“Red Letter Living – The Fulfillment of the Law” Sunday, September 4, 2022
COMMUNITY STATEMENT:
RIGHTEOUSNESS IS NOT FOUND IN OUR ABILITY TO OBEY RULES AND REGULATIONS BUT IN OUR CHANGED BEHAVIOR, WHICH COMES FROM A HEART THAT HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED BY THE POWER OF JESUS CHRIST.
Who was in the crowd?
Why would the words of Jesus be difficult to accept?
Matthew 5:17-19 (NIV)
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
THE LAW ESTABLISHED GOD ABOVE US – HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS
THE LAW ESTABLISHED GOD BEFORE US – HIS JUDGMENT
Matthew 5:17-19 (NIV) – continued
“I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
How did Jesus fulfill the Law and the Prophets?
Jeremiah 31:33 (NIV)
“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
2 Corinthians 3:1-4 (NIV)
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God.
JESUS CHRIST ESTABLISHES GOD WITH US – HIS PRESENCE
THE CROSS ESTABLISHES GOD IN US – HIS INDWELLING RIGHTEOUSNESS
The Law Acknowledged the Distance Between God and Man… Jesus Christ Erases the Distance Between God and Man!
Matthew 5:20 (NIV)
“For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
The Law was written on Stone Tablets, on Scrolls with pen, and it was before the Jews… and it was always just out of man’s reach.
Now, the Law has been written on the hearts of all men, both Jews and Gentiles, because of Jesus. That which was out of reach before, now is not just in reach, it is within.
The difference between the Law and Heart Transformation:
[LAW] [HEART TRANSFORMATION]
- “Do Not Murder”… “Don’t even harbor anger towards your brother…”
- “Do Not Commit Adultery”… “Don’t even look at a woman lustfully…”
- “Eye for Eye, Tooth for Tooth”… “Turn the other cheek…”
- “Love your neighbor, hate your enemy”… “Love your enemies…”