How Jesus Fulfills God’s Law for Us | Matthew 5:17-20
We can rejoice that Jesus fulfills God's Law for us in four major ways: (1) the hope for a king; (2) the demand for atonement; (3) the requirement of blessing, and (4) the need for transformation. This sermon is part 2 of “Messiah's Righteousness,” Bryan Craddock’s verse-by-verse sermon series on Matthew 5.
Have you ever tried to open a lock only to find that the key won’t turn? It is such a frustrating experience. Even a relatively simple lock can accommodate thousands of possible key patterns, and that number increases with a more complex lock. But only one pattern moves all the pins inside to the place where the lock opens. So, having the right key makes all the difference.
The Old Testament Law is like a complex locking mechanism. The whole system guards the way to the presence of God. There are promises to believe, commands to obey, and rituals to follow. But in our fallen state as sinful human beings, no one can unlock it. Even the most righteous Old Testament believers were kept at a distance. The Law is so complicated that you can get lost in all the details, when you try to read it.
In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reinforces this sense of separation, but he also reveals that he himself is the key that unlocks it all. Matthew 5:17-20 tells us that he said,
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
In future messages, we will see how Jesus unpacks that last statement in the rest of the chapter. The problem he addresses here is that the Pharisees obsessively followed traditional applications of the Law. But Jesus argues that they were missing the heart of it. So, even though they seemed to be rigorous in their obedience, they were actually relaxing the Law’s demands by having an external focus. That approach to righteousness will never open the way into God’s kingdom.
Jesus himself is the great one who keeps the commandments and teaches them. He fulfills them so that every detail will be accomplished as promised. That is what opens the way for us to enter the kingdom and to spend eternity in the presence of God. But how does that all work? What does Jesus do?
We can rejoice that he fulfills God’s Law for us in four major ways. They are like the pins in the lock. He does not explain them all in the Sermon on the Mount, but Matthew’s Gospel and other New Testament passages help us understand them.
These fulfillments show us how every part of the Old Testament points to Jesus. So, knowing them helps us discern how different parts of the Old Testament relate to us as New Testament believers in Christ. They are also the central ideas of the gospel that give us comfort and hope. But it seems to me that many Christians grasp one or two and miss the others. Having that sort of gap in our thinking can distort our motivations for pursuing righteousness, sapping the joy that God wants us to have. The Jewish people who listened to Jesus deliver that sermon probably only thought of this first fulfillment.
The Hope for a King
The idea of kingship is not popular today. It has been a quarter of a millennium since the United States declared its independence from the British throne. The founding fathers established a constitutional system of checks and balances to prevent someone from exercising that much power. But throughout our history, when times are hard and people get frustrated, even independent Americans want someone to take charge and exercise greater authority to fix things.
We find something similar in Israel’s history. Deuteronomy 33:5 speaks of the Lord as their king. But 1 Samuel 8 tells us that as the nation faced attacks from the Philistines, the people came to the Prophet Samuel and demanded that God give them a human king like all the other nations.
Their hope was misplaced, but the Lord was not surprised by that. The Law that he gave them a few hundred years earlier includes one short passage that anticipates it. Deuteronomy 17:14-20 says that the Lord must choose the person who will be king. It adds that he should not acquire a lot of wives, horses, silver, or gold, but that he should make himself a copy of the Law to read and obey all the days of his life.
The Lord chose Saul as Israel’s first king, but he foolishly disobeyed. So, the Lord raised up David instead and promised that his throne would be established forever (2 Sam 7). He and some of his descendants were relatively good kings, but they still struggled with sin. None of them were ever able to bring about the deep spiritual change that the nation needed. The Old Testament prophets, however, announced the hope for a future king who would be able to do just that.
Eight centuries before Christ, Isaiah speaks of a descendent of David called Immanuel, whose reign will bring oppression and warfare to an end (Isa 9:4-5, 7). He will completely fix our cursed and broken world. Isaiah 11:3-9 says,
And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
This righteous king will bring all creation into line with the design that God reveals in his Law. Nature itself will be transformed as every trace of rebellion and animosity is removed. The world will enter a time of perfect righteousness and peace. Can you think of anything better? Isn’t that what our hearts long for?
Isaiah 7:14 says that this king will be born of a virgin, and at the beginning of his Gospel, Matthew claims that this prophecy has been fulfilled. He tells us about a man named Joseph who discovers that the woman to whom he is betrothed is pregnant. He decides to divorce her, but Matthew 1:20-23 tells us,
But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel" (which means, God with us).
This is the first time that Matthew uses the word “fulfill,” and he uses it this way four more times before chapter 5. Each one is linked to a different Old Testament prophecy. So, as you read through, you cannot help but think of the hope for a king when you reach Matthew 5:17-18 and Jesus says,
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.
Jesus is the prophesied king, and one day every detail of that great Old Testament hope will be fully realized. The disciples of Jesus seem to have understood this aspect of how he would fulfill the Law and the Prophets. But there is more to it that they did not yet grasp, and it relates to the angel’s message about Jesus saving people from their sins. That leads us to a second way that Jesus fulfills the Law.
The Demand for Atonement
The Old Testament Law is hard to read if you’re an animal lover. Movies and television shows often say, “No animals were harmed in the making of this production.” But that cannot be said about the Old Testament.
Animal sacrifice was central to the system of worship described in the Law. Bulls, goats, lambs, and even pigeons were offered up. There was an incessant demand for atonement for sin. Hebrews 9:22 sums it up by saying,
Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
These sacrifices show that when people disobey God, there is a cost. From the very beginning in the garden of Eden, the penalty for sin has always been death. But we also see that an animal could sometimes serve as a substitute, dying in someone’s place. We see this scenario in the ram that died in Isaac’s place in Genesis 22:13. It is also demonstrated in the first Passover. God’s plague against the Egyptians was going to strike down all the firstborn sons, but the sons of Israel would be spared if a lamb was killed and its blood was spread on their doorposts (Ex 12:1-13).
But is the life of an animal a worthy substitute for a human being? Does its death truly satisfy the full penalty against sin in a lasting way? Hebrews 10:1-4 argues,
For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Of course, the author to the Hebrews writes as a follower of Jesus. You could argue that he was biased. But even before Jesus came, the Lord revealed to the Prophet Isaiah a different solution to the demand for atonement. He foretells the coming of a Suffering Servant, and Isaiah 53:4-7 says,
Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.
At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, the Lord revealed to John the Baptist that Jesus would be the one to fulfill this prophecy. John 1:29 tells us,
The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
Though some of the disciples heard John’s declaration, they did not fully grasp what it meant. They were upset when Jesus predicted that he would be killed. Matthew 16:22 tells us that Peter even rebuked him. When Jesus was crucified at the time of the Passover, they were confused and disillusioned. It was not until he rose from the dead that they began to understand.
In 1 John 2:1-2, the Apostle John explains,
My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
Instead of “propitiation,” some translations say, “atoning sacrifice.” The idea is that Jesus died in our place to satisfy the wrath of God against our sins. He fulfilled the Law’s demand for atonement. But something else was needed. Jesus fulfills God’s law in a third way.
The Requirement for Blessing
It’s been said that clothes make the man. As most people use it, that idea seems pretty shallow, but there is a spiritual version of it. In Matthew 22, Jesus tells a parable about a king hosting a great wedding feast for his son. The people who are invited refuse to come, so the king sends his servants to gather anyone they can find on the roads, both bad and good. This is an incredible blessing for these people, but when the king finds one guest who is not wearing a wedding garment, he has him cast out.
This story helps us understand how God’s Law relates to his promise of kingdom blessing that runs through the Old Testament. No one deserves to enjoy God’s blessing. The invitation to do so is a gracious gift that cannot be earned. But to participate in that great celebration, you need the right clothes.
The Law says that righteousness is the requirement for blessing. In Deuteronomy 11:26-28, Moses says to the people of Israel,
See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you today, and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known.
That seems simple enough, but the people of Israel were never able to keep the Law. They disobeyed and experienced God’s curse rather than his blessing. The prophets told them to hope for a king, but when he comes they would all be cast out of the celebration. To escape from the curse they would need true atonement, and to enter the kingdom and enjoy the blessing of God’s presence they would need perfect righteousness. So, I think that Jesus has this requirement in mind in Matthew 5:17. Look at the words again. He says,
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
Jesus fulfills the Law by living a perfectly righteous life. In fact, Matthew has been building up to this idea. Back in verses 1-11 of chapter 4, he tells us that the devil came to tempt Jesus. He tried three different attacks, but Jesus never sinned (cf. Heb 4:15).
Back in chapter 3, Matthew says that Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized. John’s baptism was a way for people to express repentance. But Jesus did not need to repent, because he never sinned. So, John tries to stop him. Matthew 3:14-15 tells us,
John would have prevented him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he consented.
Baptism is not commanded by the Law, but Jesus did it anyway. It is what humble people who recognized their spiritual poverty were doing. It was an acknowledgment of their need for righteousness. So, Jesus participates to identify with them, and God the Father responds. Verses 16 and 17 say,
And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."
The righteousness of Jesus pleases God the Father. He fulfills the requirement of blessing, but how does that help us? The good news is that we can be clothed in his righteousness. In 2 Corinthians 5:21, Paul explains,
For our sake he [God the Father] made him [His Son, Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
He does not just atone for our sin, he makes us righteous. But how? We receive it by believing in Jesus. We are justified by faith. In Romans 3:21-24, Paul says,
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it--the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus
On our own, we will never be righteous enough to enter God’s presence and see his glory. We have sinned and fallen short, but Jesus opens the way for us. He fulfilled the Law’s requirement for that blessing, and we can receive that incredible gift by placing our faith in him. But what then? How do people clothed in the righteousness of Christ live while we wait for the kingdom? The answer lies in one more way that Jesus fulfills the Law.
The Need for Transformation
Modern health care focuses a lot on the heart. It is central to our physical well-being, so doctors are always looking for signs of any problems. But people are often slow to pay attention. They are stubborn and don’t want to change their habits.
Many are even more hesitant to acknowledge their spiritual heart problem. Apart from God’s intervention our hearts are as hard as rock. They don’t beat for God. They are not in sync with his love and righteousness. His Law serves as the diagnostic. It reveals that our hearts have spiritually failed and that we need a transplant.
Moses uses a different analogy to address this problem in Deuteronomy 30:6. He begins the chapter talking about how the Jewish people will disobey and experience God’s curse. But he says that one day they will return to the Lord to obey him and receive his blessings. How is that possible? He says,
And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.
The Jewish practice of circumcising their sons dates back several centuries earlier to the time of Abraham. It was a sign of their covenant relationship with God. So, Moses associates that physical practice with the need for this spiritual change of heart. The Law reinforces the urgency of the situation by exposing how people fail to love and obey the Lord, but it does not have the power to bring about a change.
The Lord revealed to the Prophet Jeremiah that a new covenant was needed. Jeremiah 31:31-33 tells us that the Lord said,
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
The Lord also explained this transformation to the Prophet Ezekiel. Ezekiel 36:26-27 tells us that he said,
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
So, in the New Testament, it should not come as any surprise in John 3:3 when Jesus tells Nicodemus that no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. A transformation must take place. Everyone needs new life, and Jesus is the source of it. John 7:37-39 tells us,
On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
So, when we believe in Jesus, we are not just clothed in his righteousness. He sends the Holy Spirit to dwell within us (Jn 14:16-17) and to transform us (2 Cor 3:18). The Spirit also helps us understand the truth (1 Cor 2:12) and enables us to bear fruit as Paul describes in Galatians 5:22-23. He says,
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Without the Spirit’s heart transforming work, Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount would not really benefit us. It would only expose how far short we fall of Messiah’s righteousness. But Jesus does not clothe us in his righteousness and leave us with a heart of stone. He fulfills the Law and the Prophets by giving us life and sending us his Spirit so that we can begin to be transformed in preparation for his return.
__________
Jesus unlocks the way into the presence of God by fulfilling God’s Law for us. He fulfills the hope for a king, the demand for atonement, the requirement for blessing, and the need for transformation.
So, are you trusting him for all these things? Are you looking to him as the coming king, the lamb who takes away our sin, the one who clothes us in his righteousness and gives us a new heart? If not, I invite you to place your faith in him. If you would like to learn more, Romans 3 would be a good chapter to read.
Perhaps you believe, but you need to renew your faith in him. We are all tempted to act like the Pharisees, conforming externally to put on a good show, watering down God’s commands, and thinking of righteousness as my personal accomplishment. It’s not. It’s all of Christ. Trust him and let this good news of what he has accomplished fill you with joy and motivate you to follow him. It might help you to focus on one of these fulfillments and consider how it should shape your life.
May we rejoice in the Lord!
Reflect
Which of these fulfillments is the most familiar to you? How did you come to understand it?
Which of these fulfillments is the least familiar to you? What is the impact of neglecting that one?
What do you need to change in your life to better reflect reliance upon these fulfillments?