But I Say - Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ inerrant, so much so that he said not a hearing or you could pass in the original word of God.

Genesis them out here again I go in English in our culture you could say' Europe, he said, not one of those every aspect of the law. Every single letter written past while that's an amazing statement of his confidence in the law and fact goes on and he says I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away joining us today on this additional Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana.

Let's join Pastor Bill Gebhardt now is once again he shows us how God's word meets our work may degree nowhere is this more evident in what is known as the sermon on the Mount. The sermon itself is a polemic and when I mean by that is, Jesus is making an argument.

He is showing how much he is against the whole idea of external religious living is going out of his way and you have to understand the audience that heard him instinctively wanted to reject everything he said almost everything he said was against what they were taught as children, their grandparents, great-grandparents, everybody believed a certain way and Jesus comes on the scene in the sermon on the Mount, and he changes everything. He just talks about it in a very different kind of way, and it's clear Jesus was never really interested in winning friends. He was never interested in being politically correct, because he certainly wasn't in his culture, someone take a look at the sermon on the Mount in the beginning of the sermon this morning and to show you how he sets the stage for the rest the sermon so I like to go to Matthew chapter 5 in verse 17 is you remember the first week we dealt with the Beatitudes, and even those were completely foreign to what people believed he he says blessed are the poor in spirit, there's the kingdom. Blessed are those who mourn his leg. I'm sure the audience like what is he talking about and he same look. The only people to go to be blessed and see the kingdom of heaven and the people who see themselves as completely bankrupt on the inside they're the only ones and it goes on and he says blessed are the general that one here.

Blessed are those a hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers's amazing and he said in the be persecuted and then he shifted last week. Anyone in the Salt Lake passage for his disciples and assume all knowledgeable in a new direction and he's back to his original thought.

This week starting in verse 17. The very first thing that Jesus wants to do is he wants to destroy he wants to destroy the criticism of Jesus is incredibly criticized is just beginning his ministry he anticipates, of course, is the son of God me knows what's going to happen and how basically the religious leadership of Israel feel about him. So he starts on verse 17 and he says do not think that I came to abolish the law and the prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. That's the criticism of Jesus starts from day one.

The Pharisees told the people over and over again that Jesus Christ is here to abolish particularly the law or Jesus as the law and the prophets, the law and the prophets means Genesis to Malachi.

That's the law and the prophets, the whole Old Testament is enemy, said look, he's trying to destroy what Moses is given us the law because the Pharisees believed that the key to having an eternal relationship with God is keeping the law.

You do the externals you go through the religious practices in your be fine with God and Jesus saying just the opposite.

So they said what he's doing is trying to abolish it, nor understand the Pharisees just keep the law.

Their view is of God gave us 10 laws it be better to add 102.

If he gave us a couple hundred closets at hundreds more.

The more loss you are, the better off you are with God giving example just for some more for the Sabbath if it was a Sabbath day in Israel at this time, you're not allowed to move a lamp in your house so if you are an oil lamp.

You could not move it if you move them on the Sabbath. You broke the law. Secondly, if you were a tailor and you hunt in our robe on and you and a needle stuck into it from your trade you are carrying a burning you broke the law. Okay that's that's clearly a break in the law. If strangely enough, if you had some form of an artificial leg, you had to take off on the Sabbath, because you could not wear that was carrying a burden if you had a crutch.

You had to lay it down and not use it on the Sabbath. Many of them rabbis believed you're not allowed to carry a baby on the Sabbath, you have to leave the baby down for me to imagine how hard these are to deal with. You could heal on the Sabbath, but if someone deathly. It ill you could stop them from Diane, but you were forbidden by to make them well which is showing how they display for characters. Overall, this is how they thought the more externals we do, the more God will be pleased with us. Jesus said, look at income to abolish long prophets.

He said I came to fulfill.

This is interesting. They would've never saw this. This is the Messiah's role.

If I said to you. What is the real subject matter from Genesis to Malachi, Jesus that what's Genesis to Malachi about Jesus. Everything in the Old Testament is about Jesus. Everything in the Old Testament is the shadow of the substance to come and Jesus said I've come. Now I fulfill the law. Think about it that he fulfill the law from the point of view of the moral law. Yes, who ousted no one. He lived a perfect life without sin. So he fulfill the demands of the law.

Think of the whole idea of the justice of the law. They fulfill the justice of the law. Yes. Yes he did. He paid the price of sin in full for everyone. They fulfill the ceremonial aspects of the law.

Yes, John the Baptist on the first time and said, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Jesus and that's what I'm here for. I have fulfilled the law. So then he goes on, and he says for truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass them along to all was accomplished this incredible statement on Jesus part Jesus telling you his view of the Old Testament. Jesus is a complete inerrant cyst. So much so that he said not a hearing or a go could pass on the original on the original word of God and from Genesis to Malachi.

Here again a goad in English in our culture you could say in' era, he said, not one of those a pass every aspect of the law. Every single letter written will pass.

While that's an amazing statement of his confidence in the law and fact, he goes on, and he says you know he says, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, he says, when there was no more of a physical creation law still here that's his interpretation of the law. He said whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same shall be least in the kingdom of heaven.

And whoever keeps and teaches them will be great in the kingdom of heaven.

That sort of against his critics. He said I would never an all anything that the word of God of said I would never do that I would never teach anybody to know notice. He's not talking about how you get a relationship with God because both of these examples are in heaven are both in the kingdom of heaven. Those who are hypocritical would be least.

But those who teach it and model it in our lives will be great in the kingdom so so far everybody listening to is probably like you. Just wondering were just going like what you cannot say what you talking about.

That's when he dropped verse 20 in for I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you'll never get into the kingdom of the first week I said this and I still mean it. I believe that cause people to yell in anger. I believe women fainted.

I believe people shook their heads. This is completely foreign to anything they've ever heard in their entire lives. This is its its stunning that it's unimaginable for them at this time the Jews had a saying, if there are only two people in heaven. One would be ascribing one would be a Pharisee, she that's what they believed.

These are the most righteous man in our country.

These are the most religious.

This is the model for all of us.

And Jesus says if you are more righteous than they are. You don't have a chance of a relationship with God while that's an amazing thing when you think about it from that point of view. How could he say such a thing.

Well I think that the reason is is that Jesus is making a statement he's going to show the holy through the sermon. If you're counting on any religious external exercise to make your relationship right with God and never see God matter, no matter what you do, no matter how many actually that none of none of what ever start a relationship with God.

That's why start out with the Beatitudes.

Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the spiritually bankrupt then to see the kingdom.

That's the first step. But the problem with religious folks, especially the Pharisees book I know what I'm doing I do the law and God's going to say well your impressive is it we don't do that as much. We switch to a religious people in our culture, but in our culture, what you run into even more than that grade on the curve moral people that's most people in our culture. Most people say well you think if you were to die right now and you are interest in affront to God. What reason you give the let you into heaven, and almost everybody you talk to well been a pretty good person and I have been faithful to my wife. I've tried a whole job I've been a good parent really that she that's no different than saying you see I can't. I kept all those religious observations. It's the same thing if self-righteousness got a grade on the curb and you'll see you're in good pretty good God standard is not pretty good extends perfection because he is God she that's the point.

That's what Jesus is going to try to say here that's what this requires. It has to be inward in pure and it can only be given to us by God and the one who paid $4.01 fulfill the law. That's Jesus Christ. So then he moved, starting in verse 21 six times. Jesus is going to do something that no rabbi would ever do.

But I say randomized and talk like if you were rabbi you wanted to exercise authority you would you record other rabbis you would croak quote tradition, but you would never say that I say Jesus is six times Kenny done to save what I say. He actually says I say but in what I mean by that is the word ego in the beginning of it. I is for emphasis. The first word of the sentence. Just like I told you before it's in! I say no one talks like that knows what he's talking about. He's quoting what they think is Old Testament and he saying but I say the authority that he has is just ridiculous. Nobody talks like that in his world. But Jesus is going to do it six times so he says you have heard that the ancients were told not eat" is a Scripture says, he said the ancients were told, this is the religious tradition and he has a reason. 40 says you have heard that the ancients were told, you shall not commit murder.

Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court now in the beginning that's on. Will wait.

That's what Scripture said when the 10 Commandments and that yes, it is, but they added something to it who commits murder shall be liable to the court know if you look at the Old Testament who commits murders executed but they had a term used liable to the court where people who were connected really connected select Sadducees, they might get a lesser sentence of something like this. I mean, you would never imagine that any culture would you wear them really affluent people would actually get a little bit better treatment. The connected people than the rest of us coming. That's what was happening in their day and they said that so Jesus said I'm explained to you, but that doesn't mean much. He goes on, he says, but I say to you everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court.

Now, how bad do you think is murder and if you're honest like really been really have an anger if I ask you how many of you raise your hand and say your murder. Please don't scare the daylights out of people around but the point is to be rare.

How many of you have ever been angry. Jesus said, yeah, you're just as guilty.

What now, no, no, now we know on a horizontal plane. Would it be better for the culture and particularly for you if I was just angry at you rather than a murder. You yes yes horizontally that's true, but Jesus done God's perspective. I watch what he does he keeps going with this. He says whoever says to his brother you good for nothing will be guilty before the Supreme Court and you would never do that. You never totem and good for nothing or thought that never been the last one. Whoever says you full, shall be guilty enough to go to fiery hell give thought that the guys in the night. I mean, you think that Jesus is yet that put you in hell no, no, no, no, I'm not a murderer yet, but worth what Jesus saying is look since universal, we are all sinners. All of us and the sin that we have is enough to condemns forever. James wrote that if you if you do not fulfill one aspect of the law.

Your guilty of the whole law every bit of it.

In other words, if you broke every commandment every day of your life. You broke one commandment on one minute of your life. You're equally guilty because the standards perfection you seek when you say that to a religious person there like I don't get that I was sure God was going to be really impressed with what I do see and he says that it's an interesting thought.

From that point of view he makes. It is clear as he can is sobering to me to think that my thoughts are my words are enough to condemn me to something you and I should be reminded of all the time with Jesus trying to say. Here's do you have any sense of how serious it is. Is is wanting to say.

While this love the idea came he died for my sins. But if he died for my sins why my so readily available to keep on sinning when we do this, I don't think it's that bad.

I may think of all the terms we've used in I is a challenge for Scripture showing a Bible where it says a white lie when we say that because it's not that white eyes on that bad men are bad lives in white lives. Jesus will listen, murder and anger the same. What you think you going to do with God when it comes to legalizing white eyes saw the same from God's point of view so he then goes to another.

It's very important to them, he said. Therefore, if you're presenting your offering at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, you to leave your offering there before the altar and go and be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering was a mean don't mock God by worshiping me, worshiping him lighter in sin do that.

This one's the idea that I have a problem with my brother. He said yeah reconciliation is very important yet to be reconciled with your brother before you going to tell Gautama consult with you and him worshiping. He said he can't do it that way is not the way it works is he one of the Beatitudes, he said, remember he said blessed are the peacemakers okay with you. He said Lingle Makepeace.

You see, if you blessed are the peacemakers you call Makepeace is going to get worse as he goes on, and he keeps talking about this. He goes on then he says make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge and the judge to the officer in your be thrown into prison. Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there into your paid your last sent what you talking about the reconciled, Paul talks about this in the Corinthians in the context of the church. If you have a problem that could end up in court with a brother in Christ settlement settlement you see and how we can settle it just the way we set almost all relational problems somewhere in a relational problem you have with a stranger friend, a family member, spouse, somewhere in there, somebody is going to have to forgive somebody has to forgive unconditionally.

You see, that's the balm of all relationships. He said yeah get this right but don't come mocking me. Is he John said it differently in his epistles.

He said please don't come and say I love God, but I hate you guys see said you can't do this. That's not the way this works at all, and from their point of view. This made sense Pharisee didn't make sense and Pharisees are elitist.

Remember in Luke 18.

The Pharisee was at the Temple and what they think God for God. I thank you that I'm better than all you guys.

I thank you for them better. These people, and the tax gatherer beat his chest, put his head down and said, have mercy on me, the center Jesus said which one comes away justified. See, that's his point and so this is something they would've really struggled trying to get it all. He then goes on the verse 27 and says you heard it was said, you shall not commit adultery. Once again, that's clear to us once again we see this whole idea of adultery right in the 10 Commandments but I say to you. Contrast, he said everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery in his heart while God standard while see a religious person could say look, I've been married for a long time and never committed adultery and emesis on pretty good.

Okay.

But Jesus put into a standard to make so difficult.

If I've ever looked at any woman with lust just like adultery, I'm already in adultery. My heart. I hope you start feeling uncomfortable because I think you start thinking that's me. You see, that's me. Yes, see what this point here. Point is your issue is your insider your issue is that your points.

Your issue is that no amount of externals ever stop this.

You can't stop it with external religiosity.

It's never going to work faster broke apart on the radio ministry of fellowship in the world. If you ever missed one of our broadcast or maybe you dislike of the message one more time. Remember the good a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online event website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of her previous audio programs is no Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible.

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