"Right Living, #2"

Scripture: Matthew 5:33-48

We have been considering the teachings that Jesus offered in his Sermon on the Mount for the past four weeks. It would be the Lord’s first major teaching since his baptism, his 40 days of temptation in the wilderness, and the beginning of his calling of the 12. Today we continue our study of Jesus instruction on what it means to live the righteous life.

Read Matthew 5:33-37

This was rather radical teaching, even for Jesus, as it had no basis whatsoever in Judaic law. As a matter of fact, both Judaism and the Gentile world used oaths and vows extensively in asking their God, or gods, to verify the truthfulness of their words. If an oath was uttered, the words must be taken as true. If a vow was offered, the promise had to be kept. Even in our own legal system, statements offered under oath, such as in a court room or during a deposition, are legally requiring truth, and if they aren’t, a crime has been committed.

But with Jesus’ words, he is saying that anyone who claims to be his follower must always tell the truth, and if they say that they will do something, it must be done. He is initiating an entirely new standard in faith. And why not? When we commit our lives to Christ Jesus, we are also dedicating our lives, our actions, and our words to his glory, and to living our life in his way. The words and acts of Jesus are always true – after all, how could God be anything BUT true and honest?
But what about those times when absolute truth might be harmful, that it is anything but “loving your neighbor”? When I was in the Navy, stationed on a ship that was home ported in Norfolk, I dated a girl who lived in Delaware. One weekend, she prepared a very nice dinner for us, and as I sat down at the table, I noticed that there was a glass of red juice at our places. I thought “Oh, we’re having tomato juice – I really like tomato juice.” But as the liquid passed through my lips and onto my taste buds, I suddenly realized that it wasn’t tomato. I then thought “This isn’t tomato juice!” - of course it was V-8, which I didn’t care for all that much - and if the thought had just remained in my mind instead of traveling down to my lips, I would have been OK. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as well as I had hoped, and I’m afraid that even though I was completely truthful in my comments about the juice, my words did absolutely nothing to endear me to Peggy that evening.
These situations require some tact, and even though Jesus has called us to truthfulness, I think he might want us to avoid being brutal in these situations, if you know what I mean!

I think the point that the Lord is making, though, it this – if you lie to make yourself look better, it’s a sin. If you say that you will do something, do everything in your power to be faithful to that promise. Of course, there will be those times that you forget to follow through, or that you say something that you believed was true, but wasn’t. Those times require apologies to the person you may have harmed, but if your falsehood was intentional, you have violated the Lord’s trust.

When you say “Yes”, or when you say “No”, let it be even better than any oath or vow you could ever make, for that is what the Lord is calling us to do. Love is unconditional.

Read Matthew 5:38-42

Remember last week’s thoughts on anger and revenge? These verses for today highlight Jesus’ thoughts on “getting even”. Remember that his words are about personal vendettas, and not about accountability for our actions. Every society and every faith expression has laws regarding what constitutes acceptable behavior, and most include consequences for violating those laws. That is not what Jesus is talking about – he’s addressing our personal response to issues of life.

In this instance, Jesus is actually telling his followers that the law, by itself, is totally inadequate, and if you truly wish to follow him, you are expected to act in a completely different manner. He offers 5 situations, three of which are oppressive conditions, while the other two are more acts of social justice.

1. The first example, that of being struck on your cheek, is more about an insult than it is a violent attack. And Jesus says that not only should we never seek revenge, but that we are to allow the other person to hit us a second time. This would not only demonstrate courage on our part, but it would also be a loving act not to retaliate.
2. If they take your shirt, give them your coat, too. The law in Jesus time demanded that, legally, a person’s cloak could never be taken in a court judgment. The cloak was the outer garment that a person wrapped themselves up in at night to keep warm, and without that garment, they could easily freeze to death. But Jesus says, either directly or figuratively, that we are to give beyond what we are required to give, as an example of “loving your neighbor.
3. If required to give one mile, then give two. In Jesus’ day, Roman soldiers and officials could demand that citizens of an occupied nation assist them by showing the way, or by carrying their luggage, for up to a mile. Jesus says to give them even more, and not try to get out of giving what is demanded.

The next two are a little different, in that these are truly acts of kindness, and not based on the demands of others.
4. If you’re approached by someone in need – whether a beggar, or a neighbor, or a relative – give them whatever you can to help them. I don’t believe that the Lord expects us to give everything that we have, leaving ourselves destitute, but to give whatever we can, even sacrificially, to benefit others.
5. Borrowing was another issue. Every seven years was declared to be a Year of Jubilee, when debts would be forgiven. For most lenders, the last couple of years before the Jubilee would be a time when loans were almost never given, because the lender would receive little in repayment. But Jesus is saying that we are to lend regardless of when the request is made, and regardless of what we will receive in return.

Hard teaching, but Jesus never said that the way of God would be easy!

Read Matthew 5:43-48

Now we get to the one on “loving your enemies and praying for those who persecute you.” In Leviticus 19:18, Israel was called to "love their neighbor as their self". In this context, “neighbor” was intended, or at least was understood to mean a fellow Israelite – someone who was like you. But Jesus takes it up a step – that we are to love all people, not just who we like, or those who live as we live. Just because we see someone as an outsider, as a sinner, as an undesirable, as one of “them”, it is no reason not to show them compassion and love.

Remember Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, and the question “who is my neighbor”? (Luke 10:25-37) Remember the Pharisees’ question to the disciples “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’? (Matthew 9:9-13)
It turns out that from God’s perspective, our “neighbor” is even a half breed, who we know is a lousy sinner, and who is worthless, or even one who is collaborating with the enemy! And as followers of Jesus Christ, we must love even the most unlovable person we will ever meet or hear about.
From Jesus’ perspective, love is a universal trait that we must accept and share with the world.

Does anyone think that they will ever live all of these teachings perfectly? To our benefit, there is one other Christian teaching that isn’t mentioned here that will help us. For those times when we sin and miss the mark set by Jesus, 1 John 1:9-10 calls us to confess our failures to God, and we will be forgiven. The 6 teachings that we have considered during these last two weeks are difficult to follow, and we will always need the Lord’s strength and forgiveness in our lives.
Controlling our anger to keep it from consuming us – maintaining control of our thoughts about the opposite sex – ensuring that our marriage is a holy and God blessed institution – to be honest and forthright in all we say and all we promise to do – to lovingly give to others and never seek revenge for the things they do – and to love others, even those who abuse us and hate us and oppress us.

When we fail to heed the instructions and teaching of our Lord Jesus, he wants us to confess our sin and seek his mercy. In Matthew 9:13, Jesus says that he desires mercy above all other things – that means that the mercy he offers for each of us is at the top of his list of gifts, and he wants it at the top of ours, too.

Give his way a chance, and discover what he will give in return.