Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev19960204.htm

MATTHEW: JESUS AS ISRAEL'S MESSIAH AND HIS MESSIANIC KINGDOM
Part VII: Discerning True Kingdom Righteousness From Mere Religiosity
C. Christ's TRUE Righteousness As Contrasted With Religiosity's Bankrupt "Morality"
5. Contrasting TRUE Love With Religiosity's False Concept
(Matthew 5:43-48)
  1. Introduction
    1. When Jesus presented the Messianic Kingdom, He addressed a post exilic Jewish community that had a strict psychological allegiance to the Mosaic Law.
    2. However, the best of man's righteousness is inadequate, for all have sinned and come short of God's glory according to Romans 3:23. Well, since Paul counters Israel's belief that Israel was really upright, did Jesus agree with Paul? If so, how could Israel or any religious group in Christendom today fail to be upright?
    3. Matthew 5:43-48 shows us the spiritual bankruptcy of everyman when it comes to the love of his neighbor!
  2. Contrasting TRUE Love With Religiosity's False Concept, Matthew 5:43-48.
    1. Jesus reported that the Mosaic Law taught that one should love his neighbor, Matthew 5:43. He alluded to Leviticus 19:18c which says: "thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the Lord."
    2. The Pharisees were great on trying to define what one's neighbor was so they would know who to hate, cf. the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10:25-37 with Bib. Know. Com., N.T., p. 31. They thought that properly hating their enemies actually furthered the work of God in judging their enemies, Ibid.
    3. However, Jesus displayed the sin of that misuse of Leviticus 19:16-18 which was intended to direct people not to hate, but to love even unlovely people!
      1. The context of Leviticus 19:18a,b shows God intending that His people love even the unlovely! (a) The people of Israel were not to bear a grudge, implying that they were not to carry a record of what someone else ha d wrongfully done to them! (b) Also, God didn't want His people to take vengeance to gain justice that was their due from others who had wronged them, Lev. 19:18b. (c) Accordingly, even those who were difficult to like were to be loved according to the Law!
      2. Thus, Jesus illustrated this truth in Matthew 5:44-47: (a) We are to love our enemies, blessing those who curse us, doing good to those who hate us and praying for those who treat us despitefully and outright persecute us, Mtt. 5:44 (b) In so doing, we will be like our heavenly Father who makes His sunshine and rain to grow crops in an agricultural society come to His vilest of enemies, Mtt. 5:45. (b) The rationale is this: if we love only our close friends, we are no better than the worst of men who are equally fond of those who like them, Mtt. 5:46-47. Thus, to love like God does in excellence, we need to go beyond doing what any sinner can do and love the unlovely!
    4. In summary, we are to be mature as our heavenly Father is mature if we are really His spiritual children, 48.
Lesson: (1) To be totally upright in relating to others, we ought not to love only those who treat us well, but go out of our way to show love to those who are unlovely, meaning to bless those who curse us, to do good to those who hate us and pray for those who use us despitefully and who openly persecute us. (2) Well, since every human being has failed to be this gracious at some point in time, he is a sinner and cannot enter the kingdom of heaven, Mtt. 5:20, 46f. (3) Thus, all men need Christ's r ighteousness by justification by faith, Romans 3:19-20, 23-26!

Application: (1) If we are not saved, we must see our need to be more loving and believe on Christ to escape Hell for being unloving, Jn. 3:16. (2) As believers, we must abdicate our rights of retaliatory vindication and treat well those who horri bly mistreat us. (3) The balance to this truth is found in 2 Timothy 3:1-5 where we are commanded by God through Paul to withdraw close contact with those who abuse us as keeping ourselves within arms reach of abuse is needlessly harmful. The middle voice of "turn away" in 3:5b means "turn away for your own welfare"! However, we can do this with an attitude and activity of love, nonetheless!!