You Have Heard It Said...
Notes
Transcript
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison. 26 Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny.
27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.
31 “Furthermore it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father 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. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Before we take a deeper look into today’s text, we need to read a couple more verses…these are found just above the section we are studying today.
17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.
The 5 sections we’ll look at are all an explanation of Matt 5:20.
You Have Heard It Said…Murder
You Have Heard It Said…Murder
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire.
The people to whom He was talking had an understanding of the law. They knew Ex 20:13 said, “you shall not murder.”
Remember also, that words have meanings. What are some ways we understand the meanings of words?
Context
Express definition from the author
Origins/Etymology
Others?
The word “murder” means the intentional taking of another’s life, in a planned fashion. I guess the varying levels of murder as defined with in the our context depend upon other factors.
Biblically speaking, murder is not killing in a battlefield, self-defense, or accidental.
Here’s the thing about murder…no one agrees that it is right.
Hitler would have never said he was murdering (maybe, he’s not here to ask and I haven’t read everything there is on him).
He was cleansing a group of people who he considered a scourge on society. In fact, he did not consider Jews, homosexuals, or gipsies as human.
Those who agree with abortion, generally, will get around the idea of murder by saying the baby is not a person, but a blob of tissue.
I’ve never meet anyone who agrees with abortion who will say, “yes, what is happening is murder, but in this case it is okay.”
Murder is 100% wrong, to all peoples everywhere.
But I say to you...
22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire.
Your Bible notes may use the word “Ghenna” for hell.
The Greek term γέεννα is derived from a Hebrew phrase meaning ‘Valley of Hinnom,’ a ravine running along the south side of Jerusalem and a place where the rubbish from the city was constantly being burned. According to late Jewish popular belief, the last judgment was to take place in this valley, and hence the figurative extension of meaning from ‘Valley of Hinnom’ to ‘hell.’ In most languages γέεννα is rendered as ‘place of punishment’ or ‘place where the dead suffer’ or ‘place where the dead suffer because of their sins.’
Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 5.
Friends, we may have not physically murdered someone, but do we have hatred in our hearts toward another person?
Ask yourself if you do as you scroll through social media, scan your neighborhood, or watch people at the grocery.
You Have Heard It Said…Adultery/Divorce
You Have Heard It Said…Adultery/Divorce
27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Here Jesus references...
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
Again, words have meaning. This is a sexual sin, and it’s a specific sexual sin. And there are a myriad of sexual sins. Fornication in general, rape, incest, beastiality, etc.
You know that the human race is incredibly sinful when you not only can, but have to separate this type of sin in categories because there is so much of it.
Here Jesus is talking about adultery; a consensual sexual relationship between a married person and someone other than their spouse.
Listen to verse 28:
28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
Here, it’s important to note one of the culture norms Jesus was hitting:
the matrimonial law (man’s law) of the Old Testament (although not the seventh commandment) accorded certain privileges to man in his relation to woman (such as the permission of polygamy and of divorce), the Lord here attacks and rebukes chiefly the sins of man.
John Peter Lange and Philip Schaff, A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Matthew (Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2008), 114.
He’s not only letting the Jewish men and leaders know they are wrong, but anyone who hears his voice that they are in danger as well!
When I’m witnessing, I often use the Good Person Test. I take them through the 10 commandments and see how good they are. Men NEVER pass the test at this point. Women, you don’t either, but some say they have never lusted. That’s when I say, “you’ve already told me you are a lair, have you really never lusted!”
31 “Furthermore it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.
Friends, it’s not whether or not we’ve been divorced or not. The point is not “how close can we get before adultery or lust becomes actual sin.
These are heart issues.
Sin is serious.
Believer, are we examining our hearts to see if we are giving lust a place in our lives, or are we just condemning everyone else?
You Have Heard It Said…Truth
You Have Heard It Said…Truth
33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
7 “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
12 And you shall not swear by My name falsely, nor shall you profane the name of your God: I am the Lord.
Essentially, Jesus hits two birds with one stone.
Lying
Taking the name of the Lord in vain.
Many people of His day (and ours!) would lie but swearing an oath to God that their testimony is true.
Jesus says this though...
34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
Friends, many wouldn’t place this in the same category as murder or adultery, and here we are.
Think of a person who does exactly what they say they’ll do: every time. What are a few words that you’d use to describe this person?
You Have Heard It Said…Revenge
You Have Heard It Said…Revenge
38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
You’ll find the OT background to this in Exodus 21-24.
One commentator says that this is contrasted with the unexpected generosity that a member of the kingdom of heaven should display.
Barry, John D., Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, Michael S. Heiser, Miles Custis, Elliot Ritzema, Matthew M. Whitehead, Michael R. Grigoni, and David Bomar. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016.
We should ask ourselves this question, “How can I return good to those who desire evil of me?”
This takes:
Prayer
Humility
A love of people
A love of God’s Word
Friends, do we always find ourselves angry with someone and looking for revenge?
You Have Heard It Said…Love
You Have Heard It Said…Love
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father 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.
Bible trivia time:
Is there an OT Bible verse that says “love your neighbor and hate your enemy?”
18 You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
What about Proverbs 25:21-22
21 If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat;
And if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;
22 For so you will heap coals of fire on his head,
And the Lord will reward you.
Friends, I’m not going to do this section justice today, but I want to summarize it with this statement:
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.
17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
We all struggle with one or all of these sins, and Jesus’ words show us how serious these sins are.
They aren’t simply an act committed, or things that are justified in certain circumstances.
These actions come from the heart, and the human heart is exceedingly wicked.
9 “The heart is deceitful above all things,
And desperately wicked;
Who can know it?
2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,
But the Lord weighs the hearts.
Friends, how does the Lord weigh your heart today? Is He calling you repentance? During our time of invitation today, I want to challenge you seek the Lord and ask Him to begin the work of repentance in one of these areas.
Ask Him how you may have sinned against another person, or
maybe you know how you’ve sinned and it’s high time to repent and seek forgiveness.
I also want to remind you today that in your own power, you aren’t able to do these things. It’s only through God’s Holy Spirit working in you that you are able.
Can you honestly say that you are a Christian?
The Bible says we’ve all sinned and have fallen short. Since God is perfect and we are not, this means we cannot be in His presence.
The Good News of the gospel is that God made a way through Jesus His Son.
You can have peace today by repenting of your sin and turning to Him as Your Lord and Savior.
If you’d like to do this today, I want to encourage you to come talk to me after the service, or if you have more questions, you can learn more by visiting my website matt419.net. You can learn more about how you can be made right with God.