Jesus and the Torah: Fulfilling the Law in the Kingdom

Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:17-20 invite us into a radical reorientation of life under God’s reign. He makes it clear that he has not come to abolish the Law or the Prophets, but to fulfill them. This fulfillment is not about discarding the Old Testament or its commands, but about bringing them to their intended purpose—transforming the hearts of God’s people. The kingdom Jesus announces is an upside-down kingdom, offered first to the marginalized and the spiritual “zeros,” and it calls us to live with a value system that is counterintuitive to the world around us.

Living in this kingdom is like learning to drive on the “wrong” side of the road or mastering a new instrument: it’s disorienting, requires intentional effort, and often leads to tension and collision with the surrounding culture. Jesus doesn’t call us to withdraw from the world, but to live as salt and light within it, embodying a new way of being human. This new way is not simply about external obedience to rules, but about a deep, internal renovation of the heart—a fulfillment of the ancient promise in Jeremiah 31, where God would write his law on our hearts and forgive our failures.

Jesus’ authority is unique. He doesn’t just interpret the Torah; he claims the authority to fulfill it, to bring its true intent to life. He exposes the limitations of mere rule-keeping by going to the heart of the matter: anger, contempt, lust, pride, and the ways we manage our image before others. The commands of the Torah are not abolished, but their purpose is realized in a people whose hearts are being transformed by grace. The call is not to out-Pharisee the Pharisees, but to become the “Jeremiah 31 people”—those who, having received radical forgiveness, are empowered to love God and neighbor from the inside out.

This journey is paradoxical: Jesus calls us to a standard that seems impossible, yet he meets us in our failures with grace. The bread and the cup become weekly reminders of the forgiveness party Jesus throws for us, inviting us to receive his life and to be shaped by his love. In our moments of failure and brokenness, we discover the heart of the kingdom: Jesus came not for the healthy, but for those who know they need healing. Our only response is to come to him, again and again, asking for help, trusting that he is making us new.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. The Kingdom’s Upside-Down Value System Jesus invites us into a kingdom where the values are radically different from the world’s—generosity, humility, peacemaking, and serving others are central. Living this way is disorienting, like driving on the “wrong” side of the road, and it often leads to tension with the culture around us. Yet, it is precisely in this collision that the distinctiveness of God’s people is revealed. [06:54]
• 2. Fulfillment, Not Abolition, of the Law Jesus does not discard the Old Testament commands but fulfills them by bringing their true intent to life. The Torah remains a statement of God’s will, but its purpose is realized in a people whose hearts are being transformed, not just their outward behavior. This fulfillment is about internalizing God’s desires, not merely following external rules. [16:29]
• 3. The Renovation of the Heart The promise of the new covenant is that God will write his law on our hearts, making obedience a joy rather than a duty. This deep transformation comes through experiencing God’s radical forgiveness, which changes our motivations and desires from the inside out. True righteousness is not about stricter rule-keeping, but about a heart shaped by grace and love. [22:07]
• 4. Jesus’ Authority and the Paradox of Discipleship Jesus claims an authority greater than the teachers of the law, calling us to a standard that exposes our deep need for transformation. The paradox is that while the call is impossibly high—“be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect”—Jesus meets us in our failures with grace, inviting us to continual dependence on him. [41:26]
• 5. Love as the Fulfillment of the Law At the heart of Jesus’ teaching is the call to love God and neighbor. All the commands and the prophets hang on this: a people so transformed by grace that love becomes the natural outflow of their lives. This is the true mark of the Jeremiah 31 people—those who have been forgiven much and now love much. [42:42]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:43] - Jesus and the Law: Not Abolishing but Fulfilling
• [02:01] - The Kingdom Announced to the Marginalized
• [03:12] - Upside-Down Values of the Kingdom
• [05:01] - The Challenge of Living Differently
• [06:54] - Collision of Kingdoms: Tension and Conflict
• [08:55] - Torah, Authority, and Jesus’ Unique Claim
• [13:18] - Early Church and the Question of Torah
• [15:14] - Fulfillment: What Does It Mean?
• [17:42] - Israel’s Story: Covenant and Failure
• [19:41] - Jeremiah’s Promise of a New Covenant
• [22:07] - The Renovation of the Heart
• [26:03] - Jesus Forms the New Covenant People
• [27:54] - Fulfilling the Law: Heart Issues Exposed
• [32:10] - Learning a New Way: Scales and Instincts
• [35:21] - The Enduring Value of the Torah
• [38:44] - Surpassing the Pharisees: True Righteousness
• [41:26] - The Paradox of Jesus’ Call
• [42:42] - Love: The Heart of the Law
• [45:51] - Coming to the Table: Grace for the Sick
• [47:46] - Closing Prayer and Invitation

Bible Study Discussion Guide: Matthew 5:17-20 and the Upside-Down Kingdom

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### Bible Reading

Matthew 5:17-20 (ESV)
> “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. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (ESV)
> “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”

Matthew 22:36-40 (ESV)
> “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

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### Observation Questions

1. According to Jesus in Matthew 5:17-20, what is his relationship to the Law and the Prophets? What does he say he has come to do? ([14:37])
2. In Jeremiah 31, what is the main difference between the old covenant and the new covenant God promises? ([20:50])
3. What does Jesus say is required for someone to be “great in the kingdom of heaven”? ([37:59])
4. In Matthew 22, what does Jesus say is at the heart of all the Law and the Prophets? ([42:42])

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### Interpretation Questions

1. Why do you think Jesus describes the kingdom as having an “upside-down” value system, and how does this challenge the way people normally live? ([03:12])
2. What does it mean for Jesus to “fulfill” the Law rather than abolish it? How is this different from simply following rules? ([16:29])
3. How does the promise in Jeremiah 31 about God writing his law on our hearts connect to Jesus’ teaching about internal transformation? ([22:07])
4. Why does Jesus say our righteousness must surpass that of the Pharisees and teachers of the law? What kind of righteousness is he talking about? ([38:44])

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### Application Questions

1. The sermon compared living in God’s kingdom to driving on the “wrong” side of the road—disorienting and countercultural. Where do you feel the tension of living by Jesus’ values in your daily life? Can you share a recent example? ([06:54])
2. Jesus calls us to be “salt and light” in the world, not to withdraw from it. What does it look like for you to live out your faith in a way that is visible and distinct, but not self-righteous or withdrawn? ([05:39])
3. The new covenant is about God writing his law on our hearts and forgiving our failures. Is there an area of your life where you need to experience God’s forgiveness in a fresh way? How might that change your motivation to obey? ([22:46])
4. Jesus exposes heart issues like anger, contempt, and pride, not just outward actions. Is there a “heart issue” that you sense God is inviting you to address right now? What would it look like to bring that to Jesus? ([40:08])
5. The sermon said the call is not to “out-Pharisee the Pharisees,” but to become people transformed by grace. Are there ways you find yourself focusing on rule-keeping or image management instead of heart change? ([39:28])
6. Jesus meets us in our failures with grace and invites us to come to him again and again. When you fail, what is your first instinct—to hide, to try harder, or to come to Jesus for help? How can you practice coming to him honestly this week? ([45:51])
7. At the heart of Jesus’ teaching is love for God and neighbor. Who is one person you can intentionally show love to this week, especially if it feels counterintuitive or difficult? ([42:42])