LEARNING DAILY

 

Matthew 5:20,  “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”   Jesus

 

Some Bible scholars believe that Matthew 5:20 is the key to the Sermon on the Mount.  So far Jesus has spoken that to inherit the kingdom of heaven a person must be poor in spirit, mourn over not only their own sin but the sins of others and hunger and thirst for righteousness.  The result of this showing mercy, being pure in heart, being a peacemaker and being salt and light to a dark world.  Now, Jesus drops a bomb by telling the people that their righteousness must be greater than the religious leaders. 

 

I want to define righteousness in order to understand what this verse is talking about.  Righteousness is the moral perfection God requires to enter His kingdom.  The bad news is that humans cannot become this moral perfection on their own, by just being a “good” person.  The Good News is that God sent His Son to die on a cross for our sins.  When a person accepts the plan of salvation through Jesus Christ, His righteousness is given to that person.  In other words, their sins are washed white as snow and the person is able to enter God’s kingdom.

 

Jesus said in this verse that a person’s righteousness must be greater than the religious leader’s righteousness.  To understand what He meant, it is necessary to what the righteousness of the religious leaders was like.  The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was external only.  They kept many rules. Prayed, praised, fasted, read God’s Word and attended religious services.  They were guilty of the sin of legalism.  A legalist substitutes outward acts, rules or words for the proper inner attitudes.  While they appear righteous outwardly, they have no real love for God inwardly. 

 

Legalism does not refer to only the existence of right living, it has to do with motives for living the Christian life.  Any motive for keeping God’s commands that does not come from a living faith in Jesus Christ, and done by the power of the Holy Spirit with a sincere desire to obey God and please Him is legalism.  The scribes and Pharisees were guilty of placing human tradition above God’s written Word.  Jesus is not condemning all traditions – only those that conflict with God’s Word.

 

As Christians, we must resist the tendency to put human wisdom or contemporary customs above the Bible!  Scripture is the only reliable rule of faith and practice; it must never be changed by human ideas.

 

The righteousness of a Believer must not be motivated to be seen as a good person in order to gain the respect and honor of others.  This righteousness that Jesus is talking about comes from a pure heart and a desire to live our lives in a right relationship with God.  Jesus was clear that this is the righteousness that will allow us to enter His kingdom.  What a reward for allowing God to cleanse and purify our hearts in order to live the life He desires each of us to live.

 

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