Mass Readings: Sir 15:16-21 Ps 119 1Cor 2:6-10 Mt 5:17-37
Key Verse to Meditate: "Do not think that
I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to
fulfil (Mt 5:17).
Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
The first and second readings of this Sixth
Sunday in Ordinary Time call us to freely choose God’s ways and to shape our
lives according to His wisdom rather than worldly values. When we choose God’s
wisdom and live by His commandments, we open ourselves to the unimaginable
gifts God has prepared for those who love Him.
The Sermon on the Mount continues in this
Sunday’s Gospel as well, where Jesus speaks at length on several important
themes of Christian discipleship, such as the Law and the Prophets, anger,
adultery, divorce, and oaths. Jesus teaches us that the true fulfillment of the
Law is love—love of God and love of neighbor. When we live in Christ and allow
Him to transform our hearts, the Law is no longer a burden, but a grace that
leads us to holiness and to the fullness of life in God. In His authoritative
moral teaching on the life of a disciple, Jesus moves from the external
observance of the law to an interior transformation of the heart.
First
Reading: The First Reading from Sirach reminds us that God has gifted us with
freedom, placing before us life and death, good and evil, and inviting us to
make responsible choices. The Book of Sirach reminds us that God has created us
with freedom and responsibility. Life and death, good and evil are
placed before us, and we are invited to choose wisely. God does not
force anyone to sin; our choices flow from our own decisions. True obedience is
not fear-driven but arises from love and reverence for God. Choosing God’s
commandments is choosing life, wisdom, and blessing.
Second
Reading: Saint Paul, in the Second Reading, reveals that true wisdom is not the
wisdom of this world but God’s hidden wisdom, prepared for our glory from all
eternity. Saint Paul speaks of a wisdom not of this world, but God’s
hidden and saving wisdom. This divine wisdom was destined for our glory long
before the ages began. Worldly powers failed to recognize this wisdom and
crucified the Lord of glory. God reveals His wisdom not through human
reasoning, but through the Holy Spirit. What God has prepared for those
who love Him surpasses human imagination. The first and the second
readings call us to freely choose God’s ways and to shape our lives according
to His wisdom rather than worldly values. When we choose God’s wisdom and live
by His commandments, we open ourselves to the unimaginable gifts God has
prepared for those who love Him.
The Gospel Reading: The Meaning
of “the Law and the Prophets”
The expression “the Law and the Prophets” (Mt
5:17) is a significant biblical phrase. It refers to the whole of Israel’s
Sacred Scriptures. The expression “the Law and the Prophets” (Mt 5:17) refers
to the whole of Israel’s Sacred Scriptures—the Law given through Moses and the
message proclaimed by the prophets. These Scriptures revealed God’s will and
prepared His people for the coming of the Messiah. When Jesus says, “I have
come not to abolish but to fulfill,” He makes it clear that He does not reject
the Law, but brings it to its fullness and perfection. He fulfills the Law by
revealing its deepest meaning, moving us from mere external observance to an
interior transformation of the heart.
The term “the Law” (Greek: Nomos)
primarily refers to the Torah—the first five books of the Old Testament—which
contain the Ten Commandments (Ex 20; Deut 5), ritual and ceremonial laws, and
covenant regulations. The term “the Prophets” refers to the Major Prophets
(Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel) and the Twelve Minor Prophets. Thus, the phrase
“the Law and the Prophets” is a way of referring to the whole of Jewish
Scripture (Tanakh), which comprises the Torah (Law), Nevi’im (Prophets), and
Ketuvim (Writings).
Jesus frequently came into conflict with the
Pharisees because they believed that He went against or broke the Law. In
reality, Jesus did not break the Law itself, but only challenged the Pharisees’
interpretation of it. In other words, it is not that the Pharisees observed the
Law while Jesus did not; rather, Jesus did not share their interpretation of
the Law. This is why Jesus declares in today’s Gospel: “Do not think that I
have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have come not to abolish but to
fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one
letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the Law until all is
accomplished” (Mt 5:17–18).
In the New Testament, Jesus stands as the
fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets (Mt 5:17). The key word in Matthew 5:17
is “fulfill” (plērōsai in Greek), which
means “to bring to completion,” “to bring to fullness,” or “to accomplish what
was intended.”
Jesus fulfills the moral law and deepens it
through His authoritative teaching: “You have heard… but I say to you” (Mt
5:21–48). He also fulfills the ceremonial law by becoming the true Passover
Lamb (Ex 12; Jn 1:29; 1 Cor 5:7), by identifying Himself as the true Temple (Jn
2:19–21), and as the final High Priest (Heb 4:14; 9:11–12). Furthermore, Jesus
fulfills all the prophecies spoken about Him in the Old Testament: the virgin
birth (Is 7:14; Mt 1:22–23), His birth in Bethlehem (Mic 5:2; Mt 2:5–6), the
suffering servant (Is 53; Acts 8:32–35), and the New Covenant (Jer 31:31; Lk
22:20). Thus, Jesus refers to this fulfillment when He says, “Everything
written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms must be
fulfilled” (Lk 24:44).
Jesus also summarizes the entire moral teaching
of Scripture in the Golden Rule, identifying it with the Law and the Prophets:
“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the
Law and the Prophets” (Mt 7:12). For Jesus, the phrase “the Law and the
Prophets” not only points forward to the coming Kingdom but also shows how
salvation history moves toward its fulfillment in Him: “For all the prophets
and the Law prophesied until John” (Mt 11:13; Lk 16:16). Furthermore, love of God
and love of neighbor summarize the entire Old Testament revelation. After
giving the two great commandments (Deut 6:5; Lev 19:18), Jesus says: “On these
two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Mt 22:40).
Concerning Anger
In today’s Gospel, Jesus
portrays anger as the root of violence (Mt 5:21–22) and as an obstacle to
worship (Mt 5:23–24). Going beyond the Fifth Commandment, Jesus demands an end
to anger and hateful speech (Mt 5:21–22). The sin of murder can begin with a
strong feeling of anger. More than the external offense, it is the inner
disposition of harboring anger, hatred, and contempt for others that ultimately
results in serious sins.
That is why, in the next
two verses (Mt 5:23–24), Jesus proposes reconciliation as the antidote to
anger. When you come to offer your sacrifice to God, it is the reconciled
heart—a heart willing to forgive completely—that God accepts. Therefore, Jesus
says, “Leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled
to your brother, and then come and present your offering” (Mt 5:24). Prayer and
resentment cannot exist together. Only a heart free of anger can offer God a
worthy sacrifice: “Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything
against anyone…” (Mk 11:25).
Christ’s response to anger
is forgiveness. He teaches us not merely to forgive seven times, but seventy
times seven (Mt 18:21–22). Ultimately, Jesus Himself, on the Cross, responds to
humanity not with anger but with mercy: “Father, forgive them; for they do not
know what they are doing” (Lk 23:34).
Concerning Adultery
In the following verses (Mt
5:27–30), Christ once again affirms the purity demanded by the Sixth
Commandment and calls for a radical commitment to holiness. Here, Jesus deepens
the meaning of the commandment and reveals the interior moral vision of the Kingdom
of God. The Sixth Commandment prohibited the external act of adultery as
marital infidelity (Ex 20:14; Deut 5:18), which is also linked to the Tenth
Commandment: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife” (Ex 20:17).
For Christ, adultery is not
only the betrayal of a spouse; it is also a distortion of authentic and mature
love, reducing another person to an object of desire. Therefore, Christ warns:
“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already
committed adultery with her in his heart” (Mt 5:28).
Jesus does not abolish this
commandment; instead, He radicalizes it by moving from the act to the intention
and from behavior to the heart. As Scripture reminds us, “The LORD looks on the
heart” (1 Sam 16:7). In today’s Gospel, Christ insists on the importance of
purity, which is not repression but the integration of desire according to
God’s plan. One must be attentive to one’s interior desires. For Jesus, true
holiness is the transformation of the heart. The heart must constantly be
formed according to God’s commandments. As Jesus warns in Matthew 15:19, “Out
of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery…”
Jesus teaches that sin
begins in the heart, not merely in outward behavior. Therefore, interior purity
preserves us from falling into serious sin and safeguards our personal
integrity. This teaching concludes with the strong and radical language of
Christ (Mt 5:29–30): “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out… If your
right hand causes you to sin, cut it off…” Jesus is not commanding literal
self-mutilation, but emphasizing the seriousness of uncontrolled desire and the
urgent need for decisive action against temptation. All of us are morally
responsible for our choices.
From this teaching, Christ
continues His instruction concerning divorce (Mt 5:31–32). For Christ, marriage
is indissoluble (Mt 19:3–9), for it is a sacred union made holy by God’s
presence in the lives of the couple. Fidelity in marriage is the permanent will
of God and cannot be altered according to changing modern times.
Points for Personal Reflection
Love, therefore, is not merely a feeling or the freedom to do whatever
we want. On the contrary, it is the driving force of service to others
according to God’s design. This is why Jesus presents six concrete situations
from daily life—of which we encounter the first four today—in which this love
must be lived out: reconciliation with others, avoiding anger and insults,
purity of heart that goes beyond external fidelity, rejecting adultery even in
desire, avoiding divorce, renouncing anything that leads us to sin, even if it
seems precious to us and concerning oaths
Following this teaching on the Law and the Prophets come Jesus’ famous
antitheses (Mt 5:21–48). Six times we hear Jesus say, “You have heard that
it was said,” followed by a quotation from the Torah, and then, “But I
say to you.” This formula might seem to suggest that Jesus is weakening or
contradicting the Law, but in fact He intensifies its demands. Not only
is murder condemned, but even anger must be mastered. Not only must adultery be
avoided, but illicit desire must be eliminated. Not only must divorce be
regulated, but it should not occur at all. Not only must vows be kept, but one
should avoid swearing altogether. Not only must retaliation be limited, but it
should be renounced entirely. Not only must one love one’s neighbour, but even
one’s enemy.
In short, Matthew’s Jesus does not compromise the Torah; rather, He
makes its demands even more radical. This is why Jesus says: “For I tell
you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you
will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:20).
A Christian, therefore, is first of all a disciple of Jesus, not
merely an observer of the Law. The Pharisees were obsessed with the literal and
meticulous observance of the Law, yet they lost its true spirit. Jesus is the
fullness of the Law because He is the definitive Word of the Father (cf. Heb
1:1). Once again, we are reassured by His words: “Heaven and earth will pass
away, but my words will not pass away” (Mt 24:35). Saint Paul reminds us: “Whoever
loves another has fulfilled the law… Love is the fulfillment of the law”
(Rom 13:8–10). In this sense, Jesus is the fullness of every word that comes
from the mouth of God, for “God so loved the world that He gave His
only-begotten Son… so that the world might be saved through Him” (Jn
3:16–17).
For devout Jews, the religious ideal consisted in observing the Law,
through which God’s will was revealed. Meditating on and fulfilling the Law was
Israel’s inheritance, a lamp for their steps, a refuge, and a source of peace
(cf. Ps 119).
Conclusion
This Gospel invites each one of us to examine our hearts: How sincere am I
in fulfilling what the Lord asks of my life? Do I truly delight in the Law of
the Lord, or do I follow it only externally? Jesus calls us today not merely to
observe the law, but to allow Him to transform our hearts. For it is only a
transformed heart that can overcome anger, remain pure in thought, and remain
faithful in love.
If we walk in the path shown by Christ, we can be confident that we are on
the journey toward eternal life. Therefore, let us strive to live lives of
integrity, discipline, and truth. Let our commitment to God be firm and
sincere, so that our words and actions reflect the holiness to which we are
called. As the Lord teaches us today, let your “Yes” be “Yes,” and your “No,”
“No” (Mt 5:37). In this fidelity, we will truly become disciples who fulfill
the Law through love and inherit the fullness of life in Christ.
