What Do You Want? (Matthew 5:27–30)

In Jesus’ authoritative application of the Old Testament in the Sermon on the Mount, he unearths the truth behind the command to not commit adultery. The righteousness that God requires involves more than merely abstaining from certain behaviours, but desiring the right things—desiring a covenantal relationship more than the fleeting pleasure of sin; desiring eternal life more than the indulgence of the flesh. In another convicting teaching, Jesus asks each one of us: What do you want? We consider this question under two broad headings:

1. The heart of the law (vv. 27–28)
2. The life it requires (vv. 29–30)