Scripture Text (NRSV)

Matthew 5:21-37

5:21 "You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not murder'; and 'whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.'

5:22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, 'You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire.

5:23 So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you,

5:24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.

5:25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison.

5:26 Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

5:27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.'

5:28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

5:29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

5:30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell.

5:31 "It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'

5:32 But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

5:33 "Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.'

5:34 But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,

5:35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.

5:36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.

5:37 Let your word be 'Yes, Yes' or 'No, No'; anything more than this comes from the evil one.

 

Comments:
 

The fact that Jesus talks about these things (hate
and internal desires...) indicates that he knows a
thing or two about them himself. He was tempted in
every way that we are, and he certainly didn't
dismember his body. Temptation and completely
giving in to it are two different things. Jesus
didn't give in to temptation, and he's making it
clear, in the most extreme language possible, that
we shouldn't either.

Jung says that 'Thoughts come to us sometimes
like wild animals in the forest; it's up to us as
to what we do about them.'

We don't face these things alone, thank God.
This is part of the 'good news; Jesus stands with
us, and goes along the journey we're on. The
visible aspect of this companionship is in the
community we're called to. It is here that we are
given the opportunity to work out the grace that
is ours.  End of ramble.

steve souther

 Great. Just got a call that a prominent couple in one of
the congregations has split up.

SOOO looking forward to reading "But I say to
you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on
the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit
adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman
commits adultery" on Sunday.... Jesus, we gotta talk!

Rick in Canada, eh?

 I met my blind date on New Years Eve. When I
first saw her a voice in my head said, "I am
going to marry you." On January 2nd in the
evening I asked for her hand. Very unlike her,
she said "yes". 92 days later we were
married. That was 50 years ago. We have been
divorced many times, but none of them ever took.
Don't let the sun go down on your anger, as they
say. I tell every man for whom I am about to
perform a wedding, "The key to a happy
marriage is, just remember, she is right and you are wrong."

Sam Platts

  Friends,
The 'eye' and 'hand' image brings to mind a
distant memory. Correct me if I'm wrong.

As I remember, it was only the right hand that
would be normally be cut off (for theft, etc.) for
offenses because that's the dominant one. But here
it takes second place to an offense by the 'eye.'
This never entered the picture, because how could
you convict someone for looking with their right
eye? Only God knows this.

By including the eye with the hand, Jesus is
clearly using hyperbole. Who has not been guilty
of miss using their eyes?

When Jesus came upon a woman who was about to
be stoned for adultery, he said to the men:
"The one without sin cast the first
stone." Each one knew they too were not
completely innocent; they put down their stones
and left.

Jews understood how impossible it was for anyone
to completely obey the law. So they came up with
degrees of obedience. Comparison was being used
to establish who went beyond accepted standards of
tradition.

The equivalent today: They give you 5, and you
take 5. This allows you to go 75 in a 65 mph zone.
But I feel safer at 73; and I point my finger at
the guy going 90.
What do you think?

steve souther

Another thing.

A significant difference can be found here b/t
Jesus and the religious lawyers, and it comes no
so much in our thinking about the heart as it
projects outward to others.

The religious leaders focused on the law as a
way to save ourselves. Jesus sees the law as a way
to save us together, to strengthen the community
in the bonds of grace and love.

Sin can then be seen as anything that separates
people from one another. It must go beyond the
hand and what it does and focus on the eye and the
tongue as well.

Your thoughts...

steve souther

Steve: The whole of the Gospel for today is
political. Its law.
But we live in the freedom of the Gospel. Some of
the laws just don't make sense and in good
conscience they should be questioned. That is the
teaching of today's Gospel. "But I say to
you." The law is the last refuge of
scoundrels. The Republicans who voted to acquit
the great Satan of our time
are unworthy of the office that they hold.
"But I say to you" as disciples of
Jesus, we ought vote them all out of office.

Sam Platts

  I agree, Sam. Vote them out!

The hard part for me is loving them. To
distinguish them from their actions is the
mountain I must move, because my anger is
a threat to ME. I have already murdered Trump many
times over. Who is this hurting? Not him.

Jesus is preaching a word that is meant to heal
the people listening. It is for their benefit. He
isn't lecturing them, he's ministering to them in
the only way that will give them life.
It is a mistake to think this is only personal.
It does help the person, but it must extend
outward to the sister or brother. Reconciliation
is the medicine.

In other words, our politics must be the
vehicle by which reconciliation takes place. This
is where the picture is leading me presently.

You see what Jesus is doing. By his words he is
creating a community--children of God.

He's the mother hen trying to gather her chick.
He's the shepherd seeking the one lost sheep so
that it can be in the fold. He is the provider
making sure everyone on the hillside gets what
they need--that they all may lie down in green
pastures and be beside still waters...

It was the religious community that divided the
people: the clean and unclean, the righteous and
unrighteous, Jew and Gentile. Jesus never saw them
that way. Everything he did was to bring them
together and he was crucified for it.

The political movement of our day must take
Jesus as its model. Healing will only take place
when this happens. Be reconciled. Be healed. Go in
peace.

steve souther

Realize no one will probably read this at this
late date. BUT want to share. :-) It has always
seemed to me that Jesus is being ironic here.
Rather than "intensifying the law", he
is criticizing the fanatic rule-followers. To
read up on the "Irony of Overstatement"
see S. C. FRedericks's article "The Irony of
Overstatement in the Satires of Juvenal".
(Juvenal was a first century Roman Poet.) Once
you see that Jesus is being playful here (O you
think you are so great at following the law? I'll
give you a law) then this passage is not at all at
odd with those in which Jesus instructs us to be
loving and forgiving.

Pragmatic Mystic

Pragmatic Mystic: I read it at 10:30 Saturday night. Good post.

Sam Platts

 I saw it too. The first time, Pragmatic Mystic.
There were ancient times for Jesus, too. He drew
from the words spoken from that long-ago time, and
interpreted them for his time, using the intent of
his Father in Heaven.

The ancient words didn't go far enough to bring
about reconciliation. They stopped at the door of
justice and didn't go in. Jesus sees justice as a
healing agent, bringing peace to the people.--the
intent of his Heavenly Father in all times and places.
From the inside out, God's love is expressed by
the words of Jesus on the mountain. Can we hear
them? Can the world see them? Peace, my sisters
and brothers. I love you.

steve souther