So, today is week three of our reading Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. And there are many more teachings; they go on for three chapters in Matthew. So let’s do a quick re-cap to bring us up to speed—Matthew begins this sermon with the beatitudes, with Jesus telling the people that they are blessèd -- whether they were poor in spirit, which means feeling a lack of God in their lives, or they were mourning—grieving a loss or hungering and thirsting for justice in the world – whatever was lacking, hurting, missing, God was with them and could be counted on as a source of strength. Jesus was reminding them they were all God’s children and loved by God. That too is good for us to be reminded of, that God created us for love -- to receive God’s love to share God’s love, and that we are cherished by God, and when we live according to God’s ways, we are living a life of righteousness.
Next Jesus is essentially telling the disciples who they were -- the salt of the earth. Salt enhances the flavour of food; salt preserves the goodness of food, and our bodies require salt. Salt is necessary for our health and very survival. So, by us being the salt, as Jesus said, we are necessary, needed to bring Jesus’ teachings to the earth, and keep the message fresh, as it were—spreading the message of God’s love in Christ. Plus, Jesus tells them, you are the light, so let your light shine before others, the light that comes to us from God. Don’t hide that light, God’s light that comes through us-- hold it high so we spread the light, to invite others into the circle of the light--Christ’s light. And what does that light illuminate? Jesus’ message of forgiveness and eternal life.
And now Jesus becomes more specific in his teachings, and begins by addressing issues that were contentious for his day[1] and he uses the language of hyperbole—extreme exaggerations-- to get his points across, to help folk understand. Interestingly he begins with murder. The law clearly says you shall not murder and those who do commit murder, well, they are liable to the judgement that comes with being a murderer. What Jesus seems to be warning his disciples about is what anger can lead do, the extreme of which is, well, murder. Whether the anger has arisen within you, or has been directed towards you, recognize anger for what it is and what it can do, and the response that it is creating within you, before it gets so out of hand that you respond in an extreme way. You wish to be forgiven by God? Well, extend the same grace to those to whom you are mad at, or ask forgiveness of those to whom you have directed your anger. Why? Because that is the way of God, of Christ, and the way of Christians, those who want to be Christ-like in their own lives. Is it easy? No. Will your asking for forgiveness be accepted? It might well be, it might not be. But if you don’t try, you’ll be hanging onto the anger and pain inside, as it continues to hurt you, and continues to fester inside, and can very easily lead to more hard feelings and deeper hurts, and possibly even more extreme behaviours and responses. I can tell you from personal experience, sometimes reconciliation can take a long time, years even, and in some cases it may never happen. But when you have done your part, by reaching out and trying and being open if someone comes to you, that in itself helps in your healing from the anger that is within you.
Next Jesus gets more personal in his examples. To look at a woman as an object of lustful desire constitutes adultery as much as the act itself, Jesus said. Just because you may not have committed the deed, doesn’t let you off the hook apparently. Having said that, I do think that there is a big difference in feeling lust and acting on it! But once again, it seems to me that what’s important is to recognize that which is really in your heart. What are your intentions towards that other person, what’s inside you that leads you to certain ‘less than ideal thoughts’ shall we say, that may well lead you to give in to sinful behaviours? How do you see that person for whom you are lusting; as something to fulfill your own personal desires and wants, or as a person in their own right, as another child of God? And here Jesus uses that hyperbole to make his point: better to cut out your eye or cut off your hand, rather than be led into sinful behaviours. It’s best to your best to avoid putting yourself into places or situations that can tempt you.
He then says that men who divorce their wives without just cause are condemning their wives to adultery. Ok, that one really seems to be bizarre for our 21st century ears, and needs a bit of explaining. The Torah allowed men to divorce their wives if they chose to, and the interpretations of the law of allowing divorce were becoming increasing liberal in Jesus’ time, men could divorce their wives for any reason the man wanted. It was pretty simple, they just gave them a certificate of divorce. Women, of course, couldn’t divorce their husbands. And a divorced woman had even less status in such a patriarchal society, making it especially hard for women from poor families with limited financial resources. Their only recourse would be to turn to their family of origin, if they would or could take them back or try and find another man to support them, or they were literally out on the streets. Divorce forced many into a life of poverty, or maybe another unwanted marriage, if they were lucky enough to find someone who would marry them –or maybe even worse choices--just to survive. All because their husbands decided they just didn’t want them anymore. Jesus was saying that for a man to divorce his wife, for any reason other than her infidelity—actually breaks the intents of the sacred bonds of marriage between man and woman, it makes a mockery of marriage. And if someone else marries that divorced women, well that’s as good as adultery too. Makes you wonder if there was a lot of ‘hanky-panky’ going on! And clearly, that’s not what God intended when he gave humanity the gift of the sacrament of marriage.
Jesus begins all his examples with: You have heard it was said to those of ancient times.... And then he expands on that and provides a seemingly new interpretation. Was Jesus then changing the laws of Moses? No. Remember, he told his disciples he came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. It couldn’t have been easy for the people of Jesus time, either the Jewish people of Jesus’ community or the first century people of early Christian Church, for whom Matthew was writing. They were a small minority group living in a Roman occupied country, surrounded by all the influences that entailed. Jesus was preaching the laws as God had intended them to be lived out, the laws God had covenanted with the people of God since Moses’ time. Over the years, the people had lost the intentions, the rationale for the law’s creation in the first place; the laws that were intended to help them live as holy people of God. Jesus was bringing them back to why they were to live the way the laws had intended—not simply adhering to the letter of the law, and figuring they were good to go with that.
I’ve used this example before, but I think worth hearing again. Remember back in the days before dishwashers, and it was your kid’s job to do the dishes after supper? And that’s just what they did—wash the dishes. But they don’t dry them, they don’t wipe down the counters, or rinse out the sink and the dish cloth was left as a wet lump in the bottom of the sink--never mind going the extra mile to sweep the floor! Did they do what you asked? Yup, but the intent was to clean and tidy up after the meal, and all they did was wash the dishes—the exact thing you asked –do the dishes-and the minimum required to fulfil the request.
To be a holy people meant living holy ways, which is what God had always intended for God’s people. Jesus was renewing the laws within their hearts, reminding them of the intention behind the basic laws, the why they were called to do what they were asked by God to do! This seemingly new teaching was actually taking them back to their origins as God’s chosen people-- a people called to be holy, called to serve God and live in God’s holy ways. Amen
[1] Marcia Y Riggs in Theological Perspective for Matthew 5. 21-37. Feasting on the Word Yr A Vol 1. (WJK Press: Louisville, KY) 2010 356