Summer On the Mount

True Righteousness

-Matthew 5.17-20-

“You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? “You are the light of the world—no one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father. 

[MATTHEW 5.17-20] - 17 “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. 19 So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.

20 “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

Right ATTITUDE > Right ACTION (works) > Right LIVING

“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.

THE ‘WEIGHT’ OF RELIGIOUS LAW & ‘TRADITION’

[MARK 7.1-2, 5-9] - 1 One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. 2 They noticed that some of his disciples failed to follow the Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating.

5 So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old tradition? They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.”

6 Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,

‘These people honor me with their lips,

    but their hearts are far from me.

7 Their worship is a farce,

    for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’

8 For you ignoreGod’s law and substitute your own tradition.”

9 Then he said, “You skillfully sidestepGod’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition.

__

WRONG APPLICATION OF THE LAW

[MATTHEW 23.1-4] - 1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 “The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. 3 So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don’t follow their example. For they don’t practice what they teach. 4 They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden.

[GALATIANS 6.2] - 2 Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.

__

Here Jesus views his role as that of fulfilling all of the Old Testament. ... It is [unsatisfactory] to say either that none of the Old Testament applies…or that all of the Old Testament applies. Rather, all of the Old Testament remains [standard] and relevant for Jesus’ followers, but none of it can be rightly interpreted until one understands how it has been fulfilled in Christ.

-Craig Blomberg-

His actions were not borne out of practiced habits, but of divine character. His thoughts, His words, His actions were not a mere reflection of good choices, but of godly character. What He said and did was an expression not of what He wanted to be or do, but of who He was. It can also rightly be said that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Law in theory and practice.

-Mark Miller, ‘The Preacher’s Teacher’-

__

A way was opening up for Israel—changing behavior not just by teaching but by a change of heart and mind itself. And the remarkable thing is that Jesus brought it all into reality in Himself. 

He was the salt of the earth. He was the light of the world: set up on a hill-top, crucified for all the world to see, becoming a beacon of hope and new life for everybody, drawing people to worship his father, embodying the way of self-giving love which is the deepest fulfilment of the law and the prophets.

-N.T. Wright-

TWO Ways to Live | TWO Hearts to Have:

• The Heart of MAN | ‘Letter’ [tradition] of the Law (wrong source) | ‘Outward’ Appearances (seemingly right approach)

[ROMANS 8.3] - 3 The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. [flesh]

People in Jesus’ day… thought they could fix their heart themselves, and people still think that today. [All you need to do] is do certain things and act a certain way and perform a certain way, you can fix your heart. … We have a heart problem and that’s why Jesus came.

-Gary Hamrick-

Unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

• The Heart of GOD | ‘Spirit’ [heart/intention] of the Law (right source) | ‘Inward’ Transformation > Pure Outward Actions (right approach)

[ROMANS 8.3-4, 2] - 3 So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. 4 He did this so that the just requirement of the law would be fully satisfied for us, who no longer follow our sinful nature but instead follow the Spirit.

2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

Righteousness is not merely a principle to chase after, but a Person to pursue. 

Right behavior is not righteous apart from the right Source.

THE ‘TRUE’ PURPOSE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT (LAW):

1. To explain what is wrong WITH us

2. To expose sin IN us

[ROMANS 7.7] - 7 Well then, am I suggesting that the law of God is sinful? Of course not! In fact, it was the law that showed me my sin.

3. To express our need FOR a Savior

[GALATIANS 3.23-26] - 23 Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed.

24 Let me put it another way. The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith. 25 And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian. 26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

[2 CORINTHIANS 5.21] - 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

[PHILIPPIANS 3.9] - 9 I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith.

__

Very often in church communities, we are content with adherence to external expectations of conduct and give little attention to the inward posture of the heart. As long as a person appears devout, uses the right words, and participates in the right activities, we don’t look much deeper. They are often given a pass on their anger, greed, jealousy, or bitterness. Such a person might be acceptable in a church today, but Jesus said they are unfit for God’s kingdom.

-Skye Jethani-