Kentucky Sunset
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More of Jesus' words from the Sermon on the Mount:
"You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
"You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
"Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house.
"Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
"Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place.
"Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
"I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, 'You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.'
"But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, 'Raqa,' will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
"Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
"Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny..."
Matt. 5:13-26, New American Standard Bible
20 comments:
New American Standard, eh? Not bad. Not bad.
The only part I miss is this:
"I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven."
Here the very strong double negative is used in the apodosis showing a great deal of emphasis. So KJV does a little better job with "you will in no case enter the kingdom of heaven."
The word case is not there, of course. A really literal translation would be "you will not, NOT enter the kingdom of heaven."
Isn't that as much an expression of how little Jesus thought of the scribes and Pharisees as anything? I mean, we're talking about a bar set by snakes and vipers.
That can by no means be discounted and it is consistent with the whole Sermon.
That imagery is rich. A bar set by snakes an vipers. I'm afaid I'll have to steal that.
This would be the first of many times in Matthew where Jesus lets loose on religious hypocrites. I think it important in the extreme that Jesus could eat and hang out with prostitutes, thieves and low-lifes of all sorts graciously and without condemnation, even showing compassion for the soldiers who were killing him.
It seems the ONE and only group that Jesus is willing to truly blast with criticism is the religious.
Should keep all of us faith-based types humble, but rarely does.
I think we tend to think of the Pharisees as believers (almost cartoon-ish in appearance and nature - stupid, predictable, etc) that stressed the letter of the law over the spirit of the law.
I believe that they stressed the letter of the law over the spirit of the law. However, I believe they were intelligent, studious, religious ... and lost.
Look at what Jesus called them in Matthew 23:27
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness."
Why would He call those who have life (spiritual life for the here and now (John 10:10) and also for eternity) - spiritually dead? That doesn't make sense. Rather, it appears He's giving us an insight into their need for Him in their hearts - instead of just their minds.
>Should keep all of us faith-based types humble
Good point. We don't want to be like the guy that prayed in Luke 18:11, "Oh thank you Lord that I'm not like..." and then insert the person or group that we think are acting like modern day Pharisees. We all are capable of acting like them on any given day as we focus on the externals over the internals.
Sometimes we go overboard in our condemnation of the Pharisees. Yeah, Jesus had some serious conflicts, but, as Jesus scholar Marcus Borg rightly points out, these were the kind of feuds that brothers have in a family. The Jesus movement (which later became the Christian church) began as a renewal movement within Judaism--and the Pharisee movement was already such a (rival) movement.
It's hard to tell how much of the feud goes back to the "historical Jesus" and how much reflects Matthew's perspective after the resurrection as the Pharisees (who, after the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., become rabbinic Judaism) and the Jesus movement compete for followers.
But, what is clear is that Jesus had more in common with the Pharisees than with other Jewish groups in his day: the Essenes, the Sadducees (his one recorded encounter has him telling them that they know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God!--the ultimate insult of one Jew to another!), proto-Zealot revolutionary groups, or the Herodians. And this, too, helps explain the strength of the Jesus' feud with the Pharisees: When we are really far apart from someone we often don't waste time disagreeing much with them; we ignore them. But if someone or group is someone we think is right about much, then the places we think they are wrong may tick us off MORE and cause us to really light into them. Sibling feuds are loud and noisy. My brother and I love each other--and sometimes "snake" or "viper" would have been an improvement in what we called each other.
Thus, in the quote that Eleutheros started us off with--note that Jesus doesn't say that the scribes or Pharisees are unrighteous--but that Jesus' hearers (disciples and potential disciples in the crowds) must SURPASS the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees to have any shot at the Basilea tou Ouranous, "the Kingdom or Rule of Heaven."
The Pharisees had taken the law which was for our own good and protection - and to set His people apart from a pagan world - and turned it into legalism. Or in other words, a works-righteousness which scripture clearly states is worthless (Is. 64:6). There is absolutely no way we can earn salvation. Contrast that to Jesus who came to teach God's free salvation by grace through His death and resurrection. That's not to say that Pharisees didn't look the part, they most certainly did. But then again, so did Judas Iscariot. Look at Jesus' words to them in Luke 11:44:
"Woe to you! For you are like unmarked graves, and people walk over them without knowing it."
John the Baptist concurred:
see Luke 3:7-8, Matt 3:7-8
What is the wrath to come? See Romans 1:18 and I Thess 1:10 (I Thess 1:10; Note: What does Jesus deliver us from? Spiritual death and hell! Jesus' usage of terms such as 'tombs' and 'graves' becomes clearer...)
Michael said:>And this, too, helps explain the strength of the Jesus' feud with the Pharisees: When we are really far apart from someone we often don't waste time disagreeing much with them; we ignore them. But if someone or group is someone we think is right about much, then the places we think they are wrong may tick us off MORE and cause us to really light into them.
I don't see in scripture where Jesus states the 'much' that is right with them. Just look at Matthew chapter 23
Michael said:>Thus, in the quote that Eleutheros started us off with--note that Jesus doesn't say that the scribes or Pharisees are unrighteous--but that Jesus' hearers (disciples and potential disciples in the crowds) must SURPASS the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees to have any shot at the Basilea tou Ouranous, "the Kingdom or Rule of Heaven."
Please take another look at that. Jesus is saying that we'll need MORE righteousness than the Pharisees to see the Kingdom of Heaven. In other words, their righteousness (self-righteousness, or works-righteousness) was not enough! Again, this is a key principle in scripture. There is absolutely no way we can be righteous on our own. Our salvation comes when we clothe ourselves in the righteousness of God (Is. 61:10, Rom 4:5-8). That's the reason Jesus came and died on the cross (2 Cor 5:21) - to be that redeemer for all of mankind - for there were none righteous, "No, not one." (Rom 3:10,23)
When Saul was converted and became Paul - his mission was to preach Christ and not the doctrines that he had spent his life up to that point learning, teaching, and enforcing. He considered it all worthless. (Phil 3:3-11)
An error in the true view of righteousness and where it comes from can be the difference between salvation and deception.
See Romans 10:1-4
"Brothers, my heart's desire and prayer to God for them is that they may be saved. I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God's righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes."
Remember, there is absolutely no way we can earn salvation. That statement shouldn't make any believer uncomfortable as we come to the cross as sinners in need. We're back to the first thing that Jesus states in the Sermon on the mount: Matt. 5:3 - blessed are those who realize their spiritual need.
""You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned? It is no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."
A pretty damning critique of a watered-down, Move0n.org congregation, wouldn't you agree?
An even more damning critique of a water-down Left-Behind-loving, Rush Limbaugh-butt-kissing, G.W. Bush war-mongering and torture loving congregation--including a certain pro-nuclear war blogger from the Ozarks. (I'm so glad I know REAL Christians from the Ozarks to offset D.Daddio's poor representation!)
"A pretty damning critique of a watered-down, Move0n.org congregation, wouldn't you agree?"
"An even more damning critique of a water-down Left-Behind-loving, Rush Limbaugh-butt-kissing, G.W. Bush war-mongering and torture loving congregation"
Alike for those who for today prepare,
And those who after tomorrow stare
The Muezzim from the Tower of Darkness calls
'Fools, your reward is neither here nor there!"
From the Rubaiyyat
I'll tell you what, Michael the Hyphenated...Let's compare factions.
Growth:
MoveOn.org "churches" like Jeff Street: No growth...congregation size remains constant for generations.
Independent fundamental Churches like Cornerstone (my church): Souls brought to Christ regularly; Baptisms frequent; Helping the poor too; From attendance of 30, 15 years ago to attendance of 300+ presently.
MoveOn.org "churches" like Jeff-Street: Place Faith in a political agenda.
Independent Fundamental Churches like Cornerstone: Place faith in the WORD OF GOD!
There is a difference between a social-club and a church, dude.
I don't think you are able to recognize that.
Daddio, be civil or be gone. We're talking about the Sermon on the Mount. Remember that wise saying: Tis better to be silent and thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Michael, don't feed the trolls.
Speaking of the Sermon on the Mount, we just passed this part, D:
"Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Thanks for the blessing, Daddio.
Dan, you were right when you wrote that the Sermon on the Mount should and rarely does keep us professing Christians humble, but I'm surprised to see you illustrate that point so soon after making it.
What is humble in asserting that, with Daddio's comments, you are being persecuted for the sake of righteousness?
We Christians have a duty both to preach and to obey the Sermon on the Mount, but it is my experience that those who believe and announce that the Beatitudes apply to them are deluding themselves.
The Beatitudes aren't blessings that can be sifted apart -- one leads inexorably to another -- and your comment, "Thanks for the blessing, Daddio," is evidence that, like all of us (myself included, myself especially), you have a way to go. The comment doesn't exhibit a recognition of the spiritual poverty that Christ commends, neither the mourning nor the meekness, and not even the desire to make peace that you claim so quickly in geopolitical discussions.
Actually, the comment was a throw away joke in response to some small-minded, bitter attempt to attack my beloved church family. But certainly, I've a ways to go in the humility department.
Having said that, the beatitudes are meant to be applied to us (we Christians) specifically. We, who are poor in spirit, trying to follow Christ, being chastised for doing so. They are meant to be a comfort, a promise. If we don't apply them to ourselves, to whom would we apply them?
But the comment itself in this case was a joke. I'm not of the mind that childish name-calling rises to the level of actual persecution.
Like I said, "it is my experience that those who believe and announce that the Beatitudes apply to them are deluding themselves."
The phrase "and announce" was emphasized in the orginal, and that emphasis addresses your complaint.
It's true that the Beatitudes ought to apply to us Christ's followers. But those who tell others that they're meek and humble are rarely as meek and humble as they think and as they ought to be. And it's often pharasaic arrogance that prompts a person to announce that the slings he's suffering are because his cause is righteous.
I would remind you and Daddio that our church family extends beyond the local congregation. You, Daddio, and I are all part of Christ's body: inappropriate as his comments probably were, I'm not sure your response was any more appropriate, "throw-away joke" or not.
He's a member of the "beloved church family," the universal church if not your local congregation; we ought to treat each other as brothers.
Mom! He's sitting too close to me!
Dad! He hit me!
Like that?
Thanks Dan for bringing us back on topic. Let's not get distracted. The enemy would love for us to leave a serious discussion of God's word and go off on a political/personal tangent. The latter poses no threat to him.
It is my belief, Roger, that God's word has quite a bit to say about how we are to deal with one another on a personal level. This sermon in particular -- perhaps even this very passage -- ought to raise questions about how we have all comported ourselves in this comment thread.
Have we just now let God's light shine perfectly through us in dealing with our fellow Christians? Have we just now exhibited spiritual maturity that exceeds that of the superficially pious but hypocritical Pharisees? Have we just now dealt with our Christian brothers and our politcal opponents in a way that demonstrates a renunciation of anger and an earnest attempt to seek immediate reconciliation?
These questions aren't digressions but are rather the very point of the sermon, as Christ has a stern warning for those who hear and do not obey.
Good questions, Bubba. Ones we ought to ask ourselves.
One point, you said:
"Have we just now dealt with our Christian brothers and our politcal opponents in a way that demonstrates a renunciation of anger"
We need not nor ought not renounce anger. Rather, "in our anger, we should sin not."
Anger is a gift from God when used correctly. We ought to be angry about oppression, about genocide, about children being harmed. Anger can spur us to action.
See Jesus getting angry with the greed and oppression of the poor in the temple.
Otherwise, I'm with you.
You're right, it would have been more accurate to say "unrighteous anger."
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