Matthew 5:13-20 (Epiphany 5A)

St. John, Galveston 2/5/2023

Rev. Alan Taylor

 

+ In Nomine Jesu +

 

Grace and peace to you, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

When you think of the Scribes and the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, the leaders that Jesus often discussed religious matters with, do you think of them as righteous men, righteous meaning good and upstanding? On the one hand, it’s hard to think of them as righteous since Jesus repeatedly chastened them for their hypocrisy and for their corruption. At various times, they were referred to as “a brood of vipers,” and as “white-washed sepulchers.” He also said, “Woeto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte (that is, a single convert), and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.”

 

So, on the one hand, the Scribes and the Pharisees couldn’t really be considered righteous men. In fact, their whole life and mission was to fight against and to undermine the express mission of the Holy and Righteous God who had come into the world. And yet, here in Matthew 5, the Gospel reading that is before us this morning, Jesus says, “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” 

 

And so, whether it is specifically expressed or implied, Jesus did refer to the Scribes and Pharisees as having a certain degree of righteousness, even though it was a righteousness that would never get them into the Kingdom of Heaven. That being the case, I think it is important for us to understand what sort of righteousness the Scribes and Pharisees possessed? And more to the point, to ask exactly what Jesus meant when He said our righteousness must exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees if we hope to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

 

Luther once distinguished the righteousness of men, the righteousness that we produce ourselves, from the righteousness of God, a righteousness that is given to us through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ Jesus. Of the righteousness of men, which was the righteousness possessed by the Scribes and Pharisees, he once wrote, “Men excuse and cover the great, deep, and abominable filth of their hearts with the fig leaves of their works of the Law, just as Adam and Eve covered their shame. But their nature under the skin was not at all improved by such covering. Similarly, by works and by self-justification according to the Law a man does not become better but worse.” 

 

What Luther describes is what we might call a civil, or a civic righteousness. It is the righteousness of men and women before other men and women. For this sort of righteousness, which, by the way, is required of us by God, a person needn’t even be a Christian. He or she must simply strive and endeavor to do what is right toward others. And that, we can, in fact, do. “It is true and undeniable (says Luther) that for himself and by virtue of his own powers a man can accustom himself to decency, respectability, and virtue. One observes this in the case of the heathen, that is, in the case of the unbeliever. As you see, not all men are murderers, thieves, wine guzzlers, and loafers; there are many pious and honorable people in the world. These people have splendid, beautiful works. Everyone should be encouraged to have such virtues and to do such works. But it is decreed that if there is no regeneration, virtues and good works, no matter how fine they may be, belong nowhere except in hell with the devil.”

 

In many respects, this is the righteousness that the Scribes and the Pharisees demonstrated. Outwardly, they appeared to be holy and good. But, of their righteousness, Jesus said, it would never get them into the kingdom of heaven. Frankly, this is the issue that must ultimately be faced by those who believe that heaven can be attained by works. While God lauds the works done by people of good will in this life, those works, or deeds of righteousness, if you will, are not sufficient to earn a person a place in the kingdom of heaven because they remain tainted with the filth of sin and with the decay and the corruption of death.  

 

Jesus says, “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” This is where the heart touched by the love and mercy of God hungers and thirsts for something more, for something greater than that which can be accomplished by human effort and striving. “Blessed are those (Jesus says) who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” 

 

The righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees is a righteousness that is given rather than earned. In fact, the righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees CANNOT be earned. 

 

There are many passages in the Scriptures where this peculiar sort of righteousness is mentioned. I’d like to take you to just a couple them to give you some insight into the incredibly comforting aspects of this righteousness. The first passage is from the Book of Isaiah. The prophet writes, “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” 

 

As we live out our lives as the people of God, we hunger and thirst to be more than we are, to be holier and to be more in step with the will of God. It’s the whole struggle that Paul faced in Romans 7. “The good that I would do I don’t do, the evil that I hate, this is what I do.” At the same time though, God has clothed you with the righteousness of His Son. It’s a beautiful image because it makes it clear that the righteousness that you have, that righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees, isn’t so much in you as it is around you. In your baptism, you have been beautifully and wondrously clothed in Christ Jesus. And it is that righteousness, and only that righteousness that makes you a worthy heir of the Kingdom of heaven.

 

The other passage I bring to your attention about these two kinds of righteousness is in Matthew 9. Jesus had dined with some tax collectors and sinners. The Pharisees were quite troubled by Jesus’ action. They said, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when (Jesus) heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

 

Again, as you live out your life as a child of God and you find yourself lacking in inner purity and holiness, righteousness, if you will, know that God came into the world precisely for you. 

 

The man’s name was George Spenlein. He was a friend of Martin Luther and friar in the Augustinian monastery in Wittenberg, Germany. Like Luther, Spenlein eventually left the monastic life and became and Evangelical preacher. However, at one point Luther had to rebuke Spenlein for his harsh tongue and for his tendency to lose sight of the righteousness that is ours in Christ and in Him alone. In 1516 Luther wrote his friend a letter and said, 

 

“My dear Friar, learn Christ and him crucified. Learn to praise him and, despairing of yourself, say, “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, just as I am your sin. You have taken upon yourself what is mine and have given to me what is yours. You have taken upon yourself what you were not and have given to me what I was not.” Beware (he says) of aspiring to such purity that you will not wish to be looked upon as a sinner, or to be one. For Christ dwells only in sinners. On this account he descended from heaven, where he dwelt among the righteous, to dwell among sinners. Meditate on this love of his and you will see his sweet consolation. For why was it necessary for him to die if we can obtain a good conscience by our works and afflictions? Accordingly, you will find peace only in him and only when you despair of yourself and your own works. Besides, you will learn from him that just as he has received you, so he has made your sins his own and has made his righteousness yours.”

                                                                                      

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.

 

+ Soli Deo Gloria +