Deacon Hoàng Thương
“I HAVE COME NOT TO ABOLISH THE LAW BUT TO FULFILL IT”
Sirach 15:15–20; 1 Corinthians 2:6–10; Matthew 5:17–37
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
We live our lives under all kind of laws: traffic law, tax law, construction law, insurance law, marriage law, education law, election law, state law, federal law basically our life’s activities are involved with laws. Whether we like it or not, we have to follow a certain law which our government legislates to put our society in a good order, to serve the common good for all.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus said to the disciples: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” What does it mean?
There are 3 ways to understand what our Lord Jesus said:
1. First, Remember the laws God has given to Moses on Mount Sinai to guide God’s people Israelites to live a holy way of life, but they have failed time after time to live God’s holy way of life according to his laws.
For example, Jesus pointed out their failure in the Gospel today: “I tell you unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” What is the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees that prevent them from entering heaven?
They only follow the laws to the letter, to the exterior of the laws without their heart. They practice the laws to show off to others how self-righteous they are. They practice the laws without concerning other’s welfare.
Remember when our Lord Jesus healed the sick on a sabbath, they accused him of doing work on the sabbath. For them practicing the laws is more important than to care for another fellow human being. That is why Jesus declared once for all that: “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” (Mk 2:27)
Scripture said: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rms 3:23) How many times you and I have broken the ten commandments. Yes, indeed we all have sinned. In this sense, Jesus is right when he said: “I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” In other words, Jesus came to complete the laws, to meet all the requirements of the laws for us.
He is not only teaching the laws but he completes it because he has brought the purpose and requirements of the laws to its completion. The purpose and requirements of the laws can be summarized in these two commandments: “to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and to love your neighbors as yourself.”
Jesus showed his perfect love to God the Father by being obedient to the Father even willing to die on the cross as the atonement for our transgression. Jesus also showed his perfect love for his enemies while dying on the cross saying: “Father, forgive them because they do not know what they are doing.”
2. Second way of understanding what Jesus said: “I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.”
We just heard from the Gospel today. Jesus was teaching a series of corrections indicating their ancestor’s teachings are not sufficient, are not quite correct on target: “You have heard that it was said…but I say to you.”
èEssentially, Jesus said I have come down from heaven to treat our moral disease to its root. An immoral act starts out from our heart and mind way before it’s executed.
You have heard that it was said: You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgement. But I say to you whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement.
You have heard that it was said, you shall not commit adultery. But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in your heart.
You have heard that it was said, whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce. But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife – unless the marriage is unlawful – causes her to commit adultery.
You have heard that it was said, do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow. But I say to you, do not swear at all. Let you ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes.’ And your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.
Imagine if Jesus is speaking to us now, he would say: You have heard that it was said, you go to church on Sunday because it is your obligation. But I say to you, you go to church on Sunday because you love me; you want to be with me; you want to be in your Father’s house; you want to come here to give thanks and praise to me for the many blessings in your life.
Most importantly you go to church on Sunday because you want to encounter me – your Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son of God, especially when you receive me in the Eucharist - my Body, Soul, and Divinity. You want to go to church because I am patiently waiting for you here 24/7 in the tabernacle to give you faith, love, and hope in your life.
èUltimately, What Jesus is saying that the evil act is derived from the heart first before it is acting it out. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, acts of adultery, other immoral sexual acts, thefts, false testimonies, and slanderous statements. (Matt 15:19)
Lord, give us a clean and pure heart, so that our thoughts can be pure and clean. When our thoughts are pure and clean, then there will be no evil acts derived from it. Jesus reassured that: “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.” (Matt 5:8)
3. Third way of understanding what Jesus said: “I have come not to abolish but to fulfill”
You and I can never be holy on our own but if Jesus is delving in our heart, then his holiness will help us to become holy and his perfection will help us to become perfect. It means he will help us to fulfill the laws which we cannot do it on our own.
This is why we go to church not because we are holy, but because we need him in our heart to help us becoming holier. At mass, we encounter Christ in his WORDS; we encounter Christ in the holy communion; and We encounter Christ in community of St Mark which is the Body of Christ.
As important as going to church, Jesus prefers us to make peace with our brothers and sisters before going to church: “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. God prefers mercy over sacrifice. (Matt 9:13) God desires us to do the same choosing mercy over sacrifice.
Conclusion:
The foundation of the law is love. Jesus invites us to live out the radical call to love even our enemies. If our heart is filled with the love of God and neighbors then we are no longer constrained by the law; we are no longer subject to the laws. Our mind is clear without any hatred nor harmful thought against anyone. Since our actions are derived from our thoughts of the mind, there should not be any more evil and heinous action, as a result.
As we receive Jesus in communion later, let us ask the Lord to transform our heart from a stony heart to a natural heart and fill it with his love, so that we can follow his example to be obedient to God the Father and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Now, we can say Jesus fulfills the laws in us. Amen