The Established Word of God

Matthew 5:17–20 ESV

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.

DT: God’s Word is established and dependable

Aim: We will regard the Word of God with esteem and reverence

Introduction: This portion of Scripture is the continued exposition of Jesus from what we refer to as the sermon on the mount.

Jesus has challenged His disciples, and those in attendance of this sermon, to live so that their lives will honor and bring glory to God.

In our text today, Jesus continues to challenge the thinking of His disciples by giving them a greater understanding of the law which is the Word of God.

Some theologues believe that during this time that Jesus was considered to be a radical and because of His interpretation of the law that Jesus was attempting to make the law void and useless.

Many Pharisees who were legalist during the day of Jesus found ways of accusing Jesus of being blasphemous. Such as, Jesus had healed on the Sabbath and did not observe the rituals and feasts to the degree that others did, he was seen as having a lower view of the law.

When the ancients would speak of the law, they were speaking of the Torah. The Torah is actually the first five books of the Old Testament. The phrase ‘the law and the prophets’ represents the entire Hebrew Bible. As we will notice in the text as Jesus refers to the Law, He is speaking of the Hebrew Bible as a whole.

Because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath and did not observe the rituals and feasts to the degree that others did, he was seen as having a lower view of the law

Why is this important? This is important because we will be able to see the Christ the Messiah in relationship to the divine work of God. That relationship reveals to each of us that God’s plan and purpose is no accident and always works to God’s Glory.

David Abernathy, An Exegetical Summary of , Exegetical Summaries (Dallas, TX: SIL International, 2013), 120.

The phrase ‘the law and the prophets’ represents the entire Hebrew Bible

Transition: Jesus states His purpose is not to destroy what God has said but to fulfill what God says. In so doing, Jesus teaches the first of the principles of God’s established word

God’s Word is Stable (vv.17-18)

Matthew 5:17–18 ESV

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.

matt 5:17-

Jesus did not come to destroy or change the Word of God; but, Jesus came proving the stability of God’s Word. God means what He says and says what He means. The very fact that Jesus is now preaching to this crowd upon this mountain proves alone that God’s Word is not shaky.

Jesus pushes the envelope a little bit more by expressing that everything else will go before God’s Word does.

‘the smallest detail (of God’s law)’ . Iota (ι) is the smallest letter of the Greek alphabet, corresponding to the ‘yod’ (י) of the Hebrew alphabet.

Jesus’ point is that the Word of God is valid and must not be ignored. Yes, Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of His own death, burial and resurrection for our salvation. Yes, we are redeemed because of the blood of Jesus Christ. But God’s Word is not to be rejected.

There are those who say that contradicts this but the truth is Paul’s statement upholds this.

Romans 10:4 ESV

4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

romans 10:

Christ death is the price of our redemption not our works. There were many in the days of Paul who believed that the only way to be redeemed by God was through continuous sacrifice of bulls, sheep, cows and such. They were ignoring the work of Christ and focused on their own works.

Jesus helps us tho realize that He fulfills our redemption and we are saved by Him.

Jesus is helping us to realize today that God’s Word can be trusted.

Place your hope on the stability of God’s Word. Read the Word. Study the Word. Stand on the Word of God

ILLUS: Story is told of an old lady who was short in stature and had tall Chipharoe cabinet. Her son left the house and placed her keys to the house on top of the cabinet. She needed to leave for an emergency and could not reach the top of the cabinet she stood in a chair and still could not reach the top, she found a biology book and could not reach it, she saw a math book . . .She took her Old Bible and put it in the chair and stood on it and was able to reach the keys. She stood on the word.

Transition: Are you standing on the Word of God?

Application: The Word of God is true all of His promises are pure. Consider what God is saying and has said in His Word before you make decisions.

Transition: Not only does Jesus acknowledge the stability of God’s Word but Jesus also teaches that God’s Word is to Be Obeyed.

God’s Word is to Be Obeyed (v.19)

Matthew 5:19 ESV

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.

These are commandments not suggestions

Jesus shows His disciples that to obey God’s Word is an expectation. The believer is required to obey the word of God. The believer cannot make God’s commands optional or based upon circumstances.

b. The

b. The Consequences of the disobedient

Those who fail to obey God and reject His commands place themselves in great jeopardy. The text says that they will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Hear what Jesus is saying. When the word of God is disobeyed those who disobey will be considered the unimportant or the useless. That is a horrible state to be in; to be considered unimportant to God. But Jesus also brings this level of condemnation another way. He says If one teaches other people to disobey God they will be considered as least.

David Abernathy, An Exegetical Summary of , Exegetical Summaries (Dallas, TX: SIL International, 2013), 126.

A sobering question should arise now in the mind of each of us today. Do I obey God’s Word? Do I Teach others to Obey God?

c. The Reward of the Obedient

The obedient will be call great in the Kingdom of God. It means We get priority with God. It means we are able to have the best that God has for us.

Deuteronomy 28:1 ESV

1 “And if you faithfully obey the voice of the Lord your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth.

deut 28:

ILLUS:

Application: Learn the commands of God. Obey the commands of God. Seek to be Great in the sight of God.

The Word of God Must Be Lived (v.20)

Allow me to say this, Jesus did not have an issue with all pharisees and scribes; but Jesus did take issue with the hypocrisy of most.

We mentioned that there were those who were quite legalistic, this means to be rigid about the lifestyles of people measuring every act against rules and condemning those who fail to measure up.

The thing was that some pharisees and scribes read the Scriptures and taught the Scriptures but would not live the Scripture. They had the Church talk down and wore the church attire. They wore verses upon their foreheads and went to the temple but they did not live what they preached.

Jesus challenges His disciples by telling them, You Got to be better! Do not be half-hearted in your service. Be better! Do not be limited in your worship and your praise be better. Do not live for people to see you. Be better!

ILLUS: One blistering hot day when they had guests for dinner, Mother asked 4-year old Johnny to return thanks. “But I don’t know what to say!” the boy complained. “Oh, just say what you hear me say” his mother replied. Obediently the boy bowed his head and mumbled, “Oh Lord, why did I invite these people over on a hot day like this?”

One blistering hot day when they had guests for dinner, Mother asked 4-year old Johnny to return thanks. “But I don’t know what to say!” the boy complained. “Oh, just say what you hear me say” his mother replied. Obediently the boy bowed his head and mumbled, “Oh Lord, why did I invite these people over on a hot day like this?”

Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002).

Transition: Look, be better. Someone is watching you and listening to you.

Application: Live your life so that God is pleased. Live the Word so that others in your circle will know who God is.

Conclusion: The Word of God has been established long ago. Even when He spoke the world into existence. God’s Word is stable and can be trusted. God’s word never fails. God’s Word must be obeyed for with our obedience comes God’s gracious gifts and joy. God’s Word must be lived. Do not live to tell your story. Live to Tell His story:

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus He came to love, heal and forgive He lived and died to buy my pardon An empty grave is there to prove my savior lives

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow Because He lives, all fear is gone Because I know He holds the future And life is worth the living, just because He lives

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow Because He lives, all fear is gone Because I know He holds the future And life is worth the living, just because He lives

And then one day, I'll cross the river I'll fight life's final war with pain And then, as death gives way to victory I'll see…