"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law...unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 5:17-20
Matthew 5:17-20
The LAW.
We see and hear that word, and immediately what comes to mind is, "Obey, or else!" And what is this GREATER RIGHTEOUSNESS biz? After launching the Sermon on the Mount so gently, with Beatitudes, and encouraging pronouncements about being salt and light, are we now experiencing a bait and switch move? Must Jesus lay down the law to really get things going? Or has Matthew, the storyteller, twisted Jesus into a familiar religious authoritarian type?
The answer to our religious fears and confusion comes in the person: CHRIST, the interpreter and fulfiller of the LAW.
We learn how the RIGHTEOUSNESS is fulfilled, and in a GREATER way than we expect. It is mirrored in the lives of his followers.
In the final analyses, the LAW OF LOVE is not something we have to do; it is something we get to do.
NEXT FOUR SUNDAYS
- July 22 - THE LAW Matthew 5:17-20; Intercession, Supplication
- July 29 - 5th SUNDAYS = SERVICE; Packs and Projects
- August 5 - LAWS OF LOVE Matthew 5:21-32; Confession, Communion
- August 12 - AGAIN....LAWS OF LOVE Matthew 5:33-48; Prayers of Gratitude
