The Good Life Lived Out

Introduction

Hey good morning Family of Grace. It is so good to be back here with you. As many of you know, my family and I serve overseas in the Middle East. We weren’t planning on being back in the states right now because we were just back last summer, but unfortunately, when we returned to our home last September and started the process of renewing our visas and applying for John’s first visa, we ran into an issue. John’s visa was denied. We aren’t %100 sure as to why his visa was denied, but we believe it was in part due to the timing of when he was born and we left the country and then returned. It is also likely connected to the fact that our host country is making it increasingly more difficult to be there.

We are unfortunately hearing story after story of individuals who are being kicked out of our country or having their visas denied. Sadly, this has been a reality for a long time for the refugees who are living in our host country. For some time now, refugees have been targeted by the government heavily with many of them facing fears of deportation on a regularly basis. The situation has gotten worse and one of the effects of that is that it is becoming increasingly more difficult for any foreigner living in this host country. Many of the refugees that we are serving are escaping hard situations in their home country and are in many instances, fleeing for their lives. They are looking for a better life and are being met with difficulty and hardships.

It is times like this that make me step back and ask the same question that was brought up last week by Lisa Ryan when she opened up Jesus’ words in the beginning portion of the Sermon on the Mount. What is the Good life? How do we find it? What effect does Jesus’ words spoken years and years ago have on us today? How is this sermon that Jesus preached good news for the Muslim refugees we are working with? How is it good news for all of you?

What I have found in many instances is that most people who are seeking to live a good life are often wanting the ideals of the Kingdom of God without the King Himself. Many people in the world talk of how we just need more love, we just need to be kinder to others, we just need to be nice to one another. If we all were just more like this then everything would be better. Many people even appeal to doing some of the things that Jesus talked about as a way of living out that good life as if we can work our way into the Kingdom. But the reality of the matter is that the only way to have a good life, to live that good life, to be blessed, is through Jesus.

The Good Life starts with, is sustained by, and fulfilled through Jesus.

The ideals of the kingdom don’t come about through our own effort. It might be easy to read these passages and think that they are a list of things to do. Rather, the ideals of the Kingdom only come about through Jesus. In order to live out the good ideals of the Kingdom, we first and foremost must live our lives through Christ.

After Jesus shared the initial words of the Sermon on the Mount telling the crowds who are blessed in this world, he then moves to saying that His followers are to be the salt and light of the world.

Then, before he jumps into some more specifics of how the Law of God, that is what is written in what we have as the Old Testament, before he jumps into how the Law of God ought to actually be lived out, He clarifies how He interacts with that Law.

So in today’s passage, what we are going to do is look at how Jesus interacts with the Law and then we will look at how we ought to interact with the law and how that law effects how we live out the good life.

This is a larger passage and so we are going to being moving through it pretty quickly, but what I would encourage you to do is to later go back and mediate on this passage in your own quiet time.

Now if you have your bibles with you, we’ll be in Matthew 5:17-48. To begin, we’re going to read the whole passage, so if you are willing and able, would you please stand for the reading of God’s word?

Matthew 5:17–48 ESV

“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, 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, but 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 Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. “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. “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. “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil. “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Body

Within the first part of the passage we are let in on the how the Messiah interacts with the Law and the Prophets, that is, we are hearing from Jesus on how He relates to the Old Testament. And we find that Jesus is the…

Fulfillment of the Law v.17-20

a. Jesus doesn’t abolish the law but He fulfills it (v.17).

Often in our world today, we hear about Jesus being this figure who comes in and disrupts everything, and in part that is true. At this point, the religious leaders had misunderstood, misrepresented, and misapplied God’s word and so Jesus is disrupting their wrong notions and thoughts and applications of God’s word. But it is not as if He is coming in and wiping the board clean and restarting from scratch. The things He is speaking of have always been there. This was always God’s design. These ideals of the Kingdom have been a part of God’s plan from the beginning. Jesus fulfilling the Law means that He was going to keep the original intention of the Law perfectly.

One scholar writes,

The word means “to fill out, expand.” It does not mean to bring to an end. Jesus was not taking away from the law, nor was he adding to it. He was clarifying its original meaning. After all, he was its author.

Another theologian, David Guzik, whose commentaries can be found on blueletterbible.com has this to say about it:

Jesus fulfilled the doctrinal teachings of the Law and the Prophets in that He brought full revelation.

Jesus fulfilled the predictive prophecy of the Law and the Prophets in that He is the Promised One, showing the reality behind the shadows.

Jesus fulfilled the moral and legal demands of the Law and the Prophets in that He fully obeyed them and He reinterpreted them in their truth.

Jesus fulfilled the penalty of the Law and the Prophets for us by His death on the cross, taking the penalty we deserved.

In fulfilling the Law Jesus then states two important things.

b. First, that the law won’t pass away until it is accomplished. (v.18)

In His fulfillment of the law, Jesus states that nothing will pass until all is accomplished. He is reiterating His own perfection in accomplishing what the Law commands and demands.

Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law in His perfection.

c. Second, he states that the law must be taught completely and fully. (v.19-20)

All that scripture commands needs to be taught completely. In order to follow Jesus in Spirit and Truth, we must follow all that He teaches throughout all of the Word.

This is not to say that doing what the law commands and teaches leads to the Kingdom, rather it is out of our citizenship of the Kingdom that we are able to, through Christ, obey fully the commands of Scripture.

And so before we go in further, I must ask you to deeply examine yourself. Have you been saved by Christ? Have you been given a heart of flesh and had your heart of stone taken out? If not, then don’t think that you can start to live out the ideals of the good life that the Kingdom has to offer and actually be saved. You cannot fake it till you make it. You first need to be brought in and then you will be able to obey the teachings of Jesus. You first must know Jesus and then you can start to live out the good life. The Good Life starts with, is sustained by, and fulfilled through Jesus.

The final verse of this section gives us insight to what happens if we strive to live a part from Christ. Jesus tells the crowds that in order to be saved, their righteousness must be more then the religious leaders. This reminds me of a later conversation where the disciples ask Jesus, "Who can be saved?" And He responds, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

You’re righteousness cannot pass that of the scribes and pharisees in and of yourself. Therefore you have no hope of heaven. But with Jesus, because of His perfect observance of the Law, because of His righteous life and is atoning death and resurrection, He gives you His righteousness. You are now clothed in Him.

And it is from this reality that we are able to then obey all that…

Following the Law, entails. v.21-48

I find it helpful to break up the following sermon points into three parts. Each point begins with a phrase like, “You have heard that it was said ____ but I say to you _____.” The first two sayings deal with your inward life, the second two deal with your relationship with others, and the final two look more outward. They are all intertwined and connected and they all ought to be characteristic of the life of followers of Jesus today. These are the ideals of the Kingdom that begin with and are sustained by and fulfilled through Jesus.

a. Inwardly

Jesus deepens murder and adultery. To the world, these may look like outward sins towards other, but in fact the issue is much deeper.

i. First we see Jesus’ teaching on murder and anger in v.21-26.

He takes it deeper. To hate your brother is to commit murder in your heart and you are at risk of the hell of fire if you are harboring anger towards others. Jesus commands that if that is you, if you are sitting here today with hate in your heart then do not wait, go and reconcile with the other.

Very practically, if you are dealing with anger against someone start the process of reconciliation immediately. Send them a text even now asking to meet. Talk with Jordan or Sterling or one of the other leaders about how to reconcile. Pray and ask for forgiveness for your own sin and pray for wisdom to reconcile with your brother or sister. IF they are outside the church, seek to reconcile with them and use the situation to share that you can forgive and ask for forgiveness because Christ has first forgiven you.

ii. Next, Jesus teaches on adultery and lust in v.27-30.

He goes further then what we often would like to admit. Adultery does not just happen when you break a covenant relationship through physical actions. If you have lusted after someone else, you have committed adultery in your heart. Jesus’ commands in this section are shocking. He tells the crowds to cut off their hand or gauge out their eyes if those are causing them to lust.

Very practically, Jesus teaches us that we must deal ruthlessly and swiftly with whatever might be causing us to lust and sin. If you are struggling with sexual addiction on your phone then root at that evil. If you are struggling with lusting after others, then seek to reform your heart, pray that God might wash your heart clean. Brothers and sisters, this is also why modesty is important, both for men and women who follow Jesus, we must neither lust after one another nor be a stumbling block to those around us. If you are struggling with lust, then seek help and accountability. Trust that Jesus can wash you clean. He has forgiven you and desires more for you.

The next section is Jesus teachings

b. Between one another.

i. First we see Jesus’ teachings on marriage in v.31-32.

In our hardness of hearts, we break our marriage covenants easily, but Jesus takes it further saying that divorce is contrary to God’s design. In divorcing ones spouse except for on the grounds of sexual immorality, you end up making that other person an adultery. Jesus calls you to more, to a higher standard through Him.

Very practically, if you are married and going through difficulty and having relational conflict, don’t put divorce on the table, rather seek counseling and help from others, from your pastor. In a world where most marriages end in divorce, the church should be a place where marriages stay together and flourish. If you are already divorced and you are seeking to be remarried, or if you are even just seeking to be married for the first time, talk with others. Find wise counsel from your pastors and elders. Jesus’ standard for marriage is much more then what the world teaches.

ii. Next, we see Jesus’ teaching on oaths in v.33-37.

And we see that again, His standard goes deeper then what the world has to say. The pharisees and scribes had twisted God’s command to not take the Lord’s name in vain to mean that it was okay to swear by anything except for the Lord’s name, but in reality, the heart is that you should be a person of integrity who can give their word and be believed.

William Barclay writes,

The truly good man will never need to take an oath; the truth of his sayings and the reality of his promises need no such guarantee.

Very practically, that means that followers of Jesus should strive to be above reproach. That when you say you are going to do something, you strive to do it. When you are unable to, you give clear and quick reasons. You live in such a way that the world sees that you are a man or woman of integrity and that leads others to trust Christ in you.

Finally, we see two points that have to do with our

c. Outward interactions with the world.

i. First we see Jesus’ teaching on retaliation in v.38-42.

It is easy to, in our human sinfulness, want to retaliate when we are wronged. When people talk bad about us or try to take advantage of us, then our response needs to be Christ-like as opposed to how the world would respond.

Very practically, that does not mean if someone comes up to you on the street and hits you in the face that you don’t call the police. If someone attacks you, you have legal and civil ways to bring about order, but you must not seek to take vengeance in your own hands. It belongs to the Lord. If you are wronged, then it is okay to seek justice, but that ought not be brought about outside of the established order.

ii. And finally, we see Jesus’ teaching on loving our enemies in v.43-48.

He again takes things deeper. Followers of Jesus cannot just love those who are easy to love, we must love all people. That doesn’t mean we allow our selves to be taken advantage of, it doesn’t mean that we put ourselves in unsafe situations or that we stay in unsafe situations, but it does mean that we must seek to live in a way that shows and relies on Christ’s love for the world.

Very practically that means when thinking of who your enemies might be, don’t wish them harm, but pray that they would come to know Christ. Pray that His justice would come and that they too would experience His forgiveness and freedom. Pray that the evil doers would repent and know God. Be the means by which the Lord can bring that about.

Conclusion

For the world, for all of humanity, these teachings of Jesus are the exact opposite of what we often want. In our sinfulness and brokenness, we often want the exact opposite of what Jesus has taught. We want to be angry and lust, we want to have the ability to divorce and break our oaths whenever we want. We want to take vengeance ourselves and hate our enemies.

And yet, Jesus comes in and He flips the script. He takes the laws that the religious leaders have been teaching incorrectly for years and He fulfills them in Himself.

One Scholar writes that in Jesus fulfilling the Law, He is…

is, both keep[ing] and explain[ing] fully its original intention, which they had managed to miss over the centuries.

This law is written on the hearts of believers and it is a law, that when lived out through Christ, points the world to Him. In the ways that you obey these commands you reflect your Father. And in the ways the world lives contrary to these commands, they reflect their father the Devil.

The very last verse of this section gives a deep and difficult command to all of us. Jesus says in Matthew 5:48

Matthew 5:48 (ESV)

You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Apart from Jesus, this command may seem impossible, but make no mistake, with Christ it is. In fact, this command is also somewhat of a promise. We will be perfect like Him as we live more and more for Him each day. We will experience that perfection in small ways here and one day we have this hope that we will be fully made perfect with Him. We will start to live the good life and we will be able to because The Good Life starts with, is sustained by, and fulfilled through Jesus.

Today is Palm Sunday, its the Sunday in the Christian calendar that marks the beginning of Holy Week, the week that will ultimately culminate in Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection from the grave. Palm Sunday gets its name from palm branches that people laid down for Jesus to ride a donkey over as He entered Jerusalem. This fulfills what was written in Zechariah 9:9.

Zechariah 9:9 ESV

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

We read later in Matthew 21:8-9

Matthew 21:8–9 ESV

Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

The people were shouting praises and welcoming Jesus as their King. And yet, only a few days later, these would be the same people shouting “Crucify Him!” Their actions on Palm Sunday didn’t line up with their words later that week.

My fear for the church today is that there are some of you sitting here who are, through your own strength, are living a false good life. You are living out the ideals of the kingdom out of your own strength without actually knowing the King. And some of you may even, for a season, be able to do it well. I don’t want you to be like those yelling Hosanna in the Highest one day and then Crucify Him the next.

Don’t think that Jesus in this Sermon on the Mount is giving you a list of things to do in order to win His favor or in order to make your life better. These things that He is teaching us here are not meant to be done in order to win His love. These things are meant to flow from His love. You, as a disciple of Christ, must first love Him deeply and commit yourself to obeying Him. As you love Jesus, you will inevitable hate sin. You will hate lust and anger, you will hate divorce and broken oaths, you will hate unjust vengeance and you will love your enemies. As you live out the ideals of the Kingdom through Christ you will start to see the Gospel go out. Your neighbors and friends and co workers and family will see Christ in you and you will be given an opportunity to invite people to know Jesus.

As you love Jesus and follow and obey Him, you will be blessed. You will live the good life. Because the Good Life starts with, is sustained by, and fulfilled through Jesus.

May you, family of Grace, be a people that loves Jesus so deeply that these ideals of the Kingdom that Jesus preached in His Word cannot help but be lived out among you. Would Portland start to change as you faithfully and boldly live for Christ. Would the Gospel advance here and to the far reaches of the world. As you go out today from this time of worship, would your lives be marked by a love for Jesus that leads you to live faithfully for Him. Would you, through Jesus, live out the good life and help others live it out the same.

Let’s pray.