Transcript

Matthew 5:16-20 · NOBA @ Noon

Canon Justin Murff: The Gospel of Matthew chapter five verse sixteen through twenty In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. 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. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, and Not an iota, not a dot will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 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, for whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. This is the Gospel of the Lord. Our reading today finds us in the very heart of the Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached, the most profound collection of Jesus' teachings in all of Scripture. After pronouncing the Beatitudes and commissioning his followers to be salt and light, Jesus now addresses a crucial question: What is his relationship with His exact relationship to the Jewish scriptures. Jesus says, Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. This instruction immediately precedes Jesus' statement about the law. The connection is significant. Our obedience to God's command is meant to be visible, not for our own glory, but so that observers who look at us will glorify God. Good works are not private religious exercises, but they're a public testimony that points beyond ourselves, to the loving Father we serve. Then comes this pivotal declaration, 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. Jesus affirms the ongoing authority of Scripture. He didn't come to overthrow the Hebrew Scriptures, but to complete them. To bring them to their intended conclusion. This affirmation only intensifies when he says, 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. An iota is the smallest Hebrew letter, and a dot refers to the tiny marks that distinguish similar letters. Jesus is saying that every detail of Scripture matters. But what does it mean to really fulfill the law. The verses that follow will demonstrate this through a series of contrasts. You have heard, but I say to you, Jesus doesn't contradict Moses. He deepens and internalizes the commands, revealing their true intent. Murder now includes anger. Adultery includes that lustful look. The law is aimed at transforming hearts, not merely controlling external behavior. But then Here comes the challenging statement. Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. The scribes and Pharisees were the most religiously rigorous people in all of first century Judaism. How could ordinary people ever exceed their righteousness? Well the answer lies in the nature of true righteousness. The Pharisees' righteousness was primarily external, a righteousness of of careful rule keeping. But Jesus calls for a righteousness that penetrates to motives and desires, a righteousness that springs from transformed hearts rather than calculated religious compliance. Jesus challenges cheap grace. Some Christians emphasizing faith overworks inadvertently give the impression that our behavior, especially when people aren't looking, doesn't really matter. But Jesus firmly disagrees. You see, grace enables obedience, it doesn't eliminate the call to it. This passage exposes the inadequacy of mere rule keeping Christianity. If our faith consists primarily of avoiding prohibited behaviors while harboring unchanged hearts, we've completely missed the point. The emphasis on visible good works challenges this notion of privatized personal faith. We live in an age that treats religion as a Highly confidential personal matter that we can't discuss in the open. But Jesus envisions his followers living in a community together in such a way that their observable conduct inspires those around them to glorify God. So today, let's examine our own righteousness. Is it primarily external compliance, or have we experienced that genuine heart transformation? Where might God be calling you to let your light shine more visibly? Ask the Holy Spirit to produce in you the deeper righteousness that exceeds even the scribes and the Pharisees. Friends, today, let's look to Jesus.