YES, HE is Talking to YOU! (continued)
Love is the Fulfilling of the Law
“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20).
In the last post we brought forth a saying by the Master that is little used and which holds some part of the key to the Kingdom. We established that the Pharisees were a righteous bunch in their own right and Jesus is imploring the people that they should understand that to “enter into the kingdom of heaven” that their, and our, righteousness must exceed their righteousness. For those not committed to finding their way into the Kingdom this may be a hard saying but they are the words of the Master nonetheless. Jesus goes to great length to tell us the ways to the Kingdom and tells us also of the difficulty in finding it and in doing them. He tells us the we must make the hard choices though they are only hard by the standards of life in this world.
Let us look some more at the Pharisee. Vine’s says of them that in their zeal for the Law they almost defied it and their attitude became merely external, formal, and mechanical. They laid stress, not upon the righteousness of an action, but upon its formal correctness. Consequently their opposition to Christ was inevitable; His manner of life and teaching was essentially a condemnation of theirs; hence His denunciation of them6. This seems to paint a picture of the Pharisees that is a bit fairer than most and it reflects the tenor of their description by Jesus. We should remember that there is a chronology to the Master’s ministry and that some of what He says of the Pharisees in the latter times, after frequent confrontation, is harsher than what He says at the first. Overall, it could be said that it is because of the work of the Pharisees that Judaism survived until the time of Christ; they were in many ways the ‘keepers’ of the religious rites along with the Sadducees and whatever other sects there were. The Pharisees are said to have been the ‘party of the common people’9; their position was political as well as religious and in this way they seemed to have the need to find a balance between serving God and serving the Romans. We should remember that the scribes and Pharisees in those days were, according to what they knew, living a moral and holy life by the letter of the law. Jesus never faulted them for this; He told them of the better way which they could not accept it nor could they accept Him. In their shoes today, how may of us could accept such radical change as Jesus brought? How would a man of today, a pastor for example, see the radical teaching of one who claims to come in the name of the Lord and who wants to change the very fabric of what that pastor believes. Even with a touch of healing this would be a bitter pill to swallow and this is likely how the Pharisees saw the Master.
So we should believe, as we said yesterday, that there is an amount of righteousness involved in the Pharisees lives and activities and that the Master is telling us that we need to have more than they. And what is this righteousness? First of all is it a part of the nature of God and therefore must be considered to be more than the mere definitions that we can ascribe to it. However, since we only have these defining words, let us look at some:
- Vine’s says righteousness is “the character or quality of being right or just”; it was formerly spelled “rightwiseness”, which clearly expresses the meaning. It is used to denote an attribute of God, e.g., Rom. 3:5 the contest of which shows that “the righteousness of God” means essentially the same as His faithfulness, or truthfulness, what which is consistent with His own nature and promises. They go on to say that righteousness is found in the sayings of the Lord Jesus, (a) of whatever is right or just in itself, whatever conforms to the revealed will of God; (b) whatever is appointed by God to be acknowledged and obeyed by man (c) the sum total of requirements of God (d) religious duties6. This paints a rather narrow path to follow which, of course, is what the Master says the way to the Kingdom is.
- The lexicon gives us this of the Greek word dikaiosune which is translated as righteousness: in a broad sense: state of him who is as he ought to be, righteousness, the condition acceptable to God; the doctrine concerning the way in which man may attain a state approved of God; integrity, virtue, purity of life, rightness, correctness of thinking, feeling, and acting; in a narrower sense, justice or the virtue which gives each his due2 . We can see here some of the ideas of righteousness as to how one should be and act but there is no mention here as to the relationship between righteousness and God nor His Kingdom.
- Strong’s gives us little more than does the lexicon saying of dikaiosune: righteousness, what is right, justice, the act of doing what is in agreement with God’s standards, the state of being in proper relationship with God. Not nearly the implication that this is a needed virtue for entry into the Kingdom nor an attribute of God.
- Webster’s paints a slightly better picture from the 1913 edition saying that righteousness is: The quality or state of being righteous; holiness; purity; uprightness; rectitude. &hand; Righteousness, as used in Scripture and theology, in which it chiefly occurs, is nearly equivalent to holiness, comprehending holy principles and affections of heart, and conformity of life to the divine law. A righteous act, or righteous quality. The act or conduct of one who is righteous. (Theol.)The state of being right with God; justification; the work of Christ, which is the ground justification1. Here we do get some of the more Godly ideas as holiness and purity and conformity to divine law but we still lack here the thought that this is and should be considered as an attribute of God.
- Our own definition based on our reading of the words of Jesus: righteousness is a state of mind and a state of being that becomes a way of action. It is something that is possessed of God and, as such, is possessed by us spiritually as we are in His likeness and His image. For more on this word see In the Words of Jesus part 12 where we said this: If we are living a spiritual life, striving for the Kingdom, then righteousness is a natural product of that striving. In fact it can be seen as the fruit of the Spirit for in it is not only contained our relationship to the Godhead but also our relationship to our fellow man. It is not only doing right or right standing with God as some say, it is an overall virtue that encompasses our daily lives in thought and in action. It should also be seen too that living a life in righteousness, even in the modern use of the word, without spirituality is not at all a bad thing. It can be said that living right is a way to get to God and, if ones conscience is so inclined that he is led to do right or live righteous, that he has taken a large step in his spiritual life even if he knows nothing of it at all.
You should see that we see a lot more in this word that do those who try to explain it to us; only Vine’s even comes close to the importance of this virtue and this quality of God. It is interesting to note that there are no incidences of Jesus’ use of the word righteousness in the Gospel of Mark nor in the Gospel of Luke and it is only used in John’s Gospel in relation to the Comforter. It is much spoken of by Luke in the Book of Acts as well as in most all of the epistles where the Apostle Paul confirms the sayings by the Master from the Gospel of Matthew cited above; that righteousness is an attribute and a quality of God.
So, here in our saying by the Master regarding righteousness we should see that this is a requirement for the Kingdom as well as a necessary part of our spiritual lives. If we are striving toward the Kingdom and keeping His word, all of the virtues of that Life will stream into our conscious personalities in the Light of the Soul. If we are indeed believers and followers (and these should be seen as inseparable) then there is indeed an imputation of righteousness as it will flow from our Spirit and our Souls into our everyday conscious lives as will all of the fruits of the Spirit including that universal Love of God. As Paul tells us “…..the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance…..” (Galatians 5:22-23) and “For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth” (Ephesians 5:9). An appropriate end for this theme of righteousness from the prophet:
And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. (Isaiah 32:17).
Jesus never had a good relationship with the Pharisees in general but, as we said earlier, He did dine with them on occasion and did counsel them. There are varying accounts of these things; in the Gospel of Luke we find that the Master dined with them at that time when the woman washed His feet (Luke 7:36-40) and another when He went to the house of a Pharisee on the sabbath day (Luke 14:1). There are additional accounts of these things in the other gospels as well but this should suffice to make the point that Jesus never forsook the scribes or the Pharisees and it would seem that He took every opportunity to be with them and to counsel them as this is the nature of the dialogue seen in each of these two meetings. In the one He speaks to Simon, who invited Him, and those others present giving them a teaching called the Parable of the Two Debtors. In the other, after a brief conversation about healing on the sabbath, the Master taught them with two parables, the Parable of the Great Banquet and the Parable of the Wedding Feast. We can look back on this and say that Jesus told these against the scribes and the Pharisees and this is true but, at the same time, He was teaching them the ideas behind the stories if they could but see them. Apparently some did see His teaching and hear what the Master was saying because it is written that: “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue” (John 12:42) and so that we minimize the confusion regarding Pharisees and rulers we find this also: “there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews” (John 3:1) which says that they can be one and the same.
None of this is to say that the Master liked any of what the Pharisees did, we know that He did not but we should also know of the respect He had for the office and He taught on this: ” Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.” (Matthew 23:1-12). We see here the simple statement regarding our point; that the people should respect the office and do as they are told to do by their spiritual rulers. This much is clear but the Master goes on and in the rest of this saying we should see the parabolic nature of His words.
There are some straightforward statements here which are not heeded even in today’s church and we know that they were not in past centuries as well. There are vast hierarchies of church leaders who revel in their high positions and while they may not “make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments” they certainly do most of the other things noted in the Master’s words above. The crux of the teaching above is in ending part; Jesus tells us what not to do and then goes on to tell us why saying “he that shall humble himself shall be exalted“. Humble in this Earthly life and exalted by the Life of the Soul; the True Light cannot flow through a conscious personality that is proud nor one that is self-serving. The Master repeats this teaching in another way that is most important to us who are seeking and striving toward the Kingdom saying: “Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:4) or, as it is more clearly put “Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein” (Luke 18:17). The idea of the error of exalting oneself is repeated in several ways as is the idea of serving in the Master’s saying “But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant“. This is something that is of such great importance in or journey to His Presence that we not only get His word on it but He shows us as well by His example:
“He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel where with he was girded…. So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” (John 13:4-5, 12-17). Is this not the epitome of being Humble, and of Serving and we know that the Master does not refer here to washing feet when He says “that ye should do as I have done to you” and “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them“.
Note on the Quote of the Day
This daily blog also has a Quote of the Day which may not be in any way related to the essay. Many of these will be from the Bible and some just prayers or meditations that may have an influence on you and are in line with the subject matter of this blog. As the quote will change daily and will not store with the post, it is repeated in this section with the book reference and comment.
Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD (Proverbs 16:5)
Today’s Quote of the Day is the reality of PRIDE. It is the opposite of HUMBLE and a great hindrance in our Spiritual Walk.
- 1 Websters Revised Unabridged Dictionary, 1828 and 1913
- 2 New Testament Greek Lexicon on BibleStudyTools.com
- 3 Strongest Strongs Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible – 2001
- 6Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, 1996
- 9Wikipedia contributors. “Pharisees.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia.
