PASSAGE: Matthew 5:17-20
SERIES SUMMARY
As Jesus steps onto the scene of history, Matthew paints a picture of him that invites our participation in what Jesus is doing. The portrait is that Jesus is the True King who is bringing the kingdom of heaven to earth. This good news is not reserved for especially religious people in a distant future; it’s good news, right now, for ordinary people who come to Jesus in faith.
And while Jesus inaugurated the kingdom among us through teaching and serving in dozens of ways, he ultimately brought heaven to earth by embracing the cross as his throne and wearing thorns as his crown. In doing this, he broke the powers of the kingdom(s) of this world and opened up God’s new world through his resurrection. Now, because of these things, discipleship to Jesus is about praying and living “Your kingdom come, Your will be done.” It is about whole-life transformation and embodying kingdom realities. It is about becoming people who naturally live out what Jesus taught. Today, because of Matthew’s witness and Jesus’ ministry, the kingdom is coming in our own lives, “on earth as it is in heaven.”
PASSAGE GUIDE
Many of us feel the tension of the Old Testament: hundreds of commands, sacrifices, and laws that can leave us either striving to keep everything or shrugging it off as irrelevant now that Jesus has come. Jesus offers a third way that honors the Old Testament without turning it into a burdensome checklist or a discarded relic. The issue isn’t whether Scripture matters, but how it finds its meaning and purpose in Christ.
In Matthew 5:17–18, Jesus makes it clear He didn’t come to abolish the Law and the Prophets, a shorthand for the whole Old Testament, but to fulfill them, like finishing a house according to the Architect’s design. He fulfills Scripture by completing its promises about the coming Messiah and new covenant, embodying its patterns as sacrifices, priests, and kings preview His cross, intercession, and reign, and perfectly keeping its commands from the inside out. Because every detail matters to Jesus, His followers can’t treat God’s Word casually; grace doesn’t cancel obedience, it empowers it.
Jesus then contrasts two ways people relate to God’s commands. Some loosen Scripture by quietly adjusting it to fit what they already want, so obedience becomes selective and convenient. Others are doer teachers: they don’t just study God’s Word, they practice it, and their lives help others do the same. In Jesus’ kingdom, integrity matters, and real spiritual credibility comes from lived obedience like forgiving quickly, refusing gossip, speaking with gentleness, and choosing integrity when it costs something.
Finally, Jesus says our righteousness must exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, not by scoring higher on rule keeping, but by possessing a different kind of righteousness altogether. Pharisaic righteousness was external and image driven; Jesus calls for heart level, Spirit powered righteousness rooted in grace. The good news is that the righteousness Jesus requires is also what He provides: His righteousness is counted to us in justification, and His Spirit reshapes us over time in sanctification. Faithful living this week starts with the heart, expresses itself in small love driven acts of obedience, and stays close to Jesus, the One who fulfilled the Law for us and is now fulfilling it in us.
Faithful living means fixing our eyes on Jesus who fulfills God’s Word, deepens our obedience, and shows us how to live.
*We are a church located in Greenville, South Carolina. Our vision is to see God transform us into a community of grace passionately pursuing life and mission with Jesus.
SUGGESTIONS FOR COMMUNITY GROUP QUESTIONS
Remember, these are “suggested” questions. You do not have to go through every single one of them. You do not need to listen to both sermons at both campuses to participate in the discussion.
OPENING QUESTION
What's one rule or instruction you follow that initially seemed restrictive but turned out to be freeing or helpful?
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS (Read Matthew 5:17-20)
- How does understanding Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament change the way you read and apply Scripture in your daily life?
- In what areas of your life are you tempted to be a 'Relaxer' who loosens God's commands rather than a 'Doer-Teacher' who embodies and shares them?
- How does the truth that Jesus fulfilled the Law perfectly in both His life and death free you from the burden of trying to earn God's approval?
- Where in your life might you be focusing on external behavior and performance rather than allowing Jesus to transform your heart from the inside out?
- What does it look like practically to let grace become power for obedience rather than permission for passivity in your walk with Christ?
- How can you distinguish between obedience that flows from love and relationship with Jesus versus obedience driven by pressure or legalism?
- In what ways might you be treating God's Word as a rubber stamp for your preferences rather than as a compass that guides your decisions?
- Who in your life are you modeling faithful obedience to, and how are you teaching others to follow Jesus through your example?
- What is one thing that you want to remember leaving here today and going about your week?
RESOURCES