Sunday, August 11th, 2019 - AM - Perspectives on the Bible & Righteousness, Part 2 (Matt. 5:17-20)

And for those who will be with us in this service, and for those who are listening to these Services outside, these walls may be online or by other means you're listening to the services of the Broomfield Baptist Church in Broomfield, Colorado. This is the pastor bringing the Sunday morning message continuing the thoughts we had last time about right perspectives having the right perspectives concerning the Bible and righteousness and that is found in Matthew chapter number 5, you'll be able to follow along with us there as we continue our studies in The Sermon on the Mount looking at this wonderful message from Jesus here as he began his Earthly Ministry. in Matthew chapter number 5

I would like to begin reading inverse number 10. follow along if you would when you found your place in Matthew chapter 5 inverse number 10

blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven? Blessed are ye? When men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you. Lee for my sake rejoice and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven for so persecuted. They the prophets which were before you ye are the salt of the earth.

But if the salt have lost his savour wherewith shall it be salted it is in sports good for nothing. But to be cast down into be trodden Under Foot of men you are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel. But on a Candlestick it giveth light in the old litter in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father which is in heaven think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfill

For verily I say unto you till Heaven and Earth pass one jot or one Tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled whosoever. Therefore shall break one of these least Commandments and she'll teach men. So he should be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven but whosoever shall do and teach them the same Shall be Called great in the Kingdom of Heaven for I say unto you that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Lord as we approached your word we do so with humility and as we've already saying about your Redemption this morning, the only way that we have any it anywhere with to stand before you is through what you did for us on Calvary. We do not come in her own strength Lord. We come through your bike. Imparting of your strength and Grace and what I asked that upon your word would be poured out and anointing of your spirit and unction Lord. We worship you in spirit. We worked at Worship You In Truth? We've given you glory Lord and we've set our affections on things above and now we look to your word to guide our steps here Below on our pilgrimage and Lord. I pray that you will take your word magnify it above all your name that we've have. So wondrously saying about this morning together magnify your word hide me behind Jesus. And I'll thank you for what you do in Jesus precious name. Amen. Hey, man. As Jesus continues teaching his disciples. He had his magnificent opening to his sermon here. If you want to look at it that way as a Sermon on the Mount and he really got their attention and he got our attention would these blessed of Beatitudes these attitudes of blessedness that we ought to carry with us his disciples of Christ and we understand this is by no means by no means showing us the way to heaven. We not get to Heaven by keeping the Beatitudes that would be to make the same mistake is trying to get to Heaven by keeping the law or keeping works and it just doesn't work out that way. I many are deceived that think that it will that they can do enough good to Blood Out the black in the bad in their life, but the scriptures are clear all our righteousness is as filthy rags before God and so we don't come in our own righteousness. We come to the righteousness that is imported imputed To Us by Jesus Christ and his righteous life and in his strength we stand this is where we find a helper the Holy Spirit to be an able to Beatitudes to the best that we can and we fully yes, but we are rise again we say I'm well I'm going to be like Jesus more. So tomorrow if he gives me Grace to live it then I was today and you and I we learn from our past in and we continue to walk on and God helps us and he looks down on us. He says there's somebody there's there's one who's trying to be like my son and he gives us Grace upon Grace and then the culmination of what will happen. If we live this introductory beatitude sermon is that we are going to eventually Make it difficult for others to be around us. They're not going to want. To stay in the light.

I'm not willing to give up the light so that I can go Walla with them and darkness by the way, just to make that clear. I'm going to continue to invite them to the light and every time I need to I'm going to go to Jesus and say Lord Jesus wash my feet I'm here because I need to claim 1st John 1:9. I'm going to do that as a Believer regularly. Yes, but all along the way the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us and old Jay Vernon McGee used to say just keeps on cleaning right? He's giving you the sense there behind that if you listen to him, it just keeps on cleaning every time you come. It's never exhausted the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanseth us from all sin. That way we can stay in the light and keep growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. So when we live out the Beatitudes and others began to not really take kindly to that we make enemies on both sides because those that you know think that we all just be on their side find out that we're on God's side instead. It doesn't really work well and and then those that you know, we know we would never be on their side. They already know we're on God's side and so wasn't already working out well there to begin with now we're in a place to where maybe we would find ourselves in a situation like Paul said it one point in his life. I looked on my right hand know the song that says I'll look on my right hand and and there was no man there for me no man care for myself Pulpit like this. He said no man stood with me. But then he went on to say but Christ stood with me and this is hard. This is difficult as a Christian because I mean pure pressure is it is a mean thing, isn't it? It can be now. I can be a good thing too. But you've heard the silly illustrations right where you put 30 people in a room in 29 of them know what's going on in the one doesn't and the 29th of them get in there and there's a color card maybe you've heard this before there's a color card that's clearly red and everybody all the other 29 or told to say that's blue that's blue that you know, something totally opposite from what read innocent so the word in there. That's the guinea pig in all of this sit down at the table and they start deliberately on his side. Whatever side they pick and they're going to go through the whole room through all 29 of those people right until they get to him and he's the last one that has to pick that color and it's really easy. All he has to do is say read. The cards read but it starts on the right hand and the first person looks at it and just with without hesitation says blue. What will help this guy is crazy, but he must be color-blind, right? That's what we the rationalize it the first time around the second person comes and he says flu and I wait a minute here. What's going on third person blue? And and by the time you get to 567 you're thinking all my teachers every one of them lied to me. How could they do this to my brother? And you're Sweating Bullets by the time you come around to that 29 person everybody blue blue blue blue blue. The card is clearly red blue book and the world is telling us blue blue blue blue blue. We can do whatever we want. But God's word says no God say the word says there is a right way and there's a narrow way and it's easy for us to get caught up in all of this to where all the pressure comes on us when we say, you know, and the test has been done from what I've read and studied in the people who pass it. They don't they don't make it to the peer pressure because they begin to question their own faculties. Maybe I'm color-blind and and all of these things and so it comes to the 30th person and sweating profusely dripping that card hesitating.

fail

What? Yeah, that's just cruelty by the way. Those things are not to be done to people. Jesus is going to help us understand hear some things. And we covered last time in indietale his words about how he approaches particularly the holy scriptures. Now, you're no stranger to where I stand on the Bible. I've been vocal about that plenty, but we did a little bit of an exercise and it was a lot of fun last time. I love doing this every time I get the chance to look at what Jesus said with the jots and tittles and the job would be the Hebrew character Hugo that's about the size of an apostrophe. It's a Hebrew letter and then the total would be that part of a letter that hangs over and if you weren't here last week as somebody that will do a comparison for you in and I'll show you real quick the Hebrew characters on what it'll is it would be like the the the Q on it. At a tail on a q that would be like a tittle in our English language. I think that's the best letter that I could pick for you some have said our but I think it's too easy to you know, that's a big line the Q that he has a little bitty line that hangs over that one's closer to what I think would be a tidle maybe the size of a bug's antenna. Remember that from last time that's the common common words outside of the Bible that worked. It'll is translated as as a bug xantana sometimes interesting. So Jesus has the utmost respect for the scriptures and he wrote he reassures his disciples. There's a way that they could possibly think about the scriptures that would be in error and he says do not think that way think not that I have come to do away with anything that Moses said anything that Abraham went through anything that God records from Genesis to Malachi. Jesus says that is forever settled in heaven. He says have not come to destroy. I'm not come to maybe a synonym would be to annul but I'm still wrestling through that wear to my mind to annul. I'm not come to annul any of that. I'm not come to destroy what was done by God through Israel in the Old Testament. No, he says I've come to fulfill and so Jesus is challenging his disciples to have some right thinking about the Bible Christ purpose in coming was to fulfil think not that I've come to destroy the law or the prophets that's encapsulated the whole of the Old Testament in the way. They do understand it. And so he challenged their faults misconceptions about his own Ministry and he also reassured them that the consummation of the old Covenant promises will be in him would be in Christ. He's not come to destroy the law but to fulfill all that was prophesied in the Old Testament, and he also reassured them that all the Covenant promises. That God made to Israel specifically. No, I'm specifically looking toward the New Covenant promises that they would have been hoping for that Jeremiah and Ezekiel and and Jose and others prophesied about that New Covenant promise in particular stands in full view here when he says those are all still valid. None of that goes away. God is still going to use his real he's not finished with his people. There's going to come a day when they pass under the rod and all of those physical blessings that were promised to Abraham that were promised to David that were promised to the levitical priesthood. All of those will come to pass and they will find their fulfillment in the righteous Branch Jesus Christ who will rule and Reign for a thousand years from the throat of David right here on this Earth in Jerusalem, literally and David will be resurrected ruling at his right hand. These promises are what the people of Israel are clinging to when Jesus gives this message. He says none of that is bypassed by what I'm going to do in my Ministry. None of that is going to be forded. None of that will be destroyed in any way they're all still valid and he reassures them that they're still valid to the end of the world. He says for verily I say unto you till Heaven and Earth pass, when will that happen that will happen in the end of revelation we read about it and those prophecies and and Revelation chapter 20 through 22. We spent a great deal of time studying that and it Matthew 24:35. He reassurances that heaven and Earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away. He reassures it down to the smallest Iota every jot. Every Tittle will be fulfilled. And we did a comparison of that. We came to the conclusion that Jesus stood behind both the verbal and the plenary inspiration of the Holy scriptures and also verified their preservation by God's design. We have the Holy scriptures and they're forever settled. All scripture is given by inspiration of God in this profitable for Doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction in righteousness that the man of God might be perfect might be perfect truly furnished on the old good works. He bases this on the eternality of God's word. Look at the last part of verse number 18 He says this will happen. Till all be fulfilled Heaven and Earth. Shall Pass. One Tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all be fulfilled. In other words way, you could translate that another way would be to say and it's not as beautiful as the translators of rendered it. So that's why we don't do it that way, but it literally would mean till everything happens. Think about that till everything that God promised would happen. Does we can rest at this Bible is not going anywhere. Now let's think about that in light of the day in which we live just confirmed this the other day. I saw a commercial come on and it was something you know, it was the the new and improved right? It's the same thing that they had before but if I if they don't slap the word new on it. I'm probably not going to buy it because we get the mentality of the mindset that old things are Antiquated therefore. They're no good. 3 hogwash Well, here's a silly illustration. But I just you know, my new truck that I've got. It's new to me truck. Hey, I got rid of the power locks on that. You know, why because I went back to the old way of doing it works Hallelujah. I don't have to worry about Motors breaking and stuff and it's great and I get to be a gentleman and open the door for people on the other side. Okay, I digress not really because what I'm saying here about the way that we think commercials don't watch them. Okay, but just if you happen to see one noticed how much it's focused on the novel. And a novelty of things everything has to be knew what was wrong with the old one. That's all that's wrong with it. It's not and it's not the new one. Okay, Jesus Christ here says this Bible shall never be Antiquated in God's eyes. Now the world might say that's an old book, you know, this is outdated. And even the church today has given him to that lie. We all need new translations in this translation in that translation and what we've dug this up and we found this over here and we can pay I'm all for scholarship. I'm all for archaeology. I'm all for doing that but don't tamper with God's word. What the text Stan and let the Bible verify what you're digging out of the ground he meant well, okay, I get passion about that. It's based on the eternality of God's word till everything that God promised would happen does that's how long we can expect the Bible to be around that's forever. Amen. Now, let's look at the Christians reward. We've looked at Christ's purpose. His purpose was to fulfill we've looked at the Covenant promises. They will all stand Shore until that day when Messiah comes in everything is fulfilled. Now, let's look at the Christians reward because this is Jesus talking to his disciples those who would follow him and give their life to him and he has some words for them. He's going to instruct them that there are two paths as a disciple that you can follow you can first off become a model lawbreaker.

Or if you choose the second path, which is the one I would encourage you to choose you can become the Masters disciple maker.

Think that through I'll say it again cuz that's good enough to remember. I think you can either choose the path. That's becoming a model lawbreaker. And when you stand as a disciple before the Lord Jesus Christ in his judgment seat and then throughout all eternity after that Jesus Asher's you that if you choose that path, you will be called least in his kingdom because you were the model of what not to do with his word. These are some serious things. So what does this model lawbreaker who would be called least in the Kingdom look like looking for summer 19th whosoever therefore. Chris Webber is whosoever therefore shall break one of these least Commandments. And she'll teach men. So he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven who so is conditioned by the context. He's teaching his disciples. So by that we we suppose if you will if you'll give me that Grace that these are safe people because they came to Jesus willingly. They understand what it means to be poor in spirit. They understand his his his word that he has come to do as Messiah now, it's not yet fulfilled on Calvary because Calvary is still in the future at this moment, but he is the Messiah and his disciples have believed on him and he has called him and said follow me and I'll make you become Fishers of Men and they left all and followed him they did and so as they stepped out and follow Jesus he tells them whosoever of you that are following me shall break one of these least Commandments and watch this shall teach men, so

anytime in the scriptures where you see God's people being oppressed God's people being persecuted God's people being taught falsely with L motive anytime you see that in the scriptures pay attention because you're also going to see something else happen. God is going to take up the cause of his people his people do not go on crusades. Although you know, the history of Christendom is flooded with the ills in the woes of of man getting this out of balance know we're taught to be meek and to let God take up these things vengeance is mine. I will repay saith the Lord that verse doesn't read is someone read their that vengeance is fine can't know that's not what that says. Don't read it like that. He says vengeance is mine so we can give place to the Lord and we say like Michael the Lord rebuke thee. And so this is a message. That every Community leader needs to understand and I don't say this because because it's me hear I say this because it's documented its verifiable look it out in the scriptures and see if this is not the case. Look at the history pages of of nation after nation of community after community and tell me if this is not the case where God's people are oppressed. Whether it's Old Testament or new testament where God's people are oppressed what happens to that culture? What happens to that Society do they continue on in prosperity know they can they wax worse and worse. They suffer under God's chase chasing and his judgment. You want a case in point. Well, just get out the history books Rome. They persecuted the Christians what happened to them roam imploded in in itself. Look at the Babylonians. They persecuted God's people and God arose Other Nation to judge Nebuchadnezzar and his descendants and to eradicate Babylon Babylon Empire off the map. What about Assyria? I mentioned this past week in another meeting. I had about the book of Nahum and that none of them would suffer the Judgment of God for what they had done to God's people eradicated off of the map. The fastest way down the toilet is to go after God's people in a in a press them and persecute them Colorado. Are you listening?

Leave the baker alone. I'll move on. Jesus says whosoever shall break one of these least Commandments and shall teach men. So he shall be called least in the Kingdom of Heaven the Jews use the Expression the law in about four different ways in this day and time they use it to me in the Ten Commandments. They used it to me in the first five books of the Bible the pentateuch the part of the Bible that Moses wrote that we believe the five roles is what they call her the five Scrolls. This was to the Jews par Excellence. It was by far the most important part of the Bible to them so ugly, they would use this phrase to talk about the law and the prophets. So we're looking at the Commandments hear Jesus talking about the law being fulfilled. How were they understanding this the law and the prophets meaning the whole of scripture comprehensive description of what we know as the whole Old Testament and then forcefully in this was interesting to see they used it to also mean the oral or the scribal law. And we do good understand the office Of The Scribe Ezra was the first scribe that we read about in the Bible. He started a good thing by the way, as there was a great man of God. He was used Miley. But by the time you come from Ezra's date did Jesus's day. It had suffered great corruption under the hands of the scribes. So maybe this is this is repeating what we talked about before but hear me out on this if you will a scribe job in Jesus's day would be to take the scriptures to take the five books of Moses and then to expound on that and they took the position that will weld the scriptures may not you know, explicitly say, you know, what we are to do in every waking moment of our life, we can implicitly derive it and therefore the scribes wrote were as good as Moses wrote in that regard. There's some dangers with that now the scribes were the one ones who came up with this whole system They wrote it all out down to the minutest detail. You know, we would we would call this. You know, how many times should you rub the toothbrush back and forth when you brush your teeth? That's the minutiae of detail. They would be involved in that they extrapolate from the Old Testament scriptures that is nowhere there and they read into it these things and now that becomes the authority and it's not written down per say it's passed down by oral tradition. Now the scribes put all that together the Pharisees are the ones who are going to have hold it and live by it. That's important because of what Jesus says here, except your righteousness exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees you shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. So this the Pharisees were the ones that walked the line that describes had drawn. God is not really in that it wasn't inspired by him. So Jesus is speaking to them. And in this time in the common understanding you could be argued that it would be that oral law that was handed down from the scribes the Old Testament. They would have that but let me give you some silly illustrations here to write in a Timeout Sabbath laws Oak Sabbath laws of the scratch came to write was to work on the Sabbath. God forbid you write anything at all on Sabbath. Okay. I'm being exaggerative hear you. You can heal on the Sabbath according to the scribes now. Describes they were the man who worked out all of these rules and regulations. And so you have these Pharisees that are living by all these laws. So think that think about that when Jesus goes into a synagogue on the Sabbath and he heals this this person that you know has this issue and they stand upright on the Sabbath. They're not looking at the heat. They're not looking at you know rejoicing that this person got better. They're looking at this man. How dare he violate what was written by the scratch and what was passed down to us by the scribes. No person of God would do that. But yet there were those in their midst that recognize who Jesus was there was a man that came to Jesus by Night of the Pharisees because he don't want anybody else knows they're probably he snuck away and came and talked to Jesus. He says we know that thou are a teacher come from God. So there's this big discrepancy going on in their day and they can't get past this. So Jesus tells his disciples don't take that path. Don't take that path. I wish it weren't the case but down through the course of time since Jesus Christ began his ministry and build his church and then other churches have been built and reproduced passed down through the ages some have heard from the faith. And you and I like can think together of Institutions and I called them institutions on purpose or systems that have developed out of something that might have begun well in an in a good intent and now they are Beyond repair in my opinion in some cases because they have made the same grave mistake. and God forbid Here's my heart for Broomfield Baptist. Okay, we can spend all day talking about everybody else. And what's wrong with everybody else? We have enough of our own problems. Are you with me? My heart for Broomfield Baptist is that we would stay the the course and stay the true and the narrow as long as God keeps us here because there Comes A Time in the life of the church that the machine tends to get bigger than the man. And systems take over and Things become mechanical. That's a dangerous place to be I love I love how God takes just a small nucleus of people in bands them together for the work of the ministry because that's what he uses to turn this world upside down. Impacting people for Christ. Let's not get caught up in the systems that we missed the savior because though we might be saved God forbid. We come before the judgement seat of Christ one day and he goes through all the records and say all right. Now as a church you you started out pretty well. I'm thinking of a church in particular that Jesus did say this about that we have record of You know you have these good qualities about you. You were sold in your Doctrine on the truth you stood in and no one could sway you you you abhorred the doctrine of the Nicolaitans which thing I hate. Yeah, I'm with you on that the Lord would say, but I have somewhat against thee. because thou Hast left thy first love God help us.

It's easier than we think to happen because autopilot occurs in as a church. We just go through the motions and we wind up drifting and Jesus says if you're not careful, you will stand before me one day and you will give an account for that. And when you go into eternity, you're going to have this Mark on you you're going to be known everyone in eternity is going to call you at least when you might have been called so great temporarily here before that thrown you be called least there. Now, let's move on to this other thought and I'll leave you with this today. We can become a model wall breaker. That's how I've summarized that by taking God's word, you know think of some illustrations on how that might occur by the way how we take the scriptures and read into them and begin teaching for Doctrine the Commandments of men. Twisting and resting the scriptures to our own destruction destruction giving your to these fables and endless genealogies. I mean, there's illustration after scripture scripture after scripture Paul telling Timothy and other places, but let's think about becoming the Masters disciple maker and these are precious words. We don't want to focus so much on the negative that we miss the positive promise that Jesus has here. If you will be faithful if you will do what the Lord is called to do. If you will keep these Commandments that means you're going to have to know your Bible. And I'm not talking about putting you under the Yoke of the law of Moses know that wax is old and is ready to vanish away. The law we operate under is the law of Christ The Royal law of Liberty and we look in this book and it shows us what we need to change. We become more like Jesus day by day as we walk through the process of sanctification. We spend time in the scriptures the Holy Spirit eliminating that for us, we bear one another's burdens and so fulfill. The law of Christ would love others as Christ loved us. We fulfill the law of Christ all the Commandments of Christ that are in this blessed Testament this new testament this New Covenant. He says if we will keep these He says whosoever shall do and teach put those together. Okay, it's not just enough for you to individually have this down. Please tell me you understand that because I think this is a great detriment to the church today. We have people who know how to do but they don't know how to teach it to others and they haven't come to that place yet. Their light is under a bushel if it's just them doing it. No, he says you have to do and teach do and teach teach what the Commandments remember in the Great Commission. Jesus said to go into all the nations and teach All Nations baptizing them in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost. Then he said teaching them to observe all things whatsoever. I have commanded you and low I'm with you under the end of there. I'm with you always even unto the end of the Earth the End of the Age. Do and teach them he assures us this same disciple will is the one who will be great in the Kingdom of Heaven you'll have that title. The emphasis is on teaching. As well as keeping you do them you teach them. This is the responsibility of disciples to go forward and teach others and this Sermon on the Mount. It's not just preparing disciples know if you only read it that far you've missed it. It is preparing teachers of disciples. In other words. We are teaching disciple makers. This is how the Lord multiplies his people one teaches one and then you have to and to teach to and they become four and four becomes eight and eight becomes how did they reach the ends of the Earth? How had all of the known world of their day. Talk about the early church received the word of God because somebody got it they went out and I did what Jesus said to do. They went everywhere preaching the word and when they went as far as they could go in the scriptures, they wrote back to the apostles and said we're at our wits said we don't know what to do. We need help Saint Barnabas Barnabas goes and I need help. I'm going to go get poly goes and gets pop. They're there for a year-and-a-half 18 months and then the holy spirit says separate Paul and Barnabas unto me for the work of the ministry where they went where would have called him the church at Antioch lays hands on part Paul and Barnabas they ship off for their missionary Journeys 3 missionary Journeys later. We have all the journeys of Paul recorded and church. After church planted in area after area churches reproducing churches because disciples are teaching disciple makers. And God's people are going out turning the world upside down and the world just can't understand what's going on. And did they suffer persecution? You better believe they did Paul gives an account of all that he went through and it validates every word that Jesus said about suffering for righteousness sake pulled it. But by the time he came to the end of it all he says, I fought a good fight. I finished my course. I've kept the faith henceforth. There is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord shall give me in that day and not to me only but none of them every single disciple maker every single teacher of disciple makers. Jesus has a promise. He says you'll have the title. When you go through the streets of Glory, they're going to say that was a great disciple. They turn the world upside down for Christ that one individual now. I'm like you going I don't know. I don't feel worthy for that. I don't want that a claim. It's not about me. But you know what? It isn't about me because by that person being called great. Who does it really represent? It doesn't point to them in the end. It points to what Jesus did you know, there's a song We Sing look for me and we'll talks about telling your story when you get the glory and I don't know how it all fall out. But when you get there, you're going to have to go through and tell everybody about how you made it through and all of that and then come and find me and tell me to is how the song goes cuz I want to hear that. Hey. When somebody sees that Mark and they say that was a that was a great servant of the Lord tell me about what you did tell me about how the Lord used you you see. It's all glory to Christ and we're going to be talking about him for the end of the ages all that he did and we don't even know the half of it. Do we what a blessed promise now he closes this paragraph by teaching us how to have rights thinking about righteousness. That's a little redundant. But I want you to get it. We've already nailed down. All right thinking about the Bible Jesus Christ validated the authority of the Old Testament a validated the authority of the Bible were solid on the scriptures. We know that if we keep the Bible and we go out and teach others to do the Bible then that's where the reward comes for following Christ. We don't want to go down the other path. So then Jesus ends with this warning. The rights that the right thinking about righteousness wears number 20. He says for I say unto you for is explanatory. He's getting some explanation on how we might still miss this whole idea of going down the wrong path and getting locked into legalism in different things that happen to God's people along the way. He says, here's the condition if when you see the word if or accept and it's the word except here, he says except your righteousness. This is a conditional statement. So the condition is, okay. What's the condition? You like this you want to write this down and think it through Jesus says except you Excel the excellent.

Excelling the excellent. Why do I say that because he goes on to say except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. So we'll hit the brakes here. Hold on to Jesus when we look at the scribes and Pharisees there really, you know high on a pedestal in this day. You don't get any better than the scribes and Pharisees. If you don't believe that go read Philippians 3 where Paul gave his own description of being a Pharisee about the wall blameless pay if I was a dad in that day and I had a son or a daughter I'd say he'll want you to grow up and be like these Pharisees cuz they do things right. They got this thing down. They've got this system and other known for it and there's there, you know, there are the Righteous people you don't get any better than that. I think about the best person, you know of I'm talking to you know, who human goodness here.

There they just keep the law in. Oh that they're always there just right on. I have a I have an event Adventist friend that was on the board at rhoa with me and I'll tell you that was a righteous man in his own righteousness. That is that you understand where I'm going. I'm not being unkind he was a great guy. I mean he helped me anytime I needed it. I knew that, you know, morally the man was never going to compromise on anything. He was a great companion to me on a board where we're trying to, you know, help make decisions for a community, but I just I don't know deep down inside. I want to believe that he knew Jesus but again that adventism Creeps in and there's that old system of keeping the law keeping the law keeping the law and that's how they they they try to get to heaven. So what he saying here? Is that accept you Excel what you already think is the most excellent now, except you go beyond this is

I can't do that. Can you do that? Sorry, I've already blown it a long time ago. When I started breathing you can ask my mother. I blew it.

So what she's a singer it's got to be more than our own strength. It's got to be more than our own righteousness. The only way that you will ever Excel the excellent that mending excellent is to come to the power and Grace of the holy spirit of God and dwelling you. Faith is the victory that overcometh the world. I stand redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. He sees me as worthy not as I am through Jesus and what he's done, and so excelling the excellent.

Kingdom righteousness one writer said operates from the inside out. That's a great summary not the outside in that summarizes it all doesn't it? It's a principle fully in line with the Old Testament understandings of righteousness and purification. Jesus's disciples are cold to a different kind and a different quality of righteousness than that of its current religious leaders. Jesus is aiming for an internal inside transformation and when he goes into the law and says, you've heard that it has been said perhaps hinting to the oral tradition sanded down you've heard them saying this I send to you it's not about the outside. It's about the end. That's what God sees what's going on in here hatred lust adultery. God sees it all he wants your heart this fits with a New Covenant promises to buy the way of the indwelling. Holy spirit all of that. He says there's a danger and this is one that we need to wrestle through. The danger. He says is ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. Now before we were talking about people that were disciples. They're following the Lord and maybe they chose the pass to go down, you know this legalistic pass path and there, you know, that might not be the best illustration because we're calling them model lawbreakers, right? You're not keeping Jesus commands is how we when we understand that and so that they go down that path and this verse he saying you're not getting in. We'll talk about somebody who's going to be cold least, but they're in we're talking about somebody who is not going to be in whatsoever. And this is where we would talk about people that get caught up in work space systems of salvation. And you can put whatever name you want on it sacraments, you know, we do these things to Merritt God's grace Martin Luther asked the Roman Church for one word one word alone. He said if if the wrong would give me just one word, you know, that one word was alone. Faith alone the Bible alone, but Rome wouldn't buckle on that and so we had the Reformation because of his his stand against them in that I don't agree with Martin Luther and everything by the way, but he was he was a proponent with his 95 Theses to the church door to bitburg the dangers that we can miss having altogether fast forward to the end of the sermon and you'll find Jesus saying some striking words about people who had prophesied in his name and cast out demons in his name is wonderful Works in his name and his name and his name and his name and then Jesus turns around and says to them depart from me. Ye that work iniquity for I never knew you.

They didn't get the inside transformation. And Jesus says if there's anyone here by that cake, by the way out of the 12, was there anybody who fit that bill? I thought so. So could there be among our churches people that are doing it for the wrong reasons doing it from the outside in?

Yeah.

And we might be helping them to. Jesus said don't be called least when you get there be observant says let your righteousness exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees or else. You might stand before me one day and hear those words depart from me. Ye that work iniquity.

We're talking a lot today about God's righteousness and I close with this. You been kind to me to listen this far. We're done for this morning with this thought. God's righteousness is what salvation is really all about. But the question becomes is that what you believe in your heart of hearts or you still among those who are your spending a lifetime accumulating things that you think are going to earn happy for you? If you're doing that, then you need to learn that those things those very things that you're clinging to will be the very things that cause you to bust hell wide open.

Hell is full of human righteousness one writer set. I had a teacher in high school that said it this way says hell is full of good intentions. Good intentions. It's all it takes to go to hell. No, we need to recognize the imperfection of righteousness in human standing and accept the righteousness of God and true believers have always known that it comes by God and as a result, you know that they've written recognition of that and to a number of hymns. We love to sing these hands one of those great hands goes like this. Nothing in my hands. I bring simply to the cross. I cling naked come to thee for dress helpless. Look to see for Grace cell that is a bird foul. I to the Fountain fly Wash Me savior, or I die. You know the song Rock of Ages cleft for me. Let me hide myself in thee. If you will pray that prayer friend. God will wash you God will cleanse you he will give you the righteousness that is about anything that a man can ever attain and he will receive you on the basis of that righteousness into his heaven. Except your righteousness exceed how you've got to come empty and let God fill you with his righteous.