Murder

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus stated that he came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. (Matthew 5:20)

That statement is followed by teaching that explains the true meaning of 6 commands. His teaching is hard (impossible!) and shows us that God’s standard of righteousness goes much deeper than our actions.

In order for us to get the most out of this portion of the Sermon on the Mount, I think it’s important to be super clear on the NT teaching about the law.

If we don’t get it right, we will be prone to fall into the errors of legalism or license.

We’re going to have to put some work into this part, bear with me and it will help you tremendously.

Here’s what I think we need to understand about Jesus fulfilling the law. . .

1. Jesus taught the true meaning and requirement of the law. (5:21-22a)
2. He perfectly obeyed the law – in thought, word and deed. (Mt 3:15)
3. His life and teaching expose the depth of our sin and our total inability to obey the law. (Ro. 3:20)
4. He offered himself as a substitutionary sacrifice for lawbreakers, doing for them what they cannot do for themselves and making peace with God possible by grace, through faith. (1 Peter 2:24)
5. He brings those who are united with him by faith into a new relationship to the law.
   1. His perfect righteousness is credited or imputed to us and God now considers us right with Him. (2 Cor. 5:21)
   2. We are no longer under the judgment of the law. (Ro. 6:14)
   3. We are regenerated and receive a new heart, with the law embedded into our new nature. (Jer. 31:33)
   4. We are indwelt by the Spirit of Christ, who empowers us moment by moment to walk actively in righteous obedience. (Ex. 36:27)
6. As we partner with his grace we too, with Jesus, live out the fullness of the law, for his glory and our flourishing. This is the fulfilment of the law and prophets. (Phi. 3:9, Ga. 2:20, Gal. 5:22-23)

If we stop at point 2, we will read Matthew 5:21-48 with a legalistic lens. That will lead to the deception of pride or the resignation of despair. No joy. No liberty. No one can satisfy the demands of the law as expounded by Jesus!

If we stop at point 5b, we will read the passage with a licentious lens – we won’t take the law seriously. We will ignore the demands of Jesus.

The gospel teaches us that grace does not leave us as we are, but transforms us into the image of Christ.

Through the cross, Jesus takes us full circle and produces the miraculous in us – we actually live out his teachings, with liberty and joy! We strive, not so that we can earn peace with God, but because we already have it.

The Sermon on the Mount shows believers the standard of what our lives must look like. We must take it seriously and strive after obedience – not by human effort but by grace through faith!