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Can you please explain Matthew 5:20 in relation to the doctrine of salvation by faith alone? I have always understood the doctrine of faith alone to mean that someone is not saved by their own righteousness but through their faith in Jesus.
James F. Pope
Your understanding is correct. Examining Jesus’ words in context will verify that.
Good
In Matthew 5:20, Jesus said, “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
To unsuspecting first-century Judean eyes, the Pharisees could have easily appeared to be paragons of virtue. They displayed a zealousness for God’s laws—and their own rules as well. While most Jews fasted a handful of days throughout the year, Pharisees boasted of fasting twice a week (Luke 18:12). While certain items were exempt from God’s commands to tithe, Pharisees made it a point to tithe everything (Luke 11:42; 18:12). Casual observers quickly could have concluded that the Pharisees were good people and model citizens. They appeared to be righteous to everyone.
Better than good
Jesus states that if people want to enter the kingdom of heaven, their righteousness needs to go beyond “that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law.” On the surface, the Lord’s words appear to be saying that if people are to have any hope of salvation, they need to do more and be better people than the Pharisees. If that surface meaning is accurate, then the doctrine of salvation “by faith alone” would be in jeopardy. But digging deeper into Jesus’ words enables us to arrive at an accurate interpretation.
Remember that Matthew 5:20 is part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. In that discourse, the Lord was not explaining what people needed to do to become his followers. The “congregation” listening to that sermon consisted of people whom the Holy Spirit had already brought to saving faith. He was teaching his disciples (Matthew 5:1,2) To these Christians Jesus spoke of the need to have a righteousness that surpassed the Pharisees and teachers of the law. Knowing what kind of righteousness those people possessed is critical to understanding Jesus’ words.
Perfect in Jesus
The “righteousness” of the Pharisees was their moral outward righteous behavior. They were not righteous in God’s eyes (John 15:5; Hebrews 11:6). So what would surpass their righteousness? The only righteousness that counts: the righteousness that comes from Jesus.
Just a few sentences earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus had said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:17). Jesus came into the world to fulfill all the commandments of God perfectly. That is precisely what he did.
He is “the Righteous One” (1 John 2:1). Through faith in Jesus, his righteousness is credited to people who are joined to him in faith (Romans 4:22-25). God considers Christians righteous in his sight. In this way, our righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, because we have the righteousness of Jesus by faith. So this verse harmonizes well with the doctrine of salvation through faith alone.
Martin Luther described well the righteousness Christians enjoy through faith in Jesus: “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, I am your sin. You took on you what was mine; yet set on me what was yours. You became what you were not, that I might become what I was not.”
Because of Jesus’ righteousness, we have entered the kingdom of heaven.
Author: James F. Pope
Volume 106, Number 7
Issue: July 2019
- Q&A: Do parts of the Bible teach works righteousness?
- Q&A: How can I overcome my struggle with lust and pornography?
- Q&A: How should I help my child struggling with same-sex attraction?
- Q&A: Should Christians pray to saints?
- Q&A: Is anger sinful?
- Q&A: How can parents encourage adult children who wander from the faith?
- Q&A: Does the doxology belong in the Lord’s Prayer?
- Q&A: Is God fair?
- Q&A: When we pray, “Your kingdom come,” what are we praying for?
- Q&A: How can I better manage what God has given me this year so that I glorify him?
- Q&A: What are ways to glorify God besides singing in church?
- Q&A: I have no special gifts, and I mess up all the time. Does God really need me?
- Q&A: How do I overcome the feeling that my life has no purpose and I don’t make a difference?
- Q&A: My friend died and was not a professing Christian. What do I say to the family?
- Q&A: How can my mother and I forgive my father for being unfaithful and causing my parents to divorce?
- Q&A: Why were demon possession, gifts of healing, and gifts of tongues more prevalent in biblical times?
- Q&A: Is Christianity the only religion that gives the certainty of heaven?
- Q&A: If people go to hell, isn’t it their fault because God gave them free will and they rejected him?
- Q&A: Why are the 40 days between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension important for the disciples and for us?
- Q&A: Can you explain Jesus’ words to the wailing women he met on his way to be crucified?
- Q&A: What if spouses don’t “love” each other anymore?
- Q&A: Is it wrong to have a cross with Jesus’ body on it?
- Q&A: Is our time of grace really unchangeable?
- Q&A: I know that we are saved by grace apart from works, but how can it be that easy?
- Q&A: Are there degrees of glory in heaven as a reward for good works?
- Q&A: Do Lutherans take the Bible literally and teach millennialism?
- Q&A: Are there different interpretations of the Bible?
- Q&A: How can we be sure the Bible includes what God originally gave us?
- Q&A: Why does it seem like Christianity is so negative?
- Q&A: How can I explain how Jesus’ resurrection is possible and if the Bible is reliable?
- Q&A: Is it okay to live together if we are planning to get married?
- Q&A: How is the Bible God’s Word?
- Q&A: Were we “created to make a difference”?
- Q&A: Am I being judgmental if I point out someone’s sin?
- Q&A: Do I need to read the Bible to have a relationship with God?
- Q&A: Can a Christian vote for a political candidate who supports abortion?
- Q&A: Does God really care?
- Q&A: Does it really matter how God made the world?
- Q&A: Does God send people to hell?
- Q&A: Is death natural?
- Q&A: How can I forgive and forget?
- Q&A: Does God help those who help themselves?
- Q&A: How can we say that the Old Testament God is the same as the New Testament God?
- Q&A: Is Jesus the only way to get to heaven?
- Q&A: Doesn’t God want me to be happy?
- Light for our path: Does God hate us?
- Light for our path: What kind of comfort can you give someone when a loved one commits suicide?
- Light for our path: What does a submissive wife in a Christian marriage look like?
- Light for our path: Is it a sin to want to die from a terminal illness?
- Light for our path: What advice can you give about applauding in church?
- Light for our path: Can you please explain Matthew 5:20?
- Light for our path: What is karma?
- Light for our path: Can the devil personally be tempting me and a lot of other people at exactly the same time?
- Light for our path: Does the word Easter refer to Ishtar, the Babylonian fertility goddess?
- Light for our path: What role does emotion play in contrition?
- Light for our path: What does the white stone in Revelation 2:17 mean?
- Light for our path: Is the cross symbol now anti-Christian?
- Light for our path: Were Joseph and Mary engaged or married when Joseph learned of Mary’s pregnancy?