4.    Getting beyond surface religion - Matthew 5:17-48 - 2.24.8
Dennis Mullen

4.    Getting beyond surface religion - Matthew 5:17-48 - 2.24.8

            When I was a kid, there was this young man who came to our church and with his charm and good looks and spiritual talk, he won everybody over.  Pretty soon he was leading the singing and speaking in worship and teaching classes.  Then he disappeared for a few weeks.  Then one Sunday, the preacher announced that this young guy had left the church; perhaps he had even been thrown out.  Apparently he was using his charm with the ladies, and was involved in one or more sinful relationships, and when he was confronted, he chose the ladies over the Lord.

            That was my first experience in my young life with a real religious phony...someone who was one thing on the outside, but something completely different in his heart. 

            Then again, maybe it wasn’t my first such experience.  Someone said that the line between good and evil runs right down the middle of each human heart - mine included, even at 8-9 when this thing happened, certainly now.  Outwardly I try to behave like I know I should (and that isn’t such a bad thing).  But if what’s in my heart doesn’t match up, and I don’t own that, the disconnect between appearance and reality grows and I become more and more phony. 

            When Jesus lived in Israel in the first century, there were these people called the Pharisees.  They were a religious group within Judaism, and on the surface they had a lot in common with Jesus.  They cared about morality.  They cared about God’s Word.  They cared about the Temple and all the things surrounding it.  They were deeply religious.

            The problem is that their system of holiness focused on what people do - rules, disciplines, things you can look at and observe.  Those things have their place, but their place is on the surface of things.  Jesus came to teach a faith that penetrated all the way into the heart.

            Today we arrive at Matthew 5:17f in our study of the Sermon on the Mount, and it is here that Jesus really begins to speak to us about getting beyond surface religion.

The Fulfillment of the Law

         17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; That is, “Don’t think I have come to get rid of the OT, to declare it too hard and to throw it away and move on to something else.  Not at all...”  I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.  IOW, Jesus wasn’t the enemy of the OT, he was the culmination of it, and if certain things from the OT became obsolete, it wasn’t going to be because Jesus rejected them, but because he completed them.  For instance, the OT is full of animal sacrifices for sin.  Why don’t we practice them today?  Because Jesus fulfilled them; he was the culmination of them all, the perfect Lamb that was slain;  when he gave his life, the time of sacrifice reached its destined end - “The curtain in the temple was torn from top to bottom...18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until when?  forever?  the end of time?  No,  Until... everything is accomplished.

         Now in that light, what he says next applies, I think, more to the people standing there 2,000 years ago than to us...19 Anyone who breaks 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 practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.  I take it that Jesus is speaking here about all the ritual commandments of the OT.  Now if those commandments were still in force today, we certainly would be guilty of breaking them and teaching others to do so.  But they aren’t in force.  However, from the time Jesus preached this Sermon on the Mount until the time of his death and resurrection, about three years would pass.  During those three years, he would be proclaiming the arrival of a New Covenant, and yet during that time the Old Covenant would still be in force. I believe that v. 19 speaks to that time, and Jesus is saying:  “The Law is still in force.  I’m not here to stomp on it.  Indeed it came from God, and my followers and I will keep the Law, because the Law will continue to be in force...until everything is accomplished.  THEN the time for keeping the OT Law will end, and a new covenant between God and his people will be here.

         Now, lest anyone think that Jesus’ new way would be morally lax, or care less about holy behavior and righteous living...   20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.  And how does someone surpass the righteousness of these religious leaders?  That’s what the rest of this chapter is about.  Jesus gives example after example of righteousness that surpasses the old way by going deeper.

Murder

         21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' (something like “imbecile” or “moron”) is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.

         If you’re setting up a Law to keep people safe and to keep society in order, “Do not commit murder” is certainly a good place to start.  How could you do ANYTHING positive if life were so insecure because people could kill each other and get away with it?  But from a moral standpoint, “Do not murder” is a pretty easy commandment to keep.  I have never had trouble with it.  However, there are attitudes of the heart that sometimes grow into murder - things like anger, bitterness, hatred - and even if they don’t grow into murder or even some lesser violence, they poison me inside and they corrupt my speech and my outlook on life and they weaken my faith.  You can’t pass a law against anger.  You can’t put people in jail for bitterness.  But Jesus says, “That doesn’t matter.  My followers need to deal with their anger” because as James says, man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires (James 1:20 NIV).  So it isn’t enough to keep from murdering people.  That’s a good start, but our righteousness has to surpass that of the Pharisees, and that means that it has to go down deep, past our actions, into our hearts.

         As for those words Jesus warns us about - “Raca” and “fool” - We weren’t allowed to call each other “fool” at our house (even though we did) and the reason was this verse.  That was a good idea on my parents’ part, but we don’t want to get hung up on these words and think that Jesus is telling us which words are the worst, which syllables will get you thrown into hell.  That would be to establish a new legalism.  I think Jesus means for us to understand that, just as our angry attitudes create more problems than we admit, our hateful words do the same, maybe even worse.  He’s saying that you won’t get arrested for being angry inside or for cursing at someone, but your anger slices up your own heart and your words cut other people, and God sees and cares about what is REALLY going on on the inside - and about the things you say.  “Unless your righteousness surpasses...”        

         That’s why Jesus insists that we deal with anger - even when someone else holds it against US:  23 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.  It’s great to come to worship, to take Communion and praise God.  But if you have hurt someone, or if you know things aren’t right, there is something you should do first.  Go and as far as it depends on you, be reconciled...  If you’re thinking of some such person right now, why not make a resolution to go talk to them before the day ends?

         25 "Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.  That was certainly good advice for that first-century audience about how to stay out of debtors prison, but in this context, I think it’s meant to be a bit more than that.  R. T. France in his commentary on Matthew suggests that it’s a little parable or a proverb telling us that issues of anger and conflict can quickly get out of hand if we don’t deal with them, and have devastating consequences.  Don’t let them fester.  If you have anger in your heart, don’t let it sit there until it hands you over to the magistrate...  If someone has something against you, don’t let it go until they hand you over to the jailer...  Deal with it, get rid of it, apologize for it, do what you have to do to put it behind you.  It’s not always possible to solve an issue that involves someone else - they may not be in a reasonable or forgiving mood, but as far as it depends on you, take care of it.     So let your righteousness surpass that of the Pharisees by dealing with anger.

Adultery

         27 "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  Lust isn’t something our culture worries too much about.  If you are a racist, you will feel the censure of the community (and rightly so - check out Dog the Bounty Hunter and Don Imus, both of whom are back to work).  If you’re a liar, don’t expect people to approve of that.  But lust isn’t censured and in fact each year pornography becomes a more accepted part of mainstream culture.  IOW, you won’t get a whole lot of support from other people (maybe not even other Christians) if you decide to obey Jesus here and get lust under control.

         Now it is a natural thing, of course, to notice attractive people.  So when does that become lust?  Martin Luther said that you can’t stop birds from flying overhead, but you don’t have to let them nest in your hair.  Noticing attractive people is one thing.  Dwelling on their attractiveness is at least the beginning of lust - or the beginning of adultery, according to Jesus.  

         What’s wrong with lust?  What damage does it do?  Like any kind of coveting, lust lives in an unreal world and creates a festering discontent with real life.  Lust opens your heart to stupid, damaging relationships  As long a you’re just looking at her, it seems harmless.  But what if she’s attracted to you?  Now you have choices to make, and it is almost impossible to make them wisely when desire is part of the conversation.  Besides all this, lust is really just a powerful form of idolatry, of self-love.  It’s probably the most common way people today break the first commandment - “I am the Lord your God; you shall have no other gods before me”.  When lust enters your heart, God gets crowded out quickly.  That’s why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 - 18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside his body, but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. 19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. 

         It’s kind of unsettling to realize that Jesus gave us this warning at a time when women were required to walk around fully covered, and men and women were prevented by custom from much social interaction.  Yet lust was a danger then.  Do you think it is more so today?

         In 2003, when Playboy magazine celebrated its 50th anniversary, Christianity Today ran an article with the great title:  Hugh Hefner's Hollow Victory:  "How the Playboy magnate won the culture war, lost his soul, and left us with a mess to clean up".    In that article, it says: 

It's pretty hard to deny the complete cultural victory of pornography in America today. Hollywood releases 400 films each year, while the pornography industry releases 700 movies each month. The domain name business.com recently sold for a record-breaking $7.5 million—but in a recent court case, sex.com was valued at $65 million. Not surprising, since porn is, at a minimum, a $10 billion a year business. Porn stars are making their way off the screen into mainstream culture, showing up everywhere from Cannes to Maxim. Fifty years ago an American girl would have been ashamed to be seen in public with too little on. Now she's embarrassed to be seen with too much on—even if she's in church.

         A lot has changed since 2003.  YouTube launched a revolution that made everyone a film producer, and other sites have mimicked YouTube’s model to make everyone a porn producer.  High speed internet connections and new technology have made it easy to distribute or receive any video content you want.  The result is that the thing you had to go to a dirty theater in a seedy part of town to see in 1958 is available for free at home in 2008.

         Now Jesus says something that applies to lust and to every other sin that you truly want to be rid of.  29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.  He didn’t mean to be taken literally (so please don’t do these things and say I told you to).  He meant to be taken seriously.  What if your Netflix subscription is causing you to sin?  Or your rental card at Movie Gallery?  Other people go there and avoid renting trash. You can’t.  Would it really be such a radical step to cut off that part of your life?  What if it is your internet connection, or at least your access to it when no one else can see.  In light of everything you have to gain, would it be such a loss to get rid of it, or filter it, or get totally transparent and accountable with it?  (Men, a sure fire way to clean up your internet habit is to set up your browser to send every site you visit to your Mom).

         Maybe it’s the friends you run around with.  They’re dragging you down.  Sure, Jesus wants you to be a witness to them, but as it is, they’re the ones who are converting you, and you need people close to you who will pull you higher, RAISE your vision.  Would it really be such a radical step to change your associations?  Jesus said to do what it takes to flee immorality.  It’s hard today because few people will encourage you to flee immorality of any kind.  But Jesus said that if there is pain or ridicule to be endured as a consequence for being faithful, that is such a SMALL price to pay for the amazing greatness of being in God’s presence. 

         There are some relationships, however, that you cannot flee in the name of improving who you associate with. Your kids, obviously.  Or your marriage.

Divorce

         31 "It has been said, 'Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, causes her to become an adulteress, and anyone who marries the divorced woman commits adultery.

         We have trouble with Jesus’ teachings on divorce either because we ignore them totally, or we peel them apart like Philadelphia lawyers.  For example, do you notice who is the one person in this passage that Jesus doesn’t accuse of adultery?  The husband who decides to put his wife away!  It seems like Jesus is only interesting in convicting the innocent - the woman who did nothing wrong - her husband just decided to get rid of her - and the man who comes along and decides to provide for this woman, taking her as his wife and providing for her in a culture where few women owned anything or had any rights or any means of making an honest living.   They’re the adulterers?

         Well first off, Jesus takes care of the divorcing husband in Matthew 19:9 - I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery. 

         Second, understand the context.  Some men in the first century (and in Judaism, men had all the control) told themselves:  “I don’t like this woman anymore, but I’m a good guy, and I try to do my religious duty before God.  I’m just going to divorce her, and it will be like we ever married, and she can go off and find someone else and I can too.  Very clean.”  It would be like someone today who says:  “I’ll divorce her but as long as I take care of her financially, I’m doing what I’m supposed to do”.

         Jesus just says:  “Not so fast.  If you divorce your wife even though she has been faithful to you, you make her party to a broken marriage covenant.  She’s a lawbreaker.  She doesn’t come out unscathed.  And her next husband - he’s part of it too.  He’s a lawbreaker.  He doesn’t come out unscathed.” 

         He isn’t trying to say that this woman who had no say in her divorce is going to hell because of it, or that she should be branded as a sinner - that would be contrary to the Gospel itself.  He’s saying that no one comes out clean in divorce.  He’s saying to stay married and work on your marriage, and he’s saying that throwing someone away is a sin, and sin isn’t healed by the passing of time or finding a better mate; sin is healed when our genuine repentance takes hold of his forgiveness and we make real changes.  He’s saying that just because it’s legal doesn’t make it right; he’s saying “Get past surface religion and let’s see your righteousness surpass that of the Pharisees; let’s see sacrificial love in your heart applied to your marriage.”

         There is more in this chapter on getting past surface religion, and we’ll get to it when we return to this study in a couple of weeks.  I want to finish by saying that we have the Sermon on the Mount for two very good reasons.  The first is to show us that there is a lot more to righteousness than we claim, and we are too easily contented with what we are inside.  If I say that I’m a good person because I haven’t killed anyone, Jesus exposes the rottenness inside caused by my festering anger.  Or if I pat myself on the back for my kindness to my friends, Jesus says:  “What about how you treat your enemies?”  The Sermon expands my definition of righteousness and won’t let me be content with where I am today.

         The second reason we have the sermon is to give us a bit more gentleness with others.  If someone else messes up, I have to say:  “Well I might look better on the outside but both the Lord and I know there is a lot more work to be done under the hood.” 

         Both of those reasons make the Sermon so valuable for me.  I need to pursue a higher standard than I’m used to, and I need to be more gentle.

         And remember this:  Jesus said that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

         The only way for your righteousness to surpass theirs is for you to humble yourself and accept HIS righteousness in exchange for your own... 

Morrison Hill Christian Church
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