As Jesus begins the heart of the Sermon on the Mount, He makes a bold statement: “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (5:20). That would have shocked His listeners. The Pharisees were the most visibly religious people of their day. But Jesus wasn’t impressed with appearances—He was after something deeper.
In this lesson, Jesus begins to show what that deeper righteousness looks like. He takes two well-known commands—Do not murder and Do not commit adultery—and presses them inward. He doesn’t dismiss the Law; He fulfills it by uncovering the heart behind the command.
Anger and lust may not leave a visible mark, but Jesus teaches that they corrode the soul, damage relationships, and break covenant with God. These are not “small sins.” Jesus’ words force us to ask:
- Am I harboring anger or contempt toward others?
- Am I treating purity lightly or making excuses for lustful thoughts?
- Do I take sin seriously enough to make hard changes?
Jesus isn’t calling us to surface-level religion. He is calling us to transformation from the inside out. Let’s listen closely—not just to understand the commands, but to let them search and shape our hearts.
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By Jeremy Sprouse
Jeremy has been married to Erynn since August 1999. They are blessed with six children: Jaden, Isaiah, Isaac, Ean, Joseph, and Evelyn. Jeremy preaches for the Patrick St. church of Christ in Dublin, TX and is the author of To Train Up a Knight.
Knights of The Father 