The key text of the Sermon on the Mount is Matt. 5:20: "Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven." The rest of the chapter is then taken up in showing that the intent of the law was not the regulation of outward actions, but to control the source of all things--the heart; which point the Pharisees had ignored or overlooked. Not only murder, but anger, contemptful speech, and railing, fell under the bane of the law as Jesus interpreted it; not only adultery, but lustful thoughts and glances. And the good man does not stop at the literal requirement of the law, but puts his whole soul into conformity to God, going so far beyond the safe limits as to avoid all chances of overstepping them. Then, again, even righteous acts must be offered with pure and single motive; not for show, not for praise, not for men, not for earthly reward, but unto God alone. This he declares in Matt. 6. Finally in [283] Matt. 7 he shows the most disgusting trait of the false piety of the Pharisees--their fault-findings and judgings. This was nothing else than the result of their effort to exert a good influence without being good themselves. That makes a hypocrite. He is sincere in the point of wanting to make others good. But in order to exert a good influence, not being good himself, he must "put on" airs of piety and holiness; good words that do not come from the soul; advice he himself never follows; heavy burdens he himself would not touch with his finger. He must parade his "good" works so as to duly impress the beholders. And inevitably he becomes a fault-finder, who sees many motes in many eyes without seeing the beam in his own. There are--alas!--many such men. How important it is to become good, to get right with God, first of all! In purpose to be surrendered unto him; with true heart to love him; to have our hearts purified by a real faith; to be full of the Spirit, that we may walk by, live by, pray by, worship by, the Spirit of God. For of the flesh springs nothing good. Nobody ever tried harder to make a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit than those Pharisees. Being something comes before doing something, and the first intent of the gospel is to make us new, good men after the likeness of Christ. [284]

[TAG 283-284]