The Sermon on the Mount

The Sunday Gospel [February 13, 2011]

Matthew 5:17-37(or 5:20-22a, 27-28, 33-34a, 37)

The Sermon on the Mount

[Jesus said to his disciples:] 17“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 20I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

21“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’ 22But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. 23Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, 24leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny. 

27“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna. 30And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna. 

31“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.’ 32But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery. 

33“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ 34But I say to you, do not swear at all; not by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.”

Reflection

“Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” ~ V. 20

What a burden! Or at least that’s how Jesus’ words here sound at first. After all, we all know how rigorous the scribes and Pharisees were at keeping the Law of Moses. Do we have to do even better than them if we want to get to heaven?

Well, yes and no. On the one hand, Jesus does have high expectations for us. He does want us to be holy as he is holy. But on the other hand, he has made it possible for us to attain this high calling – through his death and resurrection. He has given us his own body and blood in the Eucharist. He has given us the gift of reconciliation. And even more, he has given us his own Holy Spirit.

This is why the gospel is such good news. Yes, the standards are high, but so is the grace. It really is possible to live a life of righteousness and love. It really is possible to be heroes and heroines of Christ in the world!

Don’t be afraid to embrace your calling. The world is waiting for the witness that only you can give. It’s waiting for the people who are willing and able to rise above the temptations that beset all of us. It’s waiting for men and women who manifest the joy, the confidence, and the freedom of children of God. You don’t have to be perfect; you just have to try your best to surrender to the Spirit. Jesus will take care of the rest.

Jesus is waiting, too. He is waiting to shower you with all the blessings and grace he has in store for you. He is eager to pour his Spirit into you and to watch the kind of effect you have on the world around you. You really can change the world!

“Jesus, I surrender my life to you. Come and fill me with your Spirit. Lord transform my heart so that I can live out your high and noble calling.”

Credits: The Word Among Us, February, 2011

Note: The Reflection is from Bro. Abel Navarro (you can visit his blog at http://myblogabelnavarro-abel.blogspot.com/)