by By Erick Muriithi
“And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.” Matthew 7:28-29
A long time ago before I heard that there was such a thing as exegesis [letting the text of the Bible speak instead of infusing your ideas into the text (eisegesis)], I came across this text. And like a good old butcher, I butchered it out of context, and went ahead to tell my readers that teaching with authority means standing up with this commanding voice and barking at them. Well, we might say that my teaching was infected with barkteria.
Today, however, I have a different concern. My concern is that in the modern era, a great deal of Christians are happy to isolate the authority and person of our Lord Jesus Christ from his commands. So that good morals are now the mainstay of the Christian diet today without clear teaching about the Lord who commands those morals. This is what is called moralism — the teaching of good morals alone without the person and authority of Jesus Christ.
People are taught that fornication is wrong, for example, and all manner of boundaries are put into place to try and prevent it, but it is not clear as to why fornication is wrong.
Why was the teaching of our Lord so astonishing to the crowds? Because his teaching was one with authority. What does this mean? Did he have a commanding voice? Was it because he had a booming voice? Was it novel and full of emotional appeal? Did it make them cry and thus they felt touched? Did he yell at them? He must have projected his voice to be heard by the huge crowds for sure. But that was not what teaching with authority meant.
Jesus spoke as the lawgiver would. Every scribe, every rabbi, every Levite would quote other rabbis and make illustrations but none of them ever spoke as a lawgiver. None of them ever spelled out a single command at the people as the lawgiver of Sinai would.
Look at the sermon on the mount, because it was in light of this sermon that Mathew gives us this statement. What did Jesus teach in this sermon? He made some authoritative statements. Here are but a few:
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:11-12
“For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20
“It was also said, Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 3But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” Matthew 5:31-32
Jesus Christ doesn’t simply give a set of moral commands; he speaks at though he owns them. He puts it bluntly…. I say to you….. speaking as only a divine lawgiver would. He is setting the standard for those who would enter the kingdom of heaven, because it is HIS kingdom.
This would certainly shock the crowds. He is tying all these commands to himself. He is in fact saying…. As Lord, I say to you… that is certainly what the crowds would have heard. … As the creator and originator of marriage I say to you, whoever divorces his wife except on the ground of sexual immorality makes her commit adultery.
And yet today, people are working hard to eliminate the authority of Jesus Christ from his teaching. We now have a pleading, begging Jesus being preached instead of a sovereign commanding Lord.
Reading through the gospels, what will you do with the statements of Christ like those I have quoted above? Were these commands from a sovereign Lord preaching his holy standard of obedience to a people he owned, or were they simply the teachings of a guru and life coach?
Christ is our savior; the condition he has placed upon us is we submit to him as LORD! Jesus told those who were burdened to come to him and take his yoke upon them. What did he mean? Yokes were put on oxen and donkeys as they pulled the plough. Putting a yoke upon an ox meant that the ox had to do as it was commanded by the owner. That was why Jesus said, “I am gentle”. He will not lay burdens on you that you cannot bear up under. In fact, He will give you rest. What is this rest? It is the forgiveness of sins that he gives to all those who take his yoke upon them; to all who submit to him as Lord.
This was no normal rabbi. He taught as Lord, and he told his disciples, “Teach them to obey all that I have commanded you.” And yet today, the authority of Christ has been removed from his commands by many who now teach moral commands, citing their benefits to society, to families and to individuals. Fornication, is said to be wrong because it causes people to be unhappy, society to disintegrate, and so on. Christians are quick to forget that morality alone is a key tenet of every other religion.
But Jesus gave these commands as the sovereign Lawgiver. He was speaking as the owner, Creator and Savior of those he spoke to. He is the reason his commands are binding. We follow and obey them to reflect our submission to him. All other benefits are by products of submission to Christ.
His authority matters.
So, why is fornication and stealing and gossip wrong? Because Jesus Christ, our Creator, our Lord, and our Savior says it is wrong.
In conclusion, lest someone say that religion is simply a matter of social control, here are a few reasons why the authority and person of Jesus Christ should be emphasized as we teach and hear his commandments.
The glory of God.
As Habakkuk prophesies against Babylon, he points out that glorying in their empire is vain, because ultimately the glory of God will fill the earth and their empire is fleeting. This is a great reminder that our little moral lives are but a shadow. They are little fleeting moral kingdoms. Our societies and lives are but wind, soon to be gone. What will remain? God is the one who remains forever. The earth will soon be covered with his glory. The objective of the church is to glorify God. It glorifies God when we obey Christ and submit to him as Lord. This will be the characteristic of the earth someday, and unless we obey Christ now, we will not be a part of this new empire of God! Good morals alone do not glorify God. It is obedience to Christ Jesus that does.
The enjoyment of Christ.
It is impossible to enjoy Christ if his commands are simply taught as good morals and principles that accrue certain benefits. Religion then becomes burdensome, and more often than not, just another system of keeping everyone nice and clean. But that is not the intention of Jesus Christ. Jesus intends for his church to enjoy him. To revel in him. He is to be our joy. And the way we find joy in him is by taking his yoke upon us. So then, how can we enjoy Christ and find rest for our souls if at all we separate him from his yoke? He said his yoke is easy because he is gentle. How then can we tell people to take the yoke of Christ upon themselves if we do not speak of his gentleness? The gentleness of Christ cannot be known without the yoke of Christ, and the yoke of Christ cannot be taken without the assurance of his gentleness. So then, the enjoyment of Christ and his Lordship are bound together. You cannot have one without the other.
Obedience without Christ is not obedience.
The very definition of obedience implies a commanding Lord and a servant. Good morals are not obedience. They are simply virtuous sins. Take Cain for example. He brought the best of his fruits to God, but they were his produce — the products of his own religiosity. And they brought sadness and anger to Cain because God said he did wrong. Cain and Abel both brought an offering to God, but Abel obeyed God and Cain did not obey. One found joy, and another anger and jealousy. Such is the danger of good morals without the person and authority of Christ Jesus. Christ is the reason for the enjoyment of obedience. He is true religion. You might be a moral person without Christ, but all you are is a sinful and rebellious moral person.
The objective of the Gospel writers, and God’s objective, is that men confess with their mouth that Christ is Lord. His commands in the gospels were geared towards this objective. And so then, how is it that the objective of so many Christians is to live moral lives merely for morality’s sake?
We must remember what the apostle Peter stated in his first epistle: “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” 1 Peter 3:15
Revere or sanctify Christ as Lord.
Soli Deo Gloria.
Eric Muriithi is a writer and Bible student who loves to engage in both polemic and apologetic discussions. He is involved in campus ministry at Egerton University, Kenya.
