Law or Mercy!?
Series: Metamorphosis | Bible text: Matthew 5:17–20
In the Sermon on the Mount there are six theses which are translated as «You have heard that it says in the Law of Moses: … But I say unto you». How did Jesus relate to the law of the Old Testament? What is the relationship between law and grace? And what does the better righteousness mean that Jesus demands from his disciples? These and other interesting and relevant questions will be clarified in this sermon.
What did Jesus change about the way we live? Normally Christians are of the following conviction: The Jews are under the law, we Christians are under grace. They see the law as a heavy burden with many commands. Jews think they have to keep 613 commandments and prohibitions to be saved. Christians believe that the gospel frees you from the law and that you don’t have to do anything else to be saved. What is the relationship between law and grace? To what extent does the law of the Old Testament still have meaning for us?
The directives of God
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus clarifies precisely this question: «Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish, but to fulfil»(Matthew 5:17 ELB). We urgently need to clarify the terms first. The first five books of the Bible are called Torah, which means «instruction of God». When the Torah was first translated into Greek in 250 B.C., the Greeks found no corresponding word in their lexicon. Therefore they translated with nomos (law), which produces a false association. The Torah – in contrast to the Law – is the instruction of a Father borne of love and not a collection of legal norms.. It reveals the character of God and is instruction for a successful life. The heart of the Torah is the message of the loving God and the instructions on how to build a relationship with Him. A gentile came to the Jewish scholar Hillel asking if he could teach him the whole Torah while standing on one foot. Hillel said to him: «Do not do to your neighbour what you hate. That is the whole Torah, and everything else is only explanation.»
The Torah is given on Mount Sinai and repeated in the Sermon on the Mount. In both, God is the soloist who plays the same basic melody despite variations. The Old and New Testaments both testify to God as Creator, as Redeemer, as Provider, as merciful, gracious, forgiving Lord and Father (cf. Ex 34:6). The Torah and the Sermon on the Mount show us the potential of metamorphosis, so that we become more and more like this God through transformation of our being.
Now what does Jesus mean when he says concerning the Torah: «I have not come to dissolve, but to fulfil»? Fulfilled does not mean abolished. He says unequivocally: «For verily I say unto you: Till heaven and earth pass away, not one jot or one tittle of the law shall pass away, till all be done»(V.18 ELB). Fulfilled means that Jesus is the first person who fulfilled God’s instructions in 100%. Fulfilled means that Jesus fulfilled some things for us (purity rules, sacrificial and food laws). Fulfilled, however, is first and foremost a technical expression recognised in the rabbinic debate. If a disciple had hit the mark with his interpretation, the Rabbi said: «You have fulfilled the law.» As a Jewish teacher, Jesus mingles with Jewish teachers and actively participates in the discussion about the correct interpretation. With the claim of messianic authority, he reduces the instructions of God to the essentials. Fulfil thus has the meaning of interpret correctly.
Consequently, Jesus says: «Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.»(V.19 ELB).
The better justice
«For I say unto you: Unless your righteousness is better than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.»(V.20 LUT). Now the crucial question is: What makes a person righteous before God? Is it that in the Old Testament it is the keeping of the law and since Jesus it is grace? That this is a misunderstanding is what Paul teaches us: «For so it was with Abraham: Abraham believed God, and God declared him righteous because of his faith»(Galatians 3:6 NLB).
What then is the better justice? Is Jesus asking us to be even more zealous than the Pharisees, to keep the rules even better? The problem of the Jewish spiritual elite was that they believed that their righteousness came from the Law. They took the Torah out of a relationship of trust with God and tried to do everything right with a lot of zeal. They put their trust in keeping the law rather than in Yahweh. That could not go well. So they danced to other music. That is called Sin denotes. People can be impressed with morally sound lives, the LORD is not deceived. «A man sees what is before his eyes, but the Lord looks at the heart.»(1 Samuel 16:7 LUT). God is never concerned with how much we do. He is primarily interested in the motives for which we act or do not act.
We live in the so-called New Covenant and face the same danger. That is why Paul declares: «I do not throw away the grace of God; for if by the law comes righteousness, Christ died in vain»(Galatians 2:21 LUT). Christians after Jesus also tend towards legalism. God knows our motives and our hearts. The righteousness Jesus speaks of must come from our hearts. That is why Jesus says, among other things: «You have heard that in the Law of Moses it says: «You shall not commit adultery». But I say: Whoever even looks at a woman with a look of lust has already broken the marriage with her in his heart.»(Matthew 5:27f NLB). Jesus is not about minimising adultery through differentiated rules of the game. Rather, it is about coming to terms with one’s own sexual needs and fantasies.
Jesus did not replace or terminate the Sinai covenant, but added to it. He starts with the lack, with our heart. He does this in an ingenious way. In two places it is spoken about centuries in advance:
- «I will put my law (Torah) within them and will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be my people»(Jeremiah 31:33 ELB). The music of heaven is placed in our hearts.
- «And I will put my spirit within you; and I will make you live in my ordinances, and keep my statutes, and do them.»(Ezekiel 36:27 ELB). To the music we get a personal dance instructor right away.
Both Bible passages speak about God putting something in our heart: Torah and Spirit. We need both. We should not think we do not need Torah, no law, when we have the Spirit of God within us. Being born again in the Jewish context means Torah and Spirit! Torah and spirit belong together – that is the factor that distinguishes the followers of Jesus from the best humanists in the world. Other people also do a lot of good. But the kingdom of heaven consists of people who are born again (cf. John 3:5). Being under grace means that the Torah and the Spirit, the music and the dance teacher, have been placed in our hearts. It is all there to be transformed into the character of God in a lifelong process. According to Paul: «For God causes in you the desire to obey Him, and He also gives you the strength to do what pleases Him»(Philippians 2:13 NLB). The law and grace are two sides of the same coin.
Righteousness is not tied to my actions, but to my relationship with Christ. We are called to communion with Jesus Christ. From this follows the second part: the transformation of our being. I can fail in this, but that does not detract from my relationship with God.
Stress ease
«But you shall be perfect, as your Father in heaven is perfect»(Matthew 5:48 NLB). This sentence could cause stress, but it does not. He merely shows us that the Father in heaven is perfect and that through metamorphosis – with the Torah and the Spirit in our hearts – we can be transformed towards this perfect character. It is not about a perfection that consists in having always kept the thousand rules of the game to 100%, it is rather about dancing to the music of heaven with an undivided heart, with one’s whole being and essence, and thus finding one’s way into one’s destiny. It is about virtue and character building.
When I took a dance class with my wife before we got married, I was more of a stumbler than a dancer. The music suited, the dance teacher was perfect and I – far from it. That wasn’t a problem, I made small progress and had fun with it. The hearers of the Sermon on the Mount were also stumblers. Peter, who soon denied Jesus three times. Thomas, who doubted. Judas. Weak, of little faith, as Jesus himself says of them. I feel I am in good company. The Kingdom of Heaven is made up of people who are «spiritually poor». They remain in constant conversion to God and live for Him.
It happens to us again and again that we stumble and no longer dance to the music of heaven. The Bible calls this sin. An old priest gives a good example of how to deal with stumbling: «There is a connection between God and me like a cord: every time I sin, this cord is cut. And when I am forgiven by our Lord, the two loose ends are tied together again. The cord has thus become a little shorter again. That means: I have come a little closer to God through forgiveness.»
Imagine the following family life with rules like: If another child takes your shovel in the sandbox, you should address the problem non-violently with gentleness and mercy using «I» messages. At mealtimes, a grateful attitude towards the Creator should be evident in the fact that you eat everything with joy and are motivated to clean the dishwasher after the meal. The chores such as cleaning the toilet, vacuuming and picking up the floor and disposing of old objects should always be done joyfully and on time. Every evening, the parents take out a tally sheet with which each child is measured. When they have done their work, they hear: «You are still our child and get attention.«If it stumbles, it is unlucky. No, children are supposed to learn virtues from a secure relationship of trust with their mother and father and form a character based on the example of their parents.. That is grace and that is how our relationship with God works.
Possible questions for the small groups
Read the Bible text: Matthew 5:17–20
- What is the difference between Tora with Law or God’s instructions be translated?
- What does a family that functions according to the law look like? What parallels can be drawn to the relationship with God?
- Law and Mercy are not opposites, but the two sides of the same coin. How do the two terms interact?
- The Sinai Torah and the Sermon on the Mount are instructions from God that reflect His character. What meaning do they have for us?
- How can we let ourselves be transformed more and more into the image of God?
