The Venerable Jonathan Chaffey, Archdeacon of Oxford: (Sermon for 15th February 2026 - Quinquagesima)
preached by The Venerable Jonathan Chaffey, Archdeacon of Oxford - 1 Corinthians 2:6–10; Matthew 5:20–37
“Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus made a habit of saying things that would wake people up! I mean, if the scribes and Pharisees weren’t sufficiently righteous, who was? If they were not demonstrating a way of life aligned to the holiness of God, then who could? They were the experts, seemingly attaining righteousness through a detailed conformity to the law. The gold standard was perhaps the strict community of the Essenes where ‘the teacher of righteousness’, as described in the Dead Sea Scrolls, called for radical obedience to all the commandments. Jesus, however, righteousness personified, went even further: without exceeding the example of the religious professionals, he said, you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Jesus gave substance to his high demand. As part of the Sermon on the Mount, he offered 6 parallel paragraphs, antitheses which began, “You have heard it said…” and continue, “But I say to you…” We heard 4 of these - on murder, adultery, divorce and the taking of oaths. There are 2 others, on the question of ‘an eye for an eye’ and on loving even our enemies. In all of these moral imperatives Jesus is not asking for more obedience but deeper obedience. He does not detract from the Jew civ and moral law and the interpretation of it in his day; he rather raises the bar. He does not diminish the seriousness of the Pharisees but exposes their shallowness. He emphasises less the outward action, more the inner intention, for out of the heart springs behaviour.
This is of course relevant for each of us. Jesus is revealing the absurdity of our thinking that we can be self-sufficient in our moral life. He exposes the false std of just looking at what is visible or measurable. Think instead about the anger that you harbour, the lust behind adultery, the brokenness that underlies divorce and the integrity that affects our speech. Who has not let bitterness determine their speech or action? Who has not desired what is not theirs to have? Who has not broken a good relationship? And who has not spun narratives and spoken only half-truths in order to mislead? We hear quite a lot about people in public life, whose external persona is undermined by private behaviour. Yet we are all culpable and fall short of Jesus’ high call. As Solzhenitsyn wrote, ‘The line dividing good and evil cuts through every human heart’.
It was my privilege for a few years to be a chaplain amongst military officers just starting out in their career. It was not my place to give them practical advice on their chosen specialisms, whether flying a fast jet, trauma surgery, strategic planning and so forth. But it was my responsibility to say, that if they really wanted to align personal happiness with professional competence, then they needed to address their inner life. To sustain them both in their challenging profession and domestic relationships it was important not to follow the wisdom of the age, which could distort one’s moral compass; it was necessary to look beyond organisational values, which may have been worthy but did not inspire heart and soul. My observation was that they were genuinely attracted to spiritual depth. New Archbishop of Westminster, Richard Moth, this week echoed the observation of the Bible Society (and many C of E churches), that young people today are looking for authentic spirituality, walking into churches off the street, after reading the bible and finding out about Jesus online. Proverbs 4.23 holds true today: ‘Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life’.
How is this possible? The heart is easily distracted. It’s not easy to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength – let alone to love our neighbours as ourselves. Similarly, how is it possible to fulfil the stated vision of St Barnabas: Timeless beauty in our liturgy and music; encouragement and compassion in our mission. We can perceive what is right, we can aspire to offer it…but what’s the secret?
St Paul offers the way through, revealing the hitherto hidden wisdom of God. The context of this letter is important, addressed to the fledgling church in Corinth, a cosmopolitan city opposite Athens. With harbours facing both east and west, it was a crossroads for traders and travellers – and also a haven for a range of philosophical thought and religious practice. With a dozen or so temples, including Aphrodite, it was known for its excessive permissiveness in the name of religion. In the first 2 chapters of his letter Paul argues against the spirit and wisdom of the age, demonstrating that in Christ crucified we find wisdom personified. In him all our deepest dreams can be fulfilled, for (in quoting the prophet Isaiah), ‘no eye has seen, no ear heard, no mind conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him’. How fitting is this text on this 11th anniversary of the 21 martyrs of Libya – those migrant workers from Egypt and one from Ghana who cried out ‘My Lord Jesus’ as they were murdered on the beach by the Islamic State.
Such witness, such righteousness, is something that we cannot attain by ourselves. As Paul writes, this comes as revelation through the work of the Holy Spirit. Righteousness is a status bestowed upon us, stemming from the sacrificial love of the one person who fulfilled the law in its entirety. It sounds a bit upside down, but Paul explains that God’s foolishness in Christ shames the wisdom of the world. The Lord Jesus changes us from the inside out. And in receiving him, we gain the inspiration and strength to go the extra mile ourselves, in loving God and our neighbour.
Consider this for your personal life and as a church community. Righteousness comes from God alone. The extent to which we respond in love will be the mark that attracts others to the wisdom and love of God. Such righteousness may not gain applause but, in the wisdom of Jesus and with the gift of the Holy Spirit, it will sustain our lives and bring transformation within our communities.
