Jesus exhorted us to become “perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect,” yet how can we emulate the perfect righteousness of God? His explanation was clear - By performing acts of mercy, ESPECIALLY to our enemies. Self-sacrificial love goes to the heart of his message and reflects the nature of the merciful God. Was he not the Messiah who submitted to an undeserved death for us even when we were the “enemies of God”?
Performing acts of kindness is how we “fulfill
the Law and the Prophets,” and thereby achieve a level of righteousness that
“exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees.” In the preceding clause,
Jesus used a Greek term that meant “superabounding,” that is in this
case, “more than” the righteousness of even the strictest religious
interpretations and rituals. This is an impossible goal for imperfect human
beings - (Matthew 5:17-20).
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| [Photo by Geetanjal Khanna on Unsplash] |
For us, lavishing mercy on opponents and persecutors is NOT optional but pivotal. That is what it means to take up the Cross and follow Jesus “wherever he leads.”
Despite the extreme difficulty, Jesus
declared, “Therefore, you shall become perfect as your heavenly Father is
perfect.” The conjunction “therefore” connects the exhortation to what
preceded it, namely, the summons for his followers to love their enemies. By
doing so, we become “perfect as his heavenly Father” - (Matthew
5:43-48).
The paragraph concludes the larger literary
unit that began with the declaration that Jesus came to fulfill the Law and
the Prophets. What was germinal under the Law came to fruition in his life
and teachings, and what he required of his disciples exceeded the requirements of
the Mosaic Law and the “traditions of the elders” imposed on Israel.
Unless the disciple’s “righteousness superabounded
more than the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees” he could not hope
to enter the Kingdom of God.
His declaration concerning the “Law and Prophets”
was followed by six examples of how our “righteousness” surpasses that
of the “Scribes and Pharisees.” Jesus did not simply reaffirm the statutes
of the Law, but he also pierced through to their true intent. This comes to the
surface in how we treat others, especially our “enemy.”
He extrapolated from the prohibition against
murder to the principle that one should not even harbor anger toward another.
Hatred leads to bitterness, and bitterness to murder. Instead of just refusing
to kill an opponent, we must seek reconciliation with anyone who offends us, and
we must pray for our enemies and do good to them. Evil is overcome by positive
actions - (Matthew 5:21-26).
Likewise, we must do more than just abstain
from adultery, lying, or murder. Life in his Kingdom demands something more
than just following the letter of the Law. It is insufficient not to lie. We must
become truth-tellers in every interaction with others.
Jesus turned the idea of an “eye for an
eye” into the moral principle of “turning the other cheek.” He
repudiated the popular interpretation that added the clause “and hates his
enemy” to the original love commandment. Since the Law explicitly commanded
love for fellow Israelites but omitted any mention of Gentiles, so the logic went,
hatred of enemies was permissible - (Leviticus 19:18).
SHOWING MERCY
Jesus rejected that wrongheaded
interpretation. Since the commandment of God prohibited any act of vengeance, the
Law does not allow us to hate anyone, whether Jew, Gentile, friend, or foe, let
alone commit evil against them.
The man who is conditioned to think as the world does chooses to retaliate against anyone who acts against his interests. In contrast, we are summoned to love our enemies, to pray for everyone who abuses us, and to do them only “good.”
Does God not send His rain on the just and
the unjust? This statement is derived from the final clause of Leviticus
19:18. After commanding Israel not to take vengeance, God stressed His identity:
“I am Yahweh.” He shows mercy to the deserving and the undeserving, and
this is fundamental to His nature. He is “Yahweh,” the one who keeps His
promises, the same God who “desires mercy, not sacrifice,” indeed, He
rejoices in mercy and the merciful!
If we limit his love to friends and family,
how are we any better than tax collectors or Gentiles, let alone the outwardly
devout “Scribes or Pharisees”? We naturally love those who do us good,
but loving our mortal enemies is something altogether different and foreign to
our sin-dominated natures. L0ve is much more than an emotion or an abstract concept.
It is demonstrated in concrete acts of mercy. As Paul wrote to the Romans, “But
if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.”
Jesus engaged in the ultimate act of mercy when
he “gave his life as a ransom for many.” Included under the term “many”
were his friends AND his “enemies”:
- “For if BEING ENEMIES we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by his life” – (Matthew 20:25-28, Romans 5:10, 12:20, 1 John 3:18).
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| [Photo by Amelie & Niklas Ohlrogge on Unsplash] |
Righteousness is not demonstrated by restraining ourselves from committing sin or conforming to someone else’s concept of morality. It is manifested by the good we do to others, especially our opponents and persecutors!
Finally, the simple command of Jesus to
love our enemies demonstrates eloquently that in his Kingdom there is no place for
hatred, violence, or retaliation. It is through proactive love and concrete
deeds of mercy that our righteousness superabounds, and our abundance overflows
to others.
SEE ALSO:
- Forgiving Sin - (Jesus healed a paralytic. By doing so, he demonstrated the authority of the Son of Man to discharge the stain of sin – Mark 2:1-12)
- Mercy, not Sacrifice - (Forgiveness links the call of the tax collector to the healing of the paralytic - the Son of Man’s authority to discharge sins and restore men – Mark 2:13-17)