February 20 - 26

Matthew: Chapter Five 5

Matthew 5:17–20

5:17 “Don’t ever think that I came to set aside Moses’ Teachings or the Prophets. I didn’t come to set them aside but to make them come true.

Up to this point, Jesus had been speaking to the crowds about the character of the people who would inherit the kingdom of heaven. Now, however, the focus of the discourse changed to a first-person revelation of Jesus himself.
If his audience understood the nature of the kingdom people, it was even more important that they understood the nature of the King. Even though the direction of Jesus’ teaching seemed to differ from that of the rabbinical teaching of his time, Jesus strongly empha- sized that he followed the tradition of Moses and the Law and the ensuing message of the prophets. Jesus made it very clear that he was not a rogue preacher with some radical message that was not aligned with all that had gone before. Indeed, the opposite was true. Jesus was the fulfillment of all of the Jewish history—the Law and its prophets. Jesus, by his very nature, fulfilled not only the stringent requirements of the physical aspects of the Law, but also the humanly impossible moral and spiritual aspects of the Law.
The teachings on the blessed position of the kingdom subjects are not the antithesis of the Law that God had given to his covenant people centuries before. Rather, they embody the fullest expression of the spirit of the Law and the message of the prophets. However, the sinful nature of humankind was woefully helpless to appropriate God’s remarkable provisions. Thus, Jesus alone in the person of his divine nature and the revelation of his human form is the fulfill- ment of everything that God intends to impart to those who become citizens of his kingdom. “Are we abolishing Moses’ Teachings by this faith? That’s unthinkable! Rather, we are supporting Moses’ Teachings” (Romans 3:31).

6 Matthew: A King’s Ransom

5:18 I can guarantee this truth: Until the earth and the heav- ens disappear, neither a period nor a comma will disappear from Moses’ Teachings before everything has come true.

When Jesus spoke of the Law and the Prophets, he was affirming the authenticity and the authority of the whole of the Old Testament Scrip- tures. Jesus emphasized the absolute reliability of these Scriptures by beginning this statement with his personal guarantee and ending with the affirmation that every detail would be completed. This emphasis was so strong that Jesus expressed it by saying that even the smallest mark was infinitely important in God’s plan. This suggests that the New Testament should not be seen as supplanting and replacing the Old Testament but as fulfilling and explicating it.4 “It is easier for the earth and the heavens to disappear than to drop a comma from Moses’ Teachings” (Luke 16:17).

5:19 So whoever sets aside any command that seems unimport- ant and teaches others to do the same will be unimportant in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does and teaches what the com- mands say will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

If even the smallest mark is so significant, then it is necessary that the people of God obey every word that is spoken from God’s mouth. If one could expect to decide unilaterally that any particular portion of God’s commands is irrelevant or unimportant, that person would likewise be deemed as unimportant in the kingdom of heaven. Simi- larly, if anyone could obey all the details of his Word, then that person would certainly be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Neverthe- less, the truth is that no human being has ever been able to meet these stringent criteria. The standards established by God’s righteousness are impossible for humans to attain by their own efforts. The law of Moses exhorted the people of his day to the same standard. “‘Whoever doesn’t obey every word of these teachings will be cursed.’ Then all the people will say amen” (Deuteronomy 27:26).

Matthew: Chapter Five 7

5:20 I can guarantee that unless you live a life that has God’s approval and do it more faithfully than the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

It was the Law itself that the scribes and the Pharisees worshiped. They believed that they had achieved righteousness through strict ad- herence to the Law. In their self-righteous opinion, all others were miserable failures and were, therefore, doomed. However, Jesus pro- nounced judgment on the religious leaders. In doing so, he likewise pronounced judgment on all who relied upon their adherence to ritu- als to earn their citizenship into the kingdom of heaven. As Christ had already emphasized, the Law must be kept in its entirety without a hint of deviation, and such was simply not possible through mere human effort.

Notes/Applications

In this particular passage, Jesus shifted his discourse to one of self- revelation. He introduced himself to the great crowds of people who followed him everywhere. In that revelation, Jesus established a stan- dard of conduct that no one could ever achieve. However, there was one who was able to meet all the criteria of God’s unerring and im- mutable Word. For that reason alone, Jesus could stand before this crowd of people and boldly profess that he was the fulfillment of all the Law and the Prophets. No other person on this planet could right- fully make such a statement. The words of Isaiah remind us, “We’ve all become unclean, and all our righteous acts are like permanently stained rags. All of us shrivel like leaves, and our sins carry us away like the wind” (Isaiah 64:6).
There is little doubt that Jesus was laying the groundwork that would reveal the hopelessness of humanity’s circumstances and the real purpose of his coming to earth (Galatians 3:17–24). As Jesus would continue his ministry, the chasm that divided the holy God from the people of his creation would be more fully revealed. How then would humans be saved? What recourse do they have when they

8 Matthew: A King’s Ransom

are so steeped in sin? It should be obvious to everyone that there is only one answer. Jesus himself is the only one who was able to meet the standards of the holy, righteous God. Jesus alone, therefore, is the way, the truth, and the life by which anyone can hope to find salvation.

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