Matthew 5, v 20
“For I tell
you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and teachers
of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” TNIV
Does Matthew
Chapter 5 bother you as much as it bothers me? Maybe it should. Our modern culture is awash with unfounded expectations
about eternity. Just maybe, the search
for eternity only begins through the Law of Moses, passed on to us as a beginning
point and not a performance standard. Jesus
tells us this beginning point, a kind of filter, will never go away nor can it be
replaced by religious ceremony and standards.
The radical morality
that Jesus espouses is much more than the letter of the religious law. It is the spiritual law that is eternity bound, the
spark of which is in every heart and this spiritual law has no limits on either
side of death. If we settle for a mere human
standard, Jesus says, we certainly will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The
religious crowd whom Jesus targeted with this closed-door policy must have been
shocked. They had structured their lives around being good enough. Now this upstart peasant, uneducated,
so-called prophet was telling them that God was not pleased with their effort. No wonder they were angry and wanted to kill
him.
The question
needs to be asked, was the threat Jesus dumped on the religious crowd only
meant to shock or was Jesus eternally serious?
That answer is above my paygrade but it should be noted that in the
previous verse those who teach that the Law has been set aside will be in the
kingdom of God. Go figure. Eternity seems to have levels or grades of
blessing because these folk will be counted in eternity but carry the stigma of
being the least in the kingdom.
Are we living to just beat the rap?
G.Goslaw
Landers, Ca
