Introduction
Text - Matthew 5:21-26
Relevance
In our Scripture text for today, Jesus talks about anger. With the abuse we see in our culture today, I would say that Jesus teaching on anger is as relevant as it ever has been in history.
Not only is Jesus teaching on anger important and relevant to our culture today, but also everything we have looked at in His Sermon on the Mount. That is why we must keep the key verse of the Sermon on the Mount in focus.
* Matthew 7:24 (NASB)
[24] "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock."
To hear His words with understanding, and to live them out in our daily lives, provides us with a solid rock foundation for life in the twenty-first century.
I want to take a moment to orient us.
* Matthew chapter five is all about relationships. Verses 1-12 teach us the beatitudes, which deal with our relationship to God. Verses 13-48 deal with our relationships to mankind.
* Next week we will talk about the law, which gives us reasonable guidelines for our relationships. We have already covered many of the topics that deal with our relationships to mankind.
* This week we talk about the topic of anger.
Matthew 5:21-26 (NASB)
[21] "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'
[22] "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
[23] "Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
[24] leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
[25] "Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
[26] "Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.
Whenever I read a passage of Scripture, I have a first impression of that passage. There are words, phrases, and ideas that stand out in my mind. Usually the things that stand out in the mind of the individual when they read a passage of Scripture are unique.
The words, phrases, and ideas are unique for each of us because of our different backgrounds and experiences in life. If we are not carful, we will get the impression that what we see in a passage of Scripture is what everyone else should see and understand.
Now, first impressions are important but they must not be the end of our investigation into a passage of scripture. Not only should we seek to understand how this passage might be viewed through the understanding of others and their backgrounds and experiences, but also we must understand the passage in the greater context of the totality of the Scriptures.
These were my first impressions of this passage when I read it. These are the comments I wrote down on my note pad.
It all seems pretty simple and straight forward doesn't it? I don't know about you, but in my world, it is neither simple or straight forward. Repairing relationships is one of the most difficult things you will ever accomplish. But, it is what God requires of us.
Now, I must say that it is not always possible to repair a relationship. God knows our hearts and He knows if our effort to repair a relationship has been sufficient to satisfy Him. But, once He is satisfied, He will accept our gift when we bring it to His altar.
Being a pastor affords me the great privilege of being able to take the time to look deep into a passage of Scripture. When I do that, there are several things that must be done to look deep into a passage of Scripture.
There are several words that in their original written language carry a stronger meaning than we ordinarily understand in our English today.
[21] "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.'
The word heard (g191), in verse 21, means: "to hear something or someone, to hear with attention, to listen to, in respect to a teacher." (CWS-NT) This is much deeper that the sound waves hitting the physical eardrum. This Greek word infers attention. It is not just the casual hearing of a noise, but rather the paying attention to, and understanding what is being said.
Another important word in verse 21 is the word murder (g5407). In the Greek this word means: "to kill a man unjustly, comes from the word to slaughter (g5408), to kill by the sword." (CWS-NT)
[22] "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
The word angry (g3710), in verse 22, means: "wrath. To make angry, provoke. To become angry, provoked. It comes from a word which is anger (g3701) as a state of mind." (CWS-NT) It has not been acted out in an advanced physical way like the act of murder but could very well be considered as great a sin as physical murder.
Remember what I said earlier about the distinction between anger and murder?
There are two other important words here in verse 22. The phrase, good for nothing, and the word, fool.
The phrase, good for nothing (g4469), is a single word in the Greek. It is: "a word of contempt meaning empty, worthless, foolish. It is the English word raca which means to utter contempt." (CWS-NT)
The word, fool (g3474), means: "silly, stupid, foolish. It is the English word from which moron is derived. It is used of persons meaning morally worthless. This is more serious than raca, which scorns a man by calling him stupid, but moron scorns him concerning his heart and character. It refers to salt that has lost its flavor, and become tasteless (g3471)." (CWS-NT) See Matthew 5:13.
Knowing the power of these words helps us to understand Jesus' comparison of anger to murder. It is certainly an important caution for all of us.
But we must go even deeper than the meaning of the words used in the original languages. One of the most important aspects of understanding the Word of God is to look at it, in it's greater context.
One can pull any passage they want, out of the context of the totality of the Scriptures, and prove just about anything they can conceive in their mind. But, that is not a proper application of the Scriptures.
So! How is Jesus' teaching on anger relevant to you and I in the twenty-first century? I think Jesus teaching in Luke 15 is valuable in helping us apply it in our world today.
Jesus used this same word for anger in:
Luke 15:27-28 (NASB)
[27] "And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'
[28] "But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.
The anger the older brother shows the younger brother is obvious but there is a deeper lesson about anger here. At first glance, you would get the idea that the older brother just needs to, oh, how shall we say this? "Get over it already."
The context of Jesus' parable of the prodigal son does not stand on it's own, we must look at it in it's context to get Jesus deeper meaning for us.
First, there is a complaint about Jesus from the religious leaders of His day.
Luke 15:1-2 (NASB)
[1] Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him.
[2] Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them."
It is important to understand the word receives. It is a Greek word (g4327) that means: "to accept. It is used to convey the idea of receiving one kindly as a friend." (CWS-NT)
This gives us a more colorful picture than just a bunch of people gathering to listen to Jesus. He receives them kindly as friends who He accepts no matter who they were or what they had done.
To answer their challenge to Him, Jesus tells three parables. As we read them keep in mind that each one follows a specific pattern. I call this Jesus' formula for reconciliation.
Luke 15:3-7 (NASB)
[3] So He told them this parable, saying,
[4] "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one (PROBLEM) which is lost until he finds it? (PERSISTENCE)
[5] "When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
[6] "And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!' (REJOICING)
[7] "I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance. (RELEVANCE)
Luke 15:8-10 (NASB)
[8] "Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, (PROBLEM) does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? (PERSISTENCE)
[9] "When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!' (REJOICING)
[10] "In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." (RELEVANCE)
Luke 15:11-32 (NASB)
[11] And He said, "A man had two sons.
[12] "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.' So he divided his wealth between them.
[13] "And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.
[14] "Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.
[15] "So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
[16] "And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.
[17] "But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!
[18] 'I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;
[19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men.'" (PROBLEM)
[20] "So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. (PERSISTENCE)
[21] "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'
[22] "But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;
[23] and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;
[24] for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' And they began to celebrate. (REJOICING)
[25] "Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.
[26] "And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.
[27] "And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'
[28] "But he became angry and was not willing to go in; (PROBLEM) and his father came out and began pleading with him. (PERSISTENCE)
[29] "But he answered and said to his father, 'Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;
[30] but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.' (PROBLEM) - (The older brother's attitude, sometimes mirrors the attitude we sometimes have to the undeserving in our society that confront us for help.)
[31] "And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.
[32] 'But we had to celebrate and rejoice, (REJOICING) for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'" (RELEVANCE)
All three of Jesus parables here have to do with relationships in several ways. The parable of the prodigal son is especially revealing concerning broken relationships, which most of the time, are the heart of the issue of anger in our lives.
In each of these three parables, Jesus makes them relevant in two ways:
Why did Jesus teach about anger? Because anger is an indication of the inner feelings and emotions of a man or woman. He wanted us to understand that those feelings and emotions are an indication of what is going on inside of us. They are an indication of our relationship with God Himself.
Mat. 5:23-24 (NASB)
[23] "Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
[24] leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
CWS-NT - AMG Complete Word Study Dictionary - New Testament (CWS_NT). Cedar Rapids: Laridian Electronic Publishing, 2007.
NASB - New American Standard Bible (NASB). Cedar Rapids: Laridian, 2002.
I want to thank my research assistant, Debi Peck, who does hours of research to provide many of my resources. I also want to thank Vonda Watson-Bostick and Robyn Harper, who help me with editing.