Listen to the reading of Scripture below, and then learn more from related resources. As you meditate on this passage, think about this question: What does righteousness mean in the Sermon on the Mount?
In Jesus’ day, the Scribes and Pharisees thought of themselves as the greatest because of their strict observance of the Torah.
Matthew 5:17-20
Jesus and the Torah
What would it have been like for Jesus’ audience to hear that there was a righteousness even greater than that of the Pharisees?
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“Dikaiosune, or righteousness, means living in right relationship with God, other people, and all creation. We act with righteousness when we live justly, honestly, and faithfully, according to God’s instruction.”
Chapter from Sermon on the Mount E9
The Call to a Greater Righteousness
“The Pharisees are very strict. They're super careful. What we learn about Jesus … He gets frustrated that their strictness keeps them from seeing the forest through the trees. But what's interesting here is that he's kind of saying, ‘I'm going to be more strict.’ He's upping the ante here. He's saying, ‘I am actually calling people to be more faithful to the will of God.’”
Jesus says that there is a way to live more rightly than even the Pharisees, who were seen as the strictest, holiest group in Jesus’ day. Jesus offers a vision for righteousness that is greater than what the most devout religious leaders had to offer. We’ll start learning what this greater righteousness looks like in the next playlist.