You’ve Heard It Said pt. 1 - Matthew 5:17-30

INTRO

You ever have a moment of anger when driving?

One time we were behind a guy driving a little sporadic in a parking garage. Thought to just let it go, Hannah tells me I should have honked

We drive down and lo and behold this guy cuts off again and Hannah reaches over and honks the horn.

At this point the guy slams on his break and turns around to mean mug us

Stop writing checks I have to cash!

Have you ever gotten angry like that?

Jesus is going to address our anger

Really he is going to look at how the law reveals our hearts.

Big Idea: Kingdom citizens abide in Jesus

Another way to say it would be that what we give attention to is what we become.

This is a challenging word for us from Jesus.

Jesus didn't just challenge the surface understanding of the law; He went deeper, revealing its heart.

We are going to be primarily focusing on verses 21-30.

But to set them in context we have to remember Jesus’ day.

He was so different than what any one thought the Messiah should be.

To the astonishment of the religious leaders of his day, He dined with sinners, engaged with women directly, and broke Sabbath traditions—

All of this made people think Jesus had no care for the law.

He seemed in their mind to under mind the law.

But in reality Jesus honored the laws deepest intentions.

In Verse 17-20 Jesus is clarifying for them that he is not discarding the law; He was fulfilling it

He was showing that true righteousness goes beyond legalistic adherence to embody love, mercy, and justice.

He redefined purity, declaring all foods clean, and healed on the Sabbath, actions that seemed revolutionary against the backdrop of rigid Jewish norms.

Yet, Jesus was not overturning the law but peeling back layers of human tradition to reveal its core.

His assertion, "But I say to you," wasn't a dismissal of the law but an invitation to understand it from God's perspective, where heart and motive trump rote compliance.

More than that when Jesus says he has come to fulfill them he is saying, “the law and prophets are about me!”

The summation of the OT is in Jesus.

(read v.20)

In teaching that righteousness exceeds that of the Pharisees, Jesus wasn't demanding a more stringent legalism;

He was calling for a righteousness of the heart

The only way to achieve that is not through human effort but through the transformative power of His grace.

This righteousness is not about ticking boxes but about a relational, dynamic living out of God’s commands, rooted in love for God and neighbor.

As we delve into Matthew 5:21-30, we see Jesus deepening the understanding of the law, addressing not just actions but the intentions behind them.

He's not setting aside the law but showing its fullness

He is calling us to a righteousness that is not our own but one that is imputed to us through faith in Him.

This call to righteousness is not a burden but a liberation, freeing us from the impossible task of earning our salvation and instead inviting us into a life-transforming relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Through Jesus, we are empowered to live out the true intent of the law, embodying the love, mercy, and justice that God desires.

Jesus takes us through two of the commandments from the 10 Commandments.

Really, He hits the ones that are unambiguous.

Murder and Adultery.

There is no confusion.

The line is clear.

Jesus is going to unpack the righteous life.

The life of the kingdom citizen that is abiding in him.

And it starts with anger.

1. Anger

Matthew 5:21–26 (ESV)

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 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. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

Jesus kicks off with a familiar command: "Don't murder."

We get it; murder's off the table.

Yet, Jesus isn't just content with leaving it at "don't kill."

Jesus actually wants us to see that this law is more than mere compliance.

He dives deeper, straight into the heart's murky waters where anger simmers and contempt brews.

It's not just about not taking a life

It's about the disdain and rage that could lead us there.

Anyone here ever struggle with anger?

Jesus is telling us the orgin story for anger.

This is his challenge to us: if anger can lead to murder, then harboring anger is just as guilty.

Now is anger a sin?

No, anger is an emotion.

Jesus got angry, but His anger was different.

It was slow-burning, focused not on personal slights but on real injustices - hypocrisy, exploitation, unbelief.

Unlike us, when He faced mockery and suffering, He responded not with retaliation but with forgiveness.

His anger was for the will of the Father, driven by love, not spite.

In the 33 years of recorded history of Jesus we see only two instances of his anger.

How many times have you got angry today?

ILLUSTRATION

I think about the story Steve Tran of Westminster, California, who wanted to kill the cockroaches in his apartment once and for all.

He as fed up and angry.

So, he activated 25 bug bombs (even though the label said 2 should do the trick) and closed the door.

The fumes reached the pilot light of his stove and created an explosion that sent his screen door across the street, broke all his windows, and caused thousands of dollars worth of damage.

Steve said, “I really wanted to kill all of them. I thought if I used a lot more, it would last longer.”

By the way, Steve said he saw cockroaches again within a week.

______

I mean this is where it hits home: we're quick to flare up over trivial personal offenses, yet we're numb to the sins that grieve God's heart.

That's backward.

And then there's our speech.

Jesus warns against hurling insults like "raca" or "fool," not just because they're mean words, but because they reflect a heart that devalues others, seeing them as worthless.

Worthless.

That’s what our insults reveal about our heart. We think they are worthless.

We may not be quick to stick a knife in the back but how quick are we to commit character assassination?

We've all been there, labeling someone an idiot or wishing them harm in a moment of frustration.

But those moments, those words, they carry weight.

They can crush spirits.

(Sarcasm - angry speech - always has a victim)

We when think of someone as worthless we are devaluing the imago dei, the image bearer.

Jesus is pulling us to see beyond the letter of the law to its heart, urging us to examine not just our actions but the attitudes fueling them.

It's not enough to just not murder;

we're called to purge our hearts of anger and contempt.

Because in God's eyes, how we see and treat others—whether with anger or with love—matters deeply.

ILLUSTRATION

When a rattlesnake is cornered, sometimes it becomes so angry that it bites itself.

That’s what happens when we harbor hatred or bitterness in our heart we poison ourselves.

Anger festers in us and it deeply damages our souls.

Where do you take your anger?

“Angry people always talk to the wrong person. They talk to themselves, rehearsing the failings of others. They talk to the people they’re mad at, reaming them out for real and imaginary failings. They talk to people who aren’t even involved, gossiping and slandering. But chaotic, sinful, headstrong anger starts to dissolve when you begin to talk to the right person—to your good Shepherd, who sees, hears, and is mercifully involved in your life.” ― David A. Powlison

Jesus takes us beyond the letter of the law against murder, drilling down to the core issues of anger, contempt, and unresolved conflicts.

He doesn't just stop at telling us not to harbor hatred;

Jesus calls us to abide in him, he calls us to the good life.

He pushes us to actively seek peace, even flipping the script by urging us to take the first step in reconciliation if someone has something against us.

It's not just about avoiding wrong;

it's about pursuing right, about making peace not only with our brothers and sisters but even with our adversaries.

Jesus illustrates this with a vivid picture: (equivalent to being at the altar at your wedding)

He is saying even in the midst of worship, if you remember that someone has a beef with you, pause and make it right.

It's a radical call to prioritize relationships over rituals,

Relationship over the show, the song and dance.

Genuine worship is as much about horizontal relationships as it is about the vertical one with God.

Peacemaking isn't optional; it's central to being a disciple.

It's about disarming potential conflicts, diffusing anger, and bridging divides, whether those rifts are in the family, the church, or even with someone you might consider an enemy.

Jesus is asking us to be proactive, to seek reconciliation, to extend peace before bitterness takes root and disputes escalate.

But here's the deal: as much as Jesus lays out this high calling, He knows we'll struggle with it.

We're prone to anger, to letting things fester, to avoiding the hard work of making peace.

Yet, the beauty of the gospel is that Jesus doesn't just command us to a higher standard; He enables us to live it out.

By His grace, through His Spirit, we're given the strength to pursue peace, to make amends, to live in a way that reflects the heart of God's kingdom.

So, as followers of Christ, we're called to a life of active peacemaking, seeking to heal wounds and restore relationships.

It's a daunting task, but in Jesus, we have both the perfect example and the power to live it out, one reconciled relationship at a time.

Again what we give attention to is what we become.

If we are consumed in ourselves and not the person of Jesus we will be angry dismissive people.

Jesus then goes to the next commandment on adultery.

2. Lust

Matthew 5:27–30 (ESV)

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.

Jesus isn't just talking about the big, visible sins like murder.

He's drilling down to the heart, where anger and contempt simmer, leading us down dark paths.

And He doesn't stop there.

He takes the same scalpel to adultery, cutting through the acts to the intentions that birth them.

Jesus says in anger our neighbor is not expendable

Then he shows that in our lust our neighbor is not consumable.

In a world that laughs off adultery in sitcoms, splashes lust across billboards, and is increasingly sexualized, Jesus calls us back to something radical: purity of heart.

He starts with "Do not commit adultery," a command that might find unanimous nods.

But Jesus knows the landscape of our hearts is where the real battle rages.

It's not just the act of adultery that concerns Him; it's the lustful glance, the imagination run wild, that He equates with adultery itself.

Illustration

A man and his wife were out shopping.

An attractive woman walked by and he stared at her.

His wife without taking her eyes off of what she was shopping for asks, “"Was it worth the trouble you're in?"”

____

…Now our society might shrug off these heart issues as harmless,

but Jesus marks them as ground zero for our spiritual integrity.

In a culture where sex is casual.

Jesus challenges us to a higher standard: fidelity and purity, not just in our actions but in our deepest thoughts.

He calls those who've stumbled into sexual sin not to despair but to the good life.

He calls us to repentance and restoration, offering forgiveness and a path to righteousness.

Adultery, in Jesus' eyes, isn't just about breaking a human promise; it's about fracturing a divine trust.

Adultery like murder is the devaluing of another Person.

Think about it, often adultery is fueled by anger

His words cut to the heart of the matter:

it's not about what we're technically allowed to get away with but about living a life that honors God in every thought and deed.

Jesus' message is clear and counter-cultural: purity starts in the heart.

Again it isn’t solely about what we can and cannot get away with.

It's not enough to avoid crossing physical lines;

we must guard our hearts against lustful thoughts that can lead us astray.

As we go through this sermon line by line we cannot miss the forest for the trees.

This is a call to the good life, to being a citizen of the Kingdom.

In a world that often celebrates sexual freedom, Jesus invites us to true freedom—a life lived in purity, guided by His Spirit, reflecting His love in every area of our lives.

In a world where the lines around sexuality blur, Jesus calls us back to clarity and purity to life in the kingdom.

Listen, sexuality is a beautiful part of God's creation, woven into our very being, meant to be celebrated within the covenant of marriage.

It's a gift, like food and sleep, good things but meant for the right context.

Jesus isn't just throwing out old rules;

He's inviting us to a life where our sexuality aligns with His design, where intimacy is more than physical—it's a deep, soul-uniting bond between a man and a woman in marriage.

Outside this context, what's intended as a life-uniting act becomes disjointed, causing harm we often underestimate.

Adultery and lust are not about the building and flourishing of life, but about consuming another.

Facing the challenge of lust, Jesus uses strong language

Matthew 5:30 (ESV)

And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.

Jesus is using hyperbole not to advocate for physical harm but to underline the seriousness of sin.

It's not about maiming our bodies but about guarding our hearts with the same vigilance.

If we followed this til we were torso’s we’d still have wicked hearts.

The real battle is internal, fought in the landscapes of our minds and hearts.

In an age of instant gratification, where images and temptations are a click away, Jesus' call to purity might seem radical, even impossible.

But He doesn't leave us to fight alone.

He offers the strength to turn away, to live as though we had no eyes for anything that would lead us astray.

He provides community for accountability, wisdom to avoid temptation, and grace that covers and heals when we fall.

Contentment is our shield against lust, teaching us to find joy and fulfillment in what God has given, whether in singleness or marriage.

It challenges the cultural narrative of endless dissatisfaction, urging us instead to see and cherish the gifts in front of us.

In a marriage, this means focusing not on a spouse's flaws but on serving and loving them as God's perfect provision for us.

Ultimately, the issue of lust, like all matters of the heart, calls us back to the heart of the Gospel.

It's not about achieving perfection through sheer willpower but about leaning into the transformative work of Christ in us.

Jesus wants to offer us freedom.

Lust seeks to bind and enslave us.

ILLUSTRATION

Charles Spurgeon gave this Parable ”There was once a tyrant who summoned one of his subjects into his presence, and ordered him to make a chain.

The poor blacksmith -- that was his occupation -- had to go to work and forge the chain.

When it was done, he brought it into the presence of the tyrant, and was ordered to take it away and make it twice the length.

He brought it again to the tyrant, and again he was ordered to double it.

Back he came when he had obeyed the order, and the tyrant looked at it, and then commanded the servants to bind the man hand and foot with the chain he had made and cast him into prison.

"That is what the devil does with men," Mr. Spurgeon said. "He makes them forge their own chain, and then binds them hand and foot with it, and casts them into outer darkness."

My friends, that is just what every sinner is doing.

But thank God, we have a deliverer.

The Son of God has power to break every one of our chains if we will only come to Him.

_____

Our failures to live up to God's standards for sexuality—or any area of life—drive us to the foot of the cross, where we find forgiveness, restoration, and the power to live in a way that honors God.

In this, as in all things, Jesus isn’t not looking for begrudging external obedience

He is looking at our heart's posture toward Him and His creation.

I am fully aware that this is an issue that has a stranglehold on many.

In our culture, the narrative around pornography is one of false freedom and hollow promises.

It whispers lies of respect, intimacy, escape, and even revenge, offering a fantasy world that never satisfies, only enslaves.

It's a performance, a carefully edited illusion that distorts reality and leaves us trapped in a cycle of craving more, pushing us in a fruitless search for fulfillment.

But this isn't just a choice between a life with porn and a life without;

it's a choice between a life enslaved to these illusions and a life freed in the truth and love of God.

It’s a choice of whether we want the good life or a broken false one.

Porn's false promises stand in stark contrast to what God offers.

What do you think porn will offer you?

Respect?

You are already valued beyond measure by the Creator of the universe, whose opinion is the only one that truly matters.

Intimacy?

God invites you into a relationship that is risk-free, not because it's safe, but because He's already secured the outcome with His unwavering commitment to you.

Escape?

God is the ultimate refuge, offering true peace and rest from life's burdens.

Revenge?

In God's grace, we find a love so profound that it frees us from bitterness and resentment.

At its core, the allure of porn is a twisted form of worship, a desire to be adored, to be at the center of our universe.

But true freedom starts when we dethrone ourselves and let God reclaim His rightful place at the center of our lives.

This isn't about denying our sexuality but about rediscovering it within the beautiful design God intended,

Where sex isn't a god but a gift, enhancing the covenant of marriage and pointing us to the divine love story between Christ and His church.

The good news of the Gospel shines brightly against the backdrop of our sex-saturated culture.

It offers us a love that satisfies our deepest cravings, a value that isn't contingent on our how desirable we are, and a hope that doesn't fade when the lights go out.

Jesus, at the well with the Samaritan woman, didn't just call her out of her sexual sin;

He offered her living water, a source of true and lasting satisfaction that only He can provide.

As we navigate these conversations,

I want to encourage shift the narrative from legalism to liberation, from prohibition to the profound mystery of Christ's love for His church.

Our discussions about sex are ultimately discussions about a love that laid down its life to make us holy, a love that invites us into an eternal union that earthly pleasures can only shadow.

This is the good news we offer—a love that fulfills, a joy that endures, and a life that truly satisfies.

CONCLUSION

So what can I say to reason with you to set aside lust, to lay down your anger?

It’s this God is not angry with you.

He has poured out his anger on the son.

The son has made peace between you and God.

Jesus invites you to abide in him.

To dwell on him.

He offers you living water, an abundant life.

In what ways do I struggle with anger or contempt towards others? How can I seek reconciliation?

How do Jesus' teachings on lust challenge my current views on purity and thoughts?

“What we give attention to is what we become.” What am I abiding in?

Reflecting on the Sermon on the Mount, am I truly living the good life?