Matthew 5:17-48
This passage is a contrast between the human perspective of sin and the divine judgment of sin. We are so good at rationalizing and looking for loop holes that will allow us to justify the sinful attitudes and actions that we love. Jesus attacks this hypocritical position and reveals the hearts of men as seen through the eyes of God. But He goes beyond revealing our hearts to giving us clear instructions of how we ought to live in order to avoid these dangers. Here are His revelations and instructions in an abbreviated form:
Anger is Murder so Resolve Relationships. Jesus reveals that all of us have a murderous heart. It is only by God's grace that we do not all act on the intent of our heart. But we must remember that God does not only judge our actions but our thoughts and attitudes as well. The solution to this murderous tendency that is bound in our hearts is to seek to resolve any differences we have with others as soon as we can. We must now allow bitterness to brew in our heart for it will boil into anger which in God's eyes is murder.
Lust is Adultery so Terminate Temptation. Jesus reveals that all of us have an adulterous heart. Even if we do not fulfill the desire it is still, "who we are", apart from Christ. When we take that second glance, allow our minds to fantasize or pursue pornography in any form we are committing adultery before God. Jesus suggests some radical solutions, but before we all start dismembering ourselves, I believe the point he was making was that we need to take radical steps to remove or avoid the source of this immoral stimulus. We might need to get rid of our television sets and dvds, cancel subscriptions to some magazines, filter our internet and be accountable to one another for the way that we look at members of the opposite sex. We must take practical and intentional steps to protect our hearts from the adultery that lurks there.
Remarriage is Adultery so Don't Divorce or Stay Single. I am not going to get into the divorce and remarriage debate here, but it is obvious that God's intention is for marriage to last until death. Marriage is a "one flesh" relationship that is God's favorite illustration of His love for the church. The sinfulness of man may result in divorce but that does not release men from the vows they made before God. The solution is to stay married. Marriage is never easy because we are all married to sinners, but it pleases God when we love our spouses even when they are being sinful and selfish. He loves us that way and we are called to be His imitators. So when it comes to marriage, we need to be in it for the long haul through thick and thin. However, if an unbelieving spouse chooses to divorce there is not much we can do. It seems that in that case, the best solution is to stay single. I know that there is some doubt and debate over whether or not this is the only solution. But, if in doubt, I would say it is better to be safe than sorry. Let's just avoid this whole issue and stick it out with our spouses.
Fibs are Lies so Don't Deceive. We all have a tendency to make promises that we later have a hard time keeping. Unfortunately we also agree to things in order to be people pleasers. We tell people what they want to hear instead of the truth. God hates this. The solution is for us always tell the truth even when it is painful.
Revenge is Evil so Suffer Silently. When we are mistreated it is easy to want to "get back" at the person. God tells us to leave all of this in His hands and be willing to suffer without seeking retribution. It may cause some shame and pain now, but there are eternal rewards to be gained.
Hatred is Sinful so Pray for Persecutors. This, some ways, goes together with the one above, but we are called to go beyond simply suffering in silence and actually pray for those who torture us. Christ practiced what he preached as he prayed God to forgive those who had spat in his face, stripped him naked and nailed him to the cross.
Reciprocation is Normal so Pursue Perfection and Receive Rewards. Jesus knows that His message is not the normal way for people to act or think. But, that is His point. God does not call us to be "normal" He calls us to be like Himself and he promises to reward us richly when we do so.
Anger is Murder so Resolve Relationships. Jesus reveals that all of us have a murderous heart. It is only by God's grace that we do not all act on the intent of our heart. But we must remember that God does not only judge our actions but our thoughts and attitudes as well. The solution to this murderous tendency that is bound in our hearts is to seek to resolve any differences we have with others as soon as we can. We must now allow bitterness to brew in our heart for it will boil into anger which in God's eyes is murder.
Lust is Adultery so Terminate Temptation. Jesus reveals that all of us have an adulterous heart. Even if we do not fulfill the desire it is still, "who we are", apart from Christ. When we take that second glance, allow our minds to fantasize or pursue pornography in any form we are committing adultery before God. Jesus suggests some radical solutions, but before we all start dismembering ourselves, I believe the point he was making was that we need to take radical steps to remove or avoid the source of this immoral stimulus. We might need to get rid of our television sets and dvds, cancel subscriptions to some magazines, filter our internet and be accountable to one another for the way that we look at members of the opposite sex. We must take practical and intentional steps to protect our hearts from the adultery that lurks there.
Remarriage is Adultery so Don't Divorce or Stay Single. I am not going to get into the divorce and remarriage debate here, but it is obvious that God's intention is for marriage to last until death. Marriage is a "one flesh" relationship that is God's favorite illustration of His love for the church. The sinfulness of man may result in divorce but that does not release men from the vows they made before God. The solution is to stay married. Marriage is never easy because we are all married to sinners, but it pleases God when we love our spouses even when they are being sinful and selfish. He loves us that way and we are called to be His imitators. So when it comes to marriage, we need to be in it for the long haul through thick and thin. However, if an unbelieving spouse chooses to divorce there is not much we can do. It seems that in that case, the best solution is to stay single. I know that there is some doubt and debate over whether or not this is the only solution. But, if in doubt, I would say it is better to be safe than sorry. Let's just avoid this whole issue and stick it out with our spouses.
Fibs are Lies so Don't Deceive. We all have a tendency to make promises that we later have a hard time keeping. Unfortunately we also agree to things in order to be people pleasers. We tell people what they want to hear instead of the truth. God hates this. The solution is for us always tell the truth even when it is painful.
Revenge is Evil so Suffer Silently. When we are mistreated it is easy to want to "get back" at the person. God tells us to leave all of this in His hands and be willing to suffer without seeking retribution. It may cause some shame and pain now, but there are eternal rewards to be gained.
Hatred is Sinful so Pray for Persecutors. This, some ways, goes together with the one above, but we are called to go beyond simply suffering in silence and actually pray for those who torture us. Christ practiced what he preached as he prayed God to forgive those who had spat in his face, stripped him naked and nailed him to the cross.
Reciprocation is Normal so Pursue Perfection and Receive Rewards. Jesus knows that His message is not the normal way for people to act or think. But, that is His point. God does not call us to be "normal" He calls us to be like Himself and he promises to reward us richly when we do so.
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