Sunday, September 1st, 2019 - AM - The Disciple in Community, Part 3 (Matt. 5:21ff)
Insult for those who are staying in the service here with us as well as those who might be listening by other means whether that's online or elsewhere. We invite you to turn in your Bible this morning to Matthew chapter number 5. I trust you have your Bible handy Matthew chapter number 5 and we continue our studies together. This is the pasta bring the Sunday morning message continuing our thoughts on being disciples in community in Matthew chapter in number 5. I draw your attention for sake of Time Down 2 verse number 48. We've read this first three Sundays in a row now and go back and look at what what that what Jesus had said leading up to this verse is a hard verse to swallow if you don't have the context of the scriptures.
In Matthew chapter number 5 and verse number 48. Would you read this out loud with me together as your father, which is in heaven.
Perfect there again has the idea of maturity. Not stemless Perfection, but mature can we be mature like our father in Heaven is mature. Think about the best image that you have a father. I know that's difficult for some because that father image was marred. But there are others who can give testimony of great orally father's even those great Earthly fathers if they know how to give good gifts to their children. They don't compare to Our Father which is in heaven Jesus Top Hat think about that perfect image of who the father is. think about the maturity that that father has and then apply that to these words. Jesus is saying be mature as my disciples. Jesus is helping his disciples. Learn how to handle things that they will encounter as they follow him. The Beatitudes blessed statements be able to live for God the way that I should I have want to be able to be mature. You can't do that in your own strength as you heard his testimony. It takes something outside. It takes the power of God now say something outside. I mean something Supernatural because really that something Supernatural should be inside, right? Turn the power of the Holy Spirit Jesus Christ is how has helped his disciples understand he's going to talk with them about in this so-called Sermon on the Mount. He's introduced some ideas of where they can find blessing in their life if they listen to him every disciples. Ingredients to warn them his message was not one of fluff. It was filled with things that they would need he informed if they chose and decided to follow up to the things that he was putting before them. They can expect they can expect trouble because of their stand on the truth of God and He Was preparing them for what they would face from their own families from the government from those that are they would face persecution in Jesus reminded them rejoice when that happens. Not that you're going through your mind. You are following the footsteps of those that have lived for God for ages. And this is an indication that you're doing something right for God because other people are upset it in a good way Auto Parts and cooling are subscriptions. Please don't do that because your tribulation that they are not having lost their saver because that kind of solder is good for their good works and glorify their father, which is in heaven. That is the ideal term glorify God. They're going to get right with God because of your life and following Jesus. And your light is shining your words matter. He's found some things that had taken over the Jewish people in his Day become so we can go ritual services in Crossing every T and Dot every I so to speak making sure the Pharisees and scribes said in a hair of them were a very legalistic life. Farther heart far away from God they look very good on the outside. But their heart was a million miles away from where it needed to be personal relationship by addressing the heart of the matter, which is the matter of the heart is the preacher said days gone by write the heart of the matter is matter the heart he starts there because God is concerned about the inside he works from the inside out but yet it's easier for us with our hands to work from the outside and we did it all wrong. We wonder why it's broken well because it's in her own strength, but when it comes that transformation from the inside out, The song that we sang looking for Jesus in the hymn book the verse that was connected to that was Romans 12:1 and to beseech you therefore Brethren by the mercies of God that you present your bodies a Living Sacrifice. Holy acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service and be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove. What is that good?
That's the way transformation from the inside out by the renewing of the mind. So Jesus's confronting some renewal that needs to happen within their mind because they got the wrong and Jesus does not want his disciples to wind up down the same road as the Pharisees, but here's my question and I wondered
Over the course of the past few thousand years couple of thousand years since Jesus gave his teachings how many have departed and they stuck in autopilot doing just what comes natural as well. We got to do this and get it all this done. So the Y, We losing Jesus said if you're going to see Heaven your righteousness has to be better than that. Your righteousness has to exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees here. I mean, this is going to set a fire that everyone listen to him is going to be out. The same thing with me in that day when you look at someone who is receding and they just mean if you want your kids to grow up and be somebody they know how to pray and give these in a printer. That's not what he says except your righteousness exceed theirs. The root of that cause when you study New Testament is self righteousness. What are the biggest Liars to ourselves we can never be sometimes? We can really convince ourselves. Can we not I'm okay. I'm okay. I'm okay and got just keeps working on us and holding us and as we get to the light he shows up something else and we go I'm really not okay enough to do that in the blood of Jesus Christ. His son cleanseth basketball team is going to have six statements that he makes from the wall, which is right from their Bible. By the way. They said external God says internal Spirit behind it. It's not enough just to to keep your hands from murdering someone if you hate them in your heart and in orbit way. Then you have violated that before God's eyes already and you are guilty before him. There will be judgement. There will be consequences. Same thing with what it's not enough that you refrain yourself from the physical act of adultery Point occasionally says if you have that in your heart, it's already sent and got already seen its the heart same thing with divorce and this is the area where we pick up our time today. Jesus is in the middle of helping his disciples who are following it. Remember these are they came to him and they sat at his feet and they are listening to him and he tells those that have come to him. He's helping them had a deal with their passion. with anger and with adultery in particular isn't that powerful now? This is the shortest of all the six if you look in your Bible at Traverse number 31 and 32, you'll see what encapsulates his comments about divorce. Now. I do not intend this to be a Biblical defense a reputation of divorce a devil that topic multiple times another sermons and Jesus didn't spend a lot of time there today. So I'm coming. I'm going to spend a lot of time there. But if you have questions you let me know. I don't have it all figured out but I can show you some things that I've learned along the way and I want to know where I stand on the bourse. I'm not going to keep that from you. I'll share that with you, but that's not the time or place to do this. We're looking at Jesus's words opinions about divorce and remarriage. Okay what Jesus said here? What was the stipulation in Deuteronomy 24 Stipulation was that if a man put away his wife.
And then she goes and marries another. The original husband was forbidden by the Mosaic law to take her to be his wife again. That was the scenario. That was the situation talks about let him give her a bill of divorcement. Let him give her a writing of divorcement. I believe Jesus is dealing with this because keep it in context. Okay without a call is murder in God's eyes. We got that nail down adultery. Is sin and got that adultery is fornication. And so if you look in last or and he goes into context about if if you cause someone else to being a little tree, he's here. He's dealing with adult.
Heart of the matter the writing of divorcement. It's interesting to me in that Deuteronomy 24 passage is given permission to actually remarry. It was the the guilty party if he will remember that the man that found some uncleanness in his wife and put her away. The one who was hurt the most the one who was the dirty one in that contest and I'm using contaminated in whatever. She was the one going remarry. If you divorce the second one, you can't go back to the first one that's done that that was the law of Moses. Instagram come for the writing and there's another Shima school or something like that school of etiquette in my notes. There were multiple teachings on divorce the which was the scribes in a working with law and interpreting all of the stuff in this is what people would live by all those rules and regulations about how far to walk on the Sabbath and do this and how you need to wash your hands. And how do you need to come here are what you need to say and what you don't need to say.
Any other mishnah it was very loose on the bourse. If I can phrase it for you today, I would put it like this will get her. I'm going to go find somebody who can make real pissed I take you back to, Georgia.
Okay, what do you say it doesn't matter if she burn the biscuits do married to her. And in God's eyes, even if you give her the piece of paper, guess what? Because she burn your biscuits and you don't like her. That's really in Burger biscuits.
There will be judgment because in God's eyes, that's not that's not acceptable is it?
We have in Colorado no-contest divorce, right? And so that's basically missioner. You don't like the way somebody comes their hair. You don't have to have a reason all you got two hands piece of paper from the state. So this applies to us today, doesn't it? The sacred and solemn vows of marriage should never be entered into lightly and I understand because in Matthew chapter number 5 he gives an exception clause. If you're going to come to position on divorce and remarriage you have to deal with this exception Clause if you isolate Matthew and only take Luke and only take Mar, you're not getting the whole scripture. My personal take on it is Matthew in riding to a Jew Johnny Lucas riding to the Roma naughty and who's writing the Greeks and the Romans divorce mean different things in different cultures even today. We understand that and so here Jesus is dealing with this with juice with a Jewish audience and he gives his claws except it be for fornication. Last time I told you hold on to something and I'm going to hear Jesus said if a brother if a man hate his brother, and these were the next words Let me read it. So I don't miss miss read it. You have heard that it was said was 21 by them of old time Thou shalt not kill but whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the Judgment. She's obsessed. But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother. The next phrase is without a cough. That's an exception Clause just like you have on the passage dealing with marriage and divorce with adultery. So when you diagram and you lay the passage out, you see there's parallels all throughout his this is a beautiful passage of scripture. It is just marbles. So what was the cause and we can understand what you saying? Basically, it's not enough if you just don't like the way she cooks or something to talk about clearly fornication adultery involved except it be for fornication. That's the call others. Also go to other passages in Exodus and they will look at abandonment as a legitimate. cause for divorce
This is my summary statement on it. God will never put on you. something that he would never bear himself
How can I as a counselor sit down across a desk from someone and ask them and tell them the Bible commands you to go back to an abusive situation?
The Bible commands you to do this even though they're sleeping around on you. You've got to Jesus didn't say that and neither will I now I'm very careful here because Jesus is words are strong. They are strong. He says a Matthew 19 whatsoever. God has joined together. Let not man put asunder. That's the heart of God to become one and you can go to without damage anymore. There's a breaking that happens to an intellect emotion and will there when they're in holy matrimony anything outside of the marriage vows is adultery according to Hebrews 13 winner standing. So Hear Jesus gives some teaching to help his disciples he's helped them in the People's Court if you're angry with your brother without a cause when you go stand before Judge Judy don't worry or they will help you with your humble yourself you can get right with them before you ever get to her deal with it quickly while you're in the way with them and you don't have to appear on national TV. That's not how she said but you get what I'm saying? Adultery and you got to control your passions. And where is it more passionate than in the marriage relationship goals have been married in the length of time know there's a lot of grapes that you got to have when you're married. Yep, it's a lot of Grace that has to be given it's a lot of Grace that has to be receive forgiveness almost every waking breath. But you know what love is decision. It's not feeling and when we stand before an altar before God we decide I will love that person. I will give myself to them till death do us part. And we're going to hold to that. Jesus is going to deal with keeping your word here soon, which is on the horizon in Matthew chapter number 5 BC. We're dealing with passions because we can become very passionate in dealing with these men with these issues of marriage. You don't believe that just go talk to some divorce lawyers here in the Denver area and I'll tell you exactly how passionate husbands and wives.
Breaking it off. Some of it gets really passionately nasty. And a lot of times it's what breaks my heart. So many times the children are the ones that suffer the most they are. Jesus pops sternly about offending these little ones. They were better that a millstone be hung about your neck and you be drowned in the depth of the sea. Anyway, God watches over his little children and he takes care of them and soon as we follow the People's Court and conduct ourselves in the private Court disciples in the divorce court, and now that he's dealt with our passions. He's quite clear that we can't be right with God until we're right with another one another. We are advocates for Jesus Christ. Those three segments from the wall. Help us understand how to deal with our passions. In these next 3. Jesus is going to help us understand how to deal with our promises. If you're going to follow Jesus, you need to be a person of your word. You need to say what you mean and mean what you say and when you say you're going to do something for God it matters to God. It matters to Jesus. You need to keep your word to know how to uphold your promise to them River James says if you don't give them that which is me from from the body, but but you tell him to part that you warmed and filled and you don't help them. You're not keeping your promise to God to follow him. You breaking your word and then he closes with the sixth one let your yea be yea and your Nay be nay. These are the next 3 on how the disciple only deals with his passion. What happened to disciple deal with his promises? How do you see the pattern and it works from the inside out? We deal with it internally. And it affects how we operate externally. We need to be an advocate for Christ in the court of honor. This is in verses 33 to 37 has been set of all time by then the whole time.
I think I don't know who did this illustration. It was probably.
He was talking about this one thing that he said drove him crazy was when people say I'll pray for you.
It's not the fact that they're saying they'll pray for someone. He says nine times out of 10.
I'll pray for you. Sounds really good. Sounds super spiritual, but did you? Now that's a pastor I had to deal with this and so one way that I can bet that because I know my own weakness, you know my weakness to I can't remember having me and my brain is it's out there sometimes if I tell someone I'm going to pray for them because I really do mean it when I say it right. I mean, I mean if I stand before God one day he's going to bring that up Every Idle Word I said is I'm going to have to answer for remember when you were talking with someone.
fast forward I'm just going to have to come.
That's not how we want to follow Jesus over what I do to help me because I I need to deal with things at the moment if I'm going to pray for someone I pray for them right there. You wonder so he might wonder why do that you see me do that. I've stopped and said, you know, this is crazy right now. This is part of why I do that because I want to honor my word. I want to be a disciple. That means what he says and says what he means if I tell you I'm going to pray for you. I don't want to just tell you I'm going to pray with you if you let me and then we'll do that now. That's just one application.
Make sure you follow through with everything you have. I can tell you about the time when my wife and I we bought her our house together stuff first house. We were brought together was back in 2008. It's part of the reason why we're still in Colorado because you sign your name on a line draw the document entitled mortgage and it's synonymous with mortician and the mortuary and the mortgage in the original.
Three decades out of my life. I took that pain and they were I did not want to sign that that Pam was on come of that paper till I knew exactly what I was saying. Are you ever going to get this thing done with got other people to go? Talk to you tonight? I'm going to I'm going to
If I didn't have a stronger conviction about this, that was January 2018 buddy. Remember what happened economically in 2008? Well economically this assistant pastor at the time lost his its means of income and I did the best thing that I could do. I started calling people and ask them if they needed any help I show up to the job site. I'm doing physical manual labor construction painting and stopped in their tracks when they and they asked me to get this straight you have a master's degree in your painting for construction. I'm taking my time. I'm turning my time and money so that I can feed my family.
It's what you do and you know that because you're hard workers are here and you've been over backwards and you do what it takes. If I don't have the conviction that I did. I mean we reached out for help. It's not like we didn't but everyone told us when you're 3 months behind. And you haven't paid your mortgage for 3 months. Call us. Okay, so just go back on my work. Is Saunders mortgage? I'm sorry? Call it pride if you want, but it's not fried because I have biblical basis for it. I'm not worried about my reputation. It's not my reputation. That's at stake.
It's his. excuse and so I did what needed to be done and God came and gave me the strength to do it. I wouldn't be here today. I'm not telling you that so that you can look at me and say Lord have her as my wife. Don't tell you the truth. I'm telling you that since you see it matters when you say you're going to do something you ought to do that within all your power to do it to take some sacrifice swear yourself. If you're not ready to go the extra mile that comes into what he's going to say later. I say unto you swear. Not all Jesus says it's best if you just don't even take out that mortgage. Hey, wouldn't that be great?
Be great to help the church out too. By the way, if you have that, it's okay. That's on the city of the great King the song The Great city of the great king himself player. I like how he does that that's really nice to me. When I read the scriptures. Neither shall I swear by the head because it's not make one hair white or black. Yay. Yay. Nay nay, Sevierville. I swear by God strong 11 verse number for that to swear by heaven. That's God's very from that is his prerogative. Not ours that belongs to him and him alone. You have no business putting something up on that Throne of God didn't put there.
to swear by the Earth
because he created it. He's our creator. The whole earth is the Lord's footstool. It's not our right to use Earth to bolster our own Petty claims one writer put it. To swear that's facing toward comes from the Greek word ice as a preposition toward Jerusalem, that's what to do. No, Jerusalem, is he he's working his plan in his program. He is Sovereign and Soak City. It's not yours to control. So how are you going to swear by Jerusalem now, this is for his audience in that they remembered. But it makes sense. So here is a great Eternal truth. Why can't find it in two compartments? In which some approaches, you know, you got got involved in this compartment and then in others, you don't have gotten both know you can't compartmentalize your life in that manner and still follow cheese there cannot be in the shipyard or the factory or the office one Rider set coffee one kind of standard of conduct Church in another kind in the business world to get what they're saying, right? Who You Are It's who you are? What you see is what you get. A nice I have from day one striven to be who God made me to be behind the desk as well as when I'm not behind it. This is who I am. I'm not going to be somebody that I'm not because that's going to hurt the cause of Jesus. Will it not have seen that very thing in churches? Not only from the preachers. Maybe it's the preachers why maybe it's the missionary that came through. Maybe it's the Evangelist that travels. Maybe it's sitting in the Pew that says the following Jesus God damn it applies to is all and if we're one way here and then we're one way outside these doors. That's a poppers. It says we come in here, you know, one of the one of the ways that I've had to help people understand this because they had to have an understood it. It can manifest itself even something as simple as hand shaking. No, we shake hands during the service. Well, okay, I'll do it. I just have slap a smile on my face with him. Like nothing to me know you don't please don't do that. If you have a burden shared that you don't have to do it because it's a brief time where we just greet one another and we can help each other long, but if you really have something you're carrying you need to sit down with someone and pray about that and get serious with God about that will just come in and pretend like everything's okay when it's really not this is what the body of Christ is for. This is our church family help each other. We bear one another's burdens.
Well, I can't talk to so-and-so because you understand where we're going with that church is great. By the way, there's been a few times in the past. You are very clear to set them straight very quickly about our church family when they have them the wrong idea about handshaking time and they think oh, you know, they're so friendly.
Well, I won't back rested. Let's stay on top.
We ought to be who we are in front of God and in front of others God doesn't need to be invited into certain Departments of our life to be there. Jesus said to the church Atlanta to the church to the church at laodicea. I stand at the door and knock.
Jesus outside the church And you know what? He's outside of a lot of churches today to buy the way and God forbid that he ever be outside of this one because he's the head we follow him. The church is his bride ears. Not only the words with their spoken in his name appears old Wards any such thing as a form of Words which party to a transaction. It's not transaction Arie our walk with him. So we will regard as disciples all promises as sacred. If we remember that all promise big and small really truly are made in the presence of God. I don't expect you to go out here and sign your name to mortgage unless you already done that and I'll pray for you you pray for me will make it through the next 15 1030 years.
But honor your work week people of your work.
in the People's Court in the private Court in divorce court, and also you need to deal with your promises in the court of honor.