Jesus’s Commitment to Scripture
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When we start learning about the bible, what part of the bible is always emphasized?
Jesus has a very high view of scripture. And in particular we will see the OT. Now, when Jesus was saying these things, the NT did not exist yet. So I want to take that into account. But I think we can assumed that Jesus had a commitment to all of scripture. And we will see that in our text.
17 “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.
18 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.
19 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.
20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
What are some reasons that we may want to avoid the OT when studying and reading?
The Law is talking about the Torah; Prophets means the rest of the OT
So Jesus didn’t come to get rid of the OT but to fulfill it.
Jesus was dealing with accusations from religious leaders that he was trying to get rid of the OT law. But in reality, they were the ones who were distorting the law and trying to make it say what it really didn’t say. They were putting pressure on people that should never have been there.
So if he didn’t come to get rid of the law, what do you think that he means when he says he came to fulfill it?
Simply, he came to accomplish all that was written.
To simplify that for us, what do we typically think of when we think of the laws and commandments found in the OT? (10 commandments)
How do we do at following these?(the way of the master tool)
We cannot keep the law. Our sin prevents us from keeping it. But Jesus did. He was sinless and perfect. He was literally without sin. So he could keep the law.
Because of our inability to keep the law, we needed one who could. Romans 10:4 “4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
Should we see the law as good or bad though?
The law pointed people to what they should be. It was a picture of the good things of God.
Hebrews 10:1 “1 For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near.”
The law cannot make us perfect, but Jesus can. Why? Because he is the fulfillment of the law.
Not only did he keep the law, but there are several times documented in the gospel accounts when something would happen to Jesus or he would do something and it told us that this was to fulfill an OT prophecy.
18 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.
CSB Study Bible: Notes Chapter 5
The smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet is the yod, which resembles an English apostrophe. The stroke of a letter is a slight pen stroke that distinguishes similar letters.
That is what an iota and dot are. (jot and tittle)
What do you think this has to do with the law? What is the correlation between punctuation marks and the law being fulfilled?
What Jesus is saying here is that he hold scripture in the highest regard. That it is perfect down to the punctuation marks.
Teach about how we get translations today and how we believe the original text is perfect but understand that translations can be different because of humans
God’s word will remain. Isaiah 40:8 “8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”
19 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.
To relax God’s word means to diminish it.
In what ways can we diminish God’s word?
He uses this idea of having two different outcomes. Faithful in teaching = great; unfaithful = least
What idea does this convey to us as believers?
How important is the faithfulness of the teaching of the church we attend as compared to other aspects like the style of music and the establishment of youth activities?
How do we know when teachers are being faithful to scripture?
20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Scribes and Pharisees were the experts on the law. Now Jesus says that someones righteousness must exceed that of the experts for them to get into heaven.
Jesus stresses the importance of biblical fidelity in preaching which ties into this idea of proper knowledge and understanding. But now he is showing us that righteousness and knowledge don’t necessarily go hand in hand.
The righteousness that he is calling for is not knowing and remembering or even doing what is right in the eyes of the law. The Pharisees were preaching this. They wanted to see behavior modification to make society better. And I believe that happens today. I think a lot of people in churches would be just fine with reaching people just with the intent for them to act better.
But it is more than that. Jesus’s focus is not on following rules but following him. He didn’t want just a change in attitude but a complete heart change.
Being religious is not the admission into heaven. It is perfect righteousness. And where does that come from?
