Stress Test Devotional May 25
May 25, 2024
MATTHEW 5:21-22| You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire.
Jesus exercised a sovereign freedom over the Torah. This is evident in the way he teaches in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew Chapter 5. “You have heard it said to you,” means it was written in the law of Moses, and then Jesus appends a giant qualifier, “but I say to you.” These scriptural phrases sounded revolutionary to his first century listeners. No teacher ever contrasted his teaching with the Torah and no one ever simply asserted an individual view, without including cross references to other teachers and authorities.
Have you ever known someone with mutual authority? What was its source?
No one has ever had the authority of Jesus. Do you agree?
