Matthew 5:17-20

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Introduction

Christ Came to Fulfill the Law

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.

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Nothing novel or new
Up to this point in his sermon, what Jesus has taught his disciples is nothing new, though to his hearers it may very well have seemed new. And the reason why is that the life and culture of a Jewish person was that of a life governed by the law, their religious activities marked certain parts of their daily lives, sacrifices marked the morning and the evening hours, their tithes were given every three days, they were instructed to rest on the Sabbath every week, and usually worshiped weekly at their local synagogue. Their lives were very structured around the laws prescribed by the OT scriptures. Not to mention the extra biblical traditions heaped on top of them by the scribes and Pharisees.
So at this point in Jesus' teaching it's likely that his listeners would have found it strange that the Law and Prophets had not yet been directly mentioned, even though everything that Jesus has said up to this point accords completely with what the OT taught. But I think it’s why Jesus says in verse 17,
At this point in Jesus' teaching it's likely that his listeners would have found it strange that the Law and Prophets had not yet been mentioned directly, even though everything that Jesus had said already accorded with what the OT teaches. So it's likely the reason Jesus says in verse 17,
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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.

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.
On one hand Jesus certainly intends to demonstrate that he his the fulfillment of everything the the Law and the Prophet's spoke of, but he also understands that his hearers might naturally think that somehow his teaching up to this point is opposed to the Law and Prophets, so Jesus makes it very clear that his teaching is not new or a departure from the OT law but rather a fulfillment of it.
On one hand, Jesus certainly intends to demonstrate that he is the fulfillment of everything that the Law and the Prophet's spoke of, but he also understands that his hearers might naturally think that somehow his teaching, up to this point, is somehow a departure from the Law and Prophets, so Jesus makes it very clear that his teaching is not new, and nor is it a departure from the teachings of the OT, but rather his purpose and intention is to fulfill the Law and the Prophets.
And the question we’re going to mainly deal with here today is, ‘How does Jesus fulfill the Law and the Prophets?’
On one hand Jesus certainly intends to demonstrate that he his the fulfillment of everything the the Law and the Prophet's spoke of, but he also understands that his hearers might naturally think that somehow his teaching up to this point is opposed to the Law and Prophets, so Jesus makes it very clear that his teaching is not new or a departure from the OT law but rather a fulfillment of it.
Defining ‘abolish’ and ‘fulfill’
But the first thing that I think we should do, that should helpful, is to consider, the definition of Jesus’ use of the words ‘abolish’ and ‘fulfill’. Again we read Jesus’s words,

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.

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Jesus accused of being opposed to the Law and the Prophets

Now, there’s no question up to this point that Jesus’ life and ministry have caused significant disruption within the Jewish community. If you’ll remember when we talked about John the Baptist, that he commanded such a following that even the Jewish historian Flavious Josephus wrote of him as someone who gained the attention of king Herod. And if you’ll remember in John chapter 4 verses 1-3 we read that Jesus began to command a following that was even greater than that of John the Baptist.

4 Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2(although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee.

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And while Jesus was immensely popular at times with the people of Israel, he was not so popular with many of the Pharisees and scribes. To them Jesus was a threat to their authority and rule, and so on many occasions they sought to discredit him by bringing accusations against him, to demonstrate to the people that he was a law breaker.
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In we see Jesus relining at a table with many tax collectors and sinners coming to sit with him and his disciples, and when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners? What were they trying to do with such a question? They were trying to discredit the character of Jesus.
And in , on the Sabbath, Jesus enters a synagogue and while he is teaching, a man enters whose right hand was withered. And the scribes and Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find reason to accuse him.
Jesus in says,

18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”

I point all of this out for one reason. Those who opposed Jesus sought to discredit him by accusing him of being a lawbreaker, they labeled him as someone who opposed the law, so in Jesus’ sermon on the mount we see Jesus telling his disciples that he did not come to abolish the law. Jesus is making it very clear that his ministry and purpose accords completely with the Law and the Prophets.
I point all of this out for one reason. Those who opposed Jesus sought to discredit him by accusing him of being a lawbreaker, they labeled him as someone who opposed the law, so in Jesus’ sermon on the mount we see Jesus telling his disciples that he did not come to abolish the law. Jesus is making it very clear that his ministry and purpose accords completely with the Law and the Prophets.
Defining abolish
The word translated ‘abolish' here means to annul, to make void or even to destroy completely, and Jesus is teaching his disciples that he did not come to annul or destroy the Law or the Prophets as some might say, but instead he came to fulfill them.
Jesus is serious about the Law and the Prophets
In fact, look at verses 18-20 again,

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 Jesus is basically saying is that anyone who accuses me of being opposed to the law doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Jesus says that until heaven and earth pass away not a single letter or dot of the Law will be altered. Jesus says that if anyone even relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do that same he will be least in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus says the one who is great in the kingdom of heaven is the one who obeys the Law and teaches it. And Jesus even goes so far as to say that unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
If anyone is serious about the Law and the Prophets it’s Jesus, but the difference between Jesus’ teaching on the Law and the Prophets, and that of the Pharisees, is that Jesus understands that the Law is not enough. For many of the religious leaders law-keeping was enough. They thought that their manufactured righteousness was enough. Like Nicodemus in they did not understand that for one to be saved one must be born again, or born of God.
Justification by faith alone
God must give us a new heart in order that we might be saved, and with that new heart comes new affections, affections toward God that receive the righteousness of Christ by faith, by trusting in him for salvation. And this is why the mantra of the Protestant Reformation was “the just shall live by faith”. It isn’t our works that justify us before God, Paul says in ,
You see in the Protestant reformation the mantra was “the just shall live by faith”.

20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight

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but Paul goes on and says in verse 28,

28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.

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You see, we are justified by works, just not our own works. We are justified by Christ’s works, and our trusting in Christ for salvation imputes, or ascribes Christ’s righteousness to us. You see faith is the instrument through which the Holy Spirit unites us to Christ and causes us to stand justified in his God’s sight.

Satisfying the righteous requirement of the Law

And this is the first sense in which Jesus fulfills the law. The word translated ‘fulfill’ here means to satisfy or to fill up. So rather than coming to make void the Law and the Prophets Jesus has come to satisfy them. He has first come to satisfy the righteous requirements of the Law.
Defining fulfill
Now
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Remember that Jesus understands that the Law is not enough, that while the Law gives us knowledge of sin, or in other words, helps us to see and discern what is sinful, the law has no power in and of itself to save us, it has no power to create in us God pleasing obedience. It isn’t that the law has no role at all, but that the law has a limited role. It ought to point out our sin and point us to our need for a savior, it ought to point out to us that we need forgiveness.
Fulfilling every religious requirement of the law
And Jesus not only fulfilled the moral aspect of the law, he fulfilled every ceremonial requirement of it, from circumcision to baptism. If you'll remember back in chapter 3 starting in verse 13 we read the account of Jesus' baptism,
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13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Mt 3:13–15). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.

God, through the prophet John, instituted the religious rite of baptism for Israel, and many consented, including Jesus. Not because Jesus needed to repent of any sin but because as he put it, it was fitting to fulfill all righteousness. Notice, there’s that word again, ‘fulfill’. Jesus satisfied every requirement of the Law because we couldn’t, whereas the Pharisees thought that they could. It’s why Jesus said to his disciples that their righteousness had to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, because their so-called righteousness wasn’t enough.

Jesus is the culmination of everything written in the Law and the Prophets

There’s also a second sense in which Jesus fulfills the Law and the Prophets. Jesus is the culmination of everything that the Law and the Prophets point to. Day in and day out priests were making sacrifices at the temple in Jerusalem for the forgiveness of sins, the people of Israel were living by ceremonial laws that were never intended to be a permanent arrangement. These ceremonial laws were never to be an end and of themselves, all of the laws that were given to Israel were intended to point to something, or more precisely, to someone. To point Israel ahead to their Messiah, to point them to their need for personal holiness, to help them recognize their need for forgiveness and for a future and final sacrifice that would pay for their sin. This why the writer of Hebrews says this about Jesus in chapter 9 starting in verse 12,

12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

After the perfect sacrifice of Christ there was no need for his people to continue sacrificing animals for the forgiveness of sins. Verse 26 says,
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"[Jesus] entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption."

he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

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After the perfect sacrifice of Christ there was no need for his people to continue sacrificing animals for the forgiveness of sins. Verse 26 says,
Jesus not only fulfills the law in that he perfectly meets all of it's requirements, but he also fulfills it in that he is the culmination of everything that the Law and the Prophets were intended to point the Israelites to. The ceremonial laws of the OT were object lessons and it's important for us to see that Jesus is the object of those lessons, he is the fulfillment of what they pointed to.
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"... he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."
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Religious rites fulfilled in a person
Jesus not only fulfills the law in that he perfectly meets all of it's requirements, but he also fulfills it in that he is the culmination of everything that the law was intended to point the Israelites to. The ceremonial laws of the OT were object lessons and it's important for us to see that Jesus is the object of those lessons, he the fulfillment of what the pointed to.
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Imagine God setting up the tent of meeting in the wilderness with all of it's intricacies and details, all given very specifically to Moses by God with the ultimate intention of pointing God's people to Christ. Think of the temple that was built in Jerusalem, all of the ceremonial laws regarding cleanliness, the feasts like Passover, with everything, by design, pointing ahead to Jesus. And when Jesus finally comes and eventually ascends back into heaven he, in a way, picks up all of these things and takes them away with him, because they’re not longer necessary. God’s presence no longer resides in a single geographical location and nation, his Holy Spirit now resides within his people no matter their location or nation. Think of how the Passover meal celebrated every year in Israel has been, in a sense, replaced by what we call the Lord’s Supper, where the bread and the juice that we now drink represent the very body and blood of the true passover lamb. In these ways Jesus fulfills the law.
In this way Jesus fulfills the law.
Zeal without knowledge
I've encountered many Christians over the years who have had a strong zeal for the Lord, and in their zeal they don't understand why we as Christians aren't practicing many of the laws, regulations and feasts prescribed in the OT and so begin practicing them anew. What they don't understand is that the overarching purpose behind those laws and regulations was to point ahead to Christ, and because they don't understand this they heap these laws onto themselves and even criticize their fellow Christians who aren't adhering to the same practices.
I've encountered some Christians who have had a strong zeal for the Lord, but in their zeal, and because they don't understand why we no longer practice these laws, regulations and feasts prescribed in the OT begin practicing them anew. What they don't understand is that the overarching purpose behind those laws and regulations was to point ahead to Christ, and since Christ has come we no longer have need of practicing such things, and because they don't understand this they heap these practices back onto themselves.
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Jesus fulfills the law by securing our sanctification

And finally, Jesus fulfills the law by becoming our sanctification. says,

you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,

In other words, Jesus not only became our righteousness but he also secured our sanctification. He bought your obedience. We are justified by God’s grace through faith in Christ, but God also intends for us to be conformed to the likeness and image of his Son. What does that mean? God intends for us to be holy as he is holy, and Paul writes in ,

I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

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Like Jesus said, our righteousness ought to exceed that of the Pharisees if we are to enter the kingdom of heaven. Not only does Jesus' obedience to the law and sacrificial death on the cross justify his people through faith but it also purchases for them their sanctification. It will be the Holy Spirit who will indwell God's people, bring them to faith and conform them into the image of God's Son. We must remember that without holiness no one will see the Lord, and God intends to ensure our holiness by the the work of the Holy Spirit through sanctification. Jesus fulfills the law by enabling us to keep the law.
You and I as Christians have a great and glorious promise that the good work that God has begun in us, he will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. In other words he will conform you into the image of his son, he will work in you to overcome the sin in your life, he “is able to keep your from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy”.
Sanctification is the Holy Spirit working in the hearts of God’s people bringing about the holiness that is necessary for heaven. says, “Strive … for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” Do you remember what Jesus said in verse 20 of our text today? He said,

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

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Conclusion

Jesus is not only our righteousness that justifies us before God, but Jesus by the work of the Holy Spirit works in us to produce the righteousness of God. God justifies, God sanctifies and God glorifies! All of this was purchase for you and I at the cross.
We asked on the outset of our time together, “How does Jesus fulfill the Law and the Prophets?” The answer is, Jesus satisfies the righteous requirement of the law. Jesus is the culmination of everything written of in the Law and the Prophets. And Jesus will sanctify us by his Spirit that we might one day be glorified, that we might see God face to face in heaven.
Like Jesus said, our righteousness ought to exceed that of the Pharisees if we are to enter the kingdom of heaven. Not only does Jesus' obedience to the law and sacrificial death on the cross justify his people through faith but it also purchases for them their sanctification. It will be the Holy Spirit who will indwell God's people, bring them to faith and conform them into the image of God's Son. We must remember that without holiness no one will see the Lord, and God intends to ensure our holiness by the the work of the Holy Spirit through sanctification. Jesus fulfills the law by enabling us to keep the law.
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Jesus satisfies the righteous requirement of the law. Jesus is the culmination of everything written of in the Law and the Prophets. And Jesus will sanctify us by his Spirit that we might one day be glorified, that we might see God face to face in heaven.

Prayer

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