Note the pattern in these verses. Jesus gave six examples that contrasted pharisaical “righteousness” with true, “surpassing” righteousness. This is characteristic 6. In the previous weeks, we have addressed Anger, Adultery, Divorce, Making Promises, and Revenge. The Righteous Wrap-Up Matthew 5:43  1. The Pattern Of The World The command “Love your neighbor” is found in Leviticus 19:18, but no OT Scripture adds “and hate your enemies.” Rabbinic literature, as it was later preserved, does not usually leap to such bold and harmful conclusions. Thus, some commentators have taken this passage as a later Christian mockery of Jewish values.  The Qumran covenanters explicitly commanded love for those within the community and hatred for the outsiders, and they doubtless represented other groups with similar positions. The covenanters’ conviction that they were the faithful remnant may mitigate this love-hate antithesis. This was a teaching of the Pharisees that Jesus was combating. This is the standard operating procedure for our world: gravitate to those who love you and shun your enemies. God would say love everybody. I know what some of you think: God understands because I have evil enemies. You are not excluded or given an exemption; Jesus is clear in his teachings. The Bible tells us not to conform to the patterns of this world. We must remember this even when the patterns of God are inconvenient to us. God calls us to rise above the mess of our world. Matthew 5:44-47  2. Love People Much recent Scholarship identifies the “enemies” with the persecutors of Matthew’s church. Jesus used a different approach to make the same point. He emphasized two principles to urge his followers to love all people.  First, he urged them to follow the example of their Father in heaven. The Father gives gifts to good and evil alike, and so we, as believers, ought to love and pray for our enemies. Second, Jesus urges us to show ourselves distinct from the rest of the world, the citizens of the earth. The flip side of the first argument is to be like the Father. We are like unbelievers if we show partiality and love only those who love us. If, on the other hand, we show love impartially, guided by grace and mercy, then we show ourselves distinct, and we shine before the world, bringing glory to the Father. One manifestation of love for enemies is prayer; praying for and loving an enemy will prove mutually reinforcing—the more love, the more prayer; the more prayer, the more love. We are called to Love God and Love People. Not just the people we like, not just the people who do what we want, not just the people who dress like us, not just the people who vote like us, not just the people who have the same sexual presence as us. We do not have to agree with them to love them. Matthew 5:48  3. Final Challenge of Continued Righteousness The paragraph begun in v. 43 closes with a command that may equally summarize all six antitheses. All six examples are striking in their implications, but this one stands out as a pinnacle exemplifying mercy and grace, the supernatural qualities of God’s kingdom servants. Even as God sets higher standards in his new covenant than in the law, he reveals himself as more forgiving of our failures. Our default behavior is that God will understand and forgive us. What if our default behavior is that we will live in such a way that we don’t need God to forgive us? We will fail, and he will forgive us, but what if we lived in such a way that we didn’t expect that forgiveness? How would that change the church? The righteousness of Jesus’ followers must impact the world because it surpasses mere “religiosity.” What are our transformational moments? Are you falling into the patterns of this world? Do you genuinely love people? Are you pressing into Righteousness?