THAT this is the true meaning of Christ's language is positively proved by the following verse, "Whosoever, therefore," in view of the foregoing facts. Now he draws a conclusion from what he had previously stated. What is this conclusion? Is it that the law need not be obeyed? No, indeed. "Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven; but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." Matt. 5:19. As much as to say, Peter, James, John, &c., you are soon going out to teach men. Do not you break one of these commandments yourselves, nor do you teach others to; for, if you do, you shall be least in the kingdom of heaven; but, if you will obey them yourselves, and teach others to do it, you shall be great in the kingdom of heaven. What is meant by the term "kingdom of heaven?" Manifestly the same that Christ meant when he said to Peter, "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven." Matt. 16:18, 19. The kingdom of heaven, manifestly refers to the church of Christ in the gospel age. And so the language in our text, beyond controversy, applies this side of the cross. It is a false and foolish assumption that Christ in this language simply referred to how the law should be regarded in the old dispensation. The term kingdom of heaven, is never applied to the Jewish age. Christ was not preparing his apostles for teachers under the old dispensation, but as heralds of the kingdom of Christ. Indeed, nothing could be plainer, than that the language which we are considering in Christ's sermon upon the mountain, does apply in the gospel dispensation.
Christ is instructing them very carefully what they shall teach when they go out to disciple all nations. What then does he instruct them to do and teach concerning the law? His words are unmistakable. "Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven." Least commandments supposes that there are greater ones.
Turning to Matt. 22:36-40, we read, "Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." There are two great commandments. First, To love God supremely, and second, To love our neighbor as ourselves. These were not new commandments, as given by Christ; but were given in the old law through Moses. The first in Deut. 6:5; and second in Lev. 19:18. Says Christ, "On these two commandments hang all the law." He does not say, all the law used to hang on the two commandments, but I have now dropped it all. Nor does he say that nine-tenths of the law hangs upon them, but he says all the law hangs upon them. Love to God includes the first four. Love to our neighbor the last six. Therefore of these lesser ones, that is the ten commandments, Christ speaks when he says, Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments. How could language be stronger than that? First, Jesus endorses and ratifies the law as a whole, in stating that he did not come to destroy it. Second, He endorses every commandment in ten, even to the least one of them—"Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments." Third, He endorses every letter in the law. "Not one jot," says he, "shall pass away." A jot is the smallest letter in the Hebrew language. Fourth, He endorses even the smallest tip of a letter, "Not one tittle shall pass away." Thus by the authority of Jesus Christ our Lord, we have the law of the Father entire brought over into the gospel dispensation without any change.
Some say that we have no authority in the New Testament for the observance of the seventh-day Sabbath. But we ask, was not the Sabbath one of the commandments? Certainly it was. Hear Christ's language: "Whosoever shall break one of these least commandments." The Sabbath is one of them, and hence it is included in Christ's words. But more than that, not one letter, or even a corner of a letter, was changed in the whole law, every jot and tittle stands and reads just as it did before; and will so stand while heaven and earth stands. So says our Lord and so we believe. Hence that law still reads, The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.
But Jesus does not leave this important subject here. He continues, "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of Heaven." Verse 20. For I say unto you, Peter, James, John, you my disciples, "that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of Heaven." Righteousness is keeping the law. Thus Moses says, "And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God, as he hath commanded us." Deut. 6:25. "Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law." Isa. 51:7. "For all thy commandments are righteousness." Ps. 119:172. Righteousness, then is perfect obedience to God's law.
But says one, The very thing that Christ condemned the pharisees for was their strict obedience to the law. No my friend, that is a sad mistake. Read Matt. 15:1-9. "Then came to Jesus scribes and pharisees." Here is the very class under consideration. Now notice what he says about their keeping the commandments. "Then came to Jesus scribes and pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the traditions of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honor thy father and mother; and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites; well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoreth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." Verses 1–9.
That is the way they keep God's commandments; that is, they do not keep them at all. They very piously regarded their own traditions; but God's law they set aside. Stephen charges them with the same thing. "Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost; as your fathers did so do ye." "Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it." Acts 7:51, 53. They pretended to keep God's law, but it was a hypocritical pretention. They did not do it. Hence Christ warns his disciples carefully upon this point, saying, "Except your righteousness," that is your obedience to this law, "shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and pharisees ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of Heaven." If they treat that law no better than the pharisees did, they will be shut out of the kingdom.
Now to leave them without any doubt, he takes up two of the commandments and illustrates by them what he meant concerning the whole law. "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I says unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment." Matt. 5:21, 22. The law said, Thou shalt not kill. The pharisees had taught that a man must actually take life to break this commandment; but Jesus tells them that the commandment is broader than that, extending even to the motives of the heart. Whoever entertained anger in his heart against his brother was a murderer, and had broken that law.
Again he says, "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery. But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." Verses 27, 28. Here the same principle is brought out. It was not simply the positive act of adultery that would break this commandment; but even the desire entertained in the heart. Mark, Christ is not giving some new law, touching adultery, murder, &c., but is simply stating what is, and always had been, the meaning of the law. He showed that it extended farther than the doctors had said it did. Thus he fulfilled what the prophets had foretold of him, "He will magnify the law and make it honorable." Isa. 42:21. He was not to abolish the law and give a new one; but was to magnify the law and make it honorable. To magnify a thing is to make it appear larger than it appeared before; to cause it to be seen more clearly. And this is just what Christ did touch God's law.
D. M. CANRIGHT.
Santa Clara, Aug. 28, 1874.(Continued.)