Repentance Necessary to Escape God's Wrath

"But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca,' [worthless] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell." Matthew 5:22

The setting of out text is the Sermon on the Mount, the greatest sermon ever preached.

And, Jesus here starts with the Fifth Commandment, "You shall not murder."

The Fifth Commandment is the commandment that you would think everyone could say they kept. Certainly the Pharisees [Jewish religious leaders in the time of Christ] and the scribes in our text boast that they keep this Commandment perfectly. They don't murder anyone. Of all the Commandments, the Fifth is one we all keep.

Or do we?

Jesus teaches us the Fifth Commandment is more than just merely the physical act of murder. There is more to all God's Commandments than just outward obedience. They make demand on the heart as well.

Just the anger, just thinking you want to kill someone is sin.

And, who has never thought that?

In explaining the Law this way, spiritually, Christ reveals God's wrath from heaven over all. No one escapes.

In God's sight, just the anger, holding a grudge, refusal to forgive is equal to the physical act of murder itself.

What about the grudges we hold against our spouse? Or our refusal to forgive? God judges it.

Without Christ, God's righteousness, dying on the cross for all sin; the Fifth Commandment absolutely kills us.

But thank goodness for Holy Baptism. There, God acts. We receive his grace. We receive Christ's righteousness. There, we receive the Holy Spirit and saving faith.

Now, repentance and forgiveness can take place 24-hours a day, seven days a week -- before, during and after worship.

You know, we need to hear God's Law from time to time. That part of God's Word that shows us our sin.

Any sin in us that lies upon our conscience ought to come to remembrance. So we confess it and repent.

I always think of King David in the Old Testament. Time passed, maybe a year, before he was confronted by the prophet Nathan in the Bathsheba affair.

Confronted by the prophet Nathan, David confessed "I have sinned against the Lord." Adultery and murder were the sins committed.

How can we confess sin in light of the Ten Commandments unless we know what it means to break them?

God looks at our heart. So, forgiveness is important to Him. After all, isn't that why Jesus came? He died on the cross to forgive all our sins, even anger.

While we are still in this earthly life, we must try to forgive our sins against each other. And, we should.

As a pastor, I sometimes hear about regrets people have for not settling their differences. It is best to forgive.

We all remember the last tie we were angry over something that happened or what someone did or said. Who hasn't been angry in thought, word and deed? If you remember your last episode of anger, was it justified?

WE all try and justify our anger. But, God sees through it all. He demands perfection according to the law. Thank goodness we don't have to earn the righteousness that saves the. The Gospel is a gift from God.

The object of our faith is in Christ crucified and risen from the dead. We receive His righteousness that saves us. Not by our works, but by God's grace.

Editor's Note: "Preacher's Desk" is open to ordained clergy serving in Valley County. Clergy are invited to submit columns, which will be published on a rotating scheduled dependent on participation. If interested, send religious columns to [email protected]