The Fulfilled Law: Divine Perfection

Excerpt

God was the model for the characteristics of righteousness spoken of in the Sermon on the Mount. Believers were being asked to do what was humanly impossible. They were to do what God did: love their enemies—the very thing God did for mankind through the incarnation of his Son. This passage was not talking about ethical perfection (5:4). Rather, it was commanding believers to be as consistent and generous toward people as God is (causing rain and sun). The law of Christ freed believers from having a provincial attitude toward other people, toward the extent of God’s love, and toward the intent of the Law. In 5:21–48 Jesus rejected the Pharisaic interpretation of the Law as superficial. He emphasized inner conformity to the spirit of the law rather than mere outward conformity to the letter of the law. The true requirements of the Law were highlighted to convict listeners of their need to turn to Jesus, the one true source of righteousness. More

Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001. Print. The Tyndale Reference Library.