I wrote this sermon for Methods of Bible Exposition at Bob Jones University on March 29, 2002.
FCF – Men are inclined to minimize sins of the heart by judging righteousness on the basis of external standards alone.
Proposition – Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must strive to live at peace with your fellow man.
I. Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must avoid being angry with your fellow man (21–22).
A. God’s law forbids murder (21).
1. It is clear to all.
2. It carries a penalty.
B. God’s law forbids the heart of a murderer (22).
1. The heart of a murder is the heart of an angry man.
2. The angry man is worthy of judgment.
II. Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must seek reconciliation with your fellow man (23–26).
A. There is a priority in reconciliation (23–24).
1. Known conflict (23)
2. Prerequisite to worship (24)
B. There is an urgency about reconciliation (25–26).
1. Unresolved issues usually get worse (25).
2. Unresolved issues will cost you (26).
Scripture Introduction: Turn in your Bibles this evening to Matthew 5:21–26. This passage is part of the most famous sermon ever preached—the Sermon on the Mount. It is also the beginning of a section where Jesus goes right at the heart of the problem with religious people of His day. He demonstrates that true righteousness, the righteousness that God demands of each of you, is a righteousness of the heart. In our day of religiosity the problem remains the same. We need to again hear these words of Jesus, because God requires this kind of righteousness from every true child of God. Our passage deals specifically with the issue of murder and anger. You cannot afford to miss Jesus’ explanation of true righteousness. Follow along closely in your Bible as we read our passage together, Matthew 5:21–26:
“You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 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. Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. 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. Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.”
Let’s all pray now and ask for God’s help and blessing upon our time in His Word. Dear Father….
Sermon Introduction: Imagine with me a hypothetical story about two men. The first man, John Jones, had been out late at a party with some buddies. He had had a little too much to drink, and on the home from the party he stopped to get some more to drink. The man at the gas station asked him to show some I.D., and John, frustrated with the guy, began to get very angry. He refused, but so did the cashier. John, now in a drunken rage, pulled out a gun a shot the man in the upper chest. He died that night in the hospital. John was found guilty of murder and put in prison for a minimum of fifty years. The second man, Fred Miller, was a Christian businessman. He had a nice family, nice house, a couple nice cars, and even used to be a deacon at his local church. Most thought of him to be a pretty good man. Their family was relatively faithful to church, and the wife worked in the Christian school. But Fred had some struggles. He was a perfectionist and very controlling. He wanted his way all the time and was very impatient with those who failed to meet his obligations. He would often lose his temper and yell at his wife and kids. One day right after he had blown up at his wife for not having his laundry down, Fred read about John’s case in the morning paper and made some comments on it. What do you think he said? Do you think he was under conviction for the sin of his own heart? No, he actually said he couldn’t believe someone would do something like that. You see, Fred had a false view of sin and righteousness. He exalted the external acts and minimized the sins of the heart. But Fred is not unique here. In fact, all men are inclined to minimize sins of the heart by judging righteousness on the basis of external standards alone. And chances are that you are struggling with this to some degree or another today in your life. But thankfully Jesus corrects this faulty notion and instructs us in the way of true righteous. Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must strive to live at peace with your fellow man.
I. Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must avoid being angry with your fellow man (21–22).
Illustration: Bruce Goodrich was being initiated into the cadet corps at Texas A & M University. One night, Bruce was forced to run until he dropped—but he never got up. Bruce Goodrich died before he even entered college. A short time after the tragedy, Bruce’s father wrote a letter to the administration, faculty, student body, and the corps of cadets. How do you think he responded in his letter? You can just imagine the anger that he would have had for what happened to his son. You would expect that he just railed on them and would maybe even be pursuing a lawsuit. But that is not at all what Mr. Goodrich said. He wrote the following: “I would like to take this opportunity to express the appreciation of my family for the great outpouring of concern and sympathy from Texas A & M University and the college community over the loss of our son Bruce. We were deeply touched by the tribute paid to him in the battalion. We were particularly pleased to note that his Christian witness did not go unnoticed during his brief time on campus.” Mr. Goodrich went on: “I hope it will be some comfort to know that we harbor no ill will in the matter. We know our God makes no mistakes. Bruce had an appointment with his Lord and is now secure in his celestial home. When the question is asked, ‘Why did this happen?’ perhaps one answer will be, ‘So that many will consider where they will spend eternity.’” Just as Mr. Goodrich responded with such a Christlike attitude, so you must respond to all the circumstances of life that would incline you to become angry (taken from Our Daily Bread, March 22, 1994 found at sermonillustrations.com).
Application: This passage clearly designates anger as a sin that will be held against the unrepentant. God requires that you not be content just because you may not show an external display of your anger. He goes to the heart. If Mr. Goodrich had been angry with those individuals even though he may not have responded by taking someone’s life, God would not have been pleased. Maybe someone at work did something that really made you furious. Someone has been telling your coworkers lies about you, slandering your name and ruining your reputation. So when you found out, you went and let him have it. You responded in a like manner and blew up at him. Now you justify it to yourself by saying that it was his fault. Besides, you didn’t kill him or anything serious like that. But God says that you are guilty of wicked sin. You must seek God’s merciful cleansing and then make restitution with your coworker. Maybe it was not a coworker, but a spouse, or parent, or child. Maybe you have blown up at your neighbor. Maybe it was somebody here at church. Regardless of who it was, God requires that you confess it as sin and make things right with the individual. Purpose now that you will deal with the anger of your heart, and that in the future you will turn to Christ for His grace to respond when the temptation to be angry comes.
Transition: Scripture is very clear that you must not be angry with our fellow man, but how should you respond to those who are angry with you?
II. Because God demands true heart-righteousness, you must seek reconciliation with your fellow man (23–26).
Illustration: A childhood accident caused poet Elizabeth Barrett to lead a life of semi-invalidism before she married Robert Browning in 1846. But her life was far more difficult than just this. In her youth, Elizabeth had been watched over by her tyrannical father. When she and Robert were married, their wedding was held in secret because of her father’s disapproval. After the wedding the Brownings sailed for Italy, where they lived for the rest of their lives. But even though her parents had disowned her, Elizabeth never gave up on the relationship. Almost weekly she wrote them letters. Not once did they reply. What would you have done in response to this? Most people would have been inclined to give up at this point. Finally, after 10 years, she received a large box in the mail. Inside, Elizabeth found all of her letters; not one had been opened! But the point of the illustration is that Elizabeth went to great lengths to make reconciliation with her family. Her response is exemplary for every Christian to follow. You are not responsible for how they respond, just for your sincere attempt at reconciliation. That is why Romans 12:18, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men” (sermonillustrations.com).
Application: It is clear that every Christian has the obligation to pursue to be reconciled with others who may have something against him. In other words, as soon as you find out that you have wronged someone else, or even if he thinks that you have wronged him while you may not have, you have the responsibility to go to him and seek his forgiveness and restore a relationship of harmony. Maybe even as I mention this you may be thinking of a specific situation. Possibly a few weeks ago, someone told you that another individual here is this church was very angry with you because of what you said about him. Something was told to him, which you may or may not have said that has given your brother opportunity to be angry with you. You have known about it but are expecting him to come to you. But God requires that since you have knowledge of it, you must go to him and seek to mend the relationship. God can give you the grace that you need to do this, even though confrontation is not enjoyable. Or maybe it is a broken family relationship, with your husband or wife, or with your mom or dad. Maybe there is conflict between you and a member of your distant family, or maybe just the neighbor across the street. Whoever it is, God requires that you seek His grace to be reconciled to your brother. Ask him for the grace to go, and trust Him with the outcome having done your part and obeyed his will.
Conclusion: It is clear from this passage that God is not just concerned with your actions. He is concerned most importantly with the heart behind your actions. God is not pleased with you just because you have never taken anyone’s life if your heart is full of anger and hatred for others. This heart condemns you, and you need the grace of God to overcome your wickedness and have true righteousness. In the Antarctic summer of 1908–1909, Sir Ernest Shackleton and three companions attempted to travel to the South Pole from their winter quarters. They set off with four ponies to help carry the load. The trip did not go at all as planned. The cold and blistering wind left them nearly dead. Their ponies all died, their rations were all but exhausted, and they turned back toward their base having failed to accomplish their goal. Altogether, they trekked 127 days. On their return journey what do you think they talked about? I’m sure they talked about their families and the comforts of their homes, but as Shackleton records in The Heart of the Antarctic, they were consumed with one thing. Their time was spent talking about food—elaborate feasts, gourmet delights, and sumptuous menus! As they staggered along, suffering from dysentery, not knowing whether they would survive, every waking hour was occupied with thoughts of eating (sermonillustrations.com). This kind of passion and hunger that these men had for food should be even more characteristic of each Christian for the true heart-righteousness of God. Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” As we are able to understand Shackleton’s obsession with food, we should gain a glimpse of the passion Jesus intends for our quest for righteousness. Today if you have anger in your heart toward anyone, God calls that sin. And he requires that you make reconciliation with your brother as you remember it. This standard of righteousness is not easy. As a matter of fact, it is impossible for you to attain. But God offers the grace of His Son that you need to have true heart-righteousness. Today, purpose to make reconciliation by God’s grace with who are in conflict with you, and resolve that you will seek God’s grace in order to not respond in anger to those who may do things that you do not like in the future.