Matthew 5:21-26

In v21 Jesus refers to the sixth of the Ten Commandments: thou shalt not kill or murder.  Indeed the Law did say this.  The scribes and Pharisees who claimed to have kept the Law took this simply to refer to murder.  As long as they had not actually killed anyone they were free to enter into worship.  When you think of it that way it’s not that hard.  Most people make it through their lives without killing anyone.

But Jesus said your righteousness must exceed that kind of righteousness.  Not only must the actions be right; the heart must be right.  It is true that the Law called for a deeper, heart-level righteousness, calling us to love God with all our hearts (Deut. 6:4-6).  But the authority here is Jesus Himself: But I say to you.

What He says is, of course, challenging.  He speaks of “murder by mental attitude”.  Anger (without a cause, v22 in the New King James; there is righteous anger but that is not the concern here) and angry words (raca expresses contempt for a man’s head as when we call someone stupid; fool expresses contempt for a man’s heart and character) make one liable for God’s judgment (hell fire refers to Gehenna, the Valley of Hinnom, a steep valley outside the walls of Jerusalem which served as a trash dump, constantly burning with fire).  

To seek to worship God while being at enmity with those around us might not have been unusual.  But it treats worship as external, the doing of religious things, rather than a heart relationship with God.  Thus He makes it clear: right human relationships must precede right worship.  And note: it is when we realize that our brother has something against us that we must quickly seek to settle the matter.  These strained relationships must not be allowed to fester but must be top priorities for those who would worship God.  Our lives will be affected until we deal properly with those around us.

Let us hear the Lord Jesus on this matter.  Remember that He is challenging our self-righteousness.  It’s easy to say: I have never killed a man.  But who can ever say: I have never been angry with a man?  Who can claim: I am reconciled to all those around me?  No one can say that.  Anger and bitterness are common human experiences.

You may complain to the Lord that this is too difficult.  But my friend that is exactly the point.  Jesus seeks to bring us to the place where we know that we need Him and His provision of forgiveness and righteousness.  As long as we are satisfied without righteousness or with our righteousness we will never long for His and Him.  Bow before Him today, confessing your violation of the sixth command by your anger and your angry words.