Jesus Reveals the Spirit of the Old Testament Law
Monday, September 9 Matthew 5:21-26; Deuteronomy 5:1-6, 17
“You must notmurder”
Havingjust affirmed the abiding authority of the Law, Jesus now reveals the fullmeaning, or “spirit,” of the Law. “Youhave heard that it was said” to the generation being led by Moses, “but I sayto you . . . !” He uses the emphaticfirst person. This places thedeclaration of Christ on the highest level of authority, on the level of theultimate prophet of God, the Messiah. The Law that Jesus interprets here is the prohibition againstkilling. While killing is wrong, Jesussays anything that leads to killing is also wrong. It is not only the act that is to be avoided butthe attitude of ill-will.
Jesus calls us to be free from anger. While one may say he has never killed, Jesus asks about the innerattitude of anger and hate, of destructive words and hostility. Anger wounds others and also warps the spiritof the one immersed in the feeling of wrath or indignation. We need to understand our feelings to behonest about them, but we must resolve anger in ways other than focusing onpersonalities and harboring destructive attitudes toward them.
Instead of being angry with another, Lord,I will seek to be reconciled. Amen.
Tuesday, September 10 Matthew 5:27-30; Deuteronomy 5:1-6, 18
“You must notcommit adultery”
Jesusfills the commandment, “You must not commit adultery,” full of meaning bysaying that whoever looks at another in order to lust is guilty of anadulterous heart. This passage isaddressed to the married in its primary meaning, although the teaching on purethoughts and respect for others is a valid secondary interpretation. Married or single, purity calls us to the highestregard for others, to see them as persons and not as bodies to be used for ourpleasure.
Verses 29 and 30 emphasize how seriously the follower of Christ is toregard this problem. Anything that leadsto lust should be given up. One regardssin so seriously as to prefer to lose an eye or a hand rather than to loseone’s self in sin. We should understandthese statements attitudinally. Thismeans taking literally the basic intent of the passage, rather than physicallyremoving the eye. The loss of one eye orone hand cannot in itself prevent a lustful look or thought. The word-picture is to emphasize deliberate,decisive action in dealing with our propensity to sin.
I choose to give up, Lord, those thingsthat lead to lust. Amen.
Wednesday, September 11 Matthew 5:31-32; Deuteronomy 24:1-4
“Anyone who divorceshis wife”
Jesusrefers to the pronouncement on certificates of divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1). Since divorce was widespread in the ancientworld, God instituted a regulation through Moses that was designed to do threethings: (1) protect the sanctity of marriage; (2) protect the woman from ahusband who might send her away without any cause; (3) document her status as alegitimately divorced woman so she could remarry.
By Jesus’ time, the meaning of “he finds something indecent about her”in Deuteronomy 24:1 was being interpreted as “for any reason the man seesfit.” Against such frivolous reasoningfor divorce, Jesus states that divorce creates the same breaking of themarriage covenant as does adultery. However, as did Moses, Jesus allows for an exception, for sometimes themarriage bond has been violated to such a degree that a spouse has already tornapart the marriage union. In such a case,divorce is allowed for it protects the nonoffending partner and it protects theinstitution of marriage from being a vulgar sham.
May those who aremarried, Lord, live in harmony with one another. Amen.
Thursday, September 12 Matthew 5:33-37; Leviticus 19:12; Deuteronomy 5:1-6, 11
“Do not swear any oaths”
The disciple isto be honest and trustworthy, making the swearing of an oath unnecessary. One’s yes is to mean yes, and one’s no is tomean no. Whatever is needed beyond thisis potentially evil, for one may be swearing by God in order to deceive. Here Jesus is correcting Jewish traditionwhich developed a hierarchy of values for swearing oaths, a pattern which madesome statements more binding than others. If a person wasn’t really serious about an oath, he would swear by lesssacred things, such as, “By heaven” or “By the earth” or “By Jerusalem” or “Bymy head.”
Instead, saysJesus, we should not swear oaths, invoking God’s name, or substitutes for it,to guarantee the truth of what we say. Jesus’ disciples should be people of such integrity of character and truthfulnessof heart that whatever they say is absolutely believable and dependable. A person of integrity is one who in dailyconversation is so truthful, genuine, and reliable that his or her words arebelieved without an oath.
May I be known,Lord, as a person of integrity. Amen.
Friday, September 13 Matthew 5:38-42; Exodus 21:22-25; Leviticus 24:19-20
“Do not retaliate”
Jesus refers toone of the oldest laws in the world, an eye for an eye and a tooth for atooth. The law is known as the Lex Talionis. It is not only to be found in the OldTestament but is found in the Code of Hammurabi, the earliest known code oflaws, which originated between 2285 and 2242BC. In early times, vengeance was a part of life, and if a man of one tribewounded a man of another, the result was revenge by the tribe of the woundedman on the members of the tribe of the offender. The intent of Lex Talionis was to limit vengeance.
Jesus wants usto be free from having our behavior determined by the way we are treated. The disciple is to live by the higher law oflove and thereby respond to the treatment he receives from others in a mannerreflecting the freedom and love of Christ. This love was ultimately expressed by Jesus on the cross, where heshowed the deepest love to his enemies and extended forgiveness to all. Jesus’ teaching prohibits retaliation andprescribes the way of love, moving us from negativism to a positive course ofaction.
May you, Lord, not others, determine mybehavior. Amen.
Saturday, September 14 Matthew 5:43-48; Leviticus 19:18
“Love your enemies”
Jesusquotes one of the central truths of the Old Testament: “Love yourneighbor.” However, the next statementof the antithesis, “hate your enemy,” is not found in the Old Testament. In fact, Moses directed the people to assistan enemy in need (Exodus 23:4-5). Thecall to hate one’s enemy came about by identifying “neighbor” exclusively withthose within the Jewish community. Thus,anyone outside that community, that is, a Gentile, was not one’s neighbor. More than likely the Gentile had somehow becomeone’s enemy and did not need to be loved but could be hated.
ButJesus takes the competing attitudes of love for neighbor and hate for enemy andbrings them together in a way that undoubtedly stunned his audience but isactually what God intended from the beginning. God’s intent is to bring reconciliation between people, and Jesus’disciples are to look at people in this world as God does and to love themenough to reach out to them with the message of reconciliation, even to “prayfor those who persecute” them as Jesus’ disciples.
Iwill love those who are hard for me to love, Lord, and so follow your example. Amen.