Matthew, 5:21-32
Gene Fuqua · Aug 5, 2007
Sermon on the Mount, No. 06
Holly Hills Bible Church
https://www.hollyhillsbiblechurch.org/teaching/messages/4926035183469

Transcribed from the recording by SermonAudio, so expect the occasional misheard word.

Well, I muchly appreciate Brother Verne allowing me to teach this passage. Chester McCauley says two of the verses we're studying today are the most difficulties dealt with. And so I appreciate Verne's confidence. And having the senior elder, no, no, a senior peon speak on this. I tell you, God is good. He gives grace. I didn't know we'd be able to get to this, but we're getting here. And we'll have one more lesson next week in Chapter five. And then we go to Chapter six. Does that make sense?

There is something dripping on my head. I'm being annoyed with oil. You are right under the ice. This will not this will not be a dry message. It will be tearful also if I stay there. It will be dripping. As long as it only drips, you won't get shocked.

Okay, the disciples we know, they're being spoken to here in this passage. were not just the twelve, but we know they're beyond that. There may be a great number of disciples follow the Lord. But they had left the multitude and gone up on the mount and were listening to the Lord teach. And of course as they're teaching, others would notice where they were and probably gather and come and join them. But basically he's talking to disciples, to those true believers Those who had repented under the teaching of John the Baptist or the teaching of Christ.

And so they were learning from the Lord. And remember last week we studied about the Lord's salt and light. And then we talked about the Lord saying He did not come to abolish the law. But we know that, what did that mean? He came not to abolish it, but to fulfill it. What did we decide? What was that? Do you remember? Didn't you learn anything? Yes, you did.

It means to establish. He came to establish it. They had added all of these rules, all these 613 laws. It was added to the regular law. And so the Lord was cleaning out things and showing them He really meant, and what was meant, and making it clear and simple. The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise and simple. And so, you know, it shouldn't be so complicated. So He came to make it, interpret it properly.

And so, now we come to this passage. Matthew chapter 5, 21-32 and in this section the Lord is rejecting the teaching of the Pharisees regarding the law of Moses on two counts. As to the proper interpretation of the kind of righteousness the law demands and the kind of righteousness required for entering the messianic kingdom. In other words, how should they be living in anticipation of the kingdom? So he begins here in verse 21.

You have heard that the ancients were told you shall not commit murder. And whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court. Murder means to be a murderer. But sometimes people interpret this thou shall not kill from the law. But let's see the distinction between killing and murder. Here the Lord is dealing with the sixth commandment, Exodus 20, 13, you shall not murder. Murder means to take a life criminally, to take life outside the perimeters of the law. This word has two requirements. You must have malice and you must have premeditation for it to be called murder. It is anticipated before it happens, in other words. And so the law calls for capital punishment in this case.

Exodus 21, 12 through 14. He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death. But if he did not lie and wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint you a place to which he may flee. If, however, a man acts presumptuously toward his neighbor so that as to kill him craftily, you are to take him even from my altar that he may die."

So the Pharisees, in looking at these verses, they thought that a person is not guilty of violating the righteousness of the commandment until he commits the act of murder. So now the Lord goes on and clarifies what is really meant. The Lord said, but I say to you. I love that deity that you can see in those statements, the deity of Christ, but I say to you. If we had time, we'd go into a number of the reasons why we know of Him being deity, but this certainly is one, but I say to you.

You know, you've heard, but I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court. Anybody here guilty of murder? Have you ever been guilty of being angry at your brother, sister? I remember when I was a child of hitting my sister over the head with a croquet mallet. She's still alive, but she had as a baby, she had dropped me on my head. So I blame her for my lack of sense. Oh boy, I tell you, it's a wonder that kids never grow up sometimes.

Alright, angry here means to provoke, to enrage, passively become exasperated. That can happen on the freeway, can't it? Okay, the Lord Jesus makes it clear that a person violates the righteousness of the command not to murder when he is angry with another person So Christ is talking about the attitude that initiates the act.

Ecclesiastes 7.9, Do not be eager in your hearts to be angry, for anger resides in the bosom of fools.

I love that verse for hindering me from being angry. That's not the total source of strength. to not anger, but it's a motivating burst. Anger rests, the King James says, rests in the bosom of fools. As we look at the epistles, we have a familiar statement dealing with the inner attitude of the believer. Ephesians chapter 4, 26. Be angry and do not let sin, and do not sin. Be angry and yet do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your anger. What does that mean? Anybody have a good interpretation of that? Practically, don't go. Don't go to bed. That's the answer. All right. OK, don't go to bed angry.

Down here turn it off both of them Okay, and now back on off because you we lost the battery and Buzzing. Buzzing. Can you hear me? Can you hear me back there? We've lost the battery. OK. Sorry about that. It's the water may be coming down. Every now and then I walk past the drip. I feel it. OK. All right. Yes. All right.

Be angry and do not send. You know, it's a great thing to never. go to bed as a married couple. And we're going to be talking about marriage and divorce and such things. Never let that happen with some little attitude even that hasn't been taken care of. It's best to reconcile that day. That's the way I take that verse. Now, don't let it go another day without making reconciliation.

Because little things do come up. Especially when you're living with someone. There's something about that. It seems like the old nature is more manifest in the home with our loved ones than it is in any other situation. Amen? Because, you know, it's just little things. You can't hide your old nature there. And of all places, it's the place to be walking in Christ, and every moment dependent because that's where it's going to erupt more often. Surely every man walks in a vain show, the scripture says. So we get out in the world. It's easy to just look so spiritual. But when you get home, you kind of relax, you know, and then things can happen.

So, all right, 1 John 3.15.

Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer. And you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. Now this can, you know, when the scripture uses brother there, it could be sister, it could be wife, husband. And so we need to take it as application not just to brothers, males, but to anyone. So now the Lord here, when the Lord mentions the court here in this passage where we just read, I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court. He's speaking of the civil court in Israel. Okay, now it goes on to say, and whosoever says to his brother, you good-for-nothing shall be guilty before the Supreme Court.

In other words, the Sanhedrin. You can see the Jewishness of this, can't you? You good for nothing. So if you say you good for nothing, it means, oh, empty one, you worthless one. In the Aramaic and the Hebrew, it means imbecile, numbskull, blockhead. How many of you guilty of saying that to someone? Don't raise your hand.

Okay. While it is the external act of murder that violates the letter of the commandment, the righteousness of the commandment is already violated once the animosity is there internally. This is a quote from Arnold Frutenbaum. James 4, 1 through 2. Yes.

Can we discuss how to be angry and not sin? Very good. That sounds like a good What would you say makes anger turn to sin? Okay? What do you think? You're the body of Christ, you should know something. Some of you old people that have been around a while.

What? Desire for harm. For harm. Okay, that's our desire to harm. What else? That was a righteous anger. OK, so his anger was they were misusing the temple and the father was not being glorified. And so it was a righteous anger, but righteous indignation. Yeah, but we're talking about the anger that leads to being sin.

What about if you go to bed with sin or with anger and you don't resolve it? Could that be sin then, if you're not obeying the word? That's one way I would look at it. The sin of murder could happen if you're angry and you proceed to murder somebody, you proceed to hit them, you proceed to do other things that are more involved. But angry and sin not. Thoughts, other thoughts on that?

Does that mean you can't be angry for more than 24 hours? Does it mean you can't sin? Certainly you can, but you know what happens when a person holds anger in them? What happens? It disfesters. And the longer you hold it, it could actually lead to a deeper sin. So I think the idea is that anger can happen. It's part of the flesh. And when we sense it, we sense that it's a flesh. We judge it. If we judge ourselves, we'll not be judged. And so, it hasn't led to sin, I don't believe, until we, if we judge it, as soon as we dictate, or indicate, or see, or dictate, what's the word I'm looking for, as soon as we realize that we've sinned, or that anger is walking in the flesh, we're going to see here that it's listed, you know, in the, I believe, in the sins of the flesh.

So, yes. I was going to say that one of the things about this gives us a short time frame. Don't let the sun go down. But aside from that, it's also a matter of within a short period of time determining, is this something that God wants me to take some righteous action about? Or is it something to be left totally up to Him? But in either case, it doesn't just sit there and touch it. If it is left totally up to Him, then we should do that in the short term, not sit there and let it shatter and cause me to become embittered. It's a matter of reckoning with this. Is there something that I did with the improperly made food in the short term? If not, this is all God's to do.

Look at Galatians 5.19 where it lists the deeds of the flesh. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident which are immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, outbursts of anger and so on, disputes. So I think what leads to the sin is, I mean, every day we are very capable of walking the flesh, and we do, if we're honest about it. So we need to judge that so that it doesn't turn to sin. Whichever is not of faith is sin. So we're not walking by faith when we're... I mean, we're not walking by faith in the Spirit if we are angry and let it sit there.

Okay? Alright. Let's go on. Yes. Talk loudly. So what? Oh, it is. OK, I'll stay back here. All right. Not drops of blood, though. All right. Does that seem? Yes. Go ahead. No, you may have something else that would help. Bonnie and I'm just wondering some examples when it's correct.

It looks like it's telling us to be angry at certain times. OK. And what was mentioned here that when the Lord was righteously angry, he was anger over a situation that wasn't a personal thing so much for him. He was looking after the glory of the father there in the temple. So when it's not, you know, it's easy. You know what makes us angry? There's an old track I used to read, I'll come back to you Jack. What made you cross? Have you ever read that? What made you cross?

When a situation doesn't minister to us, then we tend to get angry. And that is a selfish anger most of the time, it's anger. You know, because we don't get minister to the golfer whose ball doesn't go into the hole when he wants it to. And he just gets all mad and angry. And or if somebody does something to get in the way, you know, the ball going into the into, you know, you see that and with sports a lot, you know.

It's just, but when it's, I think it's when it's a selfish thing, Ronnie. I don't, I, you know, when it's, you know, more like I didn't get ministered to. So, you know, so yeah. And, but if you have now, what did you have on that Jack? Well, I was just going to say, I think anger is a function of the flesh. It is. That's right. And we just, what we just read from Galatians. Yes. Very good. Okay. Correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think anger really has a good or bad motive to it, it's just an emotion. It's an emotion?

It's a feeling like happiness, sadness, anger, and the reason why we're cautioned here is not because anger is bad, but because it's such a strong and powerful emotion that can very easily carry us away from our consciousness of what we're doing and in the sin. Whereas when you're happy, you're not going to maybe just lie into a temporary death. So I don't think necessarily, especially in the Ephesians passage, it's saying don't be angry, be dishonest with your emotions, but rather go ahead and feel those emotions, admit that you know that you feel them, and deal with them in a godly way as opposed to letting them carry you into sin. I don't think that you can charge anger with a godly versus an ungodly connotation.

I think when we see it in scripture, at least in the list of Titus and Timothy, it seems to be more talking about outbursts of anger or violent anger, a type of anger that reaches a negative expression or constantly an angry person versus the fact that we all experience it. Yeah. So, yeah. Yeah. For me personally, I would just think, you know, I would judge myself as to whether is this something that is of my flesh or is it something that is a righteous anger about a situation over. You know, the way this mother next door is whipping her child all the time. You know, I mean, somebody needs to do something about this. This makes me angry because she's I'm upset about it.

You know, it's that, you know, we could talk about this quite a bit and then not get to the rest of the passage. But let's just one more. OK, what's about the great great nature? Say that now? Grudge nurturing. That's continual, ongoing. Oh, feeding the flesh as far as grudges and things. Yeah. And that can lead to anger. Yes. This one prevails on and on and on. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So we. Yes.

I think that what you just said really lines up with what Brad was saying. That you have to judge the. Occasion. Judge it. Yeah, you judge the occasion. Are you allowing the anger, which may be right, which may be something that Ernst says the Lord wants you to deal with right now, or is it something that needs to be set aside that you do not need to deal with because the Lord will deal with it? I think what you summed up with was just what Brad was saying. Okay, thank you. All right. All right, let's go on here on these. There's so many things here, points, and we could stay on one really for a long time, but we can talk about this later after class if you'd like to. All right.

And whoever says you fools shall be guilty enough to go into a fiery hell. There's an internal hatred if someone says this about another person. It can lead, later lead, to the external act of murder. When the Lord speaks of fiery hell, we see that this person has ended up in God's court.

And the Great White Throne Judgment, evidently, this is a person who is not really a believer. We live in a day of loose tongues. You hear people use euphemisms and they take God's name in vain. You hear, if you watch the TV much, you hear somebody calling somebody a fool. It's not a good thing to be doing.

Believers need to be judged. Certainly, we don't get sent to hell at this point. I trust we're believers. But if we keep saying something like that and walking in the flesh, we might judge as to whether you really are a Christian. We need to watch. That type of thing.

James 1.15, Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. So, when one discontinues, you know, walking in the flesh, and then this does lead to sin, you know. So we just, I think the whole thing about this, if we can learn to judge ourselves, and these people, they were to judge themselves and then not let, anger lead to the sin of murder.

Verse 23, Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, there's a Jewishness of this again, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go, first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. So one is to handle a problem with his brother before it turns to anger, before anger turns to murder. Here we see the principle that internal harmony or fellowship takes priority over external worship. We can see the Jewish application here, as I mentioned, there is an application for those who are in the church as well.

Look at first Corinthians 11, 28 through 32. in the context of the Lord's table, but a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks judgment to himself, if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick and a number sleep. But if we judge ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. So if one examines the entire context of the passage quoted above, then each one is to examine his own life and heart and deal with matters before coming to the Lord's table.

I have to confess there have been times when I've had to confess to my wife something just before the Lord's table. But this first convicted me, you know, these things. And I know that I had to get something right. An attitude most of the time, it's not like I... You know, but when a bad attitude that maybe I had coming to church, even, you know, I mean, you never had that problem, have you? I mean, all you saints. We're having the Lord's table today, by the way, so be warned.

Verse 25, 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, and you be thrown into prison. Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid the last cent.

In the New Testament time, several cases ended up that sometimes the two parties would travel together for a trial scheduled for a specific time and date. So that often meant that both the plaintiff and defendant traveled more or less together. And Jesus was saying that it's best to settle the matter quickly as possible while you're on the way, in other words, and not stretch it out until the law extends things. Now I was talking to you a few weeks ago about going to court and I didn't complete that.

There was a lady who, I went to work as a chef or a cook early in the morning in the state capital of Sacramento. I parked my car there, I was there first, early, like four or something like that in the morning. Well, she parked her motorcycle behind it. Well, when I came out from work, I don't know what time she parked there, you know, I was dead tired. I backed up, knocked over her motorcycle. Well, I pretty well think she was double parked because there's another car right between my car and that other car, and she was in the middle. Well, I didn't have a camera or anything. I didn't even think of it. I was so tired. I did drive around the bark, and then I thought maybe something was damaged to the motorcycle.

So then I went back, put a note on her motorcycle that I had knocked it over, gave my phone number. Well, she called me. She wanted me to rent a motorcycle for her. She wanted me to not only do that, restore her pay, because she said she was going to miss some of her work because she didn't have transportation. I said, see, call my insurance.

You know, let them, well, anyhow, it ended up she took me to court. Well, at the time I was thinking of this verse, you know, or not this one so much as the other one we'll be coming to, you know, not to go against somebody, they take you into court, let them, give them everything, you know, the idea. Well, I misinterpreted and it ended up that she, I just said I don't have any defense, I don't, I don't, have any plea. In other words, I let her sue and she got what she wanted from the insurance.

Of course, I didn't have to pay, but the point was when I said that a few weeks ago, someone thought maybe I was talking about the fact that I've been divorced and that's not true. So I want to clear that up. Okay. All right. Not that there's anything to say. I mean, anyone, it's just that I wasn't, I want to clarify that situation. Okay.

Now we are down to here, you have heard that it was said, you shall not commit adultery. But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. The Pharisees taught that a person was not guilty of this sin until he had committed the act of adultery. The Lord Jesus is teaching here that as soon as one lusts internally, at that second, the righteousness of the law has been broken.

I realize this, that 1 Corinthians 10, 13, they have no temptation taking you, but such as is common to man. God is faithful who will not tempt you above that which you are able. And so on. But the point is, to look and to see something, It doesn't mean you've sinned. A temptation is not sin. So we need to make that clear. The Lord says one lusts internally. With lust, a look is not a lust. In other words, a temptation is not. We need to distinguish that.

Adultery is a sexual sin involving married people or a married person. This sin, like all sin, is a sin against the Lord. Joseph understood this as you remember he took when he told Potiphar's wife that to lie with her Was a sin against God Genesis 39 7 through 9 So under the Jewish law in the case of adultery both the man and the woman were to be put to death Leviticus 20 verse 10 so As we look at this in the New Testament, we know that adultery is a work of the flesh. And so we've already read that passage in Galatians.

Now the Lord goes on to say, If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you, for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body than that your whole body be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you. For it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.

Now the right eye and the right hand are long-standing Jewish cultural symbols. Scripture itself indicates this. And gouging out of the right eye was considered the ultimate disgrace. And the right hand was the hand of power and blessing. So cutting off some evil from one's hand was to kill the source of the evil, to get rid of it.

So 1 Samuel 11.2, for instance, Nahash, the Ammonite, said to them, I will make it with you on this condition that I will gouge out the right eye of every one of you. Thus I will make it a reproach on all Israel. Then Zechariah 11, 7. Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! A sword will be on his arm and on his right eye. His arm will be totally withered and his right eye will be blinded. Samuel. Zechariah 11, 17.

Micah 5.12, I will cut off sorceries from your hand and you will have fortune tellers no more. So you see that evil being taken away from their hand. Jesus uses these hyperboles, these exaggerations you might say for them to get the point. An ice cream cone a mile high. That's a hyperbole. Right. You know. So. So that's right. Tonight's an ice cream feed. OK. No hyperbole. OK.

So, he's conveying the seriousness of all this to the disciples and how they were to deal with sin. Paul wrote with a similar exhortation to intense action to his son Timothy. 2 Timothy 2.22 Now flee from youthful lust and pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call upon the Lord from a pure heart. You know, scripture clearly says flee youthful lust.

Let yourself get in a situation. where this could happen. Now, in the case of Joseph, I've thought, you know, why did he ever go to that house with this woman who kept going after him? You know, he should have never even gone in there, you know, but he did know to flee when the time came. And so, but, you know, it's so easy for our young people today. They need to learn this first, I think, that you don't set up a situation where you can get into sin, you know, you know, don't be dumb about it, ignorant about it.

So, verse 31 goes on to say, It was said, whoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce. Verse 32, But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. Now these are the two verses that Chester McCauley says are the hardest that he's dealt with.

They were easy for me. No, that's not true. My wife almost divorced this week over this Bible study. It's been so tense, she says. I really got tense over it, I have to admit. But I'm learning to relax. Water on my head. Coming from the ceiling here with this drip. Yes. All right. Deuteronomy. Now, the whole problem with in those days, the Jewish people, there was great discussion about this thing of divorce.

And it all centers back in Deuteronomy 24.1 which says, When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes, because he has found some indecency in her. Now the emphasis is mine with the underlining. Some indecency in her. And he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house.

And the statement continues in verse 2 there. That's why we don't have a period there, I think. But anyhow, in the rest of that passage, verse 2 and 4, we see that the law of Moses assumed that divorce and remarriage was an acceptable practice, but only prohibited remarriage to the original husband once having married another. So Jesus was not changing the law of Moses so as to disallow all divorce, but he did take sides in an ongoing and very relevant debate among the rabbis.

The rabbinical school of Shammai was very strict, and they interpreted Deuteronomy 24.1 as the offense of adultery. They were very strict about that. And they added some other allowances they found in the Law of Moses. Jesus' statement in the Gospels conveys that he agreed with Shammai court in these matters. But there was another rabbinical school called Hillel, and this school went in the other direction. They interpreted Deuteronomy 24-1 to be anything. And, for example, she burnt my toast. You know, just for any reason. I mean, you stop and think, men, think about how is your wife indecent? about things. Just think about it.

So they gave it to everyone. And as I understand, then this, you know, when one court decides something like today, you know, they approve a certain thing. Then other courts say, well, here's an example of this court accepting this. So we'll accept that, too. And so that really it transferred over, did it not, to both courts?

Yeah, they would not or did. They did. That's what I thought. They did accept it. So it had become just for any reason you could get a divorce. And so the Lord's making it clear that what he has in mind here. All right. OK, we're going to go. Alright, here we go.

Makes her commit adultery. The woman who had been divorced, think about this now, you have to really think a little bit here, if you haven't already on this passage. The woman who had been divorced by the Hillel court, which Jesus declared to be an invalid basis of divorce, would be virtually forced into another marriage. You know, here's this woman, her husband divorces her, she's an innocent woman, and she's forced if she gets married again, and probably she will as we're going to see here, into a situation, another marriage. And so it would make it invalid and therefore she would be adulterous. Even though here she was one, you know, just you might say it seems in an innocent state and yet she is made to be an adulteress. Okay, the reason is that she would have a need What now? Read verse 31 and 32 out loud. Would you for me, Marilyn?

It was said, whoever sends his wife away, let him give her a certificate of divorce. But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her committed adultery in whoever marries. Now do you see what I'm talking about? Here's this woman, her husband divorces her and here she is. So what's going to happen? Let's look at the three things, the reasons for this, that makes her adulterous.

The need for survival. I think this is where the historical part of this comes in to know that. The need for survival economically in that culture, therefore, she would need a husband. Also, the Roman law in 18 BC required marriage of a woman of childbearing age unless she had three children. Also, the law of Moses was understood by the law to dictate remarriage during childbearing years in order to be fruitful and multiply. So this is the three reasons we have here. I like the idea also that possibly if she were to remarry, then even though she's innocent, she's looked on and has a stigma that she is a divorced person, that she may have initiated this thing.

It's sure that the sin of divorce and adultery are no worse than any other sin and can be forgiven. The Lord deals with men and women from the point in time when they turn to Him in belief of the truth that He's given. And what came to my mind was this passage in John 8, 3-11. When the woman was taken in adultery, remember, and bought before the Lord.

And these Pharisees, they wanted to stone this poor woman. And then the Lord said, whoever is without sin of you men, cast the first stone. And every one of them left from the oldest on down to the youngest. And they said to her, go and sin no more. It's wonderful the Lord takes us from the point at which we are. Then also the wonderful example, John 4, 13-24, the woman at the well. How many husbands did she have? Five. And the man she was living with was not her husband? But how tender.

The Lord never condemned that woman. And that's a tremendous passage to meditate on. The Lord warns us who are in the church, through the author of Hebrews. Marriage is to be held in honor among all and the marriage bed is to be undefiled. But fornicators and adulterers God will judge. God is wanting us to know that his first plan A is no divorce. No divorce. That's the best plan. You're going to end up with less problems in life without that.

But he also knows the old nature, better than any of us knows. He knows. And he knew that for the hardness of the heart, Moses, he allowed this to happen where Moses gave a bill of divorcement. So, we've seen these sins here, murder, adultery, begin in the heart. And also that God's perfect plan in marriage is this long life commitment. And we need to realize that the sin nature, being what it is, has brought about divorce to be a reality in our day. And if a person finds himself or herself in a condition of divorce, he or she should agree with God concerning any known sin and accept God's forgiveness. And from that point, walk in Christ. I think it's just a wonderful thing. Today I opened up my Daily Light devotional And it said, walk in newness of life. Oh, I love that. That's a perfect verse for this passage. How are you going to do right now?

Wherever we are, each one of us in our life, we've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Even murderers can be forgiven. And you hear of some in prison who have come to the place of forgiveness and known Christ, even though they had to maybe go to the electric chair, and adultery. our divorce. You know, it seems like in the church we've made divorce to be one of the worst sins. And yet it's not any worse than any other sin.

So we need to realize that God is doing a brand new thing in Christ. And that's the most refreshing thought that I have every day. And I need that thought every day. And those truths that help me to know, even though I have blown it in times past, I've blown it today, I've just blown it a while ago or whatever. Lord, I don't have to I try to clean up my act to come to you. Right now, I just confess I was wrong, whatever it is. Lord, thank you that I have this wonderful opportunity from this moment and point in time now to walk in Christ and walk in this newness of life.

Any thoughts that you have on these passages? Can we go back a little bit? Sure, we can. gouged your eye, cut off your hand. What would you say about, it seems like there's no grace. It seems like to the Jews, do this or this will happen. Yes. But is it also saying that to church-age believers that you can't attain, you can't attain righteousness? It's so extreme that you have to trust in God. That's a very good question. He is talking to these Jewish believers of what they are to live like in anticipation of the Kingdom. That's the first application to them. We have, for us, we can make application to it for us in the church age, realize that our righteousness is not by some attainment of our own.

We have a standing of righteousness that we see in 1 Corinthians 1.30, for instance. But of Him are you in Christ Jesus, who God has made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. Then there is the practical sanctification that we have that comes as we realize that our righteousness, we are to walk in a righteous state of being led by the Spirit of God. What is our rule of life? Turn to Galatians chapter 5, actually Galatians chapter 6. What is the rule of life today? What's our do list? What's our thing to do? Galatians 6 verse 15 and 16.

And here he uses this terminology, circumcision, for neither is circumcision. You know, which speaks of doing something, a work to show for the Jewish believer, it was to show that they were true believers. Neither is circumcision anything or uncircumcision, but a new creation.

There's that newness of life. And those who will walk by this rule, you might say, by this law, the law of life in Christ Jesus, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God. So, our rule of life is what, would you say? Is Christ. Christ, the new creation. So, you know, we are to walk as new creatures in Christ. That's the most refreshing thought to know that God's not trying to prove the old man and do something. But for us in this age of the church, He wants us to learn to walk in the Spirit, walk in Christ.

And I don't know if that answered you. Let's look at a few more verses that might clear this up. Look at Hebrews 9.26 if you will there.

Hebrews 9.26.

But now once in the end of the world He appeared, He hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." To put away sin. Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The old nature itself has been dealt with totally. The factory that produces everything.

Look at 1 John 3.5. And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him is no sin. Isaiah 53, 6, All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

I think for these Jewish believers back there, that when they heard the Lord speaking, they realized that they came up short. Many of them had been in adulterous situations, or they knew they were sinners. Maybe some had been in a divorce state. But I think all that the Lord said to them caused them to turn like David. to the Lord and realize that His strength was from the Lord, that His sufficiency was from God, that the only way He could ever make it would be for God to be the God of His salvation. So these things of the law, I think, the law was given for what purpose? To shut men's mouth, to turn us to God, to turn us to His salvation.

Does that help a little bit? It's something to be meditated on and studied more, I'm sure. Anything that you had to say, Brother Verne, about the supplement? Verne made up a supplement to go with this. It's wonderful if you take it and read it. Yes. Yes. And so a better background of what it was about. This is a this is a. A wonderful passage to study and one that we normally wouldn't come to, but we've had several sisters to provoke us to love good words.

Let's thank the Lord. Thank the Lord for Cistern. Lord, thank you for this time and through our weakness in delivery, our weakness with our old natures as they are, we thank you that we can trust you by your Spirit to teach us and to know your mind about these things. And we just thank you that we have this time. We pray for Brother Vern as he leads us in your Word as we continue in the next service and commit today to you. Thank you for it in Jesus' name. Amen.