Pittsgrove Presbyterian Church
Sermon Matthew 5: 21-30 “Practical Advice from Jesus”
February 16, 2020
We are continuing our look at Jesus' teaching from the Sermon on the Mount. His congregation that day consisted of some former fishermen he had recruited as disciples and the people of Capernaum, poor farmers, and fishermen. He has already told them to deal with the Roman occupation by publicly and nonviolently practicing their faith in full conformance to the law of Moses. Today we will see that Jesus means it when he says that we should fulfill the law. We will get to this, but first, let’s pray.
“Holy God, I greet this day with thanks and the determination to choose the good. Help me to walk with you in blessing. Let my “yes” be yes, and my “no” be no, as I share the light of Christ. Amen.”
Jesus' teaching style is to remind his students of the law of Moses they already know. Then he talks about the problems we face that lead us to violate these laws. And finally, he gives us practical solutions so that we can take steps that allow us to keep the law.
We will be looking today at Jesus’ teaching on five topics, anger, personal disputes, adultery, divorce and keeping your promises. Let’s start with anger.
Anger
The law of Moses, in the sixth commandment, says, “do not murder”. And for most of us, this is an easy one to keep. But Jesus is more concerned with what underlies murder. He understands that anger if left unchecked can often lead to murder. Two people are angry with each other. One does something bad to the other who deserves it. The other retaliates by doing something worse. Responses escalate. A vicious cycle begins. We have the Hatfields and the McCoys. This eventually often results in violence and sometimes ends in death. And the law of Moses is violated. Jesus put it this way.
Matthew 5:21 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.
Jesus is warning us that anger left unchecked can lead to big problems. So how can we deal with our anger? Jesus gives us some practical advice.
23 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.
Jesus wants us to check our anger before it gets out of control. But how can we do this? Jesus says come to church, and consider what God has done with his anger toward you. Through Jesus' death and resurrection, you are reconciled with God. And if God is reconciled with us he is no longer angry. Reconciliation is the cure for anger before it gets out of control. So as soon as you leave church today, go and be reconciled with those with whom you are angry, and stop the vicious cycle of insult and violence before it gets any worse so that you do not violate the law prohibiting murder.
Personal Disputes
Jesus then turned to the subject of personal disputes. It is very common for someone to get into financial problems. And if you allow financial problems to grow they can come to overwhelm you, debt can quickly get out of hand. You max out one credit card and then get another and max it out too. Or maybe you borrow from a friend and the friendship deteriorates when you can’t pay it back. Jesus does not want our relationships to suffer because of serious financial errors. So he gives us some very useful advice.
25 “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
Pay off your debts as quickly as you can. Tighten your belt and get another job so that you can pay what you owe without getting into debt. This will preserve your credit ratings and your relationships with others.
Adultery
Now Jesus turns to something that plagues so many, adultery. We all know about the harmful effects of adultery. It destroys relationships. Children are sometimes hurt the most. Jesus wants us to take action long before we get to this stage. The problem is that we often look at someone with lust in our hearts. We think this is ok; we can control it. But we can't. We get into a vicious cycle. Looking with lust turns into an inappropriate touch. An inappropriate touch turns into a secret meeting. The secret meeting leads to a kiss and we are on the way to a violation of the law. Here is what Jesus says:
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, 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 stumble, 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.
We all know of marriages that have failed because one or both of the partners cheat on the other. But according to Jesus adultery starts long before illicit sexual activity. It started when you look at someone. Jesus wants us to stop the vicious cycle before it gets started. Stop looking at people with lust. Be careful about touching someone. And avoid situations that can lead to inappropriate behavior. Do these things and you will not be led down the path to adultery.
Divorce
Anger, financial distress and adultery all have harmful effects on marriage. And if your bad behavior causes the end of marriage the innocent party suffers. It will be difficult for him or her to start a new relationship because of your violation and renunciation of the marriage covenant. So the innocent person will feel like an adulterer even if he or she had done nothing wrong. Jesus put it this way:
31 “It has been said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
The law of Moses gives a man the right to divorce his wife. He must give her a certificate of divorce so that she can prove that she is available for another man. But Jesus is not concerned with a certificate. Jesus knows that the motivation behind divorce is the desire to commit adultery, under the cover of legality. A certificate does nothing to heal the hurt and reduce the pain and anger someone feels when cheated on. But, Jesus offers a practical solution for this. We read in 1 Corinthians 7:10,11 from the Apostle Paul.
10 To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband. 11 But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.
Jesus wants couples to reconcile with each other. This is much better than a certificate of divorce. Of course, divorce is sometimes the only solution to a harmful relationship. But if possible we need to at least try to be reconciled first. If then we must divorce it is more than just a thinly disguised veil over adultery.
Keeping Promises
Marriage is a covenant based on vows. We pledge an oath to our spouses. We also make promises to others. These promises must not be violated. Here is what Jesus has to say.
33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made.’ 34 But I tell you, do not swear an oath at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.
The traditional teaching in the law of Moses is that vows must be kept. If you promise to do something then do it. This is the basis of all contracts. But what's happening is that people are entering into contracts deceitfully. Worse yet they are invoking the name of God in their deceitful acts. They say things like, “You can trust me. I am a man of God.” Jesus wants us to be truthful. We are to say “yes” if we mean “yes”, and “no” if we mean “no.” He wants us to let our integrity shine as evidence of our faith.
So what have we learned today? First, if there is anyone we are angry with we should, today, do whatever is needed to reconcile with that person before this anger gets out of hand and leads to murder. Second, we are not to look with lust or touch anyone inappropriately because this could lead to adultery. Don't expect that a divorce certificate will cover your adultery. Try reconciliation first. And only make promises and vows you expect to keep.
Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we thank you for your practical teaching. Help us to obey the law by following your example. Teach us to be your disciples. Amen.
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