ROOTED - Thursday, June 4, 2026

Matthew
5:20

20 For I tell you, unless your
righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will
never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Reflection:
The Greatest Sermon

Written By: Pastor Jesse Caro

We
are in the New Testament… at last. In my opinion we have reached the “promised
land.” And no sooner do we enter the promised land of the New Testament than we
see the old ways flipped upside down. In the providence of God, he saw fit to
put the greatest sermon ever preached right up front… letting the reader know
that the old way of doing things in the Old Testament are now obsolete. There
is a new sheriff in town, with new rules and new ways of doing things. There
was an old way… a righteousness that was external… that no longer is operable
as a way for living the spiritual life. Indeed, the Sermon on the Mount is a contrast
between the righteousness of the Scribes and the Pharisees, and “his
righteousness…” which we are to “seek first” (found in chapter 6).

The
righteousness of the scribes and the pharisees, is basically externalism. It is
about thinking you are righteous because you do not commit murder (an external
act) or don’t commit adultery (again, external). But the reality is that true
righteousness is an inside reality. It is, in the case of murder, a heart
problem called hate. And in the case of adultery, the real issue is lust in the
heart. Matthew 5 makes the contrast pretty clear. True righteousness, the kind
that Jesus offers, is greater than the righteousness derived from the Law. That
righteousness was rules… rules that could never be met. The Old Testament Law
made righteousness about external rules that could never be met. Jesus makes
clear that “his righteousness” is an inside out righteousness. Change the heart
and all the externals will follow. God is not interested in us playing the part
of the righteous person and looking good. God is interested that we actually
are changing and becoming righteous, through and through, inside and out.

Prayer

Lord,
may we, as we enter in the New Testament, see how we might become righteous
from the inside.