Matthew 5:17-37 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) You have heard that it was said to the people of old, but I say to you.

Sharing Guidelines
*Sharing is not a time for teaching or debate; it is a time to sense the marvelous work of the Holy Spirit who leads the gathering.
*Reflection sharing is not meant to teach others but to share the meaning you personally have discovered. Therefore, do not criticize or debate another person’s sharing. Avoid boasting of your own understanding or knowledge.
*Respect the grace of the Holy Spirit, who reveals the meaning of the Word while dwelling among us, and listen attentively to others’ sharing, holding it in your heart.
*Keep confidential any personal reflections or stories shared in the group; practicing brotherly love means not passing along private matters outside the meeting.
*When speaking, always use the first person singular (“I”). Be careful not to distance or generalize your story by using the third person (“he,” “they”) or the first person plural (“we”).
*Keep it short.

First Reading

Sir 15:15-20
15 If you choose you can keep the commandments; it is loyalty to do his will. 16 There are set before you fire and water; to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand. 17 Before man are life and death, whichever he chooses shall be given him. 18 Immense is the wisdom of the LORD; he is mighty in power, and all-seeing. 19 The eyes of God see all he has made; he understands man’s every deed. 20 No man does he command to sin, to none does he give strength for lies.

Second Reading

Ps 119:1-2, 4-5, 17-18, 33-34 R. (1b) Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord! Blessed are they whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD. Blessed are they who observe his decrees, who seek him with all their heart. R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord! You have commanded that your precepts be diligently kept. Oh, that I might be firm in the ways of keeping your statutes! R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord! Be good to your servant, that I may live and keep your words. Open my eyes, that I may consider the wonders of your law. R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord! Instruct me, O LORD, in the way of your statutes, that I may exactly observe them. Give me discernment, that I may observe your law and keep it with all my heart. R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!

———————————-

Gospel <You have heard that it was said to the people of old, but I say to you.>
[Matthew 5:17-37]
17 Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 20 I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

21 You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you, whoever is angry 18 with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna. 23 Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, 24 leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 26 Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.

27 You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you, everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna.

30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna. 31 It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife must give her a bill of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) causes her to commit adultery, and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

33 Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all; not by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black. 37 24 Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.

————————————

Reflection

Believing in Jesus
Today’s Gospel teaches us what kind of faith life has the greatest value:
avoiding what God forbids, obeying what God commands, or doing what God desires.

The Pharisees and the scribes seemed like experts at avoiding what God forbids. They memorized 613 laws, fasted twice a week, prayed often, gave tithes carefully, and kept the Sabbath very strictly. Because of this, they believed that God was always pleased with them. Even when they prayed at the Temple, they proudly listed their “religious achievements.”

But Jesus criticized this attitude. He said, “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:20)

The Pharisees understood the law only in a literal and external way. For example, they thought that as long as they did not physically kill someone, they had kept the commandment, “You shall not kill.” But they did not think about why God gave that commandment or how much God values life. They did not see that every command contains God’s mercy, love, and the message of the Gospel.

So Jesus teaches that God’s commandments should not be understood only as words or outward actions.
He wants us to practice what is more important—justice, mercy, and faithfulness (Matthew 23:23).

Even though Pharisees looked like they kept every rule, Jesus said, “All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.” (Matthew 23:5) They followed the law, but their hearts were not close to God.

Saint Paul also once lived like a Pharisee. He said:
“Circumcised on the eighth day, of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrew parentage, in observance of the law a Pharisee, in zeal I persecuted the church, in righteousness based on the law I was blameless.” (Phil 3:5–6)
But later he declared, “whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ” (Phil 3:7–8) Paul realized that true righteousness does not come from the law, but from faith in Christ.

The “better righteousness” that Jesus wants comes only when we accept God’s way of salvation.
We cannot be saved by our own effort alone. God sent Jesus, His only Son, to save us. What God wants is not only external effort like the Pharisees showed, but that we believe in Jesus living in us, share His love, and spread His Gospel. Without faith in Jesus and love for Him, neither the law nor our effort has any real meaning.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” (John 3:16) (임성만 신부)

———————————-

Sharing

1. Let’s share which verse or phrase touched your heart .

2. If the Lord were to give us another commandment besides the Ten Commandments (and besides love), what do you think it might be?

3. Some people strictly follow religious laws (like many Jews or Muslims), while some Christians live carelessly and sin while saying it’s “God’s mercy and love.” Let’s talk about what it truly means to live well as a believer.

4. In the words, “I have accepted the loss of all things and I consider them so much rubbish” (Phil 3:7–8), what kinds of “rubbish” might we have in our own lives? And why is it so hard for us to throw away this “rubbish”?