Matthew 5:21-37 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
Concerning Anger
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.
Concerning Adultery
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell.[i]
Concerning Divorce
31 “It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Concerning Oaths
33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’ or ‘No, No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one.
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Below is the sermon I preached on February 16, 2020 at Redeemer Episcopal Church. You can read the sermon manuscript here, or listen to the sermon (with infusions from the Spirit) at this link. Always remember that I preach to a particular context in a particular time, but I hope it speaks to you as well!
God of reconciliation, give us the courage to live for you and strive toward the relationships you desire for us among all people and all of creation. Amen.
There is a famous story about St. Francis of Assisi, where he is asked by Brother Masseo: “Why you? Why does all the world seem to be running after you, and everyone seems to want to see you and hear you and obey you? You are not a handsome man. You do not have great learning or wisdom. You are not a nobleman. So why is all the world running after you?”
Saint Francis, with his characteristic humility, explained that God’s glory shone all the brighter through the weakness of such an obviously “miserable servant.”
Of course, this has turned into somewhat of a joke, but the question remains: why were people so drawn to the life of St. Francis as he taught and preached, following him around the Italian countryside and giving up their bourgeois lifestyles to become monks and nuns?
I have been spending some time studying the life of St. Francis because some of my students and I head to Italy in about three months. On Friday I attended a lecture about his life and some of the sites we will be visiting while we are there. Every part of the Italian countryside seems influenced by St. Francis in some way.
I think much of it has to do with his authenticity. In the 13th century, medieval Christians liked what was in the Bible and what Jesus said about how to live according to the Gospel, but no one truly thought it was possible to actually live like Jesus described. They were all wonderful teachings in theory, but they were impossible to put into practice.
St. Francis proved them wrong. He gave up his wealth and inheritance, he gave up comfort and a permanent home to follow God’s call. He proved through his life and his actions that following Jesus’ call was, in fact, possible.
I share this story of St. Francis because the people who would have first heard Jesus’ words that we heard this morning would have thought that these things sounded good in theory, but they were impossible to practice.
This portion of the sermon on the mount is called the antitheses. Jesus says repeatedly, “you have heard it said… but…” It’s a bit misleading because it sounds like Jesus is replacing long-standing Jewish laws with something completely different. But what he actually does is intensifies the commands.
I think what resonates with so many people today about St. Francis is that his entire life was centered around and shaped by relationships. The very first worship service he led was in a leper colony outside of Assisi. He thought that is was important to be in relationship with those who were exiled from society— the sick, the dying, the orphaned, and the widowed.
When he was first moved to poverty and preaching, he realized that he would have to create his own order of friars. All of the other orders had a hierarchy of authority and St. Francis wasn’t interested in that. He wanted all of his followers to be brothers, he even called himself a custodian, the lowest servant of them all.
When St. Francis began having many followers, he sent them out in pairs to spread the gospel. Of course, this was because it is biblical— Jesus did the same thing— but he also wanted to make sure his fellow friars always had to rely on someone else. Relationships were the most important thing to St. Francis. Your relationship with other people and with creation, he believed, was a direct reflection of your relationship with God.
St. Francis was devoted to God’s word, and more specifically the words and the way of Jesus Christ. He longed to see the fullness of the kingdom of God in this world. And he knew that in the fullness of the kingdom, people would live in full communion with one another.
Because that is Jesus’ intent here, right? The law seemed to be asking the bear minimum of God’s people and Jesus is upping the ante.
There is a big spectrum of emotion and action between simply not murdering someone and deep, fulfilling, restored relationships. What if the opposite of killing someone was restorative, and healing community with someone?
There is a big difference between simply not committing adultery and treating others as truly beautiful children of God. Jesus seems to say that adultery, murder, divorce, and even swearing oaths have less to do with individual actions, and much more to do with our relationships with one another.
And, Jesus says, this relationship we have with one another affects our relationship with God. So much so that if we remember that we have issues with someone, we should leave and go settle those issues before we even come to the altar and stand before God.
Relationships matter.
That’s what made St. Francis’ life so appealing to so many, that’s why his impact has lasted over 800 years. Because he demonstrated what happens when people choose to take Jesus’ words seriously and devote themselves to not the bear minimum in relationships but, the utmost and the most whole in our relationships.
This is what God proved to us and promised to us in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. That relationships matter so much, that full communion with God’s people is so important, that God is willing and even enthusiastic about coming into this world as a human to be among us, healing us, and feeding us.
We are invited into this kind of communion with one another and with God in the waters of baptism and we are reminded of the divine example of God’s grace, mercy, and commitment to God’s people every week when we gather for this meal. We get to participate in this gift of life given to us in these words. We can choose to believe, like St. Francis did, that relationships matter. Not only our relationship with the divine, but also our relationship with one another and all of creation. And we are called not to the bear minimum, but to fullness of life. Not only is it possible, but it will change the world.
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