If you have your Bible, would you open to Matthew chapter?
Five, please. Matthew 5.
That's where we're going to. Be as we continue through
Jesus's. Sermon on the Mount.
All right, so we've had a lot of fun in this so.
Far, but it's about to. Really get going today.
So we got to lock in if you haven't had.
Your toes stepped on yet? All right.
Then the next several weeks. Just wear your steel toe boots,
OK? It's it's it's hard on me even
as I write these sermons just to not.
Want to crunch my toes up a little so.
But today's a good one, all right?
Today's a really good one. It's I think it's something that
we struggle. With in our culture a.
Lot we have an. Outraged culture we're we're
prone to outrage whether it's. Social media or?
You know, just the news. Cycles and whatever else.
So we find ourselves dealing with kind of pent up aggression
quite often and the Lord wants. To talk.
To us today from his word about what that looks like.
In our hearts. And what we might do with it?
OK, so. Matthew 5 in in the.
Sermon on the Mount. Jesus is describing the kind of
character. And conduct of his.
People right, Those who would. Belong to His Kingdom, those
Kingdom citizens as we've. Been calling them SO last.
Week we heard a. Crucial statement in verse 20
where Jesus is Speaking of. Righteousness.
And he says, unless your righteousness exceeds, exceeds.
That of the scribes and Pharisees.
You will never enter the Kingdom of heaven.
All right, now that statement like.
We said last week would have absolutely shocked Jesus.
Listeners, the Scribes and Pharisees.
Were. Considered the most religious
people in Israel. Like.
They're they're held in very. High regard.
They're the ones who are carefully observing the,
observing the. Law they were.
Extremely strict in their religious.
Practices. And So what?
Jesus. Is saying it is.
Shocking to the. Crowd what they're.
Thinking is, if their righteousness is not enough, if
ours must exceed theirs, then what kind of righteousness does
God require? Right?
And so beginning in verse. 21 Jesus is going to give 6.
Examples showing the difference between external religion and
true heart. Righteousness.
So that's what was exposed last. Week.
Is that in? Christ, we can have a.
True Heart. Righteousness, right?
His righteousness becomes our. Righteousness because He took.
Our sin on himself on the cross, right?
And so the first. Example that we're going to see
is dealing with anger. All right, nobody leave.
Yet OK, it's dealing with. Anger.
The Pharisees taught this that if you had.
Not physically murdered. Someone then you had done.
Well, in keeping the six. Commandments.
All right, And if you haven't murdered someone, we would say
you're doing a pretty good job. Right, that's.
That seems like base. Level type stuff, but Jesus
exposes the deeper reality. Of the commandments.
And he shows us that murder begins in the heart, actually.
It actually starts. Within this passage is going to
show us. That Kingdom righteousness is
not merely about avoiding. Outward sins.
That's legalism. Right Kingdom righteous is not.
Merely about avoiding outward sins.
It's about the transformation of the heart that's becoming
altogether. New.
It's having a new. Heart God's laws written on our
hearts. This is a work of the Spirit.
Comes to us through salvation by faith in Christ.
Alone. All right, so if you're able.
Would you please stand now in honor of the reading of God's
Word? Matthew.
Matthew 5, verses 21 through 20. 6 Jesus is speaking here.
You have heard that it was said to those of old.
You shall not murder and whoever murders.
Will be liable to judgments, but I say to you.
That everyone who is angry. With his brother will be liable
to. Judgments 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're 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 were going with him to court.
Lest your accuser. Hand you over to the.
Judge and the judge. To the guard.
And you'll be put in. Prison, truly, I say to.
You you will never get out until you have paid.
The last penny this is. The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you.
For your word. And God, we thank you.
That as second Timothy. Three tells us that your.
Word is. Profitable for rebuke.
And correction and teaching and training in all godliness, that
the man of God may be perfect or complete.
Lord, so as we come to your word, we recognize that we.
Come to something that is. Living and active it.
It's not a. It's not.
Like a a non. Fiction book that we might.
Just pull off the shelf and read about history.
But but your word is living and active.
Got it, It reads us. And so, Lord, we ask that you
would help us to humble ourselves before your.
Word today that it. That your spirit might.
Read us through your word that that we might be.
Convicted and. Trained for godliness where we
need it. Lord as we.
Open this text on. Anger, Lord, we ask that you
would help us to receive it with glad hearts today.
Our Lord to know that. You love us so much that you
have spoken and you have commanded things and you have
enabled us by your spirits to walk with you and to honor you
with our lives. And so, Lord, in in this area of
anger, we want to be the kind of men and women and boys and girls
who walk with you, who honor you.
And all that we say and all that we do.
And all that we think. And so.
Father, we ask that. You would teach us today.
It's in the name of Christ I pray.
Amen. Amen.
You may be seated well some time.
Ago there was a dispute. Between two neighbors and what
had always been really a quiet town.
The issue itself, the dispute, was rather.
Small In the beginning, it was nothing more than a disagreement
over where a property line ran and where a fence.
Should be placed. At first it was just.
Conversation about the property line.
Then the conversation turned into an argument.
The argument turned into harsh. Words that were exchanged those.
Words begin to harden into resentments between the
neighbors. The two men stopped speaking to
each other weeks. Turned into months and every
time they saw. One another, the tension
deepened. What began as irritation with
one another slowly became. Bitterness between them.
Eventually, the hostility erupted into violence, leaving
both families permanently. Scarred.
Now when we hear a story like. That it's easy.
To think that the tragedy. Happened in that final moments
when violence occurred. But the truth is the.
Destruction began much, much earlier, didn't it?
It began when anger first took roots in their hearts.
And that's exactly what Jesus is addressing in the passage this
morning, Many of us, many people.
Think that they are doing. Well, with the 6th commandment.
Because they have never murdered someone, we tend to think of
anger. As a relatively small problem.
Right. Have you ever?
Excused your temper. Have you ever sought to justify
your temper? Have you ever sought to?
Explain it away. Right.
We might say things like. I just have a short temper.
It's just. It's the way God made me.
It's who I am. Or we might say something.
Else like. Well, I was just.
Venting. I didn't mean all.
Of that I was just venting all. Right.
But Jesus is telling us today in the text.
That anger isn't small, it's actually pretty great anger.
Is the seed of murder. Now I would bet.
That not many of us have thought about.
Anger as the seed of murder. Before but.
The same sinful impulse that. Eventually produces violence
often begins really quietly in our hearts.
Right, it starts with. Irritation.
Irritation becomes resentment. Resentment.
Becomes contempt for that. Person.
And then there's harsh words that are exchanged.
And in this passage, Jesus is teaching us that.
Obedience to God is not simply avoiding the outward act of
murder, right? True obedience deals with the
anger in the heart that produces murder.
Jesus is showing us what righteousness in his Kingdom.
Really looks like it's a heart deep.
Righteousness. It's not merely.
External compliance with the law, right?
That's morality. Or again, legalism.
Righteousness demands a. Transformation of the heart.
And so if you're taking notes, our main point for.
The passage today is this Kingdom righteousness rejects
sinful. Anger and pursues reconciliation
among. God's people.
Kingdom righteousness rejects. Sinful anger and pursues
reconciliation among God's people.
Now, as Jesus unfolds the truth, he's going to lead us.
Through three important realities.
We might call them. Right first.
We're going to see the Kingdom. Righteousness exposes the
sinfulness of anger in verses. 21 and 22 Next we'll see Kingdom
righteousness pursues reconciliation in verses. 23 and
24 and then. Finally, we'll see Kingdom
righteousness. Settles conflict urgently in
verses. 25 through 26. Right.
So Jesus begins by exposing. The true problem?
So let's start where he starts, right?
Number one. Kingdom righteousness exposes
sinful. Anger.
I'm going to read. 21 and 22. Again, you've heard that it.
Was said to those of. Old you shall not murder, and
whoever murders. Will be liable to judgements,
but I say to you. That everyone who is angry with
his. Brother will be liable to.
Judgement. Whoever insults.
His brother will be liable. To the Council.
And whoever says you? Fool will be liable to the hell
of fire. So Jesus begins with a.
Familiar phrase. A familiar phrase for his
audience, right? You have heard.
That it was said to. Those of old you shall not
murder, and whoever murders. Will be liable to judgments.
So here Jesus is. Referring to the 6th.
Commandment given in Exodus. 20 You shall not murder.
But notice carefully, Jesus is not he's.
Not correcting the Old Testament right?
He's not correcting the Old Testament law.
Itself the law is true. And good we talked about.
This last week, right as we talked about.
Christ has not come to. Abolish the law, but to fulfill
it, So what he is. Correcting.
Is the. Way that the law had been
interpreted and taught. By the Scribes and Pharisees.
Right, they had to reduce. The commandment to merely
external prohibition. You shall not murder as long as
you're not taking the life of someone.
In an unjust manner. Then you are not guilty.
And they're thinking righteousness consisted.
Of avoiding the act the. Outward act of murder if a.
Person had never taken. Another life he could assume
that he had. Kept the 6th commandment.
And he should go on. With a clear conscience.
But Jesus now reveals. That such an.
Interpretation that that it's only the act of murder
completely misses. The heart of the law.
Right. Verse 22 begins with a
statement. Of remarkable authority, I hope.
You saw it, Jesus says. But I say to you.
You have heard it said, but I. Say to you that's.
Pretty astounding. Jesus.
Is not simply offering an alternative opinion on the
matter, right? He's speaking with divine
authority as the Lawgiver himself.
You have heard it said. You shall not murder.
And those who do will be liable to.
Judgments, Jesus saying, but I say to you.
Right. He's speaking with authority,
he's revealing the true intent of the commandment itself.
And So what does he? Reveal as he reveals.
The intent of the commandment, he says he goes.
On, he says. Everyone who is angry.
With his brother will be liable to judgements so.
Jesus moves from the issue. Of the hands, right, The
actions. To the issue of the.
Heart murder does not begin with a.
Weapon Jesus. Says murder begins with anger.
It begins with the emotion of anger stored up in the hearts.
So Scripture. Consistently teaches this
connection. Jesus isn't adding something new
again, He's just revealing. What was?
Intended by the law to. Begin with you may think back to
Genesis chapter. Four, we have the story.
Of those two, lovely. Brothers there, Cain and Abel.
Right. Cain became angry with Abel.
Because Abel had offered a sacrifice, that was.
Pleasing to the Lord. And Cain had not.
Right now, the anger from Cain. Erupts.
And even though God comes to him and says you.
Need to beware because sin is crouching at your door and it's
seeking to devour. You Cain dismisses that.
And his anger erupts into the first murder.
That we have. Recorded in human history.
Now the. The apostle John will later
write in first John 315 everyone who hates his brother is a
murderer. So everyone who hates his
brother meaning his his brother in the Lord, right so you might
say everyone who hates his brother or sister in Christ is a
murderer. In other words, the outward act
of murder is only the final expression of a.
Sinful disposition that has been.
Growing in the heart, This is where it finally.
Erupts. Right, and we know this because
Jesus then gives 2 examples. Of how this anger often
manifests itself. First he mentions the word Raqqa
after reading the SV. It says there whoever insults.
Right. But you'll have a footnote there
that references the word Raqqa. Raqqa was a term of contempt in
the ancient world. It.
Was similar to calling someone empty headed or worthless.
It it was. Cursing, right?
And this term was used to dismiss someone as
insignificant. Then then he adds a.
Second example. Anyone who says you fool, this
is not merely. Describing Foolish.
Behavior right the the. Proverbs are.
Full of descriptions of the. Fool.
Right. Describing foolish behavior,
right? It's a word of.
Deep moral condemnation, right? It's.
To condemn someone, it's to. Treat another person as.
Worthless. So what Jesus is?
Exposing here in Matthew 5 is the progression of anger.
Anger in the hearts, right? Deep seated anger in the heart
becomes. Contempt toward another.
Person that contempt toward another.
Person then goes on to. Become verbal attack.
Or insults, so the. Problem is not merely that.
Harsh words hurt people. Right.
Although they. Do the the deeper.
Problem is that anger and contempt deny the value of
another person who bears the image of God, right.
Martin Wood Jones explains this. Powerfully and his exposition.
On the Sermon on the Mount if you don't have a copy.
Of that you should buy it and read it.
It's really great. Wood, Jones says.
The whole trouble is that we have.
Concentrated only on the act of murder, but the thing that leads
to murder. Is the Spirit.
Of anger and hatred within the heart.
So the whole trouble is that we've only concentrated.
On the ACT. Right.
The thing that's punishable by. Law, but the trouble, really.
Is the spirit of anger. And hatred that resides in the
heart of someone. So Jesus is teaching that the
6th. Commandment was never about,
never, only about presenting, preventing.
Homicide. It was always about protecting.
Life. By.
Addressing the attitudes that will destroy relationships.
You see, the Pharisees were satisfied with.
Avoiding the outward crime. But Jesus says the law of God
reaches all. The way into the heart of man.
It's not just about his actions. And when it reaches into.
The heart of us. It exposes something sobering.
All of. Us stand guilty before God.
All of us. Most.
Wildfires don't begin with towering.
Flames do they they? They begin with a single.
Spark. Something small, something
almost unnoticed, right? A spark lands in dry grass, the
grass begins to smolder, then the wind spreads it, and soon an
entire forest or field is consumed.
Well, anger works the same. Way what?
What? Begins as a small irritation can
quickly grow. Into resentment can grow into
contempt. Can grow into what becomes.
Eventually destructive words. That you might think of.
Biting sarcasm. Name calling, right?
There's all sorts. Of things gossip, slander.
But it also results. Eventually in destructive
actions. And in trying to dismantle.
The. Reputation of someone who you
hate. Murder.
Is the wildfire. Anger is the spark.
So this passage. Calls us to.
Examine our hearts honestly. Before the Lord we.
We may not have you may not have committed murder.
Praise God. Right, but what we must.
Ask ourselves. There's a series of.
Questions that I've written down do I harbor resentment toward?
A. Brother or sister in Christ?
Do I speak? About a brother or sister.
In Christ with contempt. For them.
Do I allow? Irritation and bitterness
against a brother or sister in. Christ to settle into my heart.
Jesus is showing us here that Kingdom.
Righteousness does not merely restrain the hands, but it ought
to transform. Our hearts.
Right. And once the problem of anger.
Has been exposed. Jesus now leads us to the next
step, Kingdom. Righteousness doesn't merely
recognize anger, it pursues. Reconciliation.
It has to. Kingdom, righteousness #2
Kingdom. Righteousness pursues
reconciliation, verses 23 and 24.
So if you're offering your gift. At the altar.
And then 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.
So after. Exposing the sinfulness of.
Anger in the heart. Jesus now moves.
To the practical. Response that Kingdom
righteousness produces right if anger is the root problem.
Then reconciliation becomes the necessary.
Solution right, Jesus. Illustrates this with a scene
that every Jewish believer would immediately recognize.
So if you're offering your gift at the altar there, remember
that your brother has something against you.
Leave your gift there before. The altar and go first we
reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer.
Your gifts. So in the Old Testament system.
Bringing an offering to the altar.
Was one of the most. Sacred acts of worship.
That a person could perform. Right.
Many worshippers would travel significant distances to come to
the temple. In Jerusalem, to offer their
sacrifices and to worship the. Lord.
Their offering represented a lot of things for them.
One was devotion. Right, they offered.
They made the trip. They made the journey.
They offered their sacrifice because they were devoted to
God. They loved the Lord.
Their offering of sacrifice was also an offering of repentance,
knowing that they had sinned or bringing their offering for
repentance. It was an offering of.
Gratitude, just thankfulness to God.
For all that he's provided, all the way that he cares, all the
way that he sees. To it to remain faithful and
steadfast in His love. Toward us.
Right. But Jesus says that while
you're. Standing at the altar right in
the middle of worship. Something may come to mind.
Your brother has something against.
You. Notice the wording carefully.
Jesus doesn't say that. You have something against your
brother. But that your brother has.
Something against you. In other words, you become aware
that there is a relational breach between you and your
brother or sister. In Christ.
That your. Brother has been wronged that a
conflict remains unresolved. And what does Jesus command?
Leave your gift. Before the altar.
And go. Right.
In other words, reconciliation. Takes.
Priority. Above the.
Offering go and be reconciled, then you can return to worship
now again for a 1st century Jewish audience, I think even
for a 21st. Century Christian audience, this
is. Wild, but definitely for. 1st
century Jewish audience. This would have been
astonishing. Right, temple worship.
Was the highest religious duty. Imaginable, yet Jesus teaches
that. Unresolved conflict with another
person. Is so serious that it must be.
Addressed immediately, right even before continuing an act of
worship. Now why?
You might ask why, If you're like me, why?
Because true worship cannot be separated.
From right. Relationships, right?
Scripture repeatedly teaches. This for us.
The prophets rebuked Israel. For attempting to maintain
their. Religious ceremonies while
ignoring. Justice and reconciliation,
Isaiah. 113 through 15 records. God saying this.
Bring no more vain offerings. Do not bring your vain offerings
to me any longer when you are spreading out your hands to
offer your offering. I will hide my eyes from you.
Now the. Problem wasn't the sacrifices
themselves. The the problem was the fact
that their. Worship.
Was disconnected from the condition of their hearts and
their treatment of others. Jesus is.
Teaching the same principle here.
God is not interested in religious activity that ignores
broken relationships. All right.
So again, I just want to ask a few questions.
How are your relationships with your?
Brothers and sisters in Christ. Now less, we're tempted to
think, well, that just simply means the people sitting.
Around me let. Me ask this question.
Are you at peace with your spouse?
Are they your? Brother or sister in the Lord?
Are you at peace with the what? About with your children.
Who may be believers the. Question comes.
To us rather rapidly do. I need to seek reconciliation
with someone. Martin Lee Jones summarizes this
powerfully again. He writes this.
He says if. You're in a wrong relationship
with another person. You cannot be right with God.
That's pretty succinct, really easy to understand.
This is not because reconciliation earns.
God's favor. Right.
Rather, reconciliation is the evidence.
Of the heart. That has been truly transformed
by the righteousness of the Kingdom.
It's the evidence of it. It's the.
Fruit of it that we. Walk in right relationship.
With our brothers and. Sisters in Christ.
So Kingdom citizens pursue. Peace, because their king is a
God of peace. But it's who we are.
It should be who we are. If you'll remember earlier in
the sermon on the. Mount Jesus.
Declared Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be
called. Sons of God, so.
Peacemaking is not an optional. Duty, brothers and sisters.
Peacemaking in the Kingdom? It should be a way of.
Life for us, it's. Part of the family resemblance
of those who belong to. Christ.
It's one way that we recognize that God.
Has arrested the heart of. Someone.
Is that they are a. Peacemaker doing all that they
can in their own strength to be at peace with everyone.
But especially at peace. With their brothers.
And sisters in Christ. You might.
Imagine a child who has spent the day deeply.
Hurting his siblings, ugly words hitting.
Right. Just being, just being foul.
Maybe he's being selfish. Right.
And later that. Evening he walks into the living
room and he. Cheerfully says to his father.
Dad, can we go outside and throw the ball?
Now a wise. Father will respond with
something like. This before we do that.
You need to go make. Things right with your brother.
The the relationship. Within the family must be.
Addressed before. Everything else continues as
normal. If there is not peace.
In your home, husbands, wives, children to siblings.
Parents to their. Children right if there's not.
Peace in your home? Then it's impossible.
To act like everything is. Normal.
It's impossible, and anger and bitterness are only being stored
up for a day of. Wrath to come.
You. Can't go on that way.
In the same way, that's what. Jesus is teaching us here.
Jesus is teaching us. That God is not pleased.
With the kind of. Worship that we bring.
To him that. Ignores unresolved conflict with
others. If we have unresolved conflict
with others, we should. Go and handle that.
Be reconciled to your brother or.
Sister in Christ, and then come. And worship with a pure.
Heart before the Lord. So this passage is calling us to
take reconciliation seriously. It's really easy to maintain
like an. Outward religious veneer through
habits. All right, we can attend.
Church, we can smile at the people around us.
We can sing the songs. We can pray the prayers.
We can listen to the sermon and take notes.
All the while. Allowing relational conflict to
remain. Unresolved in our life.
But Jesus says that Kingdom. Righteousness pursues peace.
Now what? That.
Means is that you might need to initiate.
A difficult conversation today. It may mean that you need to
ask. Forgiveness of someone that
you've wronged it might mean. That you need to extend
forgiveness to someone who has. Wronged you?
But the citizens of Christ's. Kingdom do not ignore broken
relationships, right? We we don't ignore these things
we pursue. Reconciliation.
Jesus adds one more important truth.
Not only must reconciliation be. Pursued.
It must be pursued. Urgently look.
At #3 Kingdom righteousness. Settles conflict urgently, Verse
25 through 20. 6 Jesus says come to terms.
Quickly with your accuser. While you were going with him
to. Courts 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 so after calling.
His followers to pursue reconciliation.
Jesus now presses the urgency of doing so.
He. Gives a second illustration.
He. Shifts.
The setting from the temple. To the courtroom, come to terms.
Quickly with your accuser. While you were going with him
to. Court lest your accuser.
Hand you over to the. Judge and the judge.
To the guard. And you'll be put in.
Prison again. This is another scene that you
know Jesus. Speaks in Word pictures.
Which are really helpful. There's another scene that would
have meant a. Lot to his audience.
Two men are walking together on their way to courts.
One is the. Accuser bringing a legal charge
against the other. The outcome?
Will soon be determined by the judge and Jesus is saying.
While you are still on the way, right?
But before. The case is heard and.
Decided the wise. Thing to do is to.
Settle the matter. Come to terms quickly.
Christ says. In other words, pursue
reconciliation before the. Situation escalates into your
judgement. Jesus then describes the
possible consequences if reconciliation is delayed.
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 again.
The pictures really straightforward here.
A conflict that could have been resolved early now moves.
Through a series of escalating. Authorities.
There's an accuser. There's a.
Judge, there's a guard. There's a prison.
What? Began as a personal dispute
between two people. Becomes a much more.
Serious situation. Now the point that Jesus.
Is making is that unresolved conflict grows more destructive
the longer it's left alone. You see that?
Anger and and resentment rarely remain small.
When anger and resentment are allowed to linger, they deepen.
They they take. Roots.
They they begin to harden. Our hearts.
And they produce a greater damage.
Again, Martin Lee Jones. Explains this morning clearly.
He says our. Lord is saying.
That if we. Do not deal with these things at
once. They.
Will inevitably lead to consequences that are far more
serious, so the longer anger is allowed to remain in the heart,
the more it poisons relationships and.
Distorts the soul, so scripture. Warns repeatedly about the
danger of allowing anger to linger.
Ephesians, right? Paul's book to the Church at
Ephesus. Ephesians. 426 through 27 says
be. Angry and do not sin.
Do not let the sun go down. On your anger and give no
opportunity. To the devil.
Paul saying that unresolved anger creates fertile ground for
bitterness, for division, for further sin.
Hebrews 12/15. The writer of Hebrews gives a
similar warning. He says see.
To it that no root. Of bitterness springs up and.
Causes trouble. And by it many become.
Defiled. So Jesus is.
Urging his followers to deal with conflict quickly.
Right before it. Grows into something that
becomes. Far more destructive Kingdom
righteousness does not delay. Reconciliation.
It acts with urgency, brothers and sisters.
And so it must. Think of your house.
If you notice a small. Crack in your house's
foundation. It may not seem.
Like a major concern at. 1st. But but if that crack.
Goes ignored, water begins to seep in it, and over time the
damage. Spreads what was once a.
Minor problem eventually threatens the.
The stability of the entire. Structure.
Now the wise homeowner addresses the crack early, before the
damage. Spreads, right?
Well, relational. Conflict works the same way.
When anger and resentment are left unattended, they slowly.
Widen the. Fracture in a relationship, what
might have been resolved quickly becomes much harder to repair.
Later and we all. Know this is true.
That's where the text presses. On us because you.
Read it and you don't. Disagree.
You hear it taught. And you don't disagree?
You know it's true. And yet, if you're like.
Me. A sinful Wretch saved by grace.
Then you know that you. Wrestle against that flesh.
And we will, pridefully, pridefully.
Refuse to seek reconciliation through humility and honesty,
and even. Urgently, but Jesus here calls
us to deal with conflict. Quickly, what that means is that
we must. Refuse to let.
Anger linger in the heart. A lot of times we'll.
Store up anger in the heart. Because.
We'll justify it in our. Own pride.
I'm not going to humble myself. He.
Deserves every bit of wrath that I feel right now.
But what Jesus is? After is that we?
Would take the initiative to. Address the issues that we would
humble. Ourselves before him rather than
allowing. Them to grow in the.
Pride of our own hearts. Pride often tells you.
To wait, let the other. Person make the first move.
Sweet go heart, How many conflicts could we have resolved
rather quickly if I did not wait on you to make the first move
right? If I'd been a better.
Man. But Kingdom?
Righteousness seeks peace without delay.
But the longer anger remains unresolved, the the more damage.
It's going to cause. The more.
Problems that will come. You're not making life.
Better for yourself by storing up anger and pride.
You know that's true already. You don't need me to tell you
that. So don't do it.
Carry it to the Lord. Don't let it destroy.
Your marriage. Don't let it destroy.
Your home, don't let it destroy relationships with brothers and
sisters here and outside of here.
As we step back and we look at. This passage Jesus has taken.
Us much? Deeper than many of us.
Expected. But most people believe they're
doing well. With the 6th commandment because
they have. Never taken another person's
life. But Jesus has shown us in this
text that the. Commandment was never only
about. Restraining our hands.
It was always about. Confronting the heart of the
man. Anger.
Contempt. Hostility.
All of. Those things reveal something
serious about the human condition.
We're we're in desperate need. Of a savior that the.
Problem of murder begins long before the ACT itself.
It begins with resentment. It begins with bitterness.
It begins with the hatred. That grow quietly in our hearts.
And maybe not so quietly. Sometimes now, when Jesus
exposes. The true depth of the.
Law. As he has here and as he.
Will in the weeks. To come, I'm telling you.
Bring your steel toe boots, but don't not come right.
Something becomes very clear. For us when he exposes.
The true depth of the law. And that's this.
None of us are innocent. If the standard were simply
avoiding murder, then we might all feel.
Confident, but if the. Standard includes sinful anger
if it can, if it includes contemptuous words, if it
includes unresolved. Hostility, then the law.
Exposes the reality that every one of us have fallen short of
God's glory. And that's precisely why we need
the. Gospel brothers and sisters.
But because the truth of the Gospel.
Is that every one of us was once an enemy of God.
And if you're not in Christ, you're still you remain.
An enemy of God, Romans 510 says.
This while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God.
By the death of his son. We were not neutral towards.
God. Our sin had placed us in
opposition to Him, but instead of.
Leaving us in that condition. Of opposition Christ has come to
make. Peace through his life.
And death and resurrection Jesus accomplished.
The ultimate act of reconciliation.
At the cross he absorbed the judgement that our.
Sins deserve so that. You and I might.
Be restored to God the Father. And 1st Corinthians 5.
Explains that when that. Reconciliation when you receive.
Reconciliation with God through Jesus.
Christ, when that becomes real in your life, Romans 5 says that
you are a new creation. In other words, you were being
reborn, you're being remade, you're his workmanship created
in. Christ.
Romans 5 also says that. You've been given the Ministry
of Reconciliation the. One that means that.
You are to become. A lover of the.
Good news of Jesus. Christ, and whom crucified?
And you are to share. It with everyone.
So that they too. Might.
Be reconciled to God by believing in Jesus Christ.
Another thing it means is that. As a minister of reconciliation,
you are called to be a peacemaker.
You're called to be. Reconciled especially to your
brothers and sisters in the Lord.
To to not remain. Bitter.
Resentful. Hurt, angry.
But to settle those things with Christ, To settle those things
with. Your brother or sister, those
who have been reconciled to God, become people who pursue
reconciliation. Remember Kingdom?
Righteousness, we said earlier, rejects.
Sinful anger and pursues. Reconciliation among God's
people. So the question for each.
Of us this morning. As if there haven't already been
a bunch of very personal questions there.
Here's another one for you. Is there anger in your heart
right now? Towards someone.
Is there bitterness that you've allowed to remain?
Is there a relationship that needs to be addressed?
Is there a conversation? That needs to happen.
Is there forgiveness that needs? To be offered or.
Forgiveness. That needs to be.
Asked for here's. One I debated on writing, but I
think it's a good one. Has your worship today been in
vain? Because you refuse to reconcile.
With your brother or sister in Christ.
Jesus does not call his people. To ignore.
Those kinds of questions he calls us to.
Ask them. Often and to pursue.
Reconciliation. And he calls.
Us to pursue reconciliation quickly.
But before anger grows deeper and causes.
Greater damage. So for some of us.
This passage. Might mean that obedience for
us. Means picking up the phone this
week. Or today.
It might mean inviting a conversation.
It may mean humbling ourselves and saying I was.
Wrong. Will you forgive me?
Or perhaps it. Means that we should.
Extend forgiveness. To a brother and sister in
Christ that has. Hurt us.
And none of these things is easy.
Or easy for us, right? But but they are the.
Kind of actions that reflect the righteousness of Christ.
'S Kingdom, because the people who have been reconciled.
To God through Christ. Become people who pursue.
Peace with others. So may the Lord.
Search our hearts today. May the Lord soften.
Our spirits. May the Lord mold.
US. And shape us and form.
Us into the kind of. People who reject sinful anger.
Into the kind of people who. Pursue reconciliation for the
glory of our King and. The purity of His bride, the
Church. Let's pray, Heavenly Father.
We thank. You so much for the mercy that
we have sung about today. We thank you for the mercy that
we. Have received We thank you for
the truth in Romans. Five, that while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us. While we were still enemies with
you, Father Christ went to the cross.
And bore the penalty for our sins we thank.
You, Father, that we have been reconciled to God as believers
in Jesus Christ. We thank you, Father, for your.
Spirit. Which continues to sanctify us
today. That is we.
Behold Christ in Matthew 5. This morning as we read his
words. As we.
Seek to understand them. We we see his.
Glory on full display. And it's, it's our desire.
That you would shape us. More and more into the image of
our King and so God, when we come to a difficult text, but
difficult I just mean one that potentially stunts on our egos
and our pride. Father, would you humble us by
your word? Would you protect us now from a
hard heartedness so many times? We were like children.
Before a Father, when we're being disciplined, when we're
being reproved, our face grows hard and cold, our heart grows
hard to the commands of our Father, to the instruction and
the discipline. The Lord is my prayer for these
people and my own heart today, that You would protect our souls
from becoming hard hearted towards Your instruction, that
You would deliver us from pride, and that You would lead.
Us now to. Seek reconciliation with those
whom we've hurt to offer forgiveness.
To those. Who have hurt us?
God, I pray. I pray often.
I pray today that you would protect the unity of this body,
that you would deepen our fellowship.
You would deepen our. Love for one another.
That the watching world might. See the love.
That we have for one another and recognize that we belong to.
God, God, would you? Help us be peacemakers in our
homes. In our church, in our.
Workplaces in our city and beyond.
God, would you season our words with the gospel?
Would you help us to? Carry the light of the gospel in
our actions, God, that we might proclaim rightly that there is
reconciliation to God available for all who believe in Jesus
Christ, and that we might not dismantle that message by our
words and actions that say something altogether different.
I'm going to give you a moment now there in your seat, to pray,
to seek the Lord, to ask where have I been disobedient in this
way with my anger? Where have I dishonored you,
Lord? Where have I hurt those who are
close to me? How can I make it right?
Ask the Holy Spirit to help in every way.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word today.
We thank you for the kindness of God that leads us to repentance.
We thank you for your mercy. God, we praise you for your
marvellous grace that is above and beyond whatever we're going
through at any moments, that it's by your grace we find that
we can be strong even when we feel most weak.
And so Lord, we offer, we offer our praise to you this morning.
We love you and God. It is our hope as a church, as
a. People.
To to give our lives every day as a sacrifice of praise to our
King. It's in the name of Christ we
pray. Amen.