Matthew 7:24, 28 (ESV)
“Everyone
then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who
built his house on the rock.”
And
when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching,
Jesus did not teach like the Pharisees and Scribes. He
taught with authority. Their teaching was always based on what some previous Rabbi
had said about the text. Jesus put his own words at the forefront. He taught
them, and then he told them that what he had taught them needed to be the
foundation of their lives. This whole section of Matthew five, six, and seven
is really an explanation of what Jesus said in Matthew 5:17, “Do not think that
I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them
but to fulfill them.
What does it mean to fulfill the
law? That is a whole theological discussion in itself, but it certainly means
that God calls us to a higher level of ethics and morality than the Law. The
teachers of his day assumed that the Law was the highest level of ethics and
morality. Keeping the Law was what made one holy. Keeping the Law is what set
one apart as especially dedicated to God. Jesus taught them that their thinking
was wrong. His teaching called them to something higher. The very next things
that Jesus taught was the need for faith, and his own power. Following God is
not about being good enough. It is about recognizing the power of Jesus and
trusting him, which leads to a higher level of ethical and moral behavior than
the Law could ever prescribe. Jesus’ fulfillment of the Law, then, is based on faith
in the power of Jesus whom we trust. Hearing his words and doing them starts
with faith.
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