness. At the time, most probably thought that if anyone was righteous, they were. Truth is, they had managed to become more like Pharoah than Moses by heaping burdens on the people rather than leading them to freedom.

When Jesus declares, “I came to fulfill the law.” Part of what he means is that he is the new gold standard (and the new Moses). Essentially saying, “If you want to know how to live according to the law, if you seek righteousness, then all eyes on me.”

This is Jesus’ way of saying, “I am the way.”

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32(day five) “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.“

The ticket for admission into the Kingdom of Heaven now includes a righteousness greater than the Scribes and Pharisees. Wait? What?!!  Their righteousness must somehow be better than the professional rule writers and keepers. How could this be possible. Is Jesus trying to rewrite or undo the Law in order for them to have access to the Kingdom?  Well, according to Jesus Himself, absolutely not. Then how can the righteousness of His disciples be greater?  Jesus enlarges the focus of obedience from strictly external to also include internal. It is greater because it is deeper, moving from just behavior to also mind and motive- a “heart righteousness”. The prophets wrote and signaled this truth long before.  “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it;“ Jeremiah‬ ‭31‬:‭33‬ ”I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes,“ Ezekiel‬ ‭36‬:‭27‬ ‭

With God’s work and wisdom (His Spirit in us) we now have access and opportunity for the greater righteousness that Jesus teaches.

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32 (day four)

“Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.”

One of the principal values of the Kingdom of God is reconciliation. Jesus came so that we would be reconciled to the Father, and in Kingdom life, through the power of the Spirit, we can also be reconciled to one another. But we often don’t take the work of reconciliation as seriously as we should.

Jesus tells us that before we present our offering at the altar – before we present ourselves as holy and living sacrifices to God in worship – if there is enmity between us and someone else, it needs to be handled immediately. We cannot hang on to old grudges or simply wait for time to help us forget them. The enemy would love nothing more than for us to take unforgiveness casually. We have to fight through our pride and even the awkwardness that we feel in order to get to peace – ASAP, Jesus says.

That being said, we know that Jesus lived the human life. He understands the complexity of human relationships. He knows that there are some wounds which will not fully heal until we’re in heaven, and that’s exactly his point here. We can’t fulfill the law perfectly. We can’t forgive perfectly. We can’t reconcile perfectly. Jesus can. What step of faith do you need to take today in order to live a life of peace?

 

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32 (day three) 

“Everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court.”

It’s probably not uncommon to think of a typical person in hell as a ne’er-do-well. But it turns out that the population of the damned might well be able to build quite a safe, orderly city where the murder rate is low and sexual assault is rare. Jesus reveals that an outward display of good citizenship, though, is not the center of heaven’s moral vision. God’s command to refrain from murder, for instance, is intended to form in human beings a kind of heart that doesn’t merely avoid violence but reaches out with compassion. It is possible to hate a person without becoming a felon. Which is why it would ultimately take the “convicted criminal” Jesus Christ to lead us to follow the law of love.

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:17-32 (day two) 

I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. vs. 17b

How many times have you heard a non-believer say that religion is a series of ‘thou shalt nots’? In doing so they have boiled the entirety of scripture into a sound bite of impossible standards of living. Jesus highlights a few of the commandments, and even takes them to their extreme with how we should treat one another. In the final analysis, it’s true, we can’t keep up our end of the bargain, so what are we missing? We are missing the work of a perfect savior. He and he alone can perfectly keep the law, and it is on him that we are to rely when we cannot. It is through the lens of his atonement which makes these conversations possible, or we would be constantly fretting about how poorly we measured up to the law today. We live, not free from the law, but wholly justified by his perfection. Walk in that light today.

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:13-16 (day seven)  

 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket. vs 15

In this advent season, we celebrate the incarnation. John tells us that God became flesh and dwelt among us. Hillsong, inspired by John 1, wrote, “Light of the world, you stepped down into darkness.” The Light came to us and purposely surrounded Himself in  darkness in order that we could have Light in all of us and the darkness would be exposed and expelled. That is Love!

What is expected of us in return? We are sent out into the world to let our Light shine in the darkness. Which means we need to purposely surround ourself in darkness. Though it is true that  if more lights gather together, their cumulative light shines brighter, but how can darkness be exposed if the  lights are stagnant? In an attempt to make our lights brighter, we end up  hiding them under a basket of comfortability. In this advent season, how might you be able to bring Light to the darkness? What do you need to do to get out of your comfort zone and expose and expel darkness?

¹² “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.” John 14:12

If we are not careful, we run the risk of over-spiritualizing Jesus’ description of Kingdom people being salt and light, when in fact he was describing real impact in the real world. Jesus modeled for us what he meant; everywhere he went he restored the lives of the sick and broken, he rescued others from demonic possession, and he spoke words that changed everyone who received them.

Jesus said, “You will do what I have done. You will do even greater things.”

Do you believe that?

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:13-16 (day five)  

What if you heard these words of Jesus for the first time in the context and culture of the society of Jesus days on earth?

As Jesus continues this sermon,  He speaks directly to His followers.  You are salt. You are light. I doubt they had ever been told they could be of any use in religious matters. Weren’t smart enough. Weren’t righteous enough. Weren’t trained or educated enough. Then all of a sudden, the message is clearly communicated. There is a place for you in the  Kingdom of God. There is a purpose for you in the Kingdom of God. There is potential for you in the growth and mission of the Kingdom of God. What an amazing message for them and for us!!  We have the same place, potential, and purpose in the Kingdom of God right here, right now. This is who we really are. Hear the hope and opportunity for each us in Jesus words-  You are salt!  You are light!  

Re:Verse passage – Matthew 5:13-16 (day four)

In our house, one of our favorite cookbooks is Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. It has great recipes, but even more importantly, it explains why those four elements are essential in making a great meal. Salt is important in cooking because it brings out the flavor that already exists in the other ingredients. It helps us perceive the wonderful, natural flavors of the food we’re eating.

As the salt of the earth, we’re called to help people perceive the goodness of God that exists in the earth he created, and in the presence of his Spirit. As salt, we help bring the God-flavor of the world to peoples’ senses. Sin tends to dull our tastebuds and make it more difficult for us to perceive God’s goodness. As salt, we invite people to taste and see that the Lord is good.

Similarly, we can’t perceive color in the dark. The dark world that we live in makes it difficult to see where God is. As the light of the world, we help people see the beautiful God-color all around them. We’re not creating flavor or color of our own, we’re simply pointing people to the miraculous goodness that already exists in the presence of God. Let’s consider: how does your life help others taste God’s goodness? How do you help people perceive God’s beauty?