They had introduced innumerable manmade laws, which were to be strictly obeyed; all of these burdensome requirements they forced on the people, but they did not obey these laws themselves. Christ laid bare their evil practices.
Here is how He handled one of the many encounters with these “hypocrites”:
And the Pharisees came to Him, and asked Him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting Him. And He answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you? And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away. And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. And in the house His disciples asked Him again of the same matter. And He saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery. Mark 10:2-12
Reading their minds at His first public sermon, He said:
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. Matthew 5:17
In an earlier post it was mentioned that the 10 commandments are actually only outlining the minimum that is required.
The words are so plain that all can read them...God's ten words, brief, comprehensive, and authoritative, are presented to the view of all the inhabitants of the earth. DD 48
Christ began to open up to all how far-reaching the law of God really was.
Some examples of the deeper applications are as follows:
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. Matthew 5:21,22
Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 1 John 3:15
Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart. Matthew 5:27,28
Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet. Romans 7:7
If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. James 2:8-10
Then, this example:
If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:18-21
Despite this counsel, many even to this day, have taken revenge for wrong into their own hands, based on a text that is from the guidebook for the judges in Israel:
He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death…And he that smiteth his father, or his mother, shall be surely put to death…And he that curseth his father, or his mother, shall surely be put to death.
…and he shall pay as the judges determine…
…And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life
“An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” Exodus 21:12-24
Christ’s response:
Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so?
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matthew 5:38-48
In the equivalent passage in Luke, note the expression of this verse:
Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Luke 6:36
He also said to them:
But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Matthew 9:13
But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless. Matthew 12:7
If we have accepted the gracious invitation that Christ has freely offered us, to come into His kingdom, understanding that this kingdom “is within” us, we will have His mind and life being lived out, in and through us. We will live differently, not using any of the punishments that were for the judges only to prescribe, as a guide for our living. We will be content to leave the punishment for any unjust action against us, to a merciful and omniscient God.
“Love is the fulfilling of the law”.
