“Sermon on the Mount:
Commandments 5, 6, and 8”
Matthew 5:21-37

February 16, 2014


GOSPEL LESSON: Matthew 5:21–37

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.

“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

“Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”

In today’s section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus talks about things that the Catechism discusses under Commandments Number 5, 6, and 8. “You shall not kill. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not bear false testimony.” These things are bad because they break the bonds or relationships between people.

The Fifth Commandment
You shall not murder.
What does this mean?
We should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him in every physical need.

The Sixth Commandment
You shall not commit adultery.
What does this mean?
We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and decent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honor each other.

The Eighth Commandment
You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
What does this mean?
We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest possible way.

Murder of course breaks the bond in a very complete way. But anger is the desire to break the bond. In anger people call other people “fool and moron” and other words to belittle them and to make a reason to have no contact with that person. In our hearts we have murdered that person and so we are “liable to the hell of fire.” Jesus encourages reconciliation because when we are angry with someone it disturbs our relationship with God. Jesus said, “So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” There are also the words of the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Or as one new translation says, “Because we have forgiven others, please forgive us.” This would mean that if we have not forgiven others, then God would not forgive us. This highlights the need and importance of forgiveness.

Jesus talked about adultery and divorce. Genesis 2:24 is one of the first blessings in the Bible. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” This is the perfect, intimate relationship. Divorce destroys it. Adultery destroys it. Lust and fornication are not true relationships. Old Moses knew the hearts of people, and so he said in the Law, “Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce” (Deut.24:1). I am sure that this was to protect the wife and children. But Jesus wants to protect the relationship. Jesus said, “But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery.” Jesus seems to accept that exception because in the case of sexual immorality, the marital bond has already been broken. If the punishment for murder and hate is hell fire, the punishment for adultery and lust are the same.

The bond of trust between people is to tell the truth and to keep promises. This is based on a person’s reputation for keeping promises. There may be times when a typhoon cancels out a promise to go on a picnic. But when a person makes a promise they never intend to keep, then it is a lie to begin with. Jesus said “Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” If you have to swear or make an oath, it means that you are not trusted. Of course the bank does not know you so they make you sign a contract and put up collateral. It is okay for a Christian to make a contract like that when you think of it simply as a repayment plan. A good reputation and a good name are worth their weight in gold.

Jesus begins his teaching with these words, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.” For modern day Christians, we accept the words of Jesus. We think that they are the old standard. What we hear in these modern days is similar to what Jesus condemned, and often even worse. “Of course murder is bad, but what is murder? Are war and abortion and suicide and euthanasia and capital punishment really murder? Are slander and rumors and name-calling really as bad as murder?” “Divorce? Sure, why not? It is important to be happy, who cares about wedding vows in this modern age? Adultery and sex and porn are just having a good time!” “There are many ways of getting out of a contract. There are many ways for a company not to pay insurance benefits. Loopholes are fun, and legal.”

The world we live in is similar to the world that Jesus lived in. Hate and unfaithfulness and greed are the same. We get angry and want to call someone a name. We get love and lust confused. We get relaxed when it comes to honesty and opportunity. We are sinners in the midst of a sinful world. But that is not an excuse. It shows us how desperately we need Jesus. As the Sermon on the Mount continues, Jesus continues with many and various words of condemnation for both his generation and our generation as well. We see that we do not match up with the ideals of the Christian lifestyle. All Christians with a conscience know their sin. It might be hard to read these words of Jesus. And yet we want a life that is pure. We want a life that loves other people. We want to respect others. We want to keep our promises.

Where are we going to find help and power for our lives. Today I am going to suggest these words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, Mt. 6:31~33. 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. To seek God’s kingdom and his righteousness is not to seek our own power and goodness. It is to seek and rely on God for everything. The righteousness of God is when he puts us right. He does that when our sin is forgiven. That is the work of Jesus on the cross. Whereas most sin is the breaking of personal bonds and relationships, forgiveness keeps and strengthens those ties. That is the work of Jesus on the cross. He did not desert us. He did not break his promise. He died that we might live with him. He died that we might be faithful to him. He died and rose again to show that his promises will be kept.

Therefore we love the words of Jesus. We understand that what he says is important. It is more important than what the world says. Therefore we love the words of Jesus and pray for the Holy Spirit to lead us in holy living. It is to love others and be faithful to others.

Amen.

Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church


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