Good morning. Open up your copy of God's Word to Matthew 5.
So those of you who are kind of new on the scene, we've been going through a series for quite a while now,
! Just an exposition on the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5.
And it has been challenging. It's been, let me think the right word,
it has made me really care about not just what I do, but why I do it.
And God has used it to really work in the hearts of the people here.
And today we'll pick up in verse 43 of Matthew 5.
And previous weeks, a lot has been talked about.
Nathan has, I guess, explained this very well, but just by way of review,
following his baptism by John and following the calling of his disciples,
Jesus began his earthly ministry in Galilee.
And Galilee roughly had a population of around 300,000, roughly, in a bunch of towns and villages.
And he's teaching in the synagogues and he's proclaiming the gospel,
the good news about the coming of the kingdom of God.
And he is healing diseases among the people.
As we see often in the scripture, Jesus combines, like his earthly ministry,
with teaching and acts of mercy and meeting the needs of physical ailments and physical needs.
And Jesus himself has come as the embodiment of the kingdom of God.
He is the king and he has come in humiliation,
walking among those created in the image of God.
And as we see, the word of Jesus spreads all over the place.
The acts that he's doing, the sick and the afflicted and the demon-possessed,
everyone is coming to encounter him and to hear him in hopes that he could heal them.
We read in chapter 4, verse 25,
If you skip ahead in chapter 5,
Seeing the crowds, he went up on a mountain.
And when he sat down, his disciples came to him, and he opened his mouth and taught them.
So standing on a high plain overlooking the Sea of Galilee near Capernaum,
Jesus began teaching his disciples and expounding on the reality of what it meant to be a citizen in God's kingdom
and living in his presence in the context of everyday life.
So that's what we hope to accomplish here.
Here, some of you again who are sort of new at this church,
we don't just want to teach from the Bible.
We just don't want to tell you what we want to say from the Bible.
We hopefully preach the Bible itself.
And that's what the power behind the word of God is.
It will impact our daily living.
So those who belong to Jesus, those who belong to the King and His kingdom,
are characterized by certain things that are so countercultural to a sinful world around us.
And a couple of the main themes that you'll pick up on in the Sermon on the Mount.
Throughout His discourse, Jesus is constantly seeking to teach His listeners
the difference between external and internal righteousness.
And He does this by contrasting the outward or external righteousness
of the Jewish religious leaders of the day.
And He contrasts that against the true inward righteousness that God desires.
And there's a huge difference between the two.
There's a huge difference between just outward holy living
and what really is on the inside.
People can look really great on the outside, as we all know.
A lot of us are really good at putting on a show for other people
and kind of displaying how moral and upright we are, humanly speaking.
Yet, apart from God, inwardly we are full of pride, anger, envy, sin.
Jesus is pushing the point that it's not just on the outside what we see in somebody's life,
but what really matters is what God is doing on the inside of someone.
And He rebukes the Jewish religious leaders constantly for their wrong thinking about external righteousness,
what true righteousness is.
In Matthew 23, verse 27, He says,
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
You're like whitewashed tombs.
You look great on the outside.
You're nice and clean.
But inwardly, you're dead men's bones.
And that's the outward appearance that they were seeking to put on,
as they have everything put together.
But inwardly, they were full of hypocrisy.
So, as our Lord points out, the righteousness of the religious leaders was purely external
and insufficient to be a part of God's kingdom.
Astoundingly, we see this as the measure constantly in the Scripture,
definitely in the Sermon on the Mount,
that God demands perfect righteousness,
which, humanly speaking, cannot be achieved by any of our own good works, our morality.
Nothing can achieve this righteousness.
So, again, some of you here today may think of yourself as a very good, moral, and upright person.
And you might be compared to most humans.
If you would just, you know, pause and think about the most upstanding person you know,
the best person you can think of,
who's very moral and works very hard to do a lot of things for other people.
But in truth, even they cannot measure up to the righteous, holy, perfect standard of God Almighty.
This is why Jesus says a little earlier in Matthew 5, verse 20,
I tell you that unless this righteousness that you're seeking exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
And that's scary because they were the best.
They were the most upstanding.
They were the most moral.
They were the most religious.
And Jesus is saying, you have to even go way above that
because even what they do falls short of the righteousness that God requires.
So it's not an outward righteousness to show how good we look.
It's an inward righteousness that shows how powerful and gracious God is.
So that is one of the main themes in this is not just how to be a good person,
how to treat other people,
but it's how to actually be righteous in the sight of God
and what righteousness looks like in everyday living.
The second thing that's kind of pointed out by Jesus throughout the Sermon on the Mount
is the religious leaders of the day were twisting.
They were perverting God's actual commands.
In Jesus' time, there were many misinterpretations and twistings of the Old Testament Scripture.
And multiple times throughout this sermon, verse 21, 27, 33, 38,
you'll see Jesus kind of saying this,
you have heard it said,
and then he'll refer to something that the religious leaders taught.
And then he'll go on and he'll actually correct that and say,
but I say to you.
And that is kind of where we find ourselves today
in the midst of another commandment that they have twisted.
And today is clearing up the misconception that you're to love the people that are close to you
and to love your neighbors, but you're to hate and despise your enemies.
So it's a perversion of God's command to love.
And so we will read our text today.
Finally, right?
So Matthew 5, verse 43.
You have heard it said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you,
love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.
For he makes his son rise on the evil and on the good,
and he sends rain on the just and the unjust.
For if you only love those who love you,
what reward do you have?
Do not even tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet only your brothers,
what more are you doing than others?
Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
You, therefore,
must be perfect
as your heavenly Father
is perfect.
Just join me in prayer.
Father, we come to you this morning
very needy,
very broken,
and we're in need of Jesus this morning.
And I pray that
whether we know him
or we don't know him,
he would be
working in our minds,
in our hearts,
speaking life into us
through your word.
And so, Lord,
we just offer this time
as an act of worship,
and I pray for those here
who may not know you,
who are separated from you
because of their sin,
that they would see very clearly
the love that you have displayed
through the person and work
of Jesus Christ.
I ask that in his name.
Amen.
So, in our text,
we see very clearly
that Jesus is saying,
you've misunderstood
this commandment.
You've heard it said
to hate your enemy.
And this is, again,
a twisting
of what the Scripture says.
So, does the Scripture
actually say that
in the Old Testament?
No, not at all.
Actually,
quite the opposite
in a lot of ways.
But in the Law of Moses
in Leviticus,
chapter 19,
you read in verses 18 and 34,
this is the actual commandment.
You shall not take vengeance
or bear a grudge
against the sons
of your own people,
but you shall love
your neighbor as yourself.
I am the Lord.
You shall treat the stranger
who sojourns with you
as the native among you,
and you shall love him
as yourself.
For you were strangers
in the land of Egypt.
I am the Lord your God.
And somehow,
they had figured out a way
to kind of twist this
into justification
to have hatred
towards their enemies
when that's not
what it says at all.
But to be sure,
before we kind of stand
in our context today
and look back at
the scribes
and the Pharisees
and a bunch of religious
hypocrites,
we definitely do
the same thing.
We, all the time,
we do the same thing.
We twist what God's word
actually says
to make it fit
a lifestyle that we want.
So, we need to be clear
about what God says
about certain things.
And so, Scripture never says
that anyone should maliciously
hate his or her enemy.
Quite the opposite.
God's hatred of sin
and God's hatred of evil
is a theme
in the Old Testament.
And he often chooses,
as we can read,
to execute judgment
on those people
that are against him.
So, here's a mystery,
though, to me.
It's a mystery,
and it's something
that we should just
stand in awe of.
Even though God chooses,
at his appointed time,
to execute judgment
on sinners,
there is something
in the heart of God
that still does not
delight in just
destroying people.
Let me be clear.
God says in
Ezekiel 18.23,
I have no pleasure
in the death
of the wicked.
The Scripture indicates
that God does destroy
the wicked,
but it's not done
in like a giddy
spirit of excitement.
It's not done
with like maniacal
enthusiasm.
He destroys the wicked
with a noble
and heavy heart.
It's not something
he's just jumping
up and down about.
But he does it
because he's going
to be just,
and he's going
to display his righteousness
and do what's right.
But just think about that.
He is destroying
those who
were created
in his image,
but are now broken
and shattered
because of sin
and are rebelling
against him.
It is a mystery,
but God takes
no pleasure
in the destruction
of the wicked.
He feels something
for them.
There's immense
complexity
in the heart
of God.
Not contradictive,
but something
that we as
fallen,
broken human beings
can't really
understand.
So there are
full,
many different
exhortations
in the Old Testament
to care for
one's enemies.
Proverbs 24,
17 says this,
Do not rejoice
when your enemy
falls,
and let not your
heart be glad
when he stumbles.
Even King David
expresses such a
heartfelt grief
towards his enemy,
King Saul.
He has broken
over the man
who is seeking
to kill him.
So,
Jesus is pointing
out that the
Jewish religious
leaders have
figured out a way
to look at
people who are
non-Jews and say
they are not my
neighbor,
they are my enemy,
and I should hate
them.
They saw that
your neighbor was
only your fellow
Israelite.
Jews should love
other Jews.
Everyone else
was considered
considered an enemy,
a Gentile
treated as an
enemy.
So,
as we begin
to unpack this,
Jesus is correcting
this false teaching.
And so,
as Nathan kind of
said last week,
this is not about
the state's
authority to
defend itself
and declare war.
This is not about
whether or not
you should have
the right to
defend yourself
if attacked.
This is not
the context of
what we're
talking about.
Those are topics
that we could
talk about
another time.
If you ask me,
we'll talk about it.
But this is not
the main point
of what Jesus
is emphasizing
today.
So,
I want you to
examine your
heart as we
unpack this.
And here's why.
This commandment
to love our
enemies
reveals every
potential
deficiency
in our
understanding
of the
gospel.
And it also
reveals every
potential
deficiency
in our
obedience
to that
gospel.
Are you
tempted to
think that?
Are you
tempted to
think,
yeah,
okay,
but what
about those
people?
Or what
about this
guy?
I get it,
but still,
should I love
this guy?
Surely there's
some sort of
exception to
the rule.
And when we
seek to wiggle
free of those
words,
of this command,
we're minimizing
the gospel
behind that
command.
So,
pay attention
and examine
your hearts.
Ask God to
search you.
So,
we're going to
unpack this
in asking
three questions.
Number one,
who is our
enemy?
Right?
Who is our
enemy?
We can see it
in verse 34
that in one
sense,
it's those
who persecute
you.
People on
whose account
you are
suffering
because of
Christ.
Those who
are acting
hostile
towards you
because of
your relationship
with him.
The word
actually kind
of implies
people who
are pursuing
you,
actively pursuing
you with
great hostility
in order to
inflict harm
on you
or mistreat
you,
in the hopes
that they will
cause you to
flee,
or drive
you away.
That's kind
of what
persecution
means,
at least in a
grammatical sense
of the word.
And it's done
because of your
faith in Christ.
It's because of
your attachment
and relationship
to him.
We know
that during
the past
century,
there have
been more
Christian martyrs
in the world
than all the
previous centuries
combined.
Just in
2018,
okay,
three days
ago,
in Sri
Lanka,
a pastor,
his wife,
and two
other believers
were walking
home from a
birthday party
of a fellow
believer,
and they'd
been experiencing
some hostility
from local
Buddhists.
And as they
were walking
home,
attackers began
yelling things
at them
and began
throwing really
big stones
at them.
It struck
his wife
and one
of the
other women
with them
injured
them severely.
April 10th,
just April
10th,
Hindu
activists
burned down
the home
of a pastor
who had a
wife and
three children.
and they
were on
their way
home from
an all-night
prayer meeting
and they
were getting
angry at the
evangelistic work
that he was
doing among
the Hindus
there,
and so they
burned down
his house
and have
been trying
to force him
out of that
area.
This past
July,
in Nigeria,
militant
Muslims
attacked Christian
villages,
killing around
200 and
forcing thousands
to be displaced.
And very
recently,
in Columbia,
where we sent
a dear brother
of ours
recently,
a pastor
there who
was doing
gospel work
in one of
the most
dangerous,
poorest areas
in Columbia,
he constantly
received death
threats from
paramilitary
groups and
guerrillas and
members of
street gangs.
So he's been
warned you'll
be killed if
you don't
leave,
if you
don't
stop this,
but he's
remaining
faithful among
the other
Christians who
are there to
lead them.
And they've
chosen to
stick it out
there because
they say
Christ has
taught us
to love
our enemies.
And it
goes on that
since they've
stuck it out
and really
asked God
to work,
they're starting
to change the
attitude of the
community around
them.
People are
starting to
respect them
and wonder
why in the
heck they're
there.
So according
to Jesus
in our
text,
persecution
doesn't
necessarily
have to be
violent,
meaning it
might not
put you in
the hospital
or in
prison or
in the
grave.
Earlier in
the discourse,
Jesus lumps
in insults
and slander
with persecution.
Verse 11,
blessed are
you when
others revile
you and
persecute
you and
utter all
kinds of
evil against
you falsely
on my
account.
So many
American
Christians,
we're so
weak and
we're so
soft and
we're so
overly
sensitive that
that would
seem like the
most violent
thing in the
world to us,
but put in
perspective in
many other
places in the
world and in
the context in
which Jesus
is speaking,
it's not
really worthy
to be
compared.
But he
says,
nonetheless,
Paul said,
when we are
reviled,
we bless.
And so,
persecution,
those who
persecute you
are in the
category of
an enemy,
but we are
to love them.
To go on a
little further,
if you look at
our text,
it could really
just mean
those who
oppose your
desires,
those who
are set
against you.
Many
Christians,
I've heard
it even
this past
week,
someone who
would say
that they
are a
follower of
Jesus,
quote,
I hate
those darn
liberal
Democrats.
And on
the other
side,
I hate
those
conservative
Republicans.
Some of
you wouldn't
consider
Republicans
conservative,
but nonetheless,
we have all
these divisions
that take
precedence over
who we are
in the
kingdom of
God.
And that's
total nonsense.
There's so much
junk like that
in the church
today.
We love or
despise someone
based on their
political views,
their social
background,
or their
ethnic background,
instead of our
identity as
children of the
Most High.
God
and the
gospel demands
that we
love all
who oppose
our personal
desires.
It's a
demand.
For God
himself is
kind to
those who
oppose him.
So,
to carry it
one more
step further,
if you kind
of look at
our text,
an enemy
could really
be summed
up as
those
who don't
love you
are someone
who is not
your brother.
another
illustration
of an
enemy.
If you
love those
who love
you,
what reward
have you?
Do not
even tax
collectors
do the
same.
And if
you greet
your brothers
only,
what do
you do
more than
others?
So,
you might
consider
yourself
a loving
person.
You might
consider
someone you
know to
be a
very loving
person.
But,
how far
does that
love extend
to those
who oppose
you,
those who
are different
than you?
Jesus
presses this
point with
unusual force,
as if he's
saying,
yeah,
even the
tax collectors,
the people
that you
despise and
consider to
be outsiders
and traitors,
even they
love the
people who
love them.
What's so
special about
this kind
of love
that you
think you
have,
if that's
where it
stops?
Then he
goes on
and says,
even pagan
non-believers
who don't
even know
God,
they care
about the
people who
care about
them,
and they
greet those
who love
them.
He is
saying that
the gospel
demands a
different kind
of love,
that is an
extraordinary
godly love
that is to be
demonstrated by
believers.
If you
consider
someone
on the
news,
we always
seem to be
pittered against
different
countries a
lot of
the time,
Muslim
countries,
for example,
we should
see them
as captive
to the
enemy and
be broken
hearted for
them.
I have a
couple of
dear friends
of mine
who were
in the
army,
they served
in the
ranger
regiment,
and they
have been
deployed
multiple times
to Iraq,
Afghanistan,
other places,
and because
of these
brothers'
love for
Jesus,
they realized,
man, this
is not
going to
solve the
real problem.
And now
that they
are out
of the
army,
they have
moved
themselves
and their
families to
closed,
dangerous
places in
the Middle
East to
share the
gospel with
Muslims.
that's
loving your
enemy.
So, to
go on, the
second question,
that is, the
first question
was, who
are our
enemies?
The second
question, what
does this
look like?
What kind
of, how
does this
love look,
look, excuse
me, what
does this
love look
like, is
the question.
All right, so in
other words, how do we
manifest this
love?
How do we
actually carry
out this
love?
Well, first
of all, we
see in our
text, to
pray for
them.
Praying for
our enemies
is a
humble
recognition
from God's
saving grace
towards us.
We would
be just as
evil as
they are, and
just as
lost as
they are, had
not God
saved us.
And it
recognizes
that unless
God acts
grace and
grant them
mercy, they
will remain
in that
place of
judgment.
So nothing
will transform
your heart
towards the
one you
consider to
be your
enemy than
getting on
your knees
before God
and pleading
with him on
their behalf.
Nothing will
change your
heart more.
When you're on
your knees
praying for
them, you
might do nice
things for
them, kind
of on the
surface, but
then behind
the scenes,
you're kind
of grumbling
about them and
despising them.
but praying
for them, getting
on your knees
in the presence
of God, who
knows your
heart and
has full
awareness of
your intentions
towards those
people, that
changes you.
Paul prayed
for his fellow
Jews that
hated him.
He says,
brothers, my
heart desire is
for them to
be saved.
And in doing
this, we
portray our
suffering,
crucified Lord,
when he
prayed.
for his
enemies.
Even in the
worst possible
position, Father,
forgive them, for
they know not
what they do.
So, the
first way we
actually can
manifest out love
towards those
that we might
consider an
enemy is to
pray for them, to
intercede on
their behalf before
God.
And then to go
on, it is
simply dismeaned
from our text,
just to greet
them.
If you greet
those who only
greet you, right?
To greet
someone means
to warmly
welcome them,
to receive
one joyfully.
To greet
someone does not
just mean that
you kind of
begrudgingly shake
their hand and
put on a fake
smile and a fake
conversation and
then forget about
them.
It's not just a
touch-and-go
thing.
It means extending
a friendly welcome
to one who you
consider to be an
outsider, to
someone who is
opposed to you.
So who do you
welcome and
greet into your
life and
welcome into
your home?
Is it those
who you know
that will repay
you and greet
you as well and
love you as well
or someone that
you know would
not love you in
return?
So if that's the
case, like,
where and what
kind of love are
we displaying to
the world?
What's so special
about us?
to go on.
A third way we
can manifest the
love of Christ to
other people, also
seen in the word
here, is to meet
their needs.
Know that true
love for others
actually takes
action on behalf
of that person.
We all know
that.
We don't just
want lip service.
We actually want
what we say to
manifest itself in
real life in
action.
not just words.
And so though
God hates evil,
he still brings
many blessings
in the life of
his enemies.
Jesus says,
for he makes
his son rise
on the evil
and on the good.
And he sends
rain on the
just and the
unjust.
It says in
verse 45.
And in Luke's
account of this
gospel passage,
this is what he
says,
this,
God himself is
kind to the
ungrateful and
evil.
So this is what
we would call
theologically
speaking,
common grace,
meaning that it's
the grace of God
and the blessings
of God that
extend to all
people,
regardless of
whether they are
saved or not.
God graciously
extends his love
to his enemies.
So as true
children of God,
we're to imitate
such love
towards our
enemies.
And in such a
way where it
leaves them
puzzled,
asking why,
like what kind
of power is
behind this
person to
enable them
to love me
in this way,
asking them
why.
Paul says
in Romans
12,
verse 17,
he says,
to the contrary,
and then he
goes on to
quote from
the Old
Testament and
Proverbs.
He says,
if your enemy
is hungry,
feed him.
If he's thirsty,
give him
something to
drink.
For by doing
so, you will
heap burning
coals on his
head.
Do not be
overcome by
evil, but
overcome evil
with good.
Have you ever
done that for
someone who
opposed you,
done something,
an act of
kindness to
serve them to
meet your need
and they were
astonished?
This is the
kind of
lower to
display.
And so,
the third
question,
the last
question,
is how can
we love
our enemies?
So, in
other words,
like, what
enables us,
what is the
power behind
this to
motivate us to
do such a
thing as love
our enemies?
That's a good
question, because
humanly speaking,
it's impossible.
I'm not good
at loving
people I
don't like,
or that are
opposed to
me.
I've even
gone through
seasons in
my life,
and this
has convict
me, where
I walk
around just
sizing people
up that I
think look
either hostile
towards me or
different than
me, instead
of feeling a
heart of
compassion towards
them.
This kind
of love
cannot be
faked.
It cannot
be imitated
in a false
way.
The love
that we need
to have for
these people
comes only by
the gospel
alone, and
only by the
power of
Jesus Christ
working through
us alone.
So, here
are three
things,
under this
question,
of motivations
or powers
behind the
ability to
love our
enemies.
Number one
is, God
will carry
out justice.
All right?
We're always
afraid to
think if we
just let
this go, if
we don't
repay them
for the
wrong they've
done to
us, they're
just going
to get
away.
They're
going to
go unpunished
and justice
will not be
done.
But what God
is saying is
be confident,
I will
handle this.
I will
deal with
this person.
Turn to
Romans 12.
We're going to
look at a
couple passages
in Romans
before we
close.
Romans 12,
go to
verse 17.
So, we're
unable to
love our
enemies because
we know at
the end of
the day,
God is
going to
carry out
justice.
Even if
they get
away with
things in
this life,
they won't
in eternity.
They will be
brought before
the judgment
seed of
God and
he will
deal with
it.
Romans 12,
verse 17.
Repay no
one evil
for evil,
but give
thought to
do what is
honorable in
the sight of
all.
If possible,
so far as it
depends on
you, live
peaceably
with all.
Beloved,
never
avenge
yourselves,
but leave
it to the
wrath of
God.
For it is
written,
vengeance
is mine.
I will
repay,
says the
Lord.
That is
a big
struggle for
me because
I always
want to
see justice
done.
If someone
has wronged
me, I
want to
see them
paid back.
Some of
you are
just better
than me,
I guess,
but I'm
very quick
to want
justice to
be done,
not forgetting
that if
God treated
me that
way, I
would be
separated.
from
him.
So we
are to
repay evil
with good.
God will
settle it.
Just trust
him.
We can
put that
in his
hands.
He will
carry out
justice.
With such
a holy
and sovereign
vow from
Almighty God,
we can
believe that.
Don't feel
like someone
is going to
get away
with their
sin.
And then
secondly,
another
motivation,
another
empowering,
so that
you'll
prove your
sonship.
Look at
verse 45.
We don't
have to
because you
just turn,
but verse
45,
Jesus says
about loving
your enemies
so that
you may be
sons of
your Father
who is in
heaven.
So loving
others the
way God
loved doesn't
make us
his children,
but what
it does
do is
it proves,
it evidences
that we do
belong to
God because
that kind
of love,
again,
can't just
be faked.
It can't
be created
by human
ability so
that if we
love the
way that
God does,
we evidence
ourselves to
be his
children.
It proves.
It stirs
the heart of
any parent,
though one
day I hope
to experience
this,
to be a
father,
but it
stirs any
good parent
to have
someone say
of them,
you are so
like your
father,
you are so
like your
mother.
And it is
our spiritual
DNA to
love other
people the
way that
God loves.
A supernatural
empowering kind
of love so
we can prove
our sonship.
And then
lastly,
and this is
huge,
another
motivation,
give what
you have
received.
And here
it is,
we can
love our
enemies
because we
have experienced
being loved
as an
enemy.
Many of
you have
come from
different
backgrounds
where you
are taught
God is
all-loving
and he'll
never do
anything to
hurt you
or he
won't judge
you.
On the
other side,
you might
have been
taught God
is holy
and God
is going
to destroy
you and
there's no
love in
him at
all.
And both
of those
are wrong.
Romans 5,
we'll end
things here,
but look at
Romans 5.
And I want
you to see
that God's
love is not
opposed to
his justice.
What kind
of love
God has
shown us?
Romans 5,
look at
verse 8.
It says,
God shows
his love
for us
and that
while we
were still
sinners,
Christ died
for us.
Since
therefore we
have now
been justified
by his
blood,
much more
shall I
be saved
by him
from the
wrath
of God.
So in
two verses
you see the
idea of
God's love,
you see the
reality of
God's wrath
right side
by side.
Then it
goes on in
verse 10,
for if
while we
were enemies
we were
reconciled to
God by the
death of
his son,
much more
now that we
are reconciled
shall we
be saved
by his
life.
And more
than that,
we also
rejoice in
God through
our Lord
Jesus Christ
through whom
we have now
received
reconciliation.
So this
so extraordinary
is the love
of our
father.
It extends
beyond his
kingdom to
his enemies.
God
demonstrated
his great
love in
the while
we were
rebelling
against him,
not while
we were
all put
together
and good
people,
but while
we were
his enemies,
while we
were still
in that
place of
rebellion,
God
demonstrated
his love
towards us
by sending
his beloved
son to
die the
death that
we deserve
and to
give us
the life
that we
cannot
live.
He died
in our
place.
God
demands
that we
recognize
this as
those who
belong to
him.
We were
separated
from him
and Jesus
restored us
back to
him so
that we
can know
him,
have
relationship
with him,
that we
can once
again reflect
who he
was and
glorify him
as we
were created
to do.
So if
God were
not that
generous and
merciful to
sinners,
we would
perish.
And so we
are to
reflect this
kind of love
that we
see in
the gospel.
And there's
no debate.
God loves
his enemies.
So,
in conclusion,
we see
in verse
48,
he ends
up by
kind of
summing up
this whole
section of
the Sermon
on the
Mount by
saying,
you,
therefore,
must be
perfect as
your heavenly
Father is
perfect.
So in
case anyone
was there
listening,
saying,
that still
thought,
I can
still be
good on
my own,
I can
still achieve
right standing
with God
on my
own,
he kind
of just
throws that
out there
to sum it
up.
You must
be perfect
as your
heavenly
Father is
perfect.
Which would
have
devastated
them because
God demands
total perfection.
So he
intentionally
does that
to make
them despair
of any
kind of
self-righteousness
they have
so that
they'll
flee to
him for
salvation.
To recognize
that they
will need
a Savior,
that their
own efforts
will not
achieve it.
And that's
what he's
saying.
He's like,
I'm here.
I'm the
one who's
going to
deliver you
from your
sin.
You cannot
do this
on your
own.
And that's
the marvelous
truth of
the gospel,
that we
could not
attain
perfection.
You ever
heard anybody
say,
nobody's
perfect.
They have
no idea
the intensity
and the
truth of
what they're
saying.
No, no
one is.
And God
demands it.
You can't
achieve it
on your
own, so
you go to
Jesus.
And it
says in
2 Corinthians
4, 21,
for our
sake, God
made Christ
to be sin
who knew
no sin,
so that in
him we might
become the
righteousness
of God.
It can
only come,
that righteousness
only comes
when we
are saved
completely
and fully
by the
work of
Jesus
Christ.
And once
united to
him, being
saved in
him, he
enables us
to live
righteously
before other
people.
So that's
it.
That's the
beauty of
the gospel,
that God
loved his
enemies.
And so
if you
feel and
you know
that you
are separated
from him
today, he's
calling you
to come.
Be reconciled
to him
through the
death of
his son.
And if you
do belong
to Jesus,
rejoice that
he did not
treat you and
did not
treat me the
way that we
deserve to
be treated.
Let's
pray together.
Let's
pray together.