Righteous Hearts (Matthew 5:17-20)
December 15, 2019
Most agree that there are 613 commands in the Old Testament and 1050 commandments in the New Testament. How many do we have to keep to get into heaven? This is a question that many people want to know the answer to. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus has steered clear of the commandments in the Old Testament. He said that those who are in the kingdom would not be those who are rich in spirit and self-righteous. Instead, he stated that those who are weak and lowly would be blessed. Then, he said that they would be the salt and light of the world. Others would see them and their good works and turn around to glorify God. Can you imagine how difficult this would be for a Jew?
But what about the Law? Why was it given if it was just going to be thrown out when the Messiah comes? Is it still relevant? This is the question Jesus answers for us in the text we will study.
Matthew 5:17--20 (ESV) --- 17 "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. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Not Abolishing The Law
Many of us have heard that we are not under the Old Law anymore (Rom 7), or we have heard that Jesus made the Old Law obsolete (Heb 10). Why, then, does Jesus say that he has not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets? The word abolish means to put an end to, destroy, or terminate. So Jesus is saying that he did not come to remove the Law or to decrease the value of the law. He goes on to say in verse 19, "Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great." Without any doubt, Jesus did not come to bring the Old Law to an end. The Old Law still has value. It could even be said that it has more value.
Jesus places a very high value on all of the word of God. We see this throughout his ministry. Here he says that it is eternal. In John 10:35, he says that it cannot be broken. In Matthew 22:32, he uses the tense of a word to make a statement about God's nature. Jesus places much value on the Old Testament because it is eternal, it cannot be broken, and it reveals the nature of our creator.
Fulfilling It
In verse 17, Jesus said, "I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them." The Law and the Prophets are not just a list of rules. They reveal God's plan to redeem us. Jesus is saying that they were given to point the way to him. The Law and Prophets help us understand God as Jesus fulfilled them. (Heb 10:7, John 5:39, Luke 24:27, 24:44).
We have seen how he fulfills the promises and the prophets in the first four chapters of Matthew. He also fulfills every book in some way, as we see on Sunday nights. Moreover, he fulfills the ceremonial law. Have you ever wondered why all of that is there? Jesus is the temple, the high priest, the sacrifice, the door, the bread, the lamp, the mercy seat, every kind of offering, and he is represented in every feast. It is incredible all that Jesus does to fulfill all of the Old Testament. The Law and the Prophets are not abolished. They reveal all that Jesus would come and do. But they also reveal what God's people ought to do to be like him.
So We Can Keep It With Righteous Hearts
So, which of the 613 commandments are we supposed to keep? According to Jesus, we have to keep all of them. Is that what he meant when he said our righteousness must be greater than the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees! If that is true, we need to mark our calendars to make trips to Jerusalem three times a year. We need to go there and worship at the temple if we are going to keep the commands. But that can't be the case because he knew that the temple would be destroyed and the Jewish religion would cease to exist (Matthew 24). In what way will we keep the commands of the Old Testament to a greater extent than the Pharisees and scribes?
When we think about this, it seems hard to believe. The Pharisees and scribes are some of the most religious and the most moral people of their time. They had rules that would make sure that they did not break any laws in the Old Testament. How could any of us compete with them when we don't have the spiritual training and upbringing that they have? It seems impossible. Jesus is not concerned about looking righteous. He is concerned with being righteous. That is why tax collectors and sinners flock to him. They want to be truly righteous. What does true righteousness look like? The answer lies in the following sections of this Sermon. In the rest of this sermon, Jesus outlines what it means to exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. We see five examples in the rest of this chapter. Jesus points to the command not to murder, and he says, "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire."
Notice how Jesus takes this commandment and boils it down. The commandment to not commit murder is one of the Ten Commandments. Jesus restricts us even more by saying we cannot get angry or insult our brother. When we think about the cause of murder, we see that the seed that starts it all is either anger, indifference, or hatred. So Jesus says that we will cut out these feelings and exceed the scribes and Pharisees. He goes on to say how we can cut out all kinds of seeds to become more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees: Lust, divorce, swearing, and resisting evil people with hatred for them. All fo these are seeds that lead to sin.
In Chapter 6, he discusses overcoming our desire to glorify self, to trust in wealth, and to worry about this life. In Chapter 7, he helps us overcome pride. All of these sections are discussing issues in our hearts. If we can address these heart problems, many other issues will resolve themselves. Growing in all of these areas requires us to have different hearts. This is why I turn to the Sermon on the Mount for new Christians. Jesus says that it is not about the external obedience to commands. We aren't trying to keep up a checklist of good and bad things we have done. We want hearts that desire to please God and to show a love for our fellow man. Jesus did not come to remove the law, but to create a people who would genuinely pursue keeping the intention of the law with all of their hearts. When we see the 613 commands, we need to understand the goodness of God in that command and strive to be like him.
Why Would We Keep It?
Why would anyone sign up to do everything to that extreme? If we were iffy about keeping 613 commandments, how do we feel now that we know Jesus commands even greater obedience? Why would we go beyond the Old Law and pursue a life without anger, lust, betrayal, lying, or retaliation? That seems like such a hard life to live. It seems impossible.
1. The Commands Are Good
The first thing that makes us want to commit our lives to pursue these commands is our understanding that these are good commands. We don't like unrighteous anger when we are on the receiving end. We don't like people lusting after our spouses or breaking their marriage covenant with us. We don't like people who glorify themselves. We wouldn't want someone to deceive us in some way or to retaliate against us. We know these things are evil, and we would enjoy a world without hatred or sin.
God said in Deuteronomy 10:12-13 that these things he is commanding them are for their good. He was trying to give them commands that would help them to live happily in the land. The last thing any of us want is for the world to do whatever is right in their own eyes. We want to do what is right in our eyes, but we don't want others to do what is right in their eyes. Do we see the hypocrisy? We ought to pursue this greater righteousness because we realize that it is the way to a truly better life.
2. We Are Blessed
The second reason why we ought to commit our lives to this new way of life is that God is offering us something that we do not deserve. None of us are worthy of the blessings of this kingdom, but God makes salvation readily available to his worst enemies.
Romans 8:1--4 (ESV) --- 1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
He doesn't save us because we are righteous. We want to be righteous because he has saved us. Until we have that understanding, we will lack the heart that truly repents and wants to please God no matter the cost.
3. God Is Helping Us Know Him
We want to live this way because we know Jesus did. He did all of the law from his heart so that the promised blessings will come true. What faithfulness! What steadfastness! We can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that our God will deliver all that he promises to those who love him and want to do his will. If he says it is worth the trouble, we can rest assured that he knows what he is talking about. Jesus shows us the way, and he will help us along the way.
As we suffer through this life, trying to be what God has called us to be, we will find that God is on our side. He is cheering us on and working to help us along the way. When we stumble, he wants to pick us up, and he is encouraging us to press on with faith in him.
Conclusion
The Pharisees would tell us that they were keeping the law, but they were struggling with significant heart problems (the love of money, the love of self, etc.). They would ignore the commands of God to pursue what their hearts loved most. Do we exceed them in righteousness? Do we have hearts that desire to do the will of God? It is for our good, not just for our salvation. Through sincere obedience, we can come to know God's righteousness and his love for us. Then we can share that understanding with others by living for God.