Living a distinctive lifestyle

(Sermon notes on Matthew 5:17-48, Victoria Baptist Church – 31/08/2014)

Download a PDF of the powerpoint slides from here …
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So you want to be radical eh? Then you’ve come to the right place. The sermon on the mount is one of the most challenging parts of the Bible

Some of what I’m going to say you may not like – especially if you find the scriptures flying in the face of the way you’d prefer to live.

• As Christians we want to assert biblical ethics with grace and tact.

• Billy Graham quote – “God’s job to judge, HS’s job to convict & my job to love” – that’s the feeling I have as I approach this passage

Big question for today … What makes us distinctive as Christ-followers?

Jesus picks on several areas (I would prefer to preach a whole session on each of them because there is so much the Bible has to say about them. So this is going to be Marmite version, strong an concentrated. And I think you’ll either love it or hate it!

Jesus and the law

Years ago there was a time when many shoddy goods were flooding the British market.

• people called for standards

• BS kite mark invented.

• if a product had a kite mark it could be trusted

• it meant that the product had reached a satisfactory standard.

IN EC its’ been replaced with the CE mark

In this passage Jesus is describing Christian standards of keeping the law.

What did Jesus mean by ‘the law’

• legal code of his time? NO, it was the whole OT scriptures

• it is possible that, even this early in his ministry, people has started questioning Jesus about his commitment to the OT law. “Do you really believe it or don’t you?”

• Pharisees tried (unsuccessfully) to trap him into doing something that contravened the law so that they could accuse him.

What Jesus says here describes what being distinctive looks like

Have you ever felt that you’re being watched?

When I was reading a Narnia story to kids

• “beware! even some of the trees have eyes!”

• Today people who know that we are Christian are watching us – all the time

• they may not know that realise that they are asking it, but they are asking the question “is this Christianity business worth having or not?

• is Christ real or is it fake?

• is it genuine or just a nice way to live if you happen to be of a religious type.

a. The law has a purpose

17. “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.

“Do not think …” => don’t entertain the idea! Don’t imagine it for one moment that I’ve come to write off the OT

• it suggests some people had already wondered whether Jesus was teaching that the law was irrelevant

‘I have come’ => Jesus knew he had a well defined mission to accomplish

‘abolish’ – used of the destruction of buildings

‘the law and the prophets’ – a phrase often used to describe the whole of the OT scriptures.

The OT law was there with a specific purpose

• today laws are passed solely to facilitate the well-being of society

• OT law was different

• to point people to God – show us what He’s like and how to live.

BUT it had been added to with thousands of nit-picking regulations.

• „ there were no lengths a Pharisaic lawyer wouldn’t go to in order to ‘get it right’

E.g. you were not permitted to carry a burden on the Sabbath

• but what constitutes a burden?

• clearly water has to be carried!

• if the container had a handle on it , or a lip for pouring then you could carry it – otherwise no.

• Jugs OK, bottles not!

Jesus time and time again said (implicitly) ‘you’re missing the point of the law!’

It’s been given to us to point us to a loving God!

b. THE OT LAW IS PROPHETIC

It looked forward to the time when God’s word would not be written in text books but on people’s hearts.

• that came with Jesus

so Jesus fulfilled the law.

17 I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.

Much speculation over this

Some people say Jesus came to abolish the ceremonial law but keep the moral law

• BUT that doesn’t tie up with the jot or tittle statement in the next verse.

1. Or the fact that Jesus obeyed much of the ceremonial law.

Some people say that Jesus came to ‘fill up’ the law and give it its full intended meaning

• but them why did seem to deliberately flout it sometimes?

Probably the best interpretation is to understand it like this

• the law is there in the OT to point the way to Jesus.

• he is their fulfilment

Hebrews says that the law was like a shadow of the real thing

• and Jesus is the real thing

• so Jesus is not showing people how he relates to the law but how the law relates to him.

e.g. when I go away alone – I sometimes sneak into my luggage a picture of Rosi and the children – just to remind me of them.

• but when I get home, I don’t pull the picture out of my suitcase and admire it – I go and give her a hug.

The OT law was there to point the way to Christ.

• the trouble is that the Pharisees and legal experts couldn’t see it!

• they kept looking at the photo!

The implications are enormous!

• Jesus is saying that the whole of the OT points to Him!

a. LIVE IT AND TEACH IT

19 Anyone who breaks 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 practises and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

God’s law comes alive when it’s seen in action

This was the problem with the Pharisees

2. „they had codified the law so that it had lost its power!

E.g. I have a book of piano pieces by the famous jazz pianist Oscar Petersen

3. „someone has listened to his recordings and carefully written down every note.

4. „I could play some of them – but they wouldn’t sound the same as if Peteresen did!

5. „why? because there’s a strong element of improvisation – he puts his soul into it!

Same with the law – you can dot all the I’s and cross all the T’s and still be obeying without a heart set on pleasing the Lord!

That’s why Jesus says “live the law and teach it!”

Jesus – more radical than the OT law <ppt>

This passage s the first of six statements of Jesus where he says “You have heard it said … but I say to you”.

• he was calling into question what they had been taught

• not to write it off, but to say “that’s not the whole story”

• “you know the letter of the law – I’m showing you the heart of the law”

Jesus makes the requirements of discipleship more radical than the letter of the law!

• He is implicitly putting himself above the law (not that he can flout, but that what he says supersedes it!) – This is an implicit claim to be on a par with God, the author of the law!

Big Q: How did Jesus Christ want us, his followers to live so that our lifestyle is attractive and Christ’s person is awesome?

That is the thrust of the sermon on the mount!

Murder (v21ff)

In this section Jesus apparently is teaching us about murder.

I can image you going away from here today and someone says “What did Ian preach on?”

• “He preached on murder”

• “What did he say?”

• “he was generally against it”!!!

When Jesus taught about murder he did something vitally important to our Christians growth

• he looked at motives

• (we are going to see this repeatedly in the sermon on the mount)

What makes living for Christ distinctive? –

• it’s motives as well as the methods,

• it’s the heart as well as the habits

And when Jesus unpacks the whole topic of murder her finds one dominant heart attitude behind it – anger

• seething, violent, vicious anger.

Anger is one of the most powerful of all human emotions.

• it can rise and fall at a moment’s notice

• it can be ignited in one person by things that seem trivial to another

One person becomes irate when someone else lets them down

• another becomes annoyed when they get cut in while driving round a roundabout

• one person can get angry when someone speaks to them

• another gets angry when they’re not spoken to!

I have come across a few people who say they are never angry

I would like to give such people the challenge I faced this week

Attempt to change your internet service provider

• Search their website for the minuscule ‘contact us’ button (doesn’t the size of it tell you something?)

• then ring one of the 3 numbers offered to you only to be told you need to dial one of the others.

• Read the little note that tells you the charge for this call – 16p a minute – and ring the number

• be entertained by Mozart with a drum kit for seven minutes and be told every 45 seconds that ‘your call is important to us’

• Then explain your predicament only the to told you’re talking to the wrong person again “but I can redirect you ..”

• When you’re redirected to the right person (after more Mozart) you discover that his first language is Serbocroat and he’s speaking to you from a call centre in Mexico.

• When you tell him that you pay our bills every 6 months in advance by ‘cheque’ he is not programmed to receive that response and sends to you customer services in India.

• After being transferred for the sixth time I guarantee you first hand experience of anger!

Heart of this law <ppt>: beware anger

The heart of the matter: Settle arguments quickly! See Jesus’ example (v25) >>>

Adultery and divorce

“You nave heard it said … but I say to you” – Jesus is extending what the law says

Pharisees

* took notice of the 7th commandment “you shall not commit adultery, but tended to ignore the 10th “don’t covet your neighbour’s wife”

* gave a conveniently narrow definition of sexual sin and a conveniently broad definition of sexual purity

Jesus made the command much wider – and encouraged us to look beyond the act to the attitude that lies behind it.

Fundamental question “how can I keep my marriage safe“

Heart of this law <ppt>: keep relationships alive

BE CAREFUL V28

Jesus pointing us to THE ORIGINS OF ADULTERY

28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in

In the O.T. adultery was seen as the theft of another man’s wife.

* she was a chattel.

* Jesus enhances the command and says that this applies to purity, not property.

It’s the heart attitude that counts! I feed my heart through what I see, so be careful how you use your eyes.

Jesus is not majoring on the isolated glance that acknowledges a woman’s beauty and can, if harboured, tend towards sexual fantasy.

* that comes into the realm of temptation – needs to be countered by faith – trusting God

* that is one of those thoughts that needs to be brought “into the captivity of Christ”

e.g. Texan rancher with a lasso

* when all his cattle sit down together in a bunch it’s very difficult to catch any of them

* if one stands up from the group, then the rancher can use his lasso to rope it

* My thoughts are like those cattle normally stable, quiet and tranquil – minding their own business

* but every now and then one thought pops up inappropriately and needs to be dealt with

* “Now Lord, I want you to capture that one – deal with it and help me to think about things that are beneficial”

“Whatever if good, clean, wholesome … think about these things”

So Jesus is not talking primarily about the isolated glance that admits a woman’s beauty (or a man’s)

* He’s talking about the kind of look that seeks, however subtly, to engage her in a response –

In 1Corinthians Paul tells us men not to “light a fire” in a woman >>>

When does the affair start? in the first 30 seconds! >>>

* story >>>

BE RADICAL – THE CURE FOR TEMPTATION

The two faculties that most often lead us into sin – especially sexual unfaithfulness – are the eye (what we see) and the hand (what we touch)

* it’s no wonder then that Jesus picked on these two as illustrations of how radically we are to deal with sexual temptation

29 If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

Some of the early Christians, whose zeal exceeded their wisdom, took this literally and went in for surgery! That’s not what Jesus meant!

If I find my eye leads me into sin, then deal radically with it!

* don’t look!, divert your gaze!

If the affair of the mind starts with the first mutual glance then the affair of the body starts with the first touch.

* it may be an innocent hug or a the kind of seemingly innocent Christian kiss that lots of us greet each other with in church

* but if that touch or kiss is a result of the kind of glances we’ve been talking about then beware! the affair has started.

* the boundary has been crossed – and it is a herculean task to retreat back across it!

BE TRUE v31-32 THE GUARD AGAINST UNFAITHFULNESS

We need to understand the situation into which Jesus spoke

* two schools of thought about divorce

* Shammai (strict sect) & Hillel (much more liberal)

* Hillel – could be divorced for any and every reason – no court action required – could simply be a unilateral action by the husband – even burning the dinner!

* Shammai – could only divorce because of unfaithfulness.

Jesus lined himself up with the Shammai party.

Bible clearly states that ‘God hates divorce’ but also allows for it as a regrettable necessity – but only when one partner has been unfaithful. In this situation, Deuteronomy implies that the aggrieved person is regarded as a single person and free to remarry.

Honesty

33. “Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, `Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ But …

e.g. Skeptic going to hear George Whitfield preach

* met by a friend – scorned him “you don’t believe what he says do you?”

* “No – but he does”

Jesus is calling for integrity when we make promises.

Heart of this law <ppt>: be a promise-keeper

Pharisees had attempted to divert attention away from the question of honesty and focus on the formula – or the particular collection of words that you use to make a promise “by heaven” or “by my dad”

But Jesus is talking about the attitude of heart that lies behind the words.

Jesus goes beyond the rules and regulations and sees the heart attitude.

Justice v38

38. “You have heard that it was said, `Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’

39 But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

What?!

Surely the whole point about living as a Christ-follower is that I do resist evil!

And I do my utmost to frame

• my family life and

• my business life

• and my church life

• and (please god) society as a whole so that evil doesn’t get a foothold!

There’s a spiritual battle which we face every day of our lives

• Surely I am supposed to resist evil and not go soft on it!

OK

Jesus is using a device here – hyperbole

• Saying something in an extreme way in order to make the point

Here’s a short fragment of prose:

“As she rounded the corner she saw a distant figure striding out of the sunset. As her recognition grew, so did her pace and after only a few short minutes she fell into his arms. As she sunk into his embrace he kissed her a thousand times!”

• Did he?

• No – he probably kissed her twice

• but I say 1,000 to get across a different message – the intensity of his love for her!

Jesus does this often – and it makes interpreting the SoM difficult at times

“If your eye offends you, cut it out!” – does he mean radical surgery?

• Of course not –

• he’s telling to be radical about what we look at! How we use our eyes!

So then Jesus uses hyperbole we need to look out for the underlying principle he’s teaching

In this case – don’t oppose an evil person by taking revenge against them”!

Heart of this law: don’t take revenge or rise to provocation

There’s another angle to this

“Don’t resist the evil person”

By using the phrase Jesus is separating the evil (which God hates) from the person (whom God loves)

• The very fact that evil can exist in a person whom God has made is a contravention of the created order.

• God never intended it that way

These principles are so practical and down-to-earth

we face just the same situations today

Jesus gives examples to illustrate the principles

39 But I tell you, … If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. <ppt>

A slap with back of the right hand on the cheek was considered a deep insult (still is today in some eastern societies) so by offering the other cheek you’re showing that you’re not going to rise to his provocation

E.g. Man was going through supermarket with trolley

• in trolley was a toddler – throwing a wobbly!

• Lady in the queue overheard the man saying

• He was looking at the toddler saying “Keep calm Brian, Don’t go OTT Brian, Cool it Brian, Don’t get angry Brian” (while toddler was screaming and shouting)

• Lady complimented him on his coolness of response and said “Your little Brian is quite a handful”

• He looked at her and replied “He’s Robert, I’m Brian”

Opponents v43-48

43. “You have heard that it was said, `Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’

    (same formula!)

44 But I tell you: Love your enemies, [bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you] and pray for those who persecute you,

45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?

47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?

48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

The key to understanding this is “so that you wil be sons of your heavenly father” – you’ll copy his example – you’ll behave life him

How does God behave towards people who dislike, or just ignore him? He loves them!

He seeks the best for them (sends rain to water their crops etc)

Heart of this law <ppt>: Show love for people you wouldn’t be expected to love

In the first century the Roman authorities could get their head round these Christians. They refused to worship the Caesar and they seemed irrational – often because they were working class.

BUT they had to acknowledge that Christians were characterized by their lack of drunkenness, their gentleness, their faithfulness to their wife or husband, their care for the poor, their willingness to nurse the gravely ill even in times of plague and for their ability to exhibit virtues (like courage and self-restraint). The Roman authorities thought these virtues were not possible for people of low estate, without the benefit of philosophical training. But something had happened in their hearts! And it was this special character of the Christians that, in a very profound way, constituted the chief appeal of the gospel they preached.

I believe we can do it again

in a secularised society Christian can and will stand out as different by fulfilling God’s law from the heart!

In that was we will truly be distinctive once again

What’s your response – jot it down in the box