Matthew 5:21-30 "Our Heart Condition"

Good Morning CCLC! Turn in your Bibles to Matt Chapter 5. We are continuing our verse by verse study through the Sermon on the Mount. In the last segment Jesus established that He came not to destroy or abolish the law and the prophets (what we call the OT) but to fulfill all that the OT said about the Messiah...and He did! Therefore, we should do and teach the commandments, and the commandments point us to Christ. As we come to Christ in faith, we are fulfilling the purpose of the law and the prophets...as a result we are called great in the kingdom of heaven, and our righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees who attempted to be righteous through their works...which is not God's system for salvation. Now as we enter the body of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus will address various commandments the Religious Leaders taught incorrectly. Jesus had all authority as the fulfiller of the law (as mentioned in Verse 17) and He will give the true intent of the law, with the phrase, "But I say to you..." Six times in this chapter Jesus makes such statements, thus these various "You have heard...But I say..." statements are called the Six Antithesis. The first two illustrations are the 6th and 7th commandments...prohibitions against murder and adultery, which Jesus further refines into anger and lust...getting down to the heart...the intent of the law. Anger and lust are two of the greatest sins that plague mankind, especially men. How fitting for Jesus to address these issues first? Let's pray and then we will get into the word. The theme of today's message is "Our Heart Condition." Matt 5:21-22 "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.' 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." 1. The first "You have heard...But I say to you..." statement addresses the Sixth Commandment, "You shall not murder." 2. It was commendable that the Religious leaders taught the people, but less than commendable that they did not accurately divide the word of truth. 3. Of old, the Jews were warned by God, through Moses, "You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you." Deut 4:2. Reiterated in Deut 12:32. 4. And, throughout the law, various Rabbis in their interpretation of and commentary on the law, were guilty of adding to and taking away from God's commandments. 5. David Guzik observed, "...the two errors of the scribes and Pharisees were that they both restricted God's commands (as in the law of murder) and extended the commands of God past His intention (as in the law of divorce)." 6. And, this is accurate. The law of murder was restricted through their strict external definition, and Jesus will correct this faulty teaching. 7. The Law of Murder is a moral law appearing in Ex 20:13 and Deut 5:17 (still applicable to us today). It simply states "You shall not murder." The phrase "whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment" is not directly written after this law in the Ten Commandments, but is accurate...Jesus makes this same statement in verse 22. Exo 21:12 and Lev 24:17 both speak about the death penalty for the murderer, so to say there is a judgment for the murderer is accurate. 8. It's important to clarify that Murder means "to slay" which is an intentional and pre-meditated act of evil. Murder is not the same as killing in self-defense, engaging in war, when a Police Officer defends themselves or others, or capital punishment. Even God in the Bible commanded Israel to kill certain nations in judgment. That was not murder. Murder in the sense here is an unlawful taking of life. 9. The incorrect teaching was, "As long as you do not take the life of another person, you are not in violation of the law" which fell short of the true meaning. 10. Jesus gives us the true intent of the law, "But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment." 11. Ps 4:4 states "Be angry and do not sin." Anger in and of itself is not sin when it is based in righteousness. Jesus doesn't say "whoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgement." He states, "...whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment." 12. And, the big idea is the underlying internal attitude of unrighteous anger in the heart, this is sinful...just as murder is sinful. They are lumped together, here by Jesus, and both when held up in to the holy nature of God...they don't compare. Unrighteous anger and unlawful murder are not characteristics of God. Righteous anger and lawful killing are permissible by God. There's an important difference. One is evil and one is just. 13. James wrote, "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; 20 for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." Jas 1:19-20. 14. This is a great verse relevant to what Jesus is teaching. When we don't listen to another person, and speak too quickly in anger, this is not behavior reflective of God. We need to slow it down...be a good listener, process our thoughts before we respond, and not respond in a ugly manner...if we do, we are not being a good representation of Jesus. When you act out in anger, you taint your opportunity to witness for Jesus. 15. Jesus now provides a series of examples addressing unrighteous anger in the heart..., "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." 16. 'Brother,' in these verses, should be understood as relations between Christians... "Brothers in Christ" versus a genetic sibling. A little side story: I'm careful not to call just anyone "brother." I met a Muslim teacher (a Mullah) recently (we had a good conversation...He had very interesting perspectives, though off, but it was friendly), and he asked me, "Do you mind if I call you brother?" I didn't stop him, but in my heart I couldn't reciprocate because our eternal destinies are different. A brother or a sister is someone in your family, thus I do not casually use that title. 17. Jesus has already established being angry at a brother without a cause is not befitting kingdom citizens, now He brings two expressions of contempt to light that also are symptomatic of an unfit heart attitude of His people. 18. Raca means "empty"...as if someone called you "worthless" or "good-for-nothing." 19. You Fool in Gk. is mōrŏs, mo-ros´; dull or stupid. Where we get our English word 'moron.' We talked about this word a few weeks ago when we looked at "Salt & Light." "You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses it's flavor..." Remember that? "Loses it's flavor" in Gk. is mōrainō, (root word mōrŏs); -become foolish, lose savour. 20. It may seem harsh that one might be in danger of the judgement of "hell fire" for casting an insult of "you fool" since we would barely even consider this a curse at all. But, these curses "Raca" and "You Fool" held great contempt in the 1st century. "You fool" in particular appears to have the context of damning another person to hell, which is something only God has the authority to do. 21. Ps 14:1 and Ps 53:1 may reflect the severity of this curse, "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God." 22. And, within this either abusive language (as in the case of Raca) or an actual curse to hell (as in "you fool"), either the spirit of murder or a desire to murder is present. 23. Either expression of contempt for another will result in judgment. "Before the council" speaks about the Jewish High Council...the Sanhedrin; "hell fire"...Hell Gk. "Gehenna" a symbolic name for eternal damnation. In the previous verse Jesus spoke of "The judgement" which refers to a tribunal...the Jewish Courts...but, a lower court than the council. 24. The insults and contempt increase in each scenario... 'angry without a cause'; 'Raca'; and then 'You fool!'; and the level of judgment increases- low court, high court, eternal punishment. 25. As the progression of crime increases, so does the degree of punishment...which seems to indicate that Jesus will deal with sins according to the severity of the crime during His kingdom reign. 26. For us today, the key idea is contempt breeds murderous thoughts in the heart and these sins are not characteristic of God, nor should they be reflective in kingdom citizens. Continue to verse 23 Matt 5:23-24 "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." 1. From vss 23-26, Jesus now gives two illustrations highlighting the importance of reconciliation, which is a trait that should be present in kingdom citizens. In vss 23-24, 2. In vss 23-24, the context is an issue between brothers, and in vss 25-26 the context is an issue with an adversary (and it is difficult to say conclusively if the adversary is a believer or not), but either way we should display a spirit of reconciliation. 3. Notice in either scenario, you are to talk with the person with whom you are in conflict to seek reconciliation. You are not to talk behind their back, which is called gossip, and I would extend to all forms of social media defamation as well. 4. In Matt 18, Jesus expounds upon reconciliation between believers. I'll paraphrase- First, go to the person alone. If that doesn't work, take one or two more. If they still refuse to hear, take it to the church. If that doesn't work, treat them as you would a non-believer, an outsider to the church. 5. Back in Matt 5, Jesus mentions bringing a gift to the altar. The altar was in the inner court of the Temple. Likely the Altar of Burnt Offerings where a sacrifice would be brought for the covering of sins. Where a sinner would be reconciled to God. And, the picture (here in Matt) is clear, if you desire reconciliation with vertical, with God, ensure you are first reconciled on the horizontal, with fellow mankind. 6. Reconciliation at the altar, is not in the sense of the unbeliever being reconciled to God in salvation, but the believer being reconciled to God in cleansing and worship. 7. We are not Jews, so this picture of the altar and sacrifice is difficult to relate to as Jesus was the final sacrifice needed. We are not under ceremonial law. 8. But, we can relate to the Lord's Supper (Communion), something we do observe. We are told in 1 Cor 11 that there should not be divisions amongst the brethren when taking the Lord's Supper. We are not to take communion in an "unworthy manner" therefore we should first "examine ourselves" just as the sacrificial animal was first examined by the Priests prior to being offered. 9. Rom 12:1 "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." 10. If there is some spot or blemish in our lives, we should deal with this first prior to taking communion...which could include being reconciled to a fellow Christian...otherwise our offering will not be accepted. This is why Jesus instructs "leave your gift before the altar, and go your way. First be reconcile to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." 11. As believers, it is important for us to have a humble attitude in order to be reconciled. It took tremendous humility for the creator to humble Himself in coming down from heaven in the form of His creation, to be killed by His creation, to pay the price of His creation's sin- a death sacrifice in order to reconcile man to God. 12. It should not be above us to humble ourselves to be reconciled to another person. It killed Jesus to reconcile man to God. It will not kill you to be reconciled to your brother. 13. As kingdom citizens, we are encouraged to righteous living in this lifetime in preparation for eternity. Reconciliation is important to God, even more than sacrifice. 14. Hos 6:6 "For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." 15. Ritualistic sacrifice without a relationship with God is meaningless. 16. Jesus would quote Hos 6:6 to the Religious leaders after they scolded Him for eating with Tax Collectors and sinners when Matthew came to Christ. Jesus said, "But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." Mt 9:13. 17. Jesus came to reconcile the lost to the Father, and as kingdom citizens (as Christians) we are entrusted with this same ministry of reconciliation. 18. 2 Cor 5:18-19 confirms this, "Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation." 19. So, whether reconciliation is between believers or helping reconcile a non-believer to Christ...either way...reconciliation is characteristic of God, and should be an active ministry of kingdom citizens. A ministry that requires humility of heart. Now in these next verses, verses 25-26, Jesus continues with another example highlighting the importance of reconciliation. Matt 5:25-26 "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." 1. Reconciliation in this example is with an adversary...an opponent in a lawsuit. And the application is simple, don't allow anger to play out...seek immediate reconciliation with the offended party before other parties are involved, otherwise the end result may not be in your favor. 2. Jesus uses the illustration of walking "on the way" a picture of two people walking down a road together heading to court. The judge and the officer are the officials of the judicial system...the judge officiates the sentence and the officer carries it out. Prison is the punishment in this parable, and the sentence is exact...there will be no probation...every penny must be paid...which is difficult to do if you are in prison. All of this can be avoided through reconciliation. 3. This parable reminds me of times we were hospitalized in the Philippines (7x in 2.5 years, so we became quite familiar with their hospital system). They had armed guards who would not allow you to leave the hospital until the final penny was paid. Some people were stuck there for an extra week or two or more until their family members came up with all the money. It really felt like prison. You had to pay all of your bill and provide a clearance letter to the guard. Imagine that system here. "Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny." 4. At the end of Luke 12, Jesus rebukes the multitudes for not discerning the times, and uses this same parable, thus there may be some application in an eschatological (an end times) sense. We can also observe a potential application to the unbeliever as there are suggestions in this parable to eternal imprisonment. But, I'll let you dig into that on your own time. 5. The big picture in wrapping up this segment is Jesus' teaching that an external observance on murder is not sufficient in capturing the intent of the sixth commandment. As followers of Christ, we must watch our heart attitudes and let no unrighteous anger reign. And, when in conflict with another, we should be quick to reconcile. Now in this next segment, vss 27-30, Jesus will dig deeper into the Seventh Commandment "You shall not commit adultery." Matt 5:27-28 "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." 1. Now Jesus addresses the teaching of the Seventh Commandment. "You have heard it was said..." the teaching of the Religious Leaders was a strict external observance that as long as I don't engage in the physical act of adultery, I have not committed sin. 2. The Jews should have known better. 3. Job said, "I have made a covenant with my eyes; Why then should I look upon a young woman?" Job 31:1. Job, of old, knew not to even look upon a young woman with lust...this was wrong. 4. Pro 6:25 states "Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, Nor let her allure you with her eyelids." Clearly, the OT teaches the law was deeper than outside observance. 5. There are married people today that justify lust and infidelity in their hearts today with phrases like, "I can look at the menu. I just can't order." I used to work with guys that lived by this mantra. Lusting after people in person, on screens, or any other fashion...all of this is wrong as Jesus will teach here. 6. The correction from Jesus is clear...outside observance only, is not the intent of this commandment. The command goes deeper to what is happening in a person's heart. "...whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart." 7. As with Jesus' example of anger and murder, there are degrees of offense with adultery as well. The physical act of adultery is a greater sin than lust in the heart, but both are sinful, both are against God, but they are not on the same level. 8. This is an important point because the heart is deceitful. One Pastor I listen to, recounted justifications men told him about lust and adultery... 9. One man justified, "Well, if I have already lusted in my heart and this is considered is adultery, what's the difference if I follow through with the physical act?" Clearly a bad justification. Don't do that...don't cross the line into greater sin...greater consequences will follow. I think we all know this. 10. Another man justified, "If it's not sin until the second look, well then I am going to make the first look a good long one." Again, No...this is a bad justification. 11. Jer 17:9 states "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?" 12. These justifications capture the same wicked heart attitude the Religious leaders had. Looking to find ways to skirt the law. They tried to avoid the law without breaking them, but they were indeed going against the intent of the law. Jesus continues to illustrate, using hyperbolic examples in 29-30. Matt 5: 29-30 "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." 1. Jesus is using hy·per·bo·le /hīˈpərbəlē/ (exaggerated statements not meant to be taken literally) to make His point. And His point is to do what you must in this lifetime to avoid eternal damnation. 2. Please don't gouge out your eyes and cut off your hands when you sin in the future...Jesus is not teaching to maim yourself. Some Christians have foolishly taken these verse literally and mutilated themselves...only to find that lust still is present. Physically removing body parts will not cause lust to cease. You could remove both eyes, but lust would still be present in your imagination. One needs not to physically maim themselves. 3. MacDonald wrote "Are we to take Jesus' words literally? Was He actually advocating self-mutilation? The words are literal to this extent: if it were necessary to lose a member rather than one's soul, then we should gladly part with the member. Fortunately it is never necessary, since the Holy Spirit empowers the believer to live a holy life. However, there must be cooperation and rigid discipline on the believer's part." 4. Jesus' point in this teaching is 'If sin is causing a break in your relationship with God, take extreme measure to get rid of sin in your life.' 5. I like what Heb 11:24-26 states about the wisdom of Moses in his forsaking of sin, "24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, 25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26 esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward." 6. Sin is indeed pleasurable, but only for a season. Moses recognized sin was a "passing pleasure." In time, the excitement diminishes, the sparkle fades...and consequences set in. Moses was wise to look for the eternal reward, forsaking temporal sinful pleasures and worldly treasures. 7. In Ecclesiastes, as Solomon largely reflects on the world and all the pleasures the world has to offer, he repeatedly comes to the final assessment that all is vanity...emptiness. In 11 out of 12 chapters, 36x in total, Solomon mentions vanity. Sin will not fulfill you. It's like a sugar rush, a short-term pleasure that lacks long term sustenance, and too much leaves you with a tummy ache. 8. So, if there is some passing pleasure of sin, some vanity in your life, stop your eye from looking at that sin. Stop your hand from reaching for it...Jesus says "...it is more profitable [more advantageous] for you [eternal perspective] that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell." 9. In Jesus' teaching, He mentions the cutting off of the right eye and right hand...why the right side...why the eye and the hand? 10. There are scriptures besides here in Matthew the reference either the right eye or the right hand, and the idea is the right eye is the good eye...the right hand is the strong hand. The right side is often a place of honor and authority. For ex., Jesus is seated at the right hand of the father, and Israel (Jacob) outstretched his right hand to give the greater blessing to Ephraim...his left hand was place on Manasseh's head. 11. But, here in Matthew, both the right eye and the right hand are not used for good, but for evil...they are associated with leading a person astray into sin. And, if your dominant eye, your dominant hand (as most people are right handed), is leading you to sin, better away with it than suffer eternal damnation. 12. There are numerous verses in scripture where the eye is the culprit for sin. There are less verses associating the right hand with sin, but that is the intent here. 13. Sin originates in the heart, is prompted by the eye, and initiated with the hand... all are guilty parties that lead a person into sin and must be dealt with. If there is an idol in your life, tear it down. Anything that would cause a separation from God is not worth keeping around or living for. Eternity is at stake. 14. In this verse, the eye and the hand are accused of causing a scandal in one's life... "...if your right eye [right hand] "causes" you to sin..." Cause in Gk. is skandalizō, skan-dal-id´-zo (English word "scandalize"); to put a snare, to entrap, (fig. to stumble or entice to sin). No one wants a scandal in their lives...and anything leading you into sin is causing a scandal...avoid this stumbling block...this snare and enticement. 15. James touches on this as he lays out the process of sin from birth to conception, James 1:14-15 "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." 16. These verses are teaching us that giving room for sin to conceive, give birth, and come to maturity in our lives is a life or death situation. We are all either spiritually alive, or spiritually dead- and active sin in one's life causes spiritual death...separation from the Father. 17. Turn to Gal 5. I want to wrap up reading one final passage in scripture. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus has been teaching the true intent of the law on murder and adultery, and lays out this, next to impossible, command to not be unrighteously angry and not to lust even in our hearts. Very difficult commands. I want to read this passage in Gal 5, because I think Paul nicely lays out a summary of this spiritual battle for us on how we can attain victory in this spiritual battle. 18. Gal 5:16-25 "I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice [repeated and active sin in one's life] such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." 19. Like Jesus, Paul warns that the person who's life is dominated by sin...they will not inherit the kingdom of God. When you become a believer, God's Holy Spirit in-dwells you...the Holy Spirit is called 'The Helper' in scripture, and indeed He will help you to overcome these issues, but you also must take steps. Walk in the Spirit through prayer, being in the word, practicing spiritual disciplines, and so forth. As you walk in the Spirit, and the fruits of the Spirit are evident in your life, anger and lust will become things of the past. God help us to have victory! Let's pray! Worship Team Come We all have a heart condition, and we need the Great Physician, God, to perform heart surgery. Spurgeon stated, "If a man were to attack me with a knife I would resist him with all my strength, and count it a tragedy if he succeeded. Yet if a surgeon comes to me with a knife, I welcome both him and the knife; let him cut me open, even wider than the knife attacker, because I know his purpose is good." God intends good for our lives even when it hurts. If you know there is a condition in your life that you want God to operate on, take a step today. It starts with you talking to God in prayer, and asking Him for help to have victory over whatever condition is plaguing you. Maybe it's anger, maybe it's lust (as we have discussed today) but maybe it's something else. If you want prayer today, I would be honored to pray with you for victory in the battle. God bless you. Walk in the Spirit this week.