St. Matthew 5:27-48: "27 You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 31 Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.' 32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery. 33 Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.' 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one. 38 You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. 43 You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? 48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."
"Do not even the tax collectors do so?" Our Lord Jesus asks this question of His disciples, expecting a negative answer. It is interesting that our Lord uses the tax collector as an example. It is even more interesting when one considers the Evangelist who recorded these words for us. It is none other than St. Matthew, the tax collector. How interesting it is that St. Matthew, the tax collector, points out our Lord's words about the sinful behavior of tax collectors. The point is not lost on St. Matthew. The fact that he relates our Lord's words regarding the abuse of tax collectors, shows his repentance, and that he has turned away from that life of sin. Or to say it another way, he has listened to our Lord's preaching, and his heart has been changed so that he no longer does those things but strives to live according to what our Lord teaches.
This is true for us as well. Correcting sinful behavior is not done just by resolving ourselves to a more righteous life. This is what the world teaches, and this is evidenced by twelve step programs, and purpose driven lives, and the like. These things will only get us so far. As soon as temptation sets in, and it will come again and again, after a time we will fail. For we will reason within ourselves that nobody really cares what we do, or, we are our own persons and can do what we want, or, we listen to the lies of the world, which tell us that everybody else is doing it, so why can't we.
True repentance, that is, turning from sin to a life of faith in our Lord Jesus, comes from hearing the preaching of our Lord Jesus. In other words, it is through the constant receiving of Word and Sacrament. For it is in these means of grace, that our Lord gives us the Holy Spirit to resist and refrain from sin. Apart from our Lord we can do nothing. Not only does He change our hearts and minds to be focused on Him and His works, so that we can trust in Him, but through the Holy Spirit, which He gives through preaching and the Sacraments, He gives us faith in Him. For that is what the work of the Holy Spirit is, to create and sustain faith and life in the believer, that is, those who don't resist Him, or put up spiritual walls to shut Him out.
This section from the Sermon on the Mount, addresses three specific commandments: the sixth, the eighth, and the fifth according to the ancient manner of numbering the commandments. That is, "Thou shalt not commit adultery"; "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor"; and "Thou shalt not kill." * Our Lord points out in His sermon that these commandments have a deeper requirement than we can actually keep. Each of these commandments could be addressed in full detail, but that would require more space than is desired in this post. In fact each of them could take up a week's worth of posts each. Therefore, they will be spoken of in general terms as they relate to the whole decalogue.
Every commandment has something that is forbidden, and something that is required of us. For example with regard to the sixth commandment, our Lord forbids, committing adultery, that includes even lusting, as our Lord points out in the Sermon on the Mount. What our Lord requires in the sixth commandment is that "we may lead a chaste and decent life in word and deed, and each love and honor his spouse." *
There are those who believe that if they keep the outward tenants of the Law that they do not sin, and have no sin, as did the Jews during our Lord's time, but He dispels this false teaching by pointing out that these commandments, in order for them to be kept, require a complete change of heart. The only heart that sinful desires do not come out of is our Lord's heart. He is the only one without sin, He is the only one who is righteous, He is the only one who fulfills the requirements of the Law completely. This is why His sacrifice on the cross is accepted by our Heavenly Father, for He is the True Spotless Lamb, who is pure, and free from sin.
We are not so, we lust, we hate, we lie and deceive, even when it is only misleading. The statement is often made that if another person knew our inmost thoughts, they would be shocked to hear of all of the degrading and vile thoughts that enter into our minds. We have these evil thoughts because we live in this world, and live in this flesh of sin, and the devil is still prowling about, ready to lead us into shame and despair, or pride and haughtiness. We have this comfort though, we are not alone. Not only does everyone else on the planet experience these same sinful desires, but our Lord Jesus, also comfronted all these temptation that the devil, throws at us, so He knows our pain and suffering. He knows it so well, that while we were yet His enemies, He loved us enough to suffer and die for us on the tree of the cross of shame.
Some may experience these temptations to differing degrees, but it is always in relation to what we can handle, as our Lord promised us. And, there are those outside of the Church, who live abominable and degrading lives, doing horribly sinful acts, and then have the gall to say that these things are good and right. This is a lie and deception of the devil, who wants us to accept these lewd sins as normal everyday acts, so that we say they are not sins, or worse, do them ourselves. There are many examples from this world that show how the devil and the world have misled and deceived us into thinking that things that are against the commandments are okay to do, and in some cases are even encouraged. To name a few: pre-marital sex, homosexuality, abortion, gambling, usury, or practice of lending to make a profit, and the use of witchcraft.
These are portrayed in our society as normal human behavior, and not sinful acts, and a breaking of the commandments. It is not a far cry from the Sermon on the Mount, where our Lord teaches the disciples how the Jews of their day dismissed the commandments of God by establishing loop holes, and saying that what God considered a sin, to not be a sin. We who desire to keep the commandments of God, must resist this temptation of the devil and the world, and also boldly defend the commandments when they are abused. The question that is always raised when someone stands up for the commandments, and for righteous behavior is the misuse of the passage from St. Matthew 7 on judging one's neighbor. Since that pericope comes up in a couple of days, it will be addressed then, but this much can be said, there is a difference between pointing out sin, and judging someone on account of their sin. Stayed tuned in a couple of days to get a more complete answer.
We are not lost however, our Lord, knows our suffering and struggle with sin, and He gives us His preaching and His means of grace, to strengthen and preserve us through the dark days when we are challenged by and struggle with sin. Therefore, get to the Church, participate in our Lord's good gifts, and receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to give you faith and life.
Every commandment has something that is forbidden, and something that is required of us. For example with regard to the sixth commandment, our Lord forbids, committing adultery, that includes even lusting, as our Lord points out in the Sermon on the Mount. What our Lord requires in the sixth commandment is that "we may lead a chaste and decent life in word and deed, and each love and honor his spouse." *
There are those who believe that if they keep the outward tenants of the Law that they do not sin, and have no sin, as did the Jews during our Lord's time, but He dispels this false teaching by pointing out that these commandments, in order for them to be kept, require a complete change of heart. The only heart that sinful desires do not come out of is our Lord's heart. He is the only one without sin, He is the only one who is righteous, He is the only one who fulfills the requirements of the Law completely. This is why His sacrifice on the cross is accepted by our Heavenly Father, for He is the True Spotless Lamb, who is pure, and free from sin.
We are not so, we lust, we hate, we lie and deceive, even when it is only misleading. The statement is often made that if another person knew our inmost thoughts, they would be shocked to hear of all of the degrading and vile thoughts that enter into our minds. We have these evil thoughts because we live in this world, and live in this flesh of sin, and the devil is still prowling about, ready to lead us into shame and despair, or pride and haughtiness. We have this comfort though, we are not alone. Not only does everyone else on the planet experience these same sinful desires, but our Lord Jesus, also comfronted all these temptation that the devil, throws at us, so He knows our pain and suffering. He knows it so well, that while we were yet His enemies, He loved us enough to suffer and die for us on the tree of the cross of shame.
Some may experience these temptations to differing degrees, but it is always in relation to what we can handle, as our Lord promised us. And, there are those outside of the Church, who live abominable and degrading lives, doing horribly sinful acts, and then have the gall to say that these things are good and right. This is a lie and deception of the devil, who wants us to accept these lewd sins as normal everyday acts, so that we say they are not sins, or worse, do them ourselves. There are many examples from this world that show how the devil and the world have misled and deceived us into thinking that things that are against the commandments are okay to do, and in some cases are even encouraged. To name a few: pre-marital sex, homosexuality, abortion, gambling, usury, or practice of lending to make a profit, and the use of witchcraft.
These are portrayed in our society as normal human behavior, and not sinful acts, and a breaking of the commandments. It is not a far cry from the Sermon on the Mount, where our Lord teaches the disciples how the Jews of their day dismissed the commandments of God by establishing loop holes, and saying that what God considered a sin, to not be a sin. We who desire to keep the commandments of God, must resist this temptation of the devil and the world, and also boldly defend the commandments when they are abused. The question that is always raised when someone stands up for the commandments, and for righteous behavior is the misuse of the passage from St. Matthew 7 on judging one's neighbor. Since that pericope comes up in a couple of days, it will be addressed then, but this much can be said, there is a difference between pointing out sin, and judging someone on account of their sin. Stayed tuned in a couple of days to get a more complete answer.
We are not lost however, our Lord, knows our suffering and struggle with sin, and He gives us His preaching and His means of grace, to strengthen and preserve us through the dark days when we are challenged by and struggle with sin. Therefore, get to the Church, participate in our Lord's good gifts, and receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit to give you faith and life.
May God be with you!
Deacon Dulas
* Translation from Doctor Martin Luther Small Catechism and An Explanation of Christian Doctrine based on Doctor Luther's Small Catechism, Edited by Markku Sarela, Published by The Confessional Lutheran Church of Finland, 1999.
