Righteousness in an Unrighteous Society

Introduction

As we move further into the 21st century we face a tremendous challenge to address real life and real problems in the world.

In every age, religious bodies struggle with this great task.

Over last few decades, we have not done as well as we should in addressing real life & problems of the times.

Our task must be to use Scripture to address what is happening in the lives of people now.

For far too long preachers have been answering questions that no one is asking.

It can be easy for any church to initially decide what it believes, what the important issues are, where it stands, and the focus all future attention on dealing with the concerns of the church…

Not the spiritual needs of the people as they struggle with life.

The church is not a museum.

Go to a museum - to look at finished masterpieces.

Usually atmosphere is stuffy....restricted...

The church is more like a studio - full of those who are a work in progress.

In essence, we should be a rescue station for those struggling with life. Sin. Temptation.

It should be a place of refuge & relief.

It should be a place where spiritual growth & transformation happens.

Why was Jesus so successful?

He dealt with the spiritual needs of people struggling with life.

Teachings of the Pharisees made life worse.

Jesus addressed matters that would help people spiritually in the real world.

Matthew 5:13-20 – These are statements about the life of a righteous person in an unrighteous society.

Interesting to note that Jewish society was a religious society.

But, by Jesus’ definition, it was an unrighteous society.

“You Are” statements:

At that time, in that religious culture, for a Jewish teacher to say you are was unusual.

Matthew 7:28 – people amazed at Jesus’ teaching.

Taught as one having authority.

Matthew 13:54 – people astonished at Jesus’ teaching. Where did He get His wisdom? Power to perform miracles?

Matthew 22 – last week of Jesus’ life – major confrontations with Pharisees.

Pharisees (22:15-22) – proper for Jews to pay Roman taxes? Jesus silences them w/His answer.

Sadducees (22:23-32) – asked about whose wife a woman would be in the next world since she had 7 been married to 7 brothers – Jesus silences them w/His answer.

22:33 – crowds astonished at Jesus’ teachings.

John 7:32, 46 – Pharisees sent men to arrest Jesus (disapprove of His teachings). They return w/o Jesus and say, never did a man speak the way this man speaks.

Mark 11:18 – chief priests & scribes want to destroy Jesus – he astonished multitudes w/His teaching.

Mark 1:21-22; Luke 4:31-32 – Jesus’ teachings amazed the people because He taught as one having authority.

Some amazement resulted because of the wisdom reflected in His teaching.

This does not explain, however, the amazement over how He taught with authority.

Synagogues, virtually any study situation, there was an approved, accepted, correct way to teach.

A scripture would be read, or topic to be discussed stated, and relevant scriptures on that topic were read.

Teacher then established the position of the rabbis over the generations.

This is the correct understanding because rabbi A said, and rabbi B said, and rabbi C said…etc.

Anyone who disagreed would do it by another line of rabbis.

No one dared to say, “This is the correct understanding because I say.

You simply did not talk about “my position” or “my understanding.”

That is, nobody but Jesus.

And, what He said dealt with real world, practical issues.

Jesus distinctive not only in what He said, but how He said it.

His concept of a righteous person greatly differed from conventional concept.

His disciples would be distinctively different in that culture.

Again, a religious culture, but not a righteous culture.

For a teacher to say, “you are” the avenue through which God will accomplish His world purposes was unusual.

Did not say the word of God were the salt and light of the world.

Not the scribes & Pharisees, not the synagogue

But, his untrained, uneducated disciples.

How stunning it must have been for his audiences to realize that the world would not be saved by Israel’s religious institutions/teachers – but by those who followed Jesus & His teachings.

Profoundly Powerful Images: Salt & Light

5:13 – Salt of the earth.

Question: if salt loses its taste, can you put salty taste back in it?

Ever had a box of salt to spoil? Lose its taste?

Probably not.

As long as salt is salt, it has salty taste.

What was Jesus talking about?

Salt precious commodity in Jesus’ day.

Virtually everyone needed it.

Food preservation. (fish/meat).

Government taxed salt – an essential necessity of the people.

Salt merchants would pay taxes on salt – lose part of profit.

To make supply of salt stretch farther, merchants would add other white crystalline substances to it.

If salt passed through several merchants, and each time it was taxed, it would become diluted by the other substances and be too weak to preserve food.

It was salt that lost its taste because it was diluted.

What can you do with diluted salt?

It is dangerous. Too little to taste or preserve, but still enough to kill plants if you put it on ground.

You cannot throw it away w/o damage….usually thrown away in place where you want nothing to grow – road, etc.

Point: God would work through Jesus’ disciples to save the world…or the disciples would become so diluted by the world that they would become dangerous/destructive.

5:14 – light of the world.

Light is obvious. …Like city on a hill.

Purpose of a lamp? To help everyone in room to see.

Don’t place lamp under a basket. Put it on lamp stand – so everyone could see.

Point: We radiate the teachings of Jesus. We must not be afraid to be distinctive.

Let it shine. How?

Through good works.

Good works glorify God.

Jewish people accustomed to watching religious people perform religious deeds…

They were not accustomed to religious teachings making people good people who did good things.

5:17-20 - Did Jesus come to destroy the law?

Religious leaders accused Jesus of trying to destroy the law because His teachings and methods of teaching were different.

His teaching and presentation were:

Obviously different & not presented in a style used by anyone else.

Reached different conclusions than they were accustomed to

Made God’s message relevant to present realities

He knew religious leaders would declare He was not teaching the truth; that He was not teaching scripture; that He and His teachings were dangerous/destructive.

This is what happened.5:17 – Jesus clearly states that His teachings no threat to God’s law.

Came to accomplish ultimate purposes of the law/prophets

5:18-19 - Nothing could destroy the law – it was impossible for the law not to achieve its God-given purpose.

The traditional teaching of the law had perverted the message and the intent of the law.

His teachings would reveal & establish the correct message & intent of the law…Jesus sought to reveal God’s intentions.

5:20 – a warning to those would commit themselves to righteousness.

Unless their righteousness was greater than the righteousness of their religious leaders, they would not be a part of the kingdom.

Wow! That might lead us to ask questions:

Could they know more about the scriptures than the scribes & Pharisees?

Could they study more? Recite more commands? Give more applications?

Could they be more judgmental?

Could they attend more religious assemblies/functions?

Could they pray more?

Problem w/Jewish leaders - they had over-intellectualized their religion.

So have we!

Jesus saves us from ourselves to live an authentic life in Him.

We are created in Christ for good works.

A disciple is a learner, not like a classroom student preparing for an exam, but like an apprentice who watches the master craftsman in order to do what He does in the way that He does it.

Pharisees were academics only.

Too many Christians today are academics only!

Are you an academic - majoring in religion - or are you Jesus’ apprentice-in-training?

Important question.

Answer we give signifies the difference between theory & practice.

It distinguishes between discipleship as Jesus intended it and much that passes for Christianity today.

Rest of the Sermon on the Mount gives the “how” on becoming righteous – in practical ways.

Jesus spends time laying out the correct understanding of God’s purposes & intents.

They could have better motives.

Better hearts.

They could practice what God defined as being good: forgiving others; treating others the way you want to be treated.

Conclusion:

Just as the righteousness of the Jews had to exceed the religious expressions of their religious environment, if we are to be Christ’s church…so must ours.

How?

By knowing more than anyone else?

Studying harder?

Reciting more commands?

More interpretations?

By being more judgmental? Hostile?

Attending more assemblies? Religious functions?

How to be righteous in an unrighteous society?

By committing self to be the righteous person Jesus described.

By learning God’s real intents/purposes in His word.

By better understanding the message of God through Christ.

By having better motives/hearts

By devoting ourselves to the things Jesus stressed:

forgiveness of others;

treating others, as we want to be treated.

We are salt/light only if Christ is in us and our lives are dedicated to doing the things He wants us to do.

We are salt/light only if we let Jesus teach us/change us.

Only because of Jesus can we be salt/light.

w/o Jesus, we are not salt, and we are part of the darkness.

Allow Jesus’ teachings to make you a good person who does good things.

Don’t be ashamed to be distinctive when Jesus does that.

I N V I T A T I O N