Matthew 5:20
"For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the Kingdom of Heaven."
Self-righteousness is no righteousness at all. The Pharisees Jesus is talking about here were clean in man's eyes but dirty and defiled in the Lord’s. Almost everything they did was just a show, not from an authentic heart of worship but rather a legalistic posture used for gaining something from man. Whether that be respect, power, control, or money, it didn't matter; the list was extensive, and their hearts and motives disgusting.
The righteousness Jesus is talking about is not of human origin but is given only through faith in the Son. It is not earned nor gained through extortion or manipulation; it can't be bought or even bartered for. It is simply yet powerfully and profoundly only found in the Son of God- Jesus Christ, the Holy One of God!
Rejoice in this, my friends! The weight has been lifted, and the price has been paid; it's not up to us to accomplish our own righteousness but to walk in His through faith and obedience. In the end, it does not matter if man thinks you are righteous but rather what God says about it. For the Pharisees had perceived righteousness that Christ called worthless and unable to save. Yet He offers them and us a way to true righteousness, a personal and powerful relationship with Him! He is not hidden, He is not missing, He is not changing, but He is risen and coming again! What will He find on that day? A heart made alive and righteous through His blood or a heart dead and black as coal because it refused to repent and receive?
Ezekiel 36:26-28- I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
Luke 18:8- "I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will He find on the earth who have faith?"
God bless! I love you all, but His love brought and bought our true righteousness in Him! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!
Matthew 5:43-46
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in Heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?”
This shows one of the ways Jesus declared war on the flesh and its desires! Jesus is making a clear distinction between what the world says and what He says. He is saying, “Don’t listen to the noise around you but listen to the Truth. This world wants you to hate, but I call you to love. This world wants division in the Body, but I want unity in Me.”
These verses are radical and powerful because they go against our very nature, but that’s the point; these verses engage the spirit, not the flesh. Jesus knows the power of obedience, self-denial, surrender, forgiveness, and love without limits because He is living these things out in an earthly tent at the time He said them.
This is the Son of God, living in the flesh, preparing Himself to be the atoning sacrifice for the world's sins. If anyone knows the power of praying for an enemy, it’s Jesus! He also knows that when we pray for those who have harmed us, don’t agree with us, or oppose us, then it releases us from their control. It plucks that bitter root, douses the flame of conflict, tills up the hard ground of unforgiveness, and makes way for new growth in Him!
Jesus doesn’t lie, and He isn’t telling us to do something He wouldn’t do Himself, as we see in the verses below:
Luke 23:33,34 - When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified Him there, along with the criminals—one on His right, the other on His left. Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
The Crucified Son of God prayed for their lives and ours that day on the cross. He could have demanded judgment and justice, but instead, He asked for mercy and forgiveness! Let’s follow our King!
God bless! I love you all! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!
Matthew 5:43-45
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
Does what we have been taught match His truth? Several times throughout this chapter, Jesus says something to the effect of, “This is what you have been taught, but this is what I say, and what I say is truth.” So, the question then becomes, which one are we listening to? Man-made traditions and rules or God-given truth?
Jesus is teaching them and us that, “It doesn’t matter what you have been taught or told, but it matters what I say!” No one likes to be told they are wrong, but would we rather be corrected by Christ or judged by Him in the end? We have to remember that God’s Kingdom is an upside-down Kingdom; by that, I mean oftentimes, what the world tells us is right and acceptable isn’t in God’s eyes. Man’s traditions and “truths” are based on man’s limited and finite understanding and knowledge, but God’s eternal and perfect truth is based on His understanding and knowledge. Where our “truths” may change with the time and season, God’s doesn’t. That’s why His is better and why His must be followed over our feelings, thoughts, teachings, and desires (plus He is God and we are not).
Think about it like this: 50 years ago, man said certain things were wrong, and certain things were right, but now fast forward 50 years, and those same things have been flipped. Man is fickle, and so is his “truth.” Imagine how horrible it would be if God’s truth wavered like that: one day saved by grace, the next day saved by works. We would all be doomed! But glory to God who doesn’t change like shifting shadows or demand that we be more progressive in these times but rather that we hold fast to the truth He gave us from the beginning. His truth is real truth, and it far outweighs our man-made traditions and teachings!
Revelation 22:13- “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
Psalm 90:1,2- A prayer of Moses the man of God: Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
God bless! I love you all, but His love is truth, and it is unchanging! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!
Matthew 5:44-45
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
I love how counter-intuitive Jesus is! How every fleshly instinct we have says, “What Jesus is saying is wrong,” but it yet feels so good in the spirit when it is accomplished! Jesus not only preached and taught this with His words but with His actions! He prayed for us before we knew His name, He loved us long before we loved Him, He paid for and bore our sins and shame before we ever committed them! Jesus talks and walks truth, and so should we!
The Holy Spirit revealed to me this morning one of the reasons why this verse is so important, and it went something like this: at one point in our lives, we were all evil, unrighteous, unrepentant sinners doomed for destruction, and yet God’s love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness still fell on us! If He showered only things down on the righteous, then our world would be pretty dry! Only Jesus is righteous, and the only way we become righteous is through our faith in Him, and I’m pretty sure none of us came out of the womb with praises on our lips!
We were all born into sin and into a fallen world! That’s why it’s so important to be merciful, as God was first merciful to us, not counting our sins against us because of the victory Jesus had on the cross and in the tomb!
One thing I have learned is that when you act like Jesus in a situation that would normally invoke a fleshly reaction, people take note, and real change can happen! If you show love instead of hate, forgiveness instead of shame, or offer peace instead of punishment, you’re actively living the words of Christ, and through that, He can break any chain and mend any heart! If you want to change the world around you, you have to first change Who is living in you!!! Let me tell you, it’s not easy, but through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can do it!
Romans 3:22-23 - This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
God bless! I love you all! Glory, Honor, and Praise forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit!
Matthew 5:44-45
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
The sun is the physical light of this world, but Jesus is the True Light of this world. So, causing His sun to rise = Jesus rising from the grave and shining His light into this world! Rain is water that brings life to the earth, but Jesus is the Living Water that brings life to those who believe and turn to Him!
So, one of the things I see here is the foreshadowing of the resurrection and outpouring of Jesus into and onto this world. An outpouring of salvation for some and judgment for others! Nothing in or on this world can stop the Son from shining or stop the outpouring of Himself on this world! The entire Bible points us to Jesus because He is our hope in this hopeless world!
God bless, and I love you all! Glory, Honor, and Praise now and forever to God Almighty, King Jesus, and the Holy Spirit!
Matthew 5:44,45
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in Heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
How refreshing and beautiful is the mercy and love of our Father in Heaven. He is pouring out His blessings on both the believer and the unbeliever, and how grateful I am that He does! How many times has He blessed me more than I deserve? He rescued me more times than I know of and provided for me when I didn’t even know His name!
The flip side is true also. Many times in the Bible, people have been walking with the Lord, and some trial or tragedy befalls them. Does this mean that our God is punishing those closest to Him? Absolutely not! In this life, we will have both good and bad, ups and downs, victories and defeats. The question isn’t why but rather Who. It’s not “why me?” but rather “Who is with me?” that’s really important.
We will face many obstacles, temptations, and trials in this life, but we don’t have to face them alone. We don’t have to wander about the wildernesses of this life defeated and desolate but can march boldly through them with the Lord’s help, strength, guidance, peace, and love! We are called to persevere and walk through tough times, not to build houses and live there. The Israelites didn’t build them in their wilderness, and neither should we.
I don’t know a lot of things, but I know that if the Lord didn’t have me, I wouldn’t make it. I would have crumbled long ago and died in my sins. But He is merciful, kind, and compassionate to sinners like me! If you’re hurting, if you’re lonely, if you’re broken, and if you're tired of trying to figure your life out on your own, then take that life and lay it at the foot of the cross and watch the King redeem and restore you to the Father! Thank You, Jesus!
Colossians 1:13,14 - For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:19,20 - For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross.
God bless! I love you all! Glory, Honor, and Praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ the Lamb of God and our Redeemer and the Holy Spirit who leads us in the fear of the Lord!
Matthew 5:44,45
“But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in Heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
Last night, we were blessed to go to a dear friend of mine's church, and the topic was enemies, and this morning in prayer, this verse came up. The thought that came to me was something like this: regardless if we're evil or good, righteous or unrighteous, sinner or saint, we are all still so undeserving of the love, mercy, grace, and uncountable blessings that He gives us day after day.
Think about all the blessings we take for granted day in and day out and try to think of one you deserve. I can’t. I know that I fell short before I came to Christ and that I fall short each and every day since He brought me to Himself, but thankfully, the Blood of Jesus Christ is more than enough!
This isn’t a post to beat us up or tear us down but for us to remember just how undeserving we are and how gracious and merciful He is. One of the traps of the enemy is to get us into this mode of “we deserve,” when in reality, what we deserve is to be cast out of His Presence forever. One of the problems with walking around with an “I deserve” attitude is when that expectation is not met, it creates bitterness, envy, resentment, and can create a divide between you and the Lord, or even you and the Lord’s people. So, let’s walk today in the truth of the Gospel, realizing and remembering that we’re not getting what we deserve but rather getting what He paid for and gives freely to all who call on His Name!
Psalm 8:3-5 - When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon, and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor.
God bless! I love you all, but He loves you so much more! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!
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