Jesus six commands are all social in character. They center squarely on either how we treat others or how we react to how others treat us. They probably fall where they do in the sermon to counter-balance possible misinterpretations of the free grace found in the Beatitudes.
Command 1: Do not cultivate long-term resentment towards anyone as it will bring you into judgment. Ordinary anger is no sin and very human (vv. 21-26). How to deal with people you have offended: Prioritize reconciliation over almost everything Act quickly
Command 2: Do not cultivate long-term sexual longing towards anyone inappropriate as it will bring you into judgment. Practice avoidance of lust, if necessary, in the extreme (vv 27-30).
Command 3: Do not seek divorce for frivolous, lustful or purely self-pleasing reasons as it causes your sin to multiply to others. There are true grounds for divorce, but they always result from actions that strike and destroy marriage’s deepest vows & commitments (vv 31, 32).
Command 4: The religious oaths of Jesus’ world had devolved for some into legal chicanery and couldn’t be relied on by the people they were offered to, so Jesus says, if you’re going to make your oaths a farce, don’t bother to make them at all! Tell the truth and don’t hide behind deceptively construed religious “weasel-language” (vv 33-37).
Command 5: Do not pay back the little evils of life visited upon you by others; rather be poised, flexible & creative with people’s insults, challenges, improper requests, rudeness, etc ( vv 38-42).
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Tom Sorensen is one of the elders at Littleton Bible Chapel. He has a background in retail management in the home furnishings industry for 24 years. In the late 1990's he moved out of retail management and into semi-retirement and does product sourcing work in Asia. He has a...
