March 21, 2021
Morning Service

Jesus is teaching us to be “Fishers of Men” by building our lives upon the foundations of Beatitudes from Chapter 5.  He is after our heart; the motivation for all that we do.  Our goal is to be a little more like Jesus and a little less like me.  We can do that by stepping up to the challenge to be “Salt and Light” to those around us.  These changes begin on the inside or our heart and mind as Jesus instructed the Pharisees that you must clean the inside first and then the outside will take care of itself.  When we change how we perceive and look at things, our attitude towards them, it changes how we react to them.  Last week we saw the importance of controlling our thought life in regard to judging our anger to be righteous or unrighteous.  We also learned that we need to keep our thoughts pure just as much as we do our bodies in regard to our sexuality.  Jesus is magnifying the law to hold us to a higher standard of accountability.  We are doing this because we seek to please the One that we are following that we believe is the Son of God and our Lord and Savior.  “If you love Me, keep my commandments.” (Jesus John: 14:15).  Today we will look at four more areas in our lives that need to be magnified.  Jesus continues His teaching:

Mat 5:31-32 "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.

            This subject of divorce and remarriage is a complicated topic as in the OT (Deut. 24:1-4) it was allowed for a man to divorce his wife if she found “no favor in his eyes.”  That opens up almost any reason that he wanted.  This was never God’s intention from the beginning.  Romans 7:2-3 states that marriage binds a couple until death.  Marriage vows almost always include the phrase “until death do we part.”  Marriage is a covenant entered into by a man and woman before God and the witnesses present that is not to be taken lightly.  It is God’s desire that no marriage ends in divorce.  Today’s society has allowed this to become quite commonplace and in reality it is often just an easy way out of a difficult situation.  The only reason given here for divorce is unfaithfulness of one of the two.  In this case and some other scenarios that include abuse and abandonment God is compassionate and merciful to allow the vow to be broken.  The one who was the victim of the unfaithfulness walks away pure in God’s eyes to be able to marry again.  Jesus now teaches us of the power of our words.

Mat 5:33-37 "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.

            The law often mentioned the prohibitions of swearing falsely by the name of God.  People got around that by swearing by such things as the “heavens, earth, or by the holy city of Jerusalem.”  Our words should not need something to swear by, as we should always speak the truth.  We must be very careful as well as to what we promise others because many things are out of our control.  We should take James’ advice to always add in the phrase “If the Lord wills we shall live and do this or that.” (James 4:15) We want to please others by making promises, promises we may not be able to keep.  Say what you mean and mean what you say; the power of your words are often underestimated.  Cross words or empty broken promises have shattered relationships that may never be repaired.  As fishers of men we must speak truth allowing the Holy Spirit to guide our speech at all times.  Our anger often comes out in words much quicker than in actions but can be just as hurtful.  Controlling our tongue is an important part of becoming the people we are being called to become.  Jesus now turns to a similar subject of retaliation and revenge.

Mat 5:38-42 "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.

            The law allowed one to be punished for a crime in a similar manner that it was committed.  This does seem to allow for simple justice.  Jesus however magnifies the idea of retaliation or revenge into a more passive or merciful approach.  If some strikes you on one cheek, offer him the other as well. Many would perceive this as a sign of weakness, but it takes greater strength to turn rather than strike back (the meek inherit the earth). The Hebrew writer actually quotes the OT in writing “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay says the Lord.” (Heb. 10:30) We need to release any feelings of revenge to the Lord and allow Him to deal with it, not us.  By giving it to the Lord, we remove a giant burden upon ourselves and display the attitude Jesus is creating within us.  Jesus takes it a step deeper when He adds this; if someone takes your jacket, give him your coat as well.  If someone asks you for something, give them twice what they ask for.  In our world today this seems to be a very difficult thing to do with all the material things we have and the busy lifestyles we all live.  I challenge each of you to again look into your spiritual mirror and see the balance of generosity and greed within your heart.  Do we value things more than we value people?  How much of your time and money is spent on someone other than yourself?  Where you spend your money and your time truly reflect the intent of your heart. Jesus is not asking us to be gullible and give all that we have away, but He is asking that if we see a need we can meet, we should do more than is even asked for.  Isn’t that what Jesus has done for us?  He not only forgives us, but we are adopted in as God’s children, not only servants.  He loves us so much that He gives us more than we deserve and asks us to love others in the same manner.

 Mat 5:43-48 "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.

            Jesus finishes this chapter going to even a new level.  Jesus calls us to not only tolerate our enemies but to love them, do good to them, and pray for them.  It takes one level of commitment to allow God to take revenge for you and now He ask us to love them as well.  There is no reward if we simply love those who love us back, evil men do the same thing.  I also want to emphasize this command covers all those who disagree with us on topics such as same sex marriage and the right to life.  We cannot angrily confront them, but we must respond in a loving way and allow God to work in their heart.  We are being called to a higher level of loving them.  Our natural response is to hate those who hate us, and to be able to change that is not simply a decision we make to do so.  It comes only from the divine presence in our lives, the Holy Spirit, that empowers us to follow our Leader’s example.  Jesus prayed for the forgiveness of those who mocked Him, spit upon Him and nailed Him to the cross.  He first did what He is now commanding us to do.  This is a step towards that “perfect” life we are shooting for (verse 48).  This is one of the things that separates us from the world as we do things a little “different.”  We are being transformed to live our lives to imitate the One we are following.  Are these things easy to do?  No way!  Are they possible? Absolutely, through the power of surrendering to the Holy Spirit.