Week 37 ———  Don’t Be Angry
Matthew 5:21-26

Jesus sent out 70 disciples on a two-month mission. He is teaching and healing, but because all the disciples are away, we don’t have any scripture that tells us exactly what he is doing. So, we are taking this opportunity to review some of his previous teaching.

Last week, we talked about the woman caught in adultery, and I introduced the idea of how Jesus reads the Old Testament, looking for the wisdom behind the law.  God has an ideal, but that was back in the garden where everything was as God created it – good.  And God will bring his world back to that state where everything is good one day.  But for now, we live in a world where God’s will is not done as it is in heaven, so there is much evil in this world.  God chose this man, Abraham, to be the father of a people who would do God’s will and be a kingdom of priests to take the message of God’s will to all the world.    To do this, He gave them instructions to live by – The Jews call them Torah, a Hebrew word that means ‘teaching’ or ‘instruction,’ but our Bibles usually translate it as ‘law.’  Because God is good and wants us to be good, these instructions to us reveal God’s character.

We saw last week Jesus said that some of the laws were really not God’s ideal, not exactly what God wanted, but were concessions due to our rebellion.  We looked at a story in Matthew 19, where the Pharisees were confused because the Scripture said in Genesis that God never intended for divorce to exist, and later, God gave instructions for divorce.  It seemed the Bible was contradicting itself. 

They asked Jesus why the Old Testament allowed people to divorce if God never wanted that to happen.  Jesus answered, ‘Because of your hardness of heart.  That’s not the way it was in the beginning.’  In the beginning, God’s plan was for everyone to get along and treat each other appropriately.  So, in this world God built where there was no sin, marriages would never end in divorce because no one would ever treat their spouse poorly, and no one would ever be unfaithful to their partner.  There would be no need for divorce. But instead of living in the sinless world God built, we live in a fallen world where sometimes people would need to get a divorce because their partner was so deep in sin that they were not safe in the relationship.  So God made allowances for that fact and allowed divorce because sometimes there are no options.  Now, we have friends where one spouse was unfaithful, and the other could have sought a divorce, but they both decided to seek reconciliation.  And that is a beautiful thing. That is God’s heart.  However, both partners have to be willing to work through it.  And in this fallen world, that doesn’t happen often.

Some people say divorce is never the right thing to do.  No matter what.  Even if the wife is being abused.  Even if one of them has completely abandoned their vows.  They point to a verse and say, “See right here, the Bible says so.”  Many people misuse the Bible.  You have to read the Bible as a unified book. It is a story of God and people.  You can’t pick out one passage and use it however you want.  

Matthew 5:17-19   “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.   For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 

Jesus made it very clear that he was not doing away with the law.  The instructions aren’t going anywhere.  You might want to take a break, step outside for a second, and ensure the earth and sky are still here.  If they are, the Torah is still in place.  These instructions are still in place until God accomplishes everything in His mission to restore the world when Jesus returns.  

Jesus said he was here to “fulfill” the Torah and the Prophets.  Some may tell you that ‘fulfill’ means bring to an end, but that contradicts what Jesus just said.  I think Jesus said he would explain the instructions fully so that we would not view the laws as a checklist of things we must do but as a revelation of God’s character that we should imitate.

Matthew 5:20   “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Wait!  Weren’t the Pharisees righteous? Didn’t they keep the law meticulously?  There is a fundamental misunderstanding of the Biblical concept of righteousness.   I want you to think for a moment and come up with a definition of righteousness.  Go ahead, I’ll wait…..

Okay, perhaps your definition is like this dictionary definition:  “The quality of being morally right or justifiable.”  That may be Webster’s definition, but it is not the Biblical definition (though it is part of it). Biblically, righteousness means living in the right relationship with God, other people, and all creation. We must understand righteousness as a relational concept, not a legal one. It is about relationships, not about being right.

*Of course, part of being in a good relationship with God is following God’s rules.  It is difficult for children to have a good relationship with their parents if they never obey them.  But the goal is the relationship, not being right.  Let me illustrate that with an example.  My wife went to a conference once where the lecturer said after his first year of marriage,  he looked back and realized he had won every argument.  But in doing so, he almost lost his marriage.  His constant need to be right created such tension that it jeopardized the relationship.

It was the Pharisees who placed such emphasis on keeping every little detail of the law. Their goal was to keep the law, and they were so focused on the law that they forgot about the relationship.  Jesus says to them:

Matthew 23:23   “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness.  These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.

“Justice, mercy faithfulness” — does that remind you of that verse from Micah we looked at last week?   Righteousness is not about being right but about being in a relationship.  With this in mind, let’s look at how Jesus looks for the wisdom behind one of the ten commandments: Do not murder.

Matthew 5:21-24   “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ’You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’   But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council, and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.   So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

This is the first of six examples of God’s instructions that Jesus gave, explaining the wisdom behind the law. Six times in Matthew 5, he took a very familiar Old Testament command and said, “You have heard it said….” Then he teaches them God’s wisdom behind those commands, saying, “But I say unto you.”  Again, Jesus is not changing the law or doing away with it; he is bringing it to its fullest expression of what the law means.

Jesus says he is looking for the wisdom of God that was the reason for the law.  He wants to fulfill them – express them fully, to explain the heart of God behind the law.  So, he takes some examples of God’s instructions and demonstrates the wisdom of God behind the law.  Six times in Matthew 5, he takes a very familiar Old Testament command and says, You have heard it said….” then he teaches them God’s wisdom behind those commands. “But I say unto you.”  Again, Jesus is not changing the law or doing away with the law; he is bringing it to its fullest expression of what the law means.

So, don’t murder.  That shouldn’t be too hard to follow.  What is the wisdom behind not murdering?  What gets someone to the point that they would consider taking someone’s life?   We only destroy what we do not value.  If something is worthless, we toss it in the trash.  You don’t throw things that you value in the garbage can.  To come to the point of wanting to kill someone, you must think they have no value.  Murder is the ultimate expression of saying someone has no value.  God values all of his creation. 

Matthew 10:29-31   Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.   But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.  Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 

If we can only grasp this concept.  God loves us. The God who created the universe knows us and values us more than you value your children.  God values all of us.  God values the person who drives slow in the left lane, the one who cuts you off on the road, the one who is rude to you in the store, the person who messes up your order, the people who vote for the other person, the people fighting in wars – the ones on both sides.  God values us all. 

God wants us to value everyone also.  Now, we don’t have to love everyone equally.  God loves everyone, but there is a special love, a covenantal love, that God loves those who have joined with him in a commitment or covenant.  The love between a man and his wife differs from how he loves others.  But God values all life. And he wants us to value all life.

Jesus looks at the commandment to not murder not as a civil law but as a revelation of the character of God.  Skip Moen said it this way:

“We don’t kill someone else because God is the author of life.  God holds life sacred and is the only judge of human behavior. Murder is an act of treason against God. Murder says, “I am god over this person’s life.” ¹

Murder says, “I am the judge who decides who can live or die.” 

It all goes back to the garden.  God said eat of all the trees but one. don’t eat of the tree of “the knowledge of good and evil.” (I like to call it “the tree of who gets to decide what is good and evil.”)   So enjoy God’s good world, but the authority of deciding for yourself what is good and evil instead of depending on God to the be judge, don’t take that, it will result in death.

Genesis 3:4  But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die.  For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

They wanted to be their own boss and judge for themselves what was right and wrong.  They wanted to take God’s position as judge.  This is the sin of Genesis 3.

So we get ‘do not murder,’ but then Jesus says anger is the same thing as murder.  How is anger the same as murder?  What is behind the anger?  My anger says, “My way is more important than yours.” My anger says, “I deserve better than you have treated me.” My anger says, “You and I are not the same. I am valued more than you.  I have the right to judge you.  I am god over you.”  (We are still eating the fruit of that tree.)  Anger comes from the same place murder comes from.² 

You might say, “Well, anger is not bad because the Bible tells us God got angry.”  Yes. He did.  And it is alright for God to get angry.  Because God is God. He is not doing wrong by acting as the judge because he is the judge.  Is it that bad?  Look at what Jesus said: the punishment for murder was: “You will be liable to judgment.”  And the sentence for anger:  “liable to judgment.” This is because God looks at the heart, and both crimes come from the same place in the heart.  Now, how about insulting someone?  Your version may say “Raca.”  That is an Aramaic word that means “an empty person.”  A more modern equivalent would be to say someone is  “good for nothing”  (empty of worth, no value).  Then Jesus brings up saying, “You fool.”  That is the Greek word “moros” from which we get our English word ‘moron’  (someone of very low intelligence).  All of these have in common the devaluation of another.  It is the same judging.  Now, of course, you are going to get angry at times because we live in a world full of sin.  But you get angry, and then you get over it.  Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath… Don’t give place to the devil.

Jesus continued in Matthew 5:23-24:

So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

This is an ancient story that Jesus has taken from Scripture. Can anyone think of a story in the Bible about brothers who were feuding and an offering being made? Jesus has Genesis in mind because this story is told in Genesis 4.

Genesis 4:3  In the course of time, Cain brought to Yehovah an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And Yehovah had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. 

Why wasn’t Cain’s offering accepted?  I’ve heard people say it was because he brought part of his harvest and not animals, but there are many grain offerings in the Bible, so that is not it.  What does God say next?

Genesis 4:6-7  Yehovah said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen?   If you do well, (the right thing) will you not be accepted?   And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door.  Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

(By the way, the wording for sin’s relationship with Cain, “Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it,” is the same as God’s punishment of Adam and Eve after the forbidden fruit episode in Genesis 3.  “But your desire will be for your husband, but he will rule over you.”Don’t let anyone tell you that this verse is how marriages work.  This is about a fallen world.  God’s ideal is a chapter back.)

Gen. 4:8   Cain spoke to Abel his brother.  And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him. 

These weren’t their first words. Anger has been brewing in Cain for a while.  It would be hard to imagine that Cain and Abel had a perfect relationship before this incident.  Does a man kill his brother over the first difficulty between them?  Quite clearly, God expects us to initiate reconciliation with others.  Then God will look favorably upon our offerings.  Why was Cain’s offering not accepted?  He was not righteous; he was not in good relations with his brother.

So, don’t bother with your offering if you have done anything against someone and have not tried to make peace with them.  God won’t accept it.  God loves peacemakers.  There are stories after stories of this in the Old Testament.  Read the first chapter of Isaiah for one.

We are responsible for seeking reconciliation, but you are not responsible for ensuring it. If you make a sincere attempt and they do not reconcile, you are off the hook.

Paul talks about this in Romans.

Romans 12:14-18   Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.  Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.  Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.  Never be wise in your own sight.   Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all.   If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

“As far as it depends on you.”  You are not going to have perfect relations with everyone.  Jesus wronged no one, but many (by their choice) weren’t in good relationship with him.  Yet his mission here was to reconcile people to God who had wronged God.  That is the heart of God.  On the cross, Jesus prays for the people who are currently torturing him.  “Father, forgive them.”  And Jesus forgives us because he wants that relationship with us.  He will forgive us for everything if we confess and repent.  That is who God wants us to be: people who are slow to anger and quick to forgive.  Our ministry is a ministry of reconciliation.

Your goal this week is to consider your relationships. Before you return to church on Sunday, is there anyone you need to approach to reconcile?  

1.   Moen, Skip. From “The Cult of Self-Esteem” at skipmoen.com.
2. A few versions (The King James Version and the New King James Version most notably) add a phrase: “ But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment…”  This phrase is not in any of the earliest manuscripts and only appeared sometime after 250 AD.  That is why every modern translation (except the two above) does not include it.