Fulfillment of the Law

I don’t know about you but there are times when I step back from my faith and say, “What! Is this really what God wants? Or what?”

On what we call Halloween, October 31st of 1517 … all hallows eve back then … A young monk stepped back from the concoction of faith that the church had been cooking up and serving to the world of his day. He posted 95 talking points some of which were:

Why can’t everyone have a bible in their own language to read and think about?

Are regular people important? Can they have faith and a calling too … or just the priests who have professional religious jobs?

Do I really need to go to a priest to get to God? Do I need to confess to him, or can I just go to God myself and find forgiveness?

When Martin Luther thought things like this and wrote his thoughts down … well … watch out world! People sat up and took notice and the face of Christianity hasn’t been the same since!

Around 1500 years before that, a country rabbi with no formal schooling and hailing from the edge of nowheresville did the same thing with regards to the Judaism of his day. He was steeped in the traditions of Moses. He probably knew the Old Testament by heart … many of his day did. But Jesus stepped back and said, “Is this really what God wants? I mean … really?”

And he took Moses and the Ten Commandments and he said … “Look here. Is God really asking us to be so legalistic, so manipulative, and so hypocritical?” “What if we just went with ‘the spirit of things?’” And so, he sat down and started teaching about things like this. And people sat up and started to notice. Especially the real people. The sinners and outcasts. They too could know God. Even if they couldn’t dress in fancy clothes and make ostentatious offerings, and didn’t always have access to ceremonial washings. Maybe they could believe and just maybe God would accept their faith as righteousness. And ever since Jesus there’s been this new kind of way to be the people of God … we call it Christianity. And it revolutionized the world.

And I look around at all the different ways to be “Christian” today. All the different ways to worship. All of the different beliefs. All of the different churches each hawking their own wares as to how “best to be Christian.” Or “how to be the BEST Christians.” And I think about Jesus, and wonder … why not Just be like Him?

Jesus knew that one of the greatest obstacles he would face after preaching the sermon on the mount was that of the Pharisee’s wrongfully accusing him of abolishing the Law. They held so tightly to the laws and their other religious traditions that it would be blasphemy for someone to come along and say that the law no longer existed.

So Jesus addresses this obstacle in the next portion of Matthew 5:17, “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.” The Law had been given by God to Israel through Moses. It started with the 10 Commandments and then multiplied into 613 different laws that God asked His people to abide by. The reason God gave these Laws to His people was because He wanted them to be different from the other nations, He wanted them to be set apart, He wanted them to be holy.

In Leviticus 20:7-8, He says to His people, “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the LORD your God. 8 Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the LORD, who makes you holy.” Then again in verses 22-24, “Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. 23 You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them. 24 But I said to you, “You will possess their land; I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the LORD your God, who has set you apart from the nations.”

In Jesus’ time, the devout Jews worked hard to keep these ancient commandments, along with the other laws found in the Torah (the Old testament.) There are 613 laws that they tried to obey to the best of their ability. I want to take you into the thoughts of a Pharisee for the next couple of minutes.

Everyone is defined by something I suppose. Everyone has a story told about them when they leave the room.

I’m defined by my religion. My primary identity is that I am one of the most religious guys that I know, and I work hard to keep it that way.

For 1500 years … ever since Moses (praise be unto him), our religion has been handed down from generation to generation. Grandfather, to son to me … and now my son.

God has promised that if I follow him completely, never straying one iota … if I keep his Law impeccably that he will bless me and my family.

I do my part, and he’s seen fit to do his! I am one of the most respected businessmen in my town. I own a lot of it. I have lots of men-servants and maid-servants and we do quite a business marketing fine clothing – the best this side of Jerusalem!

I belong to the very strict sect called “The Hassidim” – “The Pharisees.” Literally, “Holy ones.” We look the part and play the part.

My wife helps me in this. Each night she lays out my next day’s robes, jewelry and head covering. I must admit to great pride as I dress myself for the day … knowing that I am setting an example for all to follow.

My tassels are big and long, and I wear the symbols of my faith on my forehead and arm. Big wide bands for my phylacteries.

I really feel sorry for the common folks – who can’t afford to keep the Torah like I do. May God grant them mercy! As for me, I’ve earned every single thing that I have, and I’m proud of it!

I take great pride in the way others defer to me, bow to me, ask me to give an opinion. Someday, I will pass this all on to my sons. And when I die … the rabbi will say, “There lived a very great man.”

Self-Righteousness and Spiritual pride set us apart from God.

The Pharisees knew that they were supposed to be set apart, so they set themselves apart from the Gentiles and they set themselves apart from their fellow Jews, believing that they were holier and therefore more righteous than all others. Even though they devoted themselves to righteous living, they missed out on the one thing God desired; a relationship with them. They ended up setting themselves apart from God. The goal of being a Pharisee was to be as holy as possible. That’s a great goal, but it often left the Pharisee’s so filled with pride that they no longer resembled God in any way.

I get the Pharisees. I like having rules to follow. I enjoy a checklist to keep me on track. It is easier to know I am doing the right thing when the right thing is laid out before me and I can control the outcome. If I just work hard enough I can accomplish my goal. And this poisonous mindset bled into the hearts of the Pharisees and it seeps into the hearts of many Christians today.

It’s a slippery slope when we try to make ourselves holy like the Pharisees did.

our relationship with God becomes performance-based

When you think about how your spiritual life is going, do you immediately look to what you have done for God?Do you feel confident after you’ve had a long quiet time? Or when you have given a lot of money? Or shared the gospel a certain number of times?Do you feel like you can’t approach God when you aren’t meeting your own standards of goodness?Do you regularly compare your spirituality to others in your life to see how well you are doing?

We start looking down on others

Do you feel comforted by the thought that you are a “better person” or “better Christian” than others in your life?Are there certain people you find it hard to have compassion for?Do you often think, I would never do that! or What kind of person could do such a thing?

We strive for outward signs of holiness

Do you forsake the unseen spiritual disciplines in your life (prayer, serving your family or roommates, self-discipline, etc.) when you are alone?Do you often think about how others will view you if you do or don’t do something?Do you look for moments in conversation to tell others about your spiritual disciplines (prayer, fasting, giving, sharing the gospel, etc.)? Or do you regularly share about these things on social media?Do you spend more time seeking God (in prayer, Bible reading, worshipping, etc.) when you are with others than when you are alone?

We love honor and recognition for our faith

Do you go above and beyond with the secret hope that those around you will notice and publicly praise you?

We feel the need to justify ourselves.

Do you have a hard time receiving compliments about certain things without explaining yourself?Do you look for moments in conversation to tell others why you do what you do?Do you have a hard time doing things that might look “less spiritual” than you believe you are?

These are really hard questions to be confronted by. But Jesus wanted to confront people on this because He knew that there was no way for someone to make themselves holy. So He fulfilled the Law through His death and resurrection. “In both its precepts and penalty, the law of God in its most exacting requirements was fulfilled by Jesus. And he did this in our place as our representative and our substitute.” Jerry Bridges

2. Jesus fulfilled the Law, therefore making us holy.

Romans 8:3-4, “For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, n God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. p And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

Jesus wanted to reveal to His followers that the only way to be holy was for Him to make us holy. He knew that He would fulfill the law through His death and resurrection, therefore ushering in an era of grace that shook up the Pharisees and their long held beliefs and traditions.

It’s still hard for believers today to understand the beauty of being made holy, not striving for it.

When God called His people to be holy He knew that in and of ourselves we would fail, holiness is not something to be achieved by our own strenuous efforts. It is a state already created and given by God.

Here is the truth about your holiness in Christ:

Ephesians 1:4 says, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.”

Colossians 3:12 says, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

2 Timothy 1:8-9, “He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

Jesus fulfilled the Law and then filled us so that we could live out his command to be holy because He is holy.

Once we grasp this beautiful truth we can let Jesus into every area of our lives and allow Him to reach into the darkest recesses of our hearts and call out the holy people we truly are. This brings Christ glory and keeps us humble.

Being called holy can make us feel uncomfortable. Some would even argue with me that there is nothing holy about them. In Christ, we are now holy. Receive that truth. Live that truth out. Let that truth become your identity.

Here is an analogy that might help you see how this works. Say you are trying to give up your addiction to cigarettes. It’s a really hard addiction to just walk away from. Everyone knows that you smoke. Your coworkers take smoking breaks with you all the time. One day you decide, today is the day! I am giving it up for good this time. You head to work and around ten your coworker finds you and offers you a cigarette. Your response is, “I’m trying to give that stuff up.” This leads to a whole conversation about how impossible it is, how many times you have tried and failed. The more your coworker keeps at it, the weaker your resolve becomes.

Now let’s flip the narrative. Your coworker offers you a cigarette and you respond by saying, “I’m not a smoker.” You have just declared your new identity. There is not an invitation to discuss the impossibilities of giving up smoking. You have just changed your identity to one that glorifies God.

Fill in the blank with whatever sin you struggle with. Now look at yourself through the eyes of Christ and remind yourself that He has already made you holy. How does that affect the way you perceive your sin? Does it control you? Can you change the narrative? The Spirit can reveal to you what holiness looks like in your life. And then that same Spirit continues to work that out in your life, to the glory of God.

Holiness is when we are no longer tempted by something that used to lead us into the deep pit of sin.

Holiness is when we do the right thing when nobody is watching.

Holiness is being slow to speak and quick to listen.

Holiness means that we remain humble because we know Who makes us holy.

Holiness is living by the commandments God has given us so that He is honored through our lives.

Jesus finishes this portion of the Sermon on the Mount by saying, “For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

The next part of our study on the Sermon on the Mount is not going to be easy, but it is going to be so rewarding. You see, Jesus fulfilled the Law for us but in the next month we are going to see how He then raises the bar on what it looks like to be a Christian. It is no longer about going through the motions of looking like a good Christian, He is going to get to the heart of the matter. It is going to challenge us in so many ways.

When I was applying to the University of Denver, I was required to write an essay. Now, I was pretty good at writing essays when I was given an idea of what I was supposed to write about. But this essay was different. They simply said, “Write an essay telling us about yourself.” It was broad and I had no idea where to start. So my mom ended up starting it for me because I had procrastinated and waited a little too long for her comfort.

This is what we are going to see in the following weeks. The Old Testament Laws gave the Jews a very precise code to live by. They could jump through the hoops and feel good about themselves. Jesus is going to change it up. He isn’t going to tell us the behaviors we should manifest as believers, He is going to get to the heart of the matter. He is going to address our inner attitudes, motives and thoughts that lead to actions and words.

In order to live by the standards He is going to provide for us, we must see ourselves through God’s eyes. Our identity as beloved, holy and chosen people will remind us that we aren’t alone in this. We are already made holy, and He will be the One who will help us live as such. And when we live as holy people, our righteousness will surpass that of the Pharisees, but we won’t take the credit, instead we will always give the glory right back to Christ.

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